Best of Midwest Showcase

Game 15 vs. Olathe East at CBAC in Best of the Midwest (2-3)

It was fantastic being the 810 Varsity's showcase game in the Best of the Midwest. And it was also neat finally playing Olathe East again after so many years. Check out the STA Crowd.

We gave all that came to the game tonight a very entertaining match that basically ended with only six seconds left 3-2. 

We continue to give up goals that you would think were almost impossible to give up. We countered that by creating a couple of great goals, the second that evened the score early in the second half.

Overall, we were pleased with how hard and how well we played.  So many guys stood out with very, very good games against unbeaten Olathe East. Aubrey Evans, Sam Sketers, and Evan Neely were off the charts. Ricardo was quite good. BWhite, however, named senior center midfielder, Danny Gabriel, BWhite Player of the Match. 

He scored the first goal, beautifully threaded the assist to tie the score, just missed another, and we all thought stood out as the best player on the pitch tonight. 

Statistically we won the second half, and they won the first. The match probably should have gone to OT, but it did not. We had agreed only to play 5 minute OT's, so who knows? The boys were really playing well. 

What we need to take away from this match is quite a bit: 1) what a privilege to get to play in the event against Olathe East 2) the need to do a much better job clearing that first ball into the box on kicks and then being first to the second ball 3) how not to commit so many dumb fouls at inappropriate times and inappropriate positions on the field 4) how hard we played and 5) how well we play when we string 3-4 passes together and then go. 6) how our schedule will pay off during postseason. 

We do a senior night Tuesday with the opportunity to honor some very special guys. And after that, we head to the most important part of the season: post season where the gauntlet we have been through will pay massive dividends. We are almost around that Monopoly board, GO!

STATS:

First Half: Shots:  1 (1) Corners: 1 (Wirt)

17:10 Gabriel (Caragher finds him through Gaspo)

Hawks: Shots: 9 (6) Corners: 1

38:09 Stone (Long deadball bounces in the box and over keeper's head)

17:35 Stone (3rd touch shot)

Second Half: 

Saints:  Shots: 7 (4)  Corners: 2 (Diggs, Caragher)

39:37 Gonzalez (Gabriel threads a through ball)

Hawks: Shots:  4 (1) Corners: 1

:06 Chapman (clear gets to the ground in the box)

Game 14: BV West

13 October at STA vs. BV West (1-2)

We knew it would be tough tonight, coming off the Rockhurst win, taking on 

 a good BV West team. And it was. The Jags played a very direct game that did get them into the front third quite a bit. They did not have a lot of shots, but they made a couple of them count. On both goals we allowed too much space, allowing them to get pretty good shots off. We just have to do a better job of taking away that central space as we stab way too much. 

But losing the match might not have been our worst loss of the game as we may very well have lost Sam Kimball for the season and Whigham for awhile. Sam got flatten on a ball into the scrum, and his knee did not look great at the end of the match. Sam has been having such a great year in goal that this injury would be would be a tough one for us.

Curt Whigham broke his nose so he will be out Saturday, and he will have to finish the season in a mask. This game just did not go as we had hoped.

We did generate some opportunities, but it is not easy scoring goals.  We just missed on a couple more set pieces and off a couple of nice baseline attacks. I did like our effort. 

BWhite named Aubrey Evans as the BWhite Player of the Match. He had an excellent game at centerback.

And as we know things will not get any easier as we have Olathe East in two days, Lee Summit North in 5 days. And then the final season. 

STATS:

Saints: Shots: 5 (3) Corners: 1 (Diggs)

31:44 Sketers (Neely lofts the long direct kick)

Jags: Shots: 7 (4) Corners: 2

23:09 Sherwood (corner kick never really ends as they keep pushing it forward before the shot to the back post)


Second Half: Saints: Shots: 6 (3) Corners: 3 (Wirt 2, Wherry)

Jags: Shots: 3 (3) Corners: 1

3:43 Spraetz (dribbles into the center of the 18 without us pressuring)

Rockhurst at Aquinas

Game 13: Rockhurst at Aquinas (3-1)

Newspaper Article

Wow. For the first time in 25 years we hosted the Rock. And despite it being a Tuesday night during Kairos, Volleyball Senior Night, Yada Yada, they came. Over 2, 000 came. And what a night it was for the Saints. 

