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 Team News |
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Monday, August 11
TEAM CAMP TIME!
 Team camp is here! And with it, the beginning of another great season. Team camp is a special event on many levels. It helps establish a tone of work ethic and effort. It is a magnificent team bonding opportunity we are not 16 players just showing up to play the game, we are one team. And, of course, there is the obvious benefit of improving technical and tactical skills as we learn from day to day.
Our camp will run 9:00am to 11:30am, Aug 11th-15th at Oakland Christian School, 3075 Shimmons Road, Auburn Hills. Oakland Christian is located at Shimmons & Dexter roads north of Walton and west of Squirrel (you can enter from either main road).
Dexter runs north off Walton Blvd, west of Squirrel Rd.
Shimmons Rd. runs west off Squirrel, north of Walton
Either one will lead you directly to the school.
PLEASE NOTE:
Regular team training sessions will resume Monday, 18 Aug. We will not have regular team practice sessions the week of team camp.
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Monday, May 21
What is OFFSIDE?
 Here is an outstanding (and handy) explanation of what does and what does not constitute an offside violation. Click Here to start the animated video or just click the picture of the linesman.
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DAILY TRAINING LOGS
Training Logs will be due to me at the 1st practice of each week. To download extra copies, click here or click on the picture.
Your rate and level of skill and development as a player is mostly up to you. I can show you HOW to become the best player you can be - but only YOU can make the decision to CHOOSE to become the best player you can be. If you commit yourself to the 20-30 minutes a day that I suggest, you WILL be well on you way toward that goal.
Go to the Pride Training Page for more details about the 1000 Touches Warm-up, the 1000 Touches Workout and the Touch Ladder. Go to the Safety Page for important information about proper warm-up, stretching, cool-down and why these thing are so very important to your health and safety.
Lightning Applies All The Heat 29 April 2007
 |  | | Maddie attacks wide while Shannon prepares for the serve |
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RSSC Lightning 3 BASC Heat 0
Lightning followed up on yesterdays success by turning it up a notch and earning a shutout in a dominant performance against the visiting Bay Area Heat. Once again, great passing, vision, communication led to the excellent outing.
You players are looking and playing fantastic so far this season. Keep up the great work.
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Thursday, May 31
Strong Comeback Earns Impressive Win
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RSSC Lightning 2 Lobos 1
Lightning traveled to Clarkson for the second league match against Lobos. The grass on the game field was uncommonly long which would make for a much slower game than normal. As in the first match Lobos scored first but Lightning remained unrattled and as they began to adjust to the field conditions, their usual great team play and communication begain to shine through and they established control of the match play and pace. Lightning equalized before halftime as Maria beat her defender to create a breakaway and made no mistake with the finish.
The game winner came in the second half on a lovely restart 20 yard out to the right of goal. MaryJo played the touch to Bella who served a textbook ball to the far post area where Shannon got on the end of it with a perfectly timed run to one-timed the ball home. Lightning kept the pressure on for the majority of the match and what chance Lobos might create were thwarted by the stubborn defense and the shot-stopping on Clary in the net.
It was another fine team win to keep the fantastic spring season going for this exceptional team.
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Tuesday, May 15
The Wolf At Our Heels 12 May 2007
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RSSC Lightning 4 LOBOS 2
Lobos came out strong today and gave Lightning a very strong challenge. Both teams played attractive attacking soccer and displayed excellent individual skill as well as great ball movement among the teams. Lobos struck first and scored early to take the lead. Lightning tied it up several minutes later and then pulled ahead 2-1. But before halftime Lobos drew level again and carried a 2-2 tied score into halftime.
Lightning came out for the second half, still looking strong and took great advantage of their opportunities. The go ahead goal came off a restart taken by Bella and served across the face of the goal and rang off the far post. Meanwhile, Kari who was attacking the far post in time with Bellas service, knocked the rebounding ball directly out of the air into the back of the net for the score. The insurance goal Came from a Carley Harvey corner kick that was half cleared right back to Carley on the extreme right flank. Carley drove a low driven cross through the box and MaryJo, perfectly positioned on the far post coolly redirected the cross into the open net to finish the bang-bang play.
