2016 NCAA Tournament

[PaulNewman]

Classy response from Serpone in the Amherst press release after the game today. Feisty as he may be on the touchline I have never seen him be anything but classy and diplomatic in his remarks whether in victory or defeat. Also congrats to him on the birth of his third child: if I am correct this is the second time that his wife has had a child during the NCAA Tournament. 

This quote was illuminating......""We haven't lost two games in a season since 2011 which is an amazing statistic.  The standard for the program couldn't be higher and we'll work hard to keep it rolling forward."

[4samuy]

I haven't seen RUN play, but IMO Brandeis is the best side Chicago played all season, and that is no disrespect at all to Redlands who capitalized on their opportunities.  Brandeis moves on to the final four.

[Wisco21]

Lads, honestly speaking- I believe Messiah and Calvin played one of the most polished/smooth/organized/inspired/gritty matches of this 2016 season. Both squads truly embody the possession style and it was oh so easy on the eyes. I hope more coaches and teams take note of the success and positivity that comes from playing this way.

[Domino1195]

Desai hasn't played played all tournament. I believe he was suspended for two games after receiving his second red card of the year against Washington U and because of the first round bye, he was ineligible for second round and today.  I think that is what happened. If someone knows different please post.

Interesting. I knew he got a red against WashU but didn't realize that it was his second of the year. 

First card - straight red is a two game suspension -two yellows is a one game suspension.
Very unfortunate - very questionable RC - Wash U player ducks his head to waist level while Desai attempts to kick the ball - could have (should?) have been a dangerous play against Wash U - but to give red in this situation was just poor officiating

[rudy]

Lads, honestly speaking- I believe Messiah and Calvin played one of the most polished/smooth/organized/inspired/gritty matches of this 2016 season. Both squads truly embody the possession style and it was oh so easy on the eyes. I hope more coaches and teams take note of the success and positivity that comes from playing this way.

Agreed but I'm biased. I will be pulling for Calvin to win it all as an ambassador of possession soccer at its best. Although they also have the set piece component as evidenced by 2 goals against Messiah on corner and free kick. Some of those are luck of the bounce but when you score multiple important goals off if them then it is not just luck.  I think this may turn out to be the deciding factor in them going all the way. Of course all 4 teams remaining got there for a reason so any team is capable of winning it.

[Dark Knight]

Lads, honestly speaking- I believe Messiah and Calvin played one of the most polished/smooth/organized/inspired/gritty matches of this 2016 season. Both squads truly embody the possession style and it was oh so easy on the eyes. I hope more coaches and teams take note of the success and positivity that comes from playing this way.

Agreed but I'm biased. I will be pulling for Calvin to win it all as an ambassador of possession soccer at its best. Although they also have the set piece component as evidenced by 2 goals against Messiah on corner and free kick. Some of those are luck of the bounce but when you score multiple important goals off if them then it is not just luck.  I think this may turn out to be the deciding factor in them going all the way. Of course all 4 teams remaining got there for a reason so any team is capable of winning it.

This Calvin team is very different from the one that got to the national finals game in 2009 and 2011. Those teams were physical and direct. The players were big, fast, strong, but less skilled. They picked up lots of fouls. I remember tuning into an NCAA tournament game once and thinking that Calvin's opponent was excessively physical. Then I realized I had the colors reversed.

Ryan Souders stresses ball control far more. He recruits more technical players. There are many fewer fouls and the style of play is much more appealing.

Not only does Calvin emphasize control, they do more one-touch passing than other teams I've seen. They can string together a half dozen of them in rapid fire through tight slots to move the ball quickly through the midfield. Sometimes I wonder if they emphasize that so much that they lose the ball more than they need to, but it works for them.

[blooter442]

This Calvin team is very different from the one that got to the national finals game in 2009 and 2011. Those teams were physical and direct. The players were big, fast, strong, but less skilled. They picked up lots of fouls. I remember tuning into an NCAA tournament game once and thinking that Calvin's opponent was excessively physical. Then I realized I had the colors reversed.

