Net-Surfers ready to make waves

Southern Indiana's Net-Surfers are ready to make waves during the new select soccer season with the help of some top talent.

This year, the all-girls' club will field competitive teams from U11 to U17 age categories. It will also run a flourishing academy program for players ages 5-10.
The U17 team is first into action this weekend in the United Cup Classic tournament in Louisville, and is fortunate to have gained the coaching services of University of Louisville's Shannon Smyth and Lindsay Boling.

Smyth, a starting striker for the Lady Cards the past three years, is on cue to graduate in May and hasn't ruled out playing professionally in Europe. Among her most notable achievements to date was playing for Ireland in the World University Games in 2007, when the Girls in Green surprised many by reaching the final four.

Boling, meanwhile, is the Lady Cards' leading scored as a junior midfielder last fall, was a high school all-American at Louisville's Sacred Heart Academy.

Together, they bring a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to a team that will be playing in the Kentucky Select Soccer League this spring.

First up for the girls, however, is the United Cup Classic (U18 category) and Smyth said they can't wait to get started, with games on Saturday against the hosts United 1996 '91 and Indy Burn.

"The girls have so much potential and seem to enjoy being together," she said. "It's going to be a fun season.”

Net-Surfers' long-time coach, Dave Smith, said the club is also expecting its talented U13 and U14 teams to perform well this year. Both will play in the Indiana State Cup this year, placing them among the elite teams in their age bracket in Indiana.

The U14s, coached by Errol Morgan, matched Javanon for the top won-loss record in the KSSL Gold Division last fall, and finished second based on points.

Morgan, who now also serves as co-director of coaching for programs and events, has high hopes for his side.

"We finished strong, playing up in the U15 division at the Veterans' Tournament in Evansville last November, and made the final round," he said.

Coach Dave Carrier's U13 Net-Surfers won the silver division of the KSSL last autumn, were finalists in the Louisville Cup and return a talented group of youngsters.

"We're honored to be selected one of 16 squads to have a chance at the Indiana State Cup," said Carrier.

Another team to keep an eye out for is Net-Surfers '94, who will compete in the KSSL. The team comprises many talented and diverse players who earned spots and playing time on their schools' varsity squads in the fall.

Last year, it competed in the Indiana Soccer league, finishing fourth of nine other club teams from all across the state. A notable win was the 1-0 victory over Carmel. They were also chosen as the league's fairness award winner, which is selected based on the game reports from all the coaches and refs during the season.

Dave Smith said the club is grateful to have president and U12 assistant coach Greg Reger at the reigns.

"Greg has done a marvelous job of leading the club from a business perspective," he said. "He's organized, committed and always positive. We're in good hands and moving forward."

Above: University of Louisville’s Shannon Smyth (left) and Lindsay Boling

Who'd be a ref?

The spring soccer season is just around the corner and teams are putting the finishing touches to their preparations.

That includes travel and recreational teams, as well as the Catholic Deanery leagues for 3rd to 8th grades.

How many of the players, parents and coaches attached to these teams and leagues actually have a very good knowledge of laws of the game, do you think?

For example, how many know the difference between a direct and indirect free kick, or know what offenses cause the referee to call a free direct or indirect in the first place? And then there's the offside rule, of course.

You'd be surprised how few are competent in the laws of the game, and it's this ignorance that quite often leads to the abuse of referees. Many of the officials in the area are young (you can now be a referee once you hit 12 years of age) and being yelled at a lot can frighten many of them off. This, in turn, leads to a shortage of referees.

Other than having courses set up around the area specifically for parents, another great way to learn more is by actually taking a referee's course.

This weekend, I decided to do just that by three day Grade 8 beginners' class for referees at Mt Tabor Elementary School in New Albany. It is a United States Soccer Federation recognized course organized by the Indiana State Referees' Committee. I believe anyone involved in the game should take the class, whether they have designs on being a referee or not, as it helps you understand what the referee is calling and why.

Most of those taking it were quite young -- 11 years and up -- and are already involved in the game in a playing capacity, be it with recreational teams, select teams or high school. There was just one other adult.

Of those that will last through the early days of refereeing -- and many seemed to be very knowledgeable of the game -- they should do well for themselves. Many young people make good seasonal pocket money from doing games. It starts at $8 a game and you can do quit a few of the younger age level games in a day. Then there are the likes of high school games and tournaments, where the pay is better.

Instructors Tom Berger and Heinz Pedolzky – also both experienced referees -- went through the 17 laws of the game, from the field of play to the offside rule, to fouls and misconduct. Some video clips were used from games as examples, and there was a fun oral quiz, where we were pitted against each other to test our speed and knowledge of what we’d learned.

