Go WEST young man (and NORTH)

[Kuiper]

Games of interest this week in Region X

I don't think there are many weekday games of note between 10/8-10/11, but there are a couple.

Friday 10/11

Texas Lutheran @ Trinity 5 pm central

TLU had a disappointing 0-0 tie against Austin over the weekend and continues to have trouble scoring against all but the weakest of teams (like its 5-0 win over University of Dallas last Friday).  Trinity overcame two bunkering teams - McMurry and Concordia TX - to secure wins.  Both teams remain undefeated overall and in the SCAC, but TLU is probably the stubbornest defense Trinity has faced and Trinity is probably the strongest offense TLU has faced.  TLU has only scored 12 goals all season (5 against UoD), but only given up 3 goals all season and the last one was on 9/8 at Otterbein (when they won 2-1).  Trinity has scored 2 goals or more in every game since opening weekend and has scored 34 goals and only given up 4.  I expect Trinity to win this game, but I doubt they will be able to generate a ton of offense simply because TLU's defense and style of play doesn't really allow it.  Because it's the first game of the weekend for the two teams and this is probably the shortest road trip in the SCAC for TLU (about 40 miles), I expect we'll get both teams' best efforts.

Colorado College @ Concordia (TX) 7 pm central

Concordia is coming off a tough loss to Trinity, getting beat 2-1 after being up 1-0 for most of the game.  Colorado College had an efficient, if unspectacular, weekend of 2-0 wins over Ozarks and Centenary.  My guess is Concordia might try the same tactics as they did against Trinity, pressing until they get a goal and then parking the bus (or the pickup truck?).  Either way, Colorado College's offense has not been as prolific as Trinity, so this might be a better game in which to employ it.

[Kuiper]

Everything stays the same except Redlands jumps ahead of TLU (after its tie with Austin) and UC Santa Cruz (after its tie with Chapman).  I could see Pacific Lutheran entering the rankings in the next poll if they beat Whitman and Whitworth this weekend and someone else stumbles.

Region X - Poll 5 - October 8, 2024

Rank    School    Prev    W-L-T
1    Colorado College    1    8-1-2
2    Southwestern University    2    7-0-2
3    Trinity University (Texas)    3    8-0-2
4    Occidental College    4    7-1-2
5    Claremont-McKenna-Harvey Mudd-Scripps Colleges    5    7-2-1
6    University of Redlands    8    6-2-2
7    Texas Lutheran University    6    5-0-3
8    University of California Santa Cruz    7    4-1-6

[Kuiper]

Some interesting results in Region X tonight

Occidental 0 - Chapman 0

In some ways, this isn't that surprising a result, even though the game was at Oxy.  This is the third year in a row that the two teams have tied and the second year in a row they have tied 0-0.  Last time the teams played and there was a result was in 2022 in the SCIAC championship game and Chapman won 1-0 on a last second bicycle kick in double overtime (and that was after tying twice during the regular season).  Still, Chapman came into the game 3-6-2 and 2-3 in the SCIAC and Oxy was 7-1-2 and 5-0-1 in the SCIAC.  Oxy has been shaky in games, but they have managed to prevail at the end in every SCIAC game except against Redlands.  Plus, Chapman went down to 10 men in the 70th minute on a DOGSO foul in a breakaway.  Nevertheless, Chapman's GK, Alex Glynn was exceptional and Oxy didn't help itself by continuing to lob balls into the box while knowing that Glynn was going to claim every cross in the air.  I think Oxy missed Vicente Navarro, who went out at halftime and didn't return, and Oury Diane, who didn't play.  I'm still unconvinced by Oxy this year.

Redlands 5 - Caltech 0

While Oxy was being stymied by Chapman, Redlands was steamrolling over Caltech.  They scored 2 goals in the first 14 minutes and never looked back, scoring a third just before halftime and 2 more in the 57th and 76th minutes, outshooting Caltech 23-7 despite emptying the bench. Redlands has scored 4, 4, and 5 goals in three straight wins since tying Oxy and losing to CMS.

CMS 3- La Verne 2

CMS was up 2-0 after 26 minutes, but they had trouble putting La Verne away, conceding a ULV goal sin the 33rd minute and then another in the 80th minute after extending their lead to 3-1 right after halftime.  After losing to Whittier and squeaking by Pomona-Pitzer, CMS probably hoped for a more convincing win.  They have some great wins, including against St. Olaf, Mary Hardin-Baylor, Wheaton (IL), and Redlands, but they have had trouble being consistent in games.

