TAMPA – For some teams , losing a U.S. Under-17 International at what may be the most critical position on the field would be a devastating blow.
But Berkeley Prep’s girls soccer team is undaunted by the absence of Bryane Heaberlin, who is in Miami to train with the national team, because in back-up Morgan Orobello they feel they have a goalkeeper who is more than up to the task of helping them get to the state final four.
“Morgan was with us last year, and played five games for us,” Buccaneers coach Ken Roberts said. “And four of them were ranked teams. This year, she played three matches, and it was St. Pete Catholic, a 1-0 win, and Tampa Prep the first time around, a 1-0 win, so Morgan has the ability to keep us in a game just as much as Bryane does.”
The Buccaneers open the Class 3A-Region 3 tournament tonight against Frostproof at 7 p.m., and while Orobello said she was a little nervous after Wednesday’s practice, she believes she can get the job done for the side.
“I feel like (my teammates) think I can do it,” Orobello said. “I feel like I know I can do it.”
Of course, having players like sweeper N.D. Ubezonu, and defenders Taylor Richardson, Anne Kelly and Brooke Banning in front of her won’t hurt, Roberts adding that the side wouldn’t change anything as far as their approach to the game.
“We still expect to play the ball back to (Orobello’s) feet, she’s strong with her feet,” Roberts said. “We’ll keep everything status quo. We’re more worried in going into the playoff games about us, about how we play and playing our style than we are about what our opponents are going to do. If anybody thinks they’re going to get an opportunity on her, they’ve got to get by the whole team before they get to her.
“It’s a team game. It’s a team game on defense just like it’s a team game on offense. One kid doesn’t do it all, and one kid can’t do it all once you get to this point in the season.”
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Rowdies Stadium to be built downtown?
Veteran Tampa Tribune and now TBO.com columnist Tom McEwan got some very interesting comments from FC Tampa Bay Rowdies owner David Laxer, who also owns the renowned Berns Steak House, in regard to the club's stadium plans in this piece.
McEwan quotes Laxer directly, the crucial part bolded for your reading pleasure:
“We are working closely with Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, sons of the Yankee owner, and Felix Lopez, Steinbrenner’s son-in-law. We think the setup will be wonderful and after a couple of seasons, we will move to a new facility to be built near the University of Tampa, in downtown Tampa. This is truly exciting,” said Laxer.
As tight-lipped as Andrew Nestor and all concerned with the Rowdies have been so far, this may be as big a revelation as you could hope for. What do you guys think of this idea?
McEwan quotes Laxer directly, the crucial part bolded for your reading pleasure:
“We are working closely with Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, sons of the Yankee owner, and Felix Lopez, Steinbrenner’s son-in-law. We think the setup will be wonderful and after a couple of seasons, we will move to a new facility to be built near the University of Tampa, in downtown Tampa. This is truly exciting,” said Laxer.
As tight-lipped as Andrew Nestor and all concerned with the Rowdies have been so far, this may be as big a revelation as you could hope for. What do you guys think of this idea?
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Preps: Roehn's first appeal of suspension denied, but process not over yet
Berkeley Prep standout T.J. Roehn has had his appeal of a three-week suspension for a red card against Lakeland George Jenkins denied by the FHSAA, but Roehn said late on Wednesday night that the appeals process was not over, and there was a chance he would be able to return in time for next week’s Class 3A-Region 3 tournament quarterfinals.
“There is a second level of appeal, and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Roehn said. “We’re still working on it, it’s not over for sure yet.”
The second appeal should happen early next week ahead of Thursday’s region quarterfinals. The Buccaneers defeated St. Petersburg Catholic 9-1 in the Class 3A-10 tournament semifinals on Wednesday to earn a berth in the region tournament.
Roehn said he and fellow captains Jake Felman and Jordan Tannenbaum talked to the team before the game and emphasized the belief that the team was good enough without Roehn to still succeed.
“We basically just sat them down and talked to them, just told them how everything was on the line and how we could do it without me,” Roehn said. “I’ve heard talk around school and other people saying it wouldn’t be the same without me, but I told them that, and it brought them up, and they all stepped up, especially Theo (Wells), he had four goals tonight. I know they can do it without me, they just have to go for it.”
