The Tigers Varsity Girls Soccer team traveled to Harbor Beach for their last game of the season. They already confronted this team earlier with a loss. The coaches' directions were to try to contain this talented host team and play more defensive by marking the dangerous players. The first half started slowly for the visitors as the hosts were dominating throughout the whole field by winning most of the balls and creating great chances to score. Fair enough, with only 10 minutes played, the ball was crossed towards the Caro's goalie but could not win the ball over the unmarked Harbor Beach tall player who headed it in for their first goal. The Caro team doesn't seem to grasp the notion of tight marking as another dangerous player was left outside the box who had plenty of time to control the ball and shoot it to beat the Tigers' goalie for the second goal at around 36 minutes of the first half. The coaching staff could not retain their frustration as they keep reminding their players to stick to the defensive basics to disturb the opponents and block their dangerous shots. The defense kept containing this talented team but thanks to the amazing goaltender Talena Pifer, various attempts did not lead to any outcome at the scoreboard. However, another unmarked player was able to shoot the ball to score but Pifer was able to deflect the shot but could not catch the ball which was intercepted by another unmarked forward player from Harbor Beach who easily placed in the back of the net for the third goal. The coaching staff was saving the obvious unpleasant speech for the half time break as the game was nearing the 40 minute mark. The coaches contained their frustration and in fact encouraged their players to do better at second half and it was up to them to make it happen. The second half was reflective of the expectations of the coaching staff after the speech and encouragements as the team played more competitive with tight marking and solid defense. With 10 minutes in the second half, an unmarked player was able to dribble inside the dangerous zone and directed the ball with her left foot to surprise the Tigers' goalie for the 4th and last goal of the game. The Tigers tried to initiate a couple of counter attacks but the skilled hosting defense did not leave any room for the visitors to maneuver. At least, the hosts were contained to only one goal in the second half and that was enough to satisfy the coaching staff and the players to walk away with the similar 0-4 score outcome as the last game earlier in he season. Junior, Captain and Sweeper Lydia Chapelo received the game MVP award/trophy for her outstanding performance in central defense. She was able to stop several breakaways and scoring attempts, retrieved many balls left and right and managed to block as many shots as 15 during the game. Goaltender Talena Pifer stopped 31 shots during this game which brings her total to 317 saves for the whole season for an average of 23 saves per game. Another mention of great performance goes to freshman Olivia Walker who was able to mark their best player (#16) and prevented her to score further. Walker was later moved to center midfield position to try to trigger any counter attacks with great effort and managed to generate some breakaways without any tangible results to the scoreboard. Next game will be in Frankenmuth for the second round District game against Garber at 6:00 pm on Tuesday, May 28. Bus leaves at 4:30 pm from the Caro High School. Garber beat USA 8-0 today during the first round.  

On a beautiful sunny afternoon but chilly weather with only on the high 50's, the Caro bus was heading towards Croswell-Lexington headquarters to face the Pioneers for their first time. Missing on the bus were Deziree Hughes and Abby Spencer which left the team with no subs on the horizon. It was also officially the last school day for the four (4) Tigers' seniors Stopper Marisol Reyes (C), Right Defender Ellie Fisch (C), Left Defender Olivia Montgomery and Right Midfielder Bryanna Funsch. The word on the bus was to perform during this game and try to win it for the seniors, although the lineup was restricted to only 11 players. After a paying respect to the American Flag and a brief presentation of the players on both sides by the hosting staff, the officials blew the whistle to kick-off the game. Within 5 minutes of play, the Caro midfield and forward machines already threatened 3 times with Olivia Walker missing a golden opportunity after a breakaway face to face with the Cros-Lex goalie, Faith MacDonald missing the net so close by hitting the top right corner of the goal post, and Alyssa Smith coming close to surprise the hosts' goalie by inches to go out past the post. On another organized attack, Freshman Olivia Walker missed a beautiful shot at the top right corner of the goal tender. The Tigers kept pressing the Pioneers' vulnerable defense and Freshman Faith MacDonald took matters in her hands by dribbling through and past the defenders to shoot the ball right at the goalie. It was obvious that the Caro players were dominating the soccer field real estate with nice transitions from the solid defense through the midfield and towards the forward crew. With a nice cross from Freshman Lexie Johnson and a deflection by Bryanna Funsch and Katie Scharrer, Olivia Walker retrieved the ball and shot it with her left foot to surprise the hosts' goalie for the first goal for Caro assisted by Katie Scharrer. The hosting team from Cros-Lex decided to switch gears to try to put pressure on the visitors' defense but in vain since the solid defense led by Junior Lydia Chapelo and supported by Seniors Ellie Fisch, Marisol Reyes and Olivia Montgomery did not allow any action to threaten the amazing goalie Talena Pifer. On another organized attack by the visitors led by Freshmen Olivia Walker and Lexie Johnson, center forward player and Sophomore Katie Scharrer intercepted the ball outside the box and rushed towards the dangerous opponent's zone to blast the ball with an accurate shot to beat the hosts' goalie for the second goal of the game assisted by Olivia Walker and Lexie Johnson. At this point, the game was controlled by the visitors and the Croswell-Lexington Pioneers kept pressing the Caro's defense but without any tangible result for this half and retrieved to their bench with built-up frustration not to resolve the dilemma at this half break time. The half time speech by the coaching staff on the Caro bench was focused to remind the players to stay at their game competitive level and not to relax too much by being too confident with a 2 goal lead. The word was to spread out and use the whole field as the opponents tend to gather in the middle. After 10 minutes into the second half, Bryanna Funsch and Lexie Johnson were pressing up front and fair enough, Olivia Walker exploited a lost ball outside the opponent's box to surprise their goalie with a perfect top quality shot into the top right corner for her second goal of the game to give her team a 3-0 lead with assists from Funsch and Johnson. The coaches decided at that point to move up Sweeper and Junior Lydia Chapelo into the center midfield to switch with Walker who became the sweeper for the rest of the game. Another line up change was deemed necessary to move up Senior Bryanna Funsch to anticipate any actions from her since she was very motivated to score a goal. On a smart attack from the wing by Lexie Johnson who passed the ball to Faith MacDonald, Bryanna Funsch intercepted the ball in the dangerous zone to surprise the goalie with a low shot to beat her for her first goal of the season assisted by both MacDonald and Johnson. What a nice gift for Funsch's last school day at the high school level. Some slight adjustments within the defense maintained the protection of the Caro goalie's headquarters and contained the hungry opponents' forwards but in vain without any result to change the outcome of the Tigers' 4-0 win. Such a sweet win dedicated to the Seniors of the team! The MVP award/trophy was presented to the whole TEAM as each player contributed and gave it all to impress not only the coaching staff but the parents present at the field. The MVP trophy was labeled "2019 Varsity Team"! The Caro team ended up with 39 shots on goal (a high school team record) and goaltender Talena Pifer experienced her 3rd shutout of the season by making a total of 11 saves during this game which brings her total number of saves of the season to 286 in 13 games with an average of  22 saves per game. Next and final game of the season is tomorrow Wednesday May 22 traveling to Harbor Beach HS. Bus leaves at 2:45 pm from Caro HS and the game starts at 4:30 pm. District game will be next Tuesday, May 28,  in Frankenmuth facing the winner of Garber/USA game at 6:00 pm.                

