In the News...
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[] Hinds halts ICC in battle for north division crown (10/21/2009)
The Indians came into their regular season finale needing a tie or a win to qualify for post season play, but were just overwhelmed by Hinds by a final score of 7 &45; 2. In fact, a win Wednesday night by Itawamba would have given the squad a share of the north division title.
"This has been a tough season and to just miss out on the playoffs after the start we had, was very disappointing," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan after the contest, which was played at Ballard Park in Tupelo. "But the guys we had left at the end of the season played their tails off every game and that's all a coach can ask for out of his team."
Sullivan added, "the sophomore class that is leaving us will be missed and I really enjoyed the privilege of coaching them for two years."
The Eagles scored at the four minute mark of the match and never looked back. Sophomore Colt Snell of Tupelo, who has been a solid defender for Itawamba his whole career, had one of the few highlights of the night as he scored a goal in the second half. Freshman Logan Ayers of Tupelo scored the other goal of the night for the Indians off an assist from Snell.
Sophomores that will be leaving the program are Parker Davis (Starkville), Josh Harlow (Pontotoc), Grant Howell (Pontotoc), Omar Juarez (Amory), Lewis McDaniel (Warner Robbins, GA), Snell, Patrick Wallace (Tupelo), Tres Wortham (Daphne, Ala.), and Caryl Vogel (Pontotoc).
"I am excited about the freshman class that will be coming back next year," added Sullivan, who just completed his eighth season in charge of the men's program at ICC. " When we bring in some good recruits to go along with them, I know we will be right back in the mix of things next season."
With the loss, the Indians finish the season at 8 &45; 7 &45; 0 overall and 5 &45; 3 &45; 0 in the north division, which is enough for a second place tie with Northwest, but based on tiebreakers, the Rangers will advance to the state tournament.
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[] ICC loses key contest to Northwest (10/19/2009)
The Indians came out with a chance to clinch a play-off spot, but came up short as they were overwhelmed by a determined Northwest Ranger team by a score of 5 - 0.
"This was an extremely disappointing game because we could've locked up a play-off spot," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan moments after the game. "But we were just terrible today and couldn't get anything going out there."
Northwest got on the scoreboard at the 17 minute mark and never looked back taking a 2 - 0 lead to the half. The Indians still control their own destiny as they sit in second place right now in the division. Northwest will play Holmes Tuesday and if Northwest wins the Indians will need a tie or win against Hinds in the final game of the regular season. If Northwest loses on Tuesday, the Indians will then lock up second place and a trip to the play-offs.
The loss drops the Indians to 8 - 6 - 0 overall and 5 - 2 in the division. The last match of the regular season will be against Hinds CC and will be played at Ballard Park in Tupelo at 7 p.m.
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[] Indians inch closer to post-season (10/16/2009)
The Indians moved one step closer to the state play-offs today with a convincing 8 - 2 road victory over the Lions of East Mississippi.
"We have had more adversity this season than anyone can imagine from injuries to the weather problems, but this group of guys surprises me all the time," said Itawamba head coach Mike Sullivan on the way back to the Fulton campus. "We put the most goals on the board in one game today and overall played very well."
The Indians scored at the five minute mark when Collin Burchfield scored on a free kick but the Lions answered back with a goal of their own at the eight minute mark and the game would be back and forth for the next 20 minutes.
Then the Indians would turn the pressure up starting in the 29th minute when Josh Harlow would score on a free kick of his own and from that point the Indians would not look back as they scored six unanswered goals to go onto the 8 - 2 win.
Leading the way offensively was Omar Juarez with two goals and then Patrick Wallace, Logan Ayers, Tyler Moore, and Caryl Vogel each scoring one goal on the day. Registering assists in the division matchup were Lewis McDaniel with two and then Josh Harlow and Tyler Moore with one each.
"We will face Northwest this Monday and a tie or win will get us back into the play-offs after missing out last year and the way we are playing right now, I feel like we will have good confidence going into this game."
Sullivan added though, Northwest recently upset Hinds, so we know we have a very good and determined team coming to Fulton on Monday and if we don't bring our best game, we will be in trouble."
