2022 D3 Men's Soccer National Perspective

[Kuiper]

Willamette, the last undefeated team out West, loses at home to Whitman today 3-1.  That won't affect Willamette's standing in the Northwest Conference, where they still lead Pacific Lutheran by a game, but it shoulld knock Willamette out of the top 10 of the rankings and it gives Pacific Lutheran (which beat Pacific 5-1 today) a chance to catch Willamette when they next play on 10/29.

[PaulNewman]

The lights went out in Cleveland...literally...ONU 2, JCU 1 12 min left

Lights came back on....and ONU held on with JCU putting on tons of pressure the last 5 minutes.  The JCU announcer is great...on like the 3rd corner in a row and after point blank chances over the crossbar there were 20 secs left and guy exclaims "THIS is the line in the sand!"  Great game.  Huge win for ONU...first win there in 7 years.

[blue_jays]

Here's my one question on the Chicago vs Messiah debate (and yes, it's very possible we won't get this matchup for real similar to how some of us have waited several years for Tufts and Messiah to lock horns again and it hasn't materialized).

Are Chicago's outside backs and wingers fast enough to stay with Messiah's danger men?  Someone like bluejay I'm sure knows the answer.  Otherwise I think Chicago can easily match Messiah man for man.  They have two 1st team AA CBs with great size, instincts, and also some offensive punch, and I assume both could be legit D1 CBs.  Gillespie and Wada provide a tremendous safety net.  The Maroons also have plenty of skill and speed in the midfield and up top.

Hard to say in terms of keeping up, but the UChicago outside backs are not what I'd call speedsters. They rely on their size, confidence and technical skill. Thing is, even if they do get burned (which I've seen before), the center backs shutdown any further damage. Gillespie runs like a gazelle, especially for a guy whose 6-foot-3, which is why he's frequently involved in the attack. North Park tried playing long balls down the left flank constantly in their matchup and they definitely had the quickness advantage. However, UChicago just stayed so organized, it didn't get exploited for real chances. Leuker is known to gamble a fair amount at left back, which has bit him before. Moonesinghe has leveled up this year after a shaky showing last year and is displaying the talent and poise the Maroons expected when he first arrived on campus. Baldwin is good at tracking people down. Kabbani might be the best passer on the team and plays a hybrid role that makes him as super valuable wherever he plays in midfield or defense.

[MessageBoardMessi]

I call bullcrap there is no meaningful amount of goalie coaches teaching their players to parry/box instead of catch... it's just not a thing. Every coach wants their keeper to catch.

What's probably actually happening is that lots of D3 goalies just aren't very good and are liable to give up bad rebounds because they don't have the technique and training to hold the ball, so they try to parry instead and probably get some pressure from head coaches to do that if they have given up bad rebounds trying to catch before.

Goalie is a bit unique in that being good at it requires a large number of hours of specialized training and most kids don't get that, even many one's that are solid high school and club players.

Agree.  GK Play is the difference maker as we get to tournament play.  No legitimate GK coach at a higher level is spending extra time on punches or parry - as the focus should be holds.  The teams that can recruit a GK that meets the eye test and has good hands a feet will have a distinct advantage in one and done postseason play.  GK play does not dazzle in many d3 games - but gets the job done.  Most fans have little exposure to what good vs great GK play or training is - and won't realize what they dont have  - or what could have been if they had a GK with better training and pedigree.....

And don't get me started on all the punts and long goal kicks we see in D3 play......play it short - leverage possession with a GK that can not only stop balls, but use his feet and head to build from the back.  Lots of rec league punters out there.  I can almost hear their moms yelling "great kick" as the orange slices are prepared for the post game snack.

[PaulNewman]

About the only criticism of Chicago I can muster is the asst coach pacing up and down the sidelines the entire game acting like he's the HC. 

CWRU playing about as well as they can play and there's no sense that the Spartans can win this game.  I noticed this in the Calvin game but Chicago, maybe to a fault, does not look under pressure even when they are under pressure.  They are comfortable allowing the opponent to have some possession.  They always seem in control and patient waiting for chances to turn on the after-burners. 

[PaulNewman]

What a weekend for NYU #9 Arkan Tahsildaroglu.....smashes the winner off the much-discussed Emory GK block of a free kick with less than a minute left.  Today, around 83rd minute, about two minutes after Rochester went ahead 1-0, he scored directly off a corner. 

