2017 Sectionals

Wawasee High School is the host of our Sectional. The following teams are in this Sectional: West Noble, NorthWood, Wawasee, Garrett, Lakeland and Angola. On Monday October 2, NorthWood will play West Noble at 5 pm, followed by Lakeland vs. Wawasee (7 pm). The winners of these two games play each other on Wednesday October 4 at 5 pm. The 7 pm game on Wednesday features Angola vs. Garrett. The winners of the Wednesday games play in the Sectional Final on Saturday October 7th at 2 pm in the afternoon. All games will be played on the artificial turf football field. We will be the away team in every game in Sectionals. The address for Wawasee High School is 1 Warrior Path, Syracuse IN. Single session tickets are 6 dollars and season tickets are 10 dollars each. Pre-school aged kids get free admission.

Bethany Christian - NorthWood 1-0 (0-0)

The JV comes away with a draw to end the season at 6-7-2. The Varsity match is a tight one with the Panthers dominating the first half but not being able to execute in the final third of the field. The defense only allows one shot in half number one. Ten minutes into the second half, Bethany scores and despite numerous attacks and some opportunities, again, the ball does not cross the goal line. A disappointing loss for sure and it is the kind that keeps you up at night. Friday's practice will focus on the changes we need to make in positioning ourselves in order to have more options for the player in possession of the ball. Next up : West Noble in Round 1 of Sectional #20 at Wawasee this coming Monday at 5 pm. Matchday 17 will be previewed on Monday. The regular season for the Panthers is 8-8, quite an improvement over last year's record but not good enough......yet. But everyone is 0-0 today and a new season and new opportunities await us. Today's practice will run til about 5 pm. We have quite a few players with some knocks which is the reason tomorrow's practice has been canceled. Most if not every player, needs a couple of days to recuperate. Our fans have been great this year. We had some of the largest crowds ever at the LaPorte game and on Senior Night and we are hoping for a great turnout again this coming Monday.

Matchday 16

Tonight we are back on the road as we travel to Goshen to play Bethany Christian. Bethany is 6-8-1 on the season. We are hoping to avoid another Senior Night (Bethany plays their final regular season game at home on Saturday). The Bruins are coming off a difficult double OT win at home against Elkhart Christian this past Tuesday. The Bruins have scored 28 goals and have given up 27. Their most dangerous players are 8, 13 and 17. JV kick off is at 5 pm, Varsity at 6:45 pm. The bus departure time is 3:45 pm. NOTES- We are dealing with quite a few ankle injuries; Mauricio Lomeli is out with a broken ankle (that he actually played on in the last JV game, Lukas, Mason and Trent are dealing with ankle issues as well. Hopefully Mr. Widner's tape will help these guys thru tonight's game. Tonight's game is the final game for the JV squad. The Varsity starts the postseason Monday (at Wawasee vs. West Noble at 5 pm). All the Sectional information will be posted here tomorrow.

Sectional Prep

A big thank you goes out to the Goshen High School Athletic Department and our own AD Norm Sellers for working out a time and allowing us to travel to Goshen last night to practice on the Redhawks' artificial turf football field in order to get accustomed to that surface for the upcoming Monday night Sectional game at Wawasee.

Attention Varsity Players!

Check OneNote for the scouting report for West Noble under "Content Library".

Last(ing) Impressions from the NW Panthers home field

Senior Night 2017, the Seniors

Senior Night 2017, before and after the kick off

THE 2017 SENIORS Micah Pippenger with parents Mark & Sheila Pippenger

Randy Kauffman with parents JD & JoAnna Kauffman

Juan Pantoja with parents Luis & Gabriela Pantoja

Jadon Steinmetz with parents Mark & Jenny Steinmetz

Mason Mast with parents Darin & Chanel Mast

Corbin "Shout Out" Taylor with parents Jeff and Mary Taylor

Matt Thornton with parents Kenton & Samantha Thornton

Marius Ley (FES from Frankfurt, Germany) with the De Freitas host family

***ALERT*** Practice Time Change

Tonight's practice at Goshen will be from 7-8pm (field not available until 7 pm). The bus will leave the High School at 6:30. Also, pictures of senior night will be posted here later.

NorthWood-Plymouth 1-4 (0-1)

A large crowd shows up on a warm night for the last home game of the season and the last game at what has been our home for over 20 years. Two soccer games, senior night festivities and a team meal afterwards will make for a worthy au revoir to our soccer home. The JV game starts late due to the Plymouth team bus arriving about 20 minutes behind schedule. The JV loses its game 1-2 after scoring the first goal. Nonetheless a good effort and a respectable season. The JV's final record is 6-7-1. The Senior Nigh announcements and introductions are done by our announcer Randy Cripe, the National Anthem is a spelendid rendition from our own Mason Mast. And then it is time to start the 2017 seniors' last home game. The opponent, ranked 14th in the Indiana Soccer Coaches Association poll in 3A, are the Plymouth Pilgrims who come rolling into Nappanee undefeated on the year at 11-0-3. So, a monumental task but we feel that if we play hard for 80, we have a shot at an upset. FIRST HALF- Mason gets his first start since the Argos tourney where he injured his ankle. He holds out for a good 10 minutes or so. He plays well and the hope is that he can give us even more time Thursday and next Monday. In the 9th minute Juan goes up for a header and makes contact with the ball as well as a Plymouth midfielder. Both have to come off but Juan needs attention from Mr. Widner. The butterfly band aids hold the skin together but it will require stitches after the game. In the 16th, Plymouth scores to go ahead 0-1. The Panthers dig in and show some quick and dangerous counter attacking style soccer. In the 25th, one of those counters has Landon taking a great shot that needs a save from the surprisingly agile but beefy keeper. The rebound lands near Lukas who takes a good crack at the ball but the keeper once again saves it. In the 32nd, Juan -now back on the field after a second treatment from Paul- passes a nice ball to Landon. From the left side of the goal, Landon takes a great volley shot that looks to go in but at the last second the Plymouth gets a hand on it to prevent the ball from going in. HALF TIME- Focus at the half is on how well we have played, that we are playing even if not better then the 14th ranked team and that we need to dig deep and leave it all on the field. SECOND HALF- Only 2 minutes into the second act, a Plymouth attack turns into their second goal. But NW keeps playing tough defense, high pressure and counter attacking soccer. It pays off in the 54th as a nice attack from the right flank gets to Juan. He turns and takes a shot from about 28 out with the outside of his right foot. The ball goes to the left but swings back in to the right and over the keeper and into the net; 1-2! In the 63rd, a ball over our defense ends up in front of a Plymouth forward who scores the 1-3. But the Panthers keep fighting back. In the 77th, Juan places a free kick from the left to the far post. Matt heads the ball and nearly scores. A 78 minute PK for the Pilgrims determines the final score, 1-4. A 1-2 score might have been more justified and more reflective of the game. But all in all a great effort against a good team. NOTES- First of all a S/O to Corbin Taylor!!! Today's JV practice is from 3:30-5 (adjusted time). The Varsity leaves at 6 for their 6:30-7:30 practice in Goshen. Tomorrow we travel to Bethany Christian. Friday is a normal end of the week practice. The practice that was scheduled for Saturday has been canceled due to the minor knocks and injuries we are dealing with; it will hopefully give everyone some time to recuperate before our important game on Monday vs. West Noble at Wawasee. That game is slated to start at 5 pm.

