Marshfield Blue Jays Soccer

Due to field/weather conditions, the Lebanon game that was scheduled for 5:00 p.m. today has been cancelled. Stay tuned for additional info.

SPRINGFIELD – Tonight the Marshfield Blue Jays and the Greenwood Blue Jays met for the second time this season, guaranteeing a “Blue Jay” victory for one of the schools. The first time, Greenwood won by the thin margin of 2-0 (Sept. 25th). In the meantime, Greenwood had moved up to a #8 ranking in the State Class 1 rankings. This game was actually closer than the final score of 0-7 would indicate. The mud, rain and puddles made for an entertaining but sloppy game. Greenwood started the game with a number of offensive opportunities. In about the 10th minute, Chris Aiken got behind the defense and broke a scoreless tie. Marshfield attempted to get one back as Colton Harden took a pass from Robert Martin and shot – just barely high. In the 15th minute, Greenwood had a chance as a corner kick resulted in a header that was saved by the keeper. Right after this, a powerful free kick by Colton Harden to Robert Martin looked promising, but was cleared by the Greenwood defense. In the 19th minute, Greenwood got past the defense and a point blank shot was saved by the keeper and cleared wonderfully by the defense. The 21st minute brought two free kick chances for Marshfield, first by Colton Harden and then by Kyle Cary. Both were cleared out by the Greenwood defense. Just as the half was about to end, Cory McCoy was able to sneak one past the defense for a 2 goal Greenwood lead. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter had 15 saves by halftime.

The second half started strong as Robert Martin had a chance in 42nd minute, but had the defense collapse on him. In the 52nd minute, Josh Hyde had a nice pass to Colton Harden, whose shot was saved. The 55th and 58th minutes brought on two rocket shots from Greenwood, both of which resulted in diving saves. Third time was the charm for the home team as John Fenwick’s upper 90 shot was just an inch from the diving Marshfield Keeper: 3-0 Greenwood. Several more chances were cleared by the Marshfield defense until the 64th minute when Chris Algiere’s shot found the back of the net for a 4 goal lead. The next 16 minutes had most of the Marshfield squad back on the bus mentally as 3 goals were scored with minimal resistance for a final of 0-7. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter ended the game with 26 saves.

This brings our record to 7-13. Our final regular season game is next Monday, October 26th at LEBANON at 5:00 p.m.

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The Class 2 District 5 District Tournament has just been announced. Marshfield will host the tournament this year.

Seedings:

1. Bolivar (17-3)
2. Cassville (12-3)
3. Monett (9-7)
4. Webb City (11-11)
5. Carl Junction (9-10)
6. Marshfield (7-12)
7. Logan-Rogersville (5-15)
8. West Plains (2-19)
9. Aurora (1-16)

Friday, October 30, 2009:

4:30 p.m. (8) West Plains v. (9) Aurora

Saturday, October 31, 2009:

9:00 a.m. (3) Monett v. (6) Marshfield
11:00 a.m. (2) Cassville v. (7) Logan-Rogersville
1:00 p.m. (4) Webb City v. (5) Carl Junction
3:00 p.m. (1) Bolivar v. West Plains/Aurora winner

Monday, November 2, 2009:

SEMIFINALS – 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 5, 2009:

FINAL 6:00 p.m.

**** Our district champion plays the Class 2 District 6 tournament champion (hosted by Pembroke Hill this year) in the State Quarterfinals, which should be on Thursday, November 12, 2009. ****

MARSHFIELD – As always, Senior Night was bittersweet. It was the last regular season home game (remember, we are hosting districts) and the last for our four delightful seniors – Kyle Cary, Cory Day, Robert Martin, and Jacob Twaddle. We were all able to rejoice in their accomplishments on the soccer field and their career plans for the future.

Although the first half was against a stiff wind, scoring chances were arriving at nearly one per minute. In the 5th minute, a free kick by Robert Martin was saved. In the 6th minute, Colton Harden and Trent Burks both had nice chances. In the 7th minute, Trent Burks had a shot just wide. In the 11th minute, Cory Day had a rifle shot that was saved. In the 12th minute, Robert Martin’s header bounced wide. In the 16th minute, a free kick by Robert Martin bounced off the goalie. In the next 11 minutes, chances by Robert Martin, Joseph Huber, Trent Burks, Nicholas Harden, Colton Harden, Cory Day, Trent Burks were all just little wide, high, or short. The 33rd minute saw some defensive action as 3 Aurora scoring chances were cleared. In the 34th minute, Robert Martin was fouled in the penalty box. He took the penalty kick and smashed it into the back of the goal for a 1-0 Blue Jay lead, which was also the score at half.

