News Archives

PSC Appoints Greg McElroy Interim DOC Boys

The Pacesetter Soccer Club has announced today that Greg McElroy has been hired as Interim Director of Coaching for the boys program. Greg will be assisting Director of Coaching Jimmy Walker in all facets of the boys program including coaching teams, player development and administrative work.

We are excited to have Greg McElroy on board and we feel he will fit seamlessly into our coaching staff at Pacesetter Soccer Club. Greg has vast experience in the game at the Club and High School level and is the only High School Soccer coach in Northwest Ohio to win a State Championship for High School Soccer.

Prior to coaching, Greg came up through the Pacesetter youth system and played at University of Kentucky. He has been a part of the Pacesetter Soccer organization over the last twenty years and knows the area and the club inside out.

U9 Boys Red getting ready for the spring season.

U17 Boys Begin MRL Play

Team starts 1-1-1 in MRL Premier play

The U17 boys have started 1-1-1 in MRL Premier play. The boys traveled to Michigan and Illinois to compete in the highly prestigious league. "League play started about as expected. Going in we knew it would be an adjustment period. As a team, and individuals, we needed to learn what level of play would be expected in order to be successful at such a higher level. I think our first few games have provided that realization for the boys," commented head coach Chip Smith.

The team dropped their league opener to Vardar 3-2. After trailing 2-0 early in the game the squad battled back and evened the score on a pair of Adam Montague goals. Minutes later, however, Vardar capitalized on a quick restart and finished to gain the victory. "This game was disappointing. We gifted them three goals. At this level you cannot afford to make even the smallest of mistakes. We did that and we were punished for it," said Smith. "However, on the other hand we scored two great goals, and at times played extremely well. The positive is the boys now know what level they need to be at in games like this."

The team traveled the following weekend to Bloomington, Illinois for two Saturday matches. In the first game the team came out strong, scoring four first half goals against Lou Fusz Soccer Club on their way to a 4-1 victory. "Our intensity, our level of aggression was superb. We completely dominated the game in the first half from a pure physical standpoint. We also finished our early chances when we had them, and put the game away," commented Smith.

The team was led by two Montague goals, and a pair of goals by center-midfielder Reed Glosser. Goalkeepers Josh Weiss and Jeff Cooperider had solid peformances, as did the team's backline, headed by Nate Watkins, Justin Niese, and Steven Witte.

In their second matchup of the day against Eclipse the team battled to a 2-2 tie. The team was able to take an early first half lead on a goal by forward Karter Sell, and a PK by Montague. However, in the second half the team conceded two goals on set pieces. "Obviously, we're not happy with a tie being up 2-2, and certainly not happy that we conceded off two long throw ins. But, this was a tough match for us physically. Next time around we have to be better fitness wise, and also mentally," said Smith.

The team sits in first place currently in the division with four points. They have several games remaining.

Smith commented that he likes what he has seen so far from his team, but they also have a lot of room for positive growth. "We are not playing anywhere near the level we will get to late in the year. What's been positive is that even though we're not in peak form we are still getting some solid results and at times playing some very good, fundamental soccer. To the boys' credit they have worked hard and I think are slowly making an upward climb in their progress. The question is whether they are hungry enough to push themselves even harder? If so, good things might happen."

U15 Boys Select are Champions

Middletown Blast Soccer Success!

The Pacesetter Boys U-15 Select team opened their Spring season at an outdoor tournament in Middletown, Ohio on March 20 and 21st. The team, coached by Eddie Baker, triumphed by stacking up 3 solid wins (11 goals for just 1 against) to take First place overall.

The first contest was against the NUSA Falcons (Northern United Soccer Alliance) out of Englewood, Ohio. The boys prevailed in a 3-0 win. The second game, against the Pride Soccer Club from Canal Winchester, Ohio, was a 3-1 success. At this point, the team was tied with The Dayton Warriors for first place. It was determined instead of playing the semi-final, we would immediately go to the final game.

Although they dominated throughout the tournament, these Pacesetter U15 players did not demonstrate an ounce of diminished effort and racked up an astounding 5-0 win against a very aggressive team that, in spite of the score, never gave up.

Congratulations to the U15 Select Boys for a great season kick off!

Pacesetter Girl's/Women's Teams Win 1st Annual GTFC-Pacesetter Challenge Cup Derby

What started at 8:30AM with overcast and cool weather was ended at approximately 8:30PM on Saturday, March 27th under the lights at Central Catholic High School with Pacesetter Soccer Club emerging victorious in the 1st Annual GTFC-Pacesetter Soccer Club Challenge Cup Derby.

The final overall record was 3-2 with our U-14's, U-16's and U-17's each winning their respective matches. Our "futures" team the U-12's along with our U-13's and U-15's acquitted themselves very nicely and served notice that they too are on the verge of good things this Spring season and into the future. For those of you in attendance yesterday I hope you are as confident as I am that the future looks very bright for the girl's/women's side of Pacesetter Soccer Club.

Congratulations to every team for setting an exemplary standard of fair play, good sportsmanship and competitive soccer for all who had the opportunity to watch you play. The fact that the proceeds, raised through gate donations, benefited the Susan G. Komen For the Cure Foundation made the entire day all the more gratifying.

I would like to extend a special thanks to the coaches, managers and parent volunteers of each team for their efforts in helping to make this 1st annual event such a success. I know that it will grow and continue to be successful in future years as the two preeminent girls/women's programs in Northwest Ohio compete each year for the honor of holding the trophy.

The results of the day for each team are incidental to the fact that this was a club effort with each team recognizing the importance of, and competing for, the honor of holding the trophy for the next 12 months.

U15 and U17 Teams crowned Champions

Girls kick off the season in style in Kentucky

Our girl's high school teams went to Lexington Kentucky over the weekend to compete at the Kick-in-the-Bluegrass tournament. It was a very productive experience for all our teams and allowed us to evaluate and try some things over the weekend.

Our U15 team was crowned champions outscoring opponents 17-1 going 4-0 over the weekend. It was the first time this team has played in regular games so it was a positive start to the season. U15 coach Jen Whipple said, "It was a good start to the season for our girls. It was good to see them improve technically and tactically over the weekend. It is good to see this team starting to come together."