With the win, the Indians move to 8 - 5 - 0 overall and 5 - 1 - 0 in the North Division and the Northwest match will be Monday at 2:00 at the ICC Soccer Field.
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[] Indians halt Holmes in key division duel (10/7/2009)
The Indians picked up a huge win against Holmes as they left Millsaps College in Jackson with the 2 - 1 victory.
"This win was big for us in our quest to make the state play-offs," said an elated ICC head coach Mike Sullivan on the bus ride home. "Things are still tight in the division, but this was definitely a step in the right direction."
Sullivan added, "we didn't play our best game today, but we got the job done and with the injuries we have had lately this made the win even better."
The Indians got on the board first at the 16th minute mark when Collin Burchfield played a nice through ball to Jimmie Townsend who dribbled the Holmes keeper and put the Indians up 1 - 0. The rest of the half saw some back and forth action until the last minute of the half when Holmes was awarded a penalty kick, but Tres Wortham came up with a huge save to keep the Indians in the lead.
The Indians would take a 2 - 0 lead in the 47th minute of the second half when Omar Juarez would take a pass from Grant Howell and beat the keeper with nice shot almost from the end line. The Bulldogs would answer that goal in the 63rd minute when they scored on a nice header off a corner kick.
The Indians would hold tough the rest of the match and go on to win 2 - 1. With the win, the Indians move to 7 - 5 - 0 overall and 4 - 1 - 0 in the north division. This victory also puts the Red and Blue in sole possession of second place in the north. The next match will be Friday at home against Northwest CC at 4:00.
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[] Indians drop a pair at Meridian Tourney (10/4/2009)
The Indians had a tough weekend in Meridian as they dropped two games. Saturday, the Red and Blue dropped a match to Concordia University by a score of 3 - 0.
"Concordia moved the ball as well as any team we have seen, they really have a good team," said Indians head coach Mike Sullivan.
The game was back and forth until the 34 minute mark when Concordia scored and the four-year school came right back again at the 37 minute to extend the lead to 2 - 0. Concordia would add a late second half goal to go on to the 3 - 0 final.
Sunday would see a tired and beaten up Indian team lose to the Meridian by a score of 6 - 1.
"We played a terrible first half, not being able to get anything together," added Sullivan. "We had a few injuries and the late game the night before, we just didn't come to play today."
The Eagles jumped out to a 5 - 0 halftime lead but the 2nd half saw the Indians come out play much better. Logan Ayers scored off a Jimmie Townsend pass early in the half for the only Indian goal on the day. The Indians now stand at 6 - 5 - 0 overall and 3 - 1 - 0 in the north division and will next travel to Holmes CC on Wednesday for a huge division match-up at 1:00.
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[] ICC suffers defeat against favorite to win south half (9/30/2009)
The Indians faced off against undefeated Gulf Coast and it turned out to be a disappointing game for the Indians as the Bulldogs left with the 5 &45; 2 victory.
"Gulf Coast has a really good team, probably the best all around team we have faced this year, our effort was good today but we just got beat," said head coach Mike Sullivan. "We got down but never gave up and we cut the lead to 4 &45; 2 with over 10 minutes to go and had a few chances but just couldn't get over the hump. I am very proud of the effort today especially with the fact that we were missing one starter and another got hurt 15 minutes into the game."
Gulf Coast opened the scoring at the five minute mark with a beautiful goal off a back heel pass and then the game settled in for awhile. The Bulldogs would extend the lead at the 33 minute mark and that is where the halftime score would stand. The Indians would come out of the halftime working hard, but were not able to crack the scoreboard and Gulf Coast would extend the lead to 4 &45; 0 on goals in the 55th and 60th minute.
The Indians would soon find their rhythm and at the 67th minute mark, Collin Burchfield would re-direct a Lewis McDaniel shot to cut the lead to 4 &45; 1. ICC would continue to fight back and would score again at the 78th minute when Jimmie Townsend scored off a Collin Burchfield pass. The Indians would produce a few more scoring chances but could not get any closer and then with three second left as the Indians pushed up everyone for a goal, Gulf Coast would score an open net goal to make it a 5 &45; 2 final score.
With the loss the Indians move to 6 &45; 3 &45; 0 overall and still stand at 3 &45; 1 &45; 0 in the north division and will next play at the Rush Tournament in Meridian and will face Concordia at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday and then the host school, Meridian, at 2:00 on Sunday.
