Dwight attended Raytown South before Title IX, and there were no organized sports teams for girls at most high schools then. Still, she played sports at every opportunity, including what used to be called “sports days” for girls, where they could compete against other schools.

Then Dwight went to college at Southwest Missouri State — now Missouri State — in Springfield.

“They were ahead of their time because they had women’s sports there,” she said. “I played volleyball, basketball, softball and ran track and cross country.”

Dwight is only 56, and it’s nice to see there was a time when MSU was considered progressive. We’ve come a long way in one generation. Now Webb City can cite gas costs for not offering girls soccer, I guess that’s progress. Unless you think there is more we need to do.

The final game against Brazil two weeks ago, when Abby Wambach went down with a broken leg, was an entertaining match. I especially enjoyed watching Carli Lloyd as she ran the midfield. Now I’ve got even more reasons to cheer on this young woman - Soccer teammate stood with Solo through all the World Cup drama

“I really hate drama,” said Carli Lloyd of Delran, N.J. “It’s draining; it’s mentally draining. It’s a waste of time. Hope and I have gone way back. I played with her, I guess, for four years on the under-21s. I was a little bit intimidated by her at first, but we grew closer. Everybody makes mistakes in their life. I just knew she was a great person.”

So Lloyd chose to remember more than some ill-chosen words.

It was a difficult time for Hope Solo. Grant Wahl from Sports Illustrated covers her Hard Return.

Apparently the Women’s team has had the benefit of a sports psychologist for some time. The KC Star had a story recently about Olympians increasingly rely on mental skills coaches

“What I try to get across to the athletes is that psychological skills are just like physical skills,” Hacker said. “They can be identified; they can be improved with practice. It’s not something you have or you don’t.”

I’ll leave you with Adam Spangler’s take - the olympics mean something

We start with the ladies because there is no doubt we are seeing the best players the world has to offer. The guys can’t say that. The ladies will, however, be missing arguably the world’s best player.

Since Abby Wambach went down with a broken leg there has been widespread discussion about what it means for the team. Looking to put the Hope Solo debacle behind them once and for all this tournament, more attention has been placed on removing Abby’s personality than her skills. Perhaps the last queen bee in a line that stretches to the Hall of Fame, Wambach’s absence some say could allow the team to finally move on with their new coach and look to a future where possession soccer reigns over the constant push to find the feet of the stalwart striker.

Am I being too harsh? Feel free to share. In the meantime, if you’re a fan of the women’s game, I highly recommend Women’s Soccer USA, whose tagline is “Coverage of women’s soccer in the US. If it’s not here…it’s not important…” and she delivers regularly.

On August 2, 2008, Ozark Tiger Soccer will be having their Annual 3 v 3 Summer Sizzler. Part of the proceeds will be donated to the Matthew P. Stoelb Continuing the Journey Scholarship. This scholarship benefits Ozark students with Autism or their siblings as they continue their education beyond high school.

There will be 10 fields with games being played from 10am to 3pm.

Age Divisions are:
Boys: U8, U10, U12, U14, & High School
Girls: U8, U10, U12, U14, & High School
Adult CoEd Recreational (35 and under, Over 35)
Adult CoEd Competitive (18 and over)

Want more information?
Visit www.ozarktigersoccer.com
Contact Tom Davidson at 417.582.1107
Or via email at summersizzler2008@yahoo.com

Hosted by Ozark High School
Cost is only $75/team (max. 5 players/team)
Deadline is 7/30/08 — Rain out date will be 8/3/08 16pm.

3v3 Tourney Sponsorship opportunities
3v3 Tourney Information sheet
3v3 Tourney registration form

The 2008 Springfield Sister Cities Soccer Exchange team was on tour in Tlaquepaque, Mexico between June 26 through July 2nd. This year’s tour included games against area teams from Tepatitlan, Zapotiltic, Club Atlas and a Tlaquepaque All-Star team which was the featured Sister Cities Cup match. Upon arrival into Tlaqueqpaque, the team was quickly shuttled to the game site which has been transformed into two sport-turf fields, just minutes from our host hotel. The facility also has a Olympic size outdoor swimming pool, five tennis courts and a velodrome ; all of which are under construction in preparation for the 2012 Pan-American games which will be hosted by Guadalajara.

Our first game was against Tepatitlan on Friday, June 27th. As we were told, the Tepatitlan community is the hot bed of youth player development in all of Mexico. It most certainly showed with the impressive size and equally expressive skill, speed and soccer creativity of the 14 and 15 year olds. The game was definitely and eye opening experience for most of our Ozark-area players, many with their first exposure to foreign players and a foreign style of play.

