Ohio Athletic Conference

[woacfan]

How much did that loss cost JCU?  It was a four game swing.  Instead of being in first, they are now in fourth place.  Capital and (guess who?) Otterbein are tied for second.  JCU is half a game behind them.  Otterbein may cruise into second and Third place may be determined next weekend when the Blue Streaks travel to Columbus to play Capital.  As usual, its a slugfest in the "Norris Division".

[woacfan]

Here are the OAC standings:
                    Conf.      Overall
Ohio Northern  7-0         13-1-2
Otterbein        5-1-1       8-5-2
Capital            5-1-1      7-7-2
John Carroll      5-2        11-6
Baldwin-Wallace 3-4       10-7
Heidelberg         3-4       6-9-1
Wilmington (Ohio) 3-4     5-9-3
Mount Union        2-5     7-8-2
Muskingum          1-6     5-12
Marietta             0-7     1-14-1

Like many conferences,  top 6 make the post-season.  Top 2 teams get a bye.  Tomorrow JCU plays Baldwin-Wallace.  A big game for both of these schools.  JCU wins and they can secure 2nd or 3rd seed with a win Saturday.  B-W could jump as high as number 4 seed with wins over the next 2 games, but can be knocked out with two losses.

Otterbein plays Wilimington.  Wilmington is on the cusp.  They've been an enigmatic team this year.  They have played very streaky soccer.  Otterbein has a young squad that is coming along nicely.  Their biggest win so far was the upset over JCU.  They can clinch 2nd with two wins.  However, Wilmington needs the win tomorrow to stay in the hunt.  Should be another good game.

Capital takes on Marietta.  If Marietta beats Capital it will make their season.  They Pioneers have had a rough year, so they are a long shot tomorrow.   Assuming Capital wins,  it will make for a big matchup with JCU on Saturday.

ONU takes on Heidelberg.  Heidelberg is fighting for a playoff spot as well.  They just won't matchup with ONU.  The Polar Bears will win going away.  They close against Marietta.  A perfect conference schedule looks to be in the works for them.  If only that JCU game had been 10 minutes longer .....

[woacfan]

So here is the breakdown on tonight's game:

   Muskingum  0  Mount Union  3  2nd half - 63:27   
   Marietta  2  Capital  5  Final   
   Heidelberg  0  Ohio Northern  4  Final   
   Baldwin-Wallace  0  John Carroll  2  Final   
   Otterbein 3  Wilmington (Ohio)  0 Final

So,  the standings stay pretty much the same.  Third place gets decided on Saturday in Columbus at the Capital v. JCU game.  Otterbein takes on Wilmington, who will be fighting desperately to stay in the playoff hunt.  Ohio Northern has clinched 1st place seed in the OAC playoffs.

...so whoever voted ONU champs in the survey was right!

[woacfan]

Just back from the Capital game.... 3-0 over JCU.   Capital scored twice in the first ten minutes and JCU had no Answer.  As usual, the Blue Streaks had a lot of shots, but they put very few on frame.  They had no answer early for Capital's potent counter attack. 

Tuesday.  Capital hosts Wilmington and JCU hosts B-W.
ONU and Otterbein get the bye.

ONU looks unbeatable at this point, but Otterbein has to be encouraged after a slow start.  They owned October.  The winners of Tuesday's matchups earn the "honor" of traveling to one of the first two seeds.   

[Jim Matson]

Ohio Northern could be a real surprise in the post-season, making an assumption of course. I agree with woacfan's implication that they may well be one of the better teams in the country.

As an inexperienced tournament team, they need to be sure to be great at the SO aspect of the match. Many of these tourney matches end in a draw so having confidence in SOs is a key to e Final Four (see Wheaton's first championship in 2005).

[woacfan]

PKs are a huge part of conference play.  I am still naive enough to think that the top 4 teams are all good enough to win the conference on the right day.  ONU proved they were the best, but Capital, JCU and Otterbein all have looked pretty good at times.  If you are looking at consistency,  one of the qualities of a champion, you have to pick ONU, but two of the other three teams are ascendant; JCU and Otterbein have young squads.  Capital looks gritty.  Looking forward to this week...

[woacfan]

JCU over BW and Capital over Wilmington.  Watched the JCU game.  It was very physical and chippy.  Capital is very hot right now.  They could be the darkhorse team in the OAC.

[woacfan]

JCU just upset ONU 1 to 0
The Blue Streaks scored when ONU tackled JCU's star middie from behind.  They drew a yellow card and a kick along the flat edge of the 18.  The shot hit the top bar and deflected into the net!

The Blue Steaks...who dey?...the Blue Streaks advance to the final!

[woacfan]

And Capital upsets Otterbein!
Capital handled JCU just a week ago....I would call them the favorite. But in the playoffs anything can happen....
And that is why its D3 Soccer's "Norris Division"!
 

[2xfaux]

It really doesn't get any better than play-off soccer.  Good for JCU and congratulation. Thanks for keeping us posted.  Good luck from here on out.

[woacfan]

Thank you!  Today was fun

[woacfan]

OAC Championshp Keys to the Game:

Capital

1.  Keep JCU off the board early
2.  Penetrate the Defense with crisp passes and try to get inside.
3.  Force JCU to take outside shots

JCU

1.  Balls to feet, no kick and run
2.  Pressure, pressure, pressure...Capital's forwards and mids love to run with the ball, shut them down
3.  Quality shots

Here we go!

[WLCALUM83]

OAC Championshp Keys to the Game:

Capital

1.  Keep JCU off the board early
2.  Penetrate the Defense with crisp passes and try to get inside.
3.  Force JCU to take outside shots

JCU

1.  Balls to feet, no kick and run
2.  Pressure, pressure, pressure...Capital's forwards and mids love to run with the ball, shut them down
3.  Quality shots

Here we go!

(Billy Joel's "Pressure" playing. . . )  ba dumm bumm!

[woacfan]

Congratulations to the Capital Crusaders...winners of the OAC 4-2 this afternoon.  Capital's edge came in the form of set pieces (something JCU has struggled with all season on both sides of the ball) and some nifty runs (see previous posts below) by the Crusaders' forwards.
Capital took a 2-0 lead, but the Streaks brought it back to 2 to 1.  Early in the second half JCU had three close calls to tie the game, but the Crusaders' counter-attack broke through making it 3 to 1.  They scored a few minutes laters to make it 4 to 1.  JCU carried the play from that point on, but it was too big a hole to climb out of.

Some thoughts:  1.  Capital is going to surprise somebody.  They have a good shot of getting out of the first round.  Coach Kouns has done a great job in his first year. This team made a strong showing down the final stretch of the season.

2.  ONU deserves a tournament bid. They had a great season and JCU was ideally suited to play them.  They could just as easily been tournament champs.

3.  The Blue Streaks have a lot to look forward to.  This is a team with a lot of Sophomores and Freshmen.  They are very young.  They are going to miss their star forward and star defender (both Seniors), but have depth from top to bottom in underclassmen.  Hold your head high JCU you gave it your all, and for most of you the best is yet to come....

4.  On a lighter note, why don't these colleges put a little money into their internet streams?  What a great recruiting tool gone to waste!  Trying to figure out which pony-tailed pixel belongs to you is maddening!  It couldn't be that much to buy some decent cameras and the cost could be spread across all sports.  These poor kids are basically trying to broadcast a game with home video cameras....good grief! 

[Jim Matson]

I'll add my congrats as well.

They'll have their chance to make a name for themselves in a week!