Should Roehn’s second appeal fail he would still become available if the Buccaneers were to reach the region final. Berkeley will face Clearwater Central Catholic for the district title on Friday night.
“There is a second level of appeal, and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Roehn said. “We’re still working on it, it’s not over for sure yet.”
The second appeal should happen early next week ahead of Thursday’s region quarterfinals. The Buccaneers defeated St. Petersburg Catholic 9-1 in the Class 3A-10 tournament semifinals on Wednesday to earn a berth in the region tournament.
Roehn said he and fellow captains Jake Felman and Jordan Tannenbaum talked to the team before the game and emphasized the belief that the team was good enough without Roehn to still succeed.
“We basically just sat them down and talked to them, just told them how everything was on the line and how we could do it without me,” Roehn said. “I’ve heard talk around school and other people saying it wouldn’t be the same without me, but I told them that, and it brought them up, and they all stepped up, especially Theo (Wells), he had four goals tonight. I know they can do it without me, they just have to go for it.”
Should Roehn’s second appeal fail he would still become available if the Buccaneers were to reach the region final. Berkeley will face Clearwater Central Catholic for the district title on Friday night.
Milien thrilled to be staying in Tampa
TAMPA – It’s hard to wipe the smile off Pascal Milien’s face at the best of times, but there was no chance of it happening as he was one of three players introduced by FC Tampa Bay Rowdies at Steinbrenner Field on Wednesday afternoon.
For the University of Tampa All-American, the opportunity to stay in Tampa to begin his professional career was one that left him overjoyed.
“I can’t ask for better,” Milien said. “This is a dream come true for me after all these years I’ve been pushing myself since high school, through college, thank God I finally have a chance to play in my hometown.”
Milien was joined by Jesuit graduate Joe Donoho, who had a stellar college career at Rutgers and Bradley. The Tampa native grew up a New York Yankees fan, and was looking forward to playing on the same field he had attended spring training games at growing up.
“It’s awesome,” Donoho said. “To be here to get a chance to do this, it really is a blessing.”
While the Rowdies said since the beginning of their search for players that they wanted to try and sign players with ties to the Tampa Bay area, Owner and President Andrew Nestor said that the main reason why the club had targeted Milien and Donoho was because of their playing ability.
“You always want to have local players,” Nestor said. “It helps the fan base, it helps develop future talent because local kids have something to look up to, but at the same time they have to be quality, and I think we’re pretty lucky to be in a market where you have local talent that is truly good enough to play at this level, and these two guys have shown that.”
Donoho and the third player introduced on Wednesday, Yendry Diaz, could make a strong central defensive pairing for the team in its inaugural season. Head coach Paul Dalglish said he couldn’t wait to see what his new players would be able to accomplish in the upcoming season.
“We’ve worked tirelessly to bring in the best players,” Dalglish said. “We’ve had a lot of combines to try and find talent, and three of the guys you saw today have been at the top of the pile when it comes to the talent we’ve been looking for. As some of the names you’ve seen, and some of the names you’ll hear about in the future are going to be very exciting names as well, and there’s going to be a lot of disappointed people who wanted to play in Tampa, but that’s a good thing for us because it means the standard is very high.”
For the University of Tampa All-American, the opportunity to stay in Tampa to begin his professional career was one that left him overjoyed.
“I can’t ask for better,” Milien said. “This is a dream come true for me after all these years I’ve been pushing myself since high school, through college, thank God I finally have a chance to play in my hometown.”
Milien was joined by Jesuit graduate Joe Donoho, who had a stellar college career at Rutgers and Bradley. The Tampa native grew up a New York Yankees fan, and was looking forward to playing on the same field he had attended spring training games at growing up.
“It’s awesome,” Donoho said. “To be here to get a chance to do this, it really is a blessing.”
While the Rowdies said since the beginning of their search for players that they wanted to try and sign players with ties to the Tampa Bay area, Owner and President Andrew Nestor said that the main reason why the club had targeted Milien and Donoho was because of their playing ability.
“You always want to have local players,” Nestor said. “It helps the fan base, it helps develop future talent because local kids have something to look up to, but at the same time they have to be quality, and I think we’re pretty lucky to be in a market where you have local talent that is truly good enough to play at this level, and these two guys have shown that.”
