Game over.........
Friday, September 30, 2016
2016 SENIOR NIGHT - Thank you Seniors and Parents!!!
Below are the seniors with their parents as they are introduced before the final home game.
Four Year Ball Boy Kyle Cripe
We want to thank Kyle Cripe for being the Men's Soccer Team's exclusive 4 year Ball Boy. Kyle will be a Freshman next year, so we will see him inside the lines next season!
NorthWood-Bethany Christian 1-1 (0-1)
With the stands filled and the pre game talk under way, it is time for the last home game of the season, the last regular season game for our seniors and quite possibly the last competitive game that will ever be played at NorthWood's first soccer home ground. Both teams start and end the game stuck on 5 wins for the season. Before kick off, the Seniors and their parents are introduced to a crowd of about 140 which isn't too bad considering the forecast. The JV sets the tone for the night with a 1-0 win with a Jerson game winner that sends the JV into the off season on a positive note. The Varsity contest kicks off right on time and it takes the Panthers 17 minutes before we threaten the Bruins for the first time with a Landon Parker shot that hits the post. Without anybody close to crash the goal, the net (ha) result is no goal. Eleven minutes later it is Bethany who after a seemingly non threatening attack, score first. The 0-1 half time score means that there is work to be done. Coach Duerksen points out that the work rate was not very impressive considering it is senior night and everything that comes with it. The seniors need to step it up but if they don't, underclassmen will be given an opportunity. The first half is boring, sloppy soccer for sure but at least the second half is more entertaining. It does take the Panthers 28 minutes before we actually change the scoreboard. Micah Pippinger passes a ball up the right side to Jerson, he makes a move and cuts inside and then places the ball between the 6 and 12 right in front of Juan. Juan one touches the ball to get control and decisively slots the ball to the left side on the ground by the keeper to tie the game, 1-1. The last 22 minutes of soccer on the home ground are enjoyable to watch. In the 78th, a great Bruins attack ends with a solid shot at goal but a cat like reaction by Panther's last defender, Cody Cripe, prevents the ball from going in. In the last 4 minutes of the game, the match becomes pretty contentious. When a clear foul -pushing in the back while going up for a header- is committed on Matt, there is, to the surprise of everyone, no whistle to be heard. All night long every little girly touch has been called but this obvious shove in the back gets no response from the ref. It does get a response out of Head Coach Duerksen. His obvious protest results in the center ref coming to the dug out (where it was nice and dry by the way). His question to the Assistant Coach "Are you ready to take over" gets the, I guess, only possible response (unless you want to get rid of your boss)"No, I am not" and therefore preventing a red card??????? I am not sure what all of this means but Coach Duerksen stays on task with his complaint about the non-call and gets a card. The color is yellow so it basically means nothing at this point of the game ((78th min still) or at this point of the season. But now the game becomes interesting. With the Panthers pressing high up the field and in possession of the ball, Eli threatens to score from the top of the box in a 1v1 on the Bruins GK. The ball does not go into the goal and time expires. But now the AR raises his flag and the center ref comes over to see why the flag went up. The AR makes the case that Eli was fouled outside the box and that there were 2 seconds left on the clock (this isn't basketball by the way, the clock ran out, tough luck for us but he, we will take a bad decision going our way for once). We are awarded a free kick. Eli takes it and does a nice job getting it over the wall and on the frame. And by on the fram, I mean on the frame as in on the crossbar and.....over....end of game. Final result 1-1. The regular season ends at 5-9-1. The focus shifts to our Sectional opponent Wawasee (1-0 loss away earlier this year).
Thursday, September 29, 2016
Final Regular Season Game Day/Senior Night
The Bruins from Bethany Christian will visit the Panthers tonight for a JV and Varsity contest. If you believe some people, this might be the last EVER home game to be played at the Elementary School. The rumor has it that our next game might/will be played at our new complex to be built south of the current Puma's Soccer Complex. The plans call for artificial and natural turf fields with the artificial one being lighted and having stands and locker rooms. But back to tonight. The Seniors will be honored tonight before the start of the Varsity match. So between 6:15- 6:30 pm I would guestimate, the Seniors and their parents will be introduced. Brock Lechlitner,Cody Cripe, Eli Aukerman, Jason McPherson, Jaron Mullet, Dylan Weldy and Josh Weldy will play on their home turf for the last time. We are hoping for a large crowd because these guys have put in a lot of time and have committed themselves to NorthWood Soccer for a long time. The visiting Bruins are 5-9 and seem to be, on paper, a comparable team to us with similar results so the game should be very competitive. The Panthers will try and end the regular season with a win to give them some momentum going into the second round of their Sectional next Wednesday. So, please come out and support your Panthers and your seniors for this home game. GO PANTHERS!!! #together
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Training Ground change announcement
Today's practice will be from 3:30 - 5 at the Game field. This practice will also be JV's last practice of the season.
