The Council of Trent would have been proud as the Fulton Hornets thoroughly dominated St. Charles Lutheran 6-0 on Wednesday. While the display of soccer was not quite Baroque -- lacking as it did drama and crisis -- the Hornets demonstrated their artistry on the ball and with quick bold strokes conveyed a simple, easily understood message: we will win today.
While a satisfying win, the truth is that St. Charles Lutheran was a depleted opponent with only one sub. And with a heat index of 102 at kickoff, St. Charles Lutheran was facing an uphill battle at best.
Fulton opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Jake Pierce ran onto a ball deep in the penalty box. He turned and found Chad Davis aloneat the top of the box. Davis took a settle and coolly measured his shot left upper 90.
Five minutes later, the Hornets struck again to make it 2-0. As was the case all day, Pierce had acres of space to turn in front of the defense. Pierce found Howie Lee on the right wing. Lee delivered an inviting cross that Zach Thomas ssmashed home from the 6 yard box.
In the 33rd minute, Pierce took a pass from Davis and again found himself wide open. Taking a quick glance up to see the keeper off the line, he launched a shot from 40 yards out that dropped just under the crossbar to make it 3-0.
Two minutes from halftime, Trevor Neal gathered up a loose balll just outside the box and drove forward. Beating his defender, he was able to send a screamer past the keeper into the far post.
After halftime, the Hornets added two more goals to their haul for the day. pierce found Darren Jones wide on the left. jone cut inside and delivered an inch perfect cross to Thomas who volleyed it home. Three. minutes later thomas (who was denied his hattrick moments before as he was ruled offside) latched on to a loose ball at the far post. The keeper was able to get a hand to it, but only to push it into the side netting.
That rounded out the scoring, but credit must also be given to the defense. senior Sam Mayne, making his debut in goal, recorded a clean sheet. much of the credit goes to Nick Heimericks and Morgan Milligan, who renewed their partnership in central defense. Acknowledgment must also be made of the contributions of the substitutes, who performed ably and kept the pressure on St. Charles Lutheran throughout the game.
The Hornets will play next @ 4:00 on Friday on the stadium field (Fort Zumwalt North) against an opponent yet to be determined.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tough Loss to St. Charles in Tourny Opener
The Fulton Hornets dropped their opening game of the Fort Zumwalt North (O'Fallon) tournament on Monday evening. It was a game to be rued as the Hornets spotted St. Charles an undeserved two-goal lead before mounting a comeback that fell just a little short.
St. Charles opened the scoring in the 10th minute against the run of play when a long through ball put an attacker in alone. He collectedthe ball and calmly smashed it to the far post past keeper Nick Heimericks.
A few minutes later disaster struck. A miscommunication in the defense allowed a St. Charles player to swoop in on the right and drive a ball to the far post which nestled just inside the post. 0-2 with only 20 minutes gone.
While not an ideal situation, it afforded the team an opportunity to see how the players handled adversity. Some handled it better than others, but the team as a whole responded well. The Hornets continued to press and test the St. Charles keeper.
The effort finally paid off midway through the 2nd half. Morgan Milligan, who gave the St. Charles back fits throughout the game, drove in from right flank position and slotted a ball to Chad Davis. Davis' shot fell to Jake Pierce who struck it home from close range.
With the score now 1-2 the Hornets pressed for the equalizer. Fulton came close with 10 minutes to go when Pierce's shot hit the keeper's trailing leg. Other opportunities went wide or high to leave the Hornets frustrated with a "what might have been" game.
The Hornets play again on Wednesday afternoon at 4:00 against St. Charles Lutheran.
St. Charles opened the scoring in the 10th minute against the run of play when a long through ball put an attacker in alone. He collectedthe ball and calmly smashed it to the far post past keeper Nick Heimericks.
A few minutes later disaster struck. A miscommunication in the defense allowed a St. Charles player to swoop in on the right and drive a ball to the far post which nestled just inside the post. 0-2 with only 20 minutes gone.