REMINDER

The Wednesday JV practice is at the high School from 3:30-5:30. The Varsity practice is at Foreman Field (home of the Goshen Redhawks football team) from 6:30-7:30. The bus will leave NorthWood at 6 pm.

Matchday 15

Plymouth will be the last opponent on our home field at the Nappanee Elementary School before our expected move to the new soccer field behind Northside apartments next season. Plymouth is undefeated at 11-0-3 with draws versus Northridge, Concord and Mishawaka Marian. The Panthers are 8-6. This is a nice opportunity for an upset on our Senior Night. Plymouth attacks with numbers and defends with the entire team. It will be a tough team to break down but if we show up for 80 minutes, we will have a chance to hand Plymouth their first defeat of the season. The large crowd that showed up for the LaPorte game helped us over the finish line so we are hoping for the same tonight. The weather will be fantastic with a kick off temperature for the Varsity game around 83 degrees. We hope to see all friends, family and neighbors on the sideline tonight to cheer on the seniors (and the rest of the team) tonight!!! JV start: 5 pm, Senior Night 6:20ish, Varsity start 6:45.

John Glenn lands on the Moon? Soccer field mimics Moon craters......

Glenn- NorthWood 0-2 (0-0)

After some confusion on the start time, the game gets underway around 6:05 pm. As the pictures in the next post will prove, this field supersedes "sprinkler head stadium" -the former home of Glenn soccer in New Liberty- in being the worst soccer field in Indiana. It probably should not be used as it is unsafe to play on. Playing soccer on this type of surface is impossible. Any area hospital would probably gladly be a main sponsor considering that it would be an investment that will pay for itself. But Hiler Field is ruled "good enough" by the arbiters so the game is played, kind of. FIRST HALF - It is obvious from the first kick that controlling a ball is nearly impossible. There is standing water in the goal mouth on the NW side which will make defending the goal by the keeper even tougher. Coach Duerksen made some changes to the starting team; Andre in the middle and Luke as the final defender. In the 9th minute, Landon Parker gets his first opportunity and takes a nice direct shot that requires a save from Glenn's tall GK. Eight minutes later, Matt Thornton delivers the ball to C-Bass who takes a nice shot but his effort gets stopped as well. A laser shot in minute 25 from Juan goes wide to the right. Glenn does not threaten much as Luke only has to make a couple of saves. HALF TIME- The lackluster performance of the first half is the topic of discussion. We play to the level of the opponent with little enthusiasm. Coach Duerksen challenges the team to work, talk and move for each other. We need to start using the flanks and do better on free kicks. SECOND HALF- Three minutes into the second half, Juan shoots at the goal but his hard shot finds the crossbar; a good and energetic start to the half. In the 53rd, Landon receives the ball on the right side near the 18. He crosses the ball in the box and finds Sebastian's head. Sebastian's header is a thing of beauty and it finds the net, 0-1 NW. In the very next minute, the center referee calls for a NW PK. Juan takes it without waiting for the whistle and scores but has to retake it. This time, instead of going left, he goes to the right but the result is the same, 0-2. The best encouragements for the Panthers come from Glenn's number 22. This friendly, burly headband toting defender tells his opponents when they hustle, when they have a nice shot and when they make good runs. In the 77th, Andy Duran slaloms thru the Glenn defense and passes the ball to Landon. After his shot rebounds, it looks like all Trent has to do is tap the ball in but a block by a defender and the keeper prevent the 0-3. It is a ugly win on an even uglier field. But a win is a win and the Panthers move to 8-6 on the season.Mason was able to get some time on the field and looked good. Hopefully he keeps recovering so he can get more playing time. NOTES- Tonight (Tuesday) is Senior Night. The JV game vs. Plymouth starts at 5 pm and the Senior Night festivities around 6:20 pm. Kick off for the Varsity game against Plymouth is 6:45. There is a team dinner in the Elementary School cafeteria after the game. Tomorrow the JV practice is from 3:30 -5:30 while the Varsity leaves at 6 pm for a 6:30-7:30 practice on the Goshen High School football field (artificial turf) in preparation for the Sectional game at Wawasee Monday against West Noble.

A day at Kreager Park

<> " FROM TOP TO BOTTOM; GOAL FARM, THE NEW GK BRAND "LUKEDAS", TRYING TO GET PRE GAME BONUS POINTS (UNSUCCESFULLY) AND TRYING TO STAY COOL COURTESY JEFF IWEMA!

A look at the week ahead.....

