After a great start to the season, varsity hit a wall last week against Mercer County and Scott County. I was not very concerned with the Mercer game as we were a little shorthanded (especially offensively), and that game was very even. There wasn't too much that separated the teams and Mercer was able to put away one of their few chances for the game while we could not. We felt pretty good about where we stood after that game since Mercer is projected as one of the better teams in the Central KY area. They are a lot like us in that they returned a good percentage of players from a very successful season last year (they lost 2-1 to Henry Clay in the state tournament - final 16), but also have limited experience after the starting 11. We felt like if we were at full strength that the outcome may have been different.

The Scott County game was a bit different. Again, we were shorthanded but it's never an excuse. #noexcuses That's the hand we are dealt and we have to find a way to earn a positive result no matter who is available. The same things can happen in district games or even in the postseason. After watching video back of the game, I actually thought the first half was a pretty solid performance except for finishing. We had at least 3 very clear goal scoring chances that I would expect us to finish most days, and had we been able to do so that game may have gone differently. Plus I barely saw our goal during the entirey of the first half as the ball stayed in our attacking half for most of the first 40 minutes. In the second half I thought we let the score dictate the way we played as we looked very rushed, and that ultimately led to their second goal on a counter. It is was a tough loss to take, but it was also a really good learning experience.

I do want to say that I think for the most part the boys continue to play hard. We are trying to get them to play a bit smarter though, and for some of them individually that means slowing down. That doesn't mean we want to play slower, just not be in a rush all of the time with forced decisions. John Wooden has a good quote "Be quick, but don't hurry." that applies directly here. As you saw from the email I sent out, we have not been at 100% for the past week, and we will not be there this week either. We also have a handful of guys who are probably not feeling completely healthy but who are able to play. The season is a grind and we will keep pushing forward, but it's important that we can get everyone healthy again so that we are not just plugging holes from game to game. When players are out it makes it tough to develp on field chemistry and work on some of the finer details tactically. However, I also understand these things happen and it's important experience (for the players and coaches) this early in the season to be prepared for it later on. I expect a battle tonight as Franklin County comes to town. They are undefeated and look to be the best team in Frankfort this season, and Frankfort teams are always really up for games against Lexington schools. Due to personnel available we may be changing things up a little bit tactically tonight, but I am really looking for a big response from our group to get us ready for Purples Classic, which will be an extremely difficult weekend.

Thank you to all of the boys for helping us work the pancake breakfast on Saturday. I think they enjoyed working together and they helped us raise a bit of money for the program! Thank you to Charissa Skeeters for coordinating this event!

Below is an update from Coach Raney about JV Navy.