TRAVERSE CITY — A battle of two top-tier teams ending in a draw seemed to be a likely outcome when Traverse City West went up against undefeated Oxford on Friday.
The Titans and Wildcats fought through a 0-0 stalemate for more than 60 minutes before Aidan Orth broke the scoreless tie and put West up 1-0 on their home pitch.
But Oxford answered back less than two minutes later on a free kick that found its way through and into the back of the net to knot the contest at 1-1.
That score would remain 1-1 for the final 17 minutes and 49 seconds, sending the Titans (1-1-2) to their second tie in four games and keeping a zero in the Wildcats’ loss column at 3-0-1.
“Two top-20 teams in the state having a good Friday night battle,” West head coach Matt Griesinger said. “I’m proud of the way we took care in some moments, and then there were other moments that showed that we still have work to do.”
Griesinger said the Titans’ shape in the first half was not what they needed it to be. Adjustments at halftime helped that and resulted in more controlled play from West in the final 40 minutes.
“There were just too big of gaps between our lines,” Griesinger said. “It helped to have the wind at our backs in the second half, but our defensive shape was much better. In the first half, we were making the field really big, and that just can’t happen. That’s just having a disciplined mindset.”
Identifying those areas that need improvement is a big key in these early season matches, Griesinger said.
“We schedule tough games, and we stand by that,” he said. “It’s all part of the journey and part of the growing experience. You have to have these early tough games to find those things that we need to work on, even if they are just small things.”
Both the West and Oxford defenses have been staunch through the early part of the season. The Titans have allowed just four goals in four games with a shutout, and the Wildcats have given up three goals in four games with a shutout.
Offense has been a different story, however. Oxford put up 10 goals coming into Friday’s matchup, and West had tallied just four. Camden Tkach put together a stellar effort in net for the Titans on Friday, stopping six Oxford shots.
Griesinger made a key substitution that paid off in minutes and led to the Titans’ lone goal. The head coach put Lincoln Lockhart in the game up top, and Lockhart quickly found Orth — the 2023 Record-Eagle Boys Soccer Offensive Player of the Year — for his third goal of the season.
“Target play was good. Both Bodyn Holmes and Linc played really well up there. It’s a really hard ask for anyone to do that for 80 minutes, so we just needed some fresh legs out there,” Griesinger said.
Despite the 1-1-2 start to the season, Griesinger said he and his crew are happy to be coaching soccer in northern Michigan.
“This is our favorite thing to do,” he said. “We all have jobs. We all have families. And we’re lucky enough that we can steal away for a couple hours a night and be on the journey with these guys. It’s not our coaching staff’s journey, we just get to be along for the ride with these boys.”
Oxford knocked off Elk Rapids by a 3-0 final Wednesday, and the Wildcats continue their excursion through northern Michigan as they head to the Petoskey Invitational on Saturday.
The Titans get a week off from live-game action before hosting the Traverse City West Labor Day Showcase on Aug. 30-31. The showcase includes West along with Traverse City St. Francis, Grand Haven, Mason and Warren De La Salle.
“It’s the only soccer going on in the state,” Griesinger said. “It’s that last hurrah before school starts, and it’s something that has become part of our program. It started in 2017, and it’s just grown from there. It’s a good celebration of soccer and a good celebration of northern Michigan.”
West opens its Big North Conference schedule at home against Alpena on Sept. 3.