Today we travel to Walkerton to play Glenn. The bus leaves at 4:30 pm. There is no JV practice on Monday. Tuesday we face Plymouth for the final home game of the season and if you go by what we are told, the final boys game ever at the game field at the elementary school. We say goodbye to the old Nappanee High School football field that we called home for 23 years! The field was in awful condition when Duerksen and I started 21 seasons ago. Games were cancelled due to standing water (we physically took hundreds of buckets of water off the field one season when the team spent a Saturday doing that instead of playing), the track around the field was taken out, the old high school wooden bleachers were removed and replaced by the new ones. A ticket booth was added as were dug outs and a press box. The football score board finally was replaced when only about 11 light bulbs lit up anymore and most importantly, the field received an in ground sprinkler system and with the help from a parent volunteer who has rolled the field for years now, the pitch actually looks decent. So when we leave this facility, it is NOT with a heavy heart. The lights are dismal, and despite all the efforts, it is still one of the worst fields we play on every season. We liked the location but not the pitch itself. So, we do look forward to moving to an artificial turf facility on the south side of the soccer complex behind the Northside apartments next season. With it being the final home game tomorrow comes the implication that it is also Senior Night. The weather looks great and we are hoping for a large crowd to honor the seniors of the 2017 squad: Mason Mast, Matt Thornton, Corbin Taylor, Jadon Steinmetz, Juan Pantoja (4 year Varsity starter), Micah Pippinger and Randy Kauffman. JV starts at 5 pm and the Varsity at 6:45 pm. Wednesday practice will be at the High School training ground and on Thursday we will play at Bethany Christian (probably another senior night). Friday we will practice (location TBD) until about 5 pm. An extra practice has been scheduled for Saturday in preparation for the Sectional Game next Monday. The Saturday practice is from 10- 11 am at the game field.

2017 Sectional Draw

In Game 1 ofthe Wawasee Sectional, the Panthers will play West Noble. Game 2 features Lakeland vs. Wawasee. The winners of game 1 & 2 will face off in Game 3. Game 4 has Angola and Garrett pitched against each other. The winners of matches 3 & 4 will play in the Sectional Final a week from Saturday. Games 1 & 2, we think, are next Monday and Game 3 & 4 on Wednesday. All definite information will be posted here once we receive it.

Matchday 14

We are once again on the road. Today we go west on US 6 to Walkerton where we will take on the the John Glenn Falcons. It will be the first time we play at Glenn High School (in the past the Falcons played their home games in New Liberty). The Falcons are coming off a win against Mishawaka (last Thursday) and a tie against LaVille (Saturday). The Panthers are looking to get back on the winning side of things. The address for the High School is 201 John Glenn Drive in Walkerton. Note that the start time of this Varsity only game today is at 5:30 pm. The bus leaves the school at 4:30. The only injured player right now is Mason who is making progress and has been practicing with the team the last few days. It is unknown when he will be match fit again though.

Ft Wayne Concordia - NorthWood 5-0 (2-0)

Concordia: 1-0 13", 2-0 28", 3-0 43", 4-0 48", 5-0 76". NorthWood PK (miss) 26", PK (miss) 78".

2017 IHSAA Soccer Tournament Pairings Show

Sunday the IHSAA will stream the Sectional Tournament Pairings live at IHSAAtv.org at 7 pm. We are in the Wawasee Sectional with host Wawasee, Angola, Garrett, Lakeland and West Noble. Sectionals start a week from Monday. The winner of the Wawasee Sectional moves on to the Mishawaka Marian Regional.

Matchday 13

Tomorrow caps a week of being on the road. Ft. Wayne Concordia Lutheran is the opponent for both the JV (10 am start) and the Varsity (11:45). Concordia is 9-2-4 on the season. The Cadets have scored 40 goals and given up only 10. Their two main goal scorers are senior #10 Miller (1 goals) and junior #11 Gottschalk (9) so half of the teams goals are scored by these two. Concordia plays its games at Kreager Park on North River Road in Ft. Wayne. The bus will leave the school at 8 am and with the forecast being a hot one, players will need to start hydrating today so we won't run into issues during the match tomorrow. We are 1-1 on the week but would like to finish it with a winning record. The Varsity is 7-5 on the season. The JV is 6-5-1. KREAGER PARK, NORTH RIVER ROAD, FT WAYNE

Memorial-NorthWood 3-1 (2-1)

The JV game is canceled due to "field conditions". Expecting to see the field under water, we are actually confronted with a nice pitch. The good news for the JV is that it is a forfeit so the 1-0 win goes in the book as "W" number 6. Coach Duerksen encourages the team to play with reckless abandonment. It will unfortunately take until the second half before we start to play with that intensity. The start time of the game is moved up to 6 pm but we finally get under way about 6:10. Memorial scores first (15") and second goals (18"- beautiful upper 90 laser by # 8) before the Panthers threaten the Chargers goal. Four minutes before the tea, A nice Lukas Aukerman cross gets mishandled by the Memorial keeper. Sebastian is alert and makes him pay by putting the ball in the net, 2-1. Work rate (or lack thereof) and taking shots are the tea time focus. We play a much better second half. If we put 80 minutes together like we do the last 40, we will be collecting some "W's" down the stretch but it needs to be 80, not 40. We have chances in the 42nd (free kick Sebastian, Juan header and goes over), the 72nd (C-Bass goes around the Charger GK and his shot finds the post) and 79th (Sebastian effort to chip the goalie goes over). In between, in the 62nd, Memorial's free kick finds the NW net (3-1). Next up is at Ft. Wayne Concordia on Saturday (JV 10/ Varsity 11:45). NOTES- Both squads will have the day off today. The Varsity has played 8 games in 18 days (crazy in soccer, this isn't baseball!!) so they need a day to do absolutely nothing. There is a Team Dinner at Mason's house (30311 CR 130 : east off Ash Rd, south of CR 30). The dinner will start around 5 pm. Tomorrow both teams will practice from 3:30-5:30 at the High School.

***ALERT***JV Game canceled; Varsity game time change

Tonight's JV game at Memorial has been canceled due to the field conditions. The Varsity game is still on however the game time has been moved up to 6 pm. The bus for the Varsity team will leave the school at 5 pm. There will not be a JV practice today.

Cautions issued at Elkhart Christian game

#9 - JERSON SANCHEZ # 11 - SEBASTIAN GUILLEN

Matchday 12

Tonight we pay a visit to the Memorial Chargers. The Chargers are 4-7-2 but arguably play the toughest schedule in this part of the state against teams like Adams, Center Grove, Brownsburg, Marian and Homestead and of course all the NLC schools. The Panthers are 7-4. Memorial is 2-4 in conference, we are 1-4. For fans not familiar with Memorial, for your PS, the address is 2608 California Rd, Elkhart and the field is located behind the school. This match is a great opportunity to climb the NLC ladder and get us ready for the post season.

