Tag Archives: Justin Alford

Missouri State Bears Men’s Soccer Alumni Win, Donate

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MSU alumniWell, this is pretty cool. I sent out a couple of tweets from Coach Jon Leamy when he attended an indoor adult men’s tournament in St Louis recently that included a team made up of Missouri State Bear’s men’s soccer alumni. Well, check out the latest note from Coach Leamy:

It is with both a great deal of pride and pleasure that I am announcing that a generous gift has been made to our Missouri State University Soccer Program. The group of MSU Soccer Alums that won the 16 team Nike College Indoor Soccer Classic (February 13 & 14) in St. Louis made a decision to donate the first place prize money to the MSU Soccer Program! By winning the championship they were presented with $1000. On behalf of Missouri State University and our soccer program we are forever grateful for this extremely kind gesture. Many special thanks to OUR Alumni players Jarod Bertrand, Steve Mayes, Mike Williams, Brad Jordan, Kyle Hopson, Nick Pollard, Brett Williams, Justin Alford, Matt Caution, Doug Lascody, Dan Watson, and Andy Hately for the gift. Boys you are absolutely the best!

The boys are front row left to right: Doug Lascody, Matt Caution, Andy Hately, Kyle Hopson, Justin Alford
Back row left to right: Jarod Bertrand, Dan Watson, Nick Pollard, Mike Williams, Brad Jordan, Steve Mayes

By the way, if you’re a Bear’s fan, consider following them on Facebook as well.

If you are exploring Twitter or considering it, add @CoachJonLeamy and @SGFsoccer. The new box on the right side will allow you to post scores in real time at High School games this Spring. Contribute to the community, sign up :)

Represent SGFsoccer in Major League Soccer

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With the opening of the Major League Soccer season coming this weekend, it’s time for me to get caught up with the comings and goings on the MLS rosters. In particular, what’s up with the goalkeepers that Missouri State has sent to the major leagues. But before I dive into those details, a quick update on a new prospect.

Justin Alford (Poplar Bluff/Springfield SC) has been invited to tryout with Chivas USA for five days next week. It’s Spring Break for Justin and he’s ready to measure himself at the next level. I was fortunate to catch up with him Sunday after the Bear’s late afternoon practice.

I neglected to ask him but I’m guessing he has former Poplar Bluff classmate Tyler Hansbrough’s UNC team at the top of his March Madness brackets. How about you?

Lance Parker – Lance is now officially a member of the Senior Roster at Chivas USA, albeit with 0 years of experience. You may recall the Reserve League was eliminated which meant 100 players across 15 clubs were not re-signed. Lance played in the preseason game against the Fire, winning a 1v1 battle with Blanco I understand, and has also found a new place in LA that’s a mile from the beach. All excellent signs for the #3 keeper behind Zach Thornton and Dan Kennedy.

Matt Pickens – Matt returns to the MLS to play for the Colorado Rapids. We last saw him at the Chicago Fire before his short stint with Queens Park Rangers in England. The Rapids website notes that he’ll battle for the 1st team position with Preston Burpo who was 3-0-1 in September 2008.

Matt’s joined on the roster by another St Louis native, John DiRaimondo, who begins his second year on the senior roster after two years on the Reserve roster. DiRaimondo played at SLU/SLUH.

Coester’s Regional College Soccer Report

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Missouri State Bears vs Valparaiso Crusaders Missouri State Bears - 1 (2 OT)
Valparaiso Crusaders – 1
The Bears opened strong Friday evening, coming off of their Tournament win at New Mexico last week. Attacking with verve, they wasted no time exploiting the first opportunity to present itself. Kyle Windmueller, the man the MSU Standard calls the “go-to guy” did just that, beating his defender on the left side. His run into the box created space that midfielder Ryan Hennessey filled, receiving the square ball near the spot before slotting his shot just inside the far post in the 11th minute. The Bears kept up the attack, earning a 6-3 advantage in shots in the half.

The second half provided a mirror image of the first, with the Crusaders creating more opportunities, and beating the Bears with a goal in the 87th minute. It was scored by senior Paul Leitelt from 20 yards out as he found space of his own to hammer a shot to the far side netting. It might have been worse but the Bears were fortunate that Brandon Durk was prepared in the 75th minute, as he intercepted a crossing pass at the far post that he knocked down and goal keeper Alex Riggs quickly collected.

Two overtime periods with one near miss for the Bears as a set piece skipped just beyond Thomas Vania’s reach in the six yard box. Tonight marked the return of Springfield Demize player Isreal Bisoni (pictured, underneath MSU’s Justin Alford) who joined the Crusaders from Coffeyville CC, along with his teammate Rodolfo Lucas. Bisoni came on midway through the 1st half and played the majority of the game this evening at forward.

Missouri State Bears – 7
Nicholls State – 0
The Missouri State women’s soccer team dominated Nicholls State in a 7-0 shutout victory on Friday night in the first match of the Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, AR. Tara Bailes (Catholic 2008) came on as a substitute while scoring 1 goal and providing an assist as well.
Drury Panthers Logo
Drury Panthers – 4
Kentucky Wesleyan – 0
Drury broke open a tight contest with three second-half goals and cruised to a 4-0 victory over Kentucky Wesleyan in a Great Lakes Valley Conference match Friday. Katy McLain (Kickapoo 2008) came on as a substitute in the game for the Lady Panthers.

