3A #11 Northridge - 2A #18 NorthWood 2-0 (1-0)

Two mistakes, one a defensive NW miscue and the other a arbitration blunder lead to two Northridge goals. The Panthers deserved more. We played our best game of the season had some opportunities but were unable to put those away. A defensive mistake in the box leads to un unearned Northridge chance and the subsequent goal. With minutes left in the game, NorthWood adds more offensive and therefore less defense in order to create some mor chances. A Raiders counter ends up in our box. Gifton slides in backwards to try and regain possession, the Northridge player stumbles, stays on his feet, takes a shot and when the shot does not go in, the referee points at the PK spot. So if the foul (if it was one, I've watched it 5 times and can not really determine if it was even a foul)is committed, you point at the spot. When the play is over and then you decide retroactively to award the penalty, that is not only dubious but probably just plain horrendous officiating. Not that that goal mattered but the fact remains that it was the wrong call. Despite the PK, the overall team performance was terrific. We showed a great workrate with a lot of good play, switch play, combination play. The only thing we did not do was to get the ball over the line when we had opportunities. The best chance came off a Dom pass on the six to Carlos whose shot got saved by the -annoying- Northridge keeper. Panthers drop to 3-3-1. The JV loses 1-0. Thursday is a normal practice on the grass at Wellfield and there will be a team dinner afterwards at Wellfield. Players can bring a chair or blanket to sit on.

Game Day 7 - 3A #11 Northridge - 2A #18 NorthWood

Northridge is 3-0-2 on the season beating Goshen, Penn and Chesterton and tying Elkhart and Adams. The Panthers are 3-2-1. This game was postponed last week due to the weather. JV start - 5:30 pm, Varsity kicks off at 7:15 pm.

Lakeland - #18 NorthWood 0-8 (0-4)

After about an hour on the bus and some rain on the way, skies clear as soon as we set foot on the pitch. The officiating trio resembles a basket of soup sandwiches and their performance comes close to matching that. The national anthem is played but so softly that it is hard to determine when it is over. A large "L" logo on the middle of the field surely set the Lakeland School Corporation back a few bucks in spray paint. FIRST HALF - The Lakers, in their sky blues, have had a rough start of the season and had already given up 30 goals in 4 matches. The Panthers add another 8 to that total tonight. After a correction by the NW bench to change the first half playing time to 40 minutes (from 45), it is time for what we came here for. Dom makes his first appearance of the season and puts his stamp on the game and the score card early. The first goal at about twenty minutes in is an own goal but comes off a Dom shot. The second goal around the 27th is a Dom goal (Grant Miller assist). The third one is a pretty one. A nicely Grant Miller placed corner reaches Carlos who heads the ball towards Maddox who heads the ball into the ropes with no chance for the Lakers keeper to get to it; 0-3! A solid shot at the goal by Jager Bute gets stopped initially by the Lakeland stopper but comes of his 2x4 hands. Carlos is quick to jump on the rebound and crushes the ball into the goal for his first and the Panthers' 4th goal of the night. HALF TIME - Some minor adjustments are made. Mark only played 14 minutes due to his injury and hopefully we can get the starters some rest for the remainder of the game with the Northridge contest looming about 23 hours out. SECOND HALF- Five minutes into the second act it is Drew Davis who finds the net for his third NW career goal (second vs Lakeland with the previous Lakeland goal coming in 2022). The pass from Dom to Grant ends up in front of Drew for the 0-5. In the same minute, Solomon Yegon assists Carlos who places a hard shot thru the keepers hands for the 0-6! Speaking of Yegon; Shifty Gifty is sick and did not travel with the team; Marshall Sell takes his spot on the defensive line (Bryce shifted to the middle). Hopefully Gif as well as Gusy and Casin are all feeling better tonight. All of them were sick yesterday. But back to the game. The center ref makes some dubious decisions with the help of his AR's but when you are up by a large margin it clearly will not impact the end result. A nice thru ball into the box sees Isaac Bell going 1v1 at the keeper and a miraculous save prevents the score from increasing. Jager scores number 7 for NorthWood (Jager Boot according to the Lakeland announcer) with a well placed ball in the left corner of the goal, well out of reach for the Lakers GK. Maddox splits two defenders inside the box to reach Sol who lifts the ball past the keeper in a very Sol way for the final score 0-8. All in all a fairly easy win for the Panthers who has all players get playing time. Trace records his first shut out of the season. NorthWood improves to 3-2-1 on the season. NOTES- Next up: Today at Northridge. Bus leaves Wellfield at 4:15pm, JV starts at 5:30 pm, Varsity is at 7:15 pm. JV will be in all white, Varsity white top and socks with black shorts.

