News for the Week of April 29, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 4/29/2013:

Alumni Game:
We want to give our Alumni plenty of time to make plans, so we are going to announce that our annual Alumni Reunion game & Picnic will be held this year on Sat. July 13, 2013.  We are going to try something new with the location this year and move it over to the ALHS stadium field.  Many of our Alumni have not seen or played on the new artificial turf and renovated stadium.  Game will start around 4:00 p.m. with the picnic at 5:30 p.m.  Hope to see you there!


Soccer Camp:
We are going to add something new for this summer - both the boys and the girls teams will be holding a joint youth soccer camp.  The camp will be primarily targeted towards players in the ALSO system and, of course, players from other communities would be welcome also.  The dates will be 7/29 -7/31 and will run from 8 - 11 am.  More details to come.


Video of the Week:
With the Avon Lake school levy coming up in about 10 days, I found a couple of videos endorsing the levy featuring some people connected to our program. One has former Academic All-American player Trisha Wladecki and the other has incoming freshman mom Julie Norris.

Trisha Wladecki:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GUvede8jW8Q

Julie Norris:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eqxu2ozobOc

Next week we are going to put up a JV game video from the past season.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

Winning as a team is better than anything. It's great to share success. - Jim Harbaugh - football coach

When your legs give out, play with your heart

What do you do with a mistake: recognize it, admit it, learn from it, forget it. - Dean Smith - basketball coach

Nothing will work unless you do. - John Wooden - basketball coach

Great moments... are born from great opportunity. And that's what you have here. -"Miracle"

The best athletes never started as the best athletes.

You've got what it takes, but it will take everything you got.

Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.

News for the Week of April 22, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 4/22/2013:

Coaching News:
We are pleased to announce that Sarah Lyons will become assistant Varsity coach for the 2013 season.  Sarah is a phys ed teacher in the Avon Lake school system, is a middle school basketball coach at Learwood, and is also a 2007 ALHS graduate.  She was a three sport athlete during her high school career playing soccer, basketball, & track. 

In soccer, she was a key player on our first time District Championship team in 2006.  She was also recipient of All-SWC and All-County honors and was a 3 yr. letter winner.  Mainly a defender, she scored 6 goals and had 5 assists in her high school career.  Additionally, she was the first girls recipient of the Gino Strippoli Memorial scholarship.  In Basketball, she was a member of the last Shoregals team to win a SWC conference championship in the 2005-06 season and was a 2 yr. letter winner.  She was a four year member of the Track team. 

Sarah is yet another part of the Lyons family athletic dynasty here in Avon Lake.  All three of her sisters also played soccer and her brother John kicked the winning field goal for Avon Lake in the 2003 State Championship football game.  Her youngest brother Joey is currently a member of the cross country and swimming teams at ALHS.  We look forward to having a Shoregal legacy return and coach in our program - Congrats to Sarah!!

Shorepals Meeting:
We have scheduled our first Shorepals meeting of the year for Tuesday April 23rd at 7:00 p.m. at the Old Firehouse at the corner of Lake Rd. and Rt. 83. We need to get volunteers for the various committees along with starting to work through to do lists for those committees. Hope to see you there!!


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring the 2009 season highlight video. Notice that ALHS Memorial stadium still had grass - seems like a distant memory now.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L3k90ESQ_4mCJGDqAJuf-g0

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning. - Pele

I don't do things HALF-HEARTEDLY. Because I know if I do, then I can expect HALF-HEARTED results. - Michael Jordan

Think big, believe big, act big, and the results will be big.

(A)dversity

(T)alent
(H)ard work
(L)ethal
(E)nergetic
(T)ough
(E)lite

There may be people that have more talent than you, but there's no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do. - Derek Jeter

Getting knocked down is not a sin; laying there is - Frank Lauterbur - Univ. of Toledo football coach

Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.

News for the Week of April 15, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 4/15/2013:


Parent Meeting:
There will be a mandatory meeting for parents on Wednesday April 17th at 7:30 p.m. in Room 114 at ALHS. The coaching staff will be discussing the summer calendar and events along with the tryout procedure in the Fall.


Shorepals Meeting:
We have also scheduled our first Shorepals meeting of the year for Tuesday April 23rd at 7:00 p.m. at the Old Firehouse at the corner of Lake Rd. and Rt. 83. We need to get volunteers for the various committees along with starting to work through to do lists for those committees. Hope to see you there!!


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring the 2008 season highlight video.  Notice that ALHS Memorial stadium still had grass - seems like a distant memory now.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L0lqeTUoBhEEYP003bTb7wD&feature=view_all

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

To give anything less than your best is to give away the gift. - Steve Prefontaine

If you don't have confidence, you'll always find a way not to win. - Carl Lewis
 

If you don't invest very much, then defeat doesn't hurt very much and winning is not very exciting. - Dick Vermeil

 

The superior man blames himself. The inferior man blames others. - Don Shula

 

There is no glory in practice, but without practice, there is no glory... -Unknown

 

Mediocrity will always try to drag excellence down to its level. Don't trade your superiority for their inferiority.