The second half was rather similar to the first, but with the addition of the wind beneath the Jays’ wings. This extra pep seemed to affect the results as 5 minutes into the half a long-range rocket launch by Colton Harden found pay dirt: 2-0. In the 49th minute, Robert Martin had a shot that was saved. In the 52nd minute, Joseph Huber had a well-placed chip that was just a hair too high. In the 54th minute, Robert Martin was fouled in the box. Colton Harden took the penalty kick and deposited it into the net for a 3-0 lead. Ten minutes later, a free kick by Colton Harden whizzed past the goalie to give Mr. Harden a hat trick for the night (his first – congrats) and a 4 goal lead for the host team. In the 68th minute, Colton Harden attempted to add to the totals, but had two chances sail just high. In the 71 st minute, Colton Harden had a nice cross that was headed in by Trent Burks, for the first goal of his career! In the 75th minute, just as the Senior Night game was to end, senior Jacob Twaddle unveiled his much-practiced flip throw, for an impressive almost assist to Robert Martin. Senior, Kyle Cary, also had the crowd cheering as his sweet shot hit the crossbar. A nice shot by Joseph McKinzie in stoppage time was saved by the goalie. The final score was Marshfield 5, Aurora 0. Keeper Nic Yonter ended the night with 8 saves.

Our record improved to 7-12. Our next game is this Thursday, October 22nd, at 5:00 p.m. against Greenwood at the Cooper Fields in Springfield. Let’s keep up the great teamwork and ball movement!

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MARSHFIELD – After three straight road games, the Jays were looking forward to a relaxing home game, which never seemed to materialize. The Jays had a few early chances as a nice Colton Harden cross in the 3rd minute, and then a pass from Robert Martin to Colton Harden did not quite find success. The ball lived in the midfield for the next 12 minutes until Central managed to get inside the box, had the ball hit off of a defender, right to a waiting Chan Kham, who gave the Bulldogs the early lead. On the kickoff, the Jays took the ball right down into the box, with Robert Martin on the attack, but it was cleared by the Bulldog defense. In the 22nd minute, Colton Harden had a rocket that was just high. The 29th minute brought on another opportunity by the Jays as Robert Martin had a great pass to Colton Harden, who hit a smash that almost hit the right side of the net. The rest of the half belonged to the defense as Central kept up the intense offensive pressure. The Jays defense of Koty Jones, Jacob Twaddle and Kyle Cary caged the Bulldogs at each opportunity, sacrificing their bodies, blocking shots, clearing corners, and keeping the ball out of harm’s way. Nicholas Harden was all over the field, helping on defense as well as offense. Then in the 33rd minute, Central was awarded a free kick just outside the 18, which was taken by Kelsey Garnett. He launched an absolute rocket, which was curving straight toward the left upper 90, when Jays Keeper Nic Yonter deflected a sure goal. Unfortunately, it went right to another Bulldog, who smashed it from the 6, but again the ball was deflected by the Jays Keeper. Somehow, another Central player was there again for shot #3, a volley from two feet away, which was earmarked for the right corner. Once again, the goalie had a great floating dive and came down to the ground with ball in hand, bringing the home crowd to their feet with cheers. There was no more scoring in the half, as it ended 1-0 Bulldogs. Keeper Nic Yonter had 14 saves.

The second half started in a rather promising fashion as Trent Burks had a breakaway that he passed to Robert Martin, but the Central defense was there to break it up. In the 45th minute, Colton Harden had a rocket shot the was saved by the keeper. In the 48th minute, a corner for Central resulted in an opportunity for Jordan Salvato, which found the back of the net: 0-2 Central. One minute later, Colton Harden had the crowd waiting to cheer, but his shot was saved by the Central goalie. In the 56th minute, on a very questionable call, a penalty kick was awarded, which was taken and made by Jordan Salvato, for his second goal and a 3-0 Central lead. In the next six minutes, Marshfield had several great offensive opportunities. A free kick by Colton Harden, a deep cross by Trent Burks, a free kick by Colton Harden, and a free kick by Robert Martin, were all quite exciting, but did not hit pay dirt. In the 80th minute, Colton Harden had a free kick that ended up presenting two good scoring chances. The game ended without any more scoring: 3-0 Bulldogs. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter ended the game with 28 saves.