Cal Lutheran 2 - Whittier 0

Speaking of inconsistent, Cal Lu scored in the 5th minute and again in the 58th minutes to secure the victory after losing to Oxy and tying Caltech in their last two games.

Pacific 3 - Willamette 1

Pacific breaks a five game winless streak by taking out its frustrations on hapless Willamette, which extends its own 6 game winless streak.  The only game Willamette has won this year was against Lewis & Clark, but they'll have another chance on Sunday when they host Linfield.  Hard to believe that this is the same team that tied UC Santa Cruz and Pacific Lutheran earlier this year and only lost to Calvin 1-0.

[Kuiper]

A couple of games on tap today in the Lone Star state

Mary Hardin-Baylor 1 - LeTourneau 1

This was a surprising result, especially at home for UMHB.  After beating Hardin-Simmons 2-0 and Howard Payne 2-1 this weekend, I assumed they were heading toward their usual top spot in the ASC with Concordia having moved to the SCAC this year and UT Dallas ineligible for any postseason events because they are reclassifying to DII.  LeTourneau has been better this year, but they lost to Hardin-Simmons 4-0.  Nevertheless, sometimes it is a question of which team gets on the board first and, in this game, it was LeTourneau in the 34th minute of a fairly evenly contested first half.  UMHB equalized in the 62nd minute, but, despite out-shooting LeTourneau 13-1 in the second half, couldn't find the winner.  UMHB is still on top of the ASC with a 2-0-1 record, but it lost an opportunity to put some distance between itself and the rest of the conference.

UT Dallas 2 - East Texas Baptist 1

UTD scored a goal in the third minute and another right before halftime in a half it dominated.  It needed that because ETBU scored in the 51st minute and less than 40 seconds later a UTD player received a straight red. Down a man for almost the entire second half, UTD was outshot 10-2, but managed to retain the lead to secure the win.

[Kuiper]

Games of note in Region X this weekend:

Saturday 10/12

Whitman @ Pacific Lutheran 12 pm Pacific

Whitman, on an 8 game unbeaten streak, is 8-1-1 and 5-0-1 in the NWC.  Pacific Lutheran, on a 9 game unbeaten streak, is 6-1-3 and 4-0-2 in the NWC.  These are probably the two most likely contenders for the NWC championship at the end of the first round of games among conference opponents, although things can and do go haywire in the second round of NWC games sometimes and Whitworth, Puget Sound, George Fox, and Pacific are all still within shouting distance of each other.  Whoever wins this game, if they also win in their second game this weekend, has a chance to enter the Region X rankings.

Sunday 10/13

Southwestern @ Trinity 12 pm Central

Southwestern, which has a 9 game unbeaten streak, but only a 2 game winning streak because of the tie with Texas Lutheran, is 7-0-2 and 2-0-1 in the SCAC.  Trinity, which has a 10 game unbeaten streak and an 8 game winning streak, is 8-0-2 and 3-0 in the SCAC after a big comeback against Concordia last weekend.  There's a pretty decent chance that these two teams, along with Colorado College and one of St. Thomas, Texas Lutheran, or Concordia will be the Final Four teams in the SCAC.  Trinity has had to contend with teams bunkering on them in recent weeks, but that's not typically Southwestern's style.  If both teams are healthy and play this game straight-up, it could be pretty entertaining football.

St. Thomas @ Concordia TX 1 pm Central

Two teams that have shown high quality and significant inconsistency.  UST is 6-3 and 2-1 in the SCAC, while Concordia is 5-2-3 and 2-1 in the SCAC.  St. Thomas has the talent to compete with anyone, as evidenced by beating Mary Hardin-Baylor and going to Colorado College and only losing 1-0.  Concordia has tied Christopher Newport 3-3 and beaten Virginia Wesleyan 1-0 and last weekend almost prevailed against Trinity.  My guess is only one, and not both, of these teams will make it to the SCAC unless one of Trinity, Southwestern, or Colorado College stumbles down the stretch.  With only one game against each SCAC team this season, I would consider this effectively a play-in game for these two teams.