Our second match, on Saturday, June 28th, was the featured Sister Cities Cup match versus a youth All-Star team from Tlaquepaque. We knew it was going to be a challenging game when, during pre-game ceremonies the mayor of Tlaquepaque was to ceremoniously kick the game ball to our one of our goal keepers, Andrew Guilliams on a make shift goal of cones in front of the crowd of spectators and attending delegates from both Sister Cities Associations. The mayor, instead, with a three step drop, unleashed a pill of a shot to Guilliams’ lower right side taking out one of the cones and one of Tlaquepaque players. The game itself was a back and forth tug of war with all the drama and controversy of a top flight winner take all finale. In the end, Springfield fell short of maintaining ownership of the cup and was relieved of its possession, on the losing side of a 3-2 scoreline.

Our third game was against Zapotiltic on Sunday, June 29th, which is a community about three hours outside of Guadalajara. This game, much like the one against Tepatitlan was another exposure to the many differences in youth soccer between our two communities. After the first two matches, our boys’ were beginning to get up to speed and put up a fight worthy of recognition on tremendous effort on the field.

Club Atlas coaches from the team which had visited Springfield last year, were in attendance at these games and were wanting to schedule a fourth game with a Club Atlas youth team. The game was scheduled for Monday morning and much to the delight of the players and parents who traveled with us, earned our first road victory of the weekend. That game was won 3-2 by Springfield.

Tuesday morning, we were shuttled to Club Atlas’ training facility and community in the Guadalajara city limits. An impressive 600+ acre facility includes an upscale housing development, an 18-hole championship golf course, tennis training facility (where most of Guadalajara’s championship tennis players’ train), club house and of course, the soccer training fields. We were introduced to several of Club Atlas’ bosses including the first team coach, director of coaching and team operations directors. We watched a 2nd division scrimmage, (2 straight red cards in the waning minutes were issued) and then scrimmaged another Club Atlas youth team. The first half of our scrimmage was our team versus their team. The second half of the scrimmage, we shared players on both sides of the ball.

Later that afternoon, we were scheduled to also visit the Club Chivas training facility and work out with their players and coaches. Unfortunately, the dreaded rains which were falling between 3pm and 6pm decided to come early as a thunderstorm rolled through at 2pm in the afternoon, thus causing the cancellation of our Chivas trip.

Through the trip, we were able to visit the local square several times where food and other vendors of sorts sell their wares. The square featured plenty of music, fireworks and rides and games, much to the delight of our American visitors. The kids spent their money feverishly buying up replica team jerseys and other items at every opportunity. Our tour also included cultural trips to a few historical sites and the Guadalajara mall.

Our meals, which were arranged at our sponsor hotels or other restaurants, were absolutely outstanding. We were treated to lunch at the first Chinese restaurant ever to open in Tlaquepaque. The male owner is Mexican and his wife (of 15 years) is Chinese. Great food!

The Sister Cities Sport and Cultural Exchange is definitely a worthwhile endeavor and one that any child, if opportunity presents itself, should take advantage of. It was my first trip outside the U.S. and one that I look forward to in 2010 (world cup year) … There is so much more to share about this trip, but space limitations won’t permit.

The accompanying photo was shot on the field at Jalisco (Mexico) stadium where Club Atlas and Chivas play their professional league games. It was also one of the host stadiums where games for the 1971 and 1986 world cups were played, in addition to numerous matches between the U.S. and Mexico national teams over the years. Pictured in the photo (left to right) back row: Kelly Ross, Jan Stahle, Hunter Durham, Nic Bauer, Matt Treml, Tyler Hamilton, Reece Conner, Jackson Patillo, Travis Joy, Ricky Wallenburg, Bryan Murray and David Cheek. Front row: Andrew Guilliams, Gehrig Haberstock, Derek McDiarmid, Scott Sterling, Jesse Bihlmeyer, Josh Wegenka, Izzy Chappell, Gage Mossman and Andrew Treml (not pictured, Dr. Jim Cook, Cindy Jobe, Araceli Hanks)

Thanks to Kelly Ross for this report and photo.

The KC Wizards host Red Bull NY at 7:00 pm, available only on Direct Kick. Coester’s will be showing both this game as well as the weekly Thursday night game shown on HDnet (as in High Definition!) at 10:00 pm this week. It’s a battle for 1st place in the Western Conference between the LA Galaxy and Chivas US. I’m rooting for Lance Parker (MSU 2008) and his Chivas teammates!

There will be drink specials for the adults - any shot that includes Red Bull as an ingredient. There will also be a daily food special. Coester’s is a full-service, non-smoking restaurant that offers several seating areas and is family friendly. Bring your son or daughter out to enjoy the game with you, I know you’ll both have fun.

The Wizards lost in penalty kicks to the Seattle Sounders last night in their US Open Cup quarterfinal match. They made the decision to hold back the regulars to save them for the game against Red Bull which is coming off what Ives feels could be The Worst Week in Red Bulls/MetroStars History?