Our record is now 6-12. Our next game is tomorrow, Tuesday, October 20th against Aurora at 4:30 p.m. at HOME. Let’s get back on track for Senior Night.

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NIXA – The weary Marshfield team played their third road game of the week, as they played the Nixa Eagles on a chilly Friday evening. The first ten minutes of the game had the Eagles repeatedly on the Jays side, attacking the goal. The Jays defense of Jacob Twaddle, Koty Jones and Kyle Cary, and Keeper Nic Yonter managed to retain the scoreless tie. Then in the 11th minute of the game, a defensive lapse allowed KhaiUyen Huynh a point blank chance, which found the back of the net. With 25:28 left in the half, a pass by Drake Trease found Kaleb Romero to make it 0-2. One minute later, the same duo paired up to add to Kaleb Romero’s Nixa scoring record and to make it 3-0. Just as Mr. Romero was looking for a hat trick, his upper 90 shot was snatched by Keeper Yonter. With 17:28 left in the half, KhaiUyen Huynh again got past the defense and latched onto a pass from Drake Hughes to make the score 4-0. The Jays did have a few chances the rest of the half. They were unable to convert on corners taken by Christian Harden and Nicholas Harden. In the 28th minute, Robert Martin had a breakaway chance. With 7:58 left in the half, Robert Martin had a rocket that was just wide. There were less than two minutes in the half when a cross by Matt Overby to Scott Sterling hit off the head of a Jays defender, then off the post and past the goal line. As the half time whistle was about to be heard, Chad Mills made the score 6-0 going into the half. Keeper Nic Yonter had 15 first half saves.

The second half was a much better one for the Blue Jays. With 36:40 left in the game, Colton Harden had a promising cross that was cleared by the Nixa defense. Just one minute later, a booming kick off the foot of Colton Harden was saved by the goalie. In the 50th minute of the game, the ball again got past the Jays defense and bounced around for awhile until Austin Engleman decided to put it into the net for a 7-0 lead. The Jays offense seemed ready to do some damage with 6 opportunities in the next 25 minutes. With 23:12 left in the game, Colton Harden took a long range free kick that found the keeper. In the 67th minute, Nicholas Harden took a corner. Moments later, Robert Martin had a great header that got past the keeper, but was stopped by a defender at the goal line. With 9:10 left in the game, Colton Harden took a free kick that looked like it was on-target, but was just inches high. Three minutes later, another free kick by Colton Harden was saved by the goalie. Yet another Harden free kick was saved to keep the Jays off the board. With less than two minutes to go in the game, a shot by Luke Moore was deflected by a defender into the opposite corner for a final score of 8-0. Keeper Nic Yonter ended the game with 29 saves.

Our record is now 6-11. After being road warriors all week, it will be nice to have some home cooking this coming week. Our next game is Monday, October 19th at 4:30 p.m. against Central at HOME.

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ROGERSVILLE – Marshfield versus Rogersville, in any sport, is always a big rivalry game. Earlier in the season, the Jays had beaten the Wildcats 3-1, but such things never matter when these two schools get together. A third team – the weather – really determined the outcome of this game. Early in the game, a very wet ball went off the Jays’ keeper and #10 for Rogersville hit the ball into the net. Moments later, Robert Martin took a pass from Colton Harden and smashed a hard shot off the keeper to tie the score. A series of puddles, mud patties, and terrible footing kept the ball out of the goal for most of the half. The Jays had several opportunities throughout the half. Robert Martin had a nice pass to Colton Harden that was hit just wide left. Within a two minute span, Colton Harden laced a potential assist to Ryan Doolittle and then to Robert Martin that was saved by the Wildcat keeper. A loose ball in front of the goal had the crowd on their feet, but alas, a large mud puddle in front of the Rogersville goal grabbed the feet of Robert Martin just as he was about to score. However, the much-awaited goal did come with about 10 minutes left in the half as Colton Harden’s long pass to Robert Martin found the back of the net for a 2-1 Jays lead. Right before the end of the half, Colton Harden had a shot that was just wide.

