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2002-03 Season Summary |
The Season
Coach's Corner
History & Records
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HC Falls Short in MCC Tournament Despite having one of their best efforts of the season, the Foresters came up short, losing 2-1 to the University of St. Francis in the first round of the Mid-Central Conference Tournament. The Cougars took the lead with a goal in the 39th minute, but HC rallied back to tie the match when Tim Caldwell put one in off an assist from Casey Cherry in the 55th minute. But it was the Cougars' goal in the 88th minute that sealed the win for them as it gave the Foresters too little time to mount a second comeback. "The difference today was bench play," said Coach DeCou. "Our bench was depleted with injuries, but USF was able to keep rotating people in and out. Today was our seventh one-goal loss of the season. With the number of injuries we had to overcome, my freshmen had to assume larger roles. The experience of the close losses and unexpected playing time will benefit the program in years to come." The men conclude their season with a record of 7-11-1. HC Destroys Franklin 9-0 Seven different players got in the scoring column as the Foresters destroyed Franklin College 9-0. HC was up 2-0 at the half, but really put their offense in gear in the second half, scoring seven goals between the 48th and the 81st minutes. The Caldwell brothers led the attack with Tim scoring two goals and dishing out an assist, while Luke tallied one goal and four assists. Brian Perry added two goals of his own and four Foresters, Denis Dreni, Jonathan Palma, Josh Miller, and Josh Wood, recorded their first goals of the season. "Today was a great overall team performance," said Coach DeCou. "We never allowed Franklin a chance to get going. We mounted attack after attack. This is a great way to get ready for Saturday's battle with St. Francis." With the win, the Foresters conclude their regular season schedule with a 7-10-1 record. The Foresters received the #7 seed in the MCC Tournament and will travel to #2 St. Francis for their first round match on Saturday, November 2 at noon. HC will be trying to avenge a 2-1 loss from earlier in the season. Foresters Held Scoreless Neither team was able to generate many scoring opportunities, but it was the #2-ranked team in NAIA Region VIII, Madonna University, that was able to capitalize on their chances to get the 2-0 win over the Foresters. With the Crusaders up 1-0, HC came up with their best opportunity of the day, but the shot that could have tied the game hit the crossbar. "At 1-1, the game would have taken on a different life," said Coach DeCou. "A couple of inches lower and we are right in there." Madonna's goal late in the first half put the game out of reach. "Other than the two lapses, today was the best we've played in two weeks," said DeCou. "Although today was a tough loss, we need to build off the positives and prepare for the conference tournament next weekend." With the loss, the men fall to 6-10-1 on the season. Manchester Shuts Out HC One Manchester goal in the 34th minute gave the Foresters their sixth one-goal loss of the season and dropped them to 6-9-1 on the season. Caught in transition, HC was unable to stop a Spartan counter-attack and gave up the lone goal of the game. The Foresters, while again creating some good scoring opportunities, were unable to finish. "Our passing wasn't as good today as we have been playing recently," said Coach DeCou. "We created some good opportunities, but we need to do a better job finishing." Foresters Cruise Past Moody HC's dynamic duo, Tim and Luke Caldwell, led the Forester charge against the Archers of Moody Bible Institute by accounting for all of HC's goals on the day. The brothers scored five times to Moody's one to carry the team to its sixth win of the season. The Archers took a 1-0 lead ten minutes into the game, but twelve minutes later, the brothers took over. Luke scored three goals and assisted Tim on another, while Tim scored twice and assisted Luke on two of his goals. "Once again the Caldwell brothers gave us the offensive lift we needed today," said Coach DeCou. "Their finishing was first-rate." After the win, the men now stand at 6-8-1 on the season. Foresters Come Up Short The St. Francis Cougars took advantage of a couple of Forester miscues and gave HC their fifth one-goal loss of the season, winning 2-1. Casey Cherry, back from a 3-week injury layoff, scored the Foresters' only goal in the waning moments of the match off an assist from