The moments before last Wednesday’s boys soccer game between Foxcroft Academy and Piscataquis in Guilford were pretty normal. Players practiced taking shots at goalies, who practiced making saves. Managers filled out scorebooks. Referees checked for proper inflation of soccer balls.

But there was one more thing the Pirates had to do before playing the Ponies.

Just before taking the field, Piscataquis assistant coach Chad Graffam got on a portable loudspeaker and asked for a moment of silence for Peter Nelson, the Pirate coach who died July 25 in an ATV accident in Dexter.

Both teams, plus a group of spectators seated on the hill between the field and the high school, bowed their heads for a moment.

The boys also asked Nelson’s widow, Jennifer, down on the field. Two of the Pirate captains escorted her to the team sideline, where the boys gave her flowers, a balloon, and a signed soccer ball.

It was a way for the team to recognize Nelson, while moving past the tragedy. The Pirates went on to win the home-opener 3-2.

The boys found out slowly the night of July 25 and later that weekend as word of the tragedy spread throughout town.

“Somebody called me and I didn’t believe it at first,” said Lee Wilson, who along with Chase Burdin, Dan Rockwell and Josh Luellen is a team captain. “I was in shock. I called [teammate] Adam Ring and he said it was true.”

Nelson taught geometry at Piscataquis, and the Pirates said he was known to be fun in the classroom.

“If people put their heads down in class, he’d throw markers at them, just chuck them, or slam the ruler down on their desk if they were sleeping,” Wilson said.

Nelson was a bit more intense on the soccer field.

“Oh, he yelled at us if we weren’t doing something right,” Luellen said with a smile. “He made sure we were doing things right. He’d come out, play with us, do the drills.”

The captains said they have dedicated their season to Nelson. After scoring a goal in the game against Foxcroft, the 11 players on the field at the time gathered in a tight circle and yelled, “1-2-3 Nelson!”

Despite the fact that the Ponies and the Pirates are rivals – the two schools are about eight miles apart – the Foxcroft team was thinking of its neighbor.

Ponies coach Luis Ayala said his team played in a memorial preseason tournament and the Foxcroft squad donated $100 to a memorial fund.

It makes sense that the two schools should put aside their differences. Nelson was born in Dover-Foxcroft, graduate from Dexter High, lived in Corinna, taught in Guilford, and had family in Dexter, Plymouth and Abbot.

“The teams know each other, so this affected the whole region,” Ayala said. “It looks like the guys are pulling together. They’re playing for their coach this season, and that’s great.”

Bangor field hockey growing

It’s not yet at an elite level, but the Bangor High field hockey program continues to show progress.

The Rams had a nearly four-year losing streak (0-42-2) from 1997 until they earned a 3-0 win over Orono two years ago.

So far this season Bangor is 1-1-1. This was the second preseason in a row in which coach Lisa Conley has had to make cuts.

Conley said 55 students tried out for the team this year, but she could only take 20 for the varsity and another 20 for the junior varsity.

Plus, Conley said there are about 40 girls playing in a middle-school team at the James F. Doughty School in Bangor, where she teaches.

“That’s a pretty good indication,” she said after the Rams fell to John Bapst 1-0 last week. “This year and last year there were more kids than we can keep in the program, which is big for Bangor.”

Dutch Soccer Academy offers trip

For six years Robbie Krul has wanted to organize a soccer trip to his native Holland.

This year Krul, who runs the growing Dutch Soccer Academy camps, finally has a chance to do that.

The DSA is offering a trip to Holland and Germany for high school-aged players through the DSA, which is based in Caribou. Athletes will go to the two countries during next year’s April vacation.

There will be one girls team and one boys team. Athletes will have two opportunities to try out.

The first tryout will be Sept. 21 at the Hilltop field in Caribou. The session will run from 2-4 p.m.

The second session will be held Sept. 28 at an as-yet undetermined field in the Bangor area, from 4-6 p.m.

The proposed itinerary includes training, trips to professional games, tours of professional stadiums, sightseeing excursions, and games against German and Dutch teams.

Krul, a Dutch National Soccer Association-licensed coach, and his wife Tammy have been conducting camps in Aroostook County for several years, and have expanded to other sites in Maine and New Hampshire. This summer they moved the overnight camp from Loring Air Base in Limestone to UMaine-Presque Isle because the number of campers had climbed from 100 to 150.

Many of the DSA’s coaches come from Holland, although this year there were also coaches from Brazil and Yugoslavia.

Krul is estimating the cost of the trip to run each player between $1,800 and $2,000. That figure includes airfare, meals, lodging and uniform. Once the teams are determined the DSA will look into fundraising.

The DSA is also looking for adult chaperones to accompany the group.

To preregister for the tryouts call 492-1147 after 6 p.m. or email dsa@dutchsoccer academy.com For more information, go to www.dutchsocceracademy.com.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at 990-8193, 1-800-310-8600 or jbloch@bangordailynews.net.