Donoho and the third player introduced on Wednesday, Yendry Diaz, could make a strong central defensive pairing for the team in its inaugural season. Head coach Paul Dalglish said he couldn’t wait to see what his new players would be able to accomplish in the upcoming season.
“We’ve worked tirelessly to bring in the best players,” Dalglish said. “We’ve had a lot of combines to try and find talent, and three of the guys you saw today have been at the top of the pile when it comes to the talent we’ve been looking for. As some of the names you’ve seen, and some of the names you’ll hear about in the future are going to be very exciting names as well, and there’s going to be a lot of disappointed people who wanted to play in Tampa, but that’s a good thing for us because it means the standard is very high.”
Steinbrenner Field to be Rowdies first home; Milien, Donoho among signees
TAMPA – Steinbrenner Field will be the first home of the FC Tampa Bay Rowdies when they play their inaugural season in the United States Soccer Federation Second Division, with a home opener planned for early May.
Standing inside the club’s new home Rowdies Owner and President Andrew Nestor said he was excited everything was starting to come together for the franchise.
“It’s very exciting,” Nestor said. “It’s been a long year-and-a-half, restructuring, relaunching a league, building an entire organization from scratch, putting together not just and organization but a winning team that we feel will compete for a championship in our first year. To be able to announce that we’re going to play in such a great venue and really start to look forward is very exciting.”
While the Rowdies were effusive in their praise of their new home, they will still be looking to build a soccer-specific stadium which will become their permanent home. Plans for that are still in progress, though, with Nestor not willing to say where the stadium might be built.
As for the upcoming season, the league’s schedule is expected to be announced early next week according to the USSF, with the opening weekend currently schedule for April 10. When the team does get to host its home opener, the playing surface will be stripped across the outfield and over a portion of the infield around first base. While that will mean part of the surface will be infield dirt, Rowdies head coach Paul Dalglish wasn’t concerned about that detail.
“No concern whatsoever,” Dalglish said. “I think it’s a small price to pay for the standard of the grass that we’ve got. As you can see, it’s absolutely immaculate. There’s no team going to play on better grass this year and that’s for sure, and if there’s a little bit of dirt in the corner, it’s a small price to pay.”
Also introduced were three of the players who will be part of the Rowdies return, University of Tampa All-American Pascal Milien, former Jesuit graduate Joe Donoho and Yendry Diaz, who was one of the Cuban players who defected when the North American Olympic qualifying tournament was held in Tampa two years ago.
Others that have been signed include Kwame Adjeman-Pamboe, a former first round pick of MLS’s Colorado Rapids, and Dwight Barnett, who impressed at the Rowdies third combine in Tampa earlier this month. Dalglish echoed Nestor’s sentiment that the team would be shooting high in its first season.
“As Andrew said, we’re a new organization, but we want to be competitive from the very first day,” Dalglish said. “We’re coming out this year to win the championship. That’s out goal, we’re going to compete and win the championship. Is it a tough ask? Of course it is, but you’ve got to aim high, and that’s what we aim to do. We’ve got the players to do it, we’ve got the organization to do it, we’ve got the facility to do it, we just need a little bit of luck along the way, and we should be able to do it.”
Still to be announced is the location of the training facility, and a few more signings and the announcement of preseason games. With training camp opening on March 1, Nestor said he expects there to be five or six preseason games, with the opener likely at Pepin Stadium against the University of Tampa.
Currently the side has 13 players under contract, with Nestor saying another two deals were close to completion. Dalglish said he expected the side would carry a roster of 21 players.
As for what he would feel when the Rowdies run out onto Steinbrenner field for the first time, Nestor said it would likely be an emotional moment for him and the rest of the Rowdies owners and staff.
“I’d imagine it would be pretty emotional,” Nestor said. “It’s been a lot of hard work from a lot of dedicated people to make it happen.”
Standing inside the club’s new home Rowdies Owner and President Andrew Nestor said he was excited everything was starting to come together for the franchise.
“It’s very exciting,” Nestor said. “It’s been a long year-and-a-half, restructuring, relaunching a league, building an entire organization from scratch, putting together not just and organization but a winning team that we feel will compete for a championship in our first year. To be able to announce that we’re going to play in such a great venue and really start to look forward is very exciting.”