Press Box & Ticket Booth

Elkhart Christian - NorthWood 2-6 (0-3)

A flashback to Chrysler's bad decade pops in mind when you "enter" the Eagles' Talon field but they do a good job distracting me from that thought when I see the "ticket booth" and the infamous press box (pictures of the ticket booth and pressbox will be added later). Team introductions are a little shaky as we apparently now field a Durkskin and Gillen. FIRST HALF- In the first seconds of the game, the Panthers neglect to put the ball up the field and instead lose it in their own defensive third. ECA gets the first opportunity of the night but is unable to score in their first and only one on one on Micah who has to come into action a little earlier then he thought he would have to. It is obvious that we are the better team and we show it in the third minute when Juan finds Landon on the left flank. Landon goes at goal and very decisively puts the ball on the ground and past the keeper for the early 0-1 lead. Juan does not wait long to dish out the next assist. In the 6th, he serves the ball to Sebastian (Gillen for ECA fans) and C-Bass goes around one defender and then slots the ball in the goal for the 0-2. In the 9th, Sebastian is the recipient of a Landon Parker pass. C-Bass slaloms thru the soft butter ECA defense and finds the net again, 0-3. All eyes are on Sebastian as we are hoping for a pure hattrick (3 goals by one player in one half without anyone else scoring between the three goals) but instead, the game turns into a sloppy halfhearted effort. It looks as if we know we are going to win and try to extend the lead with about half the work effort that is needed. No more goals are scored in the half. HALF TIME- The half time talk focuses partly on missed opportunities in switching the ball from one side to the other. The work rate is discussed as well. SECOND HALF- The second act continues the way the first one ended. Sloppy kick ball with little structure. In the 60th, the Eagles expose a NW weakness; defending set pieces. A high corner is not defended well and ends up in the ropes, 1-3. ECA gains confidence and a far attempt to lob the ball over Micah requires Pipp to jump and tip the ball over (great save!). We do not learn our lesson from the first corner goal as we let ECA take one into the box without marking an upcoming MF(min 64). The header goes in and all of a sudden our lead has shrunk to just one goal. It takes about 6-7 minutes for NW to compose themselves. In the 74th, senior Juan Pantoja has seen enough and decides to put the team on his back. He slices and dices thru about 4 defenders and with frustration kicks the ball hard and low. His effort finds the net, 2-4. In the 78th, Trent Edwards crosses the ball from the right flank. Juan heads the ball at the far post to extend the lead to 2-5. With one minute left to play, Sebastian plays a nice ball in from the right, Landon Parker dummies the ball and the ball gets to Andre. What looks to be a chance to score seems to end up in a missed opportunity when the ball goes to far to the left but Andre maintains possession, goes by a defender and from an impossible angle places the ball past the keeper and over the line for the final score; 2-6. We played well the first ten minutes and we played well the last ten minutes. We recovered from a scare in the middle of the game and boarded the bus with a win. We will need to play better overall as a team against our next two opponents as they are from a different caliber then ECA. Micah kept us in the game a couple of times, Trent was dangerous the few times he went up the wing, Lucas played well and used his speed, Andre did a nice job and ended up with a goal (always a nice bonus for a MF) and Juan decided it was time to take over the game. So, all in all, there are positives as well. Landon scored which is what a forward does and Sebastian did the same, twice! On to another game Tuesday night (at Memorial). NOTES- The JV beat Penn (!!) 3-2 with 3 goals for Kaden Newcomer and 3 assists by our own wiener schnitzel, Marius Ley. The bus leaves at 3:45 today. JV game at5 pm, Varsity at 6:45 pm. The weather will have cleared up by then so we hope to see everyone there for this NLC matchup.

Subway found Jared's replacement

THE MAN WHO CAN'T STAY AWAY FROM SUBWAY

Matchday 11

The Elkhart Christian Eagles are 6-3 on the season. They have won the last four games but their best result is probably the 2-1 loss to Argos in August. The Eagles have lost only one home game while winning 4. They have scored 22 times and have allowed 11 goals. The address for ECA is 25943 CR 22, Elkhart. The bus for the ECA game will leave the school at 6 pm, players are to be at the school around 5:45 pm.

Looking at the week ahead.......

Today, Monday September 18, the JV will host Penn at 5 pm while the Varsity travels to Elkhart Christian Academy for a 7 pm kick off. On Tuesday, both teams visit Elkhart Memorial, 5 pm start for JV and a 6:45 kick off for Varsity. On Saturday we make the trip to Fort Wayne to play Ft. Wayne Concordia. The Junior Varsity game is slated for 10 am and the Varsity contest for 11:45 am. Wednesday and Thursday are regular 3:30 - 5:30 practices while the Friday practice will be over by 5 pm.

JV NLC Tournament

On Saturday, the JV played the first round game against Goshen. They were defeated 4-0. In the noon game, Memorial won only after PK's. And only after a couple of our PK's found the woodwork. The game's official result is a draw. The JV's record is now 4-5-1. Next up, today (Monday) at 5 pm at home vs. Penn.

Practice/Game update for 09/15 & 9/16

Today's practice will be at the practice ground at the High School and will run til about 5 pm (as is usual for a Friday practice). After a very busy stretch, the Varsity will enjoy the weekend off. They will be back in action on Monday night at 7 pm at Elkhart Christian Academy. The JV will be at Goshen tomorrow for the Goshen JV Invitational. The JV drew Goshen in game 1 at 9 am on field 1. The second game will be at 12 Noon. If they win the first game, the game will be played on field 1, if we lose the first game, the noon game will be on field 2. The JV plays on Monday as well but plays at home at 5 pm against Penn. Mason is still out with his ankle injury and some other players have minor injuries and knocks. Hopefully most of these will heal over the weekend. The next four Varsity games are on the road (including all 3 games next week).

NorthWood-Goshen 0-6 (0-5)

Goshen defeats NorthWood 6-0, Panthers fall to 6-4. JV loses 1-6 (NW goal Marshal Beebe). Focus shifts to next opponent, Elkhart Christian on Monday.

Match day 10

NorthWood (6-3) hosts the top 10 ranked Goshen Red Hawks (9-2) tonight in the next to last home game at the Game field at Nappanee Elementary ever. JV start at 5 pm, Varsity at 6:45.