It was a very nice win on a fantastic full team effort against a good, strong opponent. EXCELLENT game girls. Keep up the great work.
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Saturday, May 19
Heat Loss
RSCC Lightning 3 - BASC Heat 0
Lightning hit the road Saturday morning to Bay Area for thier second meeting of the spring. Different field, same result. The opponent were simply unable to keep pace with Lighining as consistant ball movement and attacking preasure kept Heat on their heels all morning.
Lightning tucked away three goals for a convincing win and head into the Pacesetter Invitational looking strong and playing well.
 | | All business on the field; all smiles off |
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News Flash 5 May 2007
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RSSC Lightning 5 FYSC Flash 2
It was a lean and trim Lightning roster that traveled to Fraser this weekend with 5 players out either sick or with previous commitments. But that did not rattle the team in the least. With Carley K back in goal for Lighting, Shannon, Bella, Kari, Maria, Taylor and KK took care of business on the field. Rotating the single sub every 2 & 3 minutes to keep everybody fresh, the team played with exceptional focus, creativity, and a wonderful combination of toughness and fineness. Use of support, switching the field, quick combination play, team communication all these aspects of the game that make a team play great, were in evidence today.
It was Carley K, with excellent shot stopping and an uncanny accuracy in distribution (only 1 punt over half-field), it was KK patrolling the back with skill and confidence all game long, It was Bella, Kari & Maria partnering up with KK on defense in their turn and making the defense rock solid. And then those three with Shannon and Taylor up front passing, combining, attacking and creating havoc for the Flash defense and keeper.
Goals resulted in abundance and Flash seemed like they didnt know what hit them. Two of my three favorite moments of the match though had nothing to do with the goals. The first was and amazing combination sequence started from KK in the back and then continued between Bella & Maria all the way up the right flank as they tic-tac-toed their way through the Flash defense I think coach Sandi & I counted 6 one-touch & two-touch passing movements in that sequence which resulted in a corned kick for us. The second was Karis goal and the reason I loved that one so much was because of the pass that led to it from way out to the right of goal near the endline and the ball was beautifully played at a back angle (just the way we worked on it last week!) and Kari, correctly in a great position was able to one-time it home thanks to that great pass. (I cannot remember who mad the pass though let me know so I can write it here). But the single most memorable moment of the day (possibly the season so far) was when a Fraser player tried to send a long ball into our end but hit Kari square in the face from only 4 yards away (the ball was hit so hard that it rebounded 6 yards the other way!). If I had had more than an instant to digest the moment, Im sure I would have began to wonder how badly she was hurt and asked the ref for permission to enter the field and check on her. But I didnt have that amount of time to worry because even as the ball was bouncing off her face and heading the other way, Kari just started LAUGHING. And then she went and collected the ball and passed it across the goal.
Coach Sandi (who is a plenty tough player herself) just looked at me in amazement and said Wow now thats tough.
Yeah. Tough, creative, skilled, finessed, focused, technically strong, tactically solid, communicative you girls were all that stuff today and more. I cannot praise you more highly for such a great outing. All I know it this: If I were the Fraser team, heres what Id be thinking
Geez! If thats only half their team, how in the world are we ganna be able to play against their entire team!?
Well, we dont need to worry about answering that question for another few weeks. Just for now, lets keep up the fantastic work and get ready for this weekends homestand against Lobos and Grosse Pointe.
See you on the training fields.
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Lightning Strikes Twice Against Berkley 28 April 2007
RSSC Lightning 2 BYSC 1
Lightning took a well-earned victory from Berkley today to complete the home & home sweep. It was a tighter match today than last weeks wide open lots-of-goals affair. Lighting opened up the scoring with a laser of a shot that grazed off the crossbar and was redirected almost straight down to the ground
BUT it did cross the endline to count for the goal.
Berkley came back to tie it with a very nice goal of their own. Lightning once again carried play throughout the match and created numerous scoring chances, many of which went just wide a function of those tiny little hockey-sized goals. The game winner came from a converted PK. Carley K., playing as a passcard guest from Coach Danis team, chalks up her first win in her first appearance as Goalkeeper for Lightning White.
Two goals to take the victory today. Two strong wins to open up your season and take the spring series against Berkley. Fantastic Job Girls! Tomorrow were back home against Bay Area. Can't wait.
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Hat Trick Does The Trick 13 May 2007
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RSSC Lightning 3 GPSA Breakers 1
Grosse Point Breaker and Lightning both entered the match today undefeated so this promised to be an exciting game and great competition. That proved to be the case through the 1st half as both team created their own chances but neither was able to break the ice. The 1st half highlight came when Breakers were awarded a penalty kick halfway through the half. Bella was in goal and settled onto her line to face the shot. There was nothing half-way about the Breaker players shot. It was driven well and with force. But Bella was equal to the task, getting both hand up and behind the ball to deflect it up and over the bar to deny Grosse Pointe the early lead. The half ended in a scoreless tie.
That great save was only the harbinger of the amazing day Bella was to have. Early in the 2nd half coming out of the back, KK spotted her with space up the right side of the field and fed her the ball. A couple of touches into space and then Bella took the shot from outside the penalty area and bent it over the keeper into the far side panel. Her second goal came several minutes later. Grosse Pointe continued to press and made it a one-goal game with about twelve minutes left. Shannon was then assigned to man-mark the Braekers go-to player and deny her any further opportunity to possess the ball or get shots on goal. She performed the task to perfection. With that particular need addressed, Lightning began to have a bit more success again with ball possession and movement. Then with about 5 minutes left, the insurance goal sealed the deal as Bella completed her hat trick to top off a milestone performance.
Great Job everybody. Defense, your rock solid outings are the catalyst behind our ability to attack with force. And all of you, you keep getting better game by game in all aspects. The ball movement and vision you are playing with this spring is at an entirely different level than even last fall. Your communication is great and it is all resulting in you playing the best team soccer yet.
Keep up the great work.
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Lightning Rules the Storm 22 April 2007
RSSC Lightning 5 BYSC 3
Lightning opened up the spring season with a convincing win over Berkley Storm. Passing was sharp, and the Lightning attack was potent. Defense was solid while the primary defenders were taking care of business. Once we started switching things around however, Berkley broke through to tie up the score 3-3. Fortunately, once adjusting back to the roles best suited for the players, Rochester put the hammer down and finished the deal with two more goals and no more quality chances allowed to the opponent.
Great Job girls. Way to open the season up.
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Tuesday, September 12
LIGHTNING STRIKES IN PETOSKEY
RSSC Lightning '97: 4 - Rush Swoosh (Northville): 1
RSSC Lightning '97: 4 - Birmingham Springboks Green: 1
RSSC Lightning '97: 2 - Plymouth Lightning 97 Green: 1
RSSC Lightning '97: 4 - Birmingham Springbok Black: 0 (Semi-Final Match)
RSSC Lightning '97: 7 - Plymouth Lightning 97 Green: 0 (Championship Match)
Rochester's U-10 girls soccer team, RSSC Lightning '97, won the Autumn Blast Soccer Tournament in Petoskey, Michigan over the September 9, 2006 weekend. They started the tournament of the 12-team field on Saturday with a 4-1 victory over Rush Swoosh (Northville, MI). Their momentum and enthusiasm carried over to later that day as Lightning beat Birmingham Springboks Green 4-1.
They came out charged on Sunday as they defeating Plymouth Lightning 2-1 in a closely conteted match, and Birmingham Springboks Black 4-0. RSSC girls won the championship game later that day in a rematch against Plymouth Lightning 7-0.