While the Rowdies were effusive in their praise of their new home, they will still be looking to build a soccer-specific stadium which will become their permanent home. Plans for that are still in progress, though, with Nestor not willing to say where the stadium might be built.
As for the upcoming season, the league’s schedule is expected to be announced early next week according to the USSF, with the opening weekend currently schedule for April 10. When the team does get to host its home opener, the playing surface will be stripped across the outfield and over a portion of the infield around first base. While that will mean part of the surface will be infield dirt, Rowdies head coach Paul Dalglish wasn’t concerned about that detail.
“No concern whatsoever,” Dalglish said. “I think it’s a small price to pay for the standard of the grass that we’ve got. As you can see, it’s absolutely immaculate. There’s no team going to play on better grass this year and that’s for sure, and if there’s a little bit of dirt in the corner, it’s a small price to pay.”
Also introduced were three of the players who will be part of the Rowdies return, University of Tampa All-American Pascal Milien, former Jesuit graduate Joe Donoho and Yendry Diaz, who was one of the Cuban players who defected when the North American Olympic qualifying tournament was held in Tampa two years ago.
Others that have been signed include Kwame Adjeman-Pamboe, a former first round pick of MLS’s Colorado Rapids, and Dwight Barnett, who impressed at the Rowdies third combine in Tampa earlier this month. Dalglish echoed Nestor’s sentiment that the team would be shooting high in its first season.
“As Andrew said, we’re a new organization, but we want to be competitive from the very first day,” Dalglish said. “We’re coming out this year to win the championship. That’s out goal, we’re going to compete and win the championship. Is it a tough ask? Of course it is, but you’ve got to aim high, and that’s what we aim to do. We’ve got the players to do it, we’ve got the organization to do it, we’ve got the facility to do it, we just need a little bit of luck along the way, and we should be able to do it.”
Still to be announced is the location of the training facility, and a few more signings and the announcement of preseason games. With training camp opening on March 1, Nestor said he expects there to be five or six preseason games, with the opener likely at Pepin Stadium against the University of Tampa.
Currently the side has 13 players under contract, with Nestor saying another two deals were close to completion. Dalglish said he expected the side would carry a roster of 21 players.
As for what he would feel when the Rowdies run out onto Steinbrenner field for the first time, Nestor said it would likely be an emotional moment for him and the rest of the Rowdies owners and staff.
“I’d imagine it would be pretty emotional,” Nestor said. “It’s been a lot of hard work from a lot of dedicated people to make it happen.”
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Preps: Wolves defeat Cougars, advance to first district final
PLANT CITY – Newsome advanced to its first district final, and in turn its first region tournament appearance, as a dominant opening 20 minutes paved the way for a 3-1 victory against host Durant in the Class 5A-Region 8 semifinals on Tuesday night.
“This is the furthest we’ve ever gone,” Matt Staggs said. “It’s nice to be the best team in Newsome history.”
Staggs gave the Wolves the lead in the ninth minute. After winning a free kick close to the goal line on the right side of the penalty area, Staggs and Skylar Wilks worked a practice-field move to perfection, with Staggs dummying a cross before peeling off to the left. Wilks then slid a pass to Staggs, who hadn’t been picked up 15 yards from the goal. He fired a shot into the top left corner of the net.
“It was perfect, upper 90,” Staggs said. “Skylar and I knew we were going to do that play if we had the chance. We had the opportunity the last game, but they covered us, so it was a good goal.”
The Wolves added to the lead with two goals in four minutes, one on a cross-field pass in the 15th minute from Steven Gonzalez to Armani Alicea, whose low shot found the left corner. Harold Gussman added a third in similar fashion, with a shot just inside the left post.
“We respect Connor (Bass') height, you can’t beat him in the air, so you have to go low,” Newsome coach Neal Rickmers said. “It’s not the pace of the ball, it’s just the placement and the pace to actually put it in.”
While Newsome (14-4-3) opened the game strongly, Durant (9-5-4) faltered, giving up possession cheaply as the Cougars were unable to find the rhythm Coach Jamin Hollingsworth had been looking for.