Mother nature seemed to spoil the Tuscola region and especially the Caro area where the sunny and mild afternoon weather temperature was just perfect for a soccer game and parents nights for the Tigers. The visitors from Laker High School walked in into the Tigers headquarters with great confidence as they remembered winning the last game at home against the hosts with the absence of the Caro goalie Talena Pifer. However, this time, the Tigers goalie is present and wanted to show the extent of her talent during this game. The first half started with a very balanced fight on both sides with some breakaways that led to no outcome. The Caro defense was just too good for the Laker forwards who got frustrated at various instances. With only 6 minutes left to the first half, one forward from Laker dribbled a Caro defender and was able to free herself and took a shot which hit the cross bar for a rebound to find a header from another but taller Laker forward who headed in for the first goal. This unlucky goal was not what the Tigers expected since they worked so hard to contain the visitors until then. The half time break was all about Parents Night where the parents were honored for their support to their kids and the team. The players handed their carnations to their parents/guardians to thank them for their presence and support. The Seniors were especially honored with more detailed information about their future endeavors and their performance during the soccer season. The Parents Nights session ended up with the traditional "ball signing by seniors and ball hand-over to juniors-future seniors". After pictures sessions, we were back to the second half. The 5 min speech from the coaching focused on continuing to mark, block shots and be first to the ball. The second half started at the advantage of the Tigers since they kept pressing up front with some lineup adjustments to trigger some actions in the midfield area and opportunities to score. Freshman Olivia Walker with the help of her teammate and freshman Faith MacDonald came close to score with a weak shot to their goalie. A couple corner kicks delivered by Freshman Lexie Johnson almost led to threatening actions in the Laker dangerous zone but without any outcome. The Lakers reorganized themselves after seeing that the Tigers were dominating the game and took over to press up front around the Caro zone. The Caro Goalie Talena Pifer would not allow them to score by making a spectacular save from a corner kick to contain them and keep her teammates in the game. Unfortunately, straight from another corner kick, the Laker forward managed to cross the ball directly inside the Caro net without anybody touching the ball for the second and last goal of the game with only 7 min left. The rest of the game was more about pressing up front to try to score a goal but without any results. This game was very much different from the last confrontation as the Tigers were very competitive and contained the lakers to only 2 unlucky goals. Goaltender Talena Pifer made 22 saves to raise her average to 23 saves per game. The game MVP award was shared by two defenders (both Seniors): Sweeper and Captain Marisol Reyes and Stopper Olivia Montgomery for their outstanding and amazing defensive performance to contain the best Laker forwards. Next game is away on Tuesday, May 21 at 4:30 pm at Croswell-Lexington high school. Bus leaves at 2:45 pm.                    

