May 30, 2018 at 12:30 p.m.
Path through playoffs, potential Ashland rematch begins today for Hodag soccer
Path through playoffs, potential Ashland rematch begins today for Hodag soccer
The Oredockers and the Hodags are the No. 1 seeds in their respective halves of a WIAA Division 3 sectional draw as the playoffs get underway today. Should they fend off all upset bids, they would meet again in Hayward in a sectional final, with a trip to the WIAA state tournament at stake.
Ashland defeated Rhinelander 1-0 on a Kaylee McPeak goal in the 21st minute when the teams met May 15 in Rhinelander. That win allowed the Oredockers to run the table and claim their first conference crown. It also sent the Hodags into full playoff preparation mode over the final two weeks of the regular season.
"Now we look at our second season and we don't wait to do that," Hodag coach Dan Millot said following his team's lost to the Oredockers. "We do it now. We're in control of our own destiny."
The Hodags will open postseason play at 5 p.m. today against eighth-seeded Waupaca (2-9-4, 1-5-2 North Eastern Conference). Should Rhinelander win that game, it will host the winner of today's Medford-Mosinee matchup at 1 p.m. Saturday in front of RHS. The Hodags beat those two potential opponents by a combined score of 16-0 during GNC play this spring. Should Rhinelander advance to the sectional semifinal, it would host the game at 5 p.m. next Thursday.
Despite a 9-6 record, the Hodags have home field advantage through the sectional semifinal round in a bracket that, on paper, lacks a lot of firepower. Rhinelander, second-seeded New London (5-5-1) and third-seeded Amherst/Iola-Scandinavia (8-4-1) are the only teams at or above .500 for the season on this side of the draw. Last year, Lakeland was a No. 1 seed on this half of the bracket, despite a 12-10-1 overall mark, and rode that seeding all the way to the sectional finals where it fell 6-1 to Rice Lake. With Rhinelander dropping to Division 3 this year, Lakeland shifted to the western half of the bracket, where Ashland, Hayward and Rice Lake are the top three seeds.
However, as Millot experienced firsthand last fall when the top-seeded Hodag boys were upset by the Amherst co-op in the sectional semifinal round, a drop to Division 3 does not guarantee success.
"We have to take one game at a time," he said. "I've been on both ends - being on an underdog and upsetting teams that are higher ranked than we are and being a higher seed and being upset. You want to go into the game with a level head. You want to go in with goals and intentions. We can't overlook anyone. Who knows what the weather's going to be like. Who knows if all of your players are going to be healthy come the whistle. We prepare for each game one game at a time and we go on from there."
For the Hodags, two key areas of concern developed throughout the season, the struggle to finish scoring chances and trouble containing opposing teams' top offensive weapons. Millot said he's hoping some tinkering with the lineup that began late in the season and continued during practice this week will help patch those holes.
"We're going to be working on team chemistry and positioning and, again, working on some of the things that are going to be important for the playoffs," he said.
Rhinelander, which had the top-ranked offense in the league during its conference championship run, was bested by Ashland in that category this year - averaging 5.1 goals per conference game to the Oredockers' 5.9. The most telling metric of Rhinelander's offensive struggles was its conversion rate of shots to goals, which checked in at 13.3 percent during conference play (34 goals on 225 total shots), well down from 21.1 percent (91 goals on 432 shots) last season.
What's more, though Rhinelander allowed only one goal in the GNC, it gave up 1.9 goals per game in all competitions and has allowed a single player to score two or more goals in each of its last three non-conference losses.
"We're going to work to make sure we're an extremely strong defensive team," Millot said. "You know, if the other team can't score, you can't lose the game. We're going to focus on defense. We've focused on offense a lot and I think we're going to give that a little bit of a break and just get ready one phase of the game at a time."
If Rhinelander can get those issues sorted out, another long playoff run could be in the cards.
After losing to Ashland earlier this month, Millot said he would not mind another crack at Ashland should both teams advance to the sectional finals.
"That would be nice and, I tell you, it would be a game," he said. "We'll see."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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