While not an ideal situation, it afforded the team an opportunity to see how the players handled adversity. Some handled it better than others, but the team as a whole responded well. The Hornets continued to press and test the St. Charles keeper.
The effort finally paid off midway through the 2nd half. Morgan Milligan, who gave the St. Charles back fits throughout the game, drove in from right flank position and slotted a ball to Chad Davis. Davis' shot fell to Jake Pierce who struck it home from close range.
With the score now 1-2 the Hornets pressed for the equalizer. Fulton came close with 10 minutes to go when Pierce's shot hit the keeper's trailing leg. Other opportunities went wide or high to leave the Hornets frustrated with a "what might have been" game.
The Hornets play again on Wednesday afternoon at 4:00 against St. Charles Lutheran.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Hornets Win Season Opener Against Chillicothe 3-1
Perhaps it was the long bus ride. Perhaps it was overconfidence after last year's 6-0 win over Chillicothe. Perhaps it was just opening game jitters. Regardless, it was a rude start to the 2011 campaign when the host Chillicothe Hornets scored less than 2 minutes into the match on Saturday. A long throw-in, a ball allowed to bounce in the box, poor marking in the box and the Fulton Hornets suddenly found themselves staring at a 0-1 deficit.
Somewhat rattled, the Hornets struggled to connect their passes over the first 15 minutes. While this was somewhat due to the uneven quality of the field, much of the credit goes to the swarming style of an athletic Chillicothe squad. Their direct style of play gave the Fulton back line plenty to worry about.
Gradually the Hornets began to show their quality and play themselves into the match. More and more of the possession went Fulton's way. Finally, in the 27th minute Fulton got the equalizer. Junior midfielder Jakob Hull won possession of the ball and sent a through ball to senior forward Morgan Milligan. Cutting in from his position on the right, Milligan drove into the box. His initial shot was saved, but his second effort and that of sophomore forward Trevor Neal put enough pressure on the keeper that he inadvertently put it into his own goal. It was truly a text book example of a goalmouth scramble that fortunately went the Hornets' way.
A few minutes later, the Hornets struck again. A dangerous drive by senior forward Jake Pierce into the left side of the box gave the Chillicothe defenders little option but to foul. It could have been a penalty kick as Pierce went down under the challenge, but the referee judged it to be obstruction. Instead of a pk, the Hornets lined up for an indirect kick in the box. After a quick touch by Chad Davis, Pierce drove a hard shot around the wall to the far post. The defense managed to block the shot, but Neal was able to pounce on the rebound and thunder it home past the hapless keeper.
Buoyed by their 2-1 halftime advantage, Fulton came out quickly in the second half. Scarcely over a minute into the half (@ 41:13), Jones advanced from his wingback position and sent a cross into the box. Once again -- proving the soccer coach's admonition to never, ever let a ball bounce in your box -- the ball bounced right into the path of the onrushing Milligan, who cracked a volley over the keeper's head from ten yards out.
That rounded out the scoring, although not the action. While both teams created chances, Fulton had the match firmly in hand as their quality on the ball began to show -- finally.
While most of the Fulton squad consisted of returning players (10) from last season, several players were able to make their varsity debuts: senior defender Zach Hegemann, junior defender Cody Pae, junior midfielder Howie Lee, and freshman Kevin Wallace acquited themselves well.
In the junior varsity game, it was a similar opponent for the young Fulton players as they found themselves matched up against many of the Chillicothe players from the varsity match. The Hornets played well, dominating the game until the insertion of the varsity players midway through the first half turned the tide in Chillicothe's favor. A break away left sophomore goalkeeper Daniel Lair in a 2 v 1 and the hosts took a 1-0 lead. Fulton nearly equalized on a break away of its own, but Kevin Wallace's well-placed shot was saved by the keeper.
Chillicothe doubled its lead early in the second half when a powerfully taken freekick sailed over the wall and just underneath the bar, leaving Lair with little chance to stop it. The final score was 2-0 in favor of Chillicothe, but Fulton showed promise of what is to come with more experience. Every player had positive moments and with a little tweaking, the Fulton j.v. should have a fine season.