Finally, mother nature decided to reward us with a nice weather. On a summer like and beautiful sunny afternoon with close to 75F, the Tigers were traveling to USA to confront the team they already beat 1-0 during their first meet. This game was very important for both teams to claim the position in the conference ranking. The first half was very slow for the visitors from Caro as the coaching staff was trying to stimulate and remind their players to mark the players and be first to the ball. Unfortunately, the tone was set by the hosts from USA as they dominated in all aspects with a few shots on goal to test the Tigers goalie. On a breakaway on the wing, the USA forward was faster than the Caro player and she was able to position herself for a beautiful shot on goal which beat the Tigers goalie to lead against Caro 1-0 with only 20 minutes played. That was not what the Caro coaches expected from their team and kept reorganizing the lineup to make something happen. First half ended with deception on the Caro bench and the half time speech was not pleasant as the coaches reminded their players that they already beat the opponents in the previous game. Therefore, the coaching staff urged the Tigers to go back to basics and start playing a more aggressive game and turn the game around. Fair enough and with some slight adjustments by pushing sweeper Lydia Chapelo to the center midfield real estate to support freshman Olivia Walker, the Caro team seemed to have responded to the message and began to dominate the start of the second half. Olivia Walker came close to score as the ball she shot from the left wing hit the cross bar behind the USA goalie who was beat. Then, a moment of scare invaded the Caro team as their goalie Talena Pifer collided with one the USA forward player who never stopped and recklessly hit Pifer's shoulder with her cleats. After attending her on the sideline while Lydia Chapelo backed her up as the goalie, a few minutes later the Tigers goalie was back in action. That collision inspired the rest of team and started pressing up front with a few great passes. All of the sudden, Bryanna Funsch took control of the ball and started rushing towards the USA goalie and found Lydia Chapelo who shot the ball which was blocked by the USA defender's hands for a Penalty Kick (PK), although the ball managed to end up inside the USA's net. In FIFA rules, that would have been a goal but the referees decided otherwise and signaled for a PK which was converted nicely by center midfielder and freshman Olivia Walker to tie the game 1-1 with only 6 minutes left to the game. The rest of the game was more a battle in the midfield to try to contain each other's breakaway until the final whistle was blown by the officials to confirm the scoreboard to a1-1 tie. The MVP trophy was awarded to Senior and right defender/midfielder Bryanna Funsch for initiating the golden play that led to the PK goal to tie the game. She also raised her game to tightly mark her opponents and be first to the ball in various occasions though great defensive and offensive performance. Next game will be at home on Friday, May 17 in Caro hosting the Lakers at 5:30 pm. Parents' night celebration will take place at half time since it will be the last home game.                  

On a fairly cloudy sky with sunny breaks, the Seniors from the Tigers Ellie Fisch, Marisol Reyes, Olivia Montgomery and Bryanna Funsch were honored with special care by their teammates in four groups. Lydia Chapelo and Talena Pifer took care of Bryanna Funsch. Karie Scharrer and Abby Spencer took care of Marisol Reyes. Deziree Hughes and Alyssa Smith took care of Olivia Montgomery. Finally, Faith MacDonald, Lexie Johnson and Olivia Walker took care of Ellie Fisch. After gift presentations and picture sessions, it was time for warm up to host the opponents from Harbor Beach. The first half started with intensity from both sides and it took quite 10 minutes for the hosts to leave again a player unmarked to let her score from a close range beating the Tigers goalie Pifer. After that goal, it was a wakeup call for the hosts and the game was more balanced with great defending from the Caro players containing the talented offensive players from Harbor Beach. As always and one of the weaknesses of the hosts to be consistent, it took one second of distraction to let the players shoot from the outside box which landed beautifully at the top right corner of the post for the second goal. The Tigers were playing with the sun in their face which inconvenienced goal tender Talena Pifer not to see another low but weak shot to her left for the third goal. Half time speeches from the coaching staff was all about tightly marking the players from Harbor Beach and don't let them be comfortable with the ball but rather beat them first to the ball to win it. Despite the 0-3 deficit experienced in the first half, the Tigers never gave up and gave a honorable strong second half by applying the directions from the coaches. Fair enough, for about 25 minutes in the second half, the score was unchanged and the pressure switched to the side of the visitors. Olivia Walker came close to score twice on 2 solo breakaways which she created herself. The injuries started to affect 3 of the Tigers players which affected the dynamics of the team with very limited substitution with no impact to the game. With only 10 minutes left to the game, a spectacular fast breakway by the Harbor Beach forward beat the Caro goalie to increase the lead to 4 goals. The rest of the game was all about Caro trying to press upfront to try at least to score a goal but in vain. The game MVP player trophy was presented to Center midfielder and freshman Olivia Walker who created two clear chances to score for her team and delivered a very strong offensive and defensive game all along. Goalie Talena Pifer finished the game with 28 saves which increased her average to her amazing 23.4 saves per game. Next game is away at USA (2203 Wildner Rd., Sebawaing, MI 48759) on Wednesday May 15 at 4:30 pm. Bus leaves at 3:15 pm from Caro High School.          

