12/23/11
Zach Venvertloh, the Hawk's junior Co-Captain and central defender, already selected to the GLVC All-Conference Team and the the NCAA All-Midwest Region Team for his performance on the playing field, has recently been chosen as a NCAA First Team All-North Central Region Scholar. Venvertloh, who along with fellow Co-Captain and All-America striker Grant Ellison, led the Hawks to the 2011 GLVC Championship, has completed five straight 4.0 semesters as a dual major in Biology and Chemistry. Semester-end grades show a total of 14 Soccer Hawks with over a 3.0 GPA, seven of those being between 3.5 and 3.99, with Zach, and his freshman brother Ethan (a 7 goal scorer), both with perfect 4.0's. Quincy University, along with its alumni and fans, can be proud of the quality of the student-athletes within the Men's Soccer program, with Zach being the "leader of the pack".
Friday, December 23, 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
Grant Ellison Selected All-America
12/16/11
Grant Ellison, QU's senior striker, tops off his record breaking season with his selection to the NCAA Division II All-America Third Team. Ellison's award comes as a reward for him scoring 16 goals while leading the Hawks to the GLVC Championship as their inspirational Co-Captain. His 16 senior-year goals pushed his career total to 45 allowing him to move up to a 7th place tie (with Mark Thomas) on the Hawks All-Time Top Scorers list. Grant's All-America selection is QU's first such honor received since Josh Worth's selection in 2004.
All in all, Hawks players since 1966 have appeared on 32 All-America teams. Carl Schwarzen, Mike Villa, John Schneider, Mario Camacho, Mark Mathis, Sam Bick, Neil Frederickson, Emilio John, Eric Delabar, Brian Belobradic, Mike Gallo, and Mark Roome, were selected once each during QU's NAIA reign, while Jim Pollihan, Tor Duner, Steve Lux, and Claes Sandstrom were all selected twice. Edmundo Camacho and Al Harte were each honored three times as All-America players.
In 1984 QU affiliated with the NCAA and played as a Division I team up until the end of 1995. During these twelve seasons, Jock Lagerstedt (1987), was the only Hawk to be awarded All-America honors.
In 1996 the Hawks became part of the GLVC Conference at the NCAA Division II level. In this time five Hawks have won selection as All-America honorees: Jay Wright and Jonathan Douglas in 1998; Matt Vollink in 2000; Josh Worth in 2004, and now Grant Ellison, a 2011 award winner. Here's hoping that there are many more to come.
Grant Ellison, QU's senior striker, tops off his record breaking season with his selection to the NCAA Division II All-America Third Team. Ellison's award comes as a reward for him scoring 16 goals while leading the Hawks to the GLVC Championship as their inspirational Co-Captain. His 16 senior-year goals pushed his career total to 45 allowing him to move up to a 7th place tie (with Mark Thomas) on the Hawks All-Time Top Scorers list. Grant's All-America selection is QU's first such honor received since Josh Worth's selection in 2004.
All in all, Hawks players since 1966 have appeared on 32 All-America teams. Carl Schwarzen, Mike Villa, John Schneider, Mario Camacho, Mark Mathis, Sam Bick, Neil Frederickson, Emilio John, Eric Delabar, Brian Belobradic, Mike Gallo, and Mark Roome, were selected once each during QU's NAIA reign, while Jim Pollihan, Tor Duner, Steve Lux, and Claes Sandstrom were all selected twice. Edmundo Camacho and Al Harte were each honored three times as All-America players.
In 1984 QU affiliated with the NCAA and played as a Division I team up until the end of 1995. During these twelve seasons, Jock Lagerstedt (1987), was the only Hawk to be awarded All-America honors.
In 1996 the Hawks became part of the GLVC Conference at the NCAA Division II level. In this time five Hawks have won selection as All-America honorees: Jay Wright and Jonathan Douglas in 1998; Matt Vollink in 2000; Josh Worth in 2004, and now Grant Ellison, a 2011 award winner. Here's hoping that there are many more to come.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
QU Hawk Soccer: Season Ending Wrap-up.
12/15/11
It has been a very long time since our last posting (10/10/11). That posting came after two exciting GLVC wins over Drury and Missouri S & T. The next weekend the Hawks lost two GLVC matches. No, the postings didn't stop just because of those two losses. Rather, the postings stopped because on the weekend of those two losses the University transferred over to a new internet delivery system and all previous e-mail address were lost to the writer. Because your blog writer is somewhat technologically challenged, and because the soccer season was still going on "hot and heavy", it has taken until now for said "writer" to re-gather all the e-mail addresses and then type them into the new delivery system. (Whew!) So, here goes a shortened (maybe) season wrap-up.
