Argos Invitational - 2014 draw

NorthWood drew Indianapolis Herron for the 3 pm game. Argos drew John Glenn for the 1 pm semi-final. The losers of the first two games will face each other at 6 pm, the winners will play in the finals at 8 pm.

TWINS

The Panthers are getting ready for a busy and important week. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday feature regular practices. NorthWood will travel to Syracuse on Thursday to play NLC opponent Wawasee. The Varsity will play first (5 pm start), the JV game will follow after the Varsity game has concluded. If I am not mistaken, the reason they do this is because they do not have lights (at least they never had lights) and a JV game could be called if it were to get too dark. The Warriors are 2-2-2 with their best result coming against Concord (2-2 draw, it looks like deuces are wild at Wawasee). On Friday we will have a short practice (as usual) and on Saturday we will travel to Argos for the Argos Invitational. We have not received the draw as of yet. It will be posted as soon as we get word from Argos. The first game is at 1 pm, the start time of the second game depends on the result of the first game.

NorthWood-Mishawaka pic (JV)

TONY LOOKING FOR ANOTHER GOAL (JV WINS 3-0; TONY LOPEZ HAT TRICK).

NorthWood-Mishawaka pic (Varsity)

LISTENING TO THE NATIONAL ANTHEM (AND A HALF). LITTLE CRIPE ON THE RIGHT. NEXT TO HIM IS MICAH PIPPINGER WHO GETS HIS FIRST VARSITY MINUTES WHEN HE HAS TO COME IN FOR CODY CRIPE (WHO HAS TO COME OUT FOR A YELLOW CARD).

NorthWood-Mishawaka 1-1 (0-1)

A game with little fluidity and composure sees few chances for NW in the first act. One of the few dangerous attacks from the Cavemen plays itself out in the 25th when the Mishawaka #10 takes an uncontested long distance shot from 25 out. The shot lands int he right upper 90 for the 0-1 lead. NorthWood comes back to tie the game one minute after the break (Dennyz Barahona pass to Brayton Taylor who weaves thru the box and scores with a nice finish). A below par performance (albeit that the second half was better then the first) for NW as well as the arbiter trio. Bowser and Cripe receive yellow cautions, a little unlucky for Bowser and a little lucky for Cripe (could have been red). The JV has a solid game and wins 3-0 (Tony Lopez hat trick).

NorthWood-Bremen pic part #1

The new bags are in!

NorthWood-Bremen pic part #2

The bench, after HT.

NorthWood JV-Bremen JV 0-1 (0-1)

The JV lost a close game to Bremen. The only score of the game was a long distance shot from Bremen that went into the upper left 90, deep into the first half. The JV record is 1-3-0, Mishawaka is the next opponent on Saturday (9/6) at 10 am at home. JV practice is at the practice field and will be done by 5 pm.

NorthWood-Bremen 2-1 (2-1)

FIRST HALF-With the flag not making it all the way up the pole, the national anthem being played twice (almost thrice), it didn't seem like anything would go smooth tonight. But things aren't always the way they appear. NorthWood is able to field an almost healthy squad. Derek is on the mend and able to play some minutes here and there. And when he is on the pitch, it is obvious he contributes in the midfield. NW starts a little shaky and in the third minute the first ball rumbles thru the box and no one gets good contact on the ball, the result is the first of many Bremen corners. All Bremen corners spell trouble. They target big players with heading capabilities near post. In the 6th minute Bremen gets awarded a throw in. It looks like they graduated from the NorthWood school of throw ins......they succesfully place the ball at the feet of a man in all whites. In the 7th, a Bremen breakaway requires an emergency stop from Cody Cripe. Double C makes the stop and keeps us in the game. Not the first time this year and not the last time tonight! Bremen targets their forwards with long passes around or over the NW defense. Their #23 is fast, very fast. At times, Pipp's legs have to go twice as fast as the legs of #23. Pipp plays a very strong game and attacks the ball each time a Bremen player presents the ball while trying to position for a shot or pass. For the next 15 minutes, NW takes more control of the game then Bremen. In the 23rd, NW pressures the ball high, resulting in a bad Bremen pass. Brayton Taylor takes possession of the ball and goes toward the Bremen box. A decisive shot slips by the keeper and into the goal for the unassisted 1-0! Both teams attack the goals with succes when they play the balls over the top. The Bremen defense has some weakness in the speed department. In the 31st minute, David Eshelman drops a ball from the back over the top to Denny Barahona. Dennyz takes the ball directly into the box and challenges the Bremen keeper. The keeper gets a hand on the shot but it is not enough to prevent the ball from hitting the net, 2-0! Bremen responds quickly, very quickly. The next attack from the kick off goes wide. The ensuing cross targets #23 who places the ball with a forceful header past Double C, 2-1 (32"). Despite Bremen pressure, the score stays at 2-1 until it is time for the Tea.HALF TIME- Playing the ball over the top needs to become a focus in the second half but the most important message from Coach Duerksen is that the team needs to get this win, period! SECOND HALF- The 42nd minute of play sports Dennyz with a nice shot at the goal that gets deflected for a corner (Bremen would win the corner battle in decisive fashion tonight but that is not the score that counts). The second half is scrappy most of the time. The long ball is played by Bremen almost exclusively. All this long balling requires physical efforts from our defense (Dylan, Pipp, Conner, David, Juan, Tanner, AC) and midfield (Eli, Derek, Dennyz, Ethan). Even the forwards (Brayton and Isaac) come back and help tackle the ball. NW does not play the ball over the top as much as they probably should have but are able to threaten offensively here and there. The referee calls just about everything. It is somewhat odd to see the Bremen coach complain about bad calls, considering that NW gets called on about 80% of the fouls. Every hand in the back (whether a foul or not) gets a free kick awarded. Coach Duerksen instruction to his boys is to keep their hands down and "put them in your pants if you have to!!!". In the 49th, our ball boy on the team side, Kyle Cripe, spills right in front of the Panthers dug out but he is called "safe" by coach Duerksen. Kyle works as hard as the rest of the team tonight. The hard work, sacrificing for each other keeps the Panthers in the game. Cody has to prevent some shots and crosses and does that in miraculous fashion. In the 61st, Isaac takes a long distance shot (35-40 yards out) but the keeper makes the save. With minutes left in the game, Conner Miller takes a goal kick but goes down right away. An apparent cramp attack in both legs is proof of a hard fought defensive battle. For Conner the proof isn't in the pudding but in his legs. Bananas for breakfast!!!! Coach Douwsma and Dijkstra assist Conner behind the goal after he has been "dumped" there by his compassionate team mates. NW manages to defend the last view desperate Bremen attacks but the half time score also ends up being the final score; 2-1. Good job boys! Pictures to follow later.

