Filho's Hat Trick Helps No. 3 Rio To 6-0 Victory

http://woub.org/2013/09/26/filhos-hat-trick-helps-no-3-rio-6-0-victory

Fueled by a burst of goals late in the first half, Luiz Filho powered the Rio Grande RedStorm to a 6-0 thrashing of the Bluefield (Va.) College Rams.

Filho put three past Rams keeper Jefferson Watson, with all of them coming in a 10-minute time frame. Coach Scott Morrissey was positive but had some fair words of constructive criticism for Filho.

“Luis always works really hard. I feel he has got to do a better job in and around the box, still gets the hat trick which is always good” he said.  “He’s certainly capable of doing that on a regular basis. We just got to get him a little better in the box.”

Rio struggled to get a good strike on any balls near the box, failing to score until the 38th minute, when Filho fell in the box and earned himself a penalty kick. Filho, after a prolonged wait before the shot as he tied his cleats, buried the ball into the left lower corner of the net to give Rio the 1-0 advantage.

Just 26 seconds later, Rio capitalized on a deflated Rams group as Filho weaved his way to the box and put another ball past the keeper to the left. Patricio Arce assisted on the goal.

Arce helped provide another opportunity just two and a half minutes later when he played a nice ball to Pau Delgado-Rodriguez who scored the third RedStorm goal of the night.

At this point, the Rams were bickering back and forth, yelling at the referees and the Bluefield coaches were screaming.

Rio started the second half in control, and ended up scoring in the 48th, 68th, and 86th minutes, courtesy of goals by Filho, Orlando Zapata, and Edward Mussi.

Zapata’s goal was a beauty as he struck with his left foot from a slight angle on the right and bent the ball just inside of the left post.

Rio even managed to substitute some junior varsity players in for their first varsity time, and Morrissey was happy for them to see the pitch.

“For us, it was about … trying to continue to execute and grow as a team and guys got an opportunity,” he said. “We rested some players tonight. There was a couple guys that are carrying some injuries, that we wanted to just give guys another opportunity to play.”

The RedStorm did not field Maximilliano Viera, Heitor De Melo, or William Paulino, all of whom are consistent starters on the team.

There was not a consensus on Viera, but Paulino and De Melo both sat with injuries. Paulino is out for a short stint with a groin injury suffered in the Lindsey Wilson match.

Unfortunately for Rio, Morrissey confirmed De Melo is out for the season with a torn left ACL also sustained in the Lindsey Wilson game.

On the bright side of things for the Storm, they moved up to No. 3 in the NAIA rankings after that hard-fought Saturday draw with the Blue Raiders.

Rio is set for a showdown vs. Point Park Sunday, Sept. 29, at 2 p.m.

No. 3 Rio Dismantles Point Park 6-0

http://woub.org/2013/09/29/no-3-rio-dismantles-point-park-6-0

The Rio Grande RedStorm mauled an overwhelmed Point Park squad by a score of 6-0 Sunday night. Luiz Filho netted three goals for his second consecutive hat trick, and Pau Rodriguez added another two goals.

Filho has played exemplary soccer for the Storm, and has been extremely efficient as of late. Six of Filho’s nine goals on the season have come in his last two matches.

For the second game in a row, the RedStorm controlled possession for a large majority of the game. Rio played around and within the penalty area all night, firing off 25 shots, compared to one for the opposing Pioneers.

Patricio Arce, who seems to have found footing with the RedStorm as of late, scored the other goal on the night. Arce has played stellar ball and figures to be a huge factor for Rio as they kick into the middle of Mid-South Conference play.

The third-ranked RedStorm moved to 7-1-1 with the victory, and are set to host the University of Pikeville Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

Filho Wins MSC Player Of The Week

http://woub.org/2013/10/01/filho-wins-msc-player-week

Fresh off of hat tricks in two consecutive contests, Rio Grande striker Luiz Filho was awarded Mid-South Conference Player of the Week honors this past week.

He shared the honor with Max Malachiyev of Campbellsville.

Filho played superbly against Bluefield College and Point Park. The native of Sau Paulo, Brazil, now sits at second in the MSC in goals with nine.

Coach Scott Morrissey’s star striker has been crucial in the success of the RedStorm thus far this season. His abilities cause defenders to collapse around him, opening up opportunities for his teammates.  On top of that, his powerful legs enable him to rear back and blast shots into the back of the net.

Rio is set to host Pikeville on Wednesday, Oct. 2, as Filho looks to add to that nine goal total.

