A little bit of the limelight on Tuesday sparked the girls' training session as WWMT News Channel 3 was hanging around Bulldog Stadium to do some player interviews. The girls were excited, and it showed in the intensity of their training session. Coaches will sometimes worry about high school players being too involved in their "5 minutes of fame" and losing focus. Coach Butcher and his staff weren't worried in the least headed into a Wolverine Conference match with the Vicksburg Bulldogs on Wednesday evening. That stems from the fact that this Otsego team has great leaders with level heads and a lot of experience. Two of its three Captains have helped the girls cross country team win back-to-back state titles. 14 of the players in our program are involved in the Bulldog basketball program that seems to make a deep and successful playoff run each year. Two of the team's Senior leaders, Kara Jubenville and Erica Drobny, will be graduating with distinction this spring as two of OHS's top academic performers. Otsego carried a lot of excitement into Wednesday's matchup and it showed in the form of goals!

McKenzie Milton started the scoring in the 11th minute after being played in by a beautiful pass from Erica Drobny. Drobny would again be the provider for the second goal of the game, which was expertly finished off by Cait Kitchen on a powerful run through the middle of the box. Sophomore keeper Ambre Powell was tested just twice in the first half, but made both saves look simple. Otsego dominated possession in the first half, particularly in wide areas, and took a 2-0 lead into the half.

In the second half Otsego looked poised and ready early, creating some excellent scoring chances from slashing dribbling runs on the feet of Drobny, Kitchen, and Gracie VerHage. Gracie put her team up 3-0 off a feed from Kitchen that she spun past a defender and tucked under the Vicksburg goalkeeper. Just three minutes later, Cait received the ball with her back to goal in the center of the opponent's penalty area. Rather than spinning toward goal and taking the chance herself, she dropped the ball off to Lauren Nieboer who was waiting 20 yards from goal just to the left of center. Lauren hit a beautifully lofted first time strike over the keeper and just under the bar for her first goal of the year. The onslaught would continue in the 48th minute as Junior defender Hannah Gagneur would quickly make her mark on the game after a long layoff. She played a high, bending ball over the Vicksburg left back that sent Gracie into the box with one player and the goalkeeper to beat. She diced the defender side to side, and hammered the ball past the keeper to give her side the 5-0 advantage. 

Otsego continued to get deep into Vicksburg territory and create chances for the next 12 to 15 minutes, but saw no reward for their efforts. Milton was on the doorstep twice in a row looking for her second of the night, and was denied by a clearance off the line from an alert Vicksburg defender. Kitchen was hungry for more, but her heavy final touch was snuffed out by the goalkeeper. Gracie, Gagneur, Drobny, and Kitchen all narrowly missed chances off wide service or corner kicks. In the 63rd minute Cait Kitchen fed Erica Drobny near the top of the 18 yard box, and Erica used her pace and power to hold off the defender and slide the ball expertly under the charging keeper. Junior Gracie VerHage was sitting on 2 goals for the night, and when one of her teammates was dragged down 25 yards from goal with about 20 seconds left to play she knew sh had a chance to get her hat trick. She set the ball, and as the announcer counted down the final 10 seconds of play, she drove a bullet into the top right corner of the goal to put the game on ice.

The Otsego midfield battled all night and built good possession through the middle and out to the wings. The back line did extremely well while rotating frequently and mixing JV call up Taylor Schuesler, two Freshmen, and Gagneur back in. Alexis Petty and Kara Jubenville were rocks all night, and even stepped into midfield roles throughout the night to help fill some holes.

Goals: VerHage(3), Nieboer, Drobny, Kitchen, Milton

Assists: Drobny(2), Kitchen(2), Gagneur

?Powell recorded 4 saves in the shutout, her first Varsity shutout as the goalkeeper of record.

Player of the Game honors went to Gracie VerHage.