District 7AAA - 2011

[TheFactsOnly]

2010 was an exciting season for 7AAA as two teams (Lavergne and Riverdale) reached the state quarterfinals. Riverdale lost to State Champion Hendersonville 4-2 and Lavergne lost to State Runner-Up Centennial 2-0. Final 2010 district and overall records for 7 AAA were: Riverdale (4-0-1, 11-8-1), Lavergne (4-1, 14-5-2), Siegel (3-1-1, 9-7-1), Blackman (1-3-1, 6-4-2), Oakland (1-3-1, 3-9-2), and Smyrna (0-5, 4-8-1). Riverdale, Lavergne, and Siegel played extremely tough schedules in 2010 which appeared to help them in the postseason. Based on their 2011 schedules which have been posted, Riverdale and Siegel are again playing the tough teams.

 

I am interested if others have opinions or preseason predictions for 7AAA. Unfortunately, I can only break the division into upper and lower tiers. I believe Lavergne, Riverdale and Siegel will battle for the top seed and Blackman, Oakland, and Smyrna will battle for the number 4 spot. As proven last year, the top seed is critical, since #2 and #3 generally face in an elimination game at districts (recall Lavergne's late OT goal took out a very good Siegel team).

 

My brief uneducated analysis of the teams is as follows...

 

Lavergne - A significant number of seniors. Will have to replace two very important players: Guerra and Gray. Coach McMillan did a great job with this group in 2010. It seemed like every post-season game went to OT or PKs.

 

Riverdale - Lost only three seniors (Powell, Roe, and Pleitez). May start as few as three seniors in 2011. Another young Riverdale team with lots of big game experience in past two seasons.

 

Siegel - Should have mostly seniors starting along with a solid junior midfielder (Stroh). Will have big shoes to fill in net as their starting keeper graduated.

 

Blackman - Lost key offensive threat (Zeeck). A large senior class. Returns a top keeper in sophomore Mitchell. My continued concern for this program is their historic lack of a competitive non-district schedule.

 

Oakland - Lost their key defender from 2010 in Saunders, and graduated several seniors. But, this coach always has his team conditioned and hungry. They could surprise some teams.

 

Smyrna - Will definitely improve from 2010. They typically fare well in non-district games, but are unfortunate to be part of a district that I believe is underrated when compared to others.

[soccerfan011]

I think that was a pretty fair post there. At first glance. this district does seem to be broken up into two tiers. Riverdale, Siegel, and La Vergne should be the cream of the group. Breaking it down between these 3 teams is where it gets hard. All teams lost key players that were instrumental to each team's success. Regardless. I see this district shaping out as one of the most competitive districts in the state

 

1&2. Siegel or Riverdale (Both teams lost someone important. but are also returning plenty of experience in key positions)

3. La Vergne (I just feel like the loss of Guerra will have more of an effect to this team)

4. Blackman (Potential dark horse team. Even without Zeeck.I would not overlook this team)

5. Oakland (Too much youth this season. Still. Look for the forward McCollom to have a solid year. Very quick and knows how to finnish)

6. Smyrna (My lack of knowledge about any of their players leaves me no alternative but to put them at the bottom still does not mean that they couldnt make a run)

 

With this said. It is not even January yet. So what i say now. Please do not hold it against me come may

[Futbol101]

I agree pretty much with your post and comments on the teams in the district, and the obtaining the number 1 seed is vital this season. I dont think this district though is broken down as easily as most seem to have it. I dont think any team is superior to the others, I will give my opinion on each team.

 

Riverdale- Best coach in the district, has his team ready to play each and every game. Has a strong team with really no weak postion, team plays together and Higgs is vital to the teams success this season.

 

Lavergne- Good team, probably the best midfield of any team in the district with good returning core of players. Lost 2 best players from last season but has the talent and coaching to finish in the top half of the district. Cope(midfielder),Shelton(goalie) will be important in teams sucess.

 

Siegel- Returns a strong team with good talent in midfield. Lost goalie and will be interesting to see where scoring will come from to compete with the top teams in the district. But if the younger players step up they could be the suprise team.

 

Blackman- Where do you start with them, lost Zeeck but also have a very strong talented senior class this season. Mitchell is the best goalie in the district and they return most of their key players from last year. The key to this team is motivation and coaching. If this team plays together and is motivated to win they should suprise teams in district play this season. Probably most talented team but all depends on teams leadership and harder scheduling before district play.

 

Oakland- Lost best defender and hard to see them being able to compete on a consistant basis but will suprise some teams. Coach will have them ready to play and with Mccullom at forward team shouldn't be overlooked.

 

Smyrna- Should improve over last season with the younger players gaining expirence.

 

My predictions this season :

 

Riverdale

Lavernge

Blackman

Siegel

Oakland

Smyrna

 

I see no true dominant team but could see any of the top 4 winning the district.

 

 

I think that was a pretty fair post there. At first glance. this district does seem to be broken up into two tiers. Riverdale, Siegel, and La Vergne should be the cream of the group. Breaking it down between these 3 teams is where it gets hard. All teams lost key players that were instrumental to each team's success. Regardless. I see this district shaping out as one of the most competitive districts in the state

 

1&2. Siegel or Riverdale (Both teams lost someone important. but are also returning plenty of experience in key positions)

3. La Vergne (I just feel like the loss of Guerra will have more of an effect to this team)

4. Blackman (Potential dark horse team. Even without Zeeck.I would not overlook this team)

5. Oakland (Too much youth this season. Still. Look for the forward McCollom to have a solid year. Very quick and knows how to finnish)

6. Smyrna (My lack of knowledge about any of their players leaves me no alternative but to put them at the bottom still does not mean that they couldnt make a run)

 

With this said. It is not even January yet. So what i say now. Please do not hold it against me come may

[LiverpoolReds]

I agree pretty much with your post and comments on the teams in the district, and the obtaining the number 1 seed is vital this season. I dont think this district though is broken down as easily as most seem to have it. I dont think any team is superior to the others, I will give my opinion on each team.