After falling for the past two years, we hung a W tonight. Rock arrived 17-2, #7 in the country, just 10 days removed from being ranked #1 in the country. But we were good tonight against the best team we have seen all year, and we have seen some good teams. 

We showed with energy, closing space as soon as it opened as our secondary defenders waited. Probably the greatest compliment to the team came from a BWhite as he named the entire squad BWhire Player of the Game. Team!

 

And yes there was a Schermoly moment: Matt Ewert had just scored just an amazing goal on a corner to put us up 1-0 when he took off running towards our sideline to hop into BWhite's arms. I loved that!

I have to give B a huge shoutout for bringing Patrick White back for last night's team dinner. He returned the clap to STA soccer, and he transferred the historical importance of these Rockhurst matches. We showed up tonight and as Danny Gabriel mentioned "to represent those that have come before and those that will come after this squad." That is tradition, program. 

Matt Ewert's recent insertion into the starting lineup continues to pay big dividends. (Check out his opening goal off the corner). He and Aubrey were splendid in the center of the back as well! 

Once again I want to credit Coach Hammons with our rededication to set pieces and the daily extra sessions to improve us in that area. We cashed two nice ones tonight with Gabriel just missing another.

Hopefully, Mrs. Gress got some great crowd shots, and cheerleader flips as I know Titus got the full dance routine. This match was a school-wide celebration with a crowd full of so many alumni families that I could not get an accurate count. 

As Curt Whigham said before the match "boys, this is one you won't ever forget."

Hey, but we have "miles to go before we sleep": BV West, Olathe East and then LS North. But will pause just for a moment after this one.

STATS: 

First Half: Saints: Shots: 4 (3) Corners: 2 (Wirt 2)

19:53 Ewert (Joey Caragher bends it left for the diving header into the Schermoly run)

Rockhurst: Shots: 5 (1) Corners: 3

3:48 Smith (controversial goal as we pull off the post leaving Smith perhaps offsides, but he heads it in on the second-touch corner)

Second Half: 

Saints: Shots: 5 (4) Corners: 2 (Sketers, Geiss)

30:11 Gasparovich (Just-inserted-in-lineup Evan Neely hit the long diagonal switch that Wirt chests down in front of Gasp who fights off the defender before lacing it near post) 

28:21 Geiss (Just-inserted-in-lineup Cole Geiss runs backpost on the beautiful Wherry free kick)

Rockhurst: Shots: 4 (3) Corners: 3

EKL vs. Blue Valley

Game 12: vs. Blue Valley at BV West (2-0)

In our first game back from St. Louis we were pretty solid.  Yes, we could have scored more, but more importantly, we created chances and allowed very few, if any.

In his debut match at starting centerback, Matt Ewert showed well. BWhite named him the BWhite Player of the Match, for one. We cashed a corner with his running of the slot. In fact, he won 4 balls in that spot, just missing on another one. He also paired well with Aubrey in the back. Blue Valley did not generate much in the center of the field as Matt cleared so much with his head. 

B had to give a big shoutout for Landon Wirt as well. Not only did he get the game-winning goal, but he also generated six corner kicks. (I don't know if that is a Saint record, but it should be.) 

The Tigers' keeper made a great save on a Parker Stoecklein shot from the top of the box and a couple of difficult saves on a couple of other shots, so we were generating some offense.

Lots of kids played and played well, and we kept a clean sheet. This defense is what we will need in our last four matches down murders' row: we start Tuesday with Rockhurst.

STATS:

First Half: Saints: Shots: 10 (7) Corners: 5 (Wirt 5)

3:17 Wirt (Danny finds Devin wide for him to go baseline before lofting the ball to the back post for the head-in)

Tigers: Shots: 0 (0)

Second Half: Saints: Shots: 12 (6) Corners: 5 (Wirt, Diggs, Whigham, Stoecklein, Caragher)

15:13 Ewert (Gabriel bends the right-footed corner in)

Tigers: Shots 2 (0)

Gateway, Day 3

at Chaminade vs. Columbia Rock Bridge (2-3)

Well, the good news is we got to play today, so we had a chance to get the ugly taste out of our mouth from yesterday's debacle. 

Because so many of the final day's matches were paring up teams that had already played each other this season, we did not play who we were supposed to play, Cherry Creek out of Colorado. We played Rock Bridge who should have been in the championship match playing Chaminade who they had beaten earlier this season.  So we took them on.