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[] Indians bounce back to win a division duel vs. EMCC (9/28/2009)
The Indians got to play only their second home match all season and with all the rain lately, the field was a total mess, extremely difficult to play on, but the Red and Blue came from behind in thrilling fashion to win the match 3 - 2 over East Mississippi.
"This was one of those games where you dominate possesion, hit the post a few times, and have balls bounce all around the other teams goalmouth, but just don't finish the chances you have against a team that can be dangerous," said a relieved Itawamba head coach Mike Sullivan moments after the game. "But we still found a way to win, which is the most important thing."
The Lions would strike first in the 17th minute when they were awarded a penalty kick off a foul against the ICC keeper Trace Nabors. Later in the half, in the 34th minute, the Lions would strike yet again on a breakaway and would take the 2 - 0 lead. The Indians would start the comeback right away when in the 36th minute Omar Juarez would score a header off a Josh Harlow free kick to cut the lead to 2 - 1, which is where things would be at halftime.
"I think the guys really came together during halftime and realized they were not going to lose this game and came out for the second half really fired up," added Sullivan.
The second stanza was a good half for the Indians as almost the entire 45 minutes was played on the East Mississippi defensive end but until the 72nd minute the Indians just narrowly missed numerous chances to score. Mark Creekmore tied the game up in the 72nd minute on another Harlow assist on a gorgeous goal from the right side of the field.
Then three minutes later, Collin Burchfield scored off a nice set piece to give the Indians the lead for good. The last few moments were tense for the Indians, but keeper Trace Nabors made a big save with less than a minute to go on the Lions only shot on goal for the half.
With the win the Indians put themselves solidly in 2nd place in the north division halfway through the division schedule and stand at 6 -2 - 0 overall and 3 - 1 - 0 in the north division. ICC will next be in action on Wednesday at 4:00 against MS Gulf Coast, in a rematch of exciting earlier game this year that Gulf Coast won 2 - 1.
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[] ICC falls to Hinds in first place battle (9/25/2009)
The Indians traveled to Hinds to place their four-game winning streak on the line in a first place battle and came home with a very dissapointing 5- 0 loss to the Eagles.
"We got outworked today," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan. "Hinds came out really stong and I think they were expecting more from us and unfortunately, we just didn't give them more of a fight."
Sullivan added, "the weather has been killing us from a standpoint of getting on the field for training but, we can't use that as a an excuse. We just have to play better."
The game was scoreless until the 23rd minute when Hinds was able to score when ICC left a player open on the back post. The game was back and forth until the 42nd minute when Hinds would score off a deflection on a great save from Tres Wortham and that is where the game would stand at halftime.
In the second half ICC could not get anything going offensively, and Hinds would tack on three more goals to win the match 5 - 0.
With the loss, the Red and Blue move to 5 - 2 - 0 overall and 2 - 1 - 0 in the north division. ICC will be in action next on Monday afternoon in just its second home game of the year against East MS at 4:00.
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[] ICC soccer washed out again (9/23/2009)
For the third time in less than a week, Itawamba Community College's soccer programs have seen their matches postponed due to unplayable conditions. This time, it's this afternoon's doubleheader against East Mississippi on the Fulton campus.
"This is getting old and we're now having to cancel our non-conference games to make sure we get our division games in," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan. "But we have no choice with all the rain we've had lately even with our wonderful facility, it's just not safe out there to play a game."
Sullivan added today's double dip will now be made up on Monday afternoon in Fulton beginning at 2 with the ladies game with the men to follow at 4. Unfortunately, ICC's regularly scheduled match on Monday against East Central in Fulton has been cancelled to accommodate today's (Wednesday) postponement.
ICC will next face Hinds Community College Friday in Raymond in a pair of first place showdowns beginning at 5 p.m. with the women's matchup. The Lady Indians have won three in a row and are averaging 11 goals a game in those matches, while the Indians have been victorious in four straight games and will take a 5-1 mark to the capital city area.
