Durand Girls Varsity Soccer

06/03/2026

Drone pictures from uniform turn-in/facility clean up day!

06/02/2026

MMAC League Awards

On Sunday all the MMAC Girls Soccer Coaches got together to decide league honors for this years teams. The meeting lasted 2.5 hours and Durand came away with several league honors!

Hadley Taylor - Goalkeeper Honorable Mention
Montana Spaulding - 1st Team
Gwendolyn Bell - 2nd Team
Brianna Kincaid - 2nd Team
Harper Sturgeon - Honorable Mention
Makenzie Collier - Honorable Mention

Congratulations ladies, your hard work, determination and performance this season was recognized by all the MMAC Girls Soccer Coaches!

06/02/2026

5 years ago the seniors started a tradition of painting their handprints on a brick in the upstairs of the press box at the soccer field. This typically happens the last time the entire team is together at the field, uniform turn-in day. Today was that day for this year's seniors. Congratulations Gwen, Aery, Felicity, Rachel and Skylynn!

05/27/2026

Huge shoutout and thank you to FPG Retail Construction for their generous donation to the Varsity Girls Soccer Team this year. We were able to purchase additional training mannequins, 8 new practice soccer balls and some goal keeper training equipment (not shown, purchased after this picture.)

Your support for our program is appreciated and made a significant impact on our training this year!

https://fpgretail.com/

05/27/2026

Tonight we played Goodrich, the #1 ranked team in Division 3 girls soccer. We lost 5-0, but I could not be more proud of this team. They never backed down and made Goodrich earn every single goal.

This group has worked incredibly hard all season long. We pushed them constantly, always asking for more, and every time they responded. Like any season, there were losses and mistakes — from both players and coaches — but they learned from them, grew from them, and kept moving forward.

Several girls played through injuries (with medical clearance, of course). Wrapped ankles, taped knees, ice packs after games — but you still couldn’t have dragged them off the field if you tried. This team simply does not know how to quit.

Some girls didn’t get as much playing time as they hoped for, but they still showed up every day ready to work. And when they weren’t on the field, they were on the sidelines cheering nonstop for their teammates. More than once, girls told me their throats hurt after games from yelling so much. That’s what great teammates do.

This was a transition year for Durand Girls Soccer.

For years, we battled low numbers, injuries, and games where we didn’t even have a full 11 players. In fact, for the last five seasons, we had at least one game every year where we played short-handed. Some seasons we won only one game. But this year felt different.

This year, we had a full roster of 21 players and finished with a winning record. We have girls with passion, toughness, and a relentless drive to compete. Girls who don’t understand the concepts of “letting up” or “taking it easy.”

I never want to discount the players from previous years. Those girls fought through impossible situations and, quite honestly, kept this program alive. They laid the foundation for what this program is becoming.

And now, the future of Durand Girls Soccer is incredibly bright.

I’ve talked before about the teams I coached in 2018 and 2019 and how we hadn’t had a winning record since then. This season, we finished 10-9 — the most wins in a season in many years and one more than our 2018 team.

Our season may be over, but I have a feeling this team is just getting started.

I’m already excited for next year.

05/26/2026

Congratulations Hadley! You played a heck of a game and season!

This week's Randy Wise of Durand Athlete of the Week is Durand Girls Varsity Soccer goalkeeper Hadley Taylor! Freshman Hadley Taylor was outstanding in net last week in the District Quarter Finals vs. Lansing Catholic, recording 34 saves during regulation and overtime before adding two crucial saves in the shootout. Hadley also scored one of the goals in the shootout to lead Durand to a 2-0 win. Great job Hadley! ⚽️🚂

05/21/2026

Durand Girls Varsity Soccer Advances with Penalty Kick Shootout Victory Over Lansing Catholic

The Durand Girls Varsity Soccer Team earned a hard-fought district tournament victory Tuesday evening, defeating the Lansing Catholic Cougars 2-0 in a penalty kick shootout after regulation and overtime ended scoreless.

In an intense and physical first-round district matchup, both teams battled through 80 minutes of regulation play and two 10-minute overtime periods without a goal.