Filho Named NAIA Player Of The Week

http://woub.org/2013/10/01/filho-named-naia-player-week

A day after being named Mid-South Conference Player of the Week, Rio Grande’s Luiz Filho has earned an even higher honor, taking home NAIA Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Filho had an outstanding week (Sept. 23-29), netting six goals in two matches. In matches against Bluefield College and Point Park University, Filho put home three goals each.

Filho follows up these honors with a match Wednesday, Oct. 2, against Pikeville.

Filho, Rodriguez Shine In 7-0 Defeat Of Pikeville

http://woub.org/2013/10/03/filho-rodriguez-shine-7-0-defeat-pikeville

It was the Pau Rodriguez and Luiz Filho show Wednesday evening at Evan E. Davis Field as the Rio Grande RedStorm stomped the Pikeville (Ky.) Bears 7-0.

Filho assisted on two Pau Rodriguez goals in the first half and collected three goals on the evening. The reigning NAIA National Player of the Week recorded his third straight hat trick in the victory. Filho connected in the 44th, 59th, 81st minutes.

“Obviously he did very well,” said head coach Scott Morrissey. “Striker, put the ball in the back of the net, that’s what you want him to do.”

Rodriguez also turned in a stellar performance for the RedStorm, posting the first two goals on the night, both coming from Filho assists.

“Pau was fantastic tonight,” said Morrissey. “[Rodriguez and Filho] linked very, very well. Pau scored a couple terrific goals. His movement off the ball from the attacking midfield position was fantastic.”

Orlando Zapata contributed a goal and two assists to Rio’s cause.

After Rodriguez’s first goal, Pikeville put on the pressure and found some of its best opportunities of the game near the penalty area. A shot found the post and ended up harmlessly out of play in the 26th minute.

A few minutes later, the Bears’ players began vocally showing their disapproval to referee David Curley’s calls. Coach Adam Johnson was then shown out after earning a red card in the 31st minute. Energized by their coaches’ fire, the Bears played several minutes of aggressive ball before Pau Rodriguez netted his second goal of the night. This marked the turning point as Filho utilized his head in scoring a goal just 1:10 later and Rio went up 3-0.

Unlike Rio’s past two victories in which its defense was hardly tested, the Bears offense posted 12 shots, with five getting on goal. A Cooper Gaypia shot bounced off of the goal post in what was the closest opportunity Pikeville had all night.

Though Morrissey did note excellent individual effort from the likes of Filho, Rodriguez, Maximilliano Viera, Cesar Lopez and goalie Jon Dodson, he had some strong criticisms of his squad. He mostly cited lethargic play and mental mistakes.

“There were good performances,” he said, “but I always try to focus on the whole team concept. And as a team, we have got to do better. We can’t just think we are going to turn up and get a result because we are Rio Grande.”

The RedStorm moved to 8-1-1 with the victory, 3-0-1 in Mid-South Conference play. Rio turns around and heads out to Campbellsvile, Ky., for a Saturday night showdown with the MSC’s fourth-place Tigers.

Rio And Campbellsville Battle To 1-1 Draw

http://woub.org/2013/10/06/rio-and-campbellsville-battle-1-1-draw

The Rio Grande RedStorm traveled to Campbellsvile (Ky.) University Saturday night and tied the Tigers 1-1 in a matchup of the second- and third-ranked teams in the Mid-South Conference.

Luiz Filho continued his assault on opposing nets as he blasted one between the pipes in the fourth minute of play. Campbellsville kept the RedStorm scoreless for the rest of the night.

The Tigers’ Eurodger Bargblor, Jr., put in the only other goal of the match. Even after two overtimes, the squads remained knotted in a 1-1 tie.

Both teams had excellent looks on goal in the second half and just couldn’t convert.

Rio hosts Shawnee State in their annual “Rockets Over Rio” festival on Saturday, Oct. 12. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

S. Gallia Beats Eastern At Home

http://woub.org/2013/10/02/s-gallia-beats-eastern-home

The South Gallia Rebels had revenge on their minds as they played host to the Eastern Eagles on a beautiful Friday evening in the rolling hills just outside of Crown City. After a 62-6 thrashing at the hands of the Eagles a year ago, the Rebels pleased the home crowd with a satisfying 20-13 victory.

