Soccer Game Report
Hesston vs. North Iowa Area CC, Sept. 6, 2003, Hesston

   1st   2nd  Final
North Iowa   
1
1
2
Hesston
2
1
3


1st half: 1 (NIACC) Adam Pals (assist Pat Toay); 1 HC Michael Swartzendruber (unassisted); 2 HC Craig Mast (assist Philip Hartzler)

2nd half: 3 HC Raul Martinez (assist Philip Hartzler); 2 NIACC Steve Larsen (unassisted)

Shots: HC 13 (5 SOG); NIACC 10 (SOG 9)

Saves: HC Danny Yoder 7; NIACC Tyler Shipman 2

Coach's Summary: If there was ever a Hesston College soccer game that non-soccer fans would have enjoyed, this was the one. It was a wild affair as the Larks faced North Iowa Area Community College for the first time ever. “I had no idea of what to expect from them (NIACC). I had no scouting report. All I knew was that they played Allen County Community College (one of our Region VI opponents) last year and lost. On paper they were similar to us in that they have a lot of freshmen. Their coach was in his first year there but had plenty of coaching experience otherwise. We just tried to prepare for them like they were one of our other Regional opponents.”
      Hesston dominated play early, controlling the midfield from the start and getting several opportunities on goal but unable to finish. NIACC broke the tie first when a bad Hesston give away in the back third gave Adam Pals a golden opportunity at the top of the eighteen which he finished nicely into the left corner of the net. “That goal was pretty demoralizing for us. We were putting all the pressure on them and yet they got the first goal.” Hesston continued to press NIACC’s defense and finally rippled the net when Michael Swartzendruber took a Jared Coblentz pass directly up the middle and slotted home the tying goal. “I was really pleased to see our team come back and play strong. The guys refused to let down and eventually it paid off.”
      Hesston used the momentum of the first goal to get the go ahead goal just one minute later. Philip Hartzler's free kick from the right corner of the field was headed in by Craig Mast. Hesston continued to mount the pressure but NIACC began to mount some pressure of their own. “They weren’t having much success in midfield and their defenders were struggling to contain our forwards. So they decided to play much more direct. Their defense and keeper were more than content to boom the ball up to their forwards. They had a couple of really quick forwards but for the most part we were able to keep them in check.”
      The second half was an up and down wild contest that gave the fans much to cheer about. NIACC continued to play their direct style but were either thwarted by the Larks defense or the stellar play of Danny Yoder. “Danny made several fantastic saves. That’s the most dominant display I’ve seen by a keeper at this level in the three years that I’ve been here at Hesston bar none.”
      With 10 minutes to go in the match Raul Martinez extended Hesston’s lead to 3-1. Philip Hartzler sent a nice free kick from just beyond midfield into the box. NIACC misplayed the ball and Martinez was right there to slam the ball into the empty net.
      Hesston appeared to have things wrapped up until Steve Larson capitalized on a defensive miscue and slipped the ball into the corner of the net with under a minute to play. But it was too little too late for NIACC. “NIACC was no push over team. They gave us a very good game I was glad we were able to come out on top. Honestly it could have gone the other way. Both teams had plenty of opportunities to score. It’s good to win games when you know that you made some mistakes. It means that we have lots of room for improvement.”
      Offensively we were very aggressive. We were going a little more direct than I usually like to go but it worked. Our forwards did an outstanding job of getting behind and in between their defenders. We did a great job controlling the midfield. Honestly we could have had four or five more goals easily had we just put more of our shots on frame. Defensively we’re getting better but there are still some things we have to sort out. They also could have had a few more goals except for the excellent play by Danny. If we can shore up things better in the back and not make silly mistakes I think we’ll be fine against any one of our opponents. We are young and the guys are still learning to play together. I have complete confidense in the guys to be able to play much much better in the back. I’m extremely proud of all the guys and the effort they put into this game. It was good to get a win against a good opponent even if it wasn’t the prettiest of games.”
      The Larks next face Region VI and preseason Nationally ranked (#10) Barton County Community College in Great Bend. Barton will be a very big challenge for us. We will have to play better than we did against NIACC if we want a chance to win. But the high quality of our opponents is what makes playing in our Region so exciting.