MC BAIN - The Suttons Bay Norsemen setup a rivalry showdown for a district title on Friday with a hard-fought 1-0 win over McBain Northern Michigan Christian on Wednesday night.
Finn Mankowski scored the lone goal of the game on a quickly taken free kick midway through the first half that bent inside the near post for the goal.
Other than that, the Norsemen had plenty of opportunities, but were unable to get any other shots by Comets’ freshman keeper Blair DeZeeuw.
“I think in the second half in particular we settled down, and created some great opportunities, but just had a hard time finishing tonight,” Suttons Bay head coach Len Mankowski said after the match.
“I think it was a really good game. I think we fought really hard, worked very hard. I also believe that we could’ve scored some more,” Suttons Bay senior Tyler Porter said. “But at the end of the day a win’s a win, and in districts that’s important.”
The win sends Suttons Bay into the district title game, where they will meet 8th-ranked Leland. The two teams split the Northwest Conference regular season title this year, with each team scoring a 2-1 win on the road.
“It’s gonna be an all-out battle. It’s going to be all grit and heart out there on Friday,” Suttons Bay senior Finn Mankowski said. “It’s gonna be brutal, but it’s gonna be a fun game, and I advise everybody to be there who can, because it’ll be a good one.”
Suttons Bay (13-4-2) will kickoff against Leland (15-4-1) at 5:00 on Friday at Glen Lake High School.
McBain NMC closes their season with a 9-11-1 overall record.