Plymouth-NorthWood 5-0 (3-0)
NorthWood plays an NLC match at next week's Sectional site and comes up short. The biggest surprise of the night is that we learn that Kindt Field has an "award winning concession stand", over and over again. It might be the only thing worth mentioning as the performance on the pitch is not. The pitch itself is not in very good shape, the goober who ran around the field with a whistle in his mouth had hopefully the worst performance of his life. He awards the Rockies two (!) penalty kicks (Cody gets close to both of them), one for tripping (Juan trips and falls on the Plymouth player AFTER he had already taken a shot and one for a handball -ball to hand-). So two soft PK's and at that point in the game (minute 47), the game is, for all intent and purposes, over with. Scoring summary, 20' 1-0, 23' 2-0, 27' PK 3-0, 47' PK 4-0, 77' 5-0. NorthWood's record falls to 5-10. The JV loses its contest 2-0. The focus shifts to Senior Night, our last chance to get another home win this season before we go into the play offs. Hopefully we will have a good size crowd to thank our Seniors for their commitment to NorthWood soccer.
Tuesday, September 27, 2016
Game Day 15
The 10-3 Pilgrims host the 5-9 Panthers this evening in the last NLC regular season match up. Starting times are 5 & 6:45. Maxpreps ranks Plymouth at #19 in Indiana. Hope to see everyone on the sidelines on what looks to be a sunny but windy outing. GO PANTHERS!!!!! #together
Ball boy's nightmare
NOT WANTING HIS BROTHER TO GET ALL THE ATTENTION TONIGHT, KYLE CRIPE (OUR DEDICATED BALL BOY) GOT STUCK IN A RESIDENTIAL FENCE WHILE ATTEMPTING TO RETRIEVE A GAME BALL. THANKS TO ROBERT LANE, KYLE ONLY HAS TO STAY IN THIS PRECARIOUS POSITION FOR MINUTES SINCE THE ENTIRE NW TEAM IS OBLIVIOUS TO KYLE'S PREDICAMENT.
NorthWood-John Glenn 3-0 (1-0)
Not really an astronomical amount of supporters you would expect, followed the Falcons to Nappanee on this beautiful sunny fall afternoon. The home fans trickle in late but by game time, the stands are nicely occupied and the lawn seating area is well populated as well. No Amason Mast to entertain us today so we have to do with the recorded version of the National Anthem. This if course after Randy Cripe introduces the players. And on that note, we would like to thank Randy for doing that now for us for many years and considering that Kyle Cripe will be in the program, we can hopefully talk him into continuing to do that (maybe at the new facility?). The game gets underway on time despite the fact that the referees show up mere minutes before kick off. FIRST HALF- A couple of changes to the lineup have been made, they are nuances really. Eli plays in one of the forward positions and Juan takes the Central Midfielder position. Landon, Mason and Dylan all start on the bench after their injuries. We have the luxury tonight of not having to count halves since there is no JV game. Therefore, everyone is available for the full 80. The first ten minutes of the match are choppy and sloppy. There is no real possession from either team and not really a threat. In the 10th, Juan passes a nice ball to Eli who takes a shot that careens off a Glenn defender for the first corner of the night. Four minutes later, Eli Aukerman picks a Glenn defender's pocket and takes the ball into the box to go one on one with the John Glenn keep; Eli tucks the ball away neatly in the corner to the keepers
's left for a 1-0 NW lead. A retaliation (barely, really) foul by Corbin Taylor, earns him a yellow card. The rest of the half most of the entertainment takes place in the middle third of the field. NW attacks but goes straight up the gut too often, an area that is congested with Glenn defenders. HALF TIME- In an effort to adjust to the Glenn defense and their densely populated center defense inside or near their own box, the coaches emphasize the fact that going wide will stretch their defense. The coaching staff also is not impressed with the NW work rate especially considering we have a full squad available for the first time all year. The players are asked to bust their rear ends and ask for a sub when they run out of gas. SECOND HALF- The effort is better from the get go and low and behold, going wide does create opportunities. A pass to the outside left lands by Landon Parker who crosses the ball on the ground to the middle to Jaron Mullet. Jaron one touches one of his famous lasers on the frame and the keeper has no chance. This hard shot shakes the cob webs off the ropes when the ball hits the left upper 90, 2-0. This is a well deserved goal for Jaron who has been working hard all night but has not had the best of luck with his touches. This shot makes up for that. The Glenn defense must have felt like a tourist in Amsterdam when NorthWood by way of Landon Parker again picks their pocket. His pass to Eli gives the elder Auky another opportunity to travel into the Glenn box. Once again with fantastic composure does he place the ball into the net for the final score, 3-0. The advantage of having the entire squad healthy and available on a night like tonight is that everyone played which keeps them sharp for the upcoming postseason but it also gives the ones that are just coming back from injury, the opportunity to ease their way back into the squad. Hopefully everyone has recovered nicely from this match and is ready to go against Plymouth. We play the Pilgrims (or are they Rockies?) away tonight. Our defense held the zero and gave Cody another shutout. Our record improves to 5-9. Hope to see everyone in Plymouth tonight.