On the weekend of October 14-16 the Hawks were at home and lost 1-0 to Northern Kentucky (defending National Champion and GLVC front runner at the time) on a goal in the 82nd minute of a fiercely contested match; and then lost 3-2 to Bellarmine University in another one goal deciding contest. Wing forward Jeff Vaninger scored both Hawk tallies in this game, one on an excellent free kick from about 30 yards out.
On the weekend of October 21-23 the Hawks took to the road and defeated Kentucky Wesleyan 7-0 with Grant Ellison netting two goals, Ethan Venvertloh 3,and Ryan Seifert and Jordan Roberts each getting one in the Friday match. On Sunday, the Hawks came from behind to tie the University of Southern Indiana 1-1 with Grant Ellison scoring with just 8 seconds remaining in the first half. Then, on Wednesday 10/26 the Hawks traveled to play at the University of Illinois-Springfield (formerly Sangamon State from the NAIA days)and defeated them 5-1 on two goals apiece by Grant Ellison and Ethan Venvertloh that followed Eddie Ragsdale match-opening score.
The Illinois-Springfield game wrapped up the regular season with the Hawks sporting a 10-5-2 overall record and a 9-4-2 record in GLVC play that found them seeded fourth in the GLVC post-season tournament and matched up to play Lewis University's number 5 seeded team. That match took place on Saturday, October 29th at North Campus Field, and saw the Haks come away with a thrilling 2-1 win on freshman Ethan Venvertloh's goal in the 78th minute. Freshman Jordan Roberts had opened the scoring for the Hawks in the 6th minute of action and Lewis squared the match in the 19th minute. This win propelled the Hawks into the GLVC semi-finals to face the #1 seed Rockhurst on their field. Readers might remember that Rockhurst had earlier destroyed the QU Hawks 5-0 at North Campus Field. However, in this semi-final match on Friday, November 4th, it was a different story as QU went out and battled fiercely from kick-off and got out on top 1-0 on a long range shot from freshman striker Jordan Roberts in the 5th minute. Rockhurst leveled the score at 1-1 in the 12th minute and the battle waged on for 78 more minutes during regulation time and for 20 minutes of overtime with the game still deadlocked at 1-all. The 110 minutes of game action was a combination of good soccer and a real "war" waged by two teams who refused to back down. With the match oficially declared a draw after 110 minutes the teams were pitted in a PK shootout battle to determine who would advance into the Sunday Championship match. And, just like the actual game itself the PK shoot-out was an intense nail-biter with QU emerging as 3-2 victors thanks to successful PK's by Grant Ellison, Jordan Roberts, and Stephen McAnany, and TWO PK saves by Hawk keeper DJ Lampert, the final one putting the Hawks into the Championship match against Drury University on Sunday Novembver 6.
In the Sunday Championship game Drury jumped out in front 1-0 in the 15th minute of the match and had the better of the play throughout the entire first half. During the haltime interval the Hawks regrouped and began at the second half kick-off to assert themselves into the match. In the 70th minute mark the Hawks finally got on the scoreboard when Grant Ellison beat the Drury keeper to a bouncing ball at the 18 yard line and flicked it over him toward Drury's goal. Ellison's flick was a looper that was going to bounce before it got to the goal mouth and two Drury defenders were chasing back in an attempt to clear it out before it entered the goal. However, Ethan Venvertloh saw what was about to happen and raced in from his wing position and headed the ball off the bounce into the goal just before the Drury defenders got to it. HAWKS SCORE. Game tied. Venvertloh got the goal. Ellison got the assist, AND was flattened and almost knocked out by the much larger Drury keeper who smashed into him as he flicked the ball goalward. Grant had to come out of the game for several minutes before he was able to return to action.
The game remained deadlocked at one apiece throughout the rest of regulation time with both teams having chances to snatch the title. However, as in the semi-final this match was destined for overtime. Early in the first overtime period the Hawks cleared a ball from around their 18 yard line out to midfield where Grant Ellison picked it up and made a move toward the right sideline. After several dribbles Ellison found wing midfielder Mike Andres making a run up the touchline and sent him a through pass down the wing. Andres caught up with the ball and was immediately put under pressure by a Drury defender who tried to "shield" Mike away from the ball seeking to let it roll out of bounds for a goal kick. Miraculously though, Andres stole the ball from him just at the endline and dribbled it into the penalty area and delivered a pass toward the penalty spot where Jordan Roberts had rushed in to "split" two Drury defenders and calmly took Andres pass and slotted it between the Drury keeper's legs for the WINNING GOAL! HAWKS WIN. HAWKS ARE CHAMPIONS! What a finish to a truly exciting season. This is the Hawks first GLVC Championship since joining the Conference in 1996, and it's the first Championship of this magnatude since winning the Big Central Conference at the Division I level in 1988.
