College Soccer: Work pays off for former ‘Cats
November 15, 2007 | Leave a Comment
It was 13 years ago when Bobby Warshaw and Lauren Conner first crossed paths.
At the time, the 6-year-old Warshaw and the 7-year-old Conner were the superstars of the Mechanicsburg Recreation League and on that day, the two of them battled on the soccer field.
“At that age, they were both unstoppable,” said Conner’s father and soccer coach at the time, Chris. “We figured that the only way it would be a close game was if they guarded each other.”
According to Chris, Warshaw’s team, coached by Bobby’s father Allen, got the best of his ballclub that day.
“Allen’s team had the better of the play, but it was fun to watch the two of them go after each other,” Chris said. “It’s interesting how things turned out.”
Fast-forward to 2007, so much has happened. Both have gone through the school buses, the birthday parties, the homework and the proms of young life, culminating with their high school degrees from Mechanicsburg High School.
After all that life’s thrown at them, one thing has not changed — their passion for soccer.
Upon completion of their playing career for Wildcat boys’ and girls’ soccer coach Tony Lougee, it was time to move on.
A leap of faith
Davidson women’s soccer coach Greg Ashton called Conner’s decision to play for his team in Davidson, N.C. a “leap of faith.”
“We had never seen Lauren play before she came here,” Ashton said. “All we had were recommendations from high school and club coaches. She came only with the guarantee that she’d get the chance to work her way on the team.
“It was a big risk on her part to come to our athletics program.”
For Conner, her senior soccer season was winding down and she still had no idea where she wanted to go to college.
“Picking a college was a very hard decision for me,” Conner said. “I was looking for three things — a school with high academics, a small school and a school with a good soccer program. A lot of places had two of those three things, but none had all three.”
Then she made a college visit to Davidson.
Conner said. “It had all three things I was looking for, so that’s where I went.”
Conner made the soccer team and even got some minutes her freshman year, but she admitted that she didn’t exactly have the type of season that dreams are made of.
“I was nervous all the time,” Conner said. “I played a decent amount, but I wasn’t confident.”
But as the old adage goes, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Ashton said, “Lauren went back home to Mechanicsburg for the summer and I encouraged our team to do a summer workout and play as much as possible.
“Lauren went above and beyond for her team.”
Summer intensity
Last summer was Conner’s chance to gain an edge.
“I ran almost every day and lifted two, three times a week,” Conner said. “I also played for two different club teams.”
In the little spare time she had remaining, Conner spent it playing soccer with members of the Mechanicsburg boys’ high school team.
“The guy’s game is a different game,” Conner said. “Every practice I went to helped me get better and helped me learn what I needed.”
And by the time the 2007 soccer season rolled around, Conner was blowing people away.
“We immediately saw results,” Ashton said. “From the first day of camp, her competitive nature was standing out. There are more talented players on the team, but I don’t think they worked as hard as Lauren did.”
This season, Conner was one of just a handful of players to start every game for the Wildcats.
“I don’t think she ever took for granted that she was a starter,” Ashton said. “Not only was she starting for us, she was scoring goals.”
Make that game-winning goals.
The biggest of Conner’s four game-winners was probably the strike that broke up Appalachian State’s unbeaten season on Sept. 27. Conner’s goal in the 108th minute pushed Davidson to a 2-1 overtime victory.
“It was a great feeling,” Conner said. “It’s all a blur now. Everyone contributed to that win.”
Looking to the future
Davidson recently ended its 14-5-1 season with a 1-0 loss to Furman in the Southern Conference semifinals. But with the return of players like Conner (5 goals, 3 assists), Kyri Bye-Nagel (12 goals, 1 assist), Blakely Low (6 goals, 2 assists) and Suzanne Sittko (5 goals, 2 assists) — all sophomores — the Wildcats have a lot to look forward to next season.
“All of these girls are better than I thought they would be at this stage,” Ashton said. “I’m very fortunate to have such a great attacking group.”
“We have such a good group of forwards and such a good group of defenders,” Conner said. “We’re going to practice against each other and only get better.
“We’re going to have a strong core of players coming back. Hopefully we have a good recruiting class and hopefully we can make it to the NCAA’s next year.”
Bobby Warshaw: a down-to-earth kind of guy
Pamon Forouhar is just a normal college student living the normal college life.
So when Warshaw, a big-time athlete playing at a Division I program, moved in right across the hall from Forouhar in Stanford’s Larkin Hall, Forouhar wasn’t sure what to expect.