On a beautiful sunny day but still chilly around 50s, the freshly cut grass at the Bad Axe soccer field was ready to host the Tigers from Caro. The spirit was high within the Caro team and no matter what the outcome would be, the coaching staff conveyed a positive message to play together and have fun as a family. Fair enough, the response was very positive since the Caro team held the hungry Bad Axe team for 21 minutes without any scoring outcome on the scoreboard. A very well organized and synchronized Caro defense was able to stop every scoring opportunity the opponent had with only two shots on goals. However, an orchestrated attack led the hosts to capitalize on a beautiful shot the Caro goalie couldn't save. Then, during the reorganization of the players during a play ordered by the coaching staff, created a confusion among the players which left one Bad Axe attacker unmarked which led to the second goal of the first half. Despite the 0-2 half time score, the visitors from Caro showed some defensive play and positive spirit to contain the hosts. The coaching staff told the players that it was the best defensive game the team has ever given of all the season.  The extent of the injuries the Caro sustained in previous games including the goalie and some players showed up more in the second half as exhaustion due to limited subs and the intensity of the game were responsible for the reduction of the competitiveness of the visitors. Bad Axe had the luxury to sub their players and it was only a matter of time to hurt the Caro team on the scoreboard by adding another 3 goals. The Tigers never gave up and were still fighting until the end of the game. The coaching staff was so proud of their players and the 0-5 score was not reflective of the great performance the Tigers has given. Left midfielder and freshman Faith MacDonald received for her second time in the season the game MVP player award for putting the greatest effort in winning the ball and tight marking her talented opponent from Bad Axe. She made a huge difference in this game. Honorable mention is given to Bryanna Funsch who raised her game for the first time in the season by delivering great defending skills and awesome sprints. Captain Goal tender and Junior Talena Pifer delivered again a great performance and finished the game with 26 saves. She totals 206 saves for the season so far with an amazing average of 23 saves per game. Next game is at home on Monday May 13 at 5:30 pm hosting the team from Harbor Beach. Right before the game, the Senior Night event will honor our four seniors Ellie Fisch, Marisol Reyes, Olivia Montgomery and Bryanna Funsch.

This game was at reach for the Caro Tigers to win but unfortunately the goalie and one forward player called in sick and were not part of the trip to the Lakers. To add to the bad news, two players of the remaining 11 players were still injured with no possibility of subs. This was a recipe for a disaster. Forward and Junior Alyssa Smith kindly accepted to wear the goalie's jersey and gloves and be a goaltender, a position she was not used to. At first, the Lakers did not look strong but were able to win every ball and real estate around the field. The poor performance of the Tigers defensive crew while leaving Lakers' forward players unmarked and not being first to the ball resulted in chances to target the newly assigned Caro goalie who did her best to catch and block the shots. In vain, due to the lack of her protection, 5 easy goals were scored in the first half. The speech from the coach was not pleasant at half and had no other choice than switch the goalie with Sweeper Lydia Chapelo who volunteered from the beginning. Alyssa was not well protected as planned. Second half started a little bit better than the first half with 20 minutes played with only 2 goals allowed with again the lack of marking or ball clearing out of the goalie's zone. It was just a matter of time to have the Caro players run out of breath with no subs and one player out for healthy reasons. With only 11 minutes left to the game, the Lakers added the last goal to end the game. The game MVP award was presented to center forward and freshman Olivia Walker who created her own 4 clear chances to score but in vain. She fought for the ball and delivered a hard working performance to put pressure in the Lakers' zone which created another chance for forward and sophomore Katie Scharrer to score with no result neither. This was a very disappointing game for the coaching staff as the Caro team failed to deliver their usual game they showed the previous night against Garber. May be the Tigers gave it all against Garber and got nothing left to put up a fight against an average team from Laker who took advantage of the absence of the Caro goalie? Next game is this coming Friday May 10 at Bad Axe at 5:30 pm. Bus leaves at 4:15 pm from Caro High School.    

Mother nature is still not showing signs of upcoming warm weather in this region with some rain earlier in the day and witnessing some temperature drop after that. At least by 7 pm the weather cleared up for the game to start in dry conditions. The Tigers were hosting the talented team from Garber with close to 20 players on the roster as compared to the host team with only 13 players which included 2 injured players who decided to still face the challenging visitors from Garber. For the first 14 minutes, the score was still 0-0 as the Garber team was controlling the whole field with some great passing, constant movement with great positioning and ball control. It was obvious the Tigers were dominated but the hosts were fighting every ball possession and stopping several shots on goal. Goal keeper Talena Pifer was very consistent with her talent as she made several key saves to keep her team in the game. Even the Garber coach made great comments about her and congratulated in many occasions when the Garber forwards were frustrated with clear chances to score. It was a matter of time to have the scoring machine from Garber to capitalize on some poor marking of their forward players who surprised the Tigers goalie 3 times in the first half which was a great surprise to the Caro team coaching staff since their players put up a fight to contain the hosting team to only 3 goals. That's a great improvement from last year as the Caro Tigers didn't even make it to the second half and ended up with a high score in the first half against the same team in the previous season. This is a great improvement in Caro and even the Garber coaching staff noticed it and mentioned the same thing. The half time speech was obviously all about making sure that the Garber key players were marked closely and try to contain them by limiting the shots on goal. The players were encouraged by the coaches and kept insisting that it was a good chance for them to elevate their game against a very good team. Second half started with the same dynamics from the visitors with complete domination although the hosting team was putting up a good fight with some rare plays on their end. Goal after goal, the Garber team added another 5 goals and ended the game with only 11 minutes left to the game with a 0-8 loss for the hosts. The Caro goalie and Junior Talena Pifer ended up with an amazing 33 saves! The game MVP trophy was presented to Senior and Stopper Marisol Reyes for her determination to closely mark their dangerous forward player and blocked several of  their threatening shots. She was able to keep up with their forwards and limit the damage to her team. Next game is away at Lakers tomorrow Tuesday May 7th at 5:30 pm with the bus leaving at 4:00 pm from Caro HS.        