As the second half started, the Jays had to defend the “dark side” goal that was basically a moat of mud and would end up on the receiving end of 80% of the goals by night’s end for the varsity. About 10 minutes into the half, the mud kept the defenders and goalie from challenging a shot from #14 which found the wrong side of the net, and resulted in a 2-2 tie. As the game was in its last few minutes, Colton Harden had a nice pass to Robert Martin, which was saved by the goalie. Just before a potential overtime, Robert Martin had a beautiful pass to the far post that a sliding Colton Harden almost put into the goal. Regulation ended tied at 2. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter had 10 saves for the game.

The Jays were stuck defending the “dark side” goal for the overtime period. The best scoring chance for the Jays was about halfway into the 10 minute overtime as a free kick by Colton Harden to Robert Martin resulted in a nice save by the ‘Cat keeper. Perhaps the Cardinal fans thought baseball was over in this area for the season, but it was not. With less than two minutes left in the first overtime, a ball entered the penalty box and unfortunately one-two-three strikes were observed as three Jays swung and missed the ball. After the strike out, #3 for the Wildcats hit the ball into the net to end the “golden goal” overtime: 3-2 Rogersville.

Robert Martin’s two goals gives him 22 for the year, which gives him sole possession of the Jays’ single season record. Although this may be unforgettable, the last 50 minutes of this slip and slide game was very forgettable. Let’s put this behind us and come out with a total team effort on Friday against Nixa at 4:30 p.m. (game is in NIXA).

The Junior Varsity played a 25-minute half as darkness stole what little lighting was left. With the crowd just settling in, Koty Jones (who normally is a varsity defender) dribbled through several Wildcats and drew the goalie out on the left. He then made a perfect pass to the far post as Nic Yonter (the varsity goalie) was able to slide and finish the ball into the back of the net for his first high school goal and a 1-0 Jays lead. The rest of the “half” resulted in 4 goals for the Wildcats for a 1-4 final score. Keeper Austyn Hyder finished with 2 saves.

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CASSVILLE – Tonight the Jays traveled 100 miles to play in Cassville for 80 minutes. 1.25 miles per minute for those math people out there. The game started off rather slowly, but the Marshfield defense was challenged early. The first six minutes were played mostly in the Jay’s half with Cassville being denied time and time again. Then for the next few minutes, Marshfield’s offense came alive as Robert Martin’s pass to Ryan Doolittle with 33:35 remaining in the half did not quite materialize. With 29:45 left, Robert Martin’s laser shot was just wide right. As the defensive struggle continued, in the 17th minute of the game, a ball went behind the Jays’ defense, bounced around like a pinball off several players and ended up in the goal after last touching #14 for Cassville. The Blue Jays tried to fight back and had a few more chances in the half. In the 22nd minute, Ryan Doolittle nearly converted on a loose ball. In the 25th minute, a fantastic through ball by Colton Harden to Robert Martin was saved by the goalie. In the 28th minute, Colton Harden’s rocket shot toward the goal was just wide. In the 35th minute, Robert Martin had a chance that was corralled by the keeper. The first half ended with Marshfield down 1-0. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter had 10 saves in the half.

With a new 40 minutes on the clock, the defensive battle continued into the second half. There were several good saves on both ends and defender, Koty Jones, helped keep the Wildcats at bay with some good clears. With 32:37 left in the game, Colton Harden had a long range shot that looked very promising, but just missed the crossbar. With 24:40 left in the game, Cassville again got behind the defense and #13 struck a hard shot from the penalty area into the back of the net to give the home team a 2-0 advantage. The Jays were determined to cut into the lead as the next five minutes gave them four great chances: a nice pass by Robert Martin to Ryan Doolittle bounced into the box, but hit a hard patch to bounce a little too much; a shot by Ryan Doolittle was a tad too high; a nice pass from Robert Martin to Ryan Doolittle resulted in a corner taken by Koty Jones back to Robert Martin whose header just missed; a powerful free kick by Colton Harden to Robert Martin was headed slightly too high. The game was mostly uneventful until the 70th minute when Colton Harden had a solid shot that was saved by the goalie. 5 minutes later, Robert Martin excited the crowd by dribbling through 5 defenders, but the ball did not cooperate after that point. There was no more scoring as the game ended Cassville 2, Marshfield 0. Marshfield Keeper Nic Yonter had 18 saves in the game.