Monday, September 26, 2016
Bethel-Grace
About 15 players and coaches went to Mishawaka Saturday night to watch Bethel-Grace. Graduates David Eshelman plays for Bethel and Brayton Taylor (Corbin's brother) for Grace. David played in the JV game and scored (for a second consecutive match!!!). Unfortunately we could not make it in time for that game due to the Senior dinner. We did watch the entire Varsity match (pretty exciting actually) and saw Grace come away with a narrow 1-2 win. Brayton played as one of the central defenders, played the entire game and performed very well. Congratulations to both David and Brayton! Afterwards coaches Duerksen and Dijkstra were able to catch up with both of them. It was great to see them!!!
Game Day 14
Today, after the rain has cleared, the Panthers will take on the John Glenn Falcons.****** Game time is 5:30 pm (there is no JV match). It should be sunny and around 65 tonight and it will probably feel like Fall. The Falcons are 4-10 and the Panthers are 4-9. Both teams will try and get their 5th win, the Falcons are known for their tough and scrappy play, an effort that needs matched by the Panthers. There is no JV practice today. All players need to be at the game field no later then 4:45 pm. It will be interesting to see if the field will get any attention. It did not look good at all on Saturday and if the lines are not re-painted and the field not mowed, it will be necessary for the players to use their machetes to cut their way thru the field.
2016 Senior Dinner
The coaches would like to thank all the parents who helped with the Senior Dinner. Jason McPherson, Eli Aukerman, Josh Weldy,Brock Lechlitner, Dylan Weldy, Cody Cripe and Jaron Mullett were put in the spotlight by Head Coach Duerksen and thanked for their contribution to the program.
NorthWood-Ft Wayne Concordia 1-2 (1-0)
Only three moments are memorable on this sunny Saturday; Randy Kauffman scores off a header in his first NW soccer contest (JV draws Concordia 1-1), "AMASON" MAST gives a terrific rendition of our National Anthem before the Varsity match -truly goose bump material- and the Skyler to Kyle split, followed by the cross to far post for a Jaron header (1-0 lead at the time). Wrap up Varsity contest : 13' - Jaron Mullett (Kyle Luster assist) 1-0, 47' 1-1, 73' 1-2. Varsity falls to 4-9. Time to come back strong against Glenn on Monday. Status for the injured players for that game are, I guess, not sure but hopefully Landon, Dylan and Mason will be available. In the new system it is crucial to have 15-16 players available so it is essential that they are healthy pretty soon. Mr. Widner has been working hard on their rehab. We sure appreciate all his hard work!!!!
Friday, September 23, 2016
Proof is in the pudding......uh....on the bracket
ACCORDING TO COACH DOUWSMA, THIS IS THE SAME DRAW AS THE 2014 DRAW WHEN WE LAST WON OUR SECTIONAL!
