Go WEST young man (and NORTH)

[Kuiper]

Region X results tonight

Willamette 4 - Lewis & Clark 0

Willamette took care of business and L&C really couldn't stop the Bearcats.  Winless streak extended to 40 games.  Not sure this means anything for the now 2-win Willamette, but perhaps something to build upon for the rest of the season.

Chapman 2 - Caltech 1

Chapman scores two in the first half to put this one away.  Caltech got one right after halftime, but couldn't get the equalizer.  It only played two subs significant minutes with a third getting 14 minutes and I think Caltech just ran out of gas trying to chase the game.  It's really tough when 7 of your starters play the full 90 and Chapman has 9 coming off the bench, but this game was largely over in the first half anyway.  Chapman moves up to a tie with Cal Lutheran for the fourth and final playoff spot, while Caltech drops to a tie for last in the SCIAC.

Pomona-Pitzer 5 - Cal Lutheran 0

I wrote in the preview that this looked like a trap game for a Cal Lu team that doesn't seem to get up for the weaker teams and really needs energy to play well.  Seems like they left any energy on the bus because Pomona-Pitzer just thrashed them, taking a 2-0 advantage at halftime and blowing the game open during a 6 minute stretch in the 2nd half when P-P scored 3 goals.  P-P has tons of skill, creativity, and passing ability.  If you don't press them, they can pick you apart.  Their problem is that if they are a little off with their passing, then they can be beat on counters and long balls, and they often take unnecessary risks with the passes, which gets them in trouble.  This afternoon, they were really good with their passing, Fuchs was a wizard dribbling in the CM position, and P-P was downright clinical with their shots, scoring 5 goals on 9 shots on goal and 16 shots overall.  With Chapman's win, Cal Lu drops into a tie with them for 4th, although Cal Lu may have the tiebreaker.  P-P gets their first SCIAC win of the year in fine fashion and is now tied with Caltech in the SCIAC cellar.

Redlands 5 - La Verne 0

Redlands brushed aside its disappointing 0-0 tie to Cal Lutheran and went back to its explosive offensive ways in this game.  It thoroughly dominated this game, outshooting ULV 26-3.  Redlands is now tied with Oxy for 2nd in the SCIAC and its next two games are against Pomona-Pitzer and La Verne again.  It still hasn't proven it can beat the top teams in the SCIAC, but it has definitely proven it can score.

Claremont-Mudd-Scrips 3 - Occidental 2

Huge win for CMS.  Oxy went ahead one minute into the game on a great cross that Andrew Notter cut off in front of the CMS GK and scored.  I don't know if Oxy changed tactics after that or if a switch went off and they started to relax, because CMS went on the attack and kept pressing for an equalizer.  It came in the 27th and a second goal came a few minutes later in the 33rd minute.  With CMS taking a 2-1 lead into halftime, I thought Oxy would come out of the half with renewed vigor.  They have been a team that needs to be woken from its slumber sometimes and usually they have the firepower to rise to the occasion.  I think CMS took them off guard, though, because they came out in the second half with a high press and parlayed that into several dangerous chances, including one where confusion between the Oxy GK and CB over a ball at the edge of the box led to the CMS forward stripping them of it and a second CMS forward slotted into the empty net for the 3-1 lead in the 48th minute.  Oxy came to life at that point and became dangerous, but couldn't break through until the 75th minute when a great shot hit the far post and went in the goal.  They could not find an equalizer, though, and suffer their first SCIAC loss.  CMS jumps ahead of them and takes 1st in the SCIAC, while Oxy not only drops to 2nd, but is now tied there with Redlands after its win.  Oxy gets a chance for a rematch, though, as they will host CMS next Wednesday.  One benefit of that is that not only will Oxy be home, but they will play on a much better field where they can take advantage of their speed.  CMS has probably the worst field in the SCIAC.  It is bare on lots of patches where it is just dirt right now with a hint of grass.  Lots of players were slipping all over the field tonight with the cooler air and dew on the field.  There was one shot of Oxy's GK replacing a divot after he slipped on a GK.  I like that CMS still uses grass and they do keep the grass low, but it's really substandard.