This brings our record to 6-9. Our next game is tomorrow, Tuesday, October 13 at 4:30 p.m. in ROGERSVILLE. Let’s try to straighten out some of the wrinkles as we start getting prepared for districts.

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The Nixa game, which was originally scheduled for September 21st and postponed due to severe weather, has been re-scheduled for this Friday, October 16th at 4:30 p.m. {as per Nixa soccer website} (varsity only) at NIXA. Go Jays!!

Thank you for all your support of the website this year. We have had 78 comments this year (only 21 total for the previous 3 years) and have averaged nearly 1,000 hits per week during this season. Thanks again. Keep coming back to stay informed and for the cookies muffins pictures!

MARSHFIELD – It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. This game was truly a tale of two halves. The worst of times came first. In the game’s first minute, a flip throw-in by Matt Magana to Bradley Stillwagon, who headed it to Jacob Hampton, who redirected it into the goal gave Bolivar a quick 1-0 lead. With 36:32 left in the half, the Jays tried to answer back with a shot by Robert Martin that just missed. In the 12th minute, a corner kick by Matt Magana to Josh Condren doubled the Liberators’ score. The Jays again tried to answer back with a great cross by Ryan Doolittle to Robert Martin, but alas the header was saved by Bolivar goalie Jordan Stanton. In the 17th minute, Bradley Stillwagon smashed the ball to the left corner, which the Jays goalie read perfectly. However, the ball struck a Marshfield defender and ended up going into the opposite corner: 3-0 Bolivar. Less than a minute later, the Jays suffered an own goal that made it a 4 goal deficit. During the next 16 minutes, the Jays offense really stepped up their attack. At the midway point of the half, Robert Martin had a rocket shot that was about a foot high. Two minutes later, Robert Martin crossed a ball to Ryan Doolittle whose header was saved. In the 27th minute, DJ Hensley had a great shot that hit the outside of the net. In the next 6 minutes, several Jays opportunities looked promising: A breakaway by Ryan Doolittle, a upper 90 shot by Colton Harden, a chance by Robert Martin, a shot by DJ Hensley all found the goalie or empty space. So close, and yet so far… Finally, as Robert Martin had a nice ball on the left side of the box, he was tripped for a penalty kick. Colton Harden took the kick and found the back of the net with 6:08 left in the half to cut the lead to 1-4. With less than two minutes to go in the first half, Tinash Zungura passed to Matt Magana, who got a shot past the defense to finish off the half at 5-1 in favor of the Liberators.

As promised, the second half delivered the best of times, relatively speaking. The Jays played the Liberators straight up for the last 40 minutes of the game. The half had plenty of crisp passing, great defensive clears, fantastic saves, and wonderful offensive opportunities. With 31:07 left in the game, a breakaway by all-stater Matt Magana appeared to be a sure goal, but Keeper Nic Yonter timed it perfectly as he redirected the ball back to the hands of steel for a great save. With 27:05 left in the game, Trent Burks narrowly missed a follow through opportunity. Trent had a rather impressive game as he seemed to be around the ball rather frequently. In the 55th minute, a defensive hiccup allowed a goal by Matt Magana and a 6-1 Bolivar lead. The Jays really turned it on at this point. Several shots by Colton Harden and Robert Martin found the goalie or just bounced the wrong way. Then as the clock was showing 6:59, DJ Hensley took a pass from Robert Martin and dribbled through several defenders and smashed the ball into the back of the net to close the gap to 6-2. Congrats on your first goal of the season, DJ! As DJ Hensley continued his attacks for the rest of the game, the ball just did not cooperate. There was no more scoring in the game, but the second half actually ended 1-1., which is quite impressive against a team that is now 14-1 on the season. Keeper Nic Yonter ended the game with 16 saves.

Our record is now 6-8. There was a lot to praise in this game. There is a great amount of potential on this team. The passing, especially on offense, really looked good. Great teamwork makes a great team. Our best soccer is just around the corner. We are in the home stretch of the season, so let’s have a great 80 against Cassville on Monday, October 12th at 4:30 p.m. in CASSVILLE.

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