Game Day 6 Lakeland - # 18 NorthWood

The Panthers travel to LaGrange to take on the the Lakers. The Panthers are 2-2-1 on the season, Lakeland is 0-4. NW has not played in over a week while the Lakers played Westview this past Saturday. This is a Varsity game only with a 5:30 pm start. The bus leaves Wellfield at 3:45 pm. The JV will have a regular practice on the grass at Wellfield from 3:30-5:30 pm.

Changes to Training and Games this week

MONDAY: Practice3:30-5:30 (Wellfield/Grass). TUESDAY Varsity game at Lakeland 5:30 pm start/JV 3:30-5:30 (Wellfield/Grass). WEDNESDAY at Northridge 5:30 JV/V 7:15. THURSDAY 3:30-5:30 (Welfield)Team Dinner afterwards. FRIDAY 3:30-5 (Wellfield).

PRACTICE SCHEDULE CHANGE FOR REMAINDER OF THIS WEEK

AMENDED TRAINING SCHEDULE: -** Wednesday 3:30-5 pm Wellfield/Grass, -**Thursday NO PRACTICE, -**Friday 3:30-5:15 Wellfield/Grass (start of 2023 Compete Week).

****UPDATE***** Schedule Change - Northridge Game

The away game versus Northridge for this Thursday has been canceled due to predicted severe heat. It has been officially rescheduled for Next Wednesday, August 30th.

#2 Mishawaka Marian - #15 NorthWood 5-1 (4-0)

The Knights play in your face fast paced soccer defeating the Panthers; 3" 1-0 5" PK -Saved by Trace (second PK stop of the year) 25" 2-0 26" 3-0 30" 4-0 PK (5th PK against NW this season) 47" 5-0 51" 5-1 - Sol. JV loses 4-1. Varsity record : 2-2-1 Next Up : 3A #15 Northridge away.Below a sparse crowd witnesses a NW loss to Marian. Groundhog day at Marian; a groundhog crosses the feld from sideline to sideline before second half kick off.

Game Day 5 - #2 Mishawaka Marian - #15 NorthWood

Both teams move up in the State rankings. Marian moves up a notch from 3 to 2 while the Panthers move from 19th to 15th. Both teams have had a good start of the season. Marian, State Runner Up last year, fields a team with mainly seniors. Like NorthWood, they lost 6 starters from last year's squad. The JV game squares off at 5 pm, the Varsity at 7 pm. The bus leaves at 4 pm from Wellfield. Players need to park in the west part of the car park. Wes Bell received stitches Saturday night after colliding with a Manchester player and we are awaiting clearance from NW Sports Medicine. Dom is not available until Thursday. Marian knocked the Panthers out of Regionals last season (1-0) and ended up losing in the State Final. Marian is 2-0 on the season, beating west Noble (2-0) and Concord (2-1). The top 20 2A teams are a majority private schools like Marian (15) while private schools account for just 5 (with NW being the 3rd highest ranking public school in 2A). A case could be made to have private schools just having their own class but so far the IHSAA has not shown signs of even entertaining that idea.