[seanie67]

First post and I follow you closely Kuiper as you have the most incisive objective posts out here hands down. Don't get me started on the East Coast threads as I can't bear to watch or follow them. Couple thoughts on the CMS/Oxy game tonight. I'm not sure turf fields are going to help the speed of Oxy next game. They were outclassed tonight- CMS had possession by 65/70% easily, played tika taka on the wings effectively and stretched Oxy's midfield. Hard to see Oxy string 3-4 forward passes together or have any build out of the back. When you have freshmen scoring on silly goalkeeper out of the box mistakes, something is wrong mentally. CMS was better tonight technically, play better as a team, don't rely solely on the striker. I suspect they will go forward and close out the season in first. The St Olaf defeat and their SOS/SSF should get them higher in overall standings soon. Coach Cartee is recruiting some stellar players. I smell upcoming dynasty...

[BTXCru18]

Yep...The Cru are pretty hot and cold this year. Never really put together a complete 90 minutes yet even in the games they won.

Conference play will be especially tough this year in the ASC with everyone playing twice - home & away - in the regular season and then also having a tournament with the top 4 teams. It's never been set up like that before conference-wide(there was a divisional thing in Spring 2020-2021 COVID season). Whoever comes out with the AQ will have been thoroughly tested against their peers!

I stand corrected... ASC tournament will be whacky. All 5 teams get in, with a 4v5 matchup in the lone quarterfinal on Tuesday 11/5, advancing to play the #1 seed in the semifinal round 11/7 before the eventual championship game on 11/9. Additionally, the host site is determined by the WOMEN'S #1 seed, who will host both sides of the tournament.

So the #1 seed for the men still holds value in that you get to play someone on short rest, but this will be weird.

[Kuiper]

Yep...The Cru are pretty hot and cold this year. Never really put together a complete 90 minutes yet even in the games they won.

Conference play will be especially tough this year in the ASC with everyone playing twice - home & away - in the regular season and then also having a tournament with the top 4 teams. It's never been set up like that before conference-wide(there was a divisional thing in Spring 2020-2021 COVID season). Whoever comes out with the AQ will have been thoroughly tested against their peers!

I stand corrected... ASC tournament will be whacky. All 5 teams get in, with a 4v5 matchup in the lone quarterfinal on Tuesday 11/5, advancing to play the #1 seed in the semifinal round 11/7 before the eventual championship game on 11/9. Additionally, the host site is determined by the WOMEN'S #1 seed, who will host both sides of the tournament.

So the #1 seed for the men still holds value in that you get to play someone on short rest, but this will be weird.

I think the ASC had to do it this way because they needed more conference games to fill out their schedules.  This way, everyone gets at least one extra game.

[Kuiper]

First post and I follow you closely Kuiper as you have the most incisive objective posts out here hands down. Don't get me started on the East Coast threads as I can't bear to watch or follow them. Couple thoughts on the CMS/Oxy game tonight. I'm not sure turf fields are going to help the speed of Oxy next game. They were outclassed tonight- CMS had possession by 65/70% easily, played tika taka on the wings effectively and stretched Oxy's midfield. Hard to see Oxy string 3-4 forward passes together or have any build out of the back. When you have freshmen scoring on silly goalkeeper out of the box mistakes, something is wrong mentally. CMS was better tonight technically, play better as a team, don't rely solely on the striker. I suspect they will go forward and close out the season in first. The St Olaf defeat and their SOS/SSF should get them higher in overall standings soon. Coach Cartee is recruiting some stellar players. I smell upcoming dynasty...

Thanks for the kind words!  CMS definitely looked strong in this game.  On one of CMS' goals in the first half, they had Oxy chasing ghosts with a beautiful string of passes on the left side and through the middle for a great shot from the top of the box.  As for the turf, I was thinking of Oxy's counter game, where they like to bring the ball up the wing very quickly and cross from there.  The right side of the field near the entrance that CMS was defending in the first half seemed to be very slick and was basically just dirt.  The Oxy wingers were slipping try to make sharp turns.

