By DAVID ERSOFF, Journal Sports
With all the cancelations last week due to threats of wintry weather there was no Shreveport-Bossier Journal Boys Soccer Coaches Poll. It is back this week with only one change, the repeated flip-flop Bossier and Loyola have been doing for second place. The status will finally be decided once and for all next Monday when the teams meet at Bossier High.
Once play resumed, top-ranked Captain Shreve recorded wins over Calvary (5-0), Haughton (8-0) and No. 5 Benton (3-0) to remain atop the Coaches Poll, collecting nine of 10 first-place votes. The Gators are scheduled to play seventh-ranked Airline tonight and finish the season Saturday against No. 2 Loyola. Tonight’s game is in doubt with the potential winter storm and of course the very low temperatures forecast. Conditions must include a wind chill above 28 degrees at kick off to play the game, per Caddo Parish School Board rules.
Loyola began last week by winning a tough district game at Sterlington (3-1), then took care of Airline 5-1. The Flyers played No. 4 Byrd to a 1-1 tie on Saturday, keeping their one-loss record intact for another week. Loyola took care of business beating Evangel 4-0 Monday night. The Flyers will get ready for their two toughest challenges, facing Captain Shreve Saturday, then taking the field for their district title-deciding match with third-ranked Bossier in a highly-anticipated game next Monday.
Bossier resumed play with a hard fought 1-0 win over Benton before losing a heartbreaker to Sterlington, despite having most of the possession and opportunities at goal. The Bearkats are scheduled to face D’Arbonne Woods Charter tonight, then meet Haughton on Thursday. They will use the weekend to prepare for their huge Monday matchup with Loyola.
Byrd started the week with a couple games that were closer then expected, edging Airline 3-2 and topping Evangel 4-1. The Yellow Jackets finished by holding No. 2 Loyola to a 1-1 draw that raised a few eyebrows around the soccer community. This result bodes well for the Yellow Jackets’ prospects come playoff time. Byrd is set to host West Monroe Wednesday night before a district matchup against Benton Friday night. On the final day of the season the Yellow Jackets will host Captain Shreve in the other highly-anticipated local matchup to finish the regular season.
Benton took two early week losses to Bossier (1-0) and Shreve (3-0) before beating Ouachita Parish 4-0 last Saturday. The Tigers continued their winning ways by defeating Haughton 8-0 Monday night. The Tigers close out the season with matchups against Byrd and Calvary in hopes those games prep them for a playoff run
Northwood beat both Evangel and Parkway by 2-1 scores before topping Minden 4-2 last week. The Falcons finish their regular season tonight hosting Caddo Magnet, to decide the Division II District 1 championship.
Airline lost both its games last week, first to Byrd 3-2, then Loyola 5-1, in what was a very challenging schedule for the Vikings. It gets no easier tonight when they face Captain Shreve. The Vikings finish the season with games against North Caddo and Parkway.
The final Coaches Poll will come out next Wednesday to allow the final regular season matchups to be reflected in the last rankings. With the No. 1 team facing No. 4, and Nos. 2 and 3 colliding, there is sure to be some movement at the top.
Week 10 SBJ Boys Coaches Soccer Poll
Rank Team (1st) Record Pts Last poll
1 Shreve (9) 15-5-3 69 1
2 Loyola (1) 15-1-5 58 3
3 Bossier 13-6-1 49 2
4 Byrd 11-5-2 41 4
5 Benton 10-10-1 29 5
6 Northwood 11-2-2 22 6
7 Airline 9-4-3 8 7
Also receiving votes — Magnet (3), Calvary (1)
Contact David at dersoff@bellsouth.net