I am so proud of you girls. You played absolutely beautiful soccer this weekend. It was great fun to watch and I know it must have been great fun to create. All your hard work is showing. Your work ethic, your intensity, your individual skills, your team movement ?all of it were spot on all weekend long.
I think?no, I KNOW a big reason for your victory in that last match was your fitness level. This is where your daily individual work is paying off. Now (I hope) you can see where all that bouncing comes into play. Your strength, endurance, touch and concentration (all factors that are being worked on if you are doing your homework as suggested) all stayed very sharp as the opponent's faded. That Plymouth team is a pretty good team, as they showed in our first match-up. But by the time that 3rd game of the day came around, I'm certain that fatigue was a major factor in their difficulties keeping pace with us. But because you are dedicating the 15-30 minutes every day to your touches and skills, your fitness came into play and you were prepared and were able to stay far more fresh and alert as the minutes piled up.
There is not a whole lot more to say, except keep it up. I love coaching you and I am very proud of you.
See you later this week.
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Monday, September 4
Season Opens with Troy City Classic
RSSC Lightning '97: 3 - Future Stars Blue: 2
RSSC Lightning '97: 0 - Troy Elite Red 1:
RSSC Lightning '97: 4 - Canton Quest Blue: 0
RSSC Lightning '97: 0 - Future Stars: 1
RSSC Lightning '97 opened up thier season with a runner-up placing at the Troy City Classic tournament over the Labor Day weekend.
The first macth-up was with a very strong Future Stars team. Lightning conceded an early goal, but held off the rest of the half. In the second half Lightning score 3 unanswered goals before allowing the Stars to score one more to pull within one. But that was it for the match. 3-2 victory for Lightning.
The second game was very flat and RSSC never got into the groove of it. Troy score an opportune goal and that was it for the game. 1-0 loss.
Sunday morning Lighning seemed to learn the lesson about ahowing up to every match and giving full intensity and effort. They rolled to a convincing 4-0 win over Cant Quest.
The finals featured a rematch between Lightning and Future Stars. It was a magnificent game both way with both teams very strong on defense and not allowing many chances. Unfortunately for Lightning, with a mere 10 seconds left in the match, Stars took advantage of a defensive gap and finished the shot to steal a 1-0 win and the championship standing.
Nonetheless, it was an excellent weekend for us. When we were on our game, we were very good. Hopefully the lessons regarding lapses in attention are learned and we can build on the strengths we a displaying.
Great job girls! Next weekend... road trip!
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Thursday, May 18
End Of Season Tournament
Novi Jaguars 97 are organizing and hosting an End of Season Tournament for the best teams of the '97 age group in the tri-county area. I've called the Novi caoch and accepted the invitation.
The tournament field will be comprised of teams from the first divisions of the 3 major select soccer leagues in the Metro Detroit area - Western Suburban Soccer League (WSSL), Michigan Youth Soccer League (MYSL), and Michigan Champions League (MCL).
The tournament will take place on June 10,2006 and run from 9:00am to 5:00pm. The format will be a single elimination tournament (16 teams); however each team will be guaranteed two games (consolation game). Every player will receive a plaque and the winning team will receive individual player trophies and the tourny champ will receive a 4-foot championship trophy.
The tournament will run from 9 am-5 pm. Game schedule is being finalized.
This is going to be a blast! Keep up the great work girls.
Coach Ken.
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Thursday, May 18
Pacesetter Tournament Schedule Set
Our schedule for 2006 PSI has been set.
game #1 - Saturday, 27 May, 11:15am - field 19
game #2 - Saturday, 27 May, 5:30pm - field 19
game #3 - Sunday, 28 May, 8:45am - field 19
game #4 - Sunday, 28 May, 3:00pm - field 19
Maps and field layouts are also available on the Tournament Website.
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Monday, October 31
Mujeres Que Corren Con Los Lobos
RSSC Lightning 6 LOBOS 0
 Lightning capped off an outstanding season against the visiting Lobos Sunday with and equally outstanding outing. Once again, the goals came from all directions (four different players scoring even more assisting). The highlight of the match (but how do you choose among them?) may well have been the first goal served in by Maddie from the right wing. Maria, with a brilliant run into the space to get on the end of it, volleyed it from knee-high with her left foot to bang it home into the side panel. Very lovely.