Ethan Spurlock gave South Gallia solid field position at the 37 on the opening kickoff. Right from the get-go, the Rebels (3-2, 2-2) seemed bent on pounding the rock between the tackles. Coach Jason Peck’s squad gave the ball off on handoffs three straight times to start the game. On fourth-and-1 from his own 47, quarterback Landon Hutchinson followed right behind the center to pick up the first down.

Four plays later, Hutchinson slung the ball out to Ethan Spurlock on a screen pass to the right sideline. Spurlock made a man miss, squeaked between two more defenders and made a fourth tackler miss before reaching across the goal line to score the first points of the contest. A missed extra point left the score at 6-0 Rebels.

 The Eagles (2-3, 2-2) then mounted a drive, traveling 59 yards. Quarterback Dylan Bresciani plunged in for the score from 1 yard out to finish it off. The Eagles converted on the extra point, and went up, 7-6. It would be their only lead in the game.

Bresciani ran for 51 yards on five carries, but he was inefficient throughout the evening passing the ball, going 0-6 with two interceptions.

After a nice Spurlock kickoff return, South Gallia started with the ball on its own 40. It took all of two plays for the Rebels to score this time around. A 64-yard Jacob White run to the 6-yard line set up the offense for a touchdown run by Spurlock. On the 2-point conversion, Mikey Wheeler hauled in a pass in the left corner of the end zone to put South Gallia up, 14-7.

The two teams battled for the next couple possessions, trading punts and gaining little ground. South Gallia put together a drive midway through the second, and found itself on the Eastern 5-yard line. Hutchinson then rolled out on fourth down, but was tackled along the sideline to turn the ball over.

The two teams exchanged fumbles on the next two plays, leaving Eastern with the ball after a small slew of miscues. But nothing came of the Eagles drive, and Eastern was forced to punt.

South Gallia capitalized four plays later when Hutchinson hooked up with Jared Northup for a 26-yard score. The 20-7 score held until the half.

South Gallia managed to fend off a fierce effort from Eastern in the second half, as the Eagles scored to make it 20-13. Zach Browning was on the receiving end of a 29-yard score to cut the deficit to 7, but it was just not enough.

The Eagles finished with 180 yards rushing, and went 1-for-8 through the air for 29 yards. Chase Cook had the only completion for Eastern.

South Gallia plays host to Federal Hocking (3-2, 2-1) next week. Eastern will welcome the Belpre Golden Eagles (1-4, 0-3) to Reedsville next Friday.

Opinion: New Yorkers Cast Votes in The Right Direction

http://thenewpolitical.com/2013/09/16/opinion-new-yorkers-cast-votes-in-the-right-direction/

Though the candidacies of Eliot Spitzer and Anthony Weiner may have seemed like a joke just few short years ago, their candidacy for New York City public office was taken very seriously by both contenders.

Spitzer, a Democratic governor from New York, and Weiner, a Democratic congressman also from New York, both resigned from office in a state with a history of corruption and poor judgment within its Democratic party.

Weiner resigned in 2011, Spitzer in 2008.

Even after a prostitution scandal (Spitzer) and a sexting scandal (Weiner, with the irony lost on no one), both felt a need to attempt to get back into public office.

After resigning in 2008, Spitzer decided to run for the office of New York City’s new Comptroller. The Comptroller in New York is essentially the chief financial officer in the city with numerous  fiscal responsibilities. Before even having a chance in the election, Spitzer had to face off with Scott Stringer, another Democrat with a background as a Manhattan Borough President. Spitzer ended up losing the primary by a four percent margin, 52-48, to Stringer.

During much of the campaign, Spitzer’s wife, Silda Wall Spitzer, was conspicuously absent on the campaign trail. It’s not hard to guess why. Spitzer has taken responsibility for his actions and championed his time in office as productive. But it is hard to trust the ethical conduct and implications of Spitzer’s actions, not only with the prostitution scandal, but with his inability to answer questions about ethical issues in his election campaign this time around.

In July, Spitzer, along with other Comptroller candidates failed to file an ethics report, but the fact that this came in light of controversy still surrounding him makes his candidacy all the more iffy. A lawyer for his campaign said that Spitzer was “very busy” at the time and was unable to complete the ethics report at the time being. This comes after supposedly accepting responsibility for his mistakes.

As much as Spitzer’s campaign was taken seriously up until quite recently, Anthony Weiner’s run for New York City mayor became more of a joke.

Evidence surfaced in his recent election bid that Weiner had continued sexting women after claiming to be done, after claiming to be a changed individual who intended to be a family man. After Weiner had made some of these claims, it became apparent that Weiner had flat-out lied.