“Newsome did everything we talked about doing in the first half,” Hollingsworth said. “You have to give them credit, the first goal, you can’t stop it, and I guess they got us rattled or nervous or however you want to put it, and we didn’t recover from that, and then the next two were unfortunate.”
The Cougars played better in the second half, but were unable to take their opportunities when they arose. Leading scorer Billy Fanning had difficulty finding his range for most of the night, finally scoring in the 78th minute, while Andres Plata had a good chance to pull a goal back early in the second half, only to fire over the crossbar.
Newsome also remained dangerous, Gonzalez’s curling free kick from the left forcing a good save from Bass and Mark Calhoun having his header off a corner from the right cleared off the line by Durant’s Ben Salazar.
Now the Wolves will face Plant City, a side they drew with 3-3 in the regular season. Rickmers said he thought his side would need to show the energy they had to start Tuesday’s game for the full 80 minutes if the Wolves were to win their first district title.
“To beat Plant City, you’re going to have to go the whole game,” Rickmers said. “For us, we need to get three and keep going, otherwise it’s going to be a tough battle.”
“This is the furthest we’ve ever gone,” Matt Staggs said. “It’s nice to be the best team in Newsome history.”
Staggs gave the Wolves the lead in the ninth minute. After winning a free kick close to the goal line on the right side of the penalty area, Staggs and Skylar Wilks worked a practice-field move to perfection, with Staggs dummying a cross before peeling off to the left. Wilks then slid a pass to Staggs, who hadn’t been picked up 15 yards from the goal. He fired a shot into the top left corner of the net.
“It was perfect, upper 90,” Staggs said. “Skylar and I knew we were going to do that play if we had the chance. We had the opportunity the last game, but they covered us, so it was a good goal.”
The Wolves added to the lead with two goals in four minutes, one on a cross-field pass in the 15th minute from Steven Gonzalez to Armani Alicea, whose low shot found the left corner. Harold Gussman added a third in similar fashion, with a shot just inside the left post.
“We respect Connor (Bass') height, you can’t beat him in the air, so you have to go low,” Newsome coach Neal Rickmers said. “It’s not the pace of the ball, it’s just the placement and the pace to actually put it in.”
While Newsome (14-4-3) opened the game strongly, Durant (9-5-4) faltered, giving up possession cheaply as the Cougars were unable to find the rhythm Coach Jamin Hollingsworth had been looking for.
“Newsome did everything we talked about doing in the first half,” Hollingsworth said. “You have to give them credit, the first goal, you can’t stop it, and I guess they got us rattled or nervous or however you want to put it, and we didn’t recover from that, and then the next two were unfortunate.”
The Cougars played better in the second half, but were unable to take their opportunities when they arose. Leading scorer Billy Fanning had difficulty finding his range for most of the night, finally scoring in the 78th minute, while Andres Plata had a good chance to pull a goal back early in the second half, only to fire over the crossbar.
Newsome also remained dangerous, Gonzalez’s curling free kick from the left forcing a good save from Bass and Mark Calhoun having his header off a corner from the right cleared off the line by Durant’s Ben Salazar.
Now the Wolves will face Plant City, a side they drew with 3-3 in the regular season. Rickmers said he thought his side would need to show the energy they had to start Tuesday’s game for the full 80 minutes if the Wolves were to win their first district title.
“To beat Plant City, you’re going to have to go the whole game,” Rickmers said. “For us, we need to get three and keep going, otherwise it’s going to be a tough battle.”
Preps: Raiders not at their best, but advance past Indians
PLANT CITY – Plant City wasn’t at its absolute best, but the Raiders' clinical finishing, in contrast to opponent East Bay’s, was enough to send them through to the Class 5A-District 8 tournament final with a 3-1 victory at Durant High on Tuesday evening.
The Raiders (13-1-2) opened the scoring early, A.J. Black giving his side the lead. Esgar Montelongo almost doubled the lead later in the first half, his first close-range effort being well-saved by East Bay goalkeeper Derrick Miranda, the rebound being headed off the line by a covering defender.
Jorge Martinez did make the score 2-0 five minutes before half time, cutting in from the left side to curl a shot into the right corner of the net from the top of the penalty area. Raiders coach Stephen Rossiter was very pleased with his side’s finishing.
