Liberty League

[Mr.Right]

True that....Especially because all the pressure is on Ithaca as they must advance IMO...SLU is in anyhow and probably hosting for the 1st/2nd Round no matter what....

[stlawus]

SLU has traditionally been pretty awful at PKs, but either way hopefully both of these teams get bids.

[Mr.Right]

They look pretty clinical so far...2 for 2 GK had no chance...not to mention SLU GK with 2 Huge saves...Ithaca on its last leg

UPDATE: SLU GK another save....3 saves and Ithaca is finished....Good news for the Saints if they go to PK's in the NCAA's as they looked clinical today...3rd kicker was a bit unlucky but he crossed his body and hit it a bit to weak but still 3/4 is solid...

[stlawus]

SLU exercises their PK demons by winning the shootout.  Mike Smith was PHENOMENAL.  He's always been good on penalties, in fact he saved one against Oneonta earlier in the year that would have been an equalizer.   Ithaca deserves a bid but with NESCAC sucking up a lot of Pool C oxygen I don't know how it will play out. 

[deutschfan]

Congrats all you Saints fans.  Smith played out of his mind in the PKs and despite the early votes for tournament MVP, he should get it.  If Ithaca doesn't get in the system is totally fubar. 

[Saint of Old]

Great day to be a Saint.
Something about this very special senior class I tell you.
More on the Saints later.

Ithaca IMO has to be in the Tournament.
A team that Played 20 games and lost 2 is a tournament team (Especially since they avenged one of those losses in the post season).
Bombers also went undefeated against ranked opponents as well.
The LL should have 2 bids as some conferences are expecting 4/5.

I think all 4 teams that played the LL Tourney this weekend are dance worthy teams, but Ithaca's consistency and quality is what a Pool C should be predicated on.
If they dont get in many Bombers, LL fans and just people wanting to watch the best teams will be quite upset.

Only time will tell.

[SandyMac]

Pretty brutal draw for SLU. Rochester is one of the toughest places to play in the East Region. Fortunately, this squad looks to be more comfortable on turf than in years past. If SLU gets out of that pod, the rest of the field should watch out...

[stlawus]

I thought we'd be hosting.  Oh well.  To be the man you've got to beat the man.

[d3d3d3]

NESCAC gets six (!) teams in. We get one. Ithaca is not invited.

[deutschfan]

That is soooo whack.  Big picture, how does the LL compete with the NESCAC or UAA for recruits when one out of 9 LL teams get in each year and over half of the UAA and NESCAC teams get in?  Now it certainly didn't help the LL this year to have the two semi-finalists finish with .500 records.  Williams selection over Ithaca is simply befuddling.  Ithaca beat the only NESCAC team it played, and didn't lose to a ranked team.  NESCAC's run in the playoffs last year was close to a total bust.  So much for my stream of consciousness.     

[CU_GKnight]

I have to say I am disappointed that Ithaca didn't get a chance to represent the LL in the tourney, but I did try to take a step back and try to see this from another (possibly less biased) point of view.  At first I thought it was ridiculous to give the NESCAC 6 bids, but in looking at the brackets for the last 10 years here is the tale of the tape for LL vs. NESCAC:

-Sweet 16 Teams: LL = 4 ; NESCAC = 19
-Elite 8 Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 13
-Final Four Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 8
-Finalist Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 3
-Championships: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 3

My take away was that it is possible that in the eyes of the selection committee that respect is earned and based on the LL performance over the past 10 years I think I can make a case for why the NESCAC can get 6 while LL only gets 1.
I don't like it, but maybe the best way to change the minds is for a few deep runs into the tournament – So SLU – you're our only hope right now – Do us proud!

[TheGreenKnight920]

I have to say I am disappointed that Ithaca didn't get a chance to represent the LL in the tourney, but I did try to take a step back and try to see this from another (possibly less biased) point of view.  At first I thought it was ridiculous to give the NESCAC 6 bids, but in looking at the brackets for the last 10 years here is the tale of the tape for LL vs. NESCAC:

-Sweet 16 Teams: LL = 4 ; NESCAC = 19
-Elite 8 Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 13
-Final Four Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 8
-Finalist Teams: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 3
-Championships: LL = 0 ; NESCAC = 3




My take away was that it is possible that in the eyes of the selection committee that respect is earned and based on the LL performance over the past 10 years I think I can make a case for why the NESCAC can get 6 while LL only gets 1.
I don't like it, but maybe the best way to change the minds is for a few deep runs into the tournament – So SLU – you're our only hope right now – Do us proud!

Well, yeah, when the NESCAC gets a ridiculous amount of bids every year, they will eventually end up with higher win totals than conferences that usually only send the AQ. It's a broken "good-'ole-boys" system. When you have one-loss teams that are snubbed for a middle of the pack NESCAC or UAA team, red flags should be raised. At some point, losses have to matter.

As someone who is obviously bitter about this, I am definitely rooting for the LL to make noise in the tourney.

[Caz Bombers]

the Hamilton, Brockport and Cortland results were nice, but IC has to schedule better going forward. Alfred, Alfred State, Elmira and Wells are rancid and Oswego is "meh" at best. Gotta think that's why the Bombers were left out, ultimately.

[Caz Bombers]

4 bids for LL women's soccer, btw. William Smith the regular season and tournament champion via Pool A, plus C's for Ithaca, RIT and even 9-7-1 Vassar, making its NCAA Tournament debut.

[Mr.Right]

the Hamilton, Brockport and Cortland results were nice, but IC has to schedule better going forward. Alfred, Alfred State, Elmira and Wells are rancid and Oswego is "meh" at best. Gotta think that's why the Bombers were left out, ultimately.

AGREED...I said this a week ago but Ithaca has to get rid of some of these former Empire 8 rivals/opponents.....They are geographically convenient but there are to many of them. One or two more games with maybe an Oneonta OR just dropping 2 of those teams and not adding anyone else..It would be better to play 2 less teams rather then beating Alfred State and Wells. I will say Ithaca Head Coach Kyle Dezotell had a reputation back in his Norwich days to play about 3-4 games against HORRIBLE teams. It was 3-4 more games that he should of played. Almost like he was padding the Wins for his team to show his clueless AD what a fantastic final record they would achieve.