Under an indecisive sky with some sunny breaks, Spring is still taking its sweet time to show up in our region. After a fun picture session performed around 4 pm by Kelly Phipps, the professional photographer of the Tigers team, the visitors from USA started to show up slowly to the field. Statistically speaking based on the discussion between coaches from both sides, the team from USA had a better chance to win this game. The Tigers' coaching staff warned their players about the challenge they will be facing playing against the visitors who had a better record than the Tigers. Although the Caro team had only one sub, the game started with a clear domination by the Tigers. Chances were created at various instances but the skilled, fast and talented USA defenders stopped any threat or attempt the Tigers tried to initiate and capitalize. The first half was fought in the center midfield real estate and both sides were playing a careful defensive game in order not to allow the first goal. The Tigers defensive crew orchestrated an amazing communication with their goalie to put a stop to their hopeful breakaways. You can feel the frustration being built on the opposing team as they seem to run out of options thanks to the great defensive game by the hosting team. Then, one Caro player could not sustain the pain of her injury and had to retreat to the bench. At that point, the Tigers team had no subs at all and the coaching staff had to use every strategy to contain this hungry visiting team from USA. With some adjustments of the lineup to secure the headquarters of the Caro's goalie, the Tigers' machine seem to work better at containing the USA team. First half ended with a 0-0 draw and sent both teams to rethink their strategy to turn things around. The Caro coaching staff insisted and reminded their team that the players have to go back to basics in order to avoid easy mistakes and easy goals like in the previous games. Also they reminded the players to remain patient before thinking of pressing up front and try to score and leave the defense vulnerable. Fair enough, the same lineup rewarded the hosting team as the visitors were getting more and more frustrated. One USA player got a yellow card after a reckless play against a Caro defender, Lydia Chapelo, who could have been seriously injured and taken out of the season. Then, with only 10 minutes left to the game, the coaching staff decided to switch around a defender, Olivia Walker, and a center midfield player, Lexie Johnson. The dynamic of the game changed all of the sudden as ball possession increased on the Caro side and created more chances by pressing up front and keeping the ball in their zone. With only 3 minutes and 39 seconds left in the game, a ball was cleared by a USA defender who found Freshman Deziree Hughes who did not hesitate to shoot towards the bottom right corner of their goalie making it the only goal for her team! It was such an excitement for Deziree as she scored her first goal ever and such a devastating event for the visitors with only a few minutes left to the game. By this time, the visitors started to press and try to equalize the outcome of the game but in vain. The score remained unchanged as the Tigers stopped, cleared and vanished every opportunity the USA's forward machine had to tie the game. After the final whistle, the Tigers rushed in harmony and unison to congratulate their teammate Deziree who changed the outcome of this indecisive game to a third win of the season for the team. Goaltender, Junior and Captain Talena Pifer made 22 saves and ended up with her second shutout of the season. The game MVP award was obviously presented to Freshman and forward player Deziree Hughes who not only played an awesome game but scored the winning goal of the game for her team's 1-0 victory. Next game will be at home in Caro on Monday May 6th at 7:00 pm against the opposing team from Garber.                      

Under the threatening weather forecast, the game was on hosting the team from Bad Axe. First half was an even match on both sides as the first half ended with a scoreless sheet 0-0. Thanks to a great defensive crew and an amazing goal tender, the visitors from Bad Axe were frustrated not to score a single goal in the first half. The speech from the coaching staff consisted of great comments and encouragements but reminded the girls that the soccer game is a very competitive one and they need to elevate their game to the next level. Unfortunately, the second half was not like the first as the visitors started to play rough and showing some aggressive plays trying to hurt some Caro players. The lack of marking in the box cost the hosting team a goal. Then, a blocked shot by a Caro defender deflected towards to the goal tender which surprised her and was not able to save it. Just to add to the agony, a rebound and lost ball found a Bad Axe forward player who easily shot it at close proximity for the third and last goal of the game. The Caro tried really hard to contain this talented team from Bad Axe but in vain. The game MVP tropy was awarded to Senior and left defender Olivia Montgomery who played a strong defensive game by marking closely her opponents, winning the ball and blocking many shots to protect her goalie Talena Pifer who had 27 saves! Next game is away at Harbour Beach this coming Wednesday May 1st at 5:30 pm.  

