Bekah Patton, Bolivar Liberators (2010)
Missouri Class 2 Girls All-District 5 Soccer Honors
Monthly Archives: June 2010
Samantha Aguilar Earns Missouri State Bears Outstanding Female Athlete Award
Missouri State Bears, Samantha Aguilar
Soccer sensation Samantha Aguilar (Lenexa, Kan.) was awarded the Outstanding Female Athlete Award, as voted on by Missouri State’s nine women’s head coaches. She is the first soccer player to ever receive the award, which dates back to 1981.
Aguilar was named Missouri Valley Conference player of the year in 2009 after leading the Bears in scoring for the second straight season with five goals and 12 total points. She helped Missouri State to an MVC runner-up finish in the regular season and 12-5-2 overall finish, while earning First-Team All-MVC, MVC All-Tournament, MVC Scholar-Athlete and NSCAA All-Midwest Region honors.
The senior midfielder was named as the MVC Freshman of the Year in 2006 and was a two-time all-conference pick for the Bears. She finished her Missouri State career with 15 goals and 39 points in 78 games and ranked in the top six in four MSU career statistical categories.
Other finalists for the 2009-10 award were basketball sensation Casey Garrison (So., Bolivar, Mo.), cross country and track standout Terry Phillips (So., Kansas City, Mo.), volleyball defensive specialist Cara Hackmann (Jr., Washington, Mo.), swimmer Chelsea Dirks-Ham (Jr., Lawrence, Kan.), softball slugger Jenna Schwark (Jr., Broken Arrow, Okla.), and field hockey senior Melissa Lantz (Sr., Wildwood, Mo.).
I did a three-part video interview with Samantha prior to the last home game last Fall. You can see Part One and Part Two and Part Three, where we discuss her prep career and reasons for coming to Missouri State, her experiences here with her teammates and finally, her future plans (pro?)
All-Stars Player Registration And Game Information
2006 All-Stars from Joplin and Neosho
That being said, let’s get this party started.
First things first – I need your help ensuring that every player that has been invited is pointed to the information in this post. Please share this with your teammate, your son or daughter or a player on your favorite team to ensure they have the opportunity to participate and be recognized for their accomplishments.
What: Southwest All-Stars Game – one week away!
When: Tuesday, June 22, 2010
6:00 pm – Girls Game
7:45 pm – Recognition of State Champion Springfield Catholic Girls and Coach Ben Timson
8:00 pm – Boys Game
Where: Springfield Catholic High School (Map below)
2340 S Eastgate Avenue
Springfield, MO 65809
Tickets are sold at the gate and are $5 apiece. Children 6 and under are free. There are no refunds available. In the case of severe weather we will attempt to reschedule the game for a day later in the week.
Ticket sales will be handled as you drive into the entrance to Catholic HS, on Eastgate.
There is Seating available in stands that will be located along the field as well as on the roadway along side the field. There is limited grass seating area between those two areas that allow blankets but due to the expected attendance, we ask that you DO NOT bring lawn chairs.
Catholic High School will be providing Concessions which will include beverages, candy and probably some grilled hot dogs and hamburgers.
There is a strong likelihood that Mediacom will be part of this years game as well, for the first time since 2006. Both games will be covered and shown on a tape-delayed basis. DVD’s of the game will also be available for resale.
Players should arrive 90 minutes early so that they can be assigned to a team, receive their souvenir jersey t-shirt and warm up with their team. Each player is responsible for bringing water/Gatorade/Powerade for their personal consumption as well as white socks, MSHSAA approved shin-guards and black shorts.
There is a registration form that each player needs to complete. It includes a waiver of liability – this event is put on as a voluntary basis and certified referees and trainers will be provided but there is a risk of injury from playing in any athletic event. We ask the players to recognize that risk and absolve the organizers from liability.
We also ask them to update us on their current Honors and Recognition so that we may share that with the attendees throughout the game.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact Steve “Ole” Olson via the contact form on this site.
Jamie Clark Hired To Coach Creighton Blue Jays
Jamie Clark, Creighton Blue Jays
“Jamie Clark is one of the great young soccer minds in the country,” said Rasmussen. “He is passionate and extremely intelligent about college soccer and has high character. Jamie is a great recruiter and has an outstanding relationship with his players. He is very much like (former Creighton head coaches) Bob Warming and Bret Simon. We look forward to a long and successful coaching career for Jamie at Creighton.”