The match was ultimately decided in penalty kicks, where Durand’s composure proved decisive.

Lansing Catholic took four penalty shots. Two attempts went wide, while freshman goalkeeper Hadley Taylor made two clutch saves to keep the Cougars off the board.

Durand converted two penalty kicks, with goals from Taylor and junior Montana Spaulding, securing the 2-0 shootout victory and advancing the Railroaders to the next round of district play.

The entire Durand squad delivered a determined performance from the opening whistle through the final overtime period. Freshman goalkeeper Hadley Taylor was outstanding in net, recording 34 saves during regulation and overtime before adding two crucial saves in the shootout.

Durand’s defensive line of freshman Harper Sturgeon, freshman Madi Peele, senior Gwendolyn Bell, and freshman Bella Page played a pivotal role, consistently shutting down Lansing Catholic’s offensive pressure.

Head coach Marc Smith, assistant coach Adam Atkinson, and goalkeeper coach Emma Hawkins praised the team’s effort, determination, and grit throughout the match.

Durand entered the game as the underdog but emerged with one of its biggest victories of the season.

With the win, Durand improves to 10-8 on the year.

The Railroaders will face Goodrich in the next round of district play on Tuesday, May 26, at 5 p.m. at Lake Fenton.

📷 Monica Starr Ellsworth

05/20/2026

Congratulations to our very own Harper Sturgeon! We are all very proud of you!

⭐️Future Leader⭐️ Freshman Harper Sturgeon was nominated for the prestigious Michigan Department of Education Student Advisory Council, and we are proud to announce that she has been chosen to serve on the council!

This council, sponsored by State Superintendent Dr. Glenn Maleyko, gives students throughout Michigan an opportunity to contribute perspectives on educational policies and initiatives in order to increase student voice within our education system. Harper will attend monthly meetings in Lansing and will engage with both MDE leaders and other student representatives to address critical issues affecting students in Michigan.

We are incredibly proud of Harper and look forward to having DHS represented on this council. Harper is the Class of 2029 President, and we are looking forward to watching her continue to grow as a leader within DHS and also within the State of Michigan! Way to go, Harper!

05/20/2026

Durand Girls Varsity Soccer Dominates Byron 7-0 in Regular Season Finale

On a hot late spring evening under clear skies with a slight breeze out of the west, the Durand Girls Varsity Soccer Team closed out its regular season in dominant fashion with a 7-0 victory over the Byron Eagles.

Durand wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. Freshman Karly Sergent ( #44) opened the scoring just 4:20 into the match off an assist from junior Montana Spaulding ( #2).

Less than a minute later, sophomore Gracelyn Janes ( #4) found the back of the net at the 5:15 mark with an assist from freshman Hadley Taylor ( #3).

Just 40 seconds later, Spaulding added a goal of her own, assisted by freshman Mackenzie Collier ( #13). Spaulding struck again at the 15:51 mark, this time on an assist from freshman Brianna Kincaid ( #14).

Senior Aeryonna Pascal ( #12) scored her first career varsity goal with help from Taylor, while senior Felicity Morris ( #22) also celebrated her first career goal for the Railroaders.

Senior Gwendolyn Bell ( #19) capped the first-half scoring with six minutes remaining before halftime, assisted by Kincaid.

Durand entered halftime with a commanding 7-0 lead.

The second half allowed the Railroaders to experiment with several lineup adjustments and provide players opportunities in new roles. Senior goalkeeper Rachel McPherson moved out of goal to try striker duties while Collier took a turn in net. Center defender Madison Peele ( #17) also spent time at striker, while Spaulding shifted back to center defense.

Although Durand did not add an eighth goal, the second half provided valuable experience and highlighted the team’s versatility and depth.

The final score remained Durand 7, Byron 0.

The victory closes the regular season with a 9-8 record and marks the culmination of a turnaround season for the Railroaders. After several years battling low numbers and injuries, the program has regained momentum and positioned itself for future success.

Durand now turns its attention to postseason play. The Railroaders travel to Lansing Catholic for district action at 5:30 p.m. on May 20.