Jonathan Palma. "We only allowed a couple of dangerous opportunities all day and St. Francis put their chances away while we struggled to find the back of the net," said Coach DeCou. "We played well for large chunks of the game, but we can't allow other teams easy opportunities when we aren't getting chances for ourselves." The loss drops the men to 5-8-1 on the season and 1-5-1 in the MCC. Foresters Tie Marian Despite playing two extra periods, the Foresters and the Marian College Knights remained dead-locked, having battled to a 1-1 tie. Marian got on the board first in the 35th minute, but five minutes later, HC's Tyler Radcliff leveled the match with his first collegiate goal when he headed in a cross from Luke Caldwell. Over the next 65 minutes, both teams had opportunities to take the lead, but were unable to finish. "We held our wits about us and showed great fight and grit as we were able to battle back," said Coach DeCou. "Courtney Hamilton was once again stellar in the net." The tie moves the men to 5-7-1 on the season and 1-4-1 in the MCC. Foresters Swamp Beavers The Foresters' unrelenting pressure throughout the match proved too much for Bluffton College as they swamped the Beavers 4-0, recording their highest offensive output of the season. Brothers Tim and Luke Caldwell combined for three of HC's goals and Luke assisted Scott Samson on the fourth. "The Caldwell brothers did a nice job of finishing," said Coach DeCou. "We were in complete control today and didn't necessarily play our best. Today was a good confidence booster." With the win, the men stand at 5-7 on the season. Foresters End Losing Streak The Foresters ended a 3-game losing skid with a 2-0 win over Rochester College (MI). Energized by a raucous Homecoming crowd, HC took control of the match early with the midfield setting the tempo. Brian Perry capitalized on a one-on-one opportunity with the Warrior keeper to put the Foresters up 1-0 at the 30 minute mark, and Tim Caldwell set up his brother Luke early in the second half to put the game out of reach. "The entire team played well, and hopefully we have pulled ourselves out of the funk we were in," said Coach DeCou. The win moves the Foresters to 4-7 on the season. IWU Topples Foresters The Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats capitalized on a Forester mental lapse and handed HC their fourth one-goal loss of the season, toppling the Foresters 1-0. HC mounted several attacks, but as has been their trouble on previous occasions, they failed to find the back of the net, while their opponent took advantage of a mistake. "We must learn to finish a team off and not give games away," said Coach DeCou. The loss drops the men to 3-7 on the season and 1-4 in the MCC. Foresters Fall in OT After mounting a 2-0 lead over Goshen College, the Foresters gave up an own goal that changed the momentum of the game and led to their demise. The Maple Leafs tied the match with two minutes remaining in regulation and scored the game-winner eight minutes into over-time on a well-placed free kick. HC's Tim Caldwell and Luke Caldwell both scored on assists from Denis Dreni to account for the Foresters' two goals. "Once again we played very well, but were unable to finish off an opponent," said Coach DeCou. "The breaks aren't going our way yet, but with the way we are playing, good things will come." The men fall to 3-6 on the season and 1-3 in the MCC. Foresters Fail To Finish The inability to finish on scoring opportunities led to the Foresters' demise as they fell to Olivet College 3-2. HC out-shot the Comets by ten and had more corner kicks, but just couldn't put the ball in the net. On the other hand, Olivet's Derrick Mudri capitalized on a couple defensive mistakes late in the first half to put the Comets up 2-0. HC's Tim Caldwell finally ended the Foresters' scoring drought off an assist from Marc Cameron in the 68th minute. Olivet responded with their third goal of the match, which would turn out to be the game-winner. Luke Caldwell's goal in the 86th minute gave the Foresters hope, but time ran out on their rally effort. "We have to bounce back and prepare for a huge conference match at Goshen Saturday night," said Coach DeCou. "It's time to put our inconsistency behind us and play to the level that we are capable." The loss drops the men to 3-5 on the season. Foresters Best Taylor After a 13-year drought, the Foresters finally up-rooted Taylor University 1-0 to move into the win column in the MCC. Steve Powell's goal in the 33rd minute lifted HC to their first win over the Trojans since 1989. The Foresters