 

Riverdale- Best coach in the district, has his team ready to play each and every game. Has a strong team with really no weak postion, team plays together and Higgs is vital to the teams success this season.

 

Lavergne- Good team, probably the best midfield of any team in the district with good returning core of players. Lost 2 best players from last season but has the talent and coaching to finish in the top half of the district. Cope(midfielder),Shelton(goalie) will be important in teams sucess.

 

Siegel- Returns a strong team with good talent in midfield. Lost goalie and will be interesting to see where scoring will come from to compete with the top teams in the district. But if the younger players step up they could be the suprise team.

 

Blackman- Where do you start with them, lost Zeeck but also have a very strong talented senior class this season. Mitchell is the best goalie in the district and they return most of their key players from last year. The key to this team is motivation and coaching. If this team plays together and is motivated to win they should suprise teams in district play this season. Probably most talented team but all depends on teams leadership and harder scheduling before district play.

 

Oakland- Lost best defender and hard to see them being able to compete on a consistant basis but will suprise some teams. Coach will have them ready to play and with Mccullom at forward team shouldn't be overlooked.

 

Smyrna- Should improve over last season with the younger players gaining expirence.

 

My predictions this season :

 

Riverdale

Lavernge

Blackman

Siegel

Oakland

Smyrna

 

I see no true dominant team but could see any of the top 4 winning the district.

 

 

Hmmmm... Don't agree on this, but then again I'm not a Blackman fan. I think the previous two posts make a lot more sense. 7AAA is a battle within the top 3: LaVergne, Riverdale, and Siegel. I'm not excluding Oakland (aka McCollum) or Blackman (aka ... Zeeck?), but in the grand scheme of things, this district really isn't going to see a huge switch in power compared to last year. Yeah each team lost a key player, but all teams have great players filling in. This is high school soccer and things can change in a day. But from a mid-January POV, its 1. Riverdale, LaVergne, Siegel 4. Blackman, Oakland 6. Smyrna

 

According to your post: LaVergne with the best midfield? Siegel with strong underclassmen? Blackman with the most talent? Please site your sources!

[hornsby6]

If we go by number of select players, Siegel is the clear winner. They can start a select player at probably every position and have more on the bench. They will have the strongest midfield with Ryan Stroh, Jeff Sedghi and Connor Dugosh. Ryan is the best set piece kicker, while Jeff could be MVP if he does not get down on himself. Preston O'Neal appears to be in the doghouse but is their best scoring threat. If he gets on the field, he can make things happen with his speed and pressure. They should have a very solid defense with experience in the back with Benjamin Todd and Alex Galloway. Losing a multi-year starter at goal will hurt, but can be offset if Stroh and Sedghi help on defense also. If they win it will be through scoring by the midfield. I predict they will win, but have had difficulty in the playoffs.

 

Riverdale comes in close second place with an experienced team and a coach that gets a lot out of his players. Coach Ali's son will be a force as he is getting older. Higgs will be their scorer along with his little brother. If it comes down to coaching, they may eke ahead. They will have a lot of select players.

 

Oakland will be the darkhorse. I pick them a surprise third. They probably will have the best keeper. They will be very small, but don't let that fool you. Connor McCollom is their best player and he is not tall. Oakland has a few select players and a couple of foreign exchange students that will keep them in the game. One of their starting midfielders is experiencing some knee issues. If he is out for the season, they will really be hurting. Jeff Boynton can hide some weaknesses with his enthusiasm and conditioning. They will be in the best shape in the district.

 

Tied for fourth will be Blackmand and LaVergne. Bill Vice is a very knowledgeable coach but losing Ryan Zeeck will be a huge loss. They will probably have a harder time scoring than Siegel (last few years it was feed Ryan Zeeck and play solid defense). LaVergne lost Ali so that will be as big a loss for them as he could control the middle of the field and score. Between these two teams, the one that gets chemistry going the quickest will jump ahead.

 

Smyrna, sorry, but you are bringing up the rear. Apparently some players do not appreciate the tough approach of their coach. If they listen and too many do not quit, they could score some upsets. Last year at least two select players quit because he was "too hard." Bill knows his stuff, he just needs to get a core group that will listen and play they way he demands.

[cardinals9476]

as being apart of the 6-1 thrashing siegel put on cleveland tonight, i must say that siegel will be a very tough contender in this district

[Futbol101]

Blackman 5

 

Tullahoma 3

 

Blackman plays Baylor, Notre Dame, Soddy Daisy this weekend in Cleveland.

[Futbol101]

Blackman 0

 

Baylor 0

[LHS11Mom]

LaVergne is starting the season off decently. We are currently 2-0-2. The two ties were from Cenntenial and Clarksville, the wins from Gallatin and Station Camp. LHS plays Smyrna on April 1.

[Futbol101]

Riverdale 1

 

Blackman 0

[SiegelAlumni55]

Siegel went to the Bearden Tournament this past weekend with some pretty good turnout

 

Siegel 1

CAK 0

 

Siegel 1

Maryville 2

 

Siegel 3

Knox Catholic 1

 

Siegel has gone through one of the toughest stretches in the state playing top teams nearly every game. Besides Brentwood. All of their games could have gone either way. So with a 4-4 start. Siegel is far better than their record may first appear. With that said. i know they are not the only team in the district that has had a good start. Riverdale beating blackman proves their strength again this year. How does everybody else see the District so far?

[Futbol101]

Blackman 2

 

Lavergne 1