Interestingly, this will be the first time in several years that CMS and Oxy play each other twice in the regular season under the SCIAC's unbalanced scheduling system that they adopted.  So, it will be great to see how each team and coaches adjust for the rematch next week.  CMS still has its own inconsistency problems with their losses to Cal Lu and Whittier standing out like sore thumbs, but if it's getting its act together (and getting healthy), it's doing it at the right time of the year!

[Kuiper]

A couple of games in the ASC tonight

Hardin-Simmons 2 - East Texas Baptist 1

I think the ASC is a two-way race between Mary Hardin-Baylor and Hardin-Simmons (3-1 in conference entering the game), but I'm not sure East Texas Baptist (1-2-1 entering the game), got the memo. After a 0-0 tie at half despite H-S having 13 shots and 10 corner kicks, ETBU got on the board first in the 60th minute.  As often happens, that seems to unlock the game as H-S equalized in the 64th.  H-S once again poured on the pressure, taking 16 shots in the second half alone, but it took them until the 87th minute to get the game-winner.   

LeTourneau 1 - Howard Payne 1

LeTourneau was 4-4-4 and 1-1-2 coming into the game and Howard Payne was 0-10-3 and 0-3-1.  LeTourneau won the first match between these two teams 4-0 at home.  This seemed like a minor mismatch.  The first half was pretty even, ending 0-0, but LeTourneau scored first in the 52nd and you figured that would draw HP out and give LeTourneau more opportunities.  It did draw them out, but HP ended up equalizing in the 67th minute and LeTourneau couldn't find a winner despite outshooting HP 17-8 and 10-2 in the second half.  Things got a little testy at the end and one HP player got a double yellow in the 90th minute.

[BTXCru18]

I'm sure Kuiper will do a better match preview than this, but St. Thomas @ TLU this evening at 5 CT. Rematch of the blood bath that happened last season, this time in Seguin. I'm sure Eddie Salazar will do all he can to keep the guys as level headed/motivated as possible, but I imagine more than a few of the TLU players will want another shot at UST. Not that TLU was without blame last season either...

Last year's game was also the first loss of TLU's season and ultimately what kept them out of the SCAC tournament, with UST getting in over them on the head-to-head tiebreaker.

[Ron Boerger]

I am sure the conference has alerted all concerned that anything remotely resembling last years debacle will have much more severe consequences than last year's rather milquetoast response.  The refs will be handing out cards like candy at Halloween.

[College Soccer Observer]

Ron:  Not sure I agree with your characterization of the response.  The entire St. Thomas coaching staff lost their jobs.  The player who committed the leg breaking tackle did not play again for the rest of the season.  The conference also implemented a number of policies that impact men's soccer this year, such as:

1. A total of 3 yellows to the entire coaching staff combined will result in a 1 game suspension for the head coach (NCAA rule is 5 to a specific individual)
2.  3 yellow cards in conference play to a player equals a suspension (NCAA rule is 5 for the season).

[BTXCru18]

Ron:  Not sure I agree with your characterization of the response.  The entire St. Thomas coaching staff lost their jobs.  The player who committed the leg breaking tackle did not play again for the rest of the season.  The conference also implemented a number of policies that impact men's soccer this year, such as:

1. A total of 3 yellows to the entire coaching staff combined will result in a 1 game suspension for the head coach (NCAA rule is 5 to a specific individual)
2.  3 yellow cards in conference play to a player equals a suspension (NCAA rule is 5 for the season).

Wasn't aware of the disciplinary changes in the SCAC. I'd add that no UST players were awarded any USC all-region/American honors last season, not even Taty Aleman with 20 goal contributions.

[College Soccer Observer]

The USC honors may be as simple as the fact that your coach has to be a member in order for a player to win an award, and with the midseason change, the new coach might not have been aware of this requirement.

[Ron Boerger]

CSO:  thanks for the added detail.  The fact that the conference never publicly announced these changes (or any disciplinary actions) continues to be a great disappointment.

