How Holland Christian soccer reached state semis in shootout; Elliott Cook got redemption
RICHLAND - It took until the shootout to get the Holland Christian soccer team going offensively - and give Elliott Cook a little bit of redemption.
Last year in the postseason, Cook missed a shootout attempt in the postseason, and though the Maroons went on to win that game on their way to the state title, it is something that remained in the back of Cook's head.
Cook can finally let that go after nailing the game winner in a shootout to lead the Maroons to a 4-2 advantage in the shootout and a 1-0 win against Plainwell on Thursday at Gull Lake to claim the Division 3 regional title and a spot in the state semifinals.
"I am so proud of us. The defense kept us in it and held strong. It is such a great win for us," Cook said. "Last year, I shot seventh in the regional semifinals against Catholic Central and went left. It got saved. Thankfully we kept going and won it. But I went the same place this time. I was confident and there it was, in the back of the net. It is so surreal with the cheer of the crowd. It was amazing."
The Maroons will face Grand Rapids Christian in the Division 2 state semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Forest Hills Central.
It couldn't have started any better for the Maroons in the shootout.
Lake VanderPloeg started the shootout with a goal.
Adam Bergman made a save for the Maroons, then Michael Haig buried a goal for a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five shootout.
"Adam set the tone with those huge saves and Lake making his, then Michael," Cook said.
Bergman made another save, then scored himself to make it 3-0. Plainwell put a couple in, then Cook hit the clincher for the Maroons.
"They executed their game plan and defended well. I am really proud of how resilient our kids were. It felt like things were going to break, they didn't and we had to find a moment - and that moment happened to be in the shootout," Holland Christian coach Dave DeBoer said. "Having a goalkeeper 6-3 and has good instincts makes you feel pretty good in a shootout, then he put one home, too. Then for Elliott, what a big moment for him. He has been a solid leader for us for a long time."
More: Madison Holloway, Hope soccer aims for aggressive postseason
Both teams had their chances in regulation and the overtime periods.
Holland Christian's JP Hogsten hit the crossbar with 22 minutes remaining in the first half.
Late in the half, Plainwell had a chance off a corner kick that bounced off a Holland Christian head and hit the post before being corralled by Bergman.
The second half had a few chances from each team, but headed to overtime scoreless, then into the second of two 10-minute overtime periods scoreless.
"Getting to the semifinals again speaks a lot about the kids and how much they work hard to make each other better," DeBoer said. "What a fun group."
More: Defending state champ Holland Christian soccer tops DeWitt in physical battle
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland Christian soccer needed stellar penalty kicks to reach state semifinals