“That’s how we’ve done it all year, and that’s just the good chemistry with this team,” Rossiter said. “They just know how to read each other on the diagonal, and they’ve worked well on the finishing side.”
On the other hand, the Indians' finishing was disappointing. While they were able to gain good possession, especially in the second half as the Raiders' passing became a little sloppy, the Indians (14-4-1) didn’t test Raiders goalkeeper Chris Sullivan as much as they would have liked, Miguel Cerveleon’s goal being ruled out for offside on one of the chances that did hit the target.
“It’s tough to get it down there and have so many opportunities and not be able to put one away,” Indians coach Jonathan Drake said. “I thought that first goal that was called back could have been a difference maker, that’s the game, sometimes it happens to you.”
As poor as the Raiders passing was at certain points of the second half, their third goal in the 69th minute showed what they could do when they put it all together. After the move began in their own half, the ball was passed wide to Martinez, who drove down the left. He then held up, and found Black surging through the left channel, and Black took the ball on before centering across the top of the 6-yard box where Marcus Svensson was there to meet it with a low finish.
“It definitely shows what they’re capable of,” Rossiter said of the goal. “Sometimes every team has their differences in the players on the field, but tonight everyone was definitely playing, the chemistry was there.”
Kyle Whiteside pulled a goal back three minutes later, being slipped in and firing home from close range after an initial shot had been blocked, but the Indians were unable to rally any further. Plant City did get a late scare as Black was helped off the field with what was described after the game as a bruised quad, meaning he may not be available for Friday’s final against Newsome.
Rossiter said the Raiders would now take a break until the final, and try to rest and recuperate with their place in the region tournament secured, but that the opportunity to win the second district title in school history was a big one.
“It’s huge, especially for our seniors,” Rossiter said. “I think it really gives them a lot of momentum, but they’ve still got to work hard to achieve it.”
The Raiders (13-1-2) opened the scoring early, A.J. Black giving his side the lead. Esgar Montelongo almost doubled the lead later in the first half, his first close-range effort being well-saved by East Bay goalkeeper Derrick Miranda, the rebound being headed off the line by a covering defender.
Jorge Martinez did make the score 2-0 five minutes before half time, cutting in from the left side to curl a shot into the right corner of the net from the top of the penalty area. Raiders coach Stephen Rossiter was very pleased with his side’s finishing.
“That’s how we’ve done it all year, and that’s just the good chemistry with this team,” Rossiter said. “They just know how to read each other on the diagonal, and they’ve worked well on the finishing side.”
On the other hand, the Indians' finishing was disappointing. While they were able to gain good possession, especially in the second half as the Raiders' passing became a little sloppy, the Indians (14-4-1) didn’t test Raiders goalkeeper Chris Sullivan as much as they would have liked, Miguel Cerveleon’s goal being ruled out for offside on one of the chances that did hit the target.
“It’s tough to get it down there and have so many opportunities and not be able to put one away,” Indians coach Jonathan Drake said. “I thought that first goal that was called back could have been a difference maker, that’s the game, sometimes it happens to you.”
As poor as the Raiders passing was at certain points of the second half, their third goal in the 69th minute showed what they could do when they put it all together. After the move began in their own half, the ball was passed wide to Martinez, who drove down the left. He then held up, and found Black surging through the left channel, and Black took the ball on before centering across the top of the 6-yard box where Marcus Svensson was there to meet it with a low finish.
“It definitely shows what they’re capable of,” Rossiter said of the goal. “Sometimes every team has their differences in the players on the field, but tonight everyone was definitely playing, the chemistry was there.”
Kyle Whiteside pulled a goal back three minutes later, being slipped in and firing home from close range after an initial shot had been blocked, but the Indians were unable to rally any further. Plant City did get a late scare as Black was helped off the field with what was described after the game as a bruised quad, meaning he may not be available for Friday’s final against Newsome.
Rossiter said the Raiders would now take a break until the final, and try to rest and recuperate with their place in the region tournament secured, but that the opportunity to win the second district title in school history was a big one.
“It’s huge, especially for our seniors,” Rossiter said. “I think it really gives them a lot of momentum, but they’ve still got to work hard to achieve it.”
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