Our U16 team tied two games and lost one against some decent opponents. Coach Bruce Peterson said, "We tried a few things over the weekend and by the final games I was happy with the way the girls competed".

Our U17 girl's team was crowned champions going 4-0 over the weekend outscoring opponents 12-0. The U17 team moved to 5-0-1 on the season and has started off the year in great style. DOC Jimmy Walker said, "I was vey pleased with the U17 girls this weekend. They looked very solid at the back and played some very good soccer over the weekend. We moved the ball around very well and these girls have started off the year very positive".

Young Pacesetters Medal at UT 3v3

On Feb. 20, Jimmy Duwve, Nathan Masters, Chet Lutz, and Luke Gonia played in a 3x3 tournament in the new University of Toledo facility and won for their age group.

Pacesetter Top Boys Club in State

On Saturday November 14th, Pacesetter Soccer Club received the award for the top boys club in Ohio North for the 2009 Season. The award is given to the most successful boys club in Ohio North for the State Cup tournament held in May.

"This marks the second year in a row that Pacesetter Soccer Club has received the award and it is a great honor to receive an award of this caliber. We are proud of this accomplishment and we want to continue to build on this as we grow as a club." said director of coaching Jimmy Walker. "We have some really talented teams here at the Club and we are looking forward to continuing to develop our elite players and teams here in North West Ohio."

Pacesetter Soccer Club Season Kick-Off

Hundreds of Pacesetter players and family members attended the Pacesetter Soccer Club Family Picnic on Saturday, August 8, 2009. It was held on the club training fields at Pacesetter Park.

If you missed the event, mark your calendars to watch for a date in August next year! It was a great success and the board has already approved one for next season!

The Dunk Tank was the highlight of the day, with the Club's Director of Coaching, Jimmy Walker and several of his coaching staff being the targets of a perfect soccer kick. Everyone brought food to share and a parent-player game helped work off all the low-calorie desserts! The youngest participants spent most of their day in the Bounce House, although the occasional young or old adult joined in the fun. The Soccer game organized by Jimmy was also great fun until the lightening display! Fortunately, that was over quickly before most folks could even decide if they should leave or not!

In spite of some rain, the festivities continued without a hitch! See photos.

Soccer Cookie Cake donated by Kerri Walker's niece!

Boys U-15 players Chris Ellis, Brad Brown and Brandon Zakeri enjoy the event!

Club has great camp success this summer

During the month of July Pacesetter Soccer club hosted camps with over three hundred area youths participating.

This year was something special with coaches coming over from The English Premier League to work with our players. It was an opportunity of a lifetime for the players to get coached by people that have had huge success in the game in the best league in the world. There will not be many places in America that will have the opportunity to get the type of coaching our Pacesetter Soccer Club and area players had in July. Due to the high Profile of the camp Channel 11 TV did a feature article on the camp (see video) and the Toledo Blade publicized it as a main story on the sports page (see article).

This Year's Staff included Dennis Bailey, Mark Delaney and Jim Walker who have a combined 70 years experience working with the best teams and players in the world. Having these three coaches is the equivalent of NBA coaches and players coming to Toledo to coach basketball for two weeks.

Dennis Bailey is the only player ever to score a hat-trick against Manchester United at Old Trafford in the English premier league. Manchester United is arguably the most famous sports team in the world. Mark Delaney was the Captain and MVP of Aston Villa F.C who also play in the EPL. Mark also captained the Welsh national team in World Cup qualifiers and is now on the Coaching staff at Aston Villa in the EPL. Jim Walker won the EPL as a player for Derby County in 1972 which is the equivalent of winning a Super Bowl. Jim went on the Coach at Aston Villa in the EPL for over 15 years.

We have already set our camp dates for next year and expect an even bigger turn-out from area soccer players. Next years camps will be over the weeks of July 12-16 and July 19-23. The good news is we have already talked to Dennis, Mark and Jim and they are penciled in for a return in 2010.

Click here to see pictures from our 2009 Soccer Camps.

Club's Former Players College Bound

By: Chip Smith

One of the Pacesetter Soccer Club's most successful boy's teams will see its players continue on in the sport at the collegiate level this fall.

Many of the team's players, who captured back-to-back-to-back Ohio North State Cup titles and Region II Championship berths in 2006, 2007 and 2008, are taking their skills and lessons learned to the college pitch. From the Division 1 level to the Community College arena, the team will be well represented this fall.

The team, which was coached by Chip Smith, won its first state title in 2006, and then continued an unprecedented run that saw it win three in a row. Along the way the team won several tournaments, appeared in some of the best college showcases in the country, and competed in the highly prestigious Midwest Regional League Premier Division.

"Looking back now, this team's resume is quite impressive. Not too many teams in our club's history can say they've done the things this team did," stated Smith. "The by-product of these accomplishments was interest in our players by college coaches."

What led to all the success? Several players were quick to note a variety of reasons.

"We believed in ourselves, never forgot that simple hard work could not be avoided to achieve our goals, and we never took ourselves too seriously," remarked Sylvania Southview graduate Victor Lin. Lin, a defender and midfielder for the team, will continue his academic pursuits at the University of Chicago this fall.

"We had great team chemistry and the desire to go far. We played for each other and the common goals of the team, not the individual," said Sylvania Northview graduate and future University of Cincinnati Bearcat Justin Marquardt.

Each player also pointed out the bond shared throughout the team.

"We did it for the guy next to us, not for ourselves. We were like brothers and didn't want to let each other down," added former Clay High School star Ricky Dempsey, who will play at Owens Community College for head coach Art Johnson.

Smith agreed the team's success was not just because of the talents each player possessed.

"We had a lot of material success as a group, but what made me the proudest was the way they conducted themselves off the field, the responsibility they felt for one another, and the idea they had of always putting the team first. As a coach this was a special experience for me."

In recent years the Toledo area has seen many highly regarded players choose not to continue playing at an advanced level. Smith stated that he and the club made it clear to the players they could play in college if they wanted to. The recruiting process for most of the players began when they were sophomores in high school.