Bella & Maria combined once more in net minding duties to earn the team shutout. Defense was key once again as LOBOS were unable to sustain any sort of attack nor, indeed, to even get shots off that posed any real threat.
Girls, you have put together just a magnificent season for yourselves. All your hard work in training and on your own has shown up all season long on the game field. The wins are nice. But that is just the byproduct of the real success, which is this you are learning how the game works and you are playing lovely soccer. The things I see when I watch you play are how I measure your success:
 Deft touches.
Great passes to feet or to space for a teammate to run onto.
Eyes up to look for options BEFORE you have the ball.
Looking for each other off the ball.
Moving for each other off the ball.
Using the whole field and not just the bit between the goalposts
Talking to each other. Giving each other information.
Ball movement.
Take-on moves.
When I see these things, THATS when I say to myself these girls are succeeding. And I have seen a lot of that this season and more & more of it as the season has progressed. And THAT is why you should be very proud of yourselves, girls. You have worked very hard. Hard work begets success. And yours is well earned.
Great job.
Great team.
Excellent well done. Im very proud of every one of you.
Sunday, October 23
Getting To The Pointe
RSSC Lightning 2 - GPSA Breakers 1
 Lightning traveled to Grosse Pointe Saturday to play the Breakers. Rochester came out a bit flat in the first half and didnt create as many opportunities as normal. The shots we did take were going wide of the posts until we had a chance to adjust to those teeny-tiny little hockey goals they use down there. Breakers took advantage of their best chance in the half and were able to poke one through in a goalmouth scramble and came off at halftime carrying a 1-0 lead.
For the second half, the referee decided to show up and Lightning decided to get their heads in it. We started to find our groove, moving the ball around with more purpose and started getting in behind defense to create nice chances. At the same time, we buttoned down the defense a bit and did not give the Breakers a lot to work with.
As the half progressed and chances were created, the goals seemed inevitable. Finally, half way through the half, the equalizer came off the left foot of Maddie S. And then 5 minutes later Syd The Kid came through with the go-ahead goal. Breakers picked up their pace and urgency of play after the go-ahead goal was scored, but were denied by the defense and by an outstanding game-saving stop by Carly late in the game.
I like come-from-behind wins because they really test the character of a team. Its one thing to build a lead and hold onto it (and dont get me wrong given the choice, that is certainly the way Id rather have things go). But it takes a special fortitude and determination to climb out of a deficit situation. And I really like the way you players kept your heads, got down to business and worked your way back into the match for this well-earned victory.
Great job girls. Keep up the hard work.
Monday, October 17
Grosse Pointe Blanked
RSSC Lightning 3 GPSA Breakers 0
 On a brisk and cool autumn afternoon, Lightning continued their team oriented play as five different players contributed to the three goals and two assists delivered this match.
Team communication continues to improve and use of support was much more in evidence today than at any point of the season thus far. In particular, it was very good to see us finally using the goalkeeper as an option to relieve pressure when facing our own goal. I have been waiting for weeks to finally start seeing this aspect of play. Nice job! The two traits that Lightning have consistently shown a great aptitude for, ball movement and player movement off the ball, continued to show up all over the field among all the players.
On top of excellent possession and a strong attacking game, Lightning were absolutely on form defensively. Shots and chances at goal were limited to precious few for the Breakers, and behind the strong goalkeeping of Bella and Kari, the team earned their second league shutout of the season.
Every match has shown growth and improvement, girls. It is a result of your hard work and dedication to training. Lets keep focused. We play Breakers again this weekend, so you know theyll be gunning for us. Lets head on down to Grosse Pointe and take care of our game. The rest will take care of itself.
Well done, girls. Im very proud of you.
