West Plains Zizzer Soccer

The West Plains Lady Zizzer Soccer Team is looking for some consistency in their performances and they haven’t found it yet. A strong first half last Thursday against Nixa, broke down in the second half when the team gave up six goals. Tonight things were reversed. In the first half, West Plains played slow and timid as Poplar Bluff was able to score goals off a free kick, a corner kick and through the run of play.

The first goal came in the 3rd minute of the game when Julia Ward’s pass found a wide open Miranda Burroughs racing into the box. Burroughs sent a one-timer into the net for what would prove to be the game-winning goal. Two minutes later, Burroughs set up Allie Patillo to make the score 2-0. In the 8th minute. Ward scored on assists by Marissa Burroughs and Allie Thomas. Ward scored again in the 16th minute after a scramble for a loose ball on an indirect free kick that was awarded for a pass back to the goalkeeper. Patillo scored the final goal of the half in the 27th minute, assisted by Miranda Burroughs. The Lady Zizzers started to play a little better defensively near the end of the half, but the damage had been done. A slow start put the team in big whole.

The second half was a different story, it looked like a totally different team. The Lady Zizzers came out strong, playing much more aggressively and winning a number of balls out of the air. The effort was much better the second half, offensively and defensively. Poplar Bluff scored in the 10th minute of the half. Some miscommunication between the goalkeeper and midfielder allowed Andi Lampe to run onto a ball and put a shot into the open net to make the score 6-0. That goal can be attributed to a lack of playing experience which will correct itself over time. The only other goal of the half came in the 23rd minute as Jenni Hubbard beat a Lady Zizzer defender and fired an open shot from near the top of the 18 yard box into the back of the net.

West Plains played with more confidence in the second half. As the half wore on, that confidence seemed to grow even more. As it did, the girls started moving the ball better down the field. The girls were trying to do things right. As a result, they were able to create some scoring chances. The best chance came as Natasha Ugbah carried a ball toward goal and crossed a ball to Beth Kittle who made a nice run from her midfield position to receive the ball inside the eighteen yard box. Kittle took a shot, but couldn’t get enough on it to put it past the Poplar bluff Keeper. The final score was 7-0 in favor of Poplar Bluff. The Lady Zizzers will continue their search for a consistent effort and victory number one as they travel to Springfield Thursday to take on the Greenwood Bluejays at Cooper Soccer Complex at 5:00pm.

In JV action, West Plains showed a marked improvement over their first game against Nixa last week. The Lady Zizzers played a much better team game both offensively and defensively. Shannon McGee scored the first goal of the game in the 9th minute. McGee ran down a long pass, touced the ball past the onrushing goalkeeper and put the ball into the open net to give the Lady Zizzers a 1-0 lead. The score would stay that way until the 20th minute of the second half, when the Mules would tie things up from close range. The game saw both teams with some scoring chances, but it looked like it would end in a tie.until the 34th minute of the second half. With less than two minutes remaining in the game, Erika Becker fired a shot into the net to give Poplar Bluff a 2-1 victory. The girls showed much improvement from their first game and should be proud of their effort. The JV won’t play again until next Tuesday when both teams travel to Lebanon.

On a cool Thursday evening, the Nixa Eagles came to town and took two games from the Lady Zizzers. In Varsity action, Nixa defeated West Plains 8-0. Despite the score, the Lady Zizzers performance was much improved over the previous night. West Plains came out playing much more aggressively tonight, challenging more balls and getting more physical.

A very dangerous Nixa team started the game out strong using their speed and good passing to put pressure on the West Plains defense. The Lady Zizzers fought hard and managed to keep the Lady Eagles off the scoreboard until the 20th minute. Rachel Murphy received a pass from Vicki Rische near the edge of the six yard box, turned and fired a shot. Lady Zizzer Keeper Halley Watson initially appeared to stop the shot, but the balls momentum carried it over the goalline for a 1-0 Nixa lead. Just about a minute later, Nixa would strike again. This time Courtney Frerichs found a wide open Jo Pavlowsky who fired a shot past Watson for a 2-0 lead. That would be all of the scoring in the first half. West Plains moved the ball, but only had one or two dangerous chances. The best chance came on a ball played up top for Natasha Ugbah who ran onto the ball and fired a shot that was stopped by Nixa Keeper Kristin Miller.

