2015 D3 Season: NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

[Domino1195]

Grove City 4
Allegheny 0

Might Grove City be emerging as a threat to Thomas More in the PAC?

I was wondering how Thomas More would respond with the loss of all those seniors and a new HC.  That Zaragoza kid for Wittenberg - got to see him in HS as a junior - is very strong, cocky. Bagged two goals for Wittenberg.  But a 4-3 score line really surprised me!

Thanks for the good info Domino, especially regarding Denison situation.  Will be counting on you this year for some good on-site reporting in the Great Lakes region!  And, yeah, even though looked like the Thomas More win may have been more comfortable than the score suggests, I haven't really considered how many seniors they lost.  We'll get a good read on Thomas More when they play at OWU on 9/20.

Speaking of OWU - their "revenge" game at Otterbein could be a blow-out (9/9).  Otterbein are having challenges at midfield and defense - Oberlin easily had 60+ percent possession and were unlucky not to have scored more than 2. Otterbein scored off a quick counter 4 minutes into the game - almost a breakaway - and that - other than a stray chance or two - is all that they could muster.

Oberlin could be interesting - very technical - excellent team possession - two freshman starters - one got their first goal; and the goalkeeper - probably the key to their success this year

[PaulNewman]

Domino, are you still going to Heidelberg @ Kenyon game Sunday?  Should be a good one.  No way Kenyon's completely new defense will have gelled by then.  Also will be interested to see your take on all the new freshmen.

[Domino1195]

Domino, are you still going to Heidelberg @ Kenyon game Sunday?  Should be a good one.  No way Kenyon's completely new defense will have gelled by then.  Also will be interested to see your take on all the new freshmen.

If all goes well.  I am going to Cap/Albion and OWU/Kalamazoo Friday, Cap again on Sat vs Kal.

[Mr.Right]

Must be bad weather in OH and PA.  Denison vs JCU postponed.  OWU delayed.  Seems like Kenyon At Waynesburg must be in delay as well.

Edit:  Kenyon did get the game in.  Ended 3-0.  Shots 29-1.

Muggy - but an otherwise glorious day here in Ohio. A Denison student, missing since the weekend, was found dead yesterday. Game postponed.  There was a minute of silence at the Otterbein-Oberlin game.

This reminds me of 2005 in the NCAA Sweet 16's prior to the Williams v St.Lawrence game at SLU. A bench player went missing a couple days before the game and they eventually found him dead near a river close to a bar. He must have blacked out and froze to death. I am a little fuzzy on the details but it was a real tragedy for SLU players / community. It was a great game as SLU players came out fired up with both teams having some great scoring chances but Williams prevailed 1-0 in OT. Of course then Williams had a heartbreaking loss to Geneseo State and missed out on the 2005 NCAA Final 4. Geneseo went on to get hammered by UC Santa Cruz 4-0.

[stlawus]

Must be bad weather in OH and PA.  Denison vs JCU postponed.  OWU delayed.  Seems like Kenyon At Waynesburg must be in delay as well.

Edit:  Kenyon did get the game in.  Ended 3-0.  Shots 29-1.

Muggy - but an otherwise glorious day here in Ohio. A Denison student, missing since the weekend, was found dead yesterday. Game postponed.  There was a minute of silence at the Otterbein-Oberlin game.

This reminds me of 2005 in the NCAA Sweet 16's prior to the Williams v St.Lawrence game at SLU. A bench player went missing a couple days before the game and they eventually found him dead near a river close to a bar. He must have blacked out and froze to death. I am a little fuzzy on the details but it was a real tragedy for SLU players / community. It was a great game as SLU players came out fired up with both teams having some great scoring chances but Williams prevailed 1-0 in OT. Of course then Williams had a heartbreaking loss to Geneseo State and missed out on the 2005 NCAA Final 4. Geneseo went on to get hammered by UC Santa Cruz 4-0.

Yes, that was a tragic day.  The student was the film coordinator and everyone was quite shocked as to why he didn't show.  It was a pretty turbulent few months in our tiny town.  Lots of controversy over the bar owner, the bartenders and the university that went on for quite a long time.

[Mr.Right]

4 Surprising Results from yesterday:

1.   Brandeis v Bridgewater St    1-0     Remember what I said about sometimes you can catch an inferior team by surprise the first few games. This could have been a great example. If not for an 84th minute strike Bridgewater might have gotten a great result at Brandeis. I did not see the game but based on the stats it was fairly even. 3 SOG for each team. If I had to guess I bet Brandeis dominated possession and maybe Bridgewater had a couple chances on the counter and their keeper probably mad a great save or two to keep them in the game. Bridgewater is the best team in MASCAC but that is a pretty weak league in New England. Maybe Brandeis had Texas on their mind. This weekend will give us a good gauge.
2.   Geneseo St v U.Rochester    1-0        These 2 teams usually battle it out every year but I was not expecting this result. The box score looks like it was fairly even. Very disappointing result for Rochester as they cannot afford too many losses like this. Surely this Geneseo side is not as good as their sides in the mid 2000's. Rochester usually racks up about 4-5 Ties every year and with the daunting UAA coming in late September / October they cannot have to many more disappointing losses like this.
3.   ECONN v Babson      3-0         I spoke about this game in an earlier post. I was still surprised that ECONN put 3 away against Babson. Rebuilding or not 3 goals against Babson is excellent for a side that struggled to score all of last year. The question is can ECONN build on this result. They have two challenging games coming up at Muhlenberg and at Wesleyan. If they get results in both those games and can get a result against Conn College and possibly Gordon you are looking at a good NCAA resume. Wishful thinking YES but it can be very motivating to a team, not that they look that far ahead but anyway.
4.   Coast Guard v WCONN    0-2   Last year I bashed Coast Guard and the NEWMAC in general for what I thought to be over inflated resumes and regional rankings. I proved to be right about both as the NEWMAC as I predicted failed miserably in the NCAA's. Can you imagine if WPI got a Pool C last year, it would have been a disaster and a waste of a bid.  Coast Guard must have lost some senior talent as this is not a good result. Western Connecticut has not been relevant since 2005. They used to be a tough team to play on that gnarly turf and some very physical and athletic players. The past few seasons they have been on the bottom tier of teams in New England and the program has fallen maybe more than any team in New England. Maybe they are starting to improve