Sunday, October 23
Troy Under Seige
RSSC Lightning 6 - TSC Blue 0
 Lightning have really had Troys number this season. And in our 3rd and final meeting this autumn, that pattern still held.
Lightning came out strong, focused and ready to play today and really dominated all facets of the match en route to a convincing 6-0 victory. All elements of the game looked good today. Passing choices and creating passing options continued to improve. The take-on skills and moves youve been working on were in evidence throughout the match.
And once again, goals and assists were spread out amongst the entire roster the ultimate hallmark of teamwork. I love how all of you work so hard to do your part, but how you also rely on, and trust, and allow each other to do their part as well so that the TEAM can succeed as a whole.
It reminds me of one of my all time favorite quotes: "It is amazing what can be accomplished when no one cares who gets the credit." - Chuck McMann, Head Coach, McGill University.
I love that quote. And I love this team because this team embodies that quote.
Great job girls. Keep working hard. Keep working for each other.
Monday, October 10
Gator Raid
Sat: RSSC Lightning 2 PSG Gators 1
Sun: RSSC Lightning 3 PSG Gators 2
 This was the weekend both teams had circled on thier calendars. Both teams have been watching each other closely and have been impressed with the other. A late scheduling adjustment so that each team could attend the Global Tourny two weeks ago created a home & home weekend series for us and heightened the anticipation of the meeting that much more.
In two excruciatingly close games, Lightning edged out Gators by one goal each day. This was by far the most enjoyable and exciting soccer this team has been a part of so far this season. Both teams showed excellent skill, teamwork and determination.
There is no way to single out any given performance, because every player on the roster contributed mightily to the teams success this weekend. Team captain, Bella and Maria gamely stepped up to handle goalkeeper duties each day. Defense was solid as Carly & Emary were joined by Sydney, Kari and Maddie S. (who also contributed Saturdays two goals by attacking out of the back) to keep Gators attacking chances to a minimum. Shannon (2 goals Sunday), Bella, Mary Jo (1 goal Sunday), Michelle and Maddie H., and also Bella, Maria & Kari in their turns up top all worked incredibly well to keep the ball moving and create excellent chances. The end result was 5 goals over the weekend against a very good defensive team that had only given up 2 goals the entire season! THAT is great team work.
 This was just a magnificent job by all of you. Gators played great as well and the score line could easily have been reversed either day - and I would be just as proud of you if they had been. Because you played two great games this weekend. And the measure of your success is NOT if you win or lose the a given game, but HOW you played. When you play to your own highest potential, you are succeeding. When you bring the individual skills and team play to the game field that you work so hard at on the practice filed and on your own, you are succeeding. When each individual player contributes significantly to the team's overall performance the way all of you did this weekend, you are succeeding. And that is exactly what you did this weekend.
But on top of all that, this time round at least, we also were fortunate enough to pick up the Ws. That is well. Because they were hard fought and excellent-well earned. So these wins ought to be extra special for you.
Keep up the hard work girls. The rewards for all you hard work is showing up in how you are playing the game. And lets NOT lose our focus as the back half of the autumn season comes our way. You have worked hard to put yourselves into a good position. Lets not waste that hard work by losing focus now.
Great job.
Sunday, October 2
Blue Day For Troy
RSSC Lightning 8 - TSC Blue 0
 Lightning put it all together Sunday as they carried play the entire match through against Troy. All aspect of the game were clicking, including corner kick restarts which accounted for a lovely goal. After a squirrly first half yesterday, defense came out focused from the start and were rock solid the entire match.
Ball movement was very good, as was team communication. This was just an overall excellent outing for the Lightning girls.
Afterward, the team stayed to cheer on our sister team RSSC Thunder'97 who played Waterford Warriors to a very exciting 3-3 draw.
Great job everybody. Keep up your hard work. Next week we face a very talented and strong Gators team twice in a home & home weekend series. This will be a very big weekend for both teams. Keep working hard and keep your focus on improving yourself every day.