The Tigers left the CARO High School on the bus without Junior Alyssa Smith who was sick at home. The weather was overcast and temperatures dropped from the day before from 75F to 55F but was deemed as a soccer weather! The visitors arrived at the Brown City soccer field which had a very soft ground with some locations soaked with water and mud. The coach made some slight adjustments in the lineup by assigning Ellie Fisch and Abby Spencer in the center midfield real estate to secure the area and deliver solid passes to the forward crew consisting of Katie Scharrer and Olivia Walker supported by the outside midfielders Faith MacDonald and Lexie Johnson who both have speed and skills. The defensive squad remained unchanged with sweeper Lydia Chapelo and stopper Marisol Reyes supported by the outside defenders Olivia Montgomery and Bryanna Funsch. Deziree Hughes was helping the coach with stats while waiting to be substituted. The fist 5 minutes were dominated by the visitors from Caro and the ball never left the opponent's half. On a lost ball, Fisch intercepted a play and decided to shoot the ball towards the goalie from the outside box which surprised her with a very accurate beautiful goal on the top right corner. What a good way to set the tone for Captain Fisch who always played on the right defense. Five minutes later, the hosts started to put pressure on the Tigers defense which was caught with the talented Brown City forward who delivered a nice and beautiful shot past above the Caro goalie for a 1-1 tie. That was their first shot and chance on the Caro Goalie Talena Pifer. This goal sent a message to the visitors who took matter in their hands by controlling better the game and creating more chances. It was just a matter of time for the Caro team to add more goals by Freshman Olivia Walker, Sophomores Katie Scharrer and Abby Spencer, capitalized on several chances created and master-pieced as a team. It was already 8-1 at the end of first half and within 10 minutes to the second half, Katie Scharrer ended the game with 9-1 final score. Olivia Walker ended up scoring 4 goals (1 PK) with 1 assist, Katie Scharrer scored 3 goals, Ellie Fisch 1 goal and Abby Spencer with 1 goal. Lexie Johnson ended up with 3 assists with 2 beautiful corner kicks, Faith MacDonald assisted 2 goals with her persistence to win and carry the ball forward and help out her forward teammates, Deziree Hughes who assisted 1 goal and really came close to score her first goal ever, and finally sweeper and Captain Lydia Chapelo ended up with 1 assist while playing a solid defensive game protecting her goalie and constraining the opponents to only one goal, assisted by stopper Marisol Reyes who played an awesome game as well. Olivia Montgomery and Bryanna Funsch defended their wings with great conviction and limited the opponents to minimal breakaways, therefore contributed to their team by keeping the pressure up front which helped the offensive crew to capitalize on the several chances and created opportunities. As always, the Caro Goal Tender Talena Pifer was very strong by possessing and owning her box and therefore limited and stopped those breakaways by that talented Brown City forward player. Pifer came close to experience her second shutout but it has been delayed unfortunately for the next game to come. This was a great team effort, play making and ball control exercise for the Tigers who dominated all the way and ended the game with a merci with 10 minutes into the second half. It's been at least 5 years a Caro team has not won with merci against another team and scored that many goals. With the two wins the Tigers had, 13 goals were scored in just two games. Another record never seen for a long time. The game MVP award was presented to center midfielder and sophomore Abby Spencer who not only scored a goal but controlled the center midfield real estate and delivered various solid passes to her forward teammates. She won most of the fights in center midfield supported by another center midfielder, Ellie Fisch. Next game will be away visiting CAPAC High School on Friday, April 26 at 5:30 pm.    

The day was sunny all day as it looked promising for the game if you didn't check your smartphone for the weather forecast predictions. Since it is a Michigan weather, everybody was allowed to speculate on the outcome of the weather during the game, although the officials warned to start early to avoid the upcoming lightenings mixed with some rain. At that point, everybody's guess is good as it can be! The game started with some domination from the hosting team from Caro  while showing some great passing skills in the midfield and offensive areas. The Tigers came close to score first with some threatening shots from the forward players. The fight for the ball possession was intense from both sides as the referees tried to contain the game by allowing several free kicks. After 15 minutes of play, the Dryden forward player was left unattended outside the Caro box and was able to chip the ball above the Caro goalie for an unfortunate easy goal. The hosts worked so hard and didn't deserve to witness this unexpected outcome. One second of lack of attention cost the Tigers this goal. The coach started to stimulate and encourage the Caro team and the response was unbelievable since the ball hardly left the visitors half with some attempts to tie the game. Then, mother nature decided to announce her presence with some sight of lightening which forced the officials to suspend the game for 30 minutes with 37 minutes to play in first half. With other sights of additional lightenings, the suspension time was extended until no more evidence of mother nature's attitude was noticed. The game resumed and you can see both teams lost their momentum and can only retrieve for the same 0-1 score for the visitors for the half time break. The coach's speech was more positive as the only goal they scored was literally another gift from the Caro team. The team was playing as a cohesive entity and the players really tried hard to come back and tie it. As the coach reminded the Tigers, it is not always about the score, but the evolution and progression of all players to form a strong team and following the basics of soccer. And the Caro team proved it. Second half started with no threat from above and with some lineup changes, the Caro team came really close to score on two clear chances to put the ball in the net. Another chance was interrupted by an unjustified whistle blowing from one of the officials who apologized for his mistake. One of the Caro forward player was about to shoot the ball inside the box but just stopped after hearing the whistle. Apparently, the luck was not on the Caro side this night including the caprice of the weather. Fair enough, another sighting of lightenings forced the referees to suspend the game another time again for 30 minutes. With 20 minutes left to play, both teams came back to the field which now has lights on. The hosts came pressing again to try to tie this game but in vain. Obviously, you can notice the visitors were pleased with this unexpected outcome and they tried several times to delay the game with few minutes left to the game, but that's part of the game in this soccer sports, unless it is really obvious to the officials. After the final whistle, the 0-1 game didn't discourage the Caro team as all players were pleased with their performance and hard work. The score did not reflect at all the great performance upfront and with great defending in the back and not to forget the awesome performance of the goalie with a total of 29 saves to keep a close score game. The game MVP award was presented to Captain and Senior Ellie Fisch who played her right midfield position with a flawless performance. She was able to mark closely many players and always got to the ball first to relay her team with some great passing and possession. The coach decided to give a break to the whole team for the entire weekend to recover from some injuries and enjoy the Easter holidays with the families and friends. Next game is away at Brown City High School on Tuesday, April 23rd at 5:30 pm. HAPPY EASTER from the Caro Varsity Soccer family!