earned the win by maintaining possession for long spans of time and getting two outstanding saves from goalkeeper Courtney Hamilton to thwart Taylor's best scoring opportunities. "It's a great feeling to best your arch-rival," said Coach DeCou. "Anytime Taylor and Huntington get together, it's going to be a hard-fought match. Both sides played well, but we deserved the win today." The win moves the men to 3-4 on the season and 1-2 in the conference. Foresters End Losing Streak After playing to a scoreless tie at the end of regulation, the Foresters needed just four minutes of overtime to eke out a 1-0 win over Indiana Tech and end their 3-game losing streak. HC's Marc Cameron put in the game-winner off an assist from Luke Caldwell. The Foresters were the aggressors in the match, out-shooting the Warriors 22-8, but had trouble finding the back of the net. "We played much more aggressively tonight," said Coach DeCou. "We pressured their goal, but were unable to put it in. We did a great job of dictating the tempo and pace of the match." With the win, the Foresters improve to 2-3 on the season. Foresters Lose Fourth Straight Bethel College's Rafael Perez scored two minutes into the match and the Pilots never looked back, defeating the Foresters 6-0. An aggressive Pilot offense netted three more goals in the first half to make it 4-0 at halftime. In the second half, HC played more inspired soccer, but Bethel was able to capitalize two more times late in the half when the Foresters were forced to play a man short after Jeff Edgel's red card ejection. "My bench did a great job tonight," said Coach DeCou. "They were the bright spots, and hopefully we learn and improve following this tough loss." The loss makes their fourth straight and drops the men's record to 1-4 on the season and 0-2 in the MCC. HC Shutout by Urbana Despite having four more shots on goal and three more corner kicks than their opponent, the Foresters were unable to capitalize on any of their opportunities and fell 2-0 to Urbana University. After playing to a scoreless tie at the half, Urbana got on the board 16 minutes into the second half and solidified the win with a second goal 14 minutes later. "We must learn to never let up and play for 90 minutes," said Coach DeCou. "We created some great chances, but we have to quit digging a hole for ourselves." With the loss, the men fall to 1-3 on the season. Foresters Fall to Grace After playing 88 minutes of scoreless soccer, Grace College's Jean DeSouza got free behind the Forester defense and knocked in the only goal of the game to hand HC its first conference loss of the season. Forester goalkeeper Courtney Hamilton had his best outing recording 13 saves, but one mistake cost HC the game. "They capitalized on one of their chances, while we hit our shots directly at the keeper," said Coach DeCou. "If we are to challenge for the MCC title, these are the matches we must grind out for a victory." The loss drops the Forester to 1-2 on the season and 0-1 in the MCC. Foresters Fall to Calvin In the championship game of the Ralph Ketner Classic, Calvin College scored four unanswered goals to erase an early Forester lead as the Knights went on to win the Classic 4-2. HC's Marc Cameron scored just 3 minutes into the game on an assist from Jonathan Palma, but Calvin's Joel Veldhouse scored 15 minutes later to complete the first half scoring. Midway through the second half, a Forester penalty shifted the momentum decidedly in Calvin's favor. Veldhouse scored on the penalty kick and the Knights scored two more times in the next six minutes before the Foresters could regained their composure. Forester Casey Cherry's goal in the 81st minute ended the scoring for the game. "Calvin is one of the best teams we'll play all year," said Coach DeCou. "This match will better prepare us for our conference schedule." The loss drops the men to 1-1 on the season. Foresters Get 2-1 Win to Open
Season The men's soccer team put their first match in the win column with a 2-1 victory over Tri-State University at the Ralph Ketner Classic in Angola, Indiana. After playing to a scoreless tie at the half, HC's Marc Cameron got the Foresters on the board a minute and a half into the second period with an unassisted goal. Five minutes later, Luke Caldwell netted the game-winner on an assist from Brian Perry. HC gave up a Tri-State goal at the 58 minute mark, but then held the Thunder scoreless to rest of the way to get the win. A win against Calvin College tomorrow will clinch the Classic championship.
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