“It is a great honor to take over the Creighton men’s soccer program,” said Clark. “It is one of the premier places for soccer in the college game. More importantly, it’s a university that gives its student-athletes the ultimate college experience, focusing on developing all facets of their lives. I’m proud to be a part of this university. What makes this program special is its importance to the school and community. We have a responsibility to be a team that people are proud of. I am looking forward to this challenge.”
Clark’s first head coaching job resulted in immediate success at Harvard, as he notched a 26-10-1 (.716) overall record, a 10-3-1 (.750) record in the Ivy League and a 14-2-0 (.875) home record in two seasons. In 2009 he was named the NSCAA Northeast Region Coach of the Year, guiding Harvard to a 14-4-1 overall record and the Ivy League championship with a 5-1-1 league mark. The Crimson earned the 10th-seed in the NCAA Tournament in 2009 and advanced to the third round of the event for the first time since 1987. Harvard swept the Ivy League postseason awards, with NSCAA First-Team All-American Andre Akpan earning Player of the Year honors and Brian Rogers earning Rookie of the Year accolades. In his first season as a head coach, he led the Crimson to a 12-6-0 record and the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2008.
“I had an incredible experience at Harvard and it took a very special opportunity to pull me away,” said Clark. “After speaking with Bruce Rasmussen, I knew this was the place that I wanted to continue my coaching career. I’m following two fantastic coaches (Simon and Warming) and I hope to continue the fine tradition of Creighton soccer.”
Read the remainder of the story on the Creighton Blue Jay website
MSSU Lion Recruit Ashley Bechtold Starts In OK All-State Game
From The Oklahoman comes this update on goalkeeper Ashley Bechtold: Putnam City North’s Ashley Bechtold salvages lost season
Read more: http://www.newsok.com/putnam-city-norths-ashley-bechtold-salvages-lost-season/article/3468360#ixzz0qn8rDPFP
In a time when some high school All-State athletes can’t be bothered to even show up at All-State competitions, Ashley Bechtold proved she’s a throwback to the days when players honored the honor.
What’s more, Saturday the Putnam City North soccer standout also provided a lesson in competitive spirit and toughness.
Bechtold started in goal for the Class 6A girls in the Oklahoma Soccer Coaches Association All-State game at Sand Springs High School. The match, which ended in a 1-1 tie, was Bechtold’s first time back between the pipes since breaking her collarbone just four games into the season.
Bechtold will challenge junior Randi Russell (Joplin) for playing time in goal. Russell started 19 of the Lions 20 games in 2009, allowing 38 for a 1.96 GAA while making 118 and finishing with a 5-14 record and 2 shutouts.
Catch Ole On The Sports Reporters Monday at 10:35 am
Ned Reynolds and Scott Puryear
I checked out the website last night, doesn’t look they keep it up-to-date other than an weather widget since there is no list of Guests and I wasn’t invited to the station. Just a phone call so I’m uncertain what to expect since I’m not a sports radio kind of guy. Here’s Scott’s comment – We will talk US and rest of field and tourney more than my own personal little hangups with the World Cup : )
Do I need to be nice to these guys?
Slovenia Grabs Group Lead, Play USA on Friday
From US Soccer comes this summary of Slovenia’s win over Algeria: Former West Brom midfielder and Slovenia captain Robert Koren scored a 79th-minute goal against a 10-man Algeria side to take first place in Group C after the first round of matches. Algeria’s Abdelkader Ghezzal received his second yellow card just 15 minutes after coming into the game in the 58th minute, and six minutes later Algeria’s Faouzi Chaouchi misjudged the bouncing shot from Koren that made Slovenia the first team to reach three points after a game that featured just six shots on goal, the same number of shots on goal Tim Howard saved against England. Bob Bradley said, “Slovenia played a tactical game. They are well organized and solid defensively. They got a good goal from Robert Koren, who has been an important player for Slovenia throughout qualifying.”
Clint Dempsey joined Brian McBride as the only U.S. player to score in two FIFA World Cups as the U.S. Men’s National Team came from behind to tie England. The U.S. fell behind in the fourth minute when Steven Gerrard slipped in behind the U.S. defense and slotted a goal past Tim Howard, marking the third-straight World Cup that the USA’s opening game featured a goal in the first five minutes.