NorthWood wins own Invitational

The morning game features #19 NorthWood and #13 Bremen. An early season measuring stick of where we are. It is evident from the start that this is another typical NW-Bremen match. Initial pressure comes from the Lions who are able to score early in the 11th. It is now time to see what the Panthers have mentality wise to start and get back into this game. Kyle makes an adjustment and puts Carlos on the right side for a better match up. It pays off in the 16th when Carlos slices thru two defenders and lays the ball off to Sol near the left top of the 18. His right low shot goes past the keeper to put the 1-1 on the board. NW and Bremen play a pretty even game with NW having a little bit of an advantage with some offensive opportunities. One of those comes in the 28th when from about 25 out, Drew Davis shoots a ball at the goal and over the Bremen keeper for a 2-1 lead. Drew has now recorded a goal as a freshman and sophomore! A couple of minutes later a disputable call by the ref results in a PK for Bremen. The explanation of "the NW player cleared the ball but after he did made contact with the opponent resulting in a trip" does not constitute a penalty in my book, FIFA's book or IHSAA book but the half center ref (we again only have two refs) has the last word. Bremen's best player, #10 takes the penalty. He shoots low and left but an amazing save by Trace Rojas keeps the ball out of the net and the Pathers conserve the lead. It takes some more magic from Trace (fantastic diving save in the 56th from #12 and forcing #10 to shoot outside the frame in the 59th) in the second half to make sure NW keeps the lead. A great result against another ranked and solid team puts us in the Final at 5 pm. A Bremen "fan" gets ejected by the referee for the rest of the tournament. Manchester defeats Western quite easily in the noon match up. Bremen defeats Western in the match for 3rd and 4th. At 5 pm it is time for the Final. Manchester has a couple of good players and #12 is by far their biggest threat as he has speed and a good shot. NW starts somewhat slow while Manchester brings the energy. A breakaway counter in the 10th at the NorthWood goal requires Trace to not just come off his line but actually make a daring save outside (1) the 18 yard box to preserve the 0-0. In the 24th minute, Carlos plays to Sol who lets the ball dummy thru his legs. The ball gets to Jager, who is enjoying a day where his name is not butchered, and takes a shot at the Manchester goal. The ball hits the cross bar while dipping back down. Solomon has three great opportunities after making great runs but the lanky Manchester backstop is able to stop all three. With 60 seconds left on the clock, Manchester breaks the stalemate and puts the Squires up 0-1. A blunt half time talk is focused on a couple of minor tactical issues but more so on our workrate that needs to improve if we want to take the trophy home tonight. An energized NorthWood takes the field and plays with a higher tempo. We end up with 12 corners in the game and each one is dangerous. In the 53rd one of these corners ends up inside the 6 and a Maddox Brown hip puts the ball over the line to tie the game. NW plays with more pressure on the Manchester defense resulting in numerous balls in the box. On the 63rd, one of these attacks in the box turns into a PK after a Suire handball. Carlos sends the keeper the wrong way. NorthWood leads 2-1. The score stays this way until the final whistle. The Panthers win the 2023 NorthWood Invitational. They get results against two ranked opponents in the first week of the season. This coming week will be another challenging week. For one, the weather will be a challenge with the high temps and humidity and for another, we face somevery tough opponents. We again face two ranked opponents and both of them away from home. Mishawaka Marian is ranked 3rd in 2A while Northridge is ranked 18th in 3A. The bus for Marian leaves at 4 pm Monday from Wellfield Park. JV starts at 5 pm, Varsity kicks off at 7 pm.

(1A) # 6 Bethany Christian - (2A) # 19 NorthWood 1-1 (0-0)

Weather delays the start of the JV game and therefore the Varsity game as well. Both teams entertain themselves in the Bethany gym until game time.