A blown lead on an absolutely embarrassing mistake, A 2-0 loss to a USL-2 team AND a 4-0 blowout loss on the 4th of July. These three events took place in a seven-day span, leading me to wonder if there is any way this wasn’t the worst week in the history of the club.

Good news for the Wizards who hope to continue their recent positive trend. Come out and join us!

Liz Russell (far left) came to Springfield from Oklahoma to play soccer for the Drury Panthers. Her career was cut short by injuries but that didn’t stop her involvement in the game. She was part of the group that brought you the College Recruiting seminar at Drury last year and she’s been part of the Glendale Falcon’s coaching staff for the past three years. She handled the Junior Varsity during that time frame and she was committed enough to the girls that she was on the side lines through the entire playoff run. Now she’s off to Law School at the end of the summer.

Justin Douglass has been working with the Catholic Fightin’ Irish the past two years. When he completed his outstanding career with the Missouri State Bears a year ago he agreed to help out with the girls team, taking on the JV girls last Spring. This past year, as he completed preparation for graduate school (he’s headed to Houston for Opthalmology School) he worked with both the Boys and the Girls and supported the varsity squads as well. Admitted to graduate school, the last of his teammates long gone when the MSU campus cleared out, he noted to me “I’ll pack up and leave AFTER the Irish complete their playoff run”. His commitment to the players and the team wouldn’t allow him to leave before then.

We have benefited greatly from the commitment he and Liz made to soccer in our community. I’m going to miss both of these player/coaches. The good news is based upon what I’ve seen of their character and commitment, they’ll be impacting kids and their community for a long time. Thanks Liz and Justin, or Coach McD as the girls called him. At least that’s what I think it was

I don’t expect nearly as big a crowd but there’ll be a group of us out on Saturday night at 9:30 pm to catch the KC Wizards at the LA Galaxy. HDnet is broadcasting the game, should be a good way to start your evening (if you’re younger than me).

AP Photo/Sergey Ponomarev

Coester’s is located at 631 S Kimbrough, just West of the basketball stadium on the Missouri State campus. It’s a full-service restaurant, smoke free and features 22 big screen HD TV’s, the majority of which will be tuned to the game with the audio broadcast included.

The Rock Bridge girls soccer team’s game against Smith-Cotton in the semifinals of the Class 2 District 10 Tournament was postponed Tuesday night because of lightning. The game was stopped with 26:09 remaining in the first half and the score tied at 0. It will resume at that point Wednesday at 6 p.m. on Susie Ditzfeld Memorial Field.

Top-seeded Jefferson City awaits the winner in the finals. The district championship game will be played Thursday at 6:30 p.m. as originally scheduled. The Jays (12-8-1) advanced by defeating Helias 2-1 on penalty kicks in Tuesday’s first semifinal.

Closer yet
Nelson Morgan was in the process of coaching the final home soccer game of his long coaching career at Waynesville High School. And for his efforts he was carded.

In our back yard
The prom photos of Ozark keepers Jason Taylor and Paige Hemphill made the Wall of Fame for Reusch USA, the world leader in developing and marketing of soccer gloves and accessories. Check out the Reusch website for all your goal keeping supplies

Across the world but available at Coester’s today at 1:30 pm. Join us!

The tournament will be held at Lion’s Club Soccer Park on Saturday June 14th, beginning at 2:00 pm.

The tournament includes teams and players from U8 up to an Over 40 group! Put together a team of five players, either single sex and co-ed. For U8-U18 the teams will play other teams in their age range.

For adult teams, indicate whether you are under or over 40 years in age and if the team prefers a competitive or a recreational division. Games last 20 mins, 10 mins each way. 3 players on the field per team at any time.

No goal keeper. Field size: Length ~ half the width of a soccer field width ~ 50ft, i.e one regular soccer field is divided into ~10 3 v 3 fields. Each game has a tournament appointed ref. Leagues are either won on points or thru “knock out”. It’s a one day affair starting at 2:00pm and ending ~7:00pm.

Free parking and good concession stand selling drinks and hot food etc. No entry fee for spectators. Each player will receive game shirt, drawstring bag and water bottle with entry fee. Champion teams in each division will receive medals.

To register for the event. For more information, check the website or call 573-364-1091 or 573-364-8356.

Funds raised go towards the Thomas Whitefield Award, presented to a Male and a Female soccer player who best demonstrate outstanding character, leadership, citizenship and personality, and in so doing earn the respect of their teammates.

Thomas Whitefield 3-on-3 Soccer Tournament

The people who founded youth soccer, maintained it and now run it in the Waynesville-St.Robert area are numerous and otherwise unrecognized volunteers. Richland, Laquey, Dixon, and Crocker all owe a debt of gratitude to these people, for creating local interest in the sport and guiding them in the creation of their own leagues. Last fall, the Crocker boys finished their year at the State Final 4, a direct result of the regions development.

