Tag Archives: Ben Taylor

GLVC Soccer: Panthers Win, Grab 5th Seed In Tourney

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Grant Bowden, Drury Panthers (2011)

Grant Bowden, Drury Panthers (2011)

Senior Grant Bowden’s header goal (video below) in the 26th minute Sunday afternoon gave Drury all it needed to pull out a 1-0 Great Lakes Valley Conference soccer victory over Saint Joseph’s on Senior Day at Harrison Stadium in The Curry Family Sports Complex.

Bowden’s second goal of the season helped the Panthers to improve to 10-6 overall and 9-5 in the GLVC as they secured their spot in the eight-team GLVC Tournament field which opens play on Oct. 31. Drury will be the No. 5 seed and visit No. 4 Quincy next Sunday at a time to be determined. Saint Joseph’s fell to 8-7-1 and 6-7-1.

DU junior keeper Stephen Conner picked up his seventh shutout of the season and school-record 21st of his career for the Panthers. Drury outshot the visiting Pumas 14-4 on a day when the program recognized 12 seniors in post-game ceremonies for their contributions in their final home game of the season – Blake Wilson, Ben Taylor, Peter Higgins, Mason North, Danny Collins, Alex Palmer, Connor McClellan, Adam Peterson, Micah Whorton, Taylor Stacy, David Emnett and Bowden.

PHOTO GALLERY FROM SENIOR RECOGNITION POST-GAME

The Panthers will close out the regular season with a non-conference match at Harding on Tuesday in Searcy, Ark. The Panthers travel to No. 4 seed Quincy (10-4-2) for a first round GLVC Tourney game next Sunday. Drury (10-6-0) finished as the No. 5 seed.

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Whorton Sets Drury Panthers Points Record

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Brett Murray, Drury Panthers (2014)

Brett Murray, Drury Panthers (2014)

Drury Panthers – 5
KY Wesleyan Panthers – 1
Senior forward Micah Whorton scored three goals – setting a Drury career mark for points and moving closer to becoming its all-time goals leader – and the Panthers posted a 5-1 victory over Kentucky Wesleyan in Great Lakes Valley Conference men’s soccer Sunday afternoon at Harrison Stadium.

Whorton scored twice in the first half and then added a third just two minutes into the second half before retiring for the day as the Panthers moved to 8-4-0 overall and 7-3-0 in the GLVC with their third straight victory.

Whorton now has eight goals on the season and 33 for his career, moving past Jarrett Wagner (32 goals from 1993-96) into third place on the all-time DU charts. Whorton now trails only John Pedroli (37 from 1999-2002) and Steve Wilczewski (35 from 2006-09) in career goals at Drury.

With six points on his three goals Sunday, Whorton also became DU’s career leader in points with 90, surpassing the previous mark of 85 set by Wilczewski last season. Whorton’s 2nd goal can be seen below, assist by freshman Mike Yuede.

“I was very happy with the result today,” said Drury coach Ryan Swan, after his Panthers posted their third straight victory. “I thought the guys played very well. It was also great to see Micah set the all-time points record. “He has been an outstanding performer for us over his career and to establish the record with a hat trick today is extra special.”

Whorton tallied first off an assist from senior Ben Taylor just seven minutes into the contest for a 1-0 Drury lead that grew to 3-0 by halftime on goals by Whorton at 23:35 (Michael Yuede assist) and senior David Emnett at 37:27 (Danny Collins assist).

Whorton scored at 47:38 just after the half from five yards out on Yuede’s second assist of the day. Wesleyan (2-11, 0-11 in the GLVC) got on the board with a goal from Jordan Sosh against DU backup keeper Andrew Klump at 57:09 before Collins finished the scoring with a goal from eight yards out at 77:46 off an assist by freshman Matt Baker.

The Panthers outshot Wesleyan 24-2 in the contest and a 13-0 advantage in corner kicks.

Drury is on the GLVC road next weekend for matches Friday at Indianapolis and Sunday at Northern Kentucky, the latter pitting the top two teams in the league’s preseason poll.

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Drury Panthers Grab Key Win Over Bellarmine

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Michael Yuede, Drury Panthers (2014)

Michael Yuede, Drury Panthers (2014)

Drury pulled away from a scoreless halftime tie with second-half goals from freshman Michael Yuede (pictured) and senior Ben Taylor for a 2-0 victory over Bellarmine in Great Lakes Valley Conference men’s soccer play Friday night at Harrison Stadium.

The Panthers moved to 7-4-0 overall and 6-3-0 in the GLVC, while Bellarmine fell to 6-4-1 and 4-4-1.

Yuede scored off a header for his first collegiate goal just three minutes into the second half, with assists by seniors Micah Whorton and Alex Palmer for the 1-0 lead. Taylor gave the Panthers some breathing room with his goal from five yards out off a Matt Baker assist at 71:12 for the 2-0 cushion. Junior keeper Stephen Conner had seven saves in goal in posting his fifth shutout of the season and school-record 19th of his career despite Bellarmine outshooting the Panthers 14-9.

“I”m very happy with the performance and result,” Drury coach Ryan Swan said. “The guys responded brilliantly in the second half and really earned tonight’s victory.”

The Panthers are back home on Sunday, playing host to Kentucky Wesleyan in a GLVC match at noon at Harrison Stadium.

Ole’s Notes: The first half had a frantic pace to it and neither coach was happy with the ref, but that’s a broken record in my estimation. The Panther’s Peter Higgin’s was ejected from the game late in the first half when he received his second yellow, for dissent I believe. His teammates held off the Knights for the final 10 minutes and came out prepared to play their game finally. There have been some line up changes, the most significant switching Blake Wilson back to center back and moving Brendan Langford to defensive midfield. Matt Hutchinson and Mike Yuede are getting more minutes at midfield as well, earning the start along with Dave Emnett, and both delivered this evening as they’ve adapted to the pace and style of play Coach Swan is looking for. The style of play in the second half was solid and consistent, despite being a man down. Alec Nagel, Danny Collins, Matt Baker, Adam Peterson, Alex Palmer, Mason North and Adam Heiligenstein were the subs and the pace and hustle this group brought to the game helped keep Bellarmine on their heels. Now for a few more half’s like that last one.

Drury Panthers Ranked 9th In Division II Preseason Poll

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Drury Panthers, 2009 GLVC Champions

Drury Panthers, 2009 GLVC Champions

The NCAA Division II preseason poll was released Tuesday and the Drury Panther’s were included in the Top 10. The defending GLVC Champions (pictured) are coming off of their most successful season ever, finishing 21-2-0, losing 0-1 to Lewis University in the second round of the NCAA tournament following two straight shutout wins over Northern Kentucky in the GLVC Finals and NCAA 1st Round, avenging the only regular season loss that year.

The team returns a core of seven starters from last years team including the entire defensive corp, starting with senior GK Stephen Conner (Glendale). Conner had 14 shutouts in 2009, giving up only 11 goals overall and was named the GLVC Defensive Player of the Year while also earning 2nd Team All-American status.

His defensive line is a quartet of seniors, led by Ben Taylor (pictured holding the trophy), also a 2nd Team All-American and the second leading returning scorer on the team with 7 goals and 5 assists. Taylor plays outside left and handles many of the teams set pieces. The central defenders will be Blake Wilson and Conner McClellan while Grant Bowden will be the outside right back. This battle tested defensive crew will be relied on to keep the Panther’s close while the team identify’s who will step up to replace the 26 goals, including 11 game-winners, scored by Steve Wilczewski and Andrew Bordelon in 2009.

The midfield will be led by senior Peter Higgins, who will move into the play-making position vacated by Ben Nabers. Nabers was the unsung hero of last years team, with the ability to reliably hold the ball in tight situations before starting the Panther’s attack. Higgin’s is very talented, earning Honorable Mention All-American recognition last year, and one of the hardest workers on the team but is the only returning starter in the midfield. A pair of Springfield products, Danny Collins (Glendale) and Adam Peterson (Kickapoo) played in 20 or more games each last year and will work to earn starting positions this year. Collins scored 3 goals and had 3 assists from his outside position while Peterson scored 2 goals while earning minutes at both midfield and forward. One incoming freshman, Brendan Langford (San Antonio, TX) spent the summer in Springfield playing for the Demize PDL team. Langford showed good technical skills during the minutes he played and should earn playing time but likely won’t be prepared to start.

Micah Whorton returns up top following a highly successful season in 2009, scoring 15 goals and providing 15 assists and 45 points, tops on the team. Whorton earned 3rd Team All-American recognition for his efforts and will be expected to continue his fine form in his senior season. Sr Dave Emnett played in 18 games last year and will challenge for a starting position.

