SOCCER SATURDAY - INDY ELEVEN for 08/15/20

(00:00-02:35) – Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan and opens the show by quickly diving into what he will be discussing in each segment. Plus, Rake hints at this being one of the most Indy Eleven centric shows besides the Best of Indy Eleven Moments that he and Bradu Hauter put together during the holiday season. (05:36-12:47) – On Monday all 34 matches for the Indy Eleven and their dates were revealed which means it's time for Greg Rakestraw to dive into it. Rake breaks down the schedule from month to month along with sharing some notes along the way. To check out the full schedule for the Indy Eleven, click here. Tickets are already available for all the home matches, along with season tickets and you can check that by visiting the Indy Eleven website. (15:48-26:43) – Head Coach Mark Lowry of the Indy Eleven makes a reappearance on Soccer Saturday with Greg Rakestraw for the first time this calendar year. Lowry and Rake start their conversation with what the addition of Sebastian Guenzatti will bring to the club on a daily basis, how excited he is to be reunited with Jack Blake after the club signed him earlier this year, what kind of pieces that he's looking at adding to the roster to solidify it before the start of the season, and how he is feeling about his team heading into 2023 compared to how he felt going into the 2022 season. (29:44-42:07) – Defender A.J. Cochran of the Indy Eleven joins Greg Rakestraw on Soccer Saturday to catch up with Rake on what he's been doing during the offseason since the season completed in October of 2022, where his head was at heading into the offseason on if he thought he would be back with the club for 2023, why he believes the club has had a terrific offseason, what he's spent the most time on trying to improve during the offseason, and how familiar he is with the players that Mark Lowry has brought in. (45:06-55:40) – Greg closes out this week's show by sharing some news and notes from the first weekend of the FA Cup from last week, some injury news surrounding a member of the United States Men's National Team, and quickly looks at today's slate of games in the English Premier League.

14 Jan 202358min

(00:00-05:07) - Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan and opens the show by discussing the first handful of matches of the schedule that were revealed earlier this week. Plus, Rake highlights the recent signing that Mark Lowry has made to bolster his roster heading into the 2023 season and previews the conversation with the other guest on today's show in Pablo Maurer. (08:08-22:11) - The newest addition to the Indy Eleven roster in midfielder Jack Blake joins Greg Rakestraw on Soccer Saturday from his hometown in Nottingham, England to explain why he wanted to play with Mark Lowry again after playing for him in 2018 with the Jacksonville Amarda, which players on the roster that he is looking forward to playing with in the incoming months, what he remembers about playing at Carroll Stadium as an opponent with the Armada, and what parts of Indianapolis that he is looking forward to embracing as a resident. (25:12-41:21) - Writer Pablo Maurer of The Athletic joins Greg Rakestraw on The Fan to summarize his story of Pele after his passing right before the end of 2022, the latest news surrounding the drama around Gregg Berhalter's family and Gio Reyna's family stemming from a report that Reyna blackmailed Berhalter regarding him committing domestic violence against his wife in 1991, and which side would have a better chance at returning to the United States Men's National Team for the World Cup in 2026. (44:21-47:18) - Rake shifts his conversation away from the Indy Eleven and the English Premiere League to the FA Cup with the third cup starting this weekend. Greg explains what he loves about this weekend in the FA Cup and highlights some of the matches in connection to some of the various leagues that the team participate in. (50:18-56:36) - Greg Rakestraw throws out the first edition of Soccer Saturday in 2023 by sharing some news and notes regarding some signings between Major League Soccer and United Soccer League, the departure of Taylor Twellman from ESPN and the speculation on where Twellman could end up, and which soccer player is retiring after a seventeen-year career. Rake closes out the show with his thoughts on the Gregg Berhalter/Gio Reyna drama.

