NCAA Career in Sports Forum

Two Luther Soccer Players have been selected to attend an all-expenses paid trip to the NCAA Career in Sports Forum this summer in Indianapolis. Junior Midfielder Michael Kustra (Edinburgh, Scotland) and Sophomore Forward Oketekyie Dakwa-Agyekum (Accra, Ghana) will join 400 college athletes from all divisions for the four day conference in June. They will also be accompanied by Luther Cross Country junior standout Emma Spoon (Verona, WI) and senior volleyball setter Taylor Hjerleid (Waukon, Iowa).
These athletes will receive information about careers in athletics, with a focus on collegiate athletics. They will learn more about what life is like as a coach and administrator in the field of college athletics. The seminar will focus on communication, networking, recruiting, managing culture, transitioning and budgeting.

These students were nominated by their coaches and were selected based on academic performance, leadership qualities and athletic achievement. Luther Men's Soccer is proud to be so well represented at the conference, and the soccer program will surely reap the benefits as much as the individuals! Congratulations to Michael and Okete!
The full article on the Luther College Athletics website can be found here:http://sports.luther.edu/news/careerforum.htm

Spring Award Banquet

The Luther College Men's Soccer family gathered on April 30th to conclude the short spring season with a celebration at The Oaks Restaurant in Decorah. The players, their families and their dates put on their Sunday best and joined their coaches for a lovely evening full of delicious food, a highlight video, and team awards.
This year the Norse said goodbye to celebrated seniors Jason Lentz, Gui Castro, Alex Case and Andy Eisenberg, whose talent, personality, and commitment to Luther Soccer will be dearly missed. The Norse are excited to announce that Jason Lentz and Gui Castro will work with the Luther Coaching staff next year as assistants as they finish up their degree. The team will also say goodbye to the assistant coach Will Maddox. They look ahead to welcoming the new assistant coach, Dave Keller, a 2009 Luther graduate and former captain for the Norse who has worked as a part time assistant for the Norse and is the coach at Decorah High School.
The Luther men voted on team awards, and the award winners were as follows: Most Valuable Player: Steve O'Meara, Most Valuable Defender: Mike Olson, Most Valuable midfielder: Jason Lentz, Most Valuable Forward: Mark Fernandes, Breakout Player: Matt Hoffman, Newcomer: James Garcia-Prats Gordon Grima-Baldachino (the player that most represents what it means to be a part of Luther Soccer): Eric Johnson. Congratulations to all of the team award winners!

Post-Season Accolades

While the end of the season and subsequent increase in free time often leaves our players bewildered, disappointed, and idle, there has been some consolation in the post-season awards that have been earned by the Luther Men's Soccer Team.
Luther had three selections to the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) All-Conference team, which is voted upon by all the coaches in the conference. Junior captain Michael Kustra was named to the second team, while junior captain Mike Olson and sophomore forward Mark Fernandes were both named as honorable mentions. These players all worked hard and contributed to the much improved season of the Norse.
As a team, the Luther Men led the conference in the number of athletes who made the IIAC All-Academic Team. To be eligible for this award, the student athlete must compete at the varsity level, be a sophomore in academic standing, and have at least a 3.5 grade point average. Luther college led the conference with 54 members on the All-Academic team, and 7 of them were soccer players. Senior Andy Eisenberg, juniors Jason Block and Peter Graffy, and sophomores Oketekyie Dakwa-Agyekum, Micah Kust, Michael Osmera, and Mark Fernandes made up Luther Soccer's contribution to the IIAC All-Academic Team.
This is merely another great example of how the team embodies what it means to be a student athlete. These men work hard on and off the field with commitment and big picture perspective that 18-22 year olds rarely possess. The coaching staff is lucky to have such a talented and well-rounded team, and they look forward to future success on and off the field.

Many Talents of Luther Soccer

Luther Soccer is known for producing well-rounded individuals, and the last few years the school and community has been lucky enough to enjoy one of Luther Soccer's many talents. Paul Armstrong, junior goalkeeper with the golden hair and golden pipes, has once again been a part of Luther College's famous performance of Christmas at Luther as a member of the Collegiate Chorale. We were proud to have one of our own being a part of something so special. This year's performance, "Gloria in Excelsis Deo" left nothing to be desired with beautiful music, great choreography, and impeccable singing,
Paul was part of more than 600 student performers who performed in one of the nation's best collegiate musical venues, the Center for Faith and Life. Each year, more than 8,000 people enjoy Christmas at Luther, and they never leave disappointed. PBS will air the 2008 "Christmas at Luther: Night of Glory, Dawn of Peace" performance, which one an Emmy for "Best Special Event Coverage" and is broadcast on over 100 public television broadcasts.
Luther College is an amazing experience for so many reasons, and while we know soccer is huge part of our teams lives, we know they are quite talented in a variety of areas. We are thankful this holiday season that we have the ability to be around such talented and well-rounded individuals. Great job Paul!

