Liberty League

[stlawus]

SLU-Plattsburgh tied up at 1 with 15 minutes left.  What an absolutely awful 2nd half by SLU, wow.  Plattsburgh is playing great, but man, SLU just keeps giving the ball away and have awful first touches.  Entertaining game thus far.

[stlawus]

What a finish to SLU-Plattsburgh.  Less than a minute left in the 1st OT and Dede buries the game winner off a free kick.  SLU just finding ways to win games.  2 straight game winners for the reigning LL ROY.  Plattsburgh played a great 2nd half.  Had SLU rattled and forced a lot of give aways. 

[Ommadawn]

I checked out the game a couple of times on Live Stats, once at the half and once near the end of regulation.  It was certainly a tale of two halves statistically, with almost complete domination by SLU in the first half and nearly a mirror image opposite in the second half (presumably driven by Plattsburgh upping their game and SLU making the mistakes stlawus alluded to).  SLU is doing a great job winning the close games and the season is shaping up as a potentially special one, even by SLU's lofty standards.

[SandyMac]

SLU-Plattsburgh has NCAA 2nd round @SLU written all over it.

[Mr.Right]

Plattsburgh will have to beat Cortland or Oneonta to get a Pool C. They NEEDED that draw yesterday. Their SOS will be weak at best and wins against ranked will be 0 w/o beating either of those 2 teams.

[deutschfan]

Oneonta just spanked Cortland.  Weekend predictions:  SLU 2, Hob 0; Vas 1, Skid 0; Bard 1, Union 1; Clarkson 1, RIT 0.  As noted in earlier posts, RPI, Hob, and Skid are the three most disappointing teams as most of us had them in the LL playoffs with SLU.  Hob doesn't need to beat SLU to make the LL playoffs so this is a match for Hob to regain some respect.  Skid's season likely rises or falls on this home game.

[Ommadawn]

Oneonta just spanked Cortland.  Weekend predictions:  SLU 2, Hob 0; Vas 1, Skid 0; Bard 1, Union 1; Clarkson 1, RIT 0.  As noted in earlier posts, RPI, Hob, and Skid are the three most disappointing teams as most of us had them in the LL playoffs with SLU.  Hob doesn't need to beat SLU to make the LL playoffs so this is a match for Hob to regain some respect.  Skid's season likely rises or falls on this home game.

That's a great set of picks, deutschfan! I think Union might get by Bard (2-1?) and Skidmore might be able to salvage a draw at home.

[stlawus]

Hobart goes up 1-0 at the end of the first half.  SLU looks absolutely atrocious.  One of the worst halves of soccer I've seen them play in the last few years. I knew Hobart's record was misleading, they're always a threat against SLU in conference play.

[stlawus]

What an absolutely awful game by SLU.  Hobart just delivered this team a swift kick in the unmentionables.  It looks like the Statesmen have turned their season around.  I'm not "panicking" by any means but this SLU team needs to go back to basics.  The last few games have seen a plethora of misplayed passes, heavy first touches and extremely poor finishing.  I fear this team's continuous lack of a definitive #9 may come back to haunt this team down the road.  The program still hasn't replaced Gilloran. 

[Mr.Right]

Yea I saw Hobart quite a bit last year and was surprised at their shaky start to the season. They have talent all over that roster, maybe they did not come back fit but I fully expect them to be right there at the end of the season. I am more concerned with RPI and Skidmore. RPI is so offensively challenged this year and Skidmore I have not seen yet but last year I really liked their athleticism and spine. Not sure if they have injuries or what but I was expecting a better start to the season.

[Ommadawn]

I caught a good bit of the Skidmore game.  Anchored by Oyeniyi, the back line is stout.  In the midfield going forward, Okoye is a threat to make something happen every time he gets the ball. He can only do so much on his own, though. Their trip to Western NY next week will play a big part in deciding the team's fate for the season.

[Mr.Right]

I caught a good bit of the Skidmore game.  Anchored by Oyeniyi, the back line is stout.  In the midfield going forward, Okoye is a threat to make something happen every time he gets the ball. He can only do so much on his own, though. Their trip to Western NY next week will play a big part in deciding the team's fate for the season.

Yes...those 2 players are studs and would start on any team. So the pieces around them have dropped off? Skidmore can be a challenge to recruit to, especially if you are not getting any help from admissions.

[Ommadawn]

Skidmore's leading assist-maker Santos was out today for some reason, and no one other than Okoye looked too dangerous on attack.

[Part_Bart]

Watched the Hobart @SLU game and was impressed with how SLU allowed a very depleted Hobart (five starters either limited or unable to play due to injury) dictate the game. Hobart packing it in behind the ball (essentially a 4-5-1) closed off the lanes and runs for SLU's great attaching threats, and then made visible some seams in SLU's defense during counters (four runs in first 30 minutes all led to shots or a goal). Despite monumental pressure by SLU in second half, Hobart outshot SLU. Would imagine that SLU sees such an approach more often, going forward.

Watched a bit of RPI draw Rochester at home (nice video stream!):  more packed in play by RPI.  Having seen Rochester come back from a goal down v. Hobart (with some impressive tackling, very physical play and strong attacking), kudos to Adam Clinton and RPI for staving off that attack and finding a result.

Having now seen Hobart play away at Elizabethtown, Rochester and now SLU, Rochester is easily the most complete team.  E-town can attack (fun to watch) and foul smartly on defense (not fun to watch).  SLU, well, it may not have been the best day to get a sense of them in person. I am very impressed by Rochester.  Rochester can be beat as back line is strong and large, but not fast enough to overcome good wing play.

Curious that both Clarkson/RIT and Skidmore/Vassar ended in draws (and a very organized Bard made it a game at Union).  Perhaps, over past several years, the speed and creativity of SLU's attack seems to have forced other LL teams to be a bit more defensive? 

[stlawus]

Yes, the rest of the league really packs it in against SLU with the exception of a few games a year.  Last year Hobart didn't pack it in, and won.  This year, they did and still won.  Their coach just knows how to form a game plan.  SLU has one of the fastest teams I've ever seen play on Sandy, but they still haven't really put it all together.  There were questions about the back line this year since 2 of the program's best defenders graduated.  Questions still remain, clearly.  Hobart has speed as well, along with a good GK.  I expect to see them in the LL playoff, most likely the final.