Sectional Draw
Warsaw - Culver Academies - Game 1
Wawasee-Northwood - Game 2
Plymouth-Warsaw/Culver Academies winner game 3
Final- Winner game 2- Winner game 3
2016 Sectional Draw
NorthWood is in Sectional 7. This is a Class 2 (large schools) Sectional and will be played in Plymouth this year. According to the brackets, the first game is played on Monday October 3 at 6 pm. The winner of that game will play the team that earned a bye on Wednesday October 5 at 7:15. The other two teams will play on October 5 at 5 pm. The Sectional Final will be Saturday October 8 at 6 pm. This post will be updated as soon as the draw is published. Stay tuned......
Game Day 13 and other activities for Saturday September 24
The Panthers host the Cadets of Fort Wayne Concordia tomorrow, Saturday September 24. The JV game starts at 10 am, followed by the Varsity match at 11:45. Concordia is 7-7-1 and has a 1 game winning streak (?) after defeating Bishop Luers (the school I assume) 4-0. Their Maxpreps state rank is 125 compared to the Panthers 174 ( up from 199 earlier this week). Tomorrow at 5 pm the team will get together for the senior dinner at the Nappanee Elementary School and hopefully a lot of us will go watch David vs Brayton at 7 pm (Grace at Bethel) at 7 pm ( free admission for the NW soccer team). This morning is the Sectional Draw. Results and details for the Sectional will be posted here as soon as the informtion is released by the IHSAA. INJURY UPDATE: As of yesterday afternoon, it looks like Dylan Weldy is on the mend and he has been working with our fysio Paul who thinks he will return before the two week period we previously predicted. Angel was back at the JV practice yesterday and Kyle was back with the Varsity squad as well. Hope to see a big crowd tomorrow! The forecast is perfect, low 70's at game time with partly cloudy skies! GO PANTHERS !!!! #together
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
NorthWood-Elkhart Memorial 0-2 (0-2)
Maybe not the X's and O's and perhaps not the Larry's and Joe's by themselves but more of a combination of the two have turned the Panthers into a competitive side. Considering that the Chargers are ranked 11th by Maxpreps and 22nd by the Indiana Coaches poll, we knew that we were going to have a battle on our hand. And despite a 13th minute goal, NW was able to stay organized defensively. The corner in the 36th from Landon Parker finds Matt's head. The header is saved by the Memorial keeper but the rebound finds Jaron who lasers the ball against the underside of the crossbar. A couple of minutes later, Memorial does find itself counterattacking. The pass over the last line of the NW defense finds the Chargers #22 who puts the ball into the ropes for a 2-0 lead. Not many adjustments are needed at the tea break, it is more of a re-focus of what was discussed at the pre game talk. We are in the game and just need a little luck in finishing. We have to wait until the 73rd for that opportunity. An Eli free kick finds Thornton. The continuation of play has Jaron go one on one with the keeper who comes up the winner. The score remains 0-2, not a bad result considering the talent of the opponent and it gives us confidence in the next few home games. On another note, the officiating was impressive and consistent, a rarity lately (lately being the last 20 years or so). The next game is Saturday versus Fort Wayne Concordia. The JV starts at 10, Varsity at 11:45. At 5 pm the team dinner will start at the Elementary school's cafeteria. Grace visits Bethel at 7 and any player who can attend (to watch David and Brayton) will be able to get in for free.A full day of soccer and soccer related activities! NOTES- We are dealing with some injuries; Dylan Weldy (toe, out 2 weeks), Angel Pantoja (day to day, bone bruise), Mason Mast (hip injury, status for Saturday unknown), Landon Parker (shoulder, status for Saturday unknown). Speaking of Mason Mast; he is scheduled to sing the National Anthem Saturday before the Varsity match. The draw for Sectionals will be Friday morning. I will post the draw as soon as we get the information.
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Game Day 12
The Elkhart Memorial Chargers come rolling into Nappanee with a Maxpreps #11 state ranking combined with a # 51 National Maxpreps rank (compared to a 199 state rank and 2084 rank for the Panthers). The Chargers are 9-2-1 on the season overall and 3-2-1 in NLC (wins over Plymouth, Wawasee and Warsaw; losses againsr Northridge and Concord and a draw versus Goshen). The Panthers are 4-7 overall and winless in NLC so far. Hopefully we will be able to entertain a large crowd tonight. The weather will be a carbon copy of last night. See you there; GO PANTHERS !!! #together.