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[] ICC reschedules recent rainout (9/22/2009)
Itawamba Community College head soccer coach Mike Sullivan has announced the rescheduling of last Friday's washout against Meridian Community College. The new date of the matchup between two of the state's top community college soccer programs will now be Sunday, October 18, at the ICC soccer field.
The women's game is set for noon with the men to follow at 2 p.m. The Indians doubleheader that was also postponed last Saturday against Pearl River Community College will not be made up. The hosting of Gulf Coast on September 30, which was originally scheduled for a women's only match has now added a men's game. The women will be play at 2 p.m. with the men to follow at 4 p.m.
ICC entertains East Mississippi tomorrow afternoon at 2 and 4. It's only the second home match of the year for the Lady Indians, who have won three straight and are averaging 11 goals a game in that streak and for the Indians, who have won four in a row and are in first place in the north (2-0) and 5-1 overall.
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[] ICC soccer postpones a pair of doubleheaders (9/18/2009)
Itawamba Community College's red-hot soccer programs finally found someone that could slow down its teams. Mother Nature. ICC head coach Mike Sullivan was forced to postpone this afternoon's doubleheader against Meridian and also tomorrow's two games against Pearl River Community College.
"We really didn't want to do this but the field is just about unplayable and if more weather does come today, it would be even worse," said Sullivan, whose two teams at Itawamba have played just one home game each so far this season.
No reschedule dates have been determined, as of yet. The Indians are tied for first in the north with a 2-0 mark, 5-1 overall, while the Lady Indians have won three straight, including their division opener at Northwest on Tuesday, and are 3-2-1 on the young campaign.
ICC's next games will be on Wednesday afternoon against East Mississippi in Fulton. The women will play at 2 p.m., while the men will follow at 4 p.m.
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[] Indians shutout Northwest in Senatobia (9/15/2009)
The Indians traveled to Northwest in search of redemption from last year's defeat to the Rangers and the Red and Blue did not disappoint its fans with a 3 - 0 victory.
"This was a big win for us," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan, whose team has played on the road in five of its first six matches of the year. "This was one of the teams that kept us out of the play-offs last year and the guys knew to get back to play-offs this season, you had to beat Northwest and we really delivered today."
Sullivan added, "the first half today was one of the best stretches of soccer we have played this year and I really want to give our defense some credit as we held an extremely talented Ranger team to no goals."
The Indian defense was led by sophomore goalkeeper Tres Wortham and the back line defenders are Tyler Moore, Caryl Vogel, Logan Ayers, and Colt Snell. The Indians came out firing on all cylinders as they maintained possession and created good chances from the start of the match and then in 13th minute, Jimmie Townsend took a pass from Logan Ayers and hit a rocket into the upper 90 to give the Indians the 1 - 0 lead.
The Indians would continue to hold the majority of the possession for the half and then in the 40th minute Omar Juarez would make a great run to the line and hit a cross to Townsend who would score his second goal of the match.
The second half would see Northwest come out and dominate for the first 15 minutes but the Indian defense would not let anything in the back of the net. The Red and Blue would put the game away though in the 58th minute when Juarez would score a goal from a Collin Burchfield assist. The rest of the match was scoreless for both teams as the Indians would go on to the 3 - 0 victory.
"We played really well today and that was great to see because our previous two matches, while they were wins. we did not play well at all and this puts us at 2 - 0 in the division with a good goal differential."
The win also moves the Indians to 5 - 1 - 0 overall and will next host Meridian CC this Friday and then Pearl River this Saturday; both matches will be at 4:00 p.m. on their respective days.
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[] Indians win home opener in overtime (9/11/2009)
For the second time this season, the Indians were able to celebrate a golden goal victory as the Red and Blue knocked off division rival Holmes CC in overtime 3 - 2.
"This was a hard fought battle for 95 minutes," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan. "We played well in places but couldn't finish when we had early chances and that almost cost us a victory."
In the first half, neither team could get on the scoreboard, but the Indians had their chances as they hit the post in the first 10 minutes and were stopped numerous times by the Holmes goalkeeper, who had an impressive game.
The second half saw a lot of back and forth action as Holmes started to push some numbers forward while Itawamba had a little trouble putting anything solid together. In the 55th minute, Collin Burchfield beat a Holmes defender down the field and was fouled in the box. Josh Harlow would put the subsequent penalty kick in the net to give the Indians the lead. Holmes answered immediately as they would capitalize on an error in the back for the Indians and score a long range goal one minute later.