“I came in thinking he would be arrogant,” Forouhar said. “I definitely did not expect to find him to be as nice, smart and caring as he actually is.”
Warshaw’s good attitude earned him a lot of friends, and a lot of fans.
“Bobby has a huge entourage in the dorm,” Forouhar said. “We all like to go to his games, cheer his name and make signs for him. Bobby is one of the coolest people in the world, hands down.”
Coolness aside, Warshaw wishes he could’ve played better to give fans something more to cheer about.
“I feel bad for not playing well enough,” Warshaw said. “We should’ve won more games than we did.”
Keep in mind that Warshaw’s a freshman — a freshman that led his team in scoring with five goals and a pair of assists.
With the Cardinals sitting on a 6-6-5 record with just one game to go, Warshaw believes there is much work to be done.
“We need to find a way to be consistent in every game,” Warshaw said. “From there, we need to up our general level of play.”
Stanford coach Bret Simon said he was extremely happy with the play of his fantastic freshman this season, but agrees that the world has yet to see the best of Warshaw.
“So far, we’re thrilled,” Simon said. “Bobby sees the game very quickly, he’s skillful and he’s capable of changing the game at any moment. He not only helps our team win games, he also plays on the psyche of the opponents.”
An easy choice
“I didn’t really play the recruiting game, I’ve always wanted to come here,” Warshaw said. “I liked the coach and I liked the weather so it wasn’t really a tough decision for me.”
Warshaw followed in the footsteps of his brother, Chris, who is now a graduate student at Stanford.
“Having Chris here made the decision easier,” Warshaw said. “It’s really nice to have an aspect of home here. Chris usually comes over to the cafeteria for a weekly dinner.”
Like many freshmen, Warshaw is unsure of what he wants out of college.
“I think I want to study political science,” Warshaw said. “I might go for economics or policy-making as well — I’m just taking a lot of intro classes right now. It’s tough to plan classes when you don’t know what you want to be.”
Thirsting for improvement
While school is the top priority for Warshaw, working together with his soccer team to become better has to be a close second.
“I guess you could say the PAC-10 is a little bit different from the (Mid-Penn) Keystone Division,” Warshaw said. “In general, the athletes are more athletic and they come at you a little harder. Every game means something and every game is a battle.”
Warshaw said his team has no characters, just competitors, a formula he believes can be successful in the PAC-10.
“We don’t have any cliques or groups on this team,” Warshaw said. “We all want to win and try to make each other better.”
Warshaw buys into coach Simon’s philosophy that soccer is a team sport.
“Our emphasis is on the team, not the individual,” Simon said. “Bobby is going to be a mainstay on the team, but he will have a great cast around him as well.”
Warshaw said he is a team player, even if that means changing positions several times a season.
“We want to win and we will do whatever the coaches tell us to so that we can win,” Warshaw said. “Everyone has, at some point in the year, sacrificed for the team.”
There is one game remaining before the Cardinals send off their seniors and get ready for the 2008 fall season, which Simon hopes to be a big time for Warshaw.
“I think we’re going in a good direction,” Simon said. “Bobby has a lot of tools. I think we’re just scratching the surface of what he can accomplish.”
All-star soccer games set for Shippensburg
November 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
From staff reports
The 27th annual Central Pennsylvania Scholastic All-Star Games, contests featuring senior soccer players from the Mid-Penn Conference and several independent Cumberland, Franklin and Fulton County high schools, will be held Sunday at Shippensburg University’s Robb Complex.
Sponsored by the Franklin County chapter of PIAA soccer officials and the Shippensburg soccer booster club, proceeds from the event benefit local youth soccer programs. Plus, the second annual Thomas Stouffer Award will be presented between games.
The Stouffer Award, a $500 scholarship, will be presented to a Franklin or Fulton County senior player who best exemplifies soccer talent, academic success and leadership skills.
Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for students.
In the 2 p.m. opener, the Black team (players from the Mid-Penn Capital Division, Cumberland Valley Christian, Fannett-Metal and Shalom Christian) will meet the White team (players from the Mid-Penn Colonial and Capital Divisions, Bible Baptist and McConnellsburg).
In the 4 p.m. nightcap, the Blue team (players from Chambersburg, Waynesboro, Carlisle, Cedar Cliff, Cumberland Valley, Gettysburg and Mechanicsburg) will meet the Red team (players from Central Dauphin, CD East, Hershey, Lower Dauphin, Red Land, Middletown and Susquehanna Twp.).