Warsaw-NorthWood 2-0 (2-0)

It is Senior Night at Warsaw but fortunately that does not disrupt the start of the game too much. The pitch looks and plays great. This is what a natural grass soccer pitch should look like. It will be the best natural surface we play on this season. Compare this to our field, especially the way it looked Monday, and this field begs for soccer to be played on while ours begs for corn to be planted. The introduction are interesting, we now have a Skyler Durkenson, Micah Pipe-and-ger and a Brad Durkenson. New signings, I guess. On loan maybe because you probably won't hear those names again the rest of the season. FIRST HALF- Warsaw shows right off the bat that their senior # 12 Ocock has speed. He runs in behind our defense and threatens early on. He is the leading scorer for Warsaw with 9 goals. Play goes back and forth initially. But in the 9th, Trent has to come off with a soccer cleat malfunction (the top half of the shoe is separated from the bottom half). It takes time to find cleats close to his size on the bench. During all this, we have to shuffle people around in the back and middle and while we are moving players around, Warsaw gets in the box and ends up scoring the first goal of the game in the 10th. Ocock adds to it in the 18th with the second goal of the night. NW threatens lightly at times and has its most dangerous moment in the 33rd when a Jerson free kick goes in the box diagonally. Sebastian attacks the ball and heads it at goal but it finds the crossbar. HALF TIME- It is obvious to the coaches that we are not out of this game and only need a goal to turn things around. Some adjustments are discussed; one of them being to look for flank passing to create opportunities from the sides not just thru the middle of the field. SECOND HALF- Play is no longer dominated by Warsaw, it is a back and forth type of possession game. Our play in the back is more consistent and we are looking to target from the back. A nice thru ball to Juan in the 52nd minute near the box is the kind of opportunity that can change the game. Juan gets a couple of good touches on the ball, is by the last defender and goes at the keeper. Juan takes a great paced shot at the frame. The ball goes to the keepers right but he makes an excellent save. The second half shows us that we can play with very good teams like Warsaw and were it not for the fact that they executed twice early on in the match, this game could have had a different outcome. We learn from it, we will be better because of it. One note here about the officiating. It was refreshing to see some good referees out there. The center arbiter was on top of all plays and was very consistent and in my eyes the best official we have seen all season. Any official who goes unnoticed for the most part, is a good one. There was flow to the game, he let the players play. NOTES- The JV lost 3-1. Andy Duran had the lone Panther goal. The JV was down 3-0 after 10 minutes so it looked like it could be a long night but we have to give credit to the boys for hanging in there and getting a goal back. The JV is now 4-3. The Varsity's record stands at 6-3. The loss against Warsaw ends a nice winning streak (4 games). Next up: the next to last ever home game at our field tomorrow against Goshen. 5 pm (JV) and 6:45 pm (V) starts. Today's practice will be very light (warmup/stretch/no contact possession) and short. We should be done around 4:15-4:30. There is a team dinner at Randy Kauffman's house tonight at 5:30. The address is 13633 N. Ashbury Court, Nappanee.

Match Day 9

The ninth game is an NLC away game. Today we travel to Warsaw (the fields are behind the High School on SR 15). The JV starts at 5 pm. Varsity will kick off at 6:45. The Panthers are 6-2 (1-2 NLC) while the Tigers are 7-3-2 (2-2 NLC). The in conference losses are against Concord and Plymouth while the wins came against Northridg and Memorial. So no doubt that this is one of the tougher opponents on our schedule, especially away from home. Number 12 Ocock is their go to player with 9 goals on the season. Ocock is a senior. Another beautiful sunny day is in the offing with temps around 77 at game time. It doesn't get much better then this. We hope to see you there!

Panthers' 12th Man

NorthWood-LaPorte 2-1 (1-0)

Another beautiful night for soccer and for once the National Anthem rendition does not encounter issues. Actually quite the opposite; our own (injured) Mason Mast sings it and does so quite well. As a matter of fact, Mason will be back singing the Star Spangled Banner at Senior Night as well! With the student council sponsoring a tailgate and the U14 Pumas and their parents getting in free, attendance is the highest for the season. The stands are full and the "front row" is full with folding chairs. It is the highest attendance since last year's Northridge game. And the student section will constantly rear its pretty head to support the Panthers! FIRST HALF- It starts with a bang and almost a goal. A pass to Landon Parker ends with his shot that requires the first of many saves by the Slicers keeper. In the 9th Juan Pantoja finds Sebastian Guillen who also takes a crack at goal also finding the LaPorte GK in his way. The save results in a corner. The corner also gets to Sebastian who heads the ball towards the goal. His effort requires a LaPorte defender to save the ball off the line with his head. We dominate play, combine easily and keep pressing. In the 15th, the Panthers take another corner. The lower ball in comes off Sebastian near Brock who pokes the ball over the line for the 1-0 lead. Four minutes later, Andre serves Jerson who, in turn, delivers the ball to Juan. Juan is now one on one with the keeper. Juan's shot gets saved once again by the LaPorte keep, who singlehandedly, keeps the Slicers in the game. In the 36th, Marius Ley takes a long distance shot which also requires some magic from the keeper. HALF TIME- Only some minor adjustments are discussed that deal with having to work harder when we lose the ball and making a delay on free kicks to see what opens up. SECOND HALF- After getting many chances in the first, the feel of the start of the second is different. We are losing a bit of the control of the game. Especially after about four minutes into the second act, LaPorte attacks and when Micah Pippinger comes out to get the ball, he just can't get to it enough. The ball comes free and gets passed to the middle of the box. With Micah being played out to the side, an easy pass at the goal from a LaPorte midfielder changes the score to 1-1. In the 49th, a long range hard shot from LaPorte finds the crossbar after Micah gets a hand on it. LaPorte takes more control of the game and we play a bit on our heels. As we regain our composure, the battle goes back and forth. At times it feels that the game is being played without any officials as hardly anything gets called. Pushes in the back are allowed, challenges from behind are no issue either. In the 62nd, Trent Edwards takes an unexpected shot at the LaPorte frame from about 24 out. The keeper needs to tip the ball over the bar to deny Trent a goal. Things get interesting in the 78th minute. A shot at the Slicers goal gets caught by the keeper. Sebastian runs by the keeper (in case he would the drop the ball as he had numerous times during the match). As Sebastian goes by the keeper, he gets pushed by a defender while the Keep raises his elbow. Sebastian goes down in the goal. The center ref stops play and the clock and confers with his AR's. The AR by the stands has the best angle on the play and advises the center ref that this foul in the box should result in a PK. Landon picks the ball up and puts it on the spot. He blasts the ball to the keepers right with all the confidence in the world, for the 2-1 lead. The Panthers are able to keep LaPorte off their half in the last 95 ticks. NorthWood is able to entertain a large crowd and come away with a win despite some controversy at the end. We have been on the other end of these calls way too many times that it feels good to finally see things break our way. The Panthers are 6-2 on the season. NOTES- The JV defeats LaPorte 2-0 (Marius and Kaden goals) and they are 4-2. Both teams travel to Warsaw tonight. JV has 5 pm kick off, the Varsity starts at 6:45 pm. We are in the middle of a tough couple of weeks with many tough games in a short period of time. Mason is day to day and Kyle Luster returns tonight after having to sit out last nights game with a one game suspension (undeserved red from Saturday's game). SOme other players picked up some knocks last night but are hopefully close to a hundred percent tonight. Thanks again to all Panther soccer fans and a big sout out to the NW student section for being our 12th player last night!

