Islander

LC-M  4  Central 0 Hat trick for Leo De La Cruz

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------     Leo De La Cruz earned a hat trick by scoring three goals as the Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears soccer team cruised to a 4-0 victory over the physical Central Jaguars at the Babe Didrikson Zaharias Stadium in Beaumont on Friday night.  Goalie Christian Diaz two strong saves lead a stingy Bears defense; while Scott Karasik scored a goal for the Bears.  The victory improves the Bears' district record to 3-1.     Bears Coach Jeremy Watzlavik believed that his team earned "a great win."  The contest was nearly a tale of two halves.  "I thought Central controlled the game in the early portions of the first half.  But, we came out much stronger in the second half," stated Watzlavik.     Fortunately for the Bears, De La Cruz's play had an impact in both halves.  In the 27th minute, Bears' defender Tommy Jones placed a long throw-in to Kevin Hernandez.  Hernandez passed the ball to De La Cruz, who was approximately 15 yards from the Central goal.  De La Cruz kicked the ball to the right back post to give the Bears a 1-0 lead.  De la Cruz gave credit to Hernandez.  'It was a good assist by Kevin.  Thank God that the ball went in for a goal."     The game's intensity picked up after the Bears' goal.  With less than one minute remaining in the half, Jones placed a free kick from the 40 yard- line in front of the Jaguar's goal.  When the Jaguar goalie slipped and misplayed the ball, Karasik zipped around him and punched the ball in for a goal and a 2-0 lead.        At halftime, Watzlavik made the necessary adjustments that allowed the Bears and De La Cruz to dominate the second half.  The changes allowed the Bears to out-shoot their opponent by an 11-3 margin.      At the 44th minute, Bears wing Fabian Mankatt stole the ball from a Jaguar opponent.  Mankatt passed the ball to De La Cruz near the 18-yard line.  De La Cruz outran the Jaguar defense and kicked the ball past the goalie for his second goal of the night.  The score gave the Bears a comfortable 3-0 lead.  Once again, De La Cruz was appreciative of the pass from his teammate.  "Fabian made a nice assist on that play," noted De La Cruz.     The Bears offense struck again less than a minute later.  Karasik made a hard drive towards the goal and sent a hard shot that deflected off the goalie's hands and drifted towards the Jaguar's goal.  De La Cruz chased down the ball and kicked it into an open net.  De La Cruz proudly stated that he "just tapped it in the goal."      The score gave the Bears a 4-0 lead.  Watslavik used the lead to allow his bench to register a large block of playing time.  "I thought the whole team played well.  Leo, with his hat trick, had a phenomenal game.  It was a good game for his confidence."     Watzlavik was also appreciative of the solid performance by his goalie, Christian Diaz.  "He made a couple of saves tonight that were very impressive."

Wedel will guide his ship to victorious waters !!!!  Aye, Aye, Captain!!!!

I have to agree with Dogs about the Nederland team.  If you like soccer, they are a whole lot of fun to watch.  And, they are a very talented and deep team.  That being said, I was very impressed with PN-G's soccer team.  They are skilled and know how to play the game.  And, both teams play with a high level of sportmanship.  It should be a good game.