No, it wasn't a National Championship like back in the glory days. However, with the status and parity of college soccer today it may just have been as hard to win.
For their successful performances throughout the 2011 season the following Hawks received various honors.
Grant Ellison, First Team All-Conference; GLVC Outstanding Forward; First Team All-Midwest; QU Leading Scorer Gold Boot Award Winner (16 goals & 3 assists AND moved into a 7th place tie on the All-Time Top Scorer list with 45 career goals) and QU MVP.
Zach Venvertloh, Second Team All-GLVC and Second Team All-Midwest, and QU Best Defender.
Jeff Vaninger, Third Team All-GLVC and All-Midwest and QU Most Improved Player.
Jordan Roberts, Silver Boot Award winner with 7 goals and 3 assists, and Rookie of the Year Award winner.
Ethan Venvertloh, Silver Boot Award winner with 7 goals and 3 assists.
This about wraps up the 2011 season. All the current Hawks can feel good about what they achieved this fall. All former Hawk Soccer Alumni and Hawk fans can feel good about the state of QU soccer. This 2011 team built on the foundation that the good 2010 team laid last year and has rekindled the pride of HAWK SOCCER. With most of this year's team returning for 2012 more good things can be expected.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all, and remember that the 9th Annual Quincy Soccer Alumni Golf Shootout will take place on Friday, May 4th, 2012 at the Forest Park Golf Course in St. Louis MO. Mark this on your calendar as the place to be that day. Please come and join in with us. It's a GREAT TIME.
It has been a very long time since our last posting (10/10/11). That posting came after two exciting GLVC wins over Drury and Missouri S & T. The next weekend the Hawks lost two GLVC matches. No, the postings didn't stop just because of those two losses. Rather, the postings stopped because on the weekend of those two losses the University transferred over to a new internet delivery system and all previous e-mail address were lost to the writer. Because your blog writer is somewhat technologically challenged, and because the soccer season was still going on "hot and heavy", it has taken until now for said "writer" to re-gather all the e-mail addresses and then type them into the new delivery system. (Whew!) So, here goes a shortened (maybe) season wrap-up.
On the weekend of October 14-16 the Hawks were at home and lost 1-0 to Northern Kentucky (defending National Champion and GLVC front runner at the time) on a goal in the 82nd minute of a fiercely contested match; and then lost 3-2 to Bellarmine University in another one goal deciding contest. Wing forward Jeff Vaninger scored both Hawk tallies in this game, one on an excellent free kick from about 30 yards out.
On the weekend of October 21-23 the Hawks took to the road and defeated Kentucky Wesleyan 7-0 with Grant Ellison netting two goals, Ethan Venvertloh 3,and Ryan Seifert and Jordan Roberts each getting one in the Friday match. On Sunday, the Hawks came from behind to tie the University of Southern Indiana 1-1 with Grant Ellison scoring with just 8 seconds remaining in the first half. Then, on Wednesday 10/26 the Hawks traveled to play at the University of Illinois-Springfield (formerly Sangamon State from the NAIA days)and defeated them 5-1 on two goals apiece by Grant Ellison and Ethan Venvertloh that followed Eddie Ragsdale match-opening score.