This sequence of events surely seems reprehensible, not necessarily because of the actions themselves, but because of the trust his family and constituents had in him He failed them. He would be failing his constituents if he had a chance at being the New York City mayor. Thankfully, that is not going to happen, as the distraught Weiner dropped out of the race with about 5 percent public support and rode away from the announcement with a prominent middle finger for his adoring media fans.

It is not necessarily that the actions are just inherently reprehensible, especially if they were isolated incidents without familial relationships and public office and responsibility involved. Ultimately, it is the fact that both individuals took part in shady behavior, lied to the people they represented, and failed to act in a responsible fashion while in office. They have to be held to a higher standard.

So good of the people of New York to shoot down Weiner’s chances, and for narrowly turning down Spitzer in the primary.

Opinion: People take to Twitter over Miss America Pageant

http://thenewpolitical.com/2013/09/23/opinion-people-take-to-twitter-over-miss-america-pageant/

Fury. Confusion. Outrage. Demand for recall. Racist remarks. Equation with terrorism. These words and ideas purportedly plagued the new Miss America Nina Davuluri. Davuluri is the first woman of Indian descent to win the competition, and was greeted after her victory in the competition with putrid remarks all over social media.

Now, there is nothing wrong with having hoped that Miss Kansas would win the competition, as many people did. Theresa Vail set out with a purpose in her quest to be crowned Miss America.

Vail, who battled depression and suicidal thoughts, was set on empowering women. In an interview with Fox News’ Nicki Gosten, Vail stated that her message in the competition was to “empower women to overcome stereotypes and break barriers.” She said that women are “placed under certain convictions, and we feel we have to stay under them. I want people to know, it doesn’t matter what society says. It doesn’t matter what the ‘rules’ say. You can do whatever you want, whatever you set your mind to…that’s what I did when I showed my tattoos.”

Vail is a drill sergeant in the U.S. Army. Vail has tattoos, is an avid hunter who can shoot a gun as well as a bow and arrow, and apparently embodies what many would like to see in Miss America pageant winner.

Many Americans like to think that they exist in a post-racial society in which race and ethnicity no longer matter. But as some of the tweets indicate, this isn’t true. People are taking issue with the fact that Davuluri is of Indian descent. Evidently, one is not a “real American” unless they are white.

America is supposed to be a melting pot of ideas and traditions. Davuluri performed a Bollywood fusion dance in homage to her heritage. This does not make her any less American. By expressing her ties to her heritage, she is showcasing something as American as anything. Americans like to consider anything non-white, non heterosexual, non-cisgendered as “diverse.” But that tells everyone else that there are normal standards and that anyone who doesn’t fall into said standards is diverse. So to say “I’m all for diversity,” but then noting that it’s an insult to have a non-white woman crowned Miss America, well, who knows what that says about the dissenter.

Opinion: Eyes off Nairobi

http://thenewpolitical.com/2013/09/30/opinion-eyes-off-nairobi/

As devastating as the attack on Kenya’s Westgate Mall was, it tends to only serve as another example of how Americans lack a worldly perception at times.

Yes, major networks did take some notice. Yes, they gave the story air time. But did anyone pay the least bit of attention?

It’s too easy to ignore news like this when it’s surrounded by stories of bombings in Pakistan, suicide attacks in mosques, shootings in the marketplace, and violent crime that happens domestically in cities like Chicago everyday.

Who cares when it happens in Nairobi, Kenya?

Americans can talk about these things and encourage dialogue for suggestions to solve problems.Thinking that there is nothing anyone can do gets us all nowhere. Everyone is guilty of ambivalence. These are times for reflection as much as anything. What can one do?

Some estimates put the death toll at nearly 80. Six Kenyan soldiers who responded to the attacks and bravely operated to remove the Al-Shabaab terrorists were confirmed dead. Nearly 200 were left injured. Several of the attackers were killed, and a manhunt continues to find more.

Details have since emerged of a woman called “The White Widow,” who is believed to have played a hand in the attacks. In the British tabloids, there seems to be much more interest in the White Widow than in the heroes that this event created or the positive stories that have come out. While it is in the world’s interest to know about the faces behind the attacks, this attitude of “us first” pervades Western culture and sways what stories are published in the Western media.

And this will hardly catch the everyday American’s attention. It has come to be expected. But if Americans, or college students, are unwilling to talk about the whole story, what can they expect for the future in which no one cares when massive losses of lives take place?