[PaulNewman]

Wow.  Looks I better stay away from the predictions this season.

Wentworth 2, Wheaton (MA) 1

[Mr.Right]

That is a rough result considering Wentworth inexplicably played the day before.

[lastguyoffthebench]

http://herosports.com/collegesoccer/d3-mens-soccer-conference-power-rankings/

Connor Hurff with 2g 4a vs Rosemont and Mike Ryan 3g 1a limited minutes.   Big game upcoming for Camden at Salisbury on Sunday. 

[backyarddawg]

Big games this weekend

Friday:
Stockton vs Catholic
W&L vs Berry
Gettysburg vs York (Is York back under new coach Evan Scheffey?)
Lycoming vs Scranton (Both cannot afford to start 0-2)
VA Wesleyan vs Christopher Newport
Covenant vs Montclair State

Saturday:
Rowan vs St. Lawrence
Ohio Northern vs Wheaton (MA)
Rutgers-Newark vs Rochester
Hobart vs Plattsburgh State
Merchant Marines vs Salisbury
Dickinson vs Etown
Haverford vs Steven's
Messiah vs Carnegie Mellon
Wash U vs Wheaton (IL)
Brandeis vs Trinity (TX)

Sunday:
Morrisville State vs Rochester
Kean vs Swarthmore
Thomas More vs Case Western
Chicago vs Rose-Hulman
Heidelberg vs Kenyon
Lycoming vs York
Rutgers-Camden vs Salisbury
Rutgers-Newark vs Cortland St
Denison vs Emory
Ohio Northern vs Babson

It is great to see good D3 teams starting to play each other.

[NEPAFAN]

Big games this weekend

Friday:
Stockton vs Catholic
W&L vs Berry
Gettysburg vs York (Is York back under new coach Evan Scheffey?)
Lycoming vs Scranton (Both cannot afford to start 0-2)
VA Wesleyan vs Christopher Newport
Covenant vs Montclair State

Saturday:
Rowan vs St. Lawrence
Ohio Northern vs Wheaton (MA)
Rutgers-Newark vs Rochester
Hobart vs Plattsburgh State
Merchant Marines vs Salisbury
Dickinson vs Etown
Haverford vs Steven's
Messiah vs Carnegie Mellon
Wash U vs Wheaton (IL)
Brandeis vs Trinity (TX)

Sunday:
Morrisville State vs Rochester
Kean vs Swarthmore
Thomas More vs Case Western
Chicago vs Rose-Hulman
Heidelberg vs Kenyon
Lycoming vs York
Rutgers-Camden vs Salisbury
Rutgers-Newark vs Cortland St
Denison vs Emory
Ohio Northern vs Babson

It is great to see good D3 teams starting to play each other.

Lycoming has a busy weekend. I was pleased with Scranton's effort at Haverford.

[lastguyoffthebench]

Most interested in Covenant at MSU, Messiah at CMU, CNU vs VWU, and Rowan vs SLU.   You don't often see NJAC playing Liberty League.

I heard Camden was going to play Oneonta St this year, but could not fit them in the schedule.    Playing them early on would not have been a wise choice, but it certainly would have bolstered their OWP-OOWP.   

South Atlantic looks to be a race with the #1 ranking moving like a hot potato.
Camden also has CNU two weeks out, and by then we might see some separation from the pack...

[Mr.Right]

Most interested in Covenant at MSU, Messiah at CMU, CNU vs VWU, and Rowan vs SLU.   You don't often see NJAC playing Liberty League.

I heard Camden was going to play Oneonta St this year, but could not fit them in the schedule.    Playing them early on would not have been a wise choice, but it certainly would have bolstered their OWP-OOWP.   

South Atlantic looks to be a race with the #1 ranking moving like a hot potato.
Camden also has CNU two weeks out, and by then we might see some separation from the pack...

Rutgers Camden and Oneonta St will play anyone anywhere. Both coaches email without fail the top teams in NewEngland, NewYork, PA and NJ every year to request to play. They even usually will travel 2 years in a row. These coaches have no fear and I like that. Unfortunately most teams do not take them up on their request

[Mr.Right]

For instance Brandeis:

Instead of taking a trip to Texas to play 2 good teams why not if you are willing to play top teams have Oneonta or Rutgers Camden come to them and play. Would still be considered In-Region and boast their SOS and OWP stats just as much as the other 2 games. Now usually it is hard to squeeze in new games with new teams because you have your set schedule year in and year out with teams you normally play out of conference but the usual time that works best for both new teams is the first 2 weekends of each season.

[Mr.Right]

All that praise for Camden and I actually just went to their schedule for 2015 and I am a bit disappointed. A couple Centennial games and 1 or 2 tough road games but generally that out of conference schedule doesn't do much for me