"I scratched my head for years trying to figure out why so many quality players from our area did not play collegiately. We found that some of it was due to lack of knowledge about the process, perhaps not being exposed properly, and the passion in the players to actually go do it. As a club we wanted to make sure the kids had every possible chance to pursue college soccer," said Smith.

"I think as a club, and in particular our Club Administrator Teresa Keefe, researched every imaginable avenue. We gave them some good opportunities, and for many it panned out."

Several players echoed Smith's sentiments.

"The competitive practices and positive atmosphere of the team made me love the sport. After my experiences at Pacesetter I wanted to continue playing at the next level," stated team tri-captain Dan Cooperider. Cooperider, who graduated from Northview, will play for Cincinnati.

Former Anthony Wayne High School goalkeeper Mac Church believes the whole experience was vital.

"Pacesetter opened my eyes to some of the best competition in the country. It exposed me to essentially any college I wanted." Church will continue his career at Ohio Northern University.

"Pacesetter taught me how to prepare myself for games, how to handle myself during the recruiting process on and off the field. I matured a lot which made it easy to transition to talking to actual college coaches and to know what they were talking about," said former Ottawa Hills standout Sam Kuehnle. Kuehnle, who scored the winning goal to clinch a Division III State Title for Ottawa Hills this past fall, will play at Case Western.

Sylvania Northview coach Ryan Creech had four players from the Pacesetter team suit up for him each fall. He noticed the impact the Pacesetter team had on his players right away.

"As the coach at Northview High School I am always drawing players from the local clubs in Sylvania. The Pacesetter Soccer Club has consistently provided our program the luxury of athletes that played the game of soccer at an extremely high level. The quality instruction, volume of competitive games and exposure the Pacesetter players received afforded us the opportunity to conduct much more advanced training sessions and topics that brought high school soccer to a level of excellence we might not have had otherwise."

Northview reached the Division 1 State Semi-Finals in 2007. In 2008, Northview earned the #1 state ranking in Ohio. All four Pacesetter players started for the Wildcats each year.

Smith hopes the lessons learned regarding this team's experiences will benefit the club's teams in the future. With Jimmy Walker, former Penn State University assistant coach, now acting as the club's Director of Coaching, Smith believes more and more Pacesetter players will go on to play in college.

"We have a great club with some of the best coaches and facilities in the country. We also have a very talented crop of young players coming through right now. Our goal is to make our players the best they can be by putting them in the most competitive environment. If you look at the success of the local high school teams you will see that the majority of players belong to our club. We are excited to see the history of sending players to top colleges continue and we are looking forward to guiding more players through," commented Walker.

"This team in particular is sending ten players to play in college which is an amazing accomplishment. The same will be said for our U16 and U17 teams in the next year or two. This accomplishment speaks volumes for our club, the coaches and kids that work tirelessly to improve year round," he added. Walker took over as DOC for the club this past winter.

Kyle Scharfenberg, who played for Creech at Northview, believes the team's successes and experiences helped mold him into the player he is today. Scharfenberg, 2008 Division 1 District Player of the Year, will play for Lafayette College in Pennsylvania this fall.

"Without this team, and the club, I'm not sure I would be ready or capable of playing in college. I learned so much from my experiences being on this team. I became a better player because of it, a better leader because of it, but more importantly a better person because of it. I know each guy feels the same way," he stated.

Below is a list of players, their former high schools, and the colleges they will be attending. * denotes players who will be attending for academics only.

Player	High School	College
Mac Church	Anthony Wayne	Ohio Northern Univ.
Dan Cooperider	Sylvania Northview	Univ. of Cincinnati
*Blake Dedo	St. Francis de Sales	Univ. of Cincinnati
Ricky Dempsey	Clay	Owens Comm. College
Ross Evers	Napoleon	Wilmington College
Cody Katschke	Genoa	Owens Comm. College
*Jordan Keefe	Sylvania Northview	University of Toledo
Sam Kuehnle	Ottawa Hills	Case Western
*Victor Lin	Sylvania Southview	University of Chicago
*Alex Lohse	Anthony Wayne	Purdue University
Mike Mangotic	Anthony Wayne	UNC Greensboro
*Justin Marquardt	Sylvania Northview	Univ. of Cincinnati
Dan Mortemore	Anthony Wayne	Western Michigan
John Rerucha	St. John's Jesuit	Denison University
Kyle Scharfenberg	Sylvania Northview	Lafayette

Pacesetter U17 Boys win State Championship

The Pacesetter U17 Boys team won the State Championship last night after a tough played overtime game with Penine United.

The game was the first ever State Cup final to be played indoors at the Brad Friedel Academy and it was one of the most dramatic finals Ohio North has seen in years.

Pacesetter got on the board in the first half from a great goal by in form striker AJ Klever. Penine came out strong in the second half and with 4 minutes remaining tied the game up.

The game went into overtime and in dramatic fashion Ben Bryant hit a 25 yarder in the top corner to put Pacesetter back on top. With 3 minutes remaining AJ Klever got his second of the game with a brilliant strike from 30 yards to seal an excellent contest between two competitive teams.

"It was a great result for us today," said Head Coach Jimmy Walker. "Penine is a very good team and played some great soccer at times tonight. Our boys have come a long way this season and we have showed great character and work ethic over the last month."

The boys will now head to South Dakota in June for the next phase of the USYSA National Championship series.

Boys 14 Premier on a hot streak

The Boys U-14 Premier team competed in the 2009 Pacesetter Soccer Invitational over Memorial weekend. They came out of it as not only the Champions but did not allow a single goal against them!

The final game was a 1-0 Overtime win against a fine Penns Forest Team.

The weekend prior to the PSI tournament saw the boys win 2 games and tie one to take first place in their State Cup competition bracket. This allowed them to advance to the semi-final game on May 30 at Copley fields in Akron.

In the PSI tourney they had a record of 3-0 and also won the finals. So a 4-0 weekend. They walked away with 1st place champion trophy's.

Seven women and one girl beam with pride after constructing the "photo spot" for the PSI.

U8 Boys Compete

The Pacesetter U8 Boys Red are playing in the NWOYSL U9 Division II. It is the youngest team in our club, coached by Jon Haynes. Playing in the U9 Division the boys had a great season in the fall, finishing 7-3. We are all hoping that they will continue the good performance in the spring season and continue to develop. The are going to participate into their first tournament this spring, competing in the U8 Boys division at PSI Tournament.