FIRST HALF- Once we get the announcements out of the way (Jager is now Beaut - "It's a beaut Clark, it's a beaut") we get to play under three of the four lights. We have as many refs as lights tonight! The game starts slow when both teams are trying to feel their way on a soggy pitch with thick and tall grass. Not very conducive to conducting soccer business. The team's benches are situated on the track in front of the bleachers which makes little sense as well. As we settle in, it is the man who can play all positions, Maddox, who does a nice job of turning away from his opponent. He takes a shot which curls to the left and hits the left post. A lot of back and forth play ensues the rest of the half with NW displaying a very organized defense. Our main problem offensively is that we do not play to the strength of our attackers. Jager needs played to feet so he can control the ball and instigate give and go's, Sol needs balls played in front of him to feet so he can start making runs away from defenders to shoot but we play too many balls over the top. Since none are diagonally, they typically end up going straight to the Bethany keeper. A nice combination in the 26th has Jack serving Carlos who passes to Sol. Sol's shot requires a save by the BC GK. HALF TIME 0-0. SECOND HALF- After making some adjustments in how to make better passes and crosses to our offensive minded players we look pretty solid early on. Although things get a little dicy in the 50th when after sloppy play, we lose the ball that results in Bethany's #14 taking a shot which fortunately misses to the goal's left. Fourteen minutes later a Jager throw to Maddox's head, ends up in front of Sol who slides the ball into the goal (sidenet!) out of the keeper's reach for the 0-1 NW lead. After the goal, Bethany increases their presure on our defense.In the 65th a Bethany shot off a right cross requires Trace to make a diving save. Trace is on top of his game all night. His stops are solid, his distribution is very good. Eleven minutes before the final whistle Wes commits a foul just outside our box. Despite a five man wall, Bethany connects on the free kick for a 1-1 score. With two minutes left on the clock we depend on Bryce to defend a Bethany counter. Gifton fouls an opponent in front of the Bethany bench with 9 ticks left on the clock. As the Bruin goes down he moves his feet at Gif and makes contact with his face. An understandable upset Gifton ends up with a yellow, the Bethany player gets nothing....no yellow, no red. Retaliation normally carries an automatic yellow but not tonight. The final free kick of the night gets headed out of the box as time runs out. The result is probably a fair one but we feel as if we deserved more. In the first two games of the season, two dead moments in or near the box result in opponent's goals, something we need to work on. Overall, we played an organized game, saw good combinations in all thirds of the field and in general, every player who saw the field, played well. NOTES - The Varsity is 0-1-1, JV is 1-1-1 after a 0-0 tie vs Bethany. The Varsity will be playing two games Saturday in the 2023 NorthWood Invitational. Game 1 - 10 am NorthWood - Bremen, Game 2 Noon Manchester-Western, Game 3 3pm Losers G1/2, Game 4 5pm Winners G1/2. Today's practice at Wellfield on the turf from 3:30pm-5 pm. ADDITIONAL NOTE: After watching the game tape, the Gifton "foul" was a flop and the kick in his face should have been a definite red!

Game Day 2 - (1A) #6 Bethany Christian - (2A) #19 NorthWood

#6 Bethany Christian comes off a 7-0 season opener win versus the Lakewood Park Christian Panthers. Jayden Schlabach scored a hat trick in the game. Panther week continues for the Bruins as the NorthWood Panthers travel to Bethany with everyone healthy and Trace Rojas back between the woodwork. JV start at 5 (half game), Varsity start at 6 pm. The Panthers are looking to get their first goals and win of the young season. The Bethany field has been "renovated" with a new pitch surrounded by a track and new bleachers. Weather looks to be perfect for an evening of Panther soccer.

#19 NorthWood- Concord 0-2 (0-1)

The new pressbox gets its first match and our back up announcer has no problems with the Concord roster but trips over Jager Bute's first name pronounciation (it is not like Jagermeister) but Jager does not seem affected.FIRST HALF- The first 15 minutes are sloppy and do not contain a lot of consecutive passes by either team. The Panthers do not have all players available as they have to leave Trace and Dom on the bench. Maddox takes over the temporary keeping duties (and does very well). The first time he sees any action that needs his attention is in the 17th minute. A Concord shot on the frame requires Maddox to make his first save. A challenge in the NorthWood 18 in the 26th between a Concord attacker and Gifton results in a tackle near the end line. Fifty percent of the officiating crew blows the whistle for a PK. The PK lands in the net for a 0-1 Concord advantage. Five minutes later the Panthers show up near the Minutemen box and as Drew Davis collects a ball and goes at the box. When he notices that no one is shutting him down, he takes a shot that barely goes over. HALF TIME - The adjustments at the half deal with our midfield and that our MF's need to have options when they have the ball. Concord attackers need to be shut down near the box and our verbal communication needs to improve. Clearly, even after not a great first half, we are in this game. SECOND HALF- Our passing was not fantastic in the first half and that seems to improve early on.The first four minutes we play better combination soccer compared to the first half. As we seem to settle in and get more comfortable we lose the ball in the middle and Concord swings the ball to the right and a long shot from outside of the box is taken on the volley by a Concord midfielder. Despite Maddox getting a hand on the ball, it disappears in the upper left, 0-2. We are contending with Concord the rest of the game and get two great opportunities; Sol in the 61st that has him go for placement from the 6 but the keeper saves it and Carlos in the 69th with a one on one run into the box. His great take is saved miraculously by the Concord keeper's foot. A disappointing result where we had our chances but could not get them past the Concord keepers. NOTES- The JV falls 1-4 to Concord. JV record is 1-1-0, Varsity starts the season at 0-1. Next up is Bethany away tomorrow. JV plays a half game at 5, Varsity kicks off at 6 pm. Trace will be available again which will give us Maddox back on the field.