NorthWood- Elkhart Christian 2-0 (1-0)
The grass is short(er), the weather is nice and a good size crowd is on hand for the Varsity only contest tonight.FIRST HALF- With the Panthers playing with a better shape centrally, the game is dominated by us right from the start. The passing is probably a little below par mainly due to our first touch being off. The game is uneventful (on and off the field)so kind of boring perhaps until about the 18th Eli Aukerman lays the ball off to Juan Pantoja. His shot with pace is an easy save for the Eagles GK. Eli is again involved in our next opportunity when he passes the ball to Landon to the left side of the field. Landon Parker utilizes his crafty left foot to put us ahead, 1-0. An Eli to Landon combination continues with a cross from the latest (and last) Parker product. The ball lands near Juan who takes a shot but misses. The Panthers consider themselves lucky when the arbiter decides to award ECA a free kick outside the box after a Cody Cripe charge and foul (fortunately Cody only receives a yellow caution). In the last seconds of the first half, the elder Aukerman slices a ball to Juan. Juan shoots the ball hard but the shot is on the frame, literally! It hits the post and rebounds back into play but no white shirt can get to the ball. Half time score is therefore 1-0. HALF TIME - The address from Coach Duerksen mainly deals with a few issues that need cleaned up in the second half; first touch and passing. If we get our first touch under control more consistently as well as passing to feet more, we will posses the ball more. And no team has ever scored a goal while not possessing the ball so possession is crucial. SECOND HALF - Jadon takes the ball up the left flank and delivers a cross with precision in the box to Juan. Juan's header, despite using great technique, misses its mark to the right. Juan works hard all night long, disturbs the defenders, applies pressure and distributes the ball and does all of that well but gets unlucky in the finishing as does, in general, the entire team. With shots on goal in the double digits, we have only been successfull once so far. ECA gets a couple of chances, most from set pieces. Cody has to come up with a save on a few occasions but overall, he has a quiet night. In the 73rd a mini scuffle ensues in front of the main stand and the last person to shove someone (Dylan Weldy, the player) receives his first, the team's second of the night. With 4 minutes left on the clock (operated by Randy Cripe; thank you for doing the announcing and running the clock and scoreboard!!), Jaron takes a shot at the goal, the save and melee afterwards gives Jerson an opportunity to finish the attack. He does and pokes the ball over the line just inside the left post for the final score: 2-0. A solid win and a win the team desperately needed.NOTES- Next up: tonight features home game number two of the season long 4 game homestand against another ranked NLC opponent, Memorial. JV kicks off at 5, followed by a 6:45 Varsity start. The Varsity record improves to 4-7. The JV traveled to Penn last night and lost 4-0 (all goals scored in the first half).
Monday, September 19, 2016
Match Day # 11
The eleventh game of the season features a visit from the Eagles of Elkhart Christian Academy. The Eagles have a 6-4 overall record and are coming off a home loss (0-5) against South Bend Trinity. Number 5 Hartman (a senior) is their top scorer with 15 goals on the season. We have not played common opponents at this point in the season. The Panthers are hoping to get back on the winning track after the loss against Goshen last Thursday. Tonight's game is a Varsity only contest and kicks off at 7 pm. The JV travels to Penn to play the Penn C team. The JV contest starts at 5 pm. The jV lost to both Concord and Northride at the JV NLC Tourney this past Saturday. Game time temperature will be 77 and sunny so come on out for another "evening of NW soccer". Go PANTHERS !
Friday, September 16, 2016
Goshen-NorthWood 6-0 (4-0)
#3 Goshen defeats unranked NorthWood 6-0. Goshen is a very skilled an talented team and despite the fact that NW gets some chances, none pass the goal line. Varsity falls to 3-7 on the season. The JV squad puts in a good effort but loses 1-0. The JV plays in the NLC JV Tourney tomorrow (Saturday) at Goshen. Their first game starts at 9 am on Field 2 vs. Concord. The second game will be at Noon against either Goshen or Northridge (depending on the outcome of the first games). Varsity's next game is Monday September 19 at home vs. Elkhart Christian at 7 pm. The JV travels to Penn Monday for a 5 pm kick off. Of the 6 remaining games for Varsity, 5 will be played at home (4 game home stretch starts Monday against ECA followed by Memorial,Ft. Wayne Concordia and Glenn respectively). Today's practice will start in Coach Duerksen's room for an analytical session followed by a short training field session.