Looking at the week ahead........

Today (Monday) is the start of a very busy week. The LaPorte Slicers pay us a visit but due to the fact that LaPorte is in a different time zone, the starting games have been adjusted. The JV starts at 5:30 pm and the Varsity starts at 7:15 pm. According to MaxPreps, the Slicers are 4-5 on the season but their Saturday result against Lake Central has not been reported and there fore not included in their stats. Thru the first 9 games they have given up 41 goals while scoring 22. We sure would like to keep our winning streak going and extend it to 4 tonight. The Panthers own a 5-2 record and have scored 22 goals and have given up 10 goals. The JV starts tonight with a 3-2 record. Less then 24 hours later both our teams will play again when they take the field in Warsaw to play the Tigers (match day preview will be posted tomorrow). Starting time tomorrow is 5 pm (JV) and 6:45 (Varsity). Wednesday will be a practice day (practice ground at the High School) from 3:30 til probably around 5 at the latest. On Thursday we will play what might be the next to last home game ever at the game field at Nappanee Elementary. The Red Hawks of Goshen will swing by (JV at 5pm, Varsity at 6:45 pm). Friday we practice at the High School practice ground for a normal short Friday practice. The Varsity gets Saturday off but the JV travels to Goshen for the JV NLC/Goshen Invitational Tournament. NorthWood plays in Flight A at 9 am versus Goshen (the same team they will have played two days earlier) at Field 1. NorthWood will play their second game at noon. Winners of game 1 and 2 will play at game 1, losers of game 1 and 2 will play at field 2. All games are played on the two soccer fields behind Goshen High School.

We are the Champions of the ...........

2017 ARGOS INVITATIONAL

Argos Invitational- Lakewood Park Christian-NorthWood 0-1 (0-0) & SB Washington-NorthWood 1-2 (1-2)

This invitational is more of a Panther Classic then our own considering all teams but Argos use the Panther as their mascot. For once, the weatherman/woman predicts the weather spot on which allows the team and those supporting the team to enjoy some nice sunny conditions. With Argos being bounced out of the tournament early, the chances of having a large night crowd become very slim. Of course, we still have to win game 1 to make it into the championship game. And making it into the late game becomes quite tricky. GAME 1 vs LPC; We start out somewhat sluggish but threaten more then LPC. Despite some chances in the 5th (Landon shot) and 6th (dangerous Sebastian corner), the most important action of the first half occurs when Mason Mast gets caught in a defensive play where he gets somehow stuck between a LPC attacker and Micah and injures his ankle. This play takes play in minute 10th and we have to do without Mason the rest of the tournament (as a matter of fact, Mason did not break anything but sustained enough of an injury that will sideline him for at least 10 days). The Argos John Deere Gator sees more action during this game then we wanted to; it takes Mason off the complex as wel as the LPC keeper who sustains a hip injury later in the second half). The best action of the first round game comes in 58" when a well executed Jerson pass finds the feet of Sebastian. Sebastian executes well by lobbing the ball over the LPC keep who comes out of the goal. The well weighted finish bounces in the goal for what will end up being the only goal of the game. In the 61st, a shot from the left side of the 6 from Landon does get saved on the line by a LPC defender. On a last minute LPC free kick, we hear the LPC coach telling the team to set a pick which is not something you hear on a soccer sideline since it is illegal to do this. The 0-1 win sends us into the 8 pm final against South Bend Washington. CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: With about 30 NW fans and 3 Washington fans, the stands are sparsely populated (and that might be an overstatement). The team is appreciative of our fans traveling with us on a long day of soccer. The appreciation shows in the effort the team gives in the championship game. By the way, what is it with high school soccer that the timing of the playing of the National Anthem and decrepit officiating are challenges that are hard to overcome? We don't have to wait long to see the bald eagle (or blind?) running up and down our line will prove my point in my previous statement. The game starts out well for the Panthers, the NorthWood Panthers that is. A well taken corner by Sebastian finds the golden boot feet of Landon Parker. His effort finds the woodwork (8th min.). After a switch to Kyle Luster on the right side in the 14th minute, Kyle makes a pass to Landon whose shot goes past the keeper for a 1-0 lead. Kyle, who fills the vacuum (but not the spot) created by the absence of Mason, plays extremely well. His first touch is great and he stretches the Washington defense with his chalk line runs. We are combining well, we work hard, make good runs and dominate play. In the 16th, Sebastian passes to Landon in left midfield. Landon takes the ball up the pitch and finishes the shot to the left for a 2-0 lead. The game seems to be in hand and we are just anticipating a third goal to put the game away. And that is when incompetent officiating takes the lead roll. Despite wearing glasses (wrong Rx maybe??????), the bald AR is "convinced" he sees Kyle throw an elbow to a SB Washington player in front of the Washington bench in minute 22. This happens right after Sebastian gets leveled from behind (which does not get called). Kyle goes in hard for the tackle but takes the Washington MF out with his hip. A free kick ? Yes! But a card? Probably not and a red......no sir!! This AR has made very many dubious calls in the past and shows that his performance today shows that "improvement" is not in his vocabulary but "sucking at something I though I might be good at" is. The red card and now effectively being down to 10 men has an impact on the game. NorthWood starts to play on its heels and all we do is defend. In the 33rd, Washington takes advantage of NW being down a man and score the 2-1. At the half, Coach Duerksen talks to the team about the fact that we are still in the same formation but are just down one attacker. Work hard, don't hang back and we will be fine. It is now time to work hard, see it through and show that we can work thru some adversity. The team does just that in the second half. NW creates at least 3 or 4 very dangerous opportunities in which it could have scored. Our defense plays some great soccer. Trent, Jadon and SKyler play absolutely fantastic. Our midfielders play very good and come back to help defend the entire second half. Corbin plays well and when Andre comes in, he does great. Juan and Jerson do well on the ball which gives us minutes to recover. Matt plays very hard and physical and makes great runs. Micah makes some good saves to keep us in it and Sebastian and Landon hold on to the ball when we need some time to regroup. Anyone who subs in makes sure that the level of play does not drop. We have not just 11 starters, we have a team of good players who all work for each other. We are able to keep our lead and when the whistle blows in the 80th minute, we have been able to keep the lead and go home with the trophy!!!!! As we said at the beginning of the year; we want three trophies (Panther Classic, Argos Invitational and Sectionals) and we have the first two in our possession. Keep it up boys!!!! Even though we are a little thin Monday (Mason out with an injury and Kyle with the red card), we will play for another home win Monday (tomorrow) against LaPorte. Note the different then usual start time. JV kicks off at 5:30 and th Varsity at 7:15. Please come out and support your Panthers as they try to go for 4 in a row!!!!!!