 
Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.

News for the Week of April 8, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 4/8/2013:

Parent Meeting:
There will be a mandatory meeting for parents on Tuesday April 17th at 7:30 p.m. in Room 114 at ALHS.  The coaching staff will be discussing the summer calendar and events along with the tryout procedure in the Fall.


Shorepals Meeting:
We have also scheduled our first Shorepals meeting of the year for Tuesday April 23rd at 7:00 p.m. at the Old Firehouse at the corner of Lake Rd. and Rt. 83.  We need to get volunteers for the various committees along with starting to work through to do lists for those committees.  Hope to see you there!! 


Shoregals in the News:
From time to time, we like to mention noteworthy items that have been achieved by our players. We are pleased to relate that Emily Peterson was elected President of the ALHS Key Club for the 2013 -14 school year.  Emily is a junior who is a defender for the Shoregals.


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring last year's regular season game against Amherst which they won 4-1.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L2JR-2_-coqLYCkkccet_Ec&feature=view_all

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

It takes team work to make the dream work

I've learned that something constructive comes from every defeat. - Tom Landry

To uncover your true potential you must first find your own limits and then you have to have the courage to blow past them. - Picabo Street

All things are possible for those who believe. - Gail Devers (track & field)

It is not what happens to you, but how you respond to what happens to you.

You don't get it by wishing, staring, or hoping. You don't get it easy. You get it by working your ass off every single day.

Shoregal Website:

Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.

News for the Week of April 1, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 4/1/2013:

Southwestern Conference News:
Last week the Southwestern Conference (SWC) voted to allow Lakewood and Midview to join the league beginning with the 2015-2016 school year. These two schools will join with Avon, who is coming aboard that year also, to make the SWC into a 10 team league.  Soccer wise, we already know that Avon has a very fine girls program.   Midview had a strong, respected program about 10 years ago and are working to get back to that level.  Lakewood's program is constantly improving also.  The addition of these 3 schools is going to make girls soccer more competitive than ever in the SWC which means that we need to work harder than ever to keep pace.  There has also been talk that Rocky River and North Ridgeville will eventually join the league and that remains to be seen.  Rocky River would bring another top flight program into the league and we have North Ridgeville on the schedule this year, so we will get to see what their talent level is.  New changes bring new challenges and we need to continue to stay at the top.


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring last year's regular season game against North Olmsted which ended in a 0-0 draw.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L2aYrKpc5qlEq2bvGMijBXf&feature=view_all

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

The team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion. - Mia Hamm (soccer)

Competitors take bad breaks and use them to drive themselves. Quitters take bad breaks & use them as reasons to give up. - Nancy Lopez (golf)

It's important to give it all you have while you have the chance. - Shania Twain

True motivation comes from within. No one can hand it to you, but no one can take it away, either.

Play every game as if it's your last.

Hard days are the best because that's when champions are made. - Gabby Douglas (gymnast)

Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.


Happy Easter to all our soccer families and have a safe and relaxing Spring Break!

News for the Week of March 25, 2012

Program Notes for the Week of 3/25/2012:

The Buoy:
We would like to give a shout out to a former member of our coaching staff and friend of the program Nate Taylor who recently opened a new youth ministry center in Avon Lake called The Buoy.   Nate serves as the director of Youth Ministries at the United Church of Christ (UCC) in Avon Lake where many of our soccer families are members.  To read more about what The Buoy has to offer, please go to the link below:

http://www.cleveland.com/avon-lake/index.ssf/2013/03/new_avon_lake_youth_ministry_c.html#incart_river

Congrats and best of luck to Nate with this new program for area youths!!


College Soccer Section:
We have been presenting some information related to playing soccer in college and we will conclude our series this week.  This week we are going to present some information on NCAA Div. III schools and how they operate.


NCAA Div. III schools are typically small (less than 3,000 students), liberal arts, academically oriented schools. They are the largest of the three NCAA divisions and account for 40% of all colleges.  They are not allowed to offer athletic scholarships and you do not need to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. However, these colleges are usually generous with both academic scholarships and need based financial aid which they combine to bring their costs in line with that of a typical state school. On the soccer side, these schools are aligned in conferences, play for a national championship, and feature a level of play which is attainable for the typical Avon Lake player. Two recent graduates who are attending D-III schools and playing soccer are Dana & Jillian Strimbu who play for Otterbein University. There are 446 D-III schools across the U. S. and Avon Lake is located within reasonable reach of 94 schools in a 4 state area as follows:

Ohio - 22

Pennsylvania - 55

Michigan - 7

Indiana - 10


The Ohio schools are listed as follows:

Baldwin-Wallace
Kenyon College
Bluffton Univ.
Capital Univ.
Marietta College
Case Western Reserve Univ.
Univ. of Mount Union
College of Mt. St. Joseph
Muskingum Univ.
The College of Wooster
Oberlin College
Defiance College
Ohio Northern Univ.
Denison Univ.
Ohio Wesleyan Univ.
Heidelberg Univ.
Otterbein Univ.
Hiram College
Wilmington College
John Carroll Univ.
Wittenberg Univ.
Franciscan Univ. of Steubenville

Almost half of the Ohio schools play in the Ohio Athletic Conference which is one of the premier D-III conferences in the country. Take some time to research and visit these schools, you may be surprised at what they have to offer.