U16 Boys Finish Off MRL Play

The U16 Boys Premier team capped off its MRL play in exciting fashion this weekend at Pacesetter Park. The team went 2-0-1, and finished first overall in their Division. The success means the team will be promoted to the MRL Premier Division for the 2010 spring season.

U-16 Premier team-mates celebrate Adam Montague's game winning PK in the final seconds of the game.

"What a great accomplishment for the team. It was one of their goals, and any time you work hard to do something, and then do it, means a lot. The experience the team will receive next spring, the exposure, the competition; it just means a lot for their futures in soccer if they want to pursue it. No other team in the area can say they have that opportunity right now," said coach Chip Smith.

Needing a win or tie in each match, the boys kicked off first against Classic Hammers FC. Reed Glosser put Pacesetter on the board early in the first half to go up 1-0. Despite numerous chances the team could not finish the rest of the match. The final was 1-0.

"It was a nice way to start off the weekend. We executed the things we discussed at half, staying organized defensively, not letting people get behind us in the back, more effort in the midfield, but couldn't finish our chances. We have to get better at that," commented Smith.

Saturday's second match saw Pacesetter face off against 93 Boys Storm SC out of Kentucky. Despite going up 2-0 by half, Coach Smith was not happy with the early performance.

"We wasted multiple chances to ice the game, and we were too casual. Our effort wasn't there like it should have been in a game of this magnitude. I asked the boys how they would fix it in the second half, and unfortunately we let it get away." 93 Storm SC scored two second half goals to knot a draw, 2-2.

Sunday's game against Mockingbird FC, also out of Kentucky became a must win scenario for the team. A win would clinch the league lead, and promotion.

The game teetered back and forth the first 15 minutes, with both teams creating dangerous opportunities. However, the scoreboard remained 0-0. With 25 minutes to go Pacesetter applied more pressure and continued to attack the Mockingbird half of the field.

"We really started winning a lot more the 50/50 and second chance balls. I was happy with how hard we competed and fought for each individual battle," complimented Smith. "I thought Shawn Banagis, Nate Watkins, and Matt Essig really competed hard today, and really wanted to do all the dirty work to succeed."

The teams went into the half tied 0-0, and continued to battle back and forth for the remaining 40 minutes. Goalkeeper Josh Weiss made a save from point blank range to keep the clean sheet two minutes into the second half.

Adam Montague's low cross to Matt Ban was slightly misplayed to squander PSC's best chance of the half. With under a minute left in regulation, Montague was brought down in the penalty box after Ryan Peterson's aggressive play to keep the ball. Montague buried the PK, and time expired to give Pacesetter the win.

"Afterwards, I stressed to the boys the importance of playing to the final whistle, and added something off the bench. Adam and Ryan both were great examples of that on the final play. We've accomplished one of the goals the team set. But there is a bigger prize we're chasing. Now we have to re-focus, and get hungry again to achieve that," said Smith.

The team returns to action Sunday May 10 in Ohio North State Cup Pool Play.

PSC Announces GK Coaches

Since early January our GK Coaching staff has been working very hard to improve our boys and girls goalkeepers in the Club. This year we are pleased to announce that Nate Zechman will be continuing in the role of Goalkeeper coach and we will be adding The University of Toledo Assistant Coach Jen Whipple to our staff.

The feedback that we have had from our Goalkeepers has been fantastic. Nate was a former Pacesetter Player who enjoys giving back to the club and working hard on improving our girls and boys within the club. Nate has been with the club for a few seasons now and is doing a great job improving the young Goalkeepers in the area according to Director of Coaching Jimmy Walker.

In addition to Nate, Pacesetter has hired The University of Toledo Women„s Assistant Coach Jen Whipple to the Goalkeeper staff. Jen is a fantastic addition to our staff and will be helping Nate continue the excellent progression he has started at the club. Jen has some nice experience with some of the top girls Goalkeepers in the country and has helped The University of Toledo to 3 NCAA tournament appearances under Head Coach Brad Evans.

Pacesetter Soccer Club is committed to providing the best professional training possible for all our Goalkeepers as they are considered a very important part of each team.

 

Pacesetter teams star at Club Challenge

Over the weekend of March 28th-29th, Pacesetter Soccer Club participated in the Club Challenge Tournament in Wixom, Michigan. Pacesetter was represented by the U13 Girls Premier, U12 Girls Premier, U10 Girls Red, U10 Girls Black, U10 Boys Red and U10 Boys Black. After a two day competition, five out of the six teams made it to the finals and the results were exceptional: U13 Girls- Champions, U12 Girls- Champions, U10 Girls Red- Champions, U10 Girls Black- Champions, and U10 Boys Red- Champions! Congratulations to all the players and coaches for the great results!

The U10 Girls chill after winning the Club Challenge Tournament in Wixom.

 

15 Girls Premier compete in Indy

The U-15 Girls Premier played at the Dynamo Round Robin with good results:

Saturday, March 21st - PSC vs. Penn Forest '93: Penn Forest 2-1 Pacesetter
Saturday, March 21st - PSC vs. Indy Burn: Indy Burn 2-3 Pacesetter
Sunday, March 22nd - PSC vs. Indy Invaders (South Bend): Indy Invaders 1-1 Pacesetter
Record: 1-1-1

Coach Bruce Peterson commented, "I am pleased with our steady improvement throughout the weekend as our standard of play rose with the strength of our competition. Our players continue to gain confidence in, and greater understanding of, the system we are employing (1-4-3-3) and are becoming more comfortable with the need to compete and not just show up to play. The attitude and commitment of this group of young ladies is a source of pride for the club and I am confident we will continue to show continued improvement in all aspects of play as the season progresses."

 

Boys U17s play at Metro Showcase

The Boys U17 team played this weekend at the Metro Showcase in St. Louis. They went 1-1 over the weekend beating Illinois State Champions Chicago Sockers and losing to Major League Soccer's Kansas City Wizards. "The boys did well in very difficult conditions and showed a lot of heart and determination this weekend," said DOC Jimmy Walker. "The level of competition has been amazing this year and any time you get to compete against a Major League Soccer franchise it is a great experience for the lads. The boys represented the club in a very professional manner and it was a pleasure being around them this weekend."