Chicago gets 6 points.

Wash U quietly picks up 4 points.

NYU picks up 4 points.

Rochester gets 4 points.

CWRU was valiant and probably gave Chicago as good a game as any UAA will (and still the 2-0 scoreline was not that close even though CWRU pulled one back with 34 secs left), but ends the weekend with just 1 point.

Carnegie Mellon heads back home with 0 points.

Emory finally gets a win over Brandeis.

Chicago clearly has the AQ.  Wash U, UR, NYU, CWRU, and CMU all still viable for Pool C but have work to do.  I'm guessing three will get Pool Cs.  CMU plays at CWRU in the last game for each and wouldn't be surprised if that game determines which one gets a bid.  CMU still very fortunate they have what will be a ranked win over JCU in their pocket but imo they need another ranked win against one of the UAAs who will end up regionally ranked.

[PaulNewman]

If anyone can figure out how to get video of the NYU equalizer today out of the UR film room please post.

[SimpleCoach]

If anyone can figure out how to get video of the NYU equalizer today out of the UR film room please post.

@PaulNewman.... the amount of responses I came up with for your simple request ... I'll start with .... It'll cost you.

SC.

[PaulNewman]

If anyone can figure out how to get video of the NYU equalizer today out of the UR film room please post.

@PaulNewman.... the amount of responses I came up with for your simple request ... I'll start with .... It'll cost you.

SC.

I'm open....but I'm NOT posting bail.

[stlawus]

Your best bet is to hope NYU uploads the highlights to their Hudl page in the coming days.

[EnmoreCat]

I think Rochester might have it available 

[FBALLISLIFE]

Also...what I think has been underemphasized in this discussion...is the physical health benefit to the athletes of not having to play those extra OT minutes.  Those minutes take both a physical and a mental toll that adds up over the course of the season.  These are young student athletes who are required to balance a lot in the classroom, in their social lives, and on the field.

The Soccer Rules Committee compiled and circulated 10 years of data that showed pretty definitively that playing OT periods did not increase player injuries in the OT game or in the thee games played by the same team thereafter. 

[northman]

As Mark Twain once quoted..."there are lies, damned lies, and statistics..."  I'm not sure what the scheduling looks like in other conferences, but in the NESCAC there are at least two weekends of back-to-back games...within a shorter regular season than that of other conferences.  Too many OTs (and my son experienced his share back in the day) simply does take a toll...whatever the more generalized statistics might say.

[d3closefollower]

I'll tell you who loves the no OT rule - the officials.  One told me it's made things so much easier in terms of reffing back to back games, which a lot of them do.  College game at 4, hs game at 6 is now totally doable.

[blue_jays]

About the only criticism of Chicago I can muster is the asst coach pacing up and down the sidelines the entire game acting like he's the HC. 

CWRU playing about as well as they can play and there's no sense that the Spartans can win this game.  I noticed this in the Calvin game but Chicago, maybe to a fault, does not look under pressure even when they are under pressure.  They are comfortable allowing the opponent to have some possession.  They always seem in control and patient waiting for chances to turn on the after-burners.

It speaks to UChicago's quality that today's win felt like perhaps the most unimpressive game the Maroons have played all year. Case did exactly what they needed to: go straight at UChicago all over the field with no fear. Their pace, high press, and aggressiveness put UChicago on their back foot for basically the entire first half, and the home team couldn't find consistent possession past midfield. Case's slide tackles were impeccable throughout. While the Maroons scored early off a good play, they literally seemed to rest on their laurels for the rest of the half and played way too passively. Not sure why UChicago looked so disengaged: casual was the word that kept popping into my head all game.
It was clear that the Maroon coaching staff wasn't happy with the first half effort either: they left the first half subs in at the start of the second half.
The not looking under pressure when they are under pressure observation is spot on. The defense refuses to overreact or be hurried when they're building possession from the back. They have supreme confidence in their ball movement. Case employed a smart game plan, executed it very well, put real pressure on the Maroons... and still came up with only 1 good look all game until the final 30 seconds. That's just what the UChicago defense does to you.
Case impressed me very much with their effort. CMU looked fraudulent. I guarantee the Spartans beat the Tartans in the season finale.