Game Day #4

A 5 pm start for the Junior Varsity and a 6:45 kick off for the Varsity squad. The only injury is Derek who is available albeit not for the full 80 and will hopefully come off the bench to get some valuable minutes. Bremen comes off a 3-2 win against Plymouth (Tue. night)and has a 4-2-0 record. The only common opponent so far is Elkhart Central. A gme the Lions lost 2-0. See everyone at the game field!!! Go Panthers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Westview JV - NorthWood 0-1

NorthWood's JV records its first win of the season with a 0-1 win over Westview's JV. The first half belongs to NorthWood and the second to Westview but Tony's goal is the difference. With Juan as an attacking midfielder, Eli on the outside and Tony up top, NorthWood is able to launch some attacks. Dylan and Josh play solid in the back and Micah has a good game as well (first career shut out). The JV moves to 1-2-0 and will practice from 3:30 - 5 today at the High School in preparation for the Thursday matchup at home versus Bremen (5 pm). With temps in the high 80's predicted for tomorrow, it is a good day to bring the lawn chair or sit in the strands and take in an afternoon/evening offering of some good soccer between the Panthers and Lions.

TWINS

The week starts with a JV match against (and at) Westview while the Varsity will have a regular practice at the High School. Friday's practice was a pretty tough one especially considering the team played a NLC game the night before but conditioning is going to be a crucial part of this year's succes. Kyle worked with the keepers during the agility training part of the practice session. Hopefully all this hard work will translate into a couple of wins this week (or three wins for the JV). Wednesday's practice will be a split one; the Varsity will be at the game field, JV at the practice field. Thursday's schedule features the JV home game against Btremen at 5 pm followed by the Varsity contest at 6:45 pm. The weather for that day looks great. On Friday, the squads will split once again with the Varsity practicing on the game field and the JV practicing at the practice field. The practice on Friday will be done by 5 pm. On Saturday, Mishawaka will travel to NorthWood (JV at 10 am, Varsity at Noon).

JV Game Day

The Junior Varsity travels to Westview today for a JV only contest. The bus will leave the High School at 3:45 pm. The JV is 0-2-0 but has a chance to improve the record this week. Three games are on the JV schedule, Westview today, Bremen on Thursday (at home) and Mishawaka on Saturday (at home as well).

NorthWood-Northridge 0-2 (0-1)

With a goal in the 6th and 58th minute, Northridge beat the Panthers by two goals. NorthWood never really threatened offensively and the best player on the pitch was the one standing between the pipes. Cody came up big on several occasions to prevent a higher score. The weather was great, the crowd filled the bleachers (over 200 showed up) but the performance on the field was not as good as the one a week earlier against Elkhart Central. It is time to regroup and make some minor adjustments (most of those were already discussed and decided on before midnight) and we will come out of it stronger. Our next opponent is Bremen at home, next Thursday (9/4). Bremen has had some good results so it will be a good measuring stick. Today's practice will be done by 5 pm. No practice this weekend or Monday. After today's practice, we will see everyone again on Tuesday. The JV fell to Northridge 0-2 as well. Micah Pippinger had some great saves as well. Thursday 9/4 will see a 5 pm JV start and 7 pm Varsity start.

Still looking.....................

Game Day #3

The first home game and first NLC match ups are on tap today. The Northridge Raiders are the first opponents on the NLC schedule. The Raiders looked strong in 7v7 over the summer and, knowing their attitude, will surely expect to come away with a win. The Panthers have been looking strong and more importantly, have looked like a team so far this season. With two good wins in the pre season (vs Westview and Argos -both ranked in Class 1 top 20-), a narrow loss vs #20 Central and an easy win over Lakeland Christian, the team is eager to get an NLC win. The weather promises to be perfect and a good crowd is expected. The JV kicks off at 5 pm, the Varsity at 6:45 pm. Thanks to Roger Miller for taping the game tonight!

Team Dinner

Last night the Boys Soccer teams were treated to a team dinner. The food was great! Thanks to the Cripe's and Weldy's for putting it together (and if anyone else helped, thanks to you as well). It was very much appreciated by all players and coaches.

Wanted: Announcer M/F

Who wants to be the next Ryan Mattern? The NW Boys soccer program is looking for an announcer (M/F) for the Varsity home games (8 games this season). You will be sitting inside the new press box, you will be dry and able to manipulate the scoreboard! If interested, please contact Coach Duerksen at bduerksen@wanee.org

LCA-NW Pic part 1

PRE GAME JITTERS