LC-M 4  Bridge City 1 Love ya, Newcastle!!!!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------     Scott Karasik's two goals lead the Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears boys soccer team to a 4-1 win over an improving Bridge City Cardinals team Tuesday night at Battlin' Bear Stadium.  Garhett Bonneaux and Fabian Mankat each added a goal for the Bears; while Izzy Garcia scored the Cardinals' lone goal.     The warmer temperature and lack of wind made it a beautiful evening for soccer.  The Bears jumped to a 1-0 lead in the game's fourth minute when Bonneaux scored on a free kick.  Bonneaux drilled the ball through a crowd of defenders from the 20-yard line.     Ten minutes later, Bears forward Leo De La Cruz earned an assist with a nice pass in front of the Bridge City goal to Fabian  Mankat.  Mankatt then kicked the ball from 10 yards out for a goal and a 2-0 lead.     The Bridge City Cardinals answered with a goal of their own in the 19th minute mark.  Izzy Garcia gathered  a rebound off a shot in front of the Bears goal and then boomed a well-placed goal for the Cardinals.     Garcia's goal seemed to inspire the Cardinals defense, as both teams unsuccesfully battled to score for the next twenty minutes.     With two minutes remaining in the half, Karasik netted his first goal with an impressive individual effort.  Karasik received a pass and then dribbled 20 yards towards the Cardinal defense.  Karasik eluded the approaching defenders and gave the Bears a 3-1 lead with a kick from close range for a goal.     The strong defenses of each team controlled the action through out the second half.  Only Karasik's second goal at the 55th minute mark prevented a scoreless second half.  Karasik received a pass in the upper right corner and then dribbled around a couple of Cardinal defenders to a spot in front of the Bridge City goal.  Karasik punched his shot away from the goalie to conclude the games scoring at 4-1.     Bears Coach Jeremy Watzlavik was satisfied with his team's victory.  "The whole team played well.  We substituted freely as everybody got a decent amount of playing time", said Watzlavik.     Individually, Coach Watzlavik was especially pleased with the play of his two forwards, Karasik and De La Cruz.  "Those two just could not be stopped tonight."  Also, "our midfielders, Garhett Bonneaux and Mitchell Heil dominated the middle of the field.  Garhett and Mitchell really play well together", observed Watzlavik.  And, Derek George's play at stopper also caught Watzlavik's attention.     Cardinal's Coach John Davis was excited with his team's improved play.  "We gave a great effort tonight.  We are a young team, but you can see our team's improvement on a weekly basis," said Davis.  Davis cited Cardinal players performing at a high level tonight were goalie Dylan Foreman, Alex Damion, Ryan Cormier, and Devin Bertrand.     On Friday, the Bears travel to Beaumont to face the Central Jaguars.  Bridge City will host Hamshire-Fannett.                 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------     The Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears boys soccer team suffered a disappointing 2-0 road defeat against the Port Neches-Groves Indians on Friday.  The loss moved the Bears district record to 1-1.     The game, played on a cold and windy night, was a highly competitive defensive struggle for most of the game.  Each team's defense successfully withstood numerous offensive attacks.  Little Cypress, playing with the wind in the first half, nearly scored in the opening minutes when Junior Garhett Bonneaux's shot struck and bounced off the right post.      With four minutes remaining in the first half, the Indians scored the game's first score.  Peter Zimmerman placed a beautiful free-kick from the 50-yard line to J.C. Figueroa.  Figueroa then headed the ball for a goal from 10 yards out. The first half ended with PN-G leading 1-0.      Indians Coach Don Sandell commented on the effect of the goal for his team.  "We scored that goal going against the wind.  It was a big momentum swing for our team", noted Sandell.     Playing with the wind in the second half, the Indians began to attack the Bears' defense more consistently.  Both team's defenses were effective in preventing any scores during the second half until the game's last four minutes.  The Indians gained a 2-0 lead on a corner kick to Peter Zimmerman, who kicked the ball to his left for a goal.  The Bears were unable to score on the night as Indians goalie Micah Murdock earned a shut out for his efforts.     Bears Coach Jeremy Watzlavik was frustrated by the game's outcome, but not with the effort of his players.  "I am proud of the team's effort", said Coach Watzlavik.  "The team played well, but PN-G was better tonight.  The Indians gave us the toughest game that we have had all year."  Individually, Coach Watzlavik noted that Tommy Jones, Mitchell Heil, and Bonneaux played well for the Bears and Scott Karasik had some good runs during the night.      Indians Coach Don Sandell directed complimentary comments towards the Bears' team.  "Coach Watz has done a great job with the Bears", said Coach Sandell.  "They are a very tough team.  The Bears are big and fast.  We are fortunate that we have a great defense." Sandell indicated that the 2-0 victory was his team's eigth shut out of the season.            On Tuesday night, the Bears host the Bridge City Cardinals at Battlin' Bear Stadium.  The varsity game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m. 

Nederland is really talented and fun to watch.  They are also good sports.

The Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears boys soccer team began district play with a strong 2-1 win over the Ozen Panthers Tuesday night at Battlin' Bears Stadium.  Junior Tommy Jones scored the Bears' first goal and led a stingy defense; while Junior Garhett Bonneaux scored the game-winning goal in the second half to lead the Bears to victory.     Coach Jeremy Watzlavik was pleased with the Bears performance through out a physical game.  "It wasn't our best effort.  I feel that we controlled the game, but we missed some scoring opportunities", said Coach Watzlavik.      The Ozen Panthers jumped to an early lead with an own-goal in the game's 14th minute.  Bears' goalie Christian Diaz attempted to clear a loose ball when his kick defelected off a Bear defender and bounced into the Ozen goal for a 1-0 lead.  "The own-goal was an unfortunate bounce", observed Watzlavik.        The Bears tied the game at 1-1 approximately three minutes later on Jones' score.  Jones initiated the scoring attack with a strong throw-in near the Ozen goal.  As Ozen defenders deflected the ball away from their goal, Jones took the rebound and drilled a 15-yard shot through heavy traffic into the goal.  Jones proudly said that "the shot was a blur.  I saw the deflection and then I kicked the ball.  I was hoping the ball would go in the goal, and it did."  Coach Watzlavik said that, "Tommy wanted that goal, and he willed it into the goal."     The Bears mounted several scoring attacks throughout the remainder of the first half, but neither team was able to score.  Coach Watzlavik stated that, "we controlled the first half, but were unable to finish around the goal."     The Bears began the second half with a flurry of attacks against a solid Ozen defense.  The Bears finally scored at the game's 53rd minute.  Senior Scott Karasik initiated the scoring effort for the Bears.  "Scott had a real good game with his numerous drives", said Coach Wattzlavik.  "Ozen was forced to account for him all night long". When Karasik dribbled the ball inside the penalty box, an Ozen defender fouled him with a tackled him from behind..     Bonneaux boomed the penalty kick past the Ozen goalie into the bottom right side of the net.  "Garhett is money", Watzlavik said of his mid-fielder.  The goal gave the Bears a lead that lasted until the end of the game.      The Bears continued to construct several scoring drives on offense.  Their defense seemed to gain momentum as the game progressed.  "Our defense showed improvement during the game", said Watzlavik.  "We were stabbing at the ball in the first half.  At halftime, we discussed it and the team did much better in the second half.  Jones had an outstanding defensive game.  And, (Junior) Mauricio Benitez plays solid defense in every game."      The Bears travel to Port Neches on Friday to face a strong PN-G Indians team.  "PN-G is always a favorite to qualify for the playoffs", noted Watzlavik.  "It will be a tough test for our team." 

Does anyone know the rain forecast for Thursday and Friday??  I'm trying to decide if I'm going to take off work these two days.

I agree with the goal of this thread.  Some of these sillier posts belong on facebook or myspace.  Its one thing to be enthusiastic about your team or favorite player, but I think the outlandish nature of these posts are not doing any favors for the team/player that they are attempting to promote.  If a player is really all that good, then the opposing coaches and players will pick up on it.  There is no need for any premature promotion.  Meanwhile, there are some really strong players with a long track history that nobody has commented about.  Bottom line: trying to make some person sound like a folk hero raises expectation too high for anyone to meet.  It's not fair to the player or team.  I am not trying to suggest that anyone is trying to do any self promotion, but probably somebody is just having some fun.  But, it has gotten out of hand. 

Emily Hughes is a smart player who knows how to win.  She gets my vote.

Nederland is LOADED  !!!!  This coming from LC-M fan.

Talk about a turnaround from last season for LC-M. It was an enjoyable night for the Bears. A nice crowd for a scrimmage. Coach Crouch is headed in the right direction. No need to talk about the errors of the last coach. He is gone-- nuff said. Bears play-calling was solid. The Bears QB was impressive. The team showed aggression on defense. LCM has some size and speed. I can't wait for the season to start.

Best of Luck to Coach Wedel. We will miss him at LC-M. See ya at the games !

For those of us who do not subscribe to the Beaumont Enterprise, Is it too much trouble for somebody to type out the list ?!?!?!?! : I think others have already requested a web site or asked about who is on the list; but no assistance was provided. Thank you in advance for your assistance in this situation.

Good job, Nederland! Waller is definitely a tough team. But, Nederland did the district proud with their good showing. Can't wait until next year. Soccer needs to be like tennis. Fall and Spring schedules. The football coaches would love it!!!!

Soccer playoffs began on Thursday night in Vidor for the Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears and the Vidor Pirates. Unfortunately for the Bears, their season ended with a disappointing 3-2 defeat to the Pirates. Senior T.C. Scalfano and sophomore Garhett Bonneaux scored goals for the Bears. The Pirates were led by Alec Johnson with two goals, while Travis Greenway scored one goal and added two assists. The playoff atmosphere added to the game’s intensity. A large number of enthusiastic fans and dueling drum lines were successful in creating supportive noise for their team. Combined with near perfect weather, the exciting play made it an enjoyable night to watch a soccer game. The Bears offense sent several shots toward the Pirate goal in the game’s early minutes. Vidor’s defense was up to the task as they prevented the Bears from scoring. Then, the Pirates reversed the trend and took control of the game. At the 13-minute mark, the Pirates scored the game’s opening goal when Greenway stole the ball in the upper right corner and then sent a beautiful crossing shot in front of the Bears’ goal. Johnson headed the pass into the goal from 10 yards deep for a 1-0 Pirate lead. Johnson scored again four minutes later when he kicked a 10-yard kick shot from the right side. Greenway scored the Pirates’ third goal when he booted a shot that deflected off a Bear defender and into the net. Greenway’s goal occurred with twelve minutes remaining in the first half. The first half ended with the Pirates comfortably enjoying a 3-0 margin. The Bears began their comeback in the second half. In the half’s opening minute, Scalfano scored for the Bears when his powerful 15-yard shot made contact with the Pirate goalie’s hands and continued into the net. After a near-miss shot that bounced off the goal post in the middle of the second half, Bonneaux scored his goal with eight minutes remaining in the game. Bonneaux’s close-range shot was against a packed Vidor defense. With Vidor clinging to a 3-2 lead, the end of the game was suspenseful. Each team made a strong effort to win the game. The Bears made several runs against a stout Pirate defense. The Bears were unable to score again as time ran out. Bears Coach Matt Wedel reflected on the battle. “It was a hard fought contest. The Pirates won the first half, we won the second halfâ€, said Wedel. “Unfortunately, it was too little, too late.†Vidor advances to the next round of the playoffs. For the Bears, they will have to wait until next year.

Which goal did Greenway score? The 1st, 2nd , or 3rd?

No, I'm just a sports fan who learned to love soccer. My son dragged me into it, but now I wish that I had learned about the sport a lot sooner. Thanks for the compliment.

It was a good game. Vidor jumped out to a 3-0 lead with some nice passing. LC-M battled back strong to make the score 3-2. But it was too little, too late. Fun game for the fans to watch. The officiating was some of the best that I have seen all season. The attendance was good and they made some noise. Games like this one will make soccer a more popular sport. Way to go Pirates and Bears.

Geez, Bullets. Are you having a bad day or something?? Calling somebody a "jackass" seemed a little strong to me. I detected no tone in Newcastle's response. Are you in a position of authority at your job? Just wondering. I can't wait for the game. Its gonna be a good one. GO BEARS !!!!!

The Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears soccer team will enter the playoffs as the district’s third place team following a 2-1 road victory over the Central Jaguars on Tuesday night. Seth Arteaga carried the Bears by scoring both goals; while Tommy Jones earned two assists. The Bears worked hard to defeat a physical Jaguar team. “It was like a train wreck out there,†commented Bears Coach Matt Wedel on the game’s rough action. Although the Bears outshot their opponent by a 24-9 margin, the Jaguars jumped out to a 1-0 lead at the 17 minute mark on their first shot of the game. The score occurred on a breakaway opportunity by the Jaguars. Two minutes later, Seth Arteaga tied the game with an impressive goal. Jones spotted Arteaga near the ten-yard line with one defender to beat. “Tommy gave me a perfect passâ€, Arteaga said. “The goalie came out to defend me and my kick slipped under him.†Arteaga’s shot was angled to the back right post. Jones’ most significant contribution of the night occurred on the game-winning score with three minutes remaining in the first half. Jones gained possession for the Bears when he hustled to win a race for the ball. Jones then kicked the ball off a Jaguar player that bounced out-of-bounds near of the forty yard line. Jones scrambled to grab the ball and quickly threw a long pass to Arteaga. “I saw Seth open downfieldâ€, said Jones. “I was hoping to get the throw to reach him.†The strong throw was accurate enough to allow Arteaga to immediately attack the goal. When the goalie came out of the box to defend the penetration, Arteaga calmly kicked a lobbed shot over the goalie from five yards out. Wedel was appreciative of Arteaga and Jones’ efforts. “It was a beautiful throw-in by Tommyâ€, said Wedel. “It was his best game of the season.†With six goals in the past three games, Arteaga has been on a hot streak. “Seth showed off his footwork tonightâ€, said Wedel. “Seth and T.C. Scalfano work well together. Scalfano demands lots of attention from the opposition’s defense, so it gives Seth room to operate,†Wedel commented. The Bears defense then clamped down to prevent the Jaguars from scoring for the remainder of the game. Goalie Christian Diaz entered the game for an injured Max Perkins at the beginning of the second half. “Christian’s play was outstanding,†noted Wedel. “He came off the bench to make some great saves.†Defender Brett Heil also shined for the Bears. “Brett played one heck of a game for usâ€, Wedel said. And, “we are fortunate to have the two midfielders, Garhett Bonneaux and Vance Foster, who can control the game for us.†The Bears next objective is to prepare for the playoffs. The Bears will face the Vidor Pirates at the end of next week at an undecided location. “We are concentrating on getting ready for the playoffsâ€, said Wedel. The Bears are relatively healthy and eager to battle a familiar cross-county rival.

