Corsairs' hard work praised after tough losses

After a strong start to the 2011 season, Waterford Mott suffered a two-match losing streak this past week in two crossover contests.

The Corsairs (3-2-1) began the week with a 2-0 loss to Rochester on Tuesday, April 19 on the road.

“The truth is that there isn’t a whole lot to analyze from this match because we didn’t see a whole lot of the ball, and we didn’t do a whole lot with it when we did,” Mott Head Coach Evan Baker said.

“On a positive note, Rochester really didn’t generate the amount of scoring chances that would typically correspond with that percentage of possession. This was due to our commitment to play as physically relentless as we could for the full 80 minutes.

“The truth of the matter is that there are going to be games where the other team is just flat-out better than you on a technical level. When you run into schools that are stocked with players from top-level clubs like Vardar and Hawks, you have to find some sort of equalizer if you expect to compete and our equalizer is our work rate.”

Baker also complemented Katie Ging’s strong play in net in the loss.

Mott then followed up with a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to Lake Orion on Friday, April 22.

“I don’t remember a loss stinging quite this badly since the 2009 against Kettering,” Baker said.

“There wasn’t a girl on the team who came off pitch saying ‘Well, they beat us 8-1 last time, so this was a lot better.’ That’s a loser’s attitude and one that I’m very proud of our girls for refusing to take.”

Hannah Rhodes scored Mott’s first goal and Hannah Messer gave Mott a 2-1 lead in the second half.

But Alyssa Wesley and Maddie Hutchison each scored to put the Dragons on top and give them the win.

“I’m proud of the girls for their work rate. It takes an incredible amount of heart and conditioning to stay defensively disciplined for 80 minutes, and once again our character was on display in 50-50 challenges,” Baker said.

“And that is great news considering we’ve got two more giants to face in our next two matches.”

Mott played at KLAA North-leading Walled Lake Western yesterday, Tuesday, April 26 after press time and will host Walled Lake Northern on Friday, April 29 before facing rival Waterford Kettering on the road on Tuesday, May 3.