But the reason I write this letter is for one man. I doubt seriously the people of these communities know that the unassuming junior varsity girl’s soccer coach for the Waynesville Tigers is one of the founders of Pulaski County soccer. On Thursday May 8, 2008, my father Nelson Morgan, will coach his last soccer game.

He’s coached more than a thousand soccer players from ages 5-19 in the Waynesville area the past 22 years. He took a year off in the late 90’s from coaching high school, but continued even then with youth teams. During this period he’s been the common thread running through coaches, players, youth leagues, field maintenance, flood recovery, school board meetings, athletic directors, etc. He is, as far as I’m concerned the grandfather not only of my nephew, but also of Pulaski County soccer.

He’s been there for it all, from 1986 to 2008. And I thank him publicly for that. I play a soccer game weekly nearly 500 miles away from Waynesville, in Murfreesboro, TN. The field is full of 20-30 something soccer has-beens, a generation of people who grew up playing soccer. We all seem to have the same story, a small town league, where no one knew how to start a new sport. But we learned to love the game, as do thousands of people in Pulaski County on Saturday mornings now regularly. Thanks Dad, this is your legacy. It is a good one.

Skylor Morgan
Smyrna, TN

Nelson has done a great job maintaining and always trying to improve Waynesville soccer. I have gotten to know Nelson well the last 2 years and have found him one of the most prepared coaches I have ever been around. He is a student of the game and has a passion for soccer and the kids that is rivaled by few. Nelson is never out-worked by an opposing coach and he strives to put his players in a situations that allow them to be successful. On top of that, I have never in my life seen someone keep such meticulous statistics. Nelson, you may retire from coaching, but I am certain we will see you around some Ozark Conference matches with the floppy hat and the chair that must now say: the re-un-re-tired Coach Morgan. We’ll miss your excitement about the game in Waynesville.
Josh Scott, Head Coach
Waynesville Tigers

Nelson has been the face of Waynesville soccer since its inception. His hard work and dedication will be missed. He truly is one of the good people in our business, and I for one will miss seeing him at the Waynesville games. Thanks Nelson for all you did for soccer in our area.
Tom Davidson
Ozark Tigers

Nelson carried that clipboard around like a preacher carries a Bible. I have always admired his professionalism in everything he did. Through his efforts, Waynesville is one of the first programs that led the way on how to properly host a district tournament or state play off game. They saw the importance of honoring the teams playing by doing the small things to allow the participating teams the ability to just focus on the game. Nelson was a big part of that effort and for that I will always be grateful. Congrats on all the years you have invested in encouraging kids to learn and play the beautiful game, but more importantly the life lessons you have instilled.
Jeff Rogers
Glendale Falcons

Loyal is a word that I would say describes Nelson Morgan. In my 17 years at Rolla, Waynesville has had 6 head coaches, including Nelson himself. With that kind of turnover it is difficult to maintain any consistency, yet Nelson has given that to the Tiger program and that takes a unique quality. He takes a great deal of pride in the soccer program and I am happy that he has seen this senior group at Waynesville have some success as he certainly deserves it.
Mike Howard
Rolla Bulldogs

At least 30 girls had signed up to express an interest in the program, and most appeared to be on hand at the board meeting. “We support the proposal to add girls soccer,” he said. “Kids do better in school when they’re involved in activities. They do better in their studies and attendance, and they’re more likely to graduate.”

Reed after the meeting said that Carthage has had a boys soccer program since 1989. He said a first-year budget for the program will be between $20,000 and $25,000, a higher total the first year because of uniform purchases.

UPDATE - the Carthage Press chimes in with this additional tidbit

Carthage is entering the Central Ozark Conference (COC) next year and all but one school will have girls soccer – Webb City doesn’t have the sport and Republic will introduce it in the 2009-2010 school year.

In addition to soccer, the Ozark Tigers are out working to support hungry kids in Haiti.

Ozark Lady Tiger soccer players donated their time and energy on Thursday to help the Springfield organization Kids Against Hunger package food for children who are currently starving in the island nation of Haiti. The organization’s current goal is to package and send 100,000 meals to the children of Haiti.

Skyler Russell (pictured - Kickapoo Chiefs) has been playing for the Scott Gallagher U16 US Academy team and they just returned from a Florida tournament where they faced off against the US U16 National Team, losing 1-0. The Academy is the highest level of play in the country, designed to provide a model similar to the International Clubs that develop youth players for their adult teams. It has also been designated as the way USSF will identify future National Team players.

Just down the road in Joplin, Max Duncan (Joplin) has been traveling North to play for the KC Wizards Juniors who have just been accepted into the USSF Academy program beginning next year. Max’s U16 squad currently plays in the Midwest Regional League, in the First Division that includes the Springfield SC squad.