JV Tourney results

The record book will show a loss and a tie as results from the JV NLC Invitational. The first game was lost 2-3 to Memorial. Tony Lopez scores 2 goals. In the second game NW faces Northridge. After a productive first half (another two Tony Lopez goals), Northridge comes back with a goal in the second half and deep into the game, the arbiter whistles Dylan for grabbing an opponent's jersey (foul looked to be taking place outside the box) but Mr. Deed's butler points to the 12. The penalty goes in and the 2-2 is a fact. We go to a pk shoot out and despite missing our first pk, we are still tied after the first round of 5 alternating pk's. In the second round, Northridge scores their first effort and unfortunately, Brock is not as lucky as his shot is stopped by the NR keeper. It was nice to see a (almost) full JV squad -only Antonio was MIA- and nice fan turn out as well on a absolutely gorgeous late summer day. Some nice performances were turned in by numerous players. Of course we already mentioned Tony's four (!) goals but his fourth came off a perfect free kick by Dylan. That free kick hit the cross bar and fell right in front of Tony (right time/right place). The other Weldy (Josh) had a good day on defense as did Mason. After experiencing a few first game/first half defensive jitters, the next three halves were better after some adjustments. It was nice to have three subs so players could catch their breath occasionally. All 14 players did well and it would have been nice if the results would have been a little bit better. Tomorrow (Monday), the JV travels to Penn. Josh and Tony need to check in with Coach Duerksen to find out with what team they need to play. Whoever goes with JV, still needs to join the Varsity when they return from Penn. This also goes for Micah. More on TWINS tomorrow.

Evidence covered up

#15 Goshen-NorthWood 4-0 (2-0)

As if it isn't hard enough to play a good (not great) Goshen team, it becomes even harder when we see that bowlegged Lou is part of the officiating crew. And, it turns out, he outdoes himself tonight. But more about that in a little bit. The Goshen announcer butchers most names (Deeeekstra and Dickerson??) so not a smooth start so far. If you are a regular reader, you know that I do not post too much when we do not leave the pitch with a "W". So I won't stray too far from my M.O.. FIRST HALF-It is obvious that JT Plavchack (#6) has more speed then anyone on our defense. This kid has some serious speed which typically means that the defense is in for a long night. Life is already tough enough for NW since Eshelman (knee) is out and Tanner joined the ranks of the walking wounded as well (football injury). It takes Goshen about 15 minutes before they dribble in the NW box, turn away from defenders and put the ball in the goal, 1-0. The number 6 signs for the second goal in the 22nd minute for the 2-0 lead which is also the half time score. Cody has a couple of incredible saves that keep us in the game. HALF TIME- Coach Duerksen (Dickerson if you live in Goshen) addresses some defensive issues and we again stress the fact that the ball needs to get close to the Goshen box. SECOND HALF- The second act does not start well when a defensive miscue leads to the third Goshen goal in the 49th. Not too much happens until the 61st when a NW defender gets called for a foul in the box. The PK is a well placed shot to Cody's right. He dives and punches the ball out, no goal.....but wait....bowlegged Lou raises his flag. He indicates that Cody did something not many humans can do. He says that Cody came off his line (if so, it is not something that gets called unless it is so blatant -like two steps before a kick-)but if Cody did come off the line AND move to his right to stretch to punch the ball he is a human miracle! Who can move forward and sideways and cover that much space. But let us not forget that Lou is as crooked as a hillbilly smile (the retake goes in, 4-0). Two years ago at Wawasee he penalized Kyle for a handball outside the box when he punted the ball (a call rarely called unless blatant - see a trend here?) and he also awarded Wawasee a PK for a "foul" outside the box (that is not something that is rarely seen, that is something you can not even do!). Goshen did not need 12 players last night but that is what they ended up with. NOTES- Today's practice will be a light one and will run from 3:30 - 4:15. No shin guards needed. The JV lost 7-0. That same JV will travel to Goshen tomorrow for the JV Tournament. The bus leaves the High School at 8 am, first game on field 2 (next to the game field we played on last night) at 9 am, the second game is at noon. We play Memorial in game 1. The Varsity has Saturday off but already returns to action Monday at home against Elkhart Christian at 6:45 (I think the girls play at home Monday as well at 5 pm). The JV travels to Penn on Monday, 5 pm game, bus leaves at 3:45 pm Monday for the JV. Both teams play four games next week and I will post the specifics Monday in next week's TWINS.

Game Day # 9

Injuries are the headline for today. Both David (knee) and Tanner(back) are out for tonight's game. We travel to #15 Goshen this afternoon. The bus leaves the AC at 3:45 pm. JV kicks off at 5 pm, the Varsity at 6:45 pm. Goshen High School is in the middle of a construction project which impacts parking. Use 401 Lincolnway East, Goshen for your GPS although it might be easier to take SR 119 into Goshen. SR 119 turns into Plymouth Ave inside the city limits. Take Plymouth Ave. to 10th St.. Turn left or North on 10th St.. 10th St. will take you right by the practice field (on your right) before you get to Purl St.. Once you have reached 10th/Purl, you are at the High School and in the parking lot.See you all tonight. Go Panthers!!!!!