[Ron Boerger]

I would add this evening's Texas Lutheran @ Trinity match (5pm CDT) - TLU is 5-0-3 themselves despite only scoring 12 goals this season, and last year defeated the Tigers for the first time in their history (improving to 1-35-7).  Noel Peña has played every minute in goal for the Bulldogs.  I haven't watched TLU, but given their low-scoring offense imagine they will bunker as have most of Trinity's recent opponents.

Trinity broadcasts, hosted on YouTube are open to all:  5pm CDT 10/11 vs. TLU; noon CDT 10/13 vs. Southwestern

[Kuiper]

I would add this evening's Texas Lutheran @ Trinity match (5pm CDT) - TLU is 5-0-3 themselves despite only scoring 12 goals this season, and last year defeated the Tigers for the first time in their history (improving to 1-35-7).  Noel Peña has played every minute in goal for the Bulldogs.  I haven't watched TLU, but given their low-scoring offense imagine they will bunker as have most of Trinity's recent opponents.

Trinity broadcasts, hosted on YouTube are open to all:  5pm CDT 10/11 vs. TLU; noon CDT 10/13 vs. Southwestern

Thanks Ron.  I actually highlighted this game in a post devoted to today's game that I posted earlier this week.  I definitely agree that TLU @ Trinity is a big game! 

Friday 10/11

Texas Lutheran @ Trinity 5 pm central

TLU had a disappointing 0-0 tie against Austin over the weekend and continues to have trouble scoring against all but the weakest of teams (like its 5-0 win over University of Dallas last Friday).  Trinity overcame two bunkering teams - McMurry and Concordia TX - to secure wins.  Both teams remain undefeated overall and in the SCAC, but TLU is probably the stubbornest defense Trinity has faced and Trinity is probably the strongest offense TLU has faced.  TLU has only scored 12 goals all season (5 against UoD), but only given up 3 goals all season and the last one was on 9/8 at Otterbein (when they won 2-1).  Trinity has scored 2 goals or more in every game since opening weekend and has scored 34 goals and only given up 4.  I expect Trinity to win this game, but I doubt they will be able to generate a ton of offense simply because TLU's defense and style of play doesn't really allow it.  Because it's the first game of the weekend for the two teams and this is probably the shortest road trip in the SCAC for TLU (about 40 miles), I expect we'll get both teams' best efforts.

Colorado College @ Concordia (TX) 7 pm central

Concordia is coming off a tough loss to Trinity, getting beat 2-1 after being up 1-0 for most of the game.  Colorado College had an efficient, if unspectacular, weekend of 2-0 wins over Ozarks and Centenary.  My guess is Concordia might try the same tactics as they did against Trinity, pressing until they get a goal and then parking the bus (or the pickup truck?).  Either way, Colorado College's offense has not been as prolific as Trinity, so this might be a better game in which to employ it.

[Kuiper]

Southwestern 2 - Schreiner 2

Kind of a stunning result this afternoon in Kerrville, Texas.  Schreiner came into this game 2-7 overall and 1-2 in the SCAC.  Southwestern was 7-0-2 and 2-0-1 in the SCAC.  Southwestern is 15-3-2 overall against Schreiner going back to 2013 and had won 8 straight games against Schreiner coming into this game.  Last year, Southwestern beat Schreiner 7-0 and the year before 5-0.  Schreiner has been a little better defensively this year, but they lost 5-0 to Trinity a couple of weeks ago and they had only scored 11 goals in 9 games coming into this game.  So, to score 2 and tie?  I wouldn't have predicted it.  You might think this is one of those games where the team with the better record dominated, but couldn't put the ball in the net, which happens, but this was a fairly even game.  In the first half, the game was tied 0-0.  Southwestern scored first in the 56th minute, but Schreiner answered in the 66th.  In the 73rd, Southwestern's Michael Grimm scored a beautiful free kick goal to give Southwestern the 2-1 lead and you figured that would unlock things.  Instead, Southwestern relaxed for a second and Schreiner scored a great goal on the ensuing kickoff with Zaaron Gonzalez taking a pass on the kickoff and lofting a really nice chip into the box with the outside of his right foot and Schreiner's Cameron Armer soared over the defender to head it to the top left corner beyond the GK's reach.  Southwestern did outshoot Schreiner 10-4 and 7-3 on goal, but this was just one of those days.  Southwestern remains unbeaten at 7-0-3 and 2-0-2 in the SCAC, but this may come back to haunt them if they end up just missing the conference tournament.

