BY WENDI REARDON PRICE
Clarkston News Sports Writer
The Wolves faced Stoney Creek for the second time in a week as they played them in the MHSAA Boys Soccer District Semifinals at Rochester Adams, Oct. 19.
The Cougars came out fast at the beginning of the game and kept the momentum as they beat Clarkston, 3-1.
“We tried our best,” said Curtis Payment, head coach for the varsity team. “We just didn’t have it that night. The game against Rochester Adams (the first round of districts) took a lot out of us. We really had to give it our all to beat Adams. We might have left too much on the field against them. The Stoney game was frustrating because the boys were working hard and together. Our touch was just a bit off.”
Senior Jacob Moreno scored the lone goal for Clarkston during the second half off of a penalty kick.
The Wolves bid farewell to nine seniors – Matt DeFinis, Robbie Farrell, Kyle Hayes, Ned Kenny, Josh McCaghy, Jacob Moreno, Justin Reinke, Brock Schultz and Christian Uhlig.
“We had a very talented senior class,” said Payment. “They accounted for 80 percent of our goals this season so our younger players could dedicate themselves to improving their overall skill set.”
The team has 12 returners coming back and talent from the two JV teams coming up including for the JV-A team which finished the season 13-3.
“Next season will be a transition year with many changes,” Payment added. “We have a lot of talent in the program, but I do envision a formation and philosophy change for 2017. We shall see.”
The Wolves finished with a 9-8-3 record and 2-3-2 in the OAA Red.
“We had a strong team we just struggled to stay consistent,” Payment said. “We played a lot of tough teams so if we were a little off they generally made us pay. I liked the style we played, which was attacking and offensive minded. We just weren’t able to enforce our style enough throughout the year.”
Payment added a thank you to all the parents for their dedication and support during the season.
“Especially Patti Hayes for all her dedication and hard work this year,” he said. “The program simply would not function as smoothly without her.  Also, a huge thank you to our coaching staff. Coach Brian Bridgeman and Coach Herb Dula had great seasons with our JV teams and continue to provide great leadership for the young men on the Clarkston soccer teams.”

  Boys Soccer, clarkston, Varsity Soccer