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
NorthWood-Warsaw 0-4 (0-1)
Warsaw defeats NorthWood 0-4, the JV loses 1-4 (Jerson goal). Yellow cautions for Matt, Kyle and I forgot who received the third yellow. Next up tomorrow (Thursday at #3 Goshen). Bus leaves at 3:45. Today: NO practice (well deserved day off to recover after the Varsity has played 4 games in a 4 day stretch). On a different note; both the opposing coach and some of the officials were complaining about the game field condition. It did not look like it had been mowed and if it was done, the deck sure was set way too high. I have no clue how people are supposed to play soccer on a field that has tall grass and is very soft (rolling it would not be a bad idea). When the players take the field, you can't even see their soccer cleats The lighting in the northwest corner was not optimal either since it has only two of the three working since the start of the season. I guess all in all, the result matches the condition of the field. In all honesty, you rarely hear me complain about the condition of the facility because I really only care about the field itself. If you have never played soccer you probably think the pitch looks good but go ahead and try and run on it with a ball. We are coming up on a long home stand and actually we will play four of the next 5 games at home so hopefully something will be done.
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
LaPorte-NorthWood 4-1 (1-0)
After a sketchy rendition of the national anthem that includes a Cessna 172 flyover (I think) we start our first ever away game at LaPorte in front of a small travelling NW crowd. Once again an arbiter circus swoops down with the best clown taking the center in the Varsity contest and I will leave it with that. The Panthers play hard, attack with speed on the flanks and get some opportunities but the Slicers score first (18" 1-0). NorthWood stays on task with a great work rate, good communication for the most part and an improved focus on their first touch. Four minutes into the second half, LaPorte goes up 2-0 but 9 minutes later, Juan toe pokes a Jaron pass on a defenders right into the ropes and the Panthers are back in the game. But in the 62nd and 70th, LaPorte breakaways turn into goals on a couple of defensive lapses (that start in the midfield) and the 3 goal lead is too much to overcome for our boys. In the 72nd, Jerson does go in the box and if the pitch would have resembled a soccer field a little bit more than the cow pasture that it really was, he probably would have scored a second goal but the ball hits a clump and goes up and Jerson can not recover from the unexpected bounce. Considering that NO fouls are called in the first and nothing but fouls are called in the second, it is a surprise that we only get one yellow (Matt Thornton). The JV game also ends in 4-1 but this time the score is in our favor. The JV welcomes their coach back with gratitude and ends the night with 4 goals (Hilty, Jerson 2, Jason McP). Corbin played well as a composed distributor in the middle and adds two assists on his tally sheet. Next up is Warsaw at home (tonight, Tuesday 9/13/16) with a 5 pm JV kick off and a 6:45 Varsity start. The Varsity's record drops to 3-5, while the JV improves its record to 2-3. The JV is currently riding a two game winning streak.
Monday, September 12, 2016
Game day # 7
NorthWood travels to LaPorte today. The game will be played behind (south) of Kesling Middle School (306 E. 18th St, LaPorte). The SLicers are 4-4, the Panthers 3-4. The JV kicks off at 5:30 pm our time! The only common opponent that both teams have played is Northridge. Both NW and LaPorte lost to the Raiders 2-1. See you there hopefully. Go Panthers.
Sunday, September 11, 2016
Lakewood-NorthWood 1-0 (0-0) Glenn-NorthWood 0-4 (0-2)
The Panthers of Lakewood Park Christian defeat the Panthers of NorthWood with a 66th minute PK in the 3 pm game. The final 1-0 score sends Lakewood into the 8 pm final versus Argos, who earlier had defeated Glenn. The 6 pm consolation game therefore features John Glenn and NorthWood. It takes a little adjustment, not being in the final. This is the Panther's 5th trip to the Argos Invite but the first time we have not made it to the Championship game. Before the first game, the lineup was changed in a more attacking one but after losing 1-0, the decision was made to go even more offensive in the consolation game. A 4-3-3 was put in place in hopes of generating more shots and goals. Prior to the matchup with Glenn, the team is asked to walk out so the starters can be announced. As nice as it is to give the starters some recognition, it would have been even nicer if the announcer would have actually have announced the correct starters. As it turns out, it would not be the only screw up of the night. The one consistent in this tournament thru the years is the officiating. It has been awful. Not that all officials have been below par but every trio seems to have one member who has no business being on a soccer pitch. So tonight, once again, is no exception. The