NorthWood-#23 Warsaw 0-1 (0-1)

FIRST HALF-Warsaw leaves with a win, several yellow and a red caution and should consider themselves lucky with those totals! Probably should have been more cards of both colors and they are lucky to escape Nappanee with a win. At least the national anthem went fine. In the third minute of the game it all starts to go wrong. Warsaw's #21 goes right into Cody after Cody dives on a ball. The -obvious- foul does not get called and that incident sets the tone for a good portion of the game after that. In the 10th (my stats, the paper says 21st min), a long keeper punt from the Warsaw goalie lands on the right side. A Warsaw midfielder takes two touches and crosses the ball into the box. The #21 takes the ball, turns away from Conner and shoots the ball past Cody, 0-1. In the 15th, NorthWood gets close to the equalizer when AC shoots near post but a Warsaw defender deflects the pig bladder onto the post for a corner. Near the end of the half, Cody dives for a save and again, a Warsaw forward kicks at Cody after he collects the ball. This time Warsaw gets a yellow. But it keeps getting more physical. If the center referee would have dealt with the first attack on Cody, additional attacks would probably not happen. With a minute left in the half, David tries to shield a ball to let it go over the end line but "tries" is the operative word here. Warsaw's #21 shoves David in the back in a very dirty manner. The foul earns him a red card (deservedly so; actions like this should warrant longer suspensions then just one game) but David stays on the ground injured. Trainer Paul Widner treats and checks David and it is obvious that David is not able to return to the pitch. And it might be a while before we have him back. Warsaw's coach Scott Bauer comes over to the NW bench and apologizes for the actions of his #21. Coach Bauer is a classy coach and we understand that he can not control someone from spinning out of control like that. It is unfortunate that a player has this little self control! HALF TIME- With David out, there is a need for a revamped lineup. Coach Duerksen shifts some people around and enters Tanner into the lineup as the workhorse on the right side. SECOND HALF- The Panthers come out working hard. The change from playing possession to playing more long ball and counter attack is working out well. NorthWood is more dangerous than Warsaw in the second act. Good passing in the back, good combinations in the middle but more so great passing to our attackers (midfielders and forwards) lead to opportunities. Deep into the second half, a counter pass to Tanner on the right side gets called off side even though Tanner places the ball in perfect fashion into the ropes. It is impossible to see if the AR was right from our angle but this same AR had messed up on the two previous off side calls so chances are he might have been right because who would screw up an off side call three times in a row? The equalizer does not count and the score stays 0-1. NorthWood keeps pressing however and with a little over a minute left, the Panthers are awarded a free kick just outside the box. This after Brayton had been fouled earlier in the box but no PK or foul was called. Coach Duerksen calls for the clock to be stopped (and the crew in the shed obeys their coach). The clock stops at 1:01. This upsets the Warsaw bench after they find out that the center ref never signaled for the clock to be stopped. Now we enter into a bizarro math discussion. The ref says that since he did not signal for the clock to be stopped, it should be reset to 1:07 (apparently adding and subtracting were not his strong suits in school). Warsaw and the AR make a case for subtracting time from the clock to about 51 seconds but some NorthWood coaches argue that you can not come up with a random time and point out that IHSAA does not have rules stating how to deal with a clock that was stopped in error. The case is made to just start the clock when the free kick is taken and the confused arbiters just kind of agree. The ensuing kick does not make it into the net and the remaining seconds run off the clock without anyone else getting hurt. The men in green should have been able to perform better tonight then they did. This crew is usually one of our better crews but sure had an off night tonight. The result in itself isn't bad, it is just that we deserved more. Hopefully David is able to play again soon and hopefully all other minor injuries will get better soon as well. NOTES- Next up is 7-1-1 #15 Goshen at Goshen on Thursday, JV 5 pm, V at 6:45. The JV ties Warsaw 2-2 and had opportunities to put Warsaw away (one 1v1 and two shots on the cross bar). Today's practice will start with a 3:15 meeting in Coach Duerksen's room to watch last night's game tape. We will then go outside to do some possession and a finishing drill. We should be done by or before 5 pm.

IHSAA poll

This week's poll has Goshen #15 in 2A , Elkhart Central at #19 and Warsaw at Honorable Mention. In 1A, Westview is #10, Argos #12 and Bethany Christian #20.

Sectional Draw

The Sectional Draw will take place at 8 am on September 26 and will be posted here as soon as it becomes available.

Game Day # 8

Today, Tuesday September 16, features the NLC match up against the Warsaw Tigers. The Tigers travel to NorthWood with a deceiving 2-2-5 record. Their wins are good wins (against Penn and Argos), their draws are quality ones (Fort Wayne Blackhawk, Fort Wayne Carroll, Fort Wayne Northrop, Plymouth and Westview) and their two losses are surprising (Concord & Memorial). The Junior Varsity match is slated for 5 pm, the Varsity contest will be under the lights and will begin at 6:45 pm. Dennyz, Juan and Derek are still a little "dinged up" but are all able and expected to play tonight. No injuries have been reported from the JV camp. Go Panthers!!!! See everyone tonight at the game field where the weather will be in the 60's and sunny!