As the saying goes "if we didn't have bad luck we would not have any luck at all."  But as BWhite mentioned at halftime when we were staring at a 2-0 deficit, we have a lot to do with causing our own bad luck.

We made every soccer adage real today. 1) Goals are scored in the first five minutes and the last five minutes of halves. We surrendered all three that way. 2-0 is the most dangerous score in soccer. We roared back to tie it midway through the second half at 2.  

And then in some mystifying fashion, we fouled with 23 seconds left. And from 35 yards the Rock Bridge number 10, chipped a ball somehow over Sam's head for the winning goal.

BWhite named Danny Gabriel the BWhite Player of the Match, with a shoutout to Aubrey Evans.  Both had almost flawless matches, and their huge efforts inspired all around them.  But as a whole, our guys played well today. Just a gutsy comeback that only fell short by a few seconds. 

STATS:

First Half: Saints  

Shots: 8 (3) Corners: 5 (Whigham, Gonzalez, Sketers, Neely, Wherry)

Rock Bridge: Shots: 5 (3) Corners: 0

3:52 Koetting (19 hit a cross into the 18 box that Koetting strokes home)

0:38 Stanowski (Muhammand hits a long ball from midfield that bounces at the 18 before Stanowski knocks it in).
Second Half:

Saints:  Shots: 7 (3) Corners: 4 (Caragher 2, Sketers, Stoecklein)

32:31 Stoecklein (Joey hits the long free kick that Rock Bridge intially clears but first Wherry and then Evans out it back on for a Gaspo D-cross for the headball)

18:13 Whigham (Diggs boxes it)

Rock Bridge: Shots: 2 (1) Corners: 1

0:23 Klein (direct kick chipped in from 35)

Gateway Classic: Day 2.

Game 10:  at Lou Fusz vs. Peoria Notre Dame (0-3). 

Yes, the score is awful. 

The game was 0-1 15 minutes into the second half when we were called for a handball in the box. I will reserve judgment until I watch the video, but I thought it was ball to hand. A no-call. 

We well might have lost anyway as we have now logged 180 minutes without a goal in the tourney but that PK took some serious wind out of our sails. And as we compounded it with the miscue in the back on the third goal—well, we came away with the ugly score to go with it. 

We will need to play well tomorrow to leave St. Louis on a positive. 

BWhite named Curt Whigham the BWhite Player of the Match. It was a second strong match by Curt. He has been a bright light this weekend. 

We now stand 5-2-3. 

 

 

 

 

Stats:

Saints: Shots. 6 (3) Corners. 4 (Wherry 2. Wirt. Gaspo). 

PND. Shots. 11 (4). Corners. 0

4:58 in 15. (12 crosses it for the flick in)

Second Half:  

Saints. 

Shots: 3 (1). Corners: (Gaspo. Gabriel)

PND:  9 (4). Corners. 0. 

15:13 in 15 PK off handball call in https://youtu.be/dZt_sCwyuPQbox. 

20:14 in 12 (Our goal kick settled by our defender but we are picked sending PND 1 v 1 to goal)

Gateway Classic: Game 1

Game 9: At Lou Fusz vs. Eureka (0-0 2 OT, falling on 8th PK kicker)

Well, we fell for the first time all year, giving up no goals. Wow. 

We were just ok in the first half offensively but our defense anchored by Aubrey Evans played so well the entire match. (It's no wonder BWhite named Aubrey Player of the Match; he was special). 

Second half we exploded offensively as well. I did think Eureka's keeper was special. How he saved Curt's shot near the end of regulation I will never know. And Curt lasered another shot in OT that Gaspo followed, then Diggs followed, and he saved all 3. That's quite a performance.

They got off 1 shot the entire second half, no corners. We had 16 shots in the second half alone. My. 

Well—let's get the next two. 

We are 5-1-3. 

Stats:

First Half. 

Saints

Shots: 7 (3)  Corners:  3 (Whigham 2. Caragher). 

Eureka:  Shots: 3 (1). Corners. 1. 

Overtime and 2nd Half

Saints:  Shots. 16 (4). Corners. 6 (Curt 2. Diggs. Stoecklein. Wherry. Gaspo. )

Eureka. Shots. 1 (0) Corners. 0. 

PK's Made. Caragher. Arias. Gabriel. Gonzalez. Whigham. Howard.