game itself is fairly entertaining. All NW players get playing time, as expected and all contribute. The effort is good and we generate a good amount of offense. Indicative of that is a nice pass from Lucas Aukerman to Jaron Mullett thru the middle near the top of the box in the 29th minute. Jaron gets a nice first touch to go by the last defender and his trademark laser hits the ropes for the first NW lead of the day. In the 37th, Eli Aukerman dribbles around a Glenn defender and makes it to the end line. His perfect pull back pass/cross lands in front of Micah Pippinger who decidedly puts the ball over the line for the 2-0 lead. The officiating crew decides to show their incompetence in the 39th. When Kegan Shiflett (Glenn's #21; their only good player) gets hit by the ball that is cleared by Josh Weldy, the two get tangled up. Shiflett fouls Josh before they get tangled up and that foul earns a red card from the center ref. Now keep in mind that this takes place on the southeast end of the field. Glenn's #21 walks off the field and all of a sudden the AR on the southwest side of the pitch consults with the center ref and that conversation apparently results in a red (what????) card for Josh Weldy. He gets accused of stepping or stumping on Shiflett after the foul. With the crowned pitch and the distance from the AR to where the foul takes place and considering that the center ref is closer to the infringement, it is odd that the AR says he witnessed such a flagrant foul that it constitutes a red card. In other words, this high pitched moron has no business making this call considering his proximity to the area where the "foul" takes place. He then berates coach Duerksen about his smile or grin on his face when he questions the AR on his call. Believe me, coach Duerksen does not smile or grin when one of our players receives a red, ever. So if you can't determine if someone is smiling or not ,you probably can't determine a foul from a non foul. The Panthers stay on task in the second half and there is more room to play since it has turned into a 10v10 contest.Juan Pantoja scores in the 53rd (Landon Parker assist, 3-0) and in the 74th we are able to increase the score to 4-0 with Jerson shot on frame that rebounds and has Jason McPherson touch the ball towards the frame where Matt Thornton finishes it off with his first and the team's 4th and final goal of the day. So the final tally for the day is one win, one loss, one red card and two yellow cards (Eli and Matt) and Juan got a yellow card that was taken away again (talk about some awful officiating). The Varsity's record is now 3-4. Next up is an away game Monday at LaPorte. The bus leaves at 3:45.
Friday, September 9, 2016
Wawasee-NorthWood 1-0 (1-0)
Wawasee defeats NorthWood 1-0 in an NLC match up. The Panthers dominate play until the Wawasee goal about midway thru the first half. NW also scores (in the second half goal,Juan Pantoja) but the goal is disallowed for being offside (beg to differ). Jaron Mullett has a great opportunity in the box and goes one on one with the keeper. His chip hits the crossbar. The last fifteen minutes of the game consists of the Panthers pressing and playing hard at the Warriors goal but we are unable to put the ball in the net. NW fall to 2-3-0 overall (0-3 NLC). The JV wins their game with a first half goal by Brock Hilty (PK) and a second half conversion by Jerson. Corbin hits the cross bar and Jason (McP) hits the upright. A nicely played and (interim)coached game overall. JV record improves to 1-3. NOTES: Today's practice is an hour short; 3:30-4:30. Tomorrow the Varsity travels to Argos for the Argos Invite. Argos plays Glenn at 1 pm, NW entertains Lakewood Park Christian at 3 pm, winners play at 8 pm, losers face each other at 6 pm. The team bus will leave from Paul's Pain Palace at 1 pm (this way we can watch the second half of the first game). Game time temps will be in the low 70's with showers having cleared well before 3 pm.
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Game Day #5 Wawasee-NorthWood
NorthWood is on the road tonight at Wawasee. The Warriors do NOT have lights so the Varsity will play first. The game starts at 5 pm. The JV game will follow approximately 20 minutes after the conclusion of the Varsity match. Hopefully they will be able to get the entire game in if it stays light enough. The Warriors have a deceiving 1-5-1 record but have been in all but one game. They lost to Culver Military Academies 4-2, 2-1 to West Noble and 3-0 to the Minutemen. All decent results despite those being losses. NW has a 2-2 record and starts a very busy stretch of soccer. With games tonight, Saturday (2 games in the tourney), a trip to LaPorte on Monday, followed by a home game on Tuesday against Warsaw and a Thursday match at #3 Goshen, it is important for the Panthers to stay healthy and get some results. The rain should clear out by kick off tonight and the temps are predicted to be around 81 at game time so it promises to be a great night for some NorthWood soccer.
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