 

U15 Girls Select off to fast start

In their first outing of the year, the U15 Pacesetter Girls Select participated in the Middletown Spring Blast the weekend of March 21st and 22nd. The level of competition was good and it was a great opportunity to get the girls out on the field for the first time in 2009.

The U15 team went 1-0-2 over the weekend beating The RVSC Jammers from West Virginia 1-0, and tying 1-1 with both The Ohio Galaxies and The Lightning Bolts from Ohio. The team showed great development from the winter training alone, and considering the girls are working on a new formation and some of them have never played together prior to the weekend it was a positive step in the right direction. "To go undefeated for our first tournament and only miss the finals due to goal differential is a great foundation to build our season on" said Coach Casey Staples.

 

Peterson signs as Girls DOC

The Board of Pacesetter Soccer Club is pleased to announce the hiring of Bruce Peterson as Director of Coaching for the Girls Program. Peterson has accepted the offer of employment and will begin his duties as Director of Coaching for the Girls as of March 1, 2009 and will report to Jimmy Walker, Executive Director of Coaching for Pacesetter Soccer Club.

Coach Peterson brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the club both as a coach and former semi-professional player. He has over 30 years of coaching experience at the club, high school and professional level. He led local high school powerhouse St. Ursula Academy to six straight OHSAA District Finals winning 4 in a row from 2003-2006 and in 2005 he led them to the OHSAA Final Four.

Bruce has served as a coach on the State Olympic Development Program (ODP) staff for both Ohio North and Michigan and has also served on the Region II ODP staff of Dr. Tom Turner, Ohio Youth Soccer Association North, Director of Coaching.

Coach Peterson played his collegiate soccer at St. Michael's College in Vermont. After his college playing days he played in a semi-professional league while attending graduate school in Glendale, Arizona. Peterson also had a stint in the Major Indoor Soccer League with the Detroit Rockers as a "game-day" tactical advisor to both players and coaching staff.

Coach Peterson will maintain his club duties as Head Coach of the Pacesetter U-13 & U-15 Girls Premier teams and as assistant coach of the U-16 Girls Premier team while assuming the additional responsibility as Director of Coaching for the Girls program.

"We are looking forward to having Bruce in the role of Girls Director" said Jimmy Walker, Executive Director of Coaching for the Pacesetter Soccer Club. "He is a well respected coach and I have been very impressed with him since my arrival at the club in December".

Coach Peterson holds a USSF National B License and a USSF National Youth License.

 

PSC Hires Danny Fisher as Director of Youth

Pacesetter Soccer Club is pleased to announce the hiring of Danny Fisher as our Director of Youth. Danny will be replacing Mircea Handru who will be leaving at the end of the spring season to pursue further education and to accept an Assistant Coaching Position at Tiffin University. Danny will be starting his position on May 15th and will be continuing the excellent work Mircea has done over the last few years with our Young players. Depending on his immigration status, we hope Mircea will be back on board in January and working with a number of our youth teams in the club.

Danny comes to Pacesetter Soccer Club after serving as the Director of Coaching at Penn's Forest Football Club in Pittsburgh, Pa. During that time Danny also served as Jimmy Walker's Assistant Coach at NCAA 1 Duquesne University, who compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Danny hails from Stafford, England and prior to his arrival in the USA he worked with the Youth Academy at Wolverhampton Wolves in the English Premier League. Before that he had stints working with the academy players at professional teams Walsall F.C. and Shrewsbury Town.

Before coaching, Danny played in the League of Wales but his playing career was cut short due to injury. From there he got into coaching and currently holds the prestigious UEFA B coaching License and his FA Youth Coaches Award. Danny also worked with the ODP programs in PA West and served on the National Team Staff with the Super Y ODP Teams.

Danny commented that he is looking forward to joining the Pacesetter family and helping our coaches and players continue the success the club has started. Director of Coaching Jimmy Walker said, "It will be great working with Danny again. He has a lot to offer as a coach and he will be a great addition to our staff for the fall season."

Danny and his wife Suzanne will be residing in the Sylvania area.

PSC win Club Cup

The OYSAN "Club Cup" is awarded to the club which accumulates the most points from across the U-13 to U-18 ages at the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series State Cup.

The 2009 boy's winner was Pacesetter SC with 39 points, who pipped Everest SC by a point (38). In third place was Cleveland FC (32). Pacesetter was also the 2008 winner!

U16 Boys Premier Open with MRL Victory

The U16 Boys Premier team opened their MRL play with an exciting 2-1 victory over Cleveland Futbol Club this past Thursday (April 2, 2009) at Southview High School. Down 1-0, the squad battled back in the second half to secure an opening league win of 2-1.

Pacesetter began the game with a slow start during the first 15 minutes, struggling to generate any attack and rhythm in their play. After settling down, the boys began to move the ball quicker and created numerous chances. The best chance came with about 12 minutes left in the half, but Karter Sell's full volley off a Justin Niese sailed just high over the cross bar. The team continued to threaten the rest of the half but could not put away any of their chances.

The second half began like the first, with the team trying to find a flow to their play. CFC had the better of play, and capitalized with about 20 minutes left in the second half on a slow shot that just inched its way past GK Geoff Cooperider's outstretched hands.

Despite being down 1- nil, the attitude and leadership of the squad immediately came to the fore front. The boys picked up their level of play and began to dominate the game. Several quality chances barely missed. Zack White fed a brilliant through ball to Sell, but once again the strike sailed just high of the net. Pacesetter continued to apply pressure, but could not capitalized.

The team finally broke the 1- nil score off of a key set piece. Midfielder Shawn Banagis sent a quality service into the box off a free-kick, which was met by Sell's head. The ball skipped to the far post past the outstretched hands of the CFC GK to tie the score 1-1.

Several minutes later Pacesetter had a throw-in deep in the CFC half. Again, Banagis used a long throw to find the head of Sell who proceeded to flick it to the back post. Substitute Ryan Peterson shook his mark in the 18 yard box, and with pure effort and guts flung himself on the end of Sell's pass. Leaving his feet for a diving header, Peterson directed to ball back to the near post for the game's most exciting goal. His effort put Pacesetter up 2-1.