In the second half, the Lady Zizzers started wear down a bit as the fast paced Lady Eagles attack continued. Courtney Frerichs would find the back of the net in the third minute of the half. Then Nixa would score three goals in a span of four minutes as the Lady Zizzers weren’t able to maintain good pressure on the ball. Rachel Murphy netted her second of the game in the 12th minute, Kelsey Bartell scored in the 14th minute, and Vicki Rische scored in the 16th minute of the half. Nixa would add two more goals, Ashlyn Robillard in the 20th minute and Tatum Mangum on an assist by Kelsey Haist in the 30th minute of the half. The Lady Zizzers continued to fight, but couldn’t get on the scoreboard.

The effort in the game was much improved over the game Wednesday. The girls did a better job communicating, seeing the field, and playing aggressively. We are looking to get better each time out. Today was a step in the right direction.

In JV action, Nixa came out on top 6-0. Nixa scored their first goal in the 10th minute of the game on a shot to the far post. From their the Lady Zizzer defense held them off until the 27th minute. West Plains was whistled for a handball in the 18 yard box that resulted in a penalty kick for Nixa. The Lady Eagles converted the PK for a 2-0 lead. They would add a third goal just seconds before time ran out in the first half for a 3-0 halftime lead.

While the Lady Zizzers worked hard, they got caught ball watching too much, which resulted in some good scoring chances for Nixa. In the 11th minute of the second half, Nixa added a fourth goal. A few minutes later they would make the score 5-0. The final tally would come in the 22nd minute of the half when a high bouncing ball got over the head of Lady Zizzer keeper Micah Adcock.

Up next for the Lady Zizzers will be home games against Poplar Bluff on Tuesday. The JV game will begin at 4:30pm with the Varsity game to follow.

The Lady Zizzer Soccer Team traveled to Harrison, AR to kick off the season Wednesday evening. The Lady Goblins, who entered the game with a 6-5 record, wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. Harrison took the lead in the 4th minute of play. Jenny Thompson received a pass inside the box. As the defender stepped toward her, Thompson found Jordan Rudelis wide open inside the six yard box where see sent a shot past Sammi Phegley for a 1-0 Lady Goblin lead. Ten minutes later, Thompson found the net herself putting Harrison up 2-0. Sami Hennessy would make it 3-0 in the 17th minute, and Thompson would score her 2nd goal in the 19th minute. That would do it for the scoring in the first half. The Lady Zizzers showed a little life near the end of the half as they started to communicate better and get more movement off the ball.

In the second half, Harrison came right out and scored in the first minute of play with Rudelis netting her second of the game. This time the Lady Zizzers answered back. Freshman Natasha Ugbah received a ball on the left side, dribbled toward the goal and took a shot from 12 yards out that beat the goalkeeper to the near post. West Plains picked things up a little for the next ten minutes. Harrison would increase their lead in the 12th minute of the half after a Lady Zizzer turnover in the back led to a Chandler Rae goal and a 6-1 advantage for the Lady Goblins. The best goal of the night came in the 36th minute of the half on a blast to the far upper corner by Jenny Thompson from about 18 yards out. The goal was the third of the night for the Senior from Harrison. The final tally would come just two minutes later as Leanna Zimmerman found the back of the net. After moving some people around, the Lady Zizzers created some opportunities near the end of the match, but couldn’t cut into the Lady Goblin lead.

Despite the score, the game was a good one for the Lady Zizzers. We will be better for it in the long run. There were some positives to take from the game. At times, we were able to connect some passes together and try to do some good things. Having a game under their belts will help the girls see the areas we need to improve. A couple of areas that stood out were inconsistent communication, lack of movement off the ball, and not seeing the whole field. The girls will get a chance to improve on Wednesday’s performance with games at Home against the Nixa Eagles at Home on Thursday. The JV game will kick off at 5:00pm with the Varsity match to follow. Come out and join us!

Last night’s Lady Zizzer Soccer Intrasquad Scrimmage was a success. The scrimmage played in two 40 minute halves, put the girls in a game-like situation to better prepare them for next week’s season opening games.

After losing to Bolivar 3-2 in Double Overtime in the District Semifinals last year, this year’s group is looking to build off that effort and have an even better season this Spring. In order to do that, the team will have to overcome the loss of 7 players, including 4 starters, that saw Varsity action last year. The team is hoping to be competitive with the top teams in their district, which will be almost a completely new group.

