NESCAC

[MENESCACFAN]

Fair argument.  But very different players in same position.  Devlin is a Paul Scholes and Patch is a Roy Keane.

As I said originally I am basing these picks purely on this fall and games I have seen.  Devlin has limped in and out of every game I watched him and he is visibly slowed with some niggling problem whatever it is.  If I am going on reputation, Santos and Nakamura enter this debate too along with Muralles, and yes Devlin is better than Patch.  Tough to say that this fall though.
 

[All NESCAC]

Fair argument.  But very different players in same position.  Devlin is a Paul Scholes and Patch is a Roy Keane.

As I said originally I am basing these picks purely on this fall and games I have seen.  Devlin has limped in and out of every game I watched him and he is visibly slowed with some niggling problem whatever it is.  If I am going on reputation, Santos and Nakamura enter this debate too along with Muralles, and yes Devlin is better than Patch.  Tough to say that this fall though.

Can't say RE: Keane vs Scholes as I have only seen Scholes play towards the end of his illustrious career with ManU ("go Red Devils"), but I will take your word for the comparison differences between two good players. Patch and Devlin are two different style mids and a great combination. I am very glad Conn finally moved Patch into the mid position this year and off the back line.  They should have made that move last year.  I am looking forward to finally seeing Tufts play this weekend.  Conn will have their hands full with the Jumbos and I don't believe Tufts has forgotten last years 2OT loss on the Hawkey golden goal. 

[MENESCACFAN]

Enjoy the game, Tufts dismantling of Bates on opening day was the best performance I have witnessed so far this season by any NESCAC team.  Take your pick of Hoppenot, Santos, Kayne and Brown for scoring threats.

[Bucket]

Hard to leave the tufts midfielders out of discussion of best midfielders....imho they move and pass the ball around very well...

I've had that same thought, Nutmeg, but wanted to finish my research before posting.  Interesting point is that I believe Tufts plays a 4-2-3-1 and their two pivot starting center mids, Rui Pinheiro and Zachary Halliday, are both from Princeton, NJ, although different schools.  Pinheiro in particular, has impressed me - very technical with some flair and a good passer and has taken some strong free kicks and come up with a few key game winning plays. I don't recall anyone mentioning him before.  He will probably be considered a top midfileder for me.  Intrigued with the Tufts midfield indeed.

I was very impressed with Pinheiro's play at Middlebury on Saturday.

[amh63]

Question for those knowledgeable..soccer playing posters.  What is more difficult for a player...a wet turf field or a wet grass field..a "pitch" for you posters. .  Especially in rain.  Saw a group of pics from last Sat's game at Amherst between the Jeffs and the Hamilton Continentals.  Aware that the uniforms and shoes become heavy, etc.  The pics show players quite happy that the game was over under the conditions.
Another thing that I am seeing more of this season....players wearing bright color shoes..individualized...like the GK uniforms.  Not standard issues so to speak.  Guess the coaches are allowing it.  Saw the trend in men's basketball come on several years ago.  Poster Bucket is aware of my attention to shoes on the playing field.  I am aware that players in college sports in D3, in the conference often have different brands of shoes...again not standard issue. The question here is the small breakout of COLORs.  Is this due to the recent World Cup event?  Interested in hearing thoughts/comments on the matter wrt to soccer.   Do not notice it as much on the women side...interesting.

[Nutmeg]

Enjoy the game, Tufts dismantling of Bates on opening day was the best performance I have witnessed so far this season by any NESCAC team.  Take your pick of Hoppenot, Santos, Kayne and Brown for scoring threats.

Kayne, the center attacking mid, and Brown, a winger have impressed in the games I saw. The other two mentioned midfielders are more the defensive midfielders. Kayne and Pinhero controlled the tempo, both being excellent passers, Kayne being more the attacking type.

[MENESCACFAN]

Amh63, as far as the color's go I think the answer simply lies in marketing.  Nike and Adidas do a good job of creating a cool image to go with their cleats and getting the idol players to wear them.  College kids follow suit.  Boring answer, but I really think it is that simple.