"Peterson's goal was just a gut play. He was fearless, and just put himself out there with complete disregard for his body. He got his head on it, put it back where it came from, and scored a brilliant goal." said head coach Chip Smith.

CFC did manage to test the PSC defense the remainder of the game, but the back line, and GK Cooperider hung on to preserve the victory.

"Obviously, we're happy about winning the first MRL game. It's important to get off to a fast start, and accumulate as many points as possible. I was very pleased with our effort tonight, especially on set pieces, which we always tell the boys is so important. They can win or lose games, and tonight for us they won this match."

We had a nice showing tonight, but we have a lot of things to work on if we want to get where we want to be. The boys have worked hard thus far, but they have to step it up even more these next few weeks," said Smith.

Jim walker added "The boys have looked very good so far this year. They have a very good attitude towards training and they competed well last night. It is always a good sign when a team comes back from behind to win. They looked well organized and well Coached."

The team is back in action at the end of April for a MRL weekend in Columbus, OH.

 

U15 Girls Bond with Sleepover

Nothing helps a group of young ladies from different high schools and Northwest Ohio cities & towns come together as a Pacesetter TEAM than a sleep-over with food, fun, movies and music. The U-15 Women's Premier team got together recently for some team bonding at the home of teammate Alison Mortemore and, by the looks of things, had a rip-roaring good time with a pleasant touch of goofiness added. While the experience of playing together will, no doubt, push them to become better players, these kind of gatherings will provide far more vivid and lasting memories as the years pass. Best of luck for a great 2009 Spring season ladies!

Host mom, Terri Mortemore, reports, "The girls all seemed to have a great time... and I must say - they were ALL very well mannered, polite, ... all the things we hope they are when they are not with us.!"

Pacesetters round out top area high school teams

Anthony Wayne High School boys soccer team, coached by Pacesetter coach Chip Smith, has won the NLL, during Chip's 1st season coaching the team. Pacesetter members include: Mac Church, Austin Combs, Logan Lipinski, Alex Lohse, Mike Mangotic, and Dan Mortemore.

Ottawa Hills High School boys soccer team, coached by Pacesetter coach Greg McElroy, has won the TAAC and the NWOHSSL titles for the 3rd year in a row. Pacesetter members of the team include: Eliot Browarsky, Ben Bryant, Logan Glosser, Reed Glosser, Jack Jamieson, David Joseph, Sam Kuehnle, and Jack Saddemi.

Sylvania Northview High School boys soccer team is one of the top ranked teams in the state of Ohio. The team is coached by Pacesetter coach Ryan Creech. Pacesetter members include: Dan Cooperider, Jordan Keefe, AJ Klever, Justin Marquardt, Kyle Scharfenberg, Josh Watkins, and Nate Watkins.

Sylvania Northview High School girls soccer team, coached by Pacesetter coach Rick Burgin, has won the NLL (Northern Lakes League) for the unprecedented 10th season in a row. Pacesetter members include: Taylor Delaney, Lexi Fisher, Nicole Hobbs, Chelsey Nye, Stephanie Rentschler, Brianna Scharfenberg.

CONGRATULATIONS to all teams, coaches and players!

PSC inks Walker as DOC

The Board of Pacesetter Soccer Club is very pleased to announce that Jimmy Walker has accepted our offer of employment and will begin his duties as Director of Coaching on December 1, 2008.

Jimmy originally hails from Birmingham, England. He moved to the United States in the mid-90's to attend Tiffin University where he obtained a bachelor's degree in business (1997) and an MBA (2000). While a student at Tiffin, Jimmy played soccer and helped the Dragons capture two AMC titles while earning NAIA All-America honors in 1994 and 1995. Finishing seventh in career scoring, Walker was inducted into the Tiffin Hall of Fame in 2006.

In 1995 and 1996, Jimmy was the assistant Men's Coach at Tiffin University and from 1997 to 2002, Jimmy was the head coach for the Tiffin University Women's program.

From Tiffin, Jimmy moved to Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pa. where he served as head coach of the women's team for four years. Jimmy transformed that program from a 5-13-1 season in 2002 into one that posted the most wins in school history in just three short years.

In 2007, Jimmy accepted a position as assistant coach to the Men's program at Penn State, in Pittsburg, and now he has accepted the DOC position with our Club.

Jimmy's playing experience includes the Kalamazoo Kingdom (1996-97) and the Cleveland Caps (1998). In addition, Jimmy Walker previously acted as head coach for the Ohio North ODP (2001-02) and the Pennsylvania West ODP (2003) teams.

Jimmy and his Perrysburg-native wife, Kerri, and daughter, Emma Grace, age 5, will move to and reside in Sylvania, Ohio. Jimmy and his family are excited to return to Ohio and Jimmy looks forward to meeting Pacesetter players and families.

The Board believes Jimmy's experience as a player, administrator and coach will go far to further the Mission of our Club by providing excellent coaching, guidance, supervision and inspiration.

U13 Boys made it though to the semi-finals in the Mead Cup tournament. They notched wins against Vardar and Fusion Elite in round-robin play.

A Perspective on Change

by Chip Smith

Take a good look around Pacesetter. Whether youre at the Indoor Facility, an early season game, or outdoor training, youll notice one thing: new faces.

There are many new players and parents in our club this spring. It is an exciting time to be a coach associated with the club because of the influx of new and the return of old talent. The future for Pacesetter Soccer continues to look bright.

Those who have been with the club may also notice some new faces on the sidelines of their sons or daughters games. New coaches are working with teams and old coaches are working with new teams. Players are getting an opportunity to learn aspects of the game from different people and benefit from their fresh ideas and expertise.

These new faces are great for our club. They ensure that our foundation as the best club in the area will remain. However, as history has shown us sometimes change can be scary. Sometimes the unknown human element can be difficult to decipher. New players to the club must adjust to our training environments, club philosophy, and behavior expectations.

New coaches must establish rapport with players, implement their training principles, and acclimate players to their unique coaching methods and styles. Change is certainly not easy.