Ryan Souders stresses ball control far more. He recruits more technical players. There are many fewer fouls and the style of play is much more appealing.

Not only does Calvin emphasize control, they do more one-touch passing than other teams I've seen. They can string together a half dozen of them in rapid fire through tight slots to move the ball quickly through the midfield. Sometimes I wonder if they emphasize that so much that they lose the ball more than they need to, but it works for them.

I have only watched Calvin a half-dozen times since I started following NCAA soccer in 2010. That said, I was extremely impressed with them this weekend: their one-touch passing, particularly in the second half against Messiah, was extremely impressive. Of course, given the chances the Falcons had, Messiah should've perhaps been out of sight at the end of the first half - not to say that Calvin didn't play well, Messiah was just totally dominant - but on the course of the game Calvin more than earned the win.

As I said before, I - and this is perhaps due to my lack of familiarity with the Knights - thought they were a defense-first team; this weekend has made me realize that assumption is perhaps incorrect currently, but maybe not totally off base considering you said that they used to be big, strong, and fast - traits which are usually associated with sides that emphasize defense. I would consider Calvin to be the favorites considering Chicago and Amherst are out, but as we know the tournament is full of surprises. Either way, I think that - based on what I saw - the Knights would be worthy NCAA champions.

[wingtips2]

What I love about this tournament is the ability for real surprises to happen.
We could see a final 4 that includes the #5 team in the nation without a single other ranked team.

Compare this to the women's bracket where the 'surprise' result would send the #21 team to the final 4...

Supporting Kenyon and the Tommies today - 3 Midwest teams in the final 4 would be great.
Other match is a grenade game - dislike the NJAC and their public schools of 10,000+ kids but I also want to see the UA-less final 4 streak continue.

[1970s NESCAC Player]

I was at Amherst for the two games yesterday.  My impression is that Brandeis is every bit as hard-working and physical a team as any NESCAC side.  If they play with the same intensity today, I would be surprised if RUN will be able to cope.  I was impressed by the entire Brandeis team, but especially with the left back, No. 5, Vinson.  He is as good a left back as I've seen at the D-3 level.

I can't figure out how the Amherst box score attributes their goal to Ajayi.  It was a clean header by Orozco into the bottom left corner off a cross from the right.

Oneonta was stage struck yesterday.  Almost all of the regulars from the Final 4 team have graduated, and the current group was not prepared to play a game of that magnitude.  Perhaps it will be a valuable learning experience.  I was surprised that both teams, at least while I watched in the first half, played low pressure, and each team allowed the other to possess far more than Brandeis will allow RUN today.  That said, RUN has some very dangerous offensive talent, especially Atubi and da Souza, both of whom seem to be able to change a game in an instant from anywhere within 30 yards of the goal.  RUN's defense was never really tested while the game was still competitive, so it will be interesting to see if they can deal with Brandeis' movement.

[blooter442]

I was at Amherst for the two games yesterday.  My impression is that Brandeis is every bit as hard-working and physical a team as any NESCAC side.  If they play with the same intensity today, I would be surprised if RUN will be able to cope.  I was impressed by the entire Brandeis team, but especially with the left back, No. 5, Vinson.  He is as good a left back as I've seen at the D-3 level.

Having followed Brandeis since 2011, I can say that the Judges definitely have developed in terms of their ability to hold their own physically and athletically. For a while, they were a good, solid technical team, but didn't really have the steel to cope with the pressure of NESCAC sides - Williams beat them two years in a row in the Sweet 16 - 2012 and 2013 - Tufts beat them in a regular-season contest in 2013. However, the next year saw a major change with the arrivals of Ocel and Hernandez and the development of Lanahan into an All-American CB, and that change became evident as that year Brandeis beat Tufts 2-0 in the regular season, Bowdoin 1-0 in the NCAA 2nd Round, and Amherst on PKs in the Sweet 16. Since then, they've only fallen once to a NESCAC foe - Tufts this year - while beating the Jumbos last year and defeating Amherst on PKs yesterday, so an improvement from 0 wins and 3 losses to 3 wins, 2 shootout victories, and only 1 defeat. While Brandeis did well in 12-13 and 13-14, the physical and athletic deficiencies were recognized by the coaches, and it's quite clear that they were addressed.

