SCOTLAND YARD NEWS: Alma Vs. Adrian Game
September 20, 2007
Written by: Jason Stanley, Assistant Coach
We had trained or had games every day last week so we had to give the boys training off on Monday. With a game on Friday and Sunday, the extra rest certainly didn’t hurt. I ran the reserves through a long session on Tuesday that included a possession exercise in a very small space and some good fitness at the end in preparation for their match against Adrian’s reserves on Thursday. The Varsity squad went through a light pre-game training on the game field that included some pattern work and finishing on net.
The roster for Wednesday’s match saw some new (old) faces as Dave Henson was cleared earlier that morning to play on his previously injured knee. Ben Queen also returned to the dress list after battling a knee injury since the beginning of preseason. Sonny Koch returned from a high ankle sprain, but is still regaining fitness while Tom Biber returned from a slight knee sprain and was given the nod to dress.
We were primed and ready for our first MIAA conference match against Adrian. The pitch was in sublime condition once again, and similar to the previous Sunday, we couldn’t have asked for better weather. We took the field with the same starting 11 from Sunday’s contest and with the same focus that we have had all year—possess, open the game up by utilizing the size of our field, and get dangerous in the final third. After a rough spell in the opening minutes, we were able to do just that and found ourselves on the better end of a 4-1 score line at half. Mark Daisy continued his scoring streak with 2 tallies in the opening half and freshman Ryan Derby scored his first collegiate goal to open the game.
With mental focus being the primary source of our recent struggles, Nate was adamant in his speech at halftime about the concentration and mental sharpness it would require to close out a team like Adrian in the second half. For the most part we were sharp in the second half, tallying two more goals, including one from Santi Lopez which marked his first collegiate goal.
We still need to cut down on the little mistakes, but all in all Wednesday’s match proved to be a great win and a strong offensive display. We find ourselves tied atop the MIAA standings with Albion and Kalamazoo as we head into Saturday’s match at Tri-State University. After this weekend’s road-trip, our fixtures for next week include Kalamazoo and Calvin at home. We have a big week ahead of us and are looking forward to some great conference match-ups.
Posted: Thu, September 20th, 2007 at 4:11PM