Drury Panthers – 5
Kentucky Wesleyan – 1
The Drury University soccer Panthers kept their unbeaten start intact, defeating Kentucky Wesleyan 5-1 in a Great Lakes Valley Conference match Friday afternoon. The Panthers, now 5-0 overall and 3-0 in the GLVC, received two goals from senior forward Marco Cherisma – pushing his season total to five – and single goals from juniors Steve Wilczewski (Glendale 2006) and Andrew Bordelon and sophomore Micah Whorton. Kyler Temple (Kickapoo 2008), Adam Peterson (Kickapoo 2007), Alex Palmer (Kickapoo 2007) and Danny Collins (Glendale 2007) all came on as substitutes in the game. Wilczewski, Drury’s leading scorer, was also interviewed by the Drury Mirror recently. Key take away?

Q: What is the better rivalry; Yankee’s/ Redsox’s or Glendale/Kickapoo?
A: I would have to say Glendale/Kickapoo, even though it’s a Glendale dominated rivalry.

Missouri Southern LionsMissouri Southern Lions – 0
Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds – 0
The game finished in a 0-0, scoreless tie that was halted in the 80th minute due to darkness. Nate Evans (Cassville 2007) joined Stuart Ziegler (West Plains 2008) and Jesse Clevenger (College Heights 2006) in the starting lineup.

Missouri Southern Lions – 0
Northwest Missouri Bearcats – 1
Amanda Deml scored the only goal of the match on a free kick from 20 yards out to lead the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats to a 1-0 win over the Missouri Southern Lions in MIAA action Thursday afternoon. Joplin Eagle 2008 graduates Randi Russell and Lindsay Altman both got their first starts of the season, with Brianna McKenzie (Webb City 2008) and Brianna Ragains (Lebanon 2008) coming on as substitutes. Rusell went the entire 90 minutes, with 2 saves.

Miners Logo headMissouri S&T Miners – 2
Bellarmine Knights – 2
After falling behind by two goals at the half, the Miners came back after the break and claimed a 2-2 tie against their GLVC opponent. Andy Held scored with 46 seconds to play in regulation time to send the game into overtime. Zack Hay (Kickapoo 2008) and Brandon Moore (Rolla 2005) both started.

Missouri S&T Miners – 0
Bellarmine Knights – 2
The Miner’s gave up a pair of goals in the first half before mounting a comeback attempt in the second half. The Miners had 12 shots, 4 on goal, compared to Bellarmine five shots in the second frame.

Coester’s is a family friendly, non-smoking, restaurant located just West of the Missouri State campus. With Sentanta, Fox Soccer Channel, Gol and Direct Kick, you can enjoy the world’s game on one of the 22 high definition monitors that cover every wall. Be certain to let them know you appreciate their sponsorship of this website, and the game of soccer!

Springfield SC U23′s Host NWA Lightning Tonight

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UPDATE – the Springfield SC U23′s won the inaugural Ozarks Challenge Cup Wednesday night on aggregate goals 6-1.

The team got a pair of late goals, in the 75th and 79th minute, to win the home leg of the series 2-0. The first goal came as the team slowly wore down their opponent and maintained possession in the offensive end. Winning a 1v1 battle on the far left side of the box allowed x to slot a ball to Justin Alford (MSU/Poplar Bluff) in the six yard box where he confidently buried a one-touch ball into the roof of the net. The second goal came on a corner kick by John Duncan (WashU/Joplin) with Heath Melugin (MSU/Kickapoo) rising above the defense to nod it home.

Springfield Soccer Club The game is the final leg of a home-and-away series initiated this year between the two clubs, with the winner earning the Ozarks Challenge Cup hardware.

Game time is 7:05 pm at Cooper Soccer Complex, Field 1.

As a few folks have pointed out to me, it could be the last opportunity to see All-American Patrick Carver (Parkview 2005) play in Springfield prior to the end of his collegiate career at Emory University. Emory will visit Washington University on October 12th when he’ll face off against high school teammate Joshua Florez (and John Duncan, Joplin and Bryson Tombridge, Kickapoo) but that will require a Sunday drive.

The boys are unbeaten in their 7 games this season and really gelling. It will be an enjoyable game. Come out and join us and support the local boys!

Springfield SC U23′s Open Lead in Ozarks Challenge Cup

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Springfield Soccer Club The U23′s had a good weekend, opening play with a pair of games in St Louis on Saturday followed by the away game in their home-and-away series with the Northwest Arkansas Lightning on Sunday.

Sunday’s match was a 4-1 win for our boys, with goals from 4 different players giving them a commanding lead in the total goals that will decide the Ozarks Challenge Cup winner. John Duncan (Washington University/Joplin) got the first midway through the first half as he outraced the goalkeeper to a ball deflected wide right from Justin Alford’s pass. TJ Miner Martin (Webb City/Rogers State) got a beauty when Danny Collins (Drury/Glendale) sent him in alone with a thru ball. NWA got their goal late in the half when Juan Orrala (Rogers HS) put a beautiful direct kick over the wall and off the left upright that just evaded Stephen Connors (Drury/Glendale) dive. With a strong defense and a counter-attack that doesn’t quit, SSC got two more goals from Kyle Windmueller and Justin Alford (both Missouri State) who assisted each other late in the game. The NWA News has a story from yesterday’s game as well. I’ll be back with video highlights later today.


Springfield SC U23′s at Northwest AR Lightning from oleolson on Vimeo.

The games on Saturday included a 2-1 win over Central Illinois Soccer Academy and 2-0 over Metro United. Both games were played at the Metro facility in Collinsville IL.

Springfield SC travels to Chicago this weekend for a trio of games, with the highlight of the trip being a game at Schwaben FC (in Buffalo Grove, IL), a German club that began in Chicago in 1926 and now has a four field facility in the Northern suburbs.

The home game against NWA Lightning will be on Wednesday July 23rd and will be played at Cooper Soccer Complex. Come cheer on the local boys and get a peek at some of the Missouri Southern, Drury, Missouri S&T and Missouri State players on the team you’ll be cheering on this Fall.