Vinson is a very good LB, and perhaps one of the reasons that he stood out is that he is a Division I transfer from Loyola - Chicago. He was recognized as being very good upon arrival but I don't think he had much "game time," as I believe he played a little bit last season but not much. Either way, he didn't play a ton in the first half of the season, but has started every game since WashU, when he also got the winner, and the Judges have only lost once during that stretch. I maintain that Vinson getting a consistent run of games and establishing himself as the first-choice LB has been a big reason that Brandeis has tightened up defensively.

[1970s NESCAC Player]

I was at Amherst for the two games yesterday.  My impression is that Brandeis is every bit as hard-working and physical a team as any NESCAC side.  If they play with the same intensity today, I would be surprised if RUN will be able to cope.  I was impressed by the entire Brandeis team, but especially with the left back, No. 5, Vinson.  He is as good a left back as I've seen at the D-3 level.

Having followed Brandeis since 2011, I can say that the Judges definitely have developed in terms of their ability to hold their own physically and athletically. For a while, they were a good, solid technical team, but didn't really have the steel to cope with the pressure of NESCAC sides - Williams beat them two years in a row in the Sweet 16 - 2012 and 2013 - Tufts beat them in a regular-season contest in 2013. However, the next year saw a major change with the arrivals of Ocel and Hernandez and the development of Lanahan into an All-American CB, and that change became evident as that year Brandeis beat Tufts 2-0 in the regular season, Bowdoin 1-0 in the NCAA 2nd Round, and Amherst on PKs in the Sweet 16. Since then, they've only fallen once to a NESCAC foe - Tufts this year - while beating the Jumbos last year and defeating Amherst on PKs yesterday, so an improvement from 0 wins and 3 losses to 3 wins, 2 shootout victories, and only 1 defeat. While Brandeis did well in 12-13 and 13-14, the physical and athletic deficiencies were recognized by the coaches, and it's quite clear that they were addressed.

Vinson is a very good LB, and perhaps one of the reasons that he stood out is that he is a Division I transfer from Loyola - Chicago. He was recognized as being very good upon arrival but I don't think he had much "game time," as I believe he played a little bit last season but not much. Either way, he didn't play a ton in the first half of the season, but has started every game since WashU, when he also got the winner, and the Judges have only lost once during that stretch. I maintain that Vinson getting a consistent run of games and establishing himself as the first-choice LB has been a big reason that Brandeis has tightened up defensively.

It seems to be a prevalent theme that some of the best D-3 sides have D-1 transfers.  Ciambella, arguably Amherst's best player, is a transfer from Creighton.

[gustiefan04]

It seems to be a prevalent theme that some of the best D-3 sides have D-1 transfers.  Ciambella, arguably Amherst's best player, is a transfer from Creighton.
[/quote]

St Thomas also has number of D1 transfers on the roster.

[4samuy]

It sure is nice to watch and talk about good quality soccer instead of spending the last week talking about red cards, head butts, ref abuse etc.  Congrats to Calvin and good luck to the remaining sides.

[blooter442]

Whether by design or by coincidence Brandeis has had much more of the ball than RUN. I don't think that RUN is parking the bus, per se, but I think they realize the best possibilities will come from using their pace on the counter, as they do have some quick players.

Elsewhere I thought Tufts was shading it against Kenyon but the Lords are growing into the match. Still anyone's game.

[blooter442]

Brandeis lets the ball bounce in the box on a corner and RUN gets a shot off. Thankfully for the Judges Woodhouse gets to it.