Lakers District Title Top Sports Story For Lake of the Ozarks

Photo By Stephen Herzog, lakenewsonline.com

Photo By Stephen Herzog, lakenewsonline.com

Congratulations yet again to the Camdenton Laker’s boys team. Their first ever District Title, won in overtime against regional foe Rolla, was chosen as the No. 1 sports story of the year by Stephen Herzog, Sports Editor for the Lake Sun Leader.

1. Lakers soccer wins district
A regular season win against the Bulldogs was their first in team history, and they knew winning a second time would be a challenge. After fighting back to tie the game and force overtime, the Lakers ended up in a golden-goal situation. Rayder Bennett found Travis Miller on the wing and Miller found the back of the net. The rest is history.

3. School of the Osage debuts soccer
• The Indians marched out a soccer team for the first time in school history.
• The team finished with a surprising 13-15 record in their first season.

I’m working on my list for the region in 2009. Feel free to offer your suggestions by contacting Ole.

William Woods Owls Sign A Pair Of Camdenton Lakers – Moffitt and Kirvan

From the KRMS 97.5 FM radio website:
Jeff Moffitt, Camdenton LakersLaker senior forward Jeff Moffitt signed a letter of intent to play soccer at William Woods University on Wednesday. Moffitt says his teammates from Camdenton High School will be hard to leave behind.

“Just being on the team for Camdenton was fun–playing the sport that I love. Pretty much all four years was a real great experience and that’s what made me want to pursue (soccer) farther,” Moffitt said.

Camdenton boys’ soccer coach Jason Ingold says Moffitt had a strong senior campaign and impressed the William Woods coaching staff at a tryout. “Jeff has really come a long way. He really made a lot of strides, worked hard in the offseason and this year. (Moffitt was) one of our seven seniors, and didn’t score as much as he really wanted to but he had more assists than he has ever had, I think combined,” Ingold said.

Moffitt says his freshman season will be full of learning, and that he will need to adjust to the faster speed of college soccer. “I played indoor with (the William Woods players) four-on-four and it was real fast. They play extremely fast. My footwork is real good, but some of my passing–I need to work on my left foot, mainly, with them,” Moffitt said.

Moffitt says he plans to pursue physical therapy or athletic training in addition to college soccer.

Stephanie Kirvan, Camdenton LakersCamdenton soccer player Stephanie Kirvan signed a letter of intent to play soccer this fall at William Woods University. Before she starts her college career, Kirvan has work to do with the Lady Lakers.

Stephanie Kirvan didn’t play high school soccer until her junior year. She is the only senior on this year’s Lady Laker team, which stands 14-3. Kirvan acknowledged that even the players have been surprised by their success. “Coming into the season I was a little rocky, like ‘oh, we’re going to be young.’ People weren’t expecting much from us, but the freshmen have stepped up so much. I am so proud of everyone and it’s just been an amazing season,” Kirvan said.

Kirvan scored 14 goals and notched 7 assists as a junior. The always attacking forward surpassed those stats already this season, pouring in 19 goals, 5 of them game winners. William Woods Head Coach Josh Ganson says Kirvan should fit in right away. “We’re losing a real big goal scorer this year and we’re looking to bring in Steph and couple of other girls to kind of spread that goal scoring around,” Ganson said.

Before Kirvan moves on to Fulton, the Camdenton Lady Lakers have an Ozark Conference and district schedule to finish out. Kirvan says her younger teammates make championship hopes a real possibility. “Our defense has stepped up a lot, and our outside mids have been doing a great job crossing it up and then we’re finishing the ball. So it’s just pretty much all around; we’re not strong in one area, we’re strong all around,” Kirvan said.

Kirvan plans to pursue a degree in athletic training or education at William Woods.

High School Schedules – Am I Missing Your Team?

OK, spent the afternoon Tuesday entering schedules into my High School Calendar and I’m still missing quite a few. The only way I can cover your team is if I have your schedule and can identify games of interest. Please have your Coach or a member of the Booster Club send me the schedule. I need it as a spreadsheet!

If your team IS NOT on this list, then I NEED YOUR SCHEDULE!
Class 3 – Branson Pirates, Camdenton Lakers, Central Bulldogs, Glendale Falcons, Jeff City Jays, Kickapoo Chiefs, Neosho Wildcats, Nixa Eagles, Ozark Tigers, Parkview Vikings, Rolla Bulldogs, Waynesville Tigers
Class 2 – Carl Junction Bulldogs, Logan-Rogersville Wildcats, West Plains Zizzers
Class 1 – Springfield Catholic Irish, Greenwood Blue Jays

Here is a blank spreadsheet you can complete. Download googlecalendar_schedule and complete. Thanks!

Missouri Girls Soccer: Class 2 Central Region Honors

Player of the Year – Jessica Greer (Smith-Cotton)
Offensive Player of the Year – Tiffany Wehmeyer (Smith-Cotton)
Defensive Player of the Year – Emily Downing (Jefferson City)
Goalkeeper of the Year – Mariah McClain (Jefferson City)
Coach of the Year – Matt Stacey (Jefferson City)

Regional Team

Player: Year Position School
Mariah McClain, 11, GK – Jefferson City
Lindsay Corneil, 11, D – Smith-Cotton
Emily Downing, 11, D – Jefferson City
Blaire Baker, 12, D – Camdenton
Katie Denning, 12, MF – Jefferson City
Melissa Young, 12, MF – Helias
Liz Gayer, 12, MF – Hickman
Kelsey Sanders, 12, MF – Jefferson City
Lauren Kelly, 12, F – Rock Bridge
Jessica Greer, 11, F – Smith-Cotton
Tiffany Wehmeyer, 09, F – Smith-Cotton

High School Girls Update and Regional Press Coverage

Update: Lebanon vs JC Helias was rained out last night although the JV got their game in. No make up date announced yet.