Game Day 1 #19 NorthWood - Concord

NW hosts the Minutemen with a 5 pm (JV) and 6:45 pm (Varsity) match. The JV comes off a 0-3 win vs Warsaw's C-team and the Varsity went 4-1 in the pre-season. But tonight is different! A tough start vs an always good opponent.

SCHEDULE CHANGE - STARTING TIME CHANGE ***** BETHANY-NORTHWOOD

The JV game at Bethany August 17 will start at 5 pm (one half only). The Varsity game will have a 6 pm start.

NorthWood - Manchester 4-0/NorthWood - Wawasee 2-0

The Wawasee Jamboree consists of two halves of soccer. NorthWood is in attacking mood early all day long. Solomon Yegon scores 34 seconds in to game 1 vs Manchester. Mark connects with his head (a pretty goal) by moving backwards, flicking theb all over the keeper for an early (4") 2-0 lead (Grant assist). Sol scores agin in the 16" (unassisted). The Panthers finish the game with a nice Wes Bell strike (assist Dom) for the final 4-0 score. The second game against Wawasee on the turf has Sol stealing a ball and scoring with only about 12 ticks gone on the clock. A slower paced game sees the Panthers settle in and rarely being put under pressure. Trace keeps the shut out intact for the game and a half he plays. Maddox takes the spot on the most important line for half number two and does a good job, extending the shutout until the end of the game. In the 30th, Goosy scores on an assist from Sol to record the final; 2-0. Now it all starts for real; Concord is up next. Game time is 6:45 pm Tuesday at Wellfield Park when we kick off the season vs Concord. The JV starts at 5 pm. Concord will be our first NLC opponent. The season schedule has some changes this year with Rochester and Glenn having been replaced with Penn and Homestead. This will be one of our toughest (if not the toughest) schedules in NW boys soccer history but it should be one that will prepare us for Sectionals. Sectionals by the way that will be hosten by NorthWood. The pressbox should be ready by game time tomorrow as well so announcement will come from the booth atop the west side stand. We will also be able to film the game from the video deck situated on top of the press box.

Warsaw C team - NorthWood JV 0-3

The JV starts the season out strong with a Kyler Fike hat trick!!!. The JV will be back in action on Tuesday at home vs. Concord at 5 pm.

Jamboree Saturday, first regular game Tuesday

Saturday August 12, the Varsity will travel to Wawasee for the Annual Jamboree. Manchester and Wawasee will be the opponents. The JV travels to Warsaw to open the season versus the Warsaw C-team. Varsity bus leaves Wellfield at 9:30, JV hits the road from Wellfield at 8:30. Concord is the Varsity's first opponent. This game will be played Tuesday at Wellfield Park. JV kicks off at 5 pm, followed by a 6:45 Varsity start. The first game of the season will be a NLC match.

2023 Pugg Tournament

The Coaches team went into the Final undefeated. Maddox and Ben Bodach were the additions to the team with Brayton being out. Despite beating the team consisting of Eli, Bryce, Caleb,Jager, Dom, Trace and Jackson in the Group stage,the Coaches team was unable to win the Final. A hard hit was taken by the team when Coach Kyle had to be stretchered off the pitch with a nasty ankle injury. The final score of 2-1 clearly indicates that it was a battle between the two best teams in the tournament.