I'll go to battle with the entire LC-M Bears' backline any day of the week. Colt Arteaga, Brett Heil, and Darrell Lawrence are all very talented and possess great instincts. They usually dribble around the forward that they stole the ball from.

With second place at stake, the Little Cypress-Mauriceville Bears soccer team earned a 1-1 tie against the Port Neches Groves Indians on Friday night at Battlin’ Bears Stadium. The Indians won the shoot-out 4-2 to take sole possession of second place in the district. The game was an entertaining and hard-fought contest that was tied after two overtime periods. The Bears out-shot the Indians by a 24-11 margin. The Bears also appeared to have the upper hand over the Indians. “The difference was just one unlucky goal. We were one bounce from winning the gameâ€, according to Bears Coach Matt Wedel. The "unlucky" goal occurred in the first half at the twenty minute mark. "The ball was bouncing around in front of our goal like a pinball," said Wedel for what seemed like an eternity. "We couldn't clear the ball from our goal quick enough and they headed it into the goal. The header gave the Indians a 1-0 lead that stood to halftime. During the second half, the Indians defense withstood several offensive runs to prevent the Bears from scoring. Then, Captain T.C. Scalfano came to the Bears' rescue. At approximately the sixty minute mark, Scott Karasik delivered a nice pass to Scalfano at the middle of the field. “I turned around with the ballâ€, described Scalfano. “A defender charged at me so I went to my left. I then shot the ball to the upper corner and it went in.†Scalfano’s shot, with several Indian surrounding him, was from the ten yard line. “It was a gorgeous shotâ€, said Wedel. Indians’ Coach Don Sandell was also impressed with Scalfano’s play. “Our whole defense was set up to shut #15 (Scalfano’s number) downâ€, Sandell said. “I told my team ‘do not let him shoot’ and then he made that shot.†“That shot†tied the game at 1-1. Neither team was able to score for the remainder of the second half. In the two overtime periods, the two tired teams struggled to score. After the spirited play during regulation time, the teams mustered up what energy that they had left. Both teams' strong determination allowed them to play hard as their defenses successfully prevented any goals. The tied game forced the game to a shoot-out. Scalfano and Ben O’Fiel powered their kicks into goals for the Bears. The Indians, however, won the shoot-out 4-2. Although disappointed with the tie, Wedel was proud of his team’s play. “It was a very intense game. Both teams were aware that we were playing for second place tonight,†Wedel commented. “The whole team played well. And, Scalfano played really well.†The Bears travel to Beaumont on Tuesday to play the Central Jaguars for the final game of the district schedule. Friday’s game was senior night for the Bears. The team celebrated the last home game of the season by honoring its seniors. The team recognized Colt Arteaga, Seth Arteaga, Howard Griffin, Greg Gravett, Brett Heil, Darrell Lawrence, Ben O’Fiel, Max Perkins, T.C. Scalfano, and manager Jordan Brooks for their many and profound contributions to the team. “Senior night was better than I thought it would beâ€, said three-year varsity defender Brett Heil. “I gave my all. We played from the heart starting at the game’s opening kick-off. It was my last time to play on this field and I wanted to do my best.†The talented group of seniors played their best Friday night. They will be sorely missed.