Rosters follow:
BLACK — Goalkeeper: Stephen Carroll, Cumberland Valley Christian; Jon Zook, Greencastle. Defender: Andrew Cordell, Greencastle; Jordan Gembe, Greencastle; Jake Wenger, Trinity. Midfielder: Chad Bernecker, James Buchanan; Matt Gilson, Trinity; Josh Higman, Greencastle; Neil Hill, Fannett-Metal; Kris Potter, James Buchanan. Forward: Dakota Bair, Fannett-Metal; Mac Frederick, Greencastle; Josh Hoy, Camp Hill; Zach Myers, Shalom Christian; Alex Piscioneri, Trinity; Evon Wiestling, Greencastle; Cory Zimmerman, James Buchanan. Coach: Mike Dent, James Buchanan.
WHITE — Goalkeeper: Andrew Figueiredo, Boiling Springs. Defender: Aaron Birt, Northern; Dexter Horst, Shippensburg; John Lange, Big Spring; Danny Oyler, Boiling Springs; Zach Thurston, Big Spring; Caleb Washabaugh, McConnellsburg. Defender/midfielder: Andrew Quinchia, Northern. Midfielder: Cory Baer, Shippensburg; Eric Colledge, West Perry; Stefan Hasse, Big Spring; Tyler Jumper, Big Spring; Matt Sheibley, Northern. Midfielder/forward: Zane Barrick, Susquenita; Colin Murray, Northern. Forward: Patrick Davis, Shippensburg; Andy Heffner, Bible Baptist. Coach: Randy Rich, Boiling Springs.
BLUE — Goalkeeper: Sam Burkholder, Mechanicsburg. Defender: Michael Celius, Gettysburg; Ryan Flake, Cumberland Valley; Steve Fowler, Mechanicsburg; Alex Swartz, Chambersburg. Midfielder: Greg Bretz, Mechanicsburg; Sean Collier, Chambersburg; Harun Davood, Cumberland Valley; Isaac Hancock, Gettysburg; Andy Howe, Cumberland Valley; Brody Ponder, Cedar Cliff; Josh Reffner, Waynesboro. Midfielder/forward: Alec Longarzo, Carlisle; Sean McClain, Cumberland Valley. Forward: Matt Heffernan, Cedar Cliff; Jean Carlo Jimenez, Chambersburg; Gaetano Panuccio, Mechanicsburg. Coach: Jason Christine, Cedar Cliff.
RED — Goalkeeper: Clayton Master, Susquehanna Twp; Drew Quenzer, CD East. Defender: Jason Machemer, Susquehanna Twp; Alex Russell, CD East; Dan Whitman, Middletown. Defender/midfielder: Brian Scott, Lower Dauphin; Lucas Starsinic, Central Dauphin. Midfielder: Gary Clark, CD East; Alex Mendoza, Red Land; Kosta Patsiopoulos, Central Dauphin; Jovan Phillips, Hershey; Deon Rehm, Red Land; Jordan Torres, Red Land; Chris Wagner, CD East. Midfielder/forward: Braden Gross, Central Dauphin; Fernando Navarro, CD East. Forward: Kyle Patrick, Hershey; Garret Pettis, Lower Dauphin. Coach: Brandon Ramsey, CD East.
Lyndi Keiser (’05)
November 3, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Women soccer ends season with 1-0 loss to Kutztown – seniors Colleen Corcoran, Caroline Furmato, Kim Puchuta, Robyn Travisano and Anita Valerio honored in pregame ceremonies
MANSFIELD – Kim Kelty scored to game’s only goal in the 23rd minute to lift Kutztown to a 1-0 win over Mansfield in a PSAC East women’s soccer contest Saturday afternoon.
It was the final game of the 2007 season for both teams.
It was a hard –played game by both teams with Kutztown holding a 10-8 advantage in shots.
Mansfield pressed hard in the final minutes with Lyndi Keiser and Kim Pachuta each getting a shot on goal to no avail.
Justine Segear had six saves in goal for Mansfield while Kutztown’s Stfanie Bonsky was credited with five saves.
It was the fifth time this season the Mountaineers dropped a 1-0 decision and seventh one goal loss of the year.
Seniors Colleen Corcoran, Caroline Furmato, Kim Puchuta, Robyn Travisano and Anita Valerio were all honored in pregame ceremonies.
Mansfield ends the season 3-13-2 overall and 3-8-1 in the PSAC East.
District III Consolation Game
November 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
The Varsity Boys Soccer Team will be playing Central Dauphin in the District III Consolation Round on Saturday, November 3 at 7:30 p.m. The game will be played at Northeastern High School. Tickets prices as set by District III are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for students.
