In July of 2007 the team went to the Summer Soccer Showcase in Anderson,IN. During the two days of the tournament NW won all three games, the last one on pk's. This 3-0 run gave the team a lot of confidence going into the regular season. The theme of passing to feet, talking and running off the ball was implemented and told to the team after the first game.
The team's goal was to try and get to .500 and get more wins then last year's team and try to win back to back sectionals.
After the tournament, the coaching staff thought that the team could do even better then that if it kept developing. The coaches were hoping to get double digit wins, win the sectional and contend for a top three spot in the NLC.
With wins against Wawasee, a draw against Warsaw and a narrow loss against Northridge it looked as if a top three spot was still a possibility. But after a couple of NLC losses and despite beating Memorial for the first time in a while, the best we could do was where we eventually ended up, #6. Mike Schmitt and Edgar Villegas did have quite a few good NLC games.
There were quite a few highlights this year and very few lows. The game against Goshen Concord and Plymouth were disappointing in the fact that they were conference losses. The loss against Angola was not expected and it was the hope of the coaches that after that loss, things would turn around. It had to because it was play off time. The team responded extremely well which showed in the work ethic in the practices leading up to the first game in sectionals. It was good to get a win against LaVille under our belt and give ourselves a shot to win another sectional title. The finals against Bremen was approached in a focused manner and the 3-0 win can be attributed to the entire team; all players got playing time in the finals. The practices after the sectional finals went to a higher level yet. It seemed that ALL players gained confidence from playing and winning the sectional title.
The next game versus South Bend Clay in the Regional Semi Final was one of the best, if not THE best, game ever to be played by a NW soccer team. To come back from a first half deficit, to survive 2OT and to go into the PK shootout with a lot of confidence is something I'll never forget as a coach. We expected to win the shootout and we did! Despite the rainy and cold weather, a lot of fans came out and supported the team and it felt good to give a good performance.
Last saturday the team played Elkhart Central in what would turn out to be the final game of the season. The half time score was 4-0 and we knew it would be nearly impossible to score 4 goals to tie a school that was State runner up last year and ranked 12th during the '07 season. We also felt a little unlucky. The first half was started by us playing a little flat and near the end of the first half we saw a couple of bad calls that cost us 2 goals. We played much better in the second half and despite knowing that the opponent was better then we were, we only gave up one more goal.
All in all, this has been the most succesful soccer season at NorthWood. And that is a testament to this team. They came together as a team, never had any issues within the group and all players got along. I will never forget the weird "things" some of the couples did, "Carry me home", the chanting of "Larry, Larry, Larry" as we got close to the school, the time we spent taking water off the field, hundreds of buckets at a time, the tournaments and I could go on, but this truly was a team that was fun to hang out with. The eight seniors, Edgar, Rogelio, Holy, Dustin, Micah, Robby, Josh and Robbie will be missed. It is my hope that the 13 others who already were on the varsity, complemented by whoever else will make the varsity next year, will be able to make next year's group as much as a cohesive team as these seniors were able to. Good luck to all the seniors and all to all others; it's time to dedicate yourself to next year's team. So, we will see everyone on Monday's at the AC from 7:30 - 9pm!!!!!!!!!
I also want to thank the parents for supporting their sons and the team throughout the season. Thanks for the food , snacks and fruits. Thanks for hosting meals, taking tickets at the game, having your kids run balls and staffing the concession trailer. Thanks for helping with the car wash and thanks for all the little things all of you did but went unnoticed by oblivious coaches. Hope to see you here, on this blog, again next year.
The team's goal was to try and get to .500 and get more wins then last year's team and try to win back to back sectionals.
After the tournament, the coaching staff thought that the team could do even better then that if it kept developing. The coaches were hoping to get double digit wins, win the sectional and contend for a top three spot in the NLC.
With wins against Wawasee, a draw against Warsaw and a narrow loss against Northridge it looked as if a top three spot was still a possibility. But after a couple of NLC losses and despite beating Memorial for the first time in a while, the best we could do was where we eventually ended up, #6. Mike Schmitt and Edgar Villegas did have quite a few good NLC games.
There were quite a few highlights this year and very few lows. The game against Goshen Concord and Plymouth were disappointing in the fact that they were conference losses. The loss against Angola was not expected and it was the hope of the coaches that after that loss, things would turn around. It had to because it was play off time. The team responded extremely well which showed in the work ethic in the practices leading up to the first game in sectionals. It was good to get a win against LaVille under our belt and give ourselves a shot to win another sectional title. The finals against Bremen was approached in a focused manner and the 3-0 win can be attributed to the entire team; all players got playing time in the finals. The practices after the sectional finals went to a higher level yet. It seemed that ALL players gained confidence from playing and winning the sectional title.
The next game versus South Bend Clay in the Regional Semi Final was one of the best, if not THE best, game ever to be played by a NW soccer team. To come back from a first half deficit, to survive 2OT and to go into the PK shootout with a lot of confidence is something I'll never forget as a coach. We expected to win the shootout and we did! Despite the rainy and cold weather, a lot of fans came out and supported the team and it felt good to give a good performance.
Last saturday the team played Elkhart Central in what would turn out to be the final game of the season. The half time score was 4-0 and we knew it would be nearly impossible to score 4 goals to tie a school that was State runner up last year and ranked 12th during the '07 season. We also felt a little unlucky. The first half was started by us playing a little flat and near the end of the first half we saw a couple of bad calls that cost us 2 goals. We played much better in the second half and despite knowing that the opponent was better then we were, we only gave up one more goal.
All in all, this has been the most succesful soccer season at NorthWood. And that is a testament to this team. They came together as a team, never had any issues within the group and all players got along. I will never forget the weird "things" some of the couples did, "Carry me home", the chanting of "Larry, Larry, Larry" as we got close to the school, the time we spent taking water off the field, hundreds of buckets at a time, the tournaments and I could go on, but this truly was a team that was fun to hang out with. The eight seniors, Edgar, Rogelio, Holy, Dustin, Micah, Robby, Josh and Robbie will be missed. It is my hope that the 13 others who already were on the varsity, complemented by whoever else will make the varsity next year, will be able to make next year's group as much as a cohesive team as these seniors were able to. Good luck to all the seniors and all to all others; it's time to dedicate yourself to next year's team. So, we will see everyone on Monday's at the AC from 7:30 - 9pm!!!!!!!!!
I also want to thank the parents for supporting their sons and the team throughout the season. Thanks for the food , snacks and fruits. Thanks for hosting meals, taking tickets at the game, having your kids run balls and staffing the concession trailer. Thanks for helping with the car wash and thanks for all the little things all of you did but went unnoticed by oblivious coaches. Hope to see you here, on this blog, again next year.
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