If you look up the definition of "Tale of Two Halves", you will see a box score of this game. The Red Devils played one of their best halves of the year in the first half of this matchup, entering the second half up 6-0. North's big 2M Ross Knight was neutralized by the tremendous play of our 2M guards Faust, Entwistle and Duncan and our offense was patient, taking only premium shots.
The wheels fell off in the second half as Chaminade relaxed, abandoned the defensive game plan and forced shots from the perimeter. In the 3rd quarter, the Vikings of Parkway North scored three goals from the left wing that had been vacated by a Red Devil defender trying to steal a hole pass. Our boys know, as do our parents, that making mistake is okay, but it's repeating that mistake which frustrates your coach.
Things that went right:
- 2M defense
- Everything in the first half
Things that went not so right:
- Playing too low in the water, especially in the second half
- Offensive patience in the second half, including shot selection
- Leaving the wing on defense...in the second half
Goals: Kubik - 4, Benage - 2, Duncan - 1, Meara - 1
Assists: Stabler - 2, Arnold - 1, Benage - 1, Glauber - 1, Kubik - 1, Meara - 1
Steals: Meara - 3, Stabler - 2, Benage - 1, Entwistle - 1, Faust - 1, Fernandez - 1, Hoette - 1, Kubik - 1
Kickouts: NONE!
Saves: Stabler - 13
Player of the Game: 3-way tie between Danny Faust, Jake Entwistle and Chris Duncan for their stellar 2M defense.
Up Next: The Round Robin stage of the DeSmet Invite at 7:00 PM on Thursday April 10th v. Lindbergh @ Lindbergh. This is a varsity only tournament.
2 comments:
As a spectator of the game, I have to say that I find your analysis a bit ... off. I would not say that the 2-meter guard play neutralized the "big 2m" for North. He held his own against the guards in a pretty physical battle. (As an aside, you may want to tell your guards to stop swimming over the top when they front, or they're going to start drawing kickouts from better refs. I've seen that clown before, and he has no idea how to call a game in hole.)
What ended up being the difference maker was North's passing on the perimeter. Passes to the set sailed into the defender's back or were up in the air. There wasn't enough crossing to work the ball into the middle. I'm not sure you could've thrown Zenk back at set and had it make much of a difference.
For full disclosure, I'm a North fan and former player, having graduated from there a couple years ago. I don't want to take anything away from your team, as you're certainly one of the top ones in the St. Louis area. But I saw the game playing out a little differently.
"I'm not sure you could've thrown Zenk back at set and had it make much of a difference."
We'll take that as a huge compliment.
To say "he held his own" depends on your definition. Ross did a good job getting and keeping position, but we recognized that he wanted to set outside 5 and draw the foul so we played behind and didn't foul. He's a good player, but his only goal came from pressuring the goalie and our inability to recognize that he needed help. "Neutralize" was the best word I could come up with to describe how we handled him. If you prefer "shut down", I can use that next time.
As far as refs, Emery is a good one. We've guarded hole the same way all season and refs have called it pretty much the same, especially when the 2M is using the bottom to submarine our defender.
Thanks for reading and posting, even if you disagree. We wish North all the success and would love a rematch in the state tournament.
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