Somewhat rattled, the Hornets struggled to connect their passes over the first 15 minutes. While this was somewhat due to the uneven quality of the field, much of the credit goes to the swarming style of an athletic Chillicothe squad. Their direct style of play gave the Fulton back line plenty to worry about.
Gradually the Hornets began to show their quality and play themselves into the match. More and more of the possession went Fulton's way. Finally, in the 27th minute Fulton got the equalizer. Junior midfielder Jakob Hull won possession of the ball and sent a through ball to senior forward Morgan Milligan. Cutting in from his position on the right, Milligan drove into the box. His initial shot was saved, but his second effort and that of sophomore forward Trevor Neal put enough pressure on the keeper that he inadvertently put it into his own goal. It was truly a text book example of a goalmouth scramble that fortunately went the Hornets' way.
A few minutes later, the Hornets struck again. A dangerous drive by senior forward Jake Pierce into the left side of the box gave the Chillicothe defenders little option but to foul. It could have been a penalty kick as Pierce went down under the challenge, but the referee judged it to be obstruction. Instead of a pk, the Hornets lined up for an indirect kick in the box. After a quick touch by Chad Davis, Pierce drove a hard shot around the wall to the far post. The defense managed to block the shot, but Neal was able to pounce on the rebound and thunder it home past the hapless keeper.
Buoyed by their 2-1 halftime advantage, Fulton came out quickly in the second half. Scarcely over a minute into the half (@ 41:13), Jones advanced from his wingback position and sent a cross into the box. Once again -- proving the soccer coach's admonition to never, ever let a ball bounce in your box -- the ball bounced right into the path of the onrushing Milligan, who cracked a volley over the keeper's head from ten yards out.
That rounded out the scoring, although not the action. While both teams created chances, Fulton had the match firmly in hand as their quality on the ball began to show -- finally.
While most of the Fulton squad consisted of returning players (10) from last season, several players were able to make their varsity debuts: senior defender Zach Hegemann, junior defender Cody Pae, junior midfielder Howie Lee, and freshman Kevin Wallace acquited themselves well.
In the junior varsity game, it was a similar opponent for the young Fulton players as they found themselves matched up against many of the Chillicothe players from the varsity match. The Hornets played well, dominating the game until the insertion of the varsity players midway through the first half turned the tide in Chillicothe's favor. A break away left sophomore goalkeeper Daniel Lair in a 2 v 1 and the hosts took a 1-0 lead. Fulton nearly equalized on a break away of its own, but Kevin Wallace's well-placed shot was saved by the keeper.
Chillicothe doubled its lead early in the second half when a powerfully taken freekick sailed over the wall and just underneath the bar, leaving Lair with little chance to stop it. The final score was 2-0 in favor of Chillicothe, but Fulton showed promise of what is to come with more experience. Every player had positive moments and with a little tweaking, the Fulton j.v. should have a fine season.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Practices this week
Practices this week will be from 3:20 to 5:30. Ending a little bit later will give us the additional time to prepare for our first game (Saturday against Chillicothe).
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Friday, August 5, 2011
2011 Season Starts on Monday, August 8th
The 2011 edition of the Fulton boys soccer team starts on August 8th. Two-a-days will be held during that week. On Monday, training sessions will be at the high school due to the mandatory meeting of all fall athletes at 7:30 a.m. in the gym. Following that meeting, we will head to the practice field for conditioning and practice.
The remainder of the week will be at Morgan Soccer Park. Practices will be from 7 to 12 with a 45 minute break at 9:00. On Friday, we will move practice to the evening so that freshman and Link Crew members can participate in freshman orientation at the high school.
The remainder of the week will be at Morgan Soccer Park. Practices will be from 7 to 12 with a 45 minute break at 9:00. On Friday, we will move practice to the evening so that freshman and Link Crew members can participate in freshman orientation at the high school.
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