Farmers Gastropub is open every day at 9am, except for Mondays. You can watch any World Cup game while enjoying their farm fresh menu. It’s smoke free and there’s also a great outside patio area. I’ll be there on Friday morning for the USA game, come down and join us for a simple English breakfast and an important game!
Congratulations To Aiken, Stewart and Donson
The High School basketball All-Star game was played Saturday. The teams are split between City schools and Area schools. There were three Southwest Soccer All-Stars who also played in the basketball event.
Chris Aiken, Greenwood Blue Jays, played for the City team which won 97-95 after three OT’s. Doesn’t look like Chris scored in the game but then again, someone has to pass the ball to Trey Starks of Hillcrest who scored 40.
Shelby Stewart, Parkview Vikings, played on the winning City team while scoring 11 points.
Najee Donson, Logan-Rogersville Wildcats, played for the Area team and scoreed 3 points in the 56-51 loss.
I’ll have information packets and a registration form sorted out Monday for the players in this years game. I apologize for the delay, this is still volunteer gig and I’ve been trying to pay some bills with client work. If you haven’t contacted me, or added yourself to the Facebook event, please send me an email at ole@SGFsoccer.com Thanks, see you in a week!
Missouri State Cup Boys Soccer – Springfield SC U15′s Advance to Semifinals
Springfield SC 94/95 by Duane Moses
U14B: Springfield SC lost their final game 1-2 to SLSG Premier and finish 1-0-2 for 3 points and 3rd place in their group.
U15B: Springfield SC leads beat Lou Fusz Red/Williams by 3-1 with a rain delay today. The game is preparing to restart and a win will send the boys to the semifinal round.
The boys will face STLSG Elite in the semifinal tomorrow. The game has been moved to Overland Park and will be played at 3:30 pm.
Not certain which team this is, although there is a STLSG Academy team that played in the Midwest Regional League Premier Division that would be allowed to play in State Cup and finished 3rd in their MRL group. The SSC boys went 6-0 and finished atop their group in the MRL First Division.
STSLG Blue faces off against Doran Fitness Hundelt in the other semifinal. The Final will be played Tuesday.
U16B: Springfield SC finish second in their group, defeating United SC Patton 6-0 this morning to finish 2-1 with 6 points.
U17B: Springfield SC won their final game, defeating Lou Fusz SC Cooper 4-2 today, moving them into 3rd in the group over Cooper. Their season ends with a 1-2 record in group play.
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- Kevin Kalish, SIU-Edwardsville Cougars Head Coach
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- Springfield SC 94/95 by Duane Moses
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- Springfield SC 94/95 by Duane Moses
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- Springfield SC 94/95 by Duane Moses
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- Springfield SC 94/95 by Duane Moses
A Report From South Africa By Kurt Austin
Kurt Austin and Ben Novak at World Cup 2010
Greetings from South Africa! You can read it in many places, but it’s hard to understand the way this country has embraced the World Cup until you are here. From the moment we arrived at the Johannesburg airport yesterday morning until we sat in our seats at the US vs. England match later that night, it was nonstop World Cup fever. Flags line the street, tv and newspapers are awash with images from stadiums, and the sound of the vuvuzela is everywhere you go. All of this has created an atmosphere that is every soccer fan’s dream, especially an American who has grown accustomed to soccer being an underground subculture stateside.
Our trip started off in a big way with the US game in Rustenburg. Though the stadium was a bit subpar for a World Cup venue — smallest seating capacity of all the Cup stadiums, a track around the field, and two inoperable scoreboards that left the 36,000+ in attendance without video, scores, or even a clock — the atmosphere and the match was every bit World Cup quality. Hope everyone at Farmers Gastropub enjoyed it as much as we did!
Sunday was a day of rest and recovery from a blur of 72 hours of travel, but I will send more stories from South Africa as the trip progresses. Attached is a pic of myself and my travel partner, Ben Novak. He is also a former MU men’s club player who was a teammate with several of the Springfield contingent (Jake and Neil Basecke, Brian Mattson, Brian Lindsey, etc.).
Go USA!
Kurt provided KC Wizards reports during the summer of 2007 while still a Journalism student at Mizzzou. It’s good to have him reporting again for SGFsoccer.com. Here’s another take on the South Africa World Cup experience that mirrors Kurts, offered by Andrew Guest who writes for Pitch Invasion.