This year for the first time, Girls Soccer will be divided into 3 Classes. Because of that, there have been a lot of changes to the Districts. The only District teams that remain the same as last year for the Lady Zizzers will be Bolivar and Marshfield. Joining those schools in Class 2 District 5 will be two 1st-year programs, Logan-Rogersville and Carl Junction from Southwest Missouri along with Clinton, Harrisonville, Ruskin (Kansas City), and Warrensburg. The District tournament will be held at Bolivar.

The Varsity team will kickoff it’s season with a match Wednesday (March 25) at 5:00pm against the Harrison Lady Goblins in Harrison, AR – Click here for directions to FS Garrison Stadium in Harrison. Both the JV and Varsity will be in action on Thursday (March 26) at Home against the Nixa Lady Eagles. The JV game is scheduled to kickoff at 5:00pm with the Varsity game to follow.

The 2009 Lady Zizzer Varsity team will consist of 5 Seniors, 8 Juniors, 4 Sophomores, and 2 Freshmen. Included in that group are 12 returning Varsity Letter Winners from last Spring.

As we get deeper into the season, individuals roles will become better defined. At this point there are several girls who may see time at several positions, depending on the situation at a given time. Here is a quick look at who will be where on the field.

Goalkeepers: Taking over goalkeeping duties from 2008 Graduate Jamie Brassfield, will be two Sophomores who are new to the soccer program. Samantha Phegley and Halley Watson will both see time in the goal and in the field. Both girls have demonstrated good athletic ability and have been working hard at learning the position.

Backs: When not in the goal, Phegley and Watson should see a lot of action in the back with an otherwise experienced group. Seniors Beth Kittle and Mollie Plocher, both beginning their fourth year as Varsity players, will provide strength in the Center of the field, while Junior, Ashley Martin, will hold down the left back position. Senior Megan Walker, Juniors Kelly Smith and Rachel Skelly, and Sophomore newcomer, Micah Adcock could also see some time in the back.

Midfielders: The center midfield positions will be anchored by Junior, Katie Shannon and Freshman, Anela Auala. Seniors, Kalie Simpkins and Megan Walker and Juniors Amy Armstrong will also see time in the midle. The outside midfield spots will be filled by Juniors, Ashley Harris, Kelly Smith, Amy Armstrong, Bre Wright, megan Lowe and Sophomore Brittany Mills.

Forwards: Senior, Dani Valade, Junior, Rachel Skelly, and Freshman Natasha Ugbah will see a lot of time up front and will be looked to for scoring. Bre Wright, Ashley Harris, Kalie Simpkins, Megan Lowe and Katie Shannon will also spend time at the forward positions.

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The 2009 West Plains Lady Zizzer Soccer Teams will consist of 33 players. Of the 34 girls, 20 are returning from last season, including 13 Varsity Letter Winners and 7 Starters. Breaking it down by class, there will be:

5 Seniors: Beth Kittle (Captain), Mollie Plocher (Captain), Kalie Simpkins, Dani Valade, Megan Walker

10 Juniors: Amy Armstrong, Ashley Harris, Jessica Johnson, Megan, Lowe, Ashley Martin (Captain), Katie Shannon (Captain), Rachel Skelly, Kelly Smith (Captain), Emily Williams, Bre Wright

11 Sophomores: Micah Adcock, Jessica Brown, Kimmie Callahan, Chelsea Kenslow, Lauren Matlock, Brittany Mills, Sammi Phegley, Desi Prantl, Tori Rodgers, Jodi Thompson, Halley Watson

7 Freshmen: Anela Auala, Deanna Daffron, Rachel Deal, Mary Jones, Shannon McGee, Ashley Smith, Natasha Ugbah

The team will hold an intra-squad scrimmage on Thursday, March 19 at 6:00pm. The first Varsity game of the season will be March 25 at Harrison, AR at 5:00pm. Both the JV and Varsity will take on Nixa at Home on March 26 withthe JV game starting at 5:00pm.

Despite a temperature in the low 30s and snow in some spots on the field, the first day of practice for the 2009 season was completed with 32 players taking part. A few more girls are expected in the next day or two as they recover from illness. Getting lots of touches on the ball was the main focus of today’s session as the girls participated in a variety of activities.

It looks like another cold day tomorrow, but things are looking better for later in the week. Come out a catch a practice or two if you can.

There will be an intrasquad scrimmage on Thursday, March 19 at 6:00pm, hope you can join us.

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