[NewEngland]

Question for those knowledgeable..soccer playing posters.  What is more difficult for a player...a wet turf field or a wet grass field..a "pitch" for you posters. .  Especially in rain.  Saw a group of pics from last Sat's game at Amherst between the Jeffs and the Hamilton Continentals.  Aware that the uniforms and shoes become heavy, etc.  The pics show players quite happy that the game was over under the conditions.
Another thing that I am seeing more of this season....players wearing bright color shoes..individualized...like the GK uniforms.  Not standard issues so to speak.  Guess the coaches are allowing it.  Saw the trend in men's basketball come on several years ago.  Poster Bucket is aware of my attention to shoes on the playing field.  I am aware that players in college sports in D3, in the conference often have different brands of shoes...again not standard issue. The question here is the small breakout of COLORs.  Is this due to the recent World Cup event?  Interested in hearing thoughts/comments on the matter wrt to soccer.   Do not notice it as much on the women side...interesting.

A wet grass field is more difficult. Wet turf field is slick and quick but they drain quickly and do not retain the same amount of water as a turf field. On a wet grass field the players have to deal with mud and the ground becoming bumpy with divots from the players running on it. The ball also gets stuck on a wet grass field whereas on a wet turf field the ball would skip. The turf fields are more consistent in the wet/rainy conditions. The only time I think players would choose turf over grass is when its raining otherwise grass is the preference (Williams and Amherst fields come to mind) This is an analysis of college grass field which are unlikely to compare to professional fields and stadiums.

[SoccerFollower]

Weekend Predictions:

SATURDAY

Wes @ Williams: Over the next 6 of their games, we're going to find out exactly what Wesleyan are made of. They're 6-2-2, second in the league, but have no signature win. They face Williams, Amherst, Trin, Middlebury, and Conn to end the year. Despite their struggles, I still think Williams are dangerous, beating Midd was a huge result for them. I think Williams are able to grind out a win, and Wesleyan's lack of attack gets the best of them.

        Prediction: Wes 0 – 1 Williams


Bowdoin @ Hamilton: Travelling to Hamilton is never easy, but Bowdoin have quietly won 4 in a row. They only lost by one goal to Amherst and Wesleyan, and only by two to Midd. Hamilton have never lost by more than a goal. Hamilton less impressive at home compared to last year. Hard to tell how this one will end up, I think a scrappy tie is in the books.

   Prediction: Bowdoin 1 – 1 Hamilton


Middlebury @ Trinity: Big win for Trinity this week against Wheaton. But this followed losses to Bowdoin and Bates. They desperately need Nescac wins. Middlebury seem to be faltering somewhat with losses to Colby and Williams. The tie against Tufts was a fine result.

   Prediction: Middlebury 2 – 1 Trinity


Tufts @ Conn: Tufts are still in a decent position and have looked good in certain games, but they've also tied three and lost one in their last 4 after starting 5-0. Conn are extremely unpredictable and are very talented. This could be the surprise result of the weekend if the Conn strikers find their scoring boots.

   Prediction: Tufts 1 – 1 Conn College


Colby @ Amherst: Impressive result against Middlebury for Colby, and almost came out of the Wesleyan game with a draw. Amherst keep rolling and getting one goal wins. I think they will break down Colby at least once and Colby will not be able to put any real pressure on them.

   Prediction: Colby 0 – 2 Amherst


SUNDAY

Bowdoin @ Williams: Bowdoin will have to travel to Williamstown from Hamilton while Williams are home both days, which may have an effect. Both will have had hard-fought games the day before. Grit is going to win this one, but I think they will end up scoreless.

   Prediction: Bowdoin 0 – 0 Williams


Middlebury @ Hamilton: Middlebury too have a lot of travel. I think Glaser and Conrad find their form and put away Hamilton early.

   Prediction: Middlebury 2 – 0 Hamilton


Colby @ Conn: This game is begging for a 0 – 0, but I think Conn's talent may win this one for it. Colby is still in the run of it for their playoffs if they finish strong and keep compact defensively.

   Prediction: Colby 0 – 1 Conn College


Tufts @ Trinity: This one will be interesting and both will have heavy legs. Should see a lot of goals here.

   Prediction: Tufts 3 – 1 Trinity

[D3soccerwatcher]

Seems like NESCAC is weakening...with no teams in the NSCAA Top 10 and only one team in the Top 25 (and they have two ties already in only nine games played).

I think you may be right, D3soccerwatcher. More parity this year, which I actually prefer.