Saturday, October 1
Stars Fade
RSSC Lightning 5 - GSSC Star 3
 Genesee took advantage of early mistakes to take the lead twice in the 1st half on Saturday. But Lightning re-focused and minimized further mistakes and breakdowns in the second half and surged ahead 4-2. Star pressed hard as time was winding down and tallied one last goal to draw within one - but that would be all. A last second goal for Lightning was disallowed by the referee who blew his whistle while the ball was in the air and on the way into the net. But I don't care what that referee has to say about it. That is a goal by any reasonable measure. Final score 5-3.
A good strong come-from-behind win for Lightning. It is good to learn that we can play and come back under pressure. As with any situation, it is just a matter of focus. Just playing simple and fundamental soccer will get the job done. Good job, girls.
Monday, September 26
Global Trotters
 Lightning97 bounced back this weekend with determination and energy to claim championship standing of the Global Invitational tournament.
Saturday, 24 Sept
RSSC Lightning 3 Novi Jaguars Green 2
It was a very even match against Novi. Rochester were playing well, but so was Novi. The difference in this match was finishing our chances. And not allowing Novi to finish theirs at least not as many. But it did come down to the wire, as Novi scored their second goal to get within one with about 7 minutes left. Lightning held on though, and came away with the 3-2 win.
RSSC Lightning 3 Canton Quest 3
It was the tale of two halves. The 1st belonged to Canton. Quest showed very good skill and ball movement and broke us down several times early. With the forwards not dropping & tracking the opponent early or quickly enough, Quest took the early lead 3-1. At halftime we adjusted our playing style a little and for the first time this season we played with 3 in the back and 2 forwards. The adjustment was enough to slow down Cantons attack, and then with that need taken care of, we were able find some attacking chances of our own. And so, scratching and clawing, we pulled our way to within one goal
and then found the equalizer to earn the draw. A tough and well earned tie (this was one of the good ones).
Sunday, 25 Sept
RSSC Lightning 3 Ann Arbor Arsenal 0
 To think back on last Sunday and then to look at this Sunday. It was like night and day. Last week we came out slow, unfocused and half-hearted. Today we exploded onto the field - and then only got stronger from there! Everything was clicking during this match. Ball movement was fantastic. We were making great use of support and switching the point of attack. The defense was stellar. Our starting defenders, Maddie H, Carly & Emary, were working the principles of defensive shape to perfection one always stepping, the other tucking in and supporting. It was beautiful to watch. In the second half as Kari & Maddie S took their turns in the back, the quality of the defense remained rock solid.
Communication was active, passes were crisp and everybody was moving both on and off the ball for each other. This was truly a beautiful game to watch. Ann Arbor never were able to get anything going against us and in the end, Lightning walk off with a 3-0 victory.
 And with the victory, came championship standing, as Canton, who also entered their 3rd match 1-0-1, earned a tie against Novi, which put us top of the table outright, without having to resort to tie-breakers.
Its been a fantastic start to the autumn for Rochester Lightning. 4 tournaments, 2 championship standings, 1 runner-up standing, a 9-3-1 start, and only one real stumble along the way which we seem to have learned from. Great job girls. Im very proud of you and all the hard work youre putting in.
Keep up the great work.
Sunday, September 18
Star Struck
RSSC Lightning 3 - GSSC Star 3
 Lightning played Genesee Start to a disappointing 3-3 draw this afternoon. We came out less focused and less intense than has been usual and it showed. For, although we did carry play and control most of the match, the sense of urgency seemed to be lacking. The result was promising attacks sputtered out and quality chances that we failed to finish.
We do take a point away from the contest, so thats a good thing. But there is no question, we did not play up to our potential today. As far as ties go, there are good ties and there are bad ties. This wasnt one of the good ones. But thats ok. We will take the lesson this match has to teach us, and use it to improve. We have another tournament coming up this weekend to put that improvement to work and get back on track.
Keep working hard Lightning.
Monday, September 12
Lightning Have An Autumn Blast In Petoskey
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