Liberty League

deutschfan · October 27, 2021, 10:51:48 PM

Even though RPI is going to win the league again they are not the team they were in 2019 despite returning the vast majority of their skill players including ones who stayed a 5th year. Josh Gaudiano is no longer a secret and more than half of his goals have come in non-conference blowouts. Trevor Bisson was an offensive force as a defender his first three years including 6 goals in 2019. He has one this year. Home field throughout the playoffs doesn't mean much if you are losing at home.

stlawus · October 27, 2021, 11:14:46 PM

Hard to play with a target on your back.

deutschfan · October 30, 2021, 10:02:18 AM

Last day of regular season. Still some interesting questions. Will Hobart make the tournamen? Can Clarkson redeem an otherwise disappointing season by obtaining a result against RPI in its last game?Can Bard who has played teams close pull out a win? Who prevails in a game to decide one of the two top spots—Vassar v. Ithaca? Vassar pretty much assured itself a Pool C bid by beating RPI. Admirable turnaround after season opening loss to West Conn that now seems forever ago.

SaintsgoMarching · October 30, 2021, 03:36:02 PM

Wow what a goal from Sibanda... Glad I tuned in to see the magic.

SaintsgoMarching · October 30, 2021, 03:38:17 PM

Mogul is a baller too...

Saint of Old · October 30, 2021, 03:48:33 PM

Quote from: Saint of Old on September 29, 2021, 11:56:34 AM
Great to see a tradition of African Saints continue.
An argument can be made that over a generation of Great Saints have hailed from the motherland and have done the league and their school proud.

King Britto
King Annan
King Diop
King Dede
King Sibanda

The beat goes on and the tradition continues... in one sense atleast.

Sibanda is class man, I knew it the first 10 seconds I saw him play... will be a great Saint like his African Brothers before him.

stlawus · October 30, 2021, 04:12:45 PM

RPI clinches the regular season. Vassar with a disappointing result against Ithaca resulting in Ithaca getting the first round bye. As it stands Hobart is in the final spot but a SLU win knocks them out and puts Skidmore in.

Despite a comical sequence of events resulting in a Hobart goal SLU turned it on and have had the better part of this game so far. As mentioned, Sibanda playing like the machine he is. That puts him at the top of the goal scoring table in the league despite having played 4 fewer games than the next highest goal scorer.

Saint of Old · October 30, 2021, 04:21:39 PM

Quote from: SaintsgoMarching on October 30, 2021, 03:38:17 PM
Mogul is a baller too...

The #7 Tradition continues.

stlawus · October 30, 2021, 05:01:29 PM

I am slightly entertained by the Hobart play-by-play guy managing to pronounce "Zoccolaro" a different way every time he says it.

SaintsgoMarching · October 30, 2021, 05:21:22 PM

Quote from: Saint of Old on October 30, 2021, 04:21:39 PM
Quote from: SaintsgoMarching on October 30, 2021, 03:38:17 PM
Mogul is a baller too...
The #7 Tradition continues.

He's like a cross between Nick Mangee and the OG #7 Howard Beckford aka Mani T.

Saint of Old · October 30, 2021, 05:27:21 PM

Just a note on the Statesmen today.
I saw guys who gave it their absolute all today and left it on the field.
A well coached group who played hard.

We saw a few guys on the ground at the end of the game crying and just exhausted, sad, tired, angry after 4 years of blood sweat and tears. Those seniors should really be feeling pride.

Many of us have been there with you and know how it feels, but eventually the good memories will be there.

Over the past 4years these boys have put Hobart on the regional map with Bigtime National wins and Post season runs thrown in there.
The league dance will be a bit less entertaining without these boys from Geneva, but for the boys who will be back, remember this pain and us it for fuel going forward.

deutschfan · October 30, 2021, 05:30:19 PM

So the two teams from the 2019 LL final don't make the tournament. SLU gets a redux at Gordon and has to hope that they show this time.

SaintsgoMarching · October 30, 2021, 05:37:35 PM

Unlucky for Hobart who did well to equalize in the second half to force overtime.

Gamewinner by Sibanda who shows his class in a big moment.

Can't say I'm not happy to see SLU play spoiler and end Hobart's season, but my hat's off to the Statesman as they played very well in long stretches and were the better team in many ways.

SLU will have to be much better if they want to have a chance to make a run in the conference tournament. They run out of ideas and get stuck on one side of the pitch or overplaying the central channel too often. They do not have a #9 who can hold the ball with his back to goal. Reynolds does his best and is good running at guys, but not as a target. And the other #9 they had up top today is just not quite at the level. Looks to be an athlete but not a footballer and so most attacking movements ended at him anytime an entry pass was played to him back to goal.

Saint of Old · November 01, 2021, 08:31:34 AM

Quote from: deutschfan on October 30, 2021, 05:30:19 PM
So the two teams from the 2019 LL final don't make the tournament. SLU gets a redux at Gordon and has to hope that they show this time.

Wow man, this is a great point. I forgot that Clarkson made the final last season (2019).
Goes to show that when you get a chance to take the chip you have to grab it with both feet!

RIT Skidmore should be a very good game going to the hungrier team.
Both teams should be confident going in.

We are now in post-season play and confidence is the currency on which performance is traded.

SLU v. Vassar
SLU could be road warriors, but then again they did give up an early goal against Hobart with an UNNECCESARY BACK PASS TO THE GOALIE YET AGAIN!!!!!
Vassar has been the better team this season, and have the added incentive of sending off an all-time great coach into the sunset with one last Dance.

All things being equal (which they are not Vassar has the edge) the best player on the field will step up to the plate and SLU's Craque should have them edge this one.

deutschfan · November 01, 2021, 08:58:38 PM

Saint—excellent thoughts. I picked SLU the last time due to the Bard advantage and SLU disappointed sleepwalking the second game of the weekend. The "best" player in the league wasn't even the best player on his team that day. That honor went to a freshman which bodes well for SLU's future. Vassar has not dominated a game since the last time they played SLU. I am loathe to pick SLU again—once burned twice wary. I am going with RIT. Skidmore backed in and should have taken care of business against Clarkson. While RPI deserved its number 1 seeding it is a shame that the semis and finals will be played once again on a lackluster turf pitch.