[SimpleCoach]

I would add this evening's Texas Lutheran @ Trinity match (5pm CDT) - TLU is 5-0-3 themselves despite only scoring 12 goals this season, and last year defeated the Tigers for the first time in their history (improving to 1-35-7).  Noel Peña has played every minute in goal for the Bulldogs.  I haven't watched TLU, but given their low-scoring offense imagine they will bunker as have most of Trinity's recent opponents.

Trinity broadcasts, hosted on YouTube are open to all:  5pm CDT 10/11 vs. TLU; noon CDT 10/13 vs. Southwestern

Currently watching.  Trinity just knocked one off the post.

SC.

[eaglesoccerdad]

I would add this evening's Texas Lutheran @ Trinity match (5pm CDT) - TLU is 5-0-3 themselves despite only scoring 12 goals this season, and last year defeated the Tigers for the first time in their history (improving to 1-35-7).  Noel Peña has played every minute in goal for the Bulldogs.  I haven't watched TLU, but given their low-scoring offense imagine they will bunker as have most of Trinity's recent opponents.

Trinity broadcasts, hosted on YouTube are open to all:  5pm CDT 10/11 vs. TLU; noon CDT 10/13 vs. Southwestern

Currently watching.  Trinity just knocked one off the post.

SC.

Switching between multiple cameras! Nice production

[Kuiper]

HALF:  Trinity 1 - Texas Lutheran 0

Really impressive goal by Trinity, worked through a bunch of intricate one touch passing to the right side, top, and through the box, before being passed into the opposite corner.  It took a deflection from the defender, which is the reason the GK looked fooled (and the announcers are giving short-shrift to how critical that deflection was because he was set up to get the ball without it), but Trinity earned that goal through some impressive play and they weren't going to score any other way given how strong TLU is defensively.

UPDATE:  Trinity 1 - Texas Lutheran 1

What a goal by Louis Hart in the 61st minute!  Diving header on a beautiful cross to the six yard box that left the Trinity GK frozen

UPDATE:  Texas Lutheran 2 - Trinity 1

TLU scores a nice goal on a scramble off a corner kick.  You usually don't see a defender up for a corner have a clean chance for a side volley on a ball like that.

UPDATE:  Texas Lutheran 2 - Trinity 2

WOW!!!!  Really impressive goal by Will Powell with a flicked kick in the box

UPDATE:  Trinity 3 - Texas Lutheran 2

Holy Crap!  Luke Chandler, the CB, scores on a great shot from the far post to take the lead with 41 seconds left

FINAL:  Trinity 3 - Texas Lutheran 2

Instant classic game, and not just because Trinity came back from 2-1 down to win 3-2 with 2 goals in the last 3 minutes.  Just a great game between two really organized and well-coached teams full of talented players. A great representation of D3 soccer (and a top flight broadcast as well with good commentators, multiple angle shots, and replays all at no cost).

[Kuiper]

HALF:  St. Thomas 1 - McMurry 1

I've mostly been watching the Trinity-TLU game, but I had one eye on this one after I saw that McMurry scored.  I was going to write that this game seemed to be one of those I mentioned in the Southwestern write-up, where one team dominated, but the other team nicked in a goal and then just absorbed pressure.  UST had 12 shots in the first half to 1 for McMurry, which was the goal they scored in the 12th minute.  I switched to it when Trinity went to half, though, just in time to see the UST GK pick up a ball in his box and quickly kick a perfect left-footed side volley punt down the middle of the field to a sprinting Daniel Castro who slotted it past the on-rushing McMurry keeper to tie it up in the 45th minute.  That kind of symbolizes how St. Thomas sometimes plays given their lack of a true offensive game plan.  Lots of technical skill and passing, signifying nothing, but they score when they throw all that away and unleash their superior athleticism.

[Freddyfud]

I am watching Trinity TLU as well.  Entertaining so far.  And I know they announcers say it has been hot and dry but the pitch looks great. 

[SimpleCoach]

I am watching Trinity TLU as well.  Entertaining so far.  And I know they announcers say it has been hot and dry but the pitch looks great. 

Yeah, you would not know based on the field conditions.

SC.

[SimpleCoach]

What a great diving header by the TLU forward.  What a goal.

SC.