After the three days, we took a 100-question multiple choice test (you need 75 to pass), after which we were presented with our referees’ badges. Next, it's out onto the fields of southern Indiana, when the new refs will be assigned to games a referees and assistant referees. Most will start officiating in just a few weeks.

Take it easy on us, and remember – it’s only a game!



For further information on how to become a referee, contact Gemma Newland at : gemma.nwl@sbcglobal.net or Teresa Knear Bell at : tknearbell1@yahoo.com

New press box dedicated to 'ultimate' soccer mom

The new soccer press box at Providence High School is to be dedicated to the mother of two of its current varsity players.

Up to now, the school has used the baseball field's press box, which is a little distance away from the action.

However, an anonymous donor has given the school funds to help with a $50,000 two-storey press box, the foundation of which has just been poured and the blocks should be laid in the next two to three weeks. It is to be located outside the fence on the east side of the pitch, along the same side as the bleachers.

Providence HS president Joan Hurley said completion of the press box should be in May, weather permitting.

"There will be a great view of the whole field, both goals and all corners," she said.

The suggestion to dedicate the box to the memory of Kathy Brown, who recently passed away after her brave battle against colon and liver cancer, came from the anonymous donor. Kathy was the mother of sophomore players Wade and Trent, who were part of the Pioneers' sectional winning team last fall.

Hurley said the school was "only too delighted" to concur with the suggestion.
"Kathy was the ultimate soccer mom and an inspiration to us all," she said. "We are looking forward to putting all of this in place in her honor."

Kathy's husband, Tim, said Joan Hurley approached him at the visitation to inform him that the new press box for the soccer field will be dedicated to Kathy's memory.
"This really floored me," he said. "I could not think of anything more fitting to honor Kathy. We would like to express our deep thanks to the anonymous donor for honoring Kathy in this special way."

Tim said that Kathy's courage fighting her cancer was amazing.

"She was diagnosed in June of 2007 just prior to the boy’s freshmen season and she only missed one or two games in the two seasons of her illness," he said. "During the boys' freshman season, she would sit through the JV game (Trent) and the varsity game (Wade). Sometimes this was in 95 degree plus weather and on the same that she had chemo."

To the family's surprise, coach Adam Giovenco and assistant Brandon Rogers brought the boys' #20 and #14 jerseys to the funeral home.

" These are the new blue jerseys that they only played in during the sectional final and the regional games," said Tim. "They asked if we would like to placed them in Kathy’s casket, which we did. This was a really special gesture on the coach’s part and touched me and the boys deeply."

Tim has coached Southern Indiana United (sons Wade and Trent also play for SIU Rampage), and has also coached deanery soccer for Holy Family's 7th and 8th grade teams for the last three years. This year, he'll be coaching his daughter Bailey’s 3rd/4th grade team at Holy Family. Bailey will also be playing with Net-Surfers' U9 Academy.

Tim added that the entire southern Indiana soccer community has been so supportive of the family during Kathy's illness and passing.

"Everyone at SIU, the Net-Surfers, Holy Family Church, and Providence High School have gone out of their way to support us," he said. "We are truly thankful to live in such a supportive community."

Pictured above: The Browns pictured after Providence's sectional success last fall (from left): Kathy, Wade, Trent and Tim. Photo by Dana Crawley

Delana is top manager

Jeffersonville's Delana Goodson was named the state's top team manager for 2008 at the Indiana Youth Soccer awards in Carmel recently.

Goodson has been manager of Southern Indiana United's U14 team, which consists of players from both Floyd and Clark counties, for three years, a year after her son Austin joined the club.

Beyond seeing to the normal duties like registration, tournaments, fees and uniforms, Delana is also the team's photographer, videographer, social planner and indoor manager.

And if that's not enough, she is also co-ordinator of SIU's 'One Call Now' phone message service, and helps coordinate the Major League Soccer camps every summer. All while she tries to keep down the day job at Brown-Forman in Louisville.
"Like, many working soccer moms, we live by our calendars and our lists to keep all the balls in the air," said Delana. "I have always been a planner and organizer so this is actually easy for me."

She thought that becoming a manager at SIU was the perfect opportunity for her to give back to something that her son enjoys so much.

"I am very fortunate to have an amazing group of parents, a great team of players, and a wonderful coach," she said. "I didn't need this award to know how much they appreciate my efforts -- they let me know all the time. And, because of that, I have no problem doing this for another four years."