7 Jan 202359min

(00:00-01:31) – Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on The Fan. He opens the Best Eleven Moments show by updating you on if the Indy Eleven have any player news and wish you a Happy New Year. (04:33-21:51) – The countdown begins with moment 11, which is the entire month of April. The Indy Eleven rebounded off a less than stellar March with a defeat of last year's USL Champions Orange County. Moment 10 was Mark Lowry's mid-season roster flip, bringing in Jesus Vasquez, Juan Tejada, and Robby Dambrot along with other players all making a difference on the Eleven's season roster. Moment 9 is dedicated to just one player! Solomon Asante and his performance for the Eleven last season was standout and deserving of its own recognition on the countdown. Finally in this segment, Moment 8 is Indy's December transactions. It was announced that Cam Lindley would be returning to Indy for the 2023 season. Sebastian Guenzatti made it into this countdown at the last minute as his transaction was just finalized last week. (24:50-34:12) – Moment 7 is the specific date of July 9th, 2022. Otherwise known as the first double-header in Indy 11 history. The women's team played first getting a win over Detroit City FC, while the men fell short against Detroit City that same day. This was the last home game for the women's 10-0-2 season that year. Moment 6 features our first in-game highlight with Manuel Arteaga's first half hat-trick against the Charleston Battery. The last moment of this segment, moment 5, is another date. August 22nd being the date where the Indy Eleven broke their scoreless streak in a winning effort following twelve straight weeks without a victory. (37:13-49:07) – Moment 4 is the announcement of "Eleven Park." The construction of a soccer stadium will help legitimize the Indy Eleven's presence here in Indianapolis and in the USL as a whole. This segment sees Hauter dive deep into what his job entails on preparations for future seasons. Eleven Park is anticipated to open for the 2025 season. Moment 3 is the Indy Eleven's victory over Louisville in the Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest. (Or LIPAFC) The Eleven won the contest 2-1 following a draw in the teams prior meeting in Louisville that season. The last moment of this segment belongs to history as it is the women's Indy Eleven team and their debut in the W League of the USL. The women's team had a phenomenal debut season. While they finished the season in 10-0-2, the team made an even bigger contribution to the sport by opening up Indianapolis to women's soccer and featuring several Hoosier talents on the team (52:06-56:43) – The biggest moment of the year gets the final segment all to itself. Moment 1 is dedicated to El Capitan, Ayoze Garcia and his retirement form competitive football at the end of the season. The all-time leader in matches played, and assists was honored by his own team at the end of his career. Luckily enough for the organization, Garcia is staying with the organization post-retirement as an assistant coach for the Indy Eleven. The show concludes with Hauter recapping the 2022 season as well as his hopes for 2023. Final thanks from Greg Rakestraw as the show closes.