The Caro Tigers were traveling out of town to face their opponents from Sandusky High School on a mild & sunny but windy afternoon. The coach has changed the formation strategy (4-4-2) to secure the midfield real estate with ball possession and offensive attempts. Fair enough, the Tigers started very strong within the first few minutes with several breakaways by forward players consistently fed by the midfield squad. The first Caro goal was scored by Katie Scharrer who sprinted towards the opposing goalie thanks to an amazing pass by center midfielder Olivia Walker. Several attempts were tried by right midfielder Lexie Johnson and left forward Deziree Hughes, again fed by center midfielders Faith MacDonald and Walker. This time, MacDonald took matters in her hand and delivered a planned pass towards striker Scharrer who again beat their defenders to place the ball out of reach of the Sandusky goalie for her second goal. The Tigers were dominating the game at this point and the great defensive crew consisting of Captain Lydia Chapelo, Captain Marisol Reyes, Olivia Montgomery and Captain Ellie Fisch would not allow their forward players to construct any threat for their goalie & CaptainTalena Pifer. The ball and plays were contained within the midfield zone and fair enough, left midfielder Abby Spencer delivered a smart pass towards Scharrer who with her left foot rocketed a powerful shot above the goalie's gloves to make it inside the net for her third goal (her first hat trick). The hosts could not solve the visitors' dilemma and started to put pressure on the Tigers' defensive zone. Fair enough, the goalie Talena Pifer came out to challenge their forward player who had the advantage to shoot but got tripped in the box for a penalty kick. Fortunately for the visitors, the penalty kick was not converted into a goal as the ball was shot well above the cross bar without any conclusive result for the hosts. The visitors from Caro took this as a wakeup call and regrouped to continue to press their midfield and defense. A few minutes later, one of the Sandusky defenders blocked a Caro shot with her hand in the box called by the officials for a penalty kick. Olivia Walker took a nice shot past the goal tender for the 4th goal for her team. First half ended with a 4-0 lead for the Tigers. The half time speech from the coach was the easiest and smoothest so far this season but reminded his players not to relax and continue to practice positioning and ball possession & control.  Second half was more about containing the opponents and giving an opportunity for the new players to prove their skills. Fair enough, Alyssa Smith made some great passes and Deziree Hughes who had 3 breakaways came close to score on her 3 shots. MacDonald also came close to score after several sprints to beat the defenders and free herself for several shots on goal. Scharrer also missed several shots on goal as the fatigue started to kick in with only one sub available on the bench for the Tigers. The game ended with a 4-0 win and with 33 shots on goal for the Caro Tigers versus 0 shots for the hosts. The game MVP award was shared and presented to striker and center midfield sophomore Katie Scharrer for scoring 3 goals (her first hat trick) in a game and to junior and Captain goalieTalena Pifer for her first shutout without allowing a single goal against her team. Next game will be at home in Caro on Wednesday, April 17 at 5:30 pm hosting the visitors from Dryden High School.              

On a very windy and cold weather with no more than 38F in temperature, the Tigers were hosting the soccer players from Memphis High School. The first 20 minutes were dominated by the hosting team and had a couple of chances to score from corner kicks and free kicks right outside the 20 yard box without any results. The Tigers were creating chances but could not convert them into goals. On the other hand, marking and winning the ball first were lacking on the Caro team which gave the visitors some chances to shoot and test goal tender Talena Pifer who already had several saves. The Caro defense could not contain the two skilled offensive players from Memphis who one after the other scored in the first half to end it with 2-0 lead for the visitors. The half time speech from the coach was all about going back to basics and start tight marking and winning the ball in center midfield without allowing to shoot. Fair enough, second half started with more energy and determination which gave the Tigers more chances to score, but again without any tangible results. However, the Memphis offensive crew didn't miss the opportunity to score when a midfielder was left unmarked and shot the ball above the Tigers goalie for a third goal. This 3rd goal really shook up the Caro team and started playing the possession and aggressive game and it showed since the hosts were dominating the rest of the second half. Even two breakaways from forward players Lexie Johnson and Olivia Walker who came close to score did not convert into goals. Unluckily and again, the Caro goalie experienced a strange bounce of the ball which left her helpless and could only watch one of the strikers put the ball easily in the empty net for the fourth goal. The Tigers tried to come back to score at least a goal but time was running out and the officials had to whistle the end of this very promising game for the Caro Tigers. The coach was pleased with the overall improvement his team showed today. The game MVP award was presented to Sweeper and Captain Lydia Chapelo who delivered an outstanding performance in both defense and center midfield. Next game is away in Sandusky on Monday, April 15 at 5:30 pm. Bus leaves from Caro HS at 4:15 pm.