Stuff *happened* but nobody took responsibility or even acknowledged what went on.

[Kuiper]

Two spicy Friday Night Lights games in Texas today in Region X

St. Thomas @ Texas Lutheran 5 pm Central

As others have already noted, this is the first time these two teams will play each other since the game on October 8, 2023, when nominally UST came back to win 3-2 with goals in the 89th and 90th games against a backup freshman TLU keeper who had played only 6 minutes and 39 seconds in his college career before this game.

The real story, of course, was that there were at least two brawls, 5 red cards, 12 yellow cards with the teams playing 10-9 for a while and the game ended 8 v 8, one player, TLU's Jorge Ugaz, was taken to the hospital with a broken leg from a tackle and appears to have had his career ended by the injury - he is technically on the roster for a Covid year this season, but hasn't played a second after playing consistently for 4 years with TLU, the UST head coach and a few of his assistants were fired immediately after the game and the rest of the coaching staff was ushered out after the season, SCAC changed the rules to lower from 5 to 3 the number of yellows that lead to suspensions, and the poor, over-matched, freshman TLU keeper, who came into the chaos and let in the two UST goals after the starter was red carded for running the length of the field to head butt a UST player during one of the brawls, played a couple of games while the starter was suspended and then appears to have left the team and possibly the sport altogether.

I don't think I'm overstating things to say that lives were changed as a result of this single game and both sides may still bear grudges for their players/coaches who lost their jobs or their playing careers. And, perhaps ominously, it's noteworthy that all of the red and yellow carded players for TLU and three of the UST players remain on their respective rosters.  Plus, many other players on both rosters return.  Even if the coaches warn them about instigating anything, there are guys on probably both rosters, but especially UST based on what I have seen thus far this season, who still view getting under the other players' skins and talking back to the refs as an essential part of the game. 

Assuming they can put last year's game behind them, it's an important game for both schools.  TLU is 6-1-3 and 2-1-2 and tied for 4th in the SCAC with Southwestern and UST is 7-4 and 3-2 in 3rd place in the SCAC.  These are both tough weekends for these teams.  UST plays at TLU and at Southwestern and TLU hosts UST and Colorado College.  My guess is if either teams comes out of the weekend with two wins, they will have gone a long way to securing 3rd seed in the conference tournament.  The Southwestern and Colorado College games will also give each a chance to secure a quality win and possibly climb the NPI rankings.

Colorado College @ Southwestern 7:30 pm Central

Colorado College is 10-1-2 and 5-0 in the SCAC and Southwestern is 7-1-3 and 2-1-2 in the SCAC.  Southwestern is coming off a bad tie to Schreiner and a tough 2-1 loss to Trinity and Colorado College is not only on a 5 game winning streak, but a 5 game shutout streak since a 1-0 loss to Mary Washington.  If Southwestern wants to make a move in the SCAC and in the NPI rankings, this is their big chance at home to do so.  For Colorado College, the games this weekend against Southwestern and Texas Lutheran, and next weekend against Trinity, are not just opportunities to jockey for the top spot in the SCAC, but to get some NPI quality win bonus points to give them some insurance in case they don't win the SCAC AQ.  Because they played more of the bottom of the SCAC to start their conference schedule, Colorado College is only #17 in the NPI despite taking on some top teams in non-conference games and Southwestern (#59), Texas Lutheran (#49), and Trinity (#11) will be key to increasing their SoS and QWB points.

[BTXCru18]

CSO:  thanks for the added detail.  The fact that the conference never publicly announced these changes (or any disciplinary actions) continues to be a great disappointment.

Stuff *happened* but nobody took responsibility or even acknowledged what went on.

I agree there should have been some sort of announcement.

I wonder if this is more in part due to member institutions being largely(if not exclusively) private. Aside from presidents, compensation and employment details are largely kept private. Just a thought.

[Hopkins92]

You also have to consider the legal implications of all of this. I've been around enough general counsels to know how they think when potential lawsuits are in the air. Less is always more on the legal front.