Holmes would take the lead in the 60th minute when the Red and Blue couldn't clear the ball from the back. The Indians would continue to play hard and push a lot of numbers forward and eventually get the equalizer when on a corner kick Jimmie Townsend was fouled inside the box and the Indians would be awarded another penalty kick. Josh Harlow would again be called on to tie the game and he delivered in the 83rd minute. With one minute left in the game, the Indians would score what appeared to be the game winning goal but it was disallowed when a foul was called on the Indians.
The game would go into overtime and in the 95th minute, the Indians would get the chance to celebrate as Townsend would score a long range goal on a bad clearance from a Holmes player.
"This was a huge win because the north division is going to be the toughest from top to bottom since I have been the coach here at ICC and every win you can get will go a long way towards making the play-offs."
With the victory in the home opener, the Indians move to 4 - 1 - 0 overall and 1 - 0 - 0 in the north division. Up next for the Indians will be another tremendous test as they travel to Northwest CC on Tuesday for a 4:00 key division duel.
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[] ICC wraps up four-game road swing with a win (9/9/2009)
The ICC men continued to stay on its winning track as the Indians traveled to East Central and came away with a 5 - 2 victory.
"We really did not play well at all," said ICC head coach Mike Sullivan. "We just couldn't seem to get any passes together at all and we did not finish. But the most important thing is that we did not play well and still came away with a road win.
The Indians got on the board first when Josh Harlow scored his first goal of the season at the 25 minute mark off an assist from Jimmie Townsend. East Central would answer at the 29 minute mark with a goal of its own and the score would stay tied until the 33rd minute when Mark Creekmore would give the Indians the lead off an another assist from Townsend.
East Central would score moments before the half ended to send the game to the break at 2 - 2. The second half was much like the first for the Indians where they would have chances but narrowly miss them until the 70th minute when Logan Ayers would give the Indians the lead for good off an assist from Patrick Wallace.
Parker Davis hit a bomb from long range to make it 4 - 2 and then late in the game Townsend would score off an assist from Omar Juarez to make it 5 - 2.
"We have a huge division game coming up against Holmes and it will be as tough as it gets but we will be fired up to be playing at home and look forward to the challenge," added Sullivan.
With this win the Indians move to 3 - 1 - 0 on the season and will face Holmes CC to open their division schedule on Friday, September 11th, at 4:00 in the home opener.
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[] Indians win on another long road trip (9/1/2009)
The Indians loaded their bus up for yet another long trip down south to South Division opponent Jones CC and came home with a thrilling 3 - 2, double overtime victory.
The Red and Blue gave up an early goal when Johnnie Jones of Jones made an impressive run through a host of ICC defenders and scored an easy goal to take the lead at the four minute mark.
"That goal was very disappointing because we let one man go through us like a hot knife through butter and gave our goalkeeper no chance on the goal," said Indians head coach Mike Sullivan on the bus ride home from Ellisville.
From that point, to the rest of the first half, was pretty even with both teams having chances but not able to dent the scoreboard.
The second half for the Indians was a different story as Jimmie Townsend scored a goal off a set piece from Josh Harlow at the 56 minute mark to tie the match up at one each. Then at the 67 minute mark, the Indians would find the back of the net off another set piece from Harlow as John Ward Grace came through with a fantastic header to take the 2 - 1 lead.
Jones would not go away as Johnnie Jones would get in behind the defense and score a breakaway goal at the 83 minute mark. Neither team could not score again and the game would go into overtime.
The first overtime was quiet for both squads but with three minutes left in the second overtime Logan Ayers would win a ball off an errant pass from Jones and score the game winning goal on a great shot from an incredibly difficult angle.
"This was a great win for us tonight as we played our third straight road game against top-notch competition and we are sitting at 2 - 1 overall now," said an elated Sullivan after the game. "I think we played pretty good today but I feel like our best soccer is still in front of us and hopefully this is the kind of game that is going to help us get to where we want to be this year."
The Indians next match will again be on the road against East Central on Wednesday, September 9th, at 4:00 p.m.
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