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For Tigers, Picturing Success Leads To Win
By Jeff Holsinger, Times-Union Sports Editor
To prepare for Thursday's game against Concord, Warsaw coach Brent Wildman had his girls soccer team visualize its performance on the field.
This is a confidence technique used by many players and coaches. The basketball player visualizes making the game-winning free throw so if and when the time comes, he's more prepared for it. He's played the scenario through his mind.
Whether you buy into this technique or not, Warsaw does, and it worked. The Tigers beat short-handed Concord 2-0. A good deal of visualization must have been on offense, as they delivered a season-high 33 shots on goal to Concord's one.
While they scored on only two - and one of those was helped in by a Concord player - one of the 33 would have been enough to beat Concord.
"Our girls played an offensive game," Wildman said. "To generate 33 shots on goal is phenomenal. For us, finishing is a problem, but this is the most offense we've generated. This is our best game, the caliber of game this team is capable of playing."
Warsaw improved to 3-2-1 overall and 2-1 in the Northern Lakes Conference, while Concord dropped to 3-3-1 overall and 1-1 in the NLC.
Concord arrived at the CCAC without senior stopper Kate Mitchell, top sweeper Dana Charlesworth and senior defender Kara Bailey, all starters. Another starter, sophomore Elizabeth Clark, played with a 101-degree temperature. Mitchell missed with a fever, Bailey with strep throat and Charlesworth with a fractured bone in her spine.
How big a factor these four starters would have been depended on which coach you talked to.
"I thought it would be a great game had we been at full strength," Concord coach Rob Miller said. "Two to zero isn't bad, and they didn't score their second goal until the last few minutes."
But Wildman saw his team dominate offensively. To him, 33-1, the shots on goal, told the story.
"It hurt their defense," he said of the missing players, "which maybe gave us more shots on goal. Whatever."
Asked if these four girls would have helped Concord's offense, Wildman said, "No."
Warsaw beat Concord 2-0 last year during the regular season.
Senior Jodi Wildman, Brent Wildman's daughter, gave Warsaw the 1-0 lead when she scored at the 37-minute mark of the first half. Approximately 37 minutes later, late in the second half, freshman Claire Beckett scored Warsaw's second goal.
On both goals, Warsaw spread Concord's defense to the outside then scored by striking through the middle. Both goals came from 20 yards away.
"Jodi put a shot into the top of the net," Brent Wildman said. "It was a beautiful shot. It was well-done for her, because up to this point she has had difficulty striking and powering the ball.
"Claire is one of the fastest players of the team. We wore their outside players down. Claire got a couple of steps and carried the ball to the goal and shot across the face. One of their players tipped it in."
Warsaw actually scored three goals, but one was taken away on a penalty.
Brent Wildman credited several girls for allowing Warsaw's offense to control the game.
"Chelsea Boyd at halfback, a new position for her, had a good game," he said. "Holly McGriff had a good game her first time at a stopper back position. Our outside defenders, Meghann Faas and Shelby Nicol, turned the game around."
Brent Wildman changed Warsaw's offense at summer camp. The girls had to adjust, but now he sees the change paying off.
In football, defensively you have 3-4 fronts or 4-3 fronts. Warsaw's soccer changed from a 4-3-3 look to a 4-4-2 look.
"Now we have only two players up front," Brent Wildman said. (Warsaw) had always played a 4-3-3, a straight-up-and-down-the-field-kick-the-ball-and-run offense. Technique-wise, we're solid enough where we said this is the style we will play.
"Instead of having a defensive team and an offensive group, the entire team attacks, and the entire team defends. This is the first time the girls put it together."
Of course, they visualized their success earlier in the week.
"They played exactly like they visualized it," Brent Wildman said.
WARSAW 2, CONCORD 0
First-half goal
Jodi Wildman, 37:00, 1-0 Warsaw
Second-half goal
Claire Beckett, 74:00, 2-0 Warsaw
Shots on goal -ÊWarsaw 33, Concord 1
Records -ÊWarsaw 3-2-1 overall, 2-1 NLC; Concord 3-3-1, 1-1 NLC