31 Dec 202259min

(00:00-01:21) – Host Greg Rakestraw introduces the special "Year-in-Review" episode of Soccer Saturday on 93.5 and 107.5 The Fan. This episode reflects on the 2022 Men's and Women's Indy Eleven seasons. Rakestraw is joined throughout the episode by Indy Eleven Vice President of Marketing and Club Growth Brad Hauter. (04:23-21:49) – The countdown begins with moment 11, which is the entire month of April. The Indy Eleven rebounded off a less than stellar March with a defeat of last year's USL Champions Orange County. Moment 10 was Mark Lowry's mid-season roster flip, bringing in Jesus Vasquez, Juan Tejada, and Robby Dambrot along with other players all making a difference on the Eleven's season roster. Moment 9 is dedicated to just one player! Solomon Asante and his performance for the Eleven last season was standout and deserving of it's own recognition on the countdown. Finally in this segment, Moment 8 is Indy's December transactions. It was announced that Cam Lindley would be returning to Indy for the 2023 season. Sebastian Guenzatti made it into this countdown at the last minute as his transaction was just finalized last week. (24:40-34:01) – Moment 7 is the specific date of July 9th, 2022. Otherwise known as the first double-header in Indy 11 history. The women's team played first getting a win over Detroit City FC, while the men fell short against Detroit City that same day. This was the last home game for the women's 10-0-2 season that year. Moment 6 features our first in-game highlight with Manuel Arteaga's first half hat-trick against the Charleston Battery. The last moment of this segment, moment 5, is another date. August 22nd being the date where the Indy Eleven broke their scoreless streak in a winning effort following twelve straight weeks without a victory. (37:03-48:56) – Moment 4 is the announcement of "Eleven Park." The construction of a soccer stadium will help legitimize the Indy Eleven's presence here in Indianapolis and in the USL as a whole. This segment sees Hauter dive deep into what his job entails on preparations for future seasons. Eleven Park is anticipated to open for the 2025 season. Moment 3 is the Indy Eleven's victory over Louisville in the Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest. (or LIPAFC) The Eleven won the contest 2-1 following a draw in the teams prior meeting in Louisville that season. The last moment of this segment belongs to history as it is the women's Indy Eleven team and their debut in the W League of the USL. The women's team had a phenomenal debut season. While they finished the season in 10-0-2, the team made an even bigger contribution to the sport by opening up Indianapolis to women's soccer and featuring several Hoosier talents on the team. (51:56-56:32) – The biggest moment of the year gets the final segment all to itself. Moment 1 is dedicated to El Capitan, Ayoze Garcia and his retirement form competitive football at the end of the season. The all-time leader in matches played, and assists was honored by his own team at the end of his career. Luckily enough for the organization, Garcia is staying with the organization post-retirement as an assistant coach for the Indy Eleven. The show concludes with Hauter recapping the 2022 season as well as his hopes for 2023. Final thanks from Greg Rakestraw as the show closes.

24 Dec 202259min

(00:00-04:08) – Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan, as the final normal show of 2022. He opens the show by previewing the upcoming Best of Eleven shows, World Cup Final Weekend, and the new signings for Indy Eleven that occurred over the last week, and Indiana falling in PKs to Syracuse in the College Cup National Championship game. (7:08-18:09) – New Indy Eleven signee Sebastian Guenzatti joins the show to talk about joining the squad in Indianapolis. He talks about why the timing is right now to leave Tampa Bay after six seasons and join Indy Eleven. He discusses why he wanted to play for Indy Eleven Manager Mark Lowry. Guenzatti discusses his backstory, his road into soccer and how it led to Indianapolis. (21:09-33:15) – Another new addition to the Indy Eleven Roster to defend the goal, Yannik Oettl talks with Greg about why Indianapolis was the correct next step in his soccer career. He discusses why he chose to leave Germany where he was being paid, to come over to the United States to play collegiately at University of Central Florida. (36:15-43:08) – In this segment Greg Rakestraw talks about the World Cup as it enters its final weekend. Greg goes Crowd Sourcing to talk about both of those topics from the Brickyard Battalion Facebook Page. (46:08-56:32) – The final segment of today's edition of Soccer Saturday, Rake discusses any potential future signings for Indy Eleven going into the New Year. Also looking back at the College Cup that was won in PKs by Syracuse over Indiana. Also, the latest US National Team news regarding Gio Reyna and Manager Greg Berhalter.

17 Dec 202259min

(00:00-08:04) – Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan and opens up this morning's show talking about the latest roster additions and returnees to Indy Eleven for the 2023 season. He also remembers the late Grant Wahl who passed away covering the World Cup in Qatar. (11:04-26:06) – Indy Eleven Manager Mark Lowry joins the show to talk about the latest roster additions/returnees and the latest news around the Indy Eleven during the offseason. (29:06-38:17) – One of the newest members of Indy Eleven Younes Boudadi joins the show live from Belgium to talk about joining the Indy Eleven, what he is looking forward to about Indianapolis. He also talks about Morocco, who he played for on the National Youth Team, run in the World Cup. (41:17-52:34) – The Voice of the College Cup Devon Kerr joins the show to recap the National Semifinals, preview the National Championship game between Indiana and Syracuse and also talk about IU's incredible success in the NCAA Tournament over the years. (55:34-56:37) – The final couple minutes of today's edition of Soccer Saturday, Rake wraps up the show by thanking guests and previewing the weeks ahead of Soccer Saturday.