Match Day 6 ....preview

At 3 pm tomorrow (Saturday), the Panthers will face Lakewood Park Christian (LPC). LPC has a 4-3 record. They have scored 12 times and given up 17. They are ranked 12th in the Indiana Soccer Coaches Association polls this week in Class 1A. In our second game of the day we will either face Class 1A # 15 Argos or South Bend Washington. Argos has a 3-2-3 record and has scored 10 goals and have allowed 13 goals so far this season. South Bend Washington does not directly report to MaxPreps so we have incomplete results. Only three opponents have reported scores, all of whom defeated Washington with a combined score of 9-1. The weather is as good as it can get with a high of 70 and nothing but sunny skies. With all of this in mind, we hope to see you all there tomorrow. Go Panthers! Speaking of that..... Lakewood Park Christian, NorthWood and Washington all have the same mascot while Argos has to be the killjoy here and be different then the rest of us since they opted to go with the Dragons as their mascot.

NorthWood -Wawasee 5-3 (2-2)

The JV sets the tone for the night with a nice solid overall performance. The defense does not give up a goal and on the offensive side, Marshall Beebe scores in the first and Andy Duran and Kaden Newcomer in the second for a 3-0 win. Between the JV and Varsity game, it rains hard during the warm up but fortunately that is all the rain we have to deal with tonight. The lights take effect early on with the cloudy and dark conditions. The pregame talk is fairly simple; Wawasee has had good results but they only have one very dangerous player, #4 Pena. He scores about half of their goals and is quick.FIRST HALF To prove our point, Pena scores in the second minute which does not go over well on the NW bench. We get our first opportunity in the 11th when a pass back to the hefty Wawasee keep gets mishandled. Landon has a great chance but puts it over the goal. Three minutes later, Sebastian receives a pass and scores but the goal is called offside. In minute 17, Sebastian plays a thru ball in the middle to Landon. Landon does not miss this time and hits the ropes; 1-1! 60 ticks later, a quick NW restart on a free kick lands in front of Sebastian Guillen but his effort is blocked. A Juan Pantoja cross in the 30th is not dealt with by the Warriors' defense and Sebastian takes advantage of it and finishes the ball into the net; 2-1 NW. Wawasee's #4 takes a close shot in the box from a flank cross but the shot gets saved by Micah with a miraculous left foot kick. Unfortunately, the ensuing corner goes into the right side of the goal by way of a Wawasee shoulder. The 2-2 is also the half time score. HALF TIME- Minor problems are addressed but the main one is that we need to defend set pieces better and mark better. Overall, we have played decent. It seems the first 15 minutes or so were rusty but we have not played in a competitive game in almost two weeks. Coach Duerksen asks his players to work hard and to just find a way to win this crucial NLC match. Our defense needs to improve and our offense needs to execute. SECOND HALF- We start off well. We possess the ball. With Jerson, Juan and Sebastian in the center of the midfield, we are able to transition well from defense to offense. Besides possession, we also start to make better passes and better runs but more importantly, our effort is absolutely fantastic. In the 46th, Trent -who plays a great game on both sides of the ball ALL night long- passes a ball perfectly to Landon. Landon slots the ball right for a 3-2 NorthWood lead. In the 49th, Wawasee exposes a NW weakness. A runner is not picked up on a corner. The player who is not marked goes up for a header and draws the Warriors even with the Panthers; 3-3. Some good physical battles are fought out in the middle third, some to the chagrin of the Wawasee coaches. When the AR in front of the NW bench tells them it is enough over and over again, the center ref comes running over to the NW (what?) and appears to pull a card out of his shorts. Coach Duerksen uses his best defense -which in this case is more like playing offense- by telling the ref that "it wasn't me, I didn't say anything" while pointing at the Warriors bench. As hard as it was to believe for the official that Coach Duerksen had no comment on his officiating, he does then make his way to the Wawasee bench and issues a verbal warning. The AR in front of our bench, who at times runs up and down the line making guppy faces and sounds (must be the weather) keeps an eye on their bench the rest of the game. In the 58th, Jerson gets the ball on our own half. The next play is indicative of his efforts throughout the game. Jerson dribbles the ball all the way to the Warriors box and passes the ball to his right and in front of Juan. With his -Juan's- hardest shot of the season, NW takes the lead after the ball careens off the inside of the left post; 4-3! Jerson slices thru the Wawasee midfield all night long like a hot knife thru butter and it is entertaining to watch. But, not to be outdone by his team mate, it is now Landon who decides to take the ball for a ride. In the 63rd, Landon goes by about seven Wawasee players and ends up on the left side of the pitch near the box. From there, Landon takes a nice controlled shot that disappears between the woodwork and into the net for the final score 5-3! The excitement isn't over yet, courtesy of the arbiters, however. In the 78th, Marius Ley has the ball for a throw in. With less then 120 seconds left on the game clock, he has nowhere to throw the ball since none of his teammates are unmarked. The center ref stops the clock and the game and issues Marius a yellow caution. He would deserve a yellow IF he was actually stalling but he simply took an extra three seconds to find a teammate. A poor decision by the ref. Of all the fouls that were committed during this game that were not called, the center ref decides to call this issue worth of a yellow. Other then that poor decision, the officiating was pretty good tonight. NLC battles are always heated ones. The crowd was great tonight. Despite the weather, we had a great number of fans and a good enthusiastic student section! The final score of 5-3 (with a Landon Parker hat trick!) evens the Panthers' NLC record at 1-2 and the overall record goes to 3-2. We are now ranked (!!) 25th in Class 2; well done boys! Now on to the Argos tournament.....let's get us some hardware! NOTES- Today's practice is from 3:30-4:30. The keepers will have their own separate training today with Kyle. The bus leaves at 1 pm tomorrow.