With Spring still not wanting to show up for the start of the soccer season, the Caro Tigers were hosting the team from Marlette on a chilly evening. The game started with a well balanced fight from both sides with defenders, midfielders and strikers setting the pace to win the real estate. The hosts were hesitant somehow to win the ball and mark the opposing players which opened up some shooting opportunities for the visitors and therefore testing the Caro goalie who made spectacular saves to keep her team in the game for at least 30 minutes. Then, some confusion again in defense after a passing cross found the Marlette player unmarked and was able to deliver a weak shot towards the goalie to witness the ball rolling slowly in the net. This gift is a reminder of the previous game against North Branch with similar outcome. However, the Tigers would not give up and kept pressing up front to generate some opportunities. Fair enough, midfielders Ellie Fisch and Faith MacDonald fed forward player Olivia Walker who was able to beat the Marlette defender with a breakaway and delivered a low shot past their goalie in the net for the tie, with 5 minutes to go in the first half. At this point, the game was pretty much even and any mistakes could lead to a dangerous play and eventually a goal. Both teams retrieved for a break at half with a 1-1 score sheet. At this point, the coach and his players were convinced that the second half would be the Tigers' one. Unfortunately, despite the Caro team's domination and the amazing defensive plays, it took another mishap and unlucky moment to provide the visitors with another gift by letting a rolling ball make it in the back of the net for their second lead after 9 minutes. The Caro team was still battling to come back and it came close to do so with a breakaway from forward Katie Scharrer who mis-kicked the ball and miss the net with only 6 minutes left to the game. The score held up until the final whistle thanks to the amazing performance of the Caro Goalie, Talena Pifer, who made another spectacular save from a beautiful and dangerous shot. The hosting team was so frustrated to not justify their awesome performance on the score board which is not really a reflection of the game. Some time, it takes luck for one team to win and perseverance and character for the other team to build upon tangible progress through the evolution of the game for the next games to come. The last three games were a true evidence of the gradual improvements the Tigers are showing. The game MVP award was presented to Freshman Olivia Walker who scored the only goal for her team and contributed strongly in both the offensive and defensive zones. Next game is at home in Caro again on Thursday, April 11, hosting the team from Memphis High School at 5:30 pm.    

The Caro Tigers were hosting the North Branch team on a chilly afternoon which suggested that Spring is taking its sweet time to show up. Senior Ellie Fisch being sick, the coaches had again to re-organize the midfield and forward zones to try to contain the hungry team from North Branch. Surprisingly, The players from Caro demonstrated a much high caliber of game than during the first game. Confidence in defense was present with the comeback of the official goalie Talena Pifer who already made some spectacular saves to keep her team very competitive. Center midfielder Olivia Walker took matters in her hands by dominating both the midfield and forward real estates. The solid and amazing defense, consisting of sweeper Lydia Chapelo and stopper Marisol Reyes assisted by defensive wingers and new comers Olivia Montgomery and Bryanna Funsch, made sure the Caro critical zone was well protected. Montgomery and Funsch were great surprises since they performed much better than anticipated by the coaches. The North Branch forward players attempted to challenge the Caro goalie at multiple times without success. The midfield wingers Faith MacDonald and Abby Spencer played a supportive game to feed strikers Katie Scharrer, Lexie Johnson, Alyssa Smith and Deziree Hughes in various breakaways with some attempted shots at the opposing goalie, without converting into any goal. After 35 minutes in the first half, the Caro goalie was out of position and failed to notice a weak shot to her left which she could have easily saved, therefore, allowing the visitors to score their only goal as a gift. The Tigers tried to come back and erase this unlucky goal but could not capitalize on several chances and breakaways. Second half started strongly for the hosting team as the Tigers dominated most of the second half despite the efforts to tie the game and contained the visitors to a scoreless sheet but ended up with a final unfortunate score of 0-1. The Tigers improved tremendously in all aspects from the first game and this amazing performance has definitely built great confidence in all players for the games to come. The game MVP player award was presented to midfielder and freshmen Faith MacDonald who stood out from the other players by delivering an outstanding performance in all aspects, especially giving it all in winning the ball in several plays. Other players who deserve a mention of outstanding performance is Goalie Talena Pifer with 19 saves, Sweeper Lydia Chapelo who played both in defense in center midfield, and Center Midfielder Olivia Walker who played both in center midfield and as a sweeper. Both played amazingly in those two positions. Next game is at home again in Caro on Tuesday, April 9th at 5:30 pm hosting the team from Marlette High School.

The CARO Girls Varsity Soccer team was visiting the hosting Panthers from Birch Run for a "non conference" confrontation game. This was a test for the Tigers as 7 new players completed the team. Unfortunately, this first game will not be representative of the whole team since the key goal keeper Talena Pifer was missing and another new player not ready to begin with the team. Therefore, the coaches had to re-organize the line-up with only 11 players with no subs. Lydia Chapelo (usually the team's sweeper), stepped up to guard the Tigers net as a goalie. The first half was scoreless for about 20 minutes in the game which was a great improvement from last year. Obviously, the hosts who had almost 10 subs dominated the game and it was only a matter of time for the Tigers to allow the first goal to put the Panthers on the board. The Tigers were fighting to protect the close score and minimize any further damage. Fair enough with no substitutions, as time went by, the fatigue factor gained the players from Caro and the inexperience of the goal tender made a perfect storm for the hosts to score another 4 goals in the first half. The Tigers did their best to contain the skilled players from Birch Run but could only do so much as they were getting tired and deemed not enough to stop the bleeding. Second half started with 5-0 lead for the hosts and the Caro Tigers contained the scoring machine for about 15 minutes to witness and be subjected to an 0-8 merci game. The good news: the Caro Tigers looked great for their first game despite the absence of their key goalie and no one got hurt/injured.  The game MVP award was presented by the coaches to the volunteer goal tender Lydia Chapelo who did an awesome job despite her inexperience as a goalie. She also made some spectacular saves to limit the damage to her teammates and last longer until the second half. The soccer season looks promising for the proud Tigers after this first game against a very strong team from Birch Run. Next game is at home in CARO against the visiting team from North Branch at 4:30 pm.