Directions to Northeastern: Take I-83 South to Exit 24 (Emigsville Exit). Turn left at the traffic light at end of exit ramp and proceed to second traffic light making a left turn onto N. George Street (Rt. 181 North). Proceed straight ahead to the 5th traffic light at the square in Manchester and make a right turn onto Maple Street (HWY 921), go one block and make a left onto High Street. Travel approximately ½ mile to the high school.
Red Land pulls away from Mechanicsburg, heads to district final
November 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
By Jeffrey Kauffman
Last updated: Thursday, November 1, 2007 12:54 AM EDT
Sports Reporter
Red Land hasn’t been in the District 3 soccer championships since 1988 — back before these Red Land players were even born. But this Patriots squad will attempt to win its first district title Saturday night after disposing of the Mechanicsburg Wildcats 3-1 in the semifinal round.
The Patriots (20-1-2 overall) extended their unbeaten streak to 20 games and will face Manheim Township, which has won three consecutive district soccer championships. The Streaks boast a record of 22-2-1 and edged Central Dauphin 1-0 in the opener at HersheyPark Stadium on Wednesday.
“We did not want to have to worry about qualifying for states on Saturday,” said Patriots head coach Eric “Chalkie” White. “Now we can go into Saturday and just play. No one expects us to win so we have nothing to lose.”
“I know a lot of the Manheim players from my club team so I know it is going to be a good game,” said Red Land senior Jordan Torres. “We have a very good team and we are solid at every part and we are unselfish. We just want to keep playing well.”
The two winners have guaranteed themselves a spot in the PIAA state playoffs, but Mechanicsburg and Central Dauphin (16-6-1) will square off in Saturday’s district consolation game — the winner of which qualifies for states, and the loser is done for the year.
Alex Mendoza nearly gave the Patriots the lead just moments into the first half when he took a feed from Jordan Torres, but his shot was knocked away by Wildcat keeper Sam Burkholder.
Midfielder Greg Bretz gave Mechanicsburg life when he turned the corner after a nasty step-over move, but his serve from the baseline was knocked wide of the net.
Torres gave the Patriots a one-goal lead in the eleventh minute when he gathered a dish from Mendoza, settled it and placed it into the back of the net. The Wildcats missed a chance to clear the ball, and Red Land jumped on that opportunity.
Gaetano Panuccio was given precious little room to operate by the Patriots defense, as Andrew Innerst and Taylor Eisenhauer surrounded him at every move.
Mendoza would tally the second goal on a nice give-and-go play from Tyler Fettrow. Fettrow’s return service threaded the keyhole and Mendoza was able to toe-poke it past Burkholder for the two-goal advantage.
Mechanicsburg (16-6-2) had a couple chances, but none proved dangerous for Red Land. Matt Steele took a shot from about 18 yards out that bounced to Patriot keeper Ben Diller.
Diller totalled three saves in the game, but surrendered a goal in the final four minutes of the first half. Bretz served a ball to the chest of Panuccio who appeared to trap it to his feet and turned and fired the ball past Diller to cut the deficit to 2-1.
It was the first goal allowed by the Patriots in their last five games.
“(Mechanicsburg) is dangerous,” said Torres. “To tell you the truth, I knew Panuccio but didn’t know a lot of the other kids and they played pretty well out there. I don’t know where they came from.”
“Panuccio is dangerous and we tried to double him everywhere,” said White. “We let him turn with the ball and get a shot.
“Mechanicsburg is a good team and we talked about not looking past them. The two goals early gave us a chance to relax and we gave up the goal when we relaxed.”
Red Land tallied its third goal with only 12 minutes left in the game as Deon Rehm was tapped a ball past Burkholder for the final margin.
“This was the ultimate,” said Torres. “(The Wildcats) beat us last year so this was our payback this year.”
“Our kids played well,” said Mechanicsburg head coach Tony Lougee. “To dig out of a 2-0 hole is difficult because (the Patriots) are such a good offensive team, you can’t afford to give up goals. We just didn’t get any good chances. The four guys up front are very dangerous and they play well together.
“We moved the ball pretty well. We weren’t dominated tonight, but now we get ready for Central Dauphin on Saturday.”
Central Dauphin and Mechanicsburg will play at Northeastern High School in York on Saturday.