Humans are creatures of habit. We learn that certain things in life equal success, and we use them when appropriate. Uncertainty surfaces when we are introduced to a situation where our prior knowledge is tested. Players learn that what has been asked of them in the past is now different. A new coach may require different things. The level of competition may be greater than what their skill-set at the time can cope with.

These are the types of scenarios where we have problems changing. The key issue that coaches working with these new players will face is emotional resistance. In working with adolescents throughout my coaching career, I have seen this emotional resistance first-hand both in high school soccer and in the soccer club.

In both of my experiences I came into situations where a foundation had already been set for the soccer program. Right away there was a testing of the waters. I noticed that as I made suggestions for improvement, players scratched their heads and at times questioned the reasoning behind it. In their eyes my suggestions of change implied that what they were doing was not good enough. To many that is a threat.

The key for us as coaches is to clarify that in order to change one must accept that what they are doing now may not be the only way, or the optimal way to do things. Players must understand that there are various ways to approach situations in life and in the game!

Too often we hear the phrase, Well, thats not how so and so taught me to do it. This is counter-productive and a rigid response to being pushed outside our comfort zone. Below is some advice to help our student-athletes stop resisting change.
1. Emphasize to your child that it is the coachs job to challenge them to change prior habits, mind set, and ways of playing.
2. Remind players that it is worthwhile to work and learn from other coaches. This is a vital life-skill, necessary for success in the real world.
3. Encourage your child to seek understanding by asking questions. As the saying goes, The only bad question is the one you never ask.

As a player I have had to deal with change. It was never easy. As a player I had two different coaches at the high school level. It was a tough transition. I am not sure I truly got out of the experience what I could have because of my emotional resistance to the new coach.

As a coach with the club, I have been the new face to a team. Taking the reigns of a team from an old coach proved a difficult task. However, change takes patience. After time, the team I worked with began to see my point of view and the value in what we were doing. Behind the scenes I had many great parents and fellow coaches supporting me. Because of their continued support, the change we were all experiencing was made a little easier.

A lot of athletes resist change, finding it easier to stay within the comforts of old habits and routines. Although routines and habits are not always bad, they sometimes can stifle development. Our attitude about change has a lot to do with how we deal with it. If we see change as a negative we will continue to treat it that way. It is our responsibility as parents and coaches to help our children see change as an opportunity and encourage them to make the most of it!

News from the Board of Trustees

The Annual Meeting of the Pacesetter Soccer Club took place in February. At that meeting, long time president Steve Wurth stepped down to make time for his many other professional and family activities.

Todd Cooperider (U12G, U15B, U17B) was elected President; Mark Fisher (U16G) will now serve as Vice president. Scott Ramey continues as Secretary and Jim Weber (U15B) was elected as Treasurer.

In addition, Marcy Kuehnle (U17B) joined the Board as a member.

At the March meeting of the Board, our Code of Regulations was amended to increase the number of Board members from 10 to 12. As the Club has grown, a larger Board was deemed necessary to best carry out the Club's Mission. Denny Lyle (U13B) and Pete "Fritz" Klein (U9G, U11B) were then elected to the Board.

For a complete listing of all Board members, please go to the Team Directory page.

Uniroyal and Tireman Drive Donations to Club

TOLEDO, OHIO, (Dec. 5, 2007) - Pacesetter Soccer Club is receiving a donation of more than $1500.00 in funds and equipment from Tireman Auto Service Centers and Uniroyal Tire as part of a longstanding program designed by Uniroyal to support youth soccer across the nation.

Now in its eighth year as a major sponsor of youth soccer, Uniroyal and its dealers have provided 735,500 free soccer balls to soccer families across America and have donated a total of $10 million in funds and equipment.

"The Uniroyal Soccer Program has been a perfect way for us to show our appreciation to the community," said Bob McClain of Tireman Auto Service Centers. "It's been an honor to meet the families connected with the Pacesetter Soccer Club, and we really enjoy the children's smiles when they receive their free soccer ball."

Uniroyal Tire Brand Marketing Director Kaz Holley said, "Every year we have exceptional dealers such as Tireman Auto Service Centers participating in our soccer initiative, which helps organizations like the Pacesetter Soccer Club provide very worthwhile programs for local children."

Uniroyal Tire is one of the world's leading tire brands for passenger and commercial cars, pick-ups, light trucks, mini vans and sport utility vehicles. Dating back to 1892, Uniroyal Tire has developed a reputation for providing high-quality, affordable tires including its Tiger Paw® and Laredo® series. Uniroyal® tires offer just the right combination of dependability, traction and grip in almost every weather condition, and come with one of the industry's leading warranties.

To learn more about the Uniroyal Tire Soccer Program, visit the brand's Web site at www.uniroyal.com. To learn more about Tireman Auto Service Centers please contact Bob McClain, 419-842-8473, at 3159 King Road in Toledo, or visit www.thetireman.com.

What a year it has been for Greg McElroy!

Greg is a longtime coach for Pacesetter Soccer Club. Last year, when an opening became available, Greg became the DOC of Girls. While acting as the DOC of Girls, Greg continued his coaching duties as the head coach for the Ottawa Hills Boys Soccer team. On top of that, Greg maintained his involement in his artistic design company Studio 360 and enjoyed life as a very recently married man.

Greg's "girl teams" had a good season and shall come back this Spring stronger than ever. Greg's Ottawa Hills team (which has a healthy number of Pacesetter players) did very well in the State Tournament and Greg's coaching of that team landed him the coveted Coach of the Year Award from NWOSSCA.

We applaud Greg for all his efforts and accolades. And, we understand when Greg tells us that his plate is too full. Greg will continue to coach a Pacesetter team or two, but has stepped down as DOC of Girls.

Congratulations to you, Greg, you have had a great year!

Boys 13 Red Prevail in All-PSC Final

The U13 Boys Premier Red team successfully competed in the Internationals Season Finale Tournament in Canton Ohio October 26-28.

The first game Saturday was against the Sycamore Arsenal team and Pacesetter prevailed 4-1. The 2nd game was another decisive win against Columbus Blast at 4-0. Sunday's competition ended in a 5-1 victory over Woodridge, leading to a match up in the final game against our own Pacesetter Boys Premier Black team.