Matchday 5

Today we host the Wawasee Warriors. This NLC opponent rolls into town with a 4-1-2 record. Our common opponent so far this season is Concord. Concord defeated us 0-3 and Wawasee 9-0. The player to watch for the Warriors is their # 4 Pena who has scored 12 of their 21 goals so far this season and in addition to that also has 4 assists. The Panthers have not played since August 26th when we hosted Concord. We are healthy for the most part but do have some people who are dealing with some minor issues. According to weather.com, the rain should be done by about 4-5 pm so hopefully in time before the JV game starts (5pm). The Varsity kick off is slated for 6:45. The temperatures will be in the low 60's. The keepers might have the toughest job today with the field being wet and slippery.

Argos Tournament information

The Argos tournament will be played this coming Saturday, September 9th, 2017 at Argos High School, 500 Yearick Street in Argos (for your GPS). Argos, Lakewood Park Christian and Washington and NorthWood are the four schools competing in the tournament. Argos plays Washington at 1 pm followed by the Lakewood Park Christian - NorthWood match at 3 pm. Losers from game 1 & 2 face off at 6 pm while the winners battle for the trophy at 8 pm. Temperatures during the day will be 70 and sunny! A great day to sit on the sideline and take in some soccer. There is a concession stand at the field. Admission is 5 bucks for adults and 4 dollars for students and these are all-day passes. There is plenty of parking right by the field (between the High School and the main stand at the field). Since we are designated as the second named team in each contest, we will wear our black & reds but players are to bring their home whites as well. Water for players will be provided but they should bring their own bottle since cups are not available. Since the weather will be perfect, we are hoping for a great traveling fan base! See you there!

JV defeats Westview

The JV scored once in each half to get their second win of the season against Westview. The first half goal came from Kaden Newcomer while Sebastian Guillen added another in the second half by way of a laser free kick. The JV's record is now the same as the Varsity record; 2-2. Next up for both teams is NLC opponent Wawasee. The preview for that game will be posted tomorrow. The Argos tournament information will be posted later today. NOTES: Both teams fielded an Andre and a Kael. Both NW keepers saw action last night and both will be credited with a clean sheet. Neither team has any injuries so we will start healthy now that we begin the meat and potato part of the season. Tomorrow's NLC game is a home game.

Practice venue change

Today's practice will be at the game field and will run from 3:30 til about 5- 5:15pm.

ISCA State soccer rankings from September 4

The Indiana Soccer Coaches Association released its rankings for this week. Our own Head Coach Duerksen is one of the pollsters! In Class 3 we have three (3) NLC teams who are in the top 20; Concord (7th), Goshen (14th) and Plymouth (20th). In our class (Class 2) we find only one opponent; Ft. Wayne Concordia at spot number 15. In Class 1 we have three (potential) adversaries show up in the top 20; Lakewood Park Christian is number 12 (our opponent in the first round of the Argos Tournament Saturday) and Argos is at number 15 (potential opponent in the same tournament) while our opponent for the last game of the regular season, Bethany Christian, can be found at number 19.

Looking at the week ahead

Today, Tuesday, the Varsity has a regular practice at the High School. The JV hostst Westview at 5 pm at home. Players are to report at 4:15. Tomorrow is a regular practice for both the JV and Varsity. On Thursday 9/7/17, both teams will play Wawasee in a NLC match up; JV game start 5 pm followed by the Varsity contest at 6:45. Game temps for Thursday will be in the low 60's. Friday's practice will run from 3:30 -5 pm. Saturday we play in the Argos Soccer Invitational at Eugene Snyder Field in Argos. Our first game will be at 3 pm versus Lakewood Park Christian. I will post additional tournament information later in the week. The forecast for Saturday is perfect with a high of 71 and nothing but sunshine!

Inaugural NWCBTT Tourney champs!

Coach Duerksen's Red Team won the NorthWood Coaches Blind Draw Tournament Trophy on Friday. The tournament was inserted into the training schedule to allow for some competetive matches in a week where no games were scheduled. Duerksen's red team defeated Coach Douwsma's team on a Kourtevius goal inside the box. Both the Dijkstra coaches' teams were left empty handed........

And so it begins......

September is here! The month in which NW Soccer has more engagements then any other month. Twelve games are on the menu between next Thursday (September 7th) and September 28th; 12 games in 22 days! We ease into the month with a fun 9v9 tournament at practice today followed by three entire days off. On Tuesday, the JV will host Westview at 5pm. The Varsity returns to action on Thursday September 7 when Wawasee pays us a visit (Varsity & JV/NLC matchups). A week from tomorrow we play in the Argos Invitational (3pm and either 6 or 8 pm) and after that we play Mon/Tue/Thu followed by Mon/Tue/Sat which is followed by Mon/Tue/Thu games. In other words, three games a week for the next four weeks. Proper nutrition, rest and hydration will be key for our athletes!!!!! But first, let's have some fun today in practice and enjoy a rare weekend off!