Banner Elk, NC--The Bobcats had very high expectations going
into last season and with a final record of, 8-7-3 it was a
disappointing end to a very promising start.
The Bobcats opened the 2006 campaign against very strong
competition on the 25th and 28th of August against Francis Marion
and UNC Pembroke. Both teams were highly ranked in the Southeast
Region going into the games. The Bobcats beat Francis Marion with a
very convincing 4-1 win, and then turned around 2 days later and
tied UNC Pembroke 1-1. The next two fixtures had the Bobcats
traveling to Clayton State for the "Laker shootout", a tournament
involving Lees-McRae, Clayton State, Queens, and North Georgia. The
Bobcats played two games against Clayton State and North Georgia,
winning both games and taking the winners trophy back to Banner
Elk. The Clayton State game was arguably the best of the Bobcats
season as they showed much character coming back from a two goal
deficit to win the game 3-2 in the final minutes. The game against
North Georgia was a much easier contest as the Bobcats ran away 4-1
winners.
After a great start to the season the Bobcats were on a high, ranked 2nd in the Southeast Region and 21st in the Nation. The next fixture came with much anticipation and excitement as the Bobcats faced Lander, a team they had beaten last season, and a team that stood between the Bobcats and a 1st place ranking in the Southeast region. The game was very much an anti-climax for the Bobcats as a very impressive Lander team punished every Bobcat mistake to win the game 5-1.
However the Bobcats were able to bounce back and win the next
game against Anderson 3-2, putting the team on a high going into
the game against rivals Queens University. The Bobcats started well
scoring first and holding onto the lead for much of the game until
the final minutes when Queens found an equalizer. The game went
back and forth through two periods of overtime before Queens got
the winner. This was the start of a disappointing losing streak for
the Bobcats as they lost the next two games against King College,
and a very close encounter with USC Upstate.
The Bobcats played really well against USC Upstate but fell to the
Spartans, ranked 7th in the nation at the time, 0-1. The Bobcats
took away the positives from their previous game, snapping their
losing streak with a well rounded team effort defeating conference
foe Coker, 4-1. This game sparked a run of undefeated games for
the Bobcats as they were able to win two and tie two of their next
four games, beating St Andrews 3-0 and getting results at both
Erskine and Limestone, 1-1 and 2-2 respectively. The final win of
the four games came against Mount Olive on Homecoming. The Bobcats
honored fallen teammate Michael Shope, presenting his parents with
a signed soccer ball from all the players and a bouquet of flowers
before the game. Gifts that Michael himself would have received on
his senior day. It was a fitting game to honor Shopey's memory as
he had got both winning goals in the previous two years the Bobcats
faced Mount Olive. The Bobcats did not disappoint Shopey as they
played some of the best soccer they had all year running away with
the 2-0 win.
Unfortunately this was one of the last good games the Bobcats would
play as they lost the next two games out of three losing to
Pfeiffer 2-1, and Belmont Abbey 3-1. The Bobcats would finish the
conference in 6th place meaning they would play 3rd place Limestone
in the Quarter Final of the Tournament in Gaffney, South Carolina.
The Bobcats were in poor form going into the tournament but still
very optimistic about their chances having shown earlier in the
season they can beat the best teams in the Region. The game and
final result was a very disappointing way to go out with the
Bobcats losing 4-0.
The Bobcats were ranked 13th in the country during the season, which was the highest ranking in the program's history. This followed the 2005 season in which the team was ranked nationally for 3 weeks.
There were some good individual performances throughout the season, but the Bobcats never consistently came together as a team. Notable performances from some individuals on the season came from Berin Boracic as he led the Bobcat scoring charts with 15 goals, earning him first team all conference, and second team all region honors. Matthew lacey was able to score 8 goals from midfield and led as a captain throughout earning him second team all conference and second team all region honors.
Alumni Game
We have set the date for the 2007 Alumni game, last year was a great turnout and we are hoping for even more this year. The current Bobcats will face the alumni March 24th 2007 in a 1:00pm kickoff. Afterwards, all former and current members of the team are invited to the Banner Elk Café for a post match meal. After that I am sure the alumni will party the night away and catch up on old memories!
Thanks to all he guys that came out and played last year and we hope to see you again this time around. Last years Alumni team consisted of:
Goalkeeper - Calvin Dixon (2004)
Defender- Ian Batson (2004)
Defender- Luke Patterson (2003)
Defender- Jeff Tate (2003)
Defender- Nik Nixon (2004)
Midfield-Chris Whalley (Head coach)
Midfield- Josh Gillon (2003)
Midfield- Callan Welder (1999)
Midfield- Nick Young (2002)
Forward- Les Brousssard (1927)
Forward- Sebastian Wild
