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.