And So It Ends

Luther's 2010 season ended in disappointing fashion, but their effort on the pitch all year has been far from disappointing.
The Norse made a difficult trip to Platteville where Luther ended their regular season with a 2-0 loss, though the Norse out-shot the Pioneers 16-6. The inability to score and crucial lapses on the defensive end that have plagued Luther all season long were once again the culprit.
Despite the loss, Luther still had life in the form of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament, where they would travel to Pella, Iowa to take on the Central College Dutch. It was a chance for redemption after the first match was lost 2-1 at Luther on a night when Luther were able to out-shoot the Dutch 18-8.
A strong start for Luther looked to be a good sign for the Norse, as the pressure on the Central backs resulted in a few good chances for the boys in blue. They continued to put the Dutch under pressure, but when Central was able to win a corner kick in the 25th minute, a poor clearance let a Central player get on the end of a loose ball in the box and put Central up 1-0.
Luther continued to battle throughout the match, never giving up and continuing to create good chances to score, but it was as if there was a lid on the goal and shots sailed wide time and time again. The boys gave it their all as they have all year, but in the end it was not good enough to be victorious on this day.
Luther lost the game 1-0, thus concluding the 2010 season and the playing careers of five seniors. Though the season did not end as many would have hoped, they were successful in so many ways. Winning more games, conceding fewer goals, and scoring more goals than last year, this team is showing signs of improvement. Most importantly, this team fought hard, trained hard, and enjoyed playing the game they love with the people they love all year long. We send our deepest appreciation for Luther's 2010 seniors Alex Case, Andy Eisenberg, Mike Olson, Jason Lentz and Gui Castro for their commitment to this program and school.

Peaks and Valleys

Well, it has been a whirlwind of the last three weeks for Luther Soccer. The frequency of these blog posts is reflective of how busy things have been for us, and unfortunately posting has been the least of our worries.
Following the Wartburg game Luther had two more battles ahead against Central College and the University of Dubuque. After giving up two goals in 40 seconds against Central, Luther was unable to battle back and ended up losing 2-1 despite a great goal from Jackson Stalberger set up from goalkeeper Steve O'Meara, notching their first goal and assist of the year respectively.
Luther's travels to Dubuque have not been kind to them this year, and their game against the University that bears the same name was no different. Giving up goals in the last two minutes of the first half and the first five minutes of the second half, Luther put themselves out of the game. Although they fought hard and had several great chances, Luther ended up going down 2-0.
The Dubuque game was Luther's 5th straight loss, and things were looking bleak for the Norse. But the team's resilience and ability to stick together through the toughest of times began to pay dividends as Luther was able to real off 5 straight victories against Buena Vista University, Simpson College, Coe College, Cornell College and St. John's University. With game winning goals from Gui Castro, Mark Fernandes, Matt Hoffman, Mark Fernandes (again) and Saul Rosales respectively, the Norse turned their season around and put their record at 4-4 in conference and 8-7-1 overall. A winning record with one of the toughest schedules in the region is something to be proud of, and Coach Garcia-Prats should be applauded for his ability to a build a team that can pull itself off the ground time and time again to achieve great things. After 5 straight losses where the Norse often outplayed their opponent, these last 5 wins have been a long time coming for Luther Blue.
This weekend was Luther Soccer Family Weekend, celebrated with 5-0 and 3-0 wins for the Norse. There were many families in town to celebrate this team and it's five seniors, Jason Lentz, Gui Castro, Mike Olson, AndyEisenberg, and Alex Case. With two great wins and Jason Lentz and Andy Eisenberg scoring goals today against St. Johns, it was a perfect ending to a great weekend.
They now look ahead to their final game of the season at UW-Platteville to seal the deal on the first winning season for Luther since 2004. It has been a wild ride this season, full of peaks and valleys, but what has not changed is this team's ability to stick together, enjoy themselves, and be a true team. Hopefully their run is not yet over, as Luther is a team that no one wants to see again. They are on a 5-game win streak, and underperformed for most of the conference season. They will be a tough game for whoever they get in the IIAC Conference tournament, and they will look to make a deep run and extend these seniors' last year of collegiate soccer.

Mixed Blessings

Alumni weekend brought all of the fun and revelry that it usually does, but unfortunately the play on the field could not match the fun off of the field. The rivalry of Luther is still alive and well in Northeast Iowa, but Luther found themselves on the wrong side of things once again.
The weekend began on a fun note when about 25 alumni turned out and dusted off the boots to have a go in the alumni game. The guys were able to play 11 v 11 on the game field Saturday afternoon, with the current team in attendance to cheer the boys on. It was a fun, competitive game that most importantly avoided major injury and it was great for our current guys to connect to past Luther greats.
The alumni gathering made their way to the men's and women's game Saturday night where they made camp and ate well on the sideline, and they were a spirited bunch throughout the match. They ended their night at the old haunt of T-Bocks, where memories were shared and friendships rekindled. We are very appreciative of the great support provided by the alumni and look forward to many gatherings in the future.
Unlike the fun with the alumni, the game against Wartburg left a little to be desired. Both teams came out flying as the boisterous crowd raised the level of play on the night. While Luther controlled the midfield, they were unable to create dangerous chances while Wartburg continued to threaten every time they went on attack. When a Luther defender was left isolated on the edge of the box, the Wartburg forward to a deft touch towards the center of the field and hit a well struck shot that found the bottom left corner of the goal and put Wartburg ahead 1-0.
Luther continued to battle and create chances, and things looked good when they won a free kick inside of 25 yards. James Garcia-Prats missed the tying goal by inches as his free kick clanked off the under-side of the crossbar. Luther continued to have the majority of possession but were unable to score as the half drew to a close.
The second half was another spirited affair as Luther continued to threaten. Both teams fought hard to be the victor on this night, and things would have been more interesting if Luther could have avoided a costly give-away in the defensive third when an errant pass was intercepted and converted to a quick goal as Wartburg was put up 2-0 in the 58th minute.
Luther showed great fortitude as they continued to fight on, and their hard work was rewarded with a penalty that was called after a Wartburg foul in the box. In the 73rd minute Saul Rosales brought the Norse one goal away from a result. Luther kept the pressure on the Knights as the game came to a conclusion with several chances to tie the game being squandered away.
The game ended with Luther on the losing end, but the performance showed great heart and commitment to excellence. In a game where Luther out-shot their opponent and had most of the ball, they were once again unlucky to not come out with a result. They will look to keep spirits high as they have a quick turn around to battle a tough Central College team Wednesday night at home.