Red Land finds way into states
November 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Patriots meet Manheim Twp. in district final Saturday
Thursday, November 01, 2007BY MICHAEL BULLOCK
For The Patriot-News
While 1988 has been popping into Red Land soccer chatter the past few weeks, every time Patriots coach Eric White brings up the subject all he gets are puzzled looks.
Not to mention a fairly standard response.
Well, since White’s club collared Red Land’s first state playoff berth since 1988 by decking Mechanicsburg 3-1 Wednesday night at Hersheypark Stadium, that milestone year is going to keep coming up in plenty of conversations. In hallways. In pizza shops. Wherever.
Since the Patriots also rode into the District 3-AAA title game — the 1988 club was the last Red Land team to accomplish that — that special connection to the team thrilling plenty of northern York Countians continues to grow tighter.
Jordan Torres, Alex Mendoza and Deon Rehm collected goals for the Patriots (20-1-2), who extended their unbeaten string to 20 games. They’ll go for No. 21 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Hersheypark Stadium, where White’s club will square off against three-time defending champ Manheim Twp.
Manheim Twp. (22-2-1) downed Central Dauphin 1-0 in the other 3-AAA semi.
CD (16-6-1) and Mechanicsburg (16-6-2) will have another chance to reach states Saturday (7:30), when they meet in the third-place game at Northeastern. Only the winner moves on.
Meanwhile, a Red Land club that captured its first Mid-Penn divisional title (Commonwealth) since 1988 and landed its first Mid-Penn player of the year (Torres) since 1988 is in.
For the first time … since 1988.
“These kids are like, ‘Coach, we weren’t even born yet,’” White said. “For the last two decades, we’ve been talking about 1988. These guys are what someone’s going to be talking about in 20 years — 2007. Back then it was [Mid-Penn Conference player of the year] Brian Marshall.
“Now it’s going to be Jordan Torres, Mendoza and Deon.”
Mendoza set up the first Patriots score, creating space in the right side of the penalty area with some dandy dance steps before finding Torres alone at the edge of the six. Given an opportunity to settle the ball, Torres took a breath before polishing off a left-footed strike with 11:33 gone.
Nearly 11 minutes later, Tyler Fettrow squeezed a ball through traffic that Mechanicsburg’s Steve Fowler could not clear. When the loose ball wound up on Mendoza’s right foot, he wasted little time slotting a shot past Wildcats keeper Sam Burkholder (3 saves).
“It’s just hard to fall down 2-0 with that much time left,” Wildcats coach Tony Lougee said.
Mechanicsburg managed to halve its deficit with 3:49 left in the opening half, as Gaetano Panuccio chest-trapped a well-placed Greg Bretz ball down to his feet before popping it past the Patriots’ Ben Diller (2 saves). It was the first goal surrendered by Red Land in four-plus games.
“I think that goal gave us new life,” said White, whose club dropped a 4-0 decision to the Wildcats in last year’s round of 16. “Hey, this game’s not over. We’ve got to play.”
Though both sides exchanged scoring chances in the second half, Red Land finally tacked on an insurance score with 12:21 left when Torres slotted a ball through traffic that Rehm gathered on the second try. An instant later, the ball was sitting in the back of the net.
The Patriots were moving on.
“Our main priority was getting into that next level,” White said. “We kind of took the pressure off ourselves, because now we’re into states. We didn’t want to have to deal with that on Saturday.”
Obviously, Manheim Twp. felt the same way.
The Blue Streaks scored just 3:48 in, as Kevin Wolfe’s finish from about eight yards out was all Dave Ammon’s club needed. Peter Bulat’s pass from the CD end line set up Wolfe’s score.
CD eventually settled in, but the Rams never could pull even. Kenny Fultz launched a laser from about 30 yards out early in the second half, but the Blue Streaks’ Chris Zielinski (4 saves) parried the ball just over the crossbar. Zielinski also denied Justin Garner and Braden Gross later in the half.
Gross’ denied side-volley from a step outside the six came in the final minute.
While the Rams never could get level, sophomore goalkeeper Jonathan Lutz (8 saves) was sensational at the other end.
“Jon’s a good goalkeeper, man,” said CD coach Gregg Davis, whose Rams lost 2-1 to Manheim Twp. on opening night. “When we started to push guys forward, they got some chances in the box. But Jonathan stood tall. He’s a good goalkeeper.”
Regardless, Lutz’s efforts weren’t enough.
“We can play with these teams,” Davis added. “We played this way this year. The reason we played the other 20 games is to convince guys we can play at this level. That’s why we’re here. We’re winners.”
MICHAEL BULLOCK: 255-8124 or mbullock@patriot-news.com
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