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring last year's game against Strongsville which they won by score of 3-0. Remember that Strongsville made it to the State final four before falling to eventual champion Perrysburg.  We were able to be very competitive in this game.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L2RUJCYmuvUxzAXcgAeuSy6&feature=view_all

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

Losing is a learning experience. It teaches you humility. It teaches you to work harder. It's also a powerful motivator. - Yogi Berra

Winning doesn't always mean being first. Winning means you're doing better than you've ever done before. - Bonnie Blair (speed skater)

The triumph can’t be had without the struggle. —Wilma Rudolph (track & field)

You can't put limits on your goals, the more you dream, the farther you will get.

Obsessed is just a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated.

Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.


Happy Easter to all our soccer families and have a safe and relaxing Spring Break!

News for the Week of March 18, 2013

Program Notes for the Week of 3/18/2013:

Coaching News:
It's official now and was what we expected - Daegen Duvall has been hired as Head Coach for the 2013 season.  Daegen will also be pursuing his "A" license this summer which is the highest level license a U.S. coach may receive.  Also, Jessica Carey will be returning for her third season with Shoregals.  Todd Kauffman will be returning if his schedule permits - he is interviewing for full time employment and may not be available in the afternoons any longer.  Congrats and best of luck to our coaching staff!!


College Soccer Section:
We have been presenting some information related to playing soccer in college and we will continue that over the next few weeks. This week we are going to present some information on the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC).

The West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) is made up of 15 schools primarily in West Virginia with a few in Pennsylvania. Of the 15 schools, 11 currently field women’s soccer teams. All the schools are NCAA Div. 2 programs which means that athletic scholarships are available. The schools are as follows:

Wheeling Jesuit Univ.
West Virginia Wesleyan College
Seton Hill Univ.
Concord Univ.
Shepherd Univ.
Davis and Elkins College
Univ. Pitt-Johnstown
Univ. of Charleston
Ohio Valley Univ.
Alderson- Broaddus College
West Liberty Univ.

The profile for these colleges are that they are small schools with a strong Christian influence. The schools range in size from 600 – 1,000 students. Avon Lake High School has roughly 1,200 students in comparison with an average class size of 300. So these colleges are anywhere from half the size of ALHS to close to the size of the high school. Many of the schools have a strong Christian influence even to the point where bible study classes are a required part of the curriculum and regular attendance at chapel services is also required. As a parent, you can expect many of these colleges to have “dry” campuses. This may be exactly the kind of environment that you are looking for your daughter’s college experience. Other positive attributes are if your daughter likes outdoor activities such as skiing, camping, hiking, whitewater rafting, then you are in one of the best locations in the country for those types of activities. The recreational opportunities are outstanding and that hopefully overrides the urge for partying. On the soccer side, competition for scholarships is going to be limited because of the small size of the schools which increases the likelihood of your daughter receiving money. Also, the remaining 4 schools without women’s soccer programs probably will start programs in the near future which means more chances to play and more scholarship money available. These are definitely programs where Avon Lake girls can succeed. You would need to visit to see if they may be right for your daughter.


Video of the Week:
We are going to continue to add new videos each week and this week we are featuring the Senior Night game from last season against Midpark which was played to 1-1 draw. This game was highlighted by an excellent goal off a free kick from Kailey McClain.  Her goal is at the 16:00 min. mark in Part 3.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz6j-jW5q1L0PbFYpAkY_COYf6rO3Qp7a&feature=view_all

Look forward to us adding more games in the coming weeks.


Shorty Sez:
We are going to continue presenting motivtional sayings coming from the Twitter site called Women Sports which may be found at:

https://twitter.com/Women_Sports

Once there, here are some selected examples of tweets over the past week. Hope that you find something that inspires you here:

I always want to give more than I gave yesterday. -Allyson Felix (track & field)

You can either throw in the towel or use it to wipe the sweat off your face

Reaching my goal doesn't prove what I'm made of. NOT QUITTING does

You have to believe in yourself when no one else does - that makes you a winner right there. - Venus Williams

Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself. - Gail Devers (track & field)

There are always new, grander challenges to confront, and a true winner will embrace each one. - Mia Hamm (soccer)


Shoregal Website:
Don't forget to visit our Shoregal website at:

www.alshoregalsoccer.org

There you will find more in depth stats and stories than we can fit on our blog.