November is the eleventh month of the year.

November is a month when the clock falls back an hour; the weather portends cold days and snowy days, and we celebrate Veterans Day and Thanksgiving Day.

 Everyone, well almost everyone, enjoys the setback of the clock. I am one of the well almost group.

I might enjoy the extra hour of sleep if I didn’t wake up according to my internal clock. Even if I conquered my internal clock, I can’t control my dog’s clock.

On “turn back morning” as I struggle to doze the extra hour, my dogs recognize I am awake. “Feed us,” their whines say. This year, I silenced them with a not yet. Bear and Duke grumbled before settling. An hour later I got up, and feed them according to the clock’s schedule.

Preview of winter days

The changed clock brings cold weather. I am convinced Mother Nature waits until we turn the clock back to drop the temperatures into the ’40s and ’50s, or less on dry days. The early arrival of darkness ensures even colder nighttime temperatures.

I don’t mind the drop in temperature when I sit comfortably in my easy chair. I mind when I am at an outdoor soccer practice, and the sun has been down for two hours. Thermals and the long sleeve shirt and long pants replace the Pipeline training shirt and shorts worn in October. I am less active than the coach and players, so I add a heavy jacket.

Colder temperatures further frustrate me. They bring cold rain, freezing rain, and snow. I tolerate snow easier than any variation of cold rain.

Snow guarantees slick–slick sidewalks and slick streets. In Maryland, drivers understand how dangerous snow is (but don’t drive like it). Many drivers stay home rather than drive in the snow. Rain brings out those drivers without the sense of danger snow gave them.

Brrrr cold, can’t wait for spring and warming temperatures.

Armistice Day was a federal holiday in November until 1954. It marked the end of World War One (WWI). The Armistice went into effect the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.

In 1954, President Dwight D.Eisenhower signed a bill renaming Armistice Day to Veterans Day. Armistice Day recognized the veterans of WWI. Veterans Day recognizes all veterans.

Veterans Day hasn’t always been celebrated on November 11th. The United States celebrated Veterans Day in October for four years in the 1970s. Since on November 11th.

Thanksgiving Day is the second federal holiday in November. Wikipedia notes there were many celebrations of thanksgiving in our country’s founding days. One marked the safe arrival in Virginia of a group of English Settlers. Another a celebration at Plymouth, Massachusetts. 

People in the United States, Canada, and Liberia celebrate Thanksgiving Day, though the celebrations occur on different days.

Our celebration of Thanksgiving included my niece and her family from Washington, Illinois. Their Thanksgiving week memories include more than the turkey dinner at our house.

 They made the trek early and enjoyed time to visit Pittsburg, PA., Washington, DC, Antietam National Battlefield, Baltimore Inner Harbor, and Fort McHenry. I enjoyed hearing they enjoyed their time and look forward to a return visit.

There are thought, feelings, or impressions of the 11^thmonth you could add using the comment form. Don’t be shy, what did November bring to your life.

Pipeline Soccer Club sent several teams to the 7th Annual Columbus Day Explorer Cup 7-8 October 2018. Two teams of special interest to me, Pipeline 2007 Girls Black and 2006 Girls Black.

Pipeline 2007 Girls Black

My son-in-law, Brad, and I coached the Pipeline 2007 Girls Black team through three games. The team played in the Championship bracket, the top bracket for the age group. They won the first game, tied the second, and lost their third game.

Those who follow this team will understand this is growth since they the Spirit tournament in August.

The Pipeline team controlled the first game, scoring while limiting LANCHESTER UNITED KICKING CLEATS (PAE) scoring opportunities.

Games of the Season

In the second game, Pipeline responded when down against the team that won the tournament. FC BERNA LEGACY 07G (NJ) scored in the first half. The Pipeline girls prevented additional scoring, and, though, down late into the second-half fought back to a draw. Draws were the best results earned against Berna this weekend.

Pipeline girls lost the game against the other finalist, PDA WILDFIRE WHITE (NJ).

PDA is a 2008 team, yes girls a year younger than the 2007 team. GOTSOCCER ranks PDA as #1 in New Jersey, #3 in Region 1, and #11 in the nation for their age group. Their game history has wins against many 2007 year group teams.

This is not justification for losing. It is a fact Pipeline gave PDA a challenging game. Their coach complimented Pipeline on their quality of play against his team, which he stated had just played one of their best games ever. Later, one PDA parent stated the reason PDA lost in the final to Berna was the game Pipeline gave them. Pipeline wore them down.

It was nice to hear others compliment the girls’ play. Still, it is the coaches who know them best, and both of us felt the draw and loss were two of their best games to date.

Pipeline 2006 Girls Black

My granddaughter’s team, Pipeline 2006 Girls Black, was also at the tournament. They won three games in their bracket without allowing a single goal against. This put them in the final against LIONVILLE LIONHEARTS (PAE) who won their three games and hadn’t allowed a goal against.

The championship game was a nail-biter for both sides. The ball changed possession as the defenses held off their opponent’s offensive challenges. Deep into the second half, spectators were talking of overtime or resolution by penalty kicks.

With single digit minutes remaining in the game, LIONHEARTS scored past the outstretched hands of Pipeline’s goalkeeper. I think the goalkeeper got her fingertips on the ball, but not enough to send it outside the far post.

Pipeline 2006 Girls Black have reason to be proud of their performance in this tournament and in the championship game.

Coming events

The next tournaments for the Pipeline teams are in November. The 2007 team will play in the Bethesda Premier Cup while the 2008 team with play a Soccer Association of Columbia tournament.

In the meantime, both teams are competing in Premier brackets of the EDP League.

Wish them well in their league and tournament play.

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Labor Day weekend found Pipeline 2007 Girls Black team competing in the Keystone Cup 2018 tournament.

Last week the team played in the 2018 Spirit United Kickoff Classic. They finished the weekend losing two games and tying one.

This weekend, the team finished with two losses and a tied game. The results are similar on the surface but much different. Last weekend the team played in the third division.

This weekend the 2007 Girls played in the Keystone Cup’s top division. Pipeline lost to two highly ranked teams from the Pennsylvania East Region. The third game was against a team highly ranked in Virginia. That team was a semi-finalist in the Virginia State Championship. Note, though, the competition at Spirit was fierce, but the opposition teams ranked in GotSoccer below the teams played at Keystone.

Tournament Takeaways

What to take from the two weekend tournaments?

The first weekend was against quality talent, but it was the 2007 Girls first competition together. The team was in every game, losing 2-3, 1-2, and tying 1-1.

This weekend the team learned what it meant to play club’s first teams. Pipeline’s second team in the age group needs more time together to develop their team dynamics. As girls settle in their role with the team, ball movement will improve and yield quality attacking opportunities. The team put up four goals in the tied game indicating they can score against quality teams.

This weekend, the girls learned how important it is to be able to play with intensity over 5, 10, and 15+ minutes. There were limited substitutes available, but rotation from the pitch to bench left some girls playing long minutes. Improving fitness is something the girls can focus on outside training sessions.

The girls need to improve their technical skills. The teams that beat the 2007 Girls had girls with very good technical skills. They controlled the ball better, winning most 1v1 situations against Pipeline, and made smart, strong passes. None of these are beyond Pipeline but must be cultivated and learned.

The last takeaway from this weekend is Pipeline improved from the first weekend. Playing strong competition is the way to find areas for improvement. This weekend highlighted things the team and girls, individually, can work to improve.

I look forward to seeing the girls in the coming league play as preparation for the Columbus Day tournament.

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