It’s probably self-evident, but I’ve received two cancellations today so far:
West Plains vs Harrison (AR) is moved to Thursday March 27th, still Varsity only and in West Plains.
Jeff City Helias vs Waynesville is moved to Thursday March 27th, still in Jeff City

On a related note, here are some recent stories in the regional papers on the Girls season:

The Waynesville Tigers, with 10 returning starters and 9 seniors, want to advance farther in the playoffs this year.

The Glendale Falcons are also interested in improving on their finish last year after sharing the Ozark Conference title with the Tigers. They want a District title.

While the Chiefs, who have nine returning starters from a team that advanced to the Class 4 state quarterfinals for the second consecutive season, are thinking about the results the boys team achieved.

Camdenton Lady Lakers have two players picked to the Preseason District team and have 8 returning starters.

Central Region Preseason Poll and All-Area Team

The Class 1 and Class 2 Coaches from the Central Region have compiled their preseason picks.

Preseason All Area Team

GK – Annie Streumph (Helias)
D – Liz Gayer (Hickman), Caty Newbold (Helias), Jeanna Ross (RB), Caitlyn Guerrant (Fulton),
MF – Alex Litofsky (RB), Shawn Beard (Moberly), Melissa Young (Helias), Latea LaRue (Camdenton), Sarah Hotop (Mexico), Tillie Bill (SBC)
F – Kelsey Sanders (JC), Ashley Russell (Fulton), Lauren Kelly (RB), Andie Wiesner (Moberly)

Honorable Mention: Blaire Baker (Camdenton), Danielle Baumgartner (Helias), Molly Cowley (JC)

Class 2 District 10 Preview:
The Class 2 District 10 race has arguably been the most competitive in the state and this year will be no different as each of the six teams can make a significant run at a district title. One thing that should make this district interesting – three first-year coaches and one second-year coach out of the six district teams. The District 10 winner will more than likely play state power Incarnate Word Academy in a sectional game this May. IWA won its district last year in record-setting fashion – 15-0 over Gateway – en route to a second place finish in Class 2. Incarnate returns two of the top players in the nation and was ranked nationally for the majority of 2007. The Rock Bridge Bruins are defending District champions.

1. Rock Bridge (11-7-5)
2. Helias (12-6)
3. Jefferson City (17-5-2)
4. Hickman (8-11-4)
5. Smith-Cotton (14-7-2)
6. Camdenton (12-12)

Class 1, District 10 Preview
:
Defending champ Moberly has all the ingredients to repeat. The Spartans return 10 starters from the team that knocked off upstart Mexico 3-1 in last year’s final after Mexico had surprised defending champ Hannibal in the semifinals. Moberly MF Shawn Beard is one of the smoothest players in the area and she will have plenty around her to work with as coach Robbie Murray will try to repeat his successful fall season. Mexico MF Sarah Hotop will lead Brad Ellebracht’s rapidly improving Bulldog team. Fulton had its best season in school history, but will lose the area’s leading scorer in Jessica Martin. The Hornets do return 1st Team NCMC players F Ashley Russell and D Caitlyn Guerrant. Kirksville played everyone tough, but also loses key field player Rebekah Blankenship. The Tigers return 1st Team NCMC GK Mackenzie Kelly who has the ability to keep her team in any match. Southern Boone and second-year team Canton round out the district for one more year before both teams head to Class 1 next season. Southern Boone’s sophomore MF Tillie Bill will lead a young Eagles team that should also benefit from the addition of senior Courtney Branch, who is playing her first year of soccer. Hannibal lost a solid group of seniors, but will return F Elise Bensman and GK Whitney Voepel to a team that has shared conference and district dominance with Moberly over the past few years. The district winner will more than likely face defending Class 1 state champ St. Dominic in the sectional game.

Central Region Preseason Poll, All-Area and Team Capsules

Camdenton Lady Lakers Seek Team For April Tournament

The Camdenton Lady Lakers soccer program is hosting a tournament on Friday April 25 and Saturday, April 26th at the Camdenton soccer field, and maybe at the Linn Creek L.O.S.A. field. It’s an 8-team tourney and we just had a team drop out at the last minute, so we desperately need a team. It’s the first year of the tournament and we’re quite excited about it. This is for a high school girls team and if you are interested, please contact me at jhunter@mail.camdenton.k12.mo.us at your earliest convenience.

School of the Osage Indians May Add Soccer in 2009

School of the Osage IndiansFrom the Lake Sun Leader and their 2007 Review:

Camdenton and School of the Osage added junior high wrestling this year, while Osage also got its varsity girls’ golf program started. By 2009, the Indians will have a varsity wrestling program.

Can boys and girls soccer be far behind?

Note that the Camdenton Lakers celebrated 10 year anniversaries for the boys and girls soccer programs this year.