The Illinois-Springfield game wrapped up the regular season with the Hawks sporting a 10-5-2 overall record and a 9-4-2 record in GLVC play that found them seeded fourth in the GLVC post-season tournament and matched up to play Lewis University's number 5 seeded team. That match took place on Saturday, October 29th at North Campus Field, and saw the Haks come away with a thrilling 2-1 win on freshman Ethan Venvertloh's goal in the 78th minute. Freshman Jordan Roberts had opened the scoring for the Hawks in the 6th minute of action and Lewis squared the match in the 19th minute. This win propelled the Hawks into the GLVC semi-finals to face the #1 seed Rockhurst on their field. Readers might remember that Rockhurst had earlier destroyed the QU Hawks 5-0 at North Campus Field. However, in this semi-final match on Friday, November 4th, it was a different story as QU went out and battled fiercely from kick-off and got out on top 1-0 on a long range shot from freshman striker Jordan Roberts in the 5th minute. Rockhurst leveled the score at 1-1 in the 12th minute and the battle waged on for 78 more minutes during regulation time and for 20 minutes of overtime with the game still deadlocked at 1-all. The 110 minutes of game action was a combination of good soccer and a real "war" waged by two teams who refused to back down. With the match oficially declared a draw after 110 minutes the teams were pitted in a PK shootout battle to determine who would advance into the Sunday Championship match. And, just like the actual game itself the PK shoot-out was an intense nail-biter with QU emerging as 3-2 victors thanks to successful PK's by Grant Ellison, Jordan Roberts, and Stephen McAnany, and TWO PK saves by Hawk keeper DJ Lampert, the final one putting the Hawks into the Championship match against Drury University on Sunday Novembver 6.
In the Sunday Championship game Drury jumped out in front 1-0 in the 15th minute of the match and had the better of the play throughout the entire first half. During the haltime interval the Hawks regrouped and began at the second half kick-off to assert themselves into the match. In the 70th minute mark the Hawks finally got on the scoreboard when Grant Ellison beat the Drury keeper to a bouncing ball at the 18 yard line and flicked it over him toward Drury's goal. Ellison's flick was a looper that was going to bounce before it got to the goal mouth and two Drury defenders were chasing back in an attempt to clear it out before it entered the goal. However, Ethan Venvertloh saw what was about to happen and raced in from his wing position and headed the ball off the bounce into the goal just before the Drury defenders got to it. HAWKS SCORE. Game tied. Venvertloh got the goal. Ellison got the assist, AND was flattened and almost knocked out by the much larger Drury keeper who smashed into him as he flicked the ball goalward. Grant had to come out of the game for several minutes before he was able to return to action.
The game remained deadlocked at one apiece throughout the rest of regulation time with both teams having chances to snatch the title. However, as in the semi-final this match was destined for overtime. Early in the first overtime period the Hawks cleared a ball from around their 18 yard line out to midfield where Grant Ellison picked it up and made a move toward the right sideline. After several dribbles Ellison found wing midfielder Mike Andres making a run up the touchline and sent him a through pass down the wing. Andres caught up with the ball and was immediately put under pressure by a Drury defender who tried to "shield" Mike away from the ball seeking to let it roll out of bounds for a goal kick. Miraculously though, Andres stole the ball from him just at the endline and dribbled it into the penalty area and delivered a pass toward the penalty spot where Jordan Roberts had rushed in to "split" two Drury defenders and calmly took Andres pass and slotted it between the Drury keeper's legs for the WINNING GOAL! HAWKS WIN. HAWKS ARE CHAMPIONS! What a finish to a truly exciting season. This is the Hawks first GLVC Championship since joining the Conference in 1996, and it's the first Championship of this magnatude since winning the Big Central Conference at the Division I level in 1988.
No, it wasn't a National Championship like back in the glory days. However, with the status and parity of college soccer today it may just have been as hard to win.
For their successful performances throughout the 2011 season the following Hawks received various honors.
Grant Ellison, First Team All-Conference; GLVC Outstanding Forward; First Team All-Midwest; QU Leading Scorer Gold Boot Award Winner (16 goals & 3 assists AND moved into a 7th place tie on the All-Time Top Scorer list with 45 career goals) and QU MVP.
Zach Venvertloh, Second Team All-GLVC and Second Team All-Midwest, and QU Best Defender.
Jeff Vaninger, Third Team All-GLVC and All-Midwest and QU Most Improved Player.
Jordan Roberts, Silver Boot Award winner with 7 goals and 3 assists, and Rookie of the Year Award winner.
Ethan Venvertloh, Silver Boot Award winner with 7 goals and 3 assists.
This about wraps up the 2011 season. All the current Hawks can feel good about what they achieved this fall. All former Hawk Soccer Alumni and Hawk fans can feel good about the state of QU soccer. This 2011 team built on the foundation that the good 2010 team laid last year and has rekindled the pride of HAWK SOCCER. With most of this year's team returning for 2012 more good things can be expected.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all, and remember that the 9th Annual Quincy Soccer Alumni Golf Shootout will take place on Friday, May 4th, 2012 at the Forest Park Golf Course in St. Louis MO. Mark this on your calendar as the place to be that day. Please come and join in with us. It's a GREAT TIME.
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