Parity makes for interesting intra-conference games.  But the question really is...what level of play is that parity at?  We will find out when we see how the NESCAC representative(s) in the NCAA national tournament does.  Hopefully better than last year...as I recall the NESCAC representatives didn't fair too well as one NESCAC team lost to the other NESCAC team who then went on to  exit the tournament by getting beat soundly by a score of 4-0 (that score doesn't seem like parity).

[1nescac8]

When spun that way it makes the 2 NESCAC teams sound pretty bad. But that 4-0 loss was in the final four to the eventual national champion, and those 2 NESCAC teams advanced through the Northeast region of the bracket without much problem.

You can't take 1 result and say that somehow indicates the strength of an entire conference. The #10 team in the NESCAC just beat the #12 team in the country this week, but that doesn't mean every NESCAC team is a top 10-15 team in the country.

[Corazon]

When spun that way it makes the 2 NESCAC teams sound pretty bad. But that 4-0 loss was in the final four to the eventual national champion, and those 2 NESCAC teams advanced through the Northeast region of the bracket without much problem.

You can't take 1 result and say that somehow indicates the strength of an entire conference. The #10 team in the NESCAC just beat the #12 team in the country this week, but that doesn't mean every NESCAC team is a top 10-15 team in the country.

Just a couple of weeks ago, Bennett Ranking had 7 NESCAC teams in the top 10. Ha!  Must be true then.

[MENESCACFAN]

D3 Soccer Watcher.  "One team beat another then lost."  That game was in the Elite Eight.  We get your point about dropping more games, but do not paint two NESCAC teams reaching each other in the round of 8 as a sign of weakness, that is total delusion.

[MENESCACFAN]

SATURDAY PREVIEW

This weekend is really going to sort the wheat from the chaff.  We could end up with three teams racing away at the top, or have the playoff pack end the weekend a few points apart.  Let the gems commence.

WESLEYAN @ WILLIAMS

If Wesleyan can pull out the win here, is will really leave Williams behind the top 3 teams with a gap beginning to open, switching the Eph's attention to a 4th seed and home game on the playoffs.

I do not think that happens just yet, and see man of the moment Zach Grady finding the odd goal to lift Williams at a time they really need it.

PREDICTION:  Wesleyan 0 Williams 1

BOWDOIN @ HAMILTON

A high stakes game at the lower end of the playoff picture.  A win for Bowdoin will secure them in the playoff spots, whereas Hamilton currently sit on the outside looking in.

Hamilton have one of the bigger home field advantages in the league, and powerhouse forward Dan Kraynak versus Bowdoin's athletic center back Nabil Odulate will be a fantastic duel.

PREDICTION:  Bowdoin 1 Hamilton 2

MIDDLEBURY @ TRINITY

Trinity are another team currently needing points to lift into a playoff spot, whereas Middlebury will be looking to secure a top four spot.  A draw against Tufts continued Middlebury's solid form, whereas Trinity seem very erratic, beating highly ranked Wheaton on the back of being smashed by Bates.

Consistency comes out on top for me, with the Panthers registering a valuable road win.

PREDICTION:  Middlebury 3 Trinity 1

TUFTS @ CONN COLLEGE

Many people believed a talented Camel squad would make a visible jump this year, and I was one of them.  That said, they cannot quite get over the hump (sorry) yet, and this is not a good matchup for a team looking to play into some form.

Tufts are a relentlessly attacking force, and will take the spoils here in an entertaining and attacking affair.

PREDICTION:  Tufts 3 Conn College 2

COLBY @ AMHERST

Ewan Seabrook is doing a fine job at Colby.  He has tightened up a horrible defensive line, and already surpassed last season's win total.  That said, I don't believe in fairytales, and they will not be returning from Amherst with any points.

PREDICTION:  Colby 0 Amherst 2

[D3soccerwatcher]

When spun that way it makes the 2 NESCAC teams sound pretty bad. But that 4-0 loss was in the final four to the eventual national champion, and those 2 NESCAC teams advanced through the Northeast region of the bracket without much problem.

You can't take 1 result and say that somehow indicates the strength of an entire conference. The #10 team in the NESCAC just beat the #12 team in the country this week, but that doesn't mean every NESCAC team is a top 10-15 team in the country.

In their 26 games last year, Messiah only beat 8 teams by 4 or more goals...the the most successful NESCAC team of 2013 was one of them...but that was last year. I hope the NESCAC national tournament representative does well this year.