Delana said competitive soccer takes a little more time, money and commitment, but has been a lot of fun for her entire family.

"These are memories I will always treasure," she said.

Coach Jonathan Eade said Delana is an essential part of the team's success.
"It would not be possible for me to coach this team without her," he said. "She is always positive, caring and always willing to help anyone. She has done a fabulous job as a mother. Having had the opportunity to coach her son, it is evident that she has instilled in him strong values."

The judges said that Delana's organizational and communication skills and her caring spirit make her the perfect team manager and inspiration to parents, players and other administrators.

Delana was up against some tough competition with managers from SWISA (Evansville), Westfield Youth Soccer and Carmel United Soccer (Indianapolis).

This is the fourth year in a row that SIU has captured an award and the prizes didn't end with Delana Goodson. The club also won a $1,000 certificate in a draw which will be used towards purchasing a set of goals.

Kermit gets MLS Cup final gig

Kermit Quisenberry (far right) preparing with fellow referees before a big game

Louisville's Kermit Quisenberry has been chosen to officiate at this Sunday's MLS Cup final which sees Columbus Crew take on surprise packet New York Red Bulls (3.30 p.m.).

Quisenberry was one of six US referees officiating at the Beijing Olympic Games in August. His assignments included assistant referee for the Cameroon/Korea group game and the memorable Holland/Argentina quarter-final.

Two weeks ago, he was named MLS Assistant Referee of the Year, and has now been chosen as AR for the biggest occasion in United States soccer, which takes place this year at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

In 1997, Quisenberry moved to Florida to take a job as an assistant athletic trainer at Jacksonville University and became a national referee the following year. Attending amateur regional and youth games there helped him advance onto the USSF’s panel for FIFA, soccer’s world governing body.

Fab Five make District team

Five of the area's high school soccer players have been named on the 2008-9 All-District teams chosen by the Indiana Soccer Coaches' Association.

Seniors Ben Hughes (Providence) and Dylan Abrahamson (Jeffersonville), and juniors Jordan Adams (Floyd Central) and Drew Mattingly (Christian Academy of Indiana) are part of the District 5 boys' team. Floyd Central's senior midfield maestro Nikki Korte is on the girls' team.

Both Hughes and Abrahamson were named on the second team last year, but it is the first time for all five to be named on the first team.

New Albany's Stephan Kossis and Providence's Nathan Marshall were chosen on the second team.

All-District Showcase games will be held between the six selected teams this Saturday and Sunday (November 22 and 23) at North Central High School in Indianapolis.

Coaches nominated players by submitting profiles in advance of the their district meetings in October and every member coach in attendance has the opportunity to present and promote any players from their roster who are listed on the district ballot.

Each District selects 18 first team and 12 second team players. From this list, the top 18 junior and senior players are offered roster positions for the teams that compete against each other this weekend.

The stats don't lie

When I moved to the States I have to admit I was taken aback at how many statistics were out there in the sporting world, especially at high school and college level.

When I was at school, we either had a good game, a bad game or a so-so game. And you knew it too if the coach threw a lone shoe hurtling in your direction in the dressing room after said game. We remembered if we scored an amazing 40-yarder, or would remind those who were beneficiaries of our generosity after we "made" them a goal (what you call assists).

I think there can be an overkill on statistics, however, and it shows painfully so in some newspaper reports across the nation which can become a trudge to get through because of their over reliance on said facts.

However, there are times when they are useful. As they say, statistics don't lie. (Unless, of course, they are inaccurate.)

Last week came my way the stats for the Indiana High School season.
Six of the area's players are amongst the girls’ statistical leaders, compiled by DigitalSports, "the IHSAA’s exclusive athletic statistics reporting and publishing service."

What leaps out is how well New Albany junior Kaitlin Robinett and Providence senior Laura Jenkins fared. According to the statistics, Robinett was fifth highest in the state for goals per game (16 games, 30 goals, 1.9gpg), and sixth in the "points per game" list, which takes in goals and assists.

Laura Jenkins was joint 17th for goals per game (17 games, 23 goals, 1.4gpg), and joint 20th for points per game. She was also 15th for assists, averaging 12 per game.

Also listed is Providence's Casey Marlin for assists (nine assists per game) and points, while freshman Kameron Cole made a splash in her first season with New Albany and is listed with 17 games and 15 goals.

Alyssa Hendershot (Providence) and Taylor Briscoe (New Albany) make the goalkeepers' list, with goals against averages of 1.26 and 1.38 respectively.

So it begs the question: didn’t the area deserve to have more players on the All-District teams (mentioned above)?