conference game of the season at Friends in Wichita KS. The game is not truly a "must win" game as (I believe) Sterling qualifies for the conference tournament with a loss if Bethel also loses. But, if Bethel defeats Tabor, then Sterling "must win" to make the playoffs.Bethel stood 0-10 after losing to Sterling, but since then has won 4 of 5 games, including a victory at McPherson. Tabor is coming off a loss to Kansas Wesleyan. Tabor's quality results include a victory over Sterling and a tie with McPherson.
Friends has an additional game to play after this weekend. So, if Sterling defeats Friends on Saturday, the Falcons could still tie Sterling in the standings with a win over Tabor, but Sterling would hold the tiebreaker over Friends.
Sterling has lost consecutive games to Tabor (0-1) and McPherson (1-2). Injuries are beginning to mount (two or three starters may not play) and there will be a red card suspension from the last game.
History: In 2005, Sterling beat Friends 3-1 as Mark Palmer, Maximus Ameachi and DR Smith netted goals for Sterling. In 2006, Friends defeated Sterling in a regular season game 2-0, then beat Sterling again 3-0 in the conference tournament. However, the teams were paired up again in the NAIA Region IV playoffs (at Friends) and this time, Sterling won 4-3 in one of the squad's biggest victories, with Ryan Covey (2), Carl Gerken and "team" being credited with goals. The victory advanced Sterling to the Region IV playoffs in Omaha NE, where Sterling lost 1-0 in overtime to Park University. Last year, Friends overwhelmed Sterling 5-0.
Game time is 8:00 p.m. tomorrow in Wichita. We plan to attend and meet up with a college buddy from OK State, who teaches in Wichita. The game could be the final match for Sterling's four seniors but I think they will survive and advance to the conference tournament.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment