They would play a ball into Yeagley, who laid a pass off to either Panchot or Wedderburn, who then had to finish into an open net.
The drill came after a 1-0 loss against Ohio State in which both players were on the field for extended minutes. Panchot found himself around goal in his 29 minutes of play but couldn’t manage a shot, and Wedderburn hit a shot off the post in his 20 minutes on the field.
“I think the ball off the post affected him on Saturday. Like anyone, I think he really wants to do well for us,” Yeagley said.
Wedderburn did everything right, Yeagley said. He gathered the ball behind the Buckeye defense in the first half, took his time — but not too much so he still had an angle to the net — and even opened his hips to make it look like he was shooting toward the far post before sending the ball to the near post.
He beat the goalie, but the ball went off the inside of the post and skidded across the goal line and off the other post before bouncing away from goal. A few inches separated Wedderburn from his first career goal. Yeagley said his response in his play to the miss kept him off the field in the second half.
“He didn’t necessarily come back from that great,” Yeagley said. “He didn’t play poorly, but he didn’t have the impact we had hoped, which is why we didn’t go with him the second half.”
Panchot, on the other hand, did play in the second half in large part to his seemingly never-ending pressure, Yeagley said.
Panchot won the fitness challenge at the start of the preseason and remains the fittest player on the team, Yeagley said. His fitness means Panchot finds himself involved in most plays on whatever side of the field he is playing.
“Panchot brings an incredible amount of energy in his running off the ball and makes plays,” Yeagley said. “He just makes plays, it’s the simple way to say it.”
Oftentimes Saturday, Panchot was seen pressuring an opponent into a bad pass, or he stole the ball. But the problem came once Panchot gained possession of the ball. Though his relentless drive is an asset defensively, it can prove detrimental once he gains possession.
Yeagley said Panchot has no trouble beating opponents off the dribble. He’s quick, tenacious and has the footwork to take on most players. However, he still needs to slow down on some occasions, Yeagley said.
“Some of our guys are very composed in the way they play,” Yeagley said. “Panchot just likes to go and run at you when sometimes he just needs to see the play develop a little bit more. What he needs to work on is not going 100 miles per hour when he gets it.”
Regardless of whatever flaws the two freshmen might still have, the skills are there. And with every practice, every minute of game experience and every shot taken after practice, they continue to improve.
Already, the two have started to lay claim to spots in Yeagley’s rotation of players. If both continue to improve, their time on the field and their production will only continue to increase.
“I think Weddy will have more time. I think Panchot has been training very well,” Yeagley said. “Our rotation — we’re starting to solve it a little bit better.”