The Red team snagged the win against black 4-0 to become the champs. With Black as the Finalists, a great showing for the Pacesetter Club!

This tournament truly capped off an outstanding season for the Red Team with only 1 loss between tournaments and league play all season. The MI Premier league record for the Red team is 9-0, Festival Tourney 4-0, Mead Cup 3-1-1, Fall Ball 4-0 and Internationals 4-0.

U12 Girls Dominate Fall Ball

The U12 Girls Premier competed in the Fall Ball Tournament in the U12 8 v 8 Gold Division over the weekend of Sept 29 - 30. The girls started the tournament with a foggy win over St. Francis Fire of Indianapolis 2 - 1. They had another win over an Indiana team later on Saturday, 2 - 0 over WSU green from Avon, Indiana. On Sunday the girls beat the Steel Town Magic from Pittsburgh 7 - 0. The three wins earned them a trip to the finals on Sunday afternoon against the St. Francis Fire again. This time the girls prevailed 3 - 1 bringing home some more hardware!

U12 Girls Dominate Fall Ball

The U12 Girls Premier competed in the Fall Ball Tournament in the U12 8 v 8 Gold Division over the weekend of Sept 29 - 30. The girls started the tournament with a foggy win over St. Francis Fire of Indianapolis 2 - 1. They had another win over an Indiana team later on Saturday, 2 - 0 over WSU green from Avon, Indiana. On Sunday the girls beat the Steel Town Magic from Pittsburgh 7 - 0. The three wins earned them a trip to the finals on Sunday afternoon against the St. Francis Fire again. This time the girls prevailed 3 - 1 bringing home some more hardware!

Pictured L to R front row: Natalie Deeb, Kassie Memmer, Alysha Welch, Becca Joseph, Alyssa Heintschel, Marina Zeller, Emma Scanes back row: Coach Greg, Dani Johnson, Stephanie Duwve, Erin Bishop, Lauren Cooperider, Ashley Ingle, Emily Felser, Coach Casey

U13 Boys Champs at Fall Ball

Pacesetter Boys U13 Premier Red competed in the Fall Ball soccer tournament in Cincinnati, OH October 5-7. They came out of their final game played in 92 degree heat and sun as the champions! They were undefeated in the tournament, including 2 shut outs, in spite of missing 3 regular players.

Game one was against the NKUnited Hotdogs from Kentucky, final score 2-0. Game two against PASA/Flash Elite of Pickerington, OH, final Score 4-1 Game three against ISC Storm 94 from Centerville, OH, final Score 5-0. Final Game against the Michigan Strikers Red, final Score 4-3.

U13 Boys Premier Red Mead Cup Finalists

The Pacesetter Boys Premier Red U-13 team competed over Labor Day weekend, September 1-3, 2007 in Centerville, Ohio at the Mead Cup. The team competed in the top level at this tournament (Five Star division) against 15 other highly ranked teams from Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky.

The first game on Saturday was against WC United Blue. Pacesetter won 2-0. The 2nd and 3rd competitions were played on Sunday. PSC Red defeated Ann Arbor Arsenal Blue 4-1 in the 1st game and tied the highly ranked Juventus (OH FC) team 1-1 to place first in our division A.

The semi-final game on Monday pitted Pacesetter against Worthington United Blue. Again, Pacesetter prevailed in a tight 1-0 win to move forward to the final game.

The final game was played in desert-like conditions due to incredibly dry fields. FC Nova Black were the 2-0 victors but our U13 Boys Finalists were the champs in our eyes! Congratulations boys!

Mead Cup Good to U12 Girls Premier

The Pacesetter U12 Girls Premier team competed in the FiveStar Top division at the Mead Cup Tournament over Labor Day weekend, Sept 1 - 3 in Dayton Ohio.

The girls beat Javanon 96 Red 3 - 1 in their game on Saturday. After a wonderful team and family party at Coach Casey's parents house and a relaxing evening the girls came out strong on Sunday. They beat Mockingbird Green 5 - 0 on Sunday morning and then beat GSSC 96 White 3 - 0 on Sun afternoon. Those 3 wins put the girls in the championship final on Monday against the Michigan Gators FC 96 Orange.

The game was extremely close throughout with the score after regulation 0 - 0. We played two 10 minute overtimes and the girls lost 1 - 0 in the last stages of the second overtime. The girls played like champions all weekend!

Front Row: (L to R) Alysha Welch, Rebecca Joseph, Alyssa Heintschel, Dani Johnson, Emily Felser, Marina Zeller Back Row: (L to R) Coach Greg McElroy, Stephanie Duwve, Lauren Cooperider, Ashley Ingle, Kassie Memmer, Erin Bishop, Emma Scanes, Natalie Deeb, Coach Casey Staples

Brian Cairns 1946-2006

Brian Andrew Cairns, for whom we recently named our training fields, passed away on July 29, 2006.

Hailing from Edinburgh, Scotland, Brian moved to Toledo in 1979 where he worked as a consulting engineer primarily for Owens Illinois. Brian's lifelong passion for soccer touched our Club in many wonderful ways. Brian, along with Chuck Scharte, was instrumental in forming Pacesetter Soccer Club and Brian was our first Director of Coaching. As Director, Brian brought in former professional players, from Ohio, Michigan, the UK and the Africas, to train our players. Brian was the head coach of the Pacesetter 71's, a successful team that won many tournaments and State Cup championships, all at a time when our Club was in its infancy.

Brian's love and support of our Club never diminished. The time and attention he devoted to Pacesetter kids helped build our Club into the fine program that exists today.

Harpel Conquers All in National Goalie War

Boca Raton, Fla March 18, 2006

It may not be real combat, but Nick Harpel still saw plenty of action. He claimed the top prize of National Goalie War Champion in the U16/U17 age group at the 2005 National Goalie War Championships held March 18, 2006 in Boca Raton, Florida.

In winning the age group, Nick had to face 18 opponents before defeating the runner-up in the finals. The score in the championship match was 18 to 9.

Nick plays goalkeeper for the Pacesetter U17 Premier team and for St. Johns Jesuit H.S. Nick also participates in the Olympic Development Program.

---

Home | News | About PSC | Directory | Tournament

© Copyright 2003 - 2010, The Pacesetter Soccer Club