10 Dec 20221h

(00:00-08:54) – Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan and opens up this morning's show with a quick preview of the United States Men's National Team's knockout match this morning against the Netherlands, previews the conversations that he will have with the two guests on today's show, and he recaps some of the announcements that the Indy Eleven made earlier in the week in regards to players that will not be returning to the Indy Eleven. (11:55-21:58) – Midfielder Cam Lindley makes his return to Soccer Saturday and to the Indy Eleven! Rake and Linldey discuss what brought him back to Indianapolis after a successful season in Colorado Springs with the Switchbacks, how his and his wife's family reacted to them saying that they would be coming back home with the two expecting a baby girl in the future, what it has been like watching the World Cup unfold the last couple of weeks, and what it will be like watching his sister play for the Indy Eleven during the summer. (24:59-41:21) – Head Coach Todd Yeagley of the IU Men's Soccer team makes an appearance on Soccer Saturday to describe the excitement he has for his team heading into NCAA College Cup next week, how the success of forward Ryan Wittenbrink has on the rest of the team, what it has been like being a father and a coach at the same time with two of his children on the roster, and shares a scouting report on UNC Greensboro ahead of their match this afternoon. (44:22-51:18) – With the USMNT kicking off the knockout stage match for all of the FIFA World Cup matches, Rake posted a couple questions on the Brickyard Battalion Facebook page earlier in the week for some reaction from soccer fans regarding some storylines that members of the page have found most intriguing. Greg also shares some story lines that he found most interesting across the rest of the groups. (54:18-57:11) – The final couple minutes of today's edition of Soccer Saturday, Rake reminds you of the various Indy Eleven watch parties going on across the state of Indiana. Plus, Rake highlights the upcoming schedule of the knockout stage matches along with who the winner of the United States/Netherlands match will face next.

3 Dec 20221h

(00:00-07:31) - Greg Rakestraw is back with another edition of the Soccer Saturday on 93.5/107.5 The Fan and opens up the show by recapping the pair of matches the United States Men's National Team has played in the group stage for the FIFA World Cup, previews some of the topics that he will discuss through his crowdsourcing on the Brickyard Battalion Facebook page, and the one conversation he will have on today's show. (10:32-20:15) - As noted in the previous segment, Greg Rakestraw turns to the Brickyard Battalion Facebook page to get the reaction of USMNT fans following their draw yesterday against England, how the striker position was the one weakness coming into the World Cup and it showed yesterday, why Gregg Berhalter has made some of the lineup decisions that he's made so far, and how great of a job that Berhalter of switching up scheme between the Wales match and England match. (23:15-32:00) - Greg Rakestraw comes back from break and provides a quick scoreboard update on the Poland/Saudi Arabia match that's going on during the show. Then Rake transitions into some of the tweets that he has received between yesterday and this morning regarding how the United States Men's National Team performed against England yesterday, how important it was that the USMNT to pick up a point, and how he got a Twitter reply from someone that is from his hometown in Lanesville, Indiana. (35:01-50:21) - Head Coach Justin Sullivan of the Marian's women's soccer team joins Greg Rakestraw on Soccer Saturday ahead of their trip to Alabama for the NAIA National Tournament Quarterfinals to explain how he packs for a trip that could last up to ten days, how you prepare for a hopefully long stay in Alabama, how challenging it'll be knowing his club has a huge target on their back considering their 19-0-2 record, and the growth he has seen from Erin Oleksak throughout the course of this season alone. (53:20-56:42) - Greg Rakestraw closes out this week's edition of Soccer Saturday by updating you on the scoring that happened during his conversation with Justin Sullivan in the Poland/Saudi Arabia along with some of the news and notes regarding some roster transactions happening in the USL.

26 Nov 202259min