Pool, Food and some FIFA

TEAM DINNER AT JOSH WELDY'S HOUSE; THANKS TO JOSH'S PARENTS FOR PROVIDING THE FOOD AND LETTING US USE YOUR HOUSE LAST NIGHT!!!!!!

From the sidelines...............................

TIE YOUR SHOES WITH BUNNY EARS!!!! AND I WANT THOSE SHORTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best Manager ever!

Matt "Red" Pippinger

Thanks!

The coaches would like to thank the Cripe's, Taylor's and Eshelman's and all the other parents that helped out with the food and refreshments during the tournament Saturday (and for arranging the Argos High School Cafeteria between games!!!!).

Josh Weldy's parents hosting team dinner tonight!

The team dinner tonight will be at Josh's house. The address is 29405 CR 42 in Waky. This is west off of SR 19 on CR 42 between CR 3 and CR 1 on the north side. There is a big soccer ball with number "20" in the yard, the house is all brick and has a pond in the front and back of the house. It should also have all your teammates cars in the drive. If you have trouble finding it, call 862-2033. Food will be ready at 6 pm but you can go anytime after practice. Practice will be done by 5 pm so everyone will have time to go home and change (PLEASE!!!). Pulled pork sandwiches, cheesy potatoes and a variety of sheet cakes are on the menu!!!!!!!!

TWINS / Team Dinner TONIGHT (Mon 9/15 6 pm)

Another busy week for NorthWood Soccer. Actually the next two weeks are very busy. Six Varsity games in the next 13 days, seven games for the JV in the next 13 days. So it will be important to stay away from injuries. Today's practice will be at the High School for both teams and will be done by 5 pm (games tomorrow and team dinner at 6 pm tonight- see post above). Tomorrow we host NLC opponent Warsaw (5 pm JV, 6:45 V start). Wednesday practice will be at the High School and will probably be done by 5 (game next day). Thursday we travel to Goshen (5 pm JV start, 6:45 for Varsity). Friday's practice will be at the High School and it will conclude by 5 pm. Saturday the JV travels to Goshen (again; should've just stayed overnight) to play Memorial at 9 am and depending on the outcome of our game and the other game in Flight A, either Northridge or Goshen at noon. Next week both JV and Varsity play 4 (!) games with games on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday but more about on the next TWINS.

Argos Invitational

GAME #1-NorthWood beats Herron 5-0 with goals from Juan (knee), Brayton, Isaac (PK), Tanner (from ground to clouds to upper 90) and Aaron (nicely tucked in left corner on the ground). The Panthers do not play their best soccer against the Achaens but it has to be said that the Herron keeper prevents numerous good shots from going in. NorthWood plays Argos in the 8 pm Finals. Argos beats Glenn 5-1. Half time score is 0-1 Glenn but Argos has no problems rallying behind Binkley to send the Falcons to the 3rd/4th place game. GAME #2- Argos beats NorthWood 4-1 with the lone Panther goal coming from Brayton Taylor. Argos out shoots and out hustles NorthWood. Argos is Binkley but the rest of the team obviously feeds off him. For the season, Brayton leads the team with 8 goals, four players have two a piece. NorthWood's record is 3-4-1. Next up; Warsaw at home Tuesday 9/16, 5 pm JV start, 6:45 kick off for the Varsity match up.

Argos Tournament tomorrow

The bus will leave the High School at 1 pm tomorrow. Our first game will be against Indianapolis Herron at 3 pm. We will be able to watch the second half of Argos-Glenn. Once again the temperatures will be cool and downright cold at night so be sure to bring warm ups and hoodies etc. (NW soccer apparel only). Food will be provided between the first and second game. Fans can use 500 Yearick Street, Argos for their GPS (address for Argos High School). Today's practice will be done by 5 pm. Dennyz is questionable and probably will not be able to play 2 full 80's. Some changes in the lineup are possible. Our record is 2-3-1 (JV 2-2-1). The JV has the weekend off. If you want to watch more soccer then just the two NW games, catch the EPL on NBCSN Saturday (7:45 Arsenal - Manchester City and 10 am Chelsea-Swansea).

Wawasee-NorthWood 1-0 (1-0)

70% Possession, 0 % Win.

JV NLC Tourney INFO

On 9/20, the JV will play in the NLC Boys Soccer tournament. We drew Memorial in the first game (9 am) and the winner of that game, will play the winner of Northridge-Goshen at noon, the losers of both games will also meet at noon. The games will be played at Goshen High School, all tickets are 5 dollars, good for all day admission. We will hand out the schedules at Friday's practice.

Game Day # 6

Today's game is at Wawasee. The Varsity game starts at 5 pm (JV to follow at conclusion of first game). Wawasee High School's address is 1 Warrior Path, Syracuse. Game time temperature is supposed to be 60 degrees and by the time the JV game hears the final whistle, the mercury will have dropped into the 50's............brrrr. To think that we all dove in the lake between the football and soccer practice fields less then 24 hours ago. Bundle up and GO PANTHERS!