The recruiting class this year is 12 players strong, coming from 4 states, and includes Catholic’s Justin Bowenschulte. A few I think can make an impact this year include this trio of Scott-Gallagher players from St Louis:

Alec Nagel, 5-11 midfielder, Jefferson City High School: Alec was a First Team All-Region, First Team All-State and Central Region MVP selection who’s speed and strength could pair well with Whorton.
Matthew Hutchison, 6-0 forward, CBC High School: Matthew helped CBC and his Scott Gallagher club team both to state championships in 2009. He was named to the First Team All-Conference, All-Metro and All-State squads, and is playing club this spring with the Gallagher Academy.
Michael Yuede, 5-8 midfielder, St. Dominic High School: He was the Class 2 state player of the year after leading his team to a state championship, earning First Team All-State and Second Team All-Metro honors. Yuede also was a number of the ’09 Missouri state champion Scott Gallagher Soccer Club team.

The Panther’s open regular season play on Friday September 3rd at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio before traveling to Chicago for a Sunday September 5th game at Lewis University. Lewis reached the NCAA Final 4 after beating Drury in the 2nd round so this game will be an early season grudge match.

The first home game will be Friday September 17th against Truman State University, the other ranked Missouri team, coming in at 24th in the preseason poll.

Des Moines Menace Clinch Playoff Spot With Win Over Springfield Demize

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Demize LogoThe Springfield Demize finished their final road trip of the season on Saturday evening in Des Moines where they fell 4-0 to the hosts. With the win the Des Moines Menace has secured a spot in the playoffs and a share of the division championship. With two games remaining, one point is all that is necessary to ensure home-field advantage along with the Heartland Division title.

Ben Taylor and a trio of Drake Bulldogs – Garrett Webb (recently named Preseason All-American), Julien Edwards and Hunter Kennedy – led the Menace’s late-game rampage.

Taylor assisted Webb (50th minute) and Edwards (84th) before capping off the night with an unassisted goal in the final minute. With his first points in eight matches, Taylor passes Armin Mujdzic (10 points) as the team’s leading scorer (11 points)

The Demize will finish their season at home on Friday against the Colorado Real Foxes. Their opportunity to move up from the bottom of the table disappeared with their 0-1 loss to the KC Brass last week. So the final goal will be to get their 3rd win of the season at home against the visitors. Game time is 7:30 pm, come out and cheer on the home side!

2009 PDL Heartland Division
Team Pts GP W L T GF GA
MENACE 31  14 9  1  4  29 11
Thunder Bay 25  14 7  3  4  23 15
Real Colorado 24  14 7  4  3  25 17
St. Louis 24  15 6  3  6  29 22
Rochester 16  14 5  8  1  20 21
Kansas City 12  14 3  8  3  24 33
Springfield  7  15 2 12  1  10 41

Drury Panthers Dismantle MSSU Lions

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Drury Panthers vs Missouri Southern Lions
Micah Whorton scoring the final goal

Drury Panthers – 5
Missouri Southern Lions – 0
The Drury Panthers looked like a finally tuned sports car this evening as they faced their Western neighbors. The goals were all scored from inside the six yard box as the Panthers moved the ball with pace and urgency throughout the game. The first came in the 6th minute when Peter Higgins nodded a header past the keeper that was sent in by Ben Taylor. Marco Cherisma scored a pair, the first in the 13th minute from Taylor’s assist, the second in the 32nd from Steve Wilczewski.

The second goal was a classic, as the play started near the center circle as Higgin’s received a ball that he sent back to Taylor who was already beginning to move forward from his defensive position. Taylor’s give-and-go with Wilczewski 35 yards out was perfectly weighted and sent Taylor in unmarked on the left side. His run into the box allowed him to pick Cherisma out with a square ball that completely exposed the Lion’s defense.

With the #1 ranked University of Northern Kentucky Norsemen game on Friday, the Panther’s began looking to the bench early in the second half and the attack continued. The sense of urgency only seemed to increase as the competition for playing time on this squad is high. Micah Whorton was the primary beneficiary as he scored a brace in the second half, the first as he walked a ball into the net after the keeper went down and the second via header (pictured above) at the far post.

The Panther’s lost their final 4 conference games last year, including a 2-0 loss to NKU in their final home game, eliminating them from the GLVC playoffs. The string began after a 1-0 OT win at MSSU October 7th. While there is an obvious difference on the scoreboard, the key question is will not be ability. As I noted last year, it was not opportunity or ability that doomed the Panthers, it was a lack of discipline. Much like a players success in the transition from high school to college is defined not by athleticism or skill, but attitude, so will the Panther’s success this weekend be determined by their mental toughness.

And lest I forget, the Women will also have a challenge on their hands as the UNK Lady Norse are now ranked #3 in the Midwest Region, just behind Wisconsin-Parkside and ahead of #8 Drury. They just cracked the national rankings as well, at #20.