Sectional snapshots

[Another Mom]

Kudos to @paulnewman and @fballis life really well done!

Fballislife knows W&L really well, and I agree with everything he's written.

I am not making a prediction!! Both are super strong teams and anything can happen.

[SierraFD3soccer]

PN's Snapshot -- Stevens Sectional


Stevens
Stevens trots into the Sweet 16 and in a host position sitting as one of only two unbeatens left in the tournament at 16-0-4 with 41 goals and 7 allowed.  Remember those two hours in early September when all of us thought Manhattanville might be really good?  Stevens opened the season with a 1-1 draw with the Valiants.  Who could have known what was coming...that literally three days later the Ducks would spank F&M 3-0?  Stevens then proceeded to knock off Rutgers-Newark, Vassar, and NYU.  We knew the Ducks were very good after that run, boosting them way up the rankings.  But exactly how good are they?  After that great first month Stevens disappeared into the nether regions of the MACF.  Pollsters cut a deal with the Ducks and said we'll put you at #4 and check back in at tourney time.  Stevens ripped off win after win, marred only by a draw with FDU-Florham and later a more understandable draw with Lycoming.  And then it was tourney time.  Stevens was rewarded with a #1 seed.  I predicted difficulty with Middlebury in the 2nd round but instead they had difficulty with Rowan in the 2nd round, barely, barely escaping and advancing via PKs.  Stevens is led by MACF COY Dale Jordan in his 8th year.  His coaching tenure was proceeded by high level positions with the Rochester Rhinos and Rochester Futbol Club and two years as a player at Penn State.  Stevens is another program looking to take another step after a Sweet 16 in 2017 and 2nd round exits in 2018 and 2021.  The Ducks feature grad student and MACF Offensive POY #10 Adam Silva (4 G, 4 A), #22 senior Bruno Andino (8 G, 7 A), another grad student #8 Sean Masur, a midfielder.  Defensively, the stars are #4 junior CB Fritz Kabeiseman and #1 senior GK Justin Cross who merely leads the nation in goals against average.  Stevens is an older, mature squad with strong talent and presumably loads of poise and discipline. 

Cortland St
If Stevens was steady as she goes, then Cortland has been mercurial.  Remember those few days in late August when very amateur prognosticators across the country pegged the Red Dragons as a clear top 10 and maybe even top 5 team?  Welp, Cortland came right out of the gate laying an egg against the team most abused by D3 fandom (correction, 2nd most abused), the "we'll take your last penny" Rochester, falling 3-1.  Cortland then won two before dropping another to Mid-Atlantic heavyweight Johns Hopkins, followed by a win over Mary Washington, a loss to SLU, and a major winning streak that ended with a loud 3-0 thud at the hands of arch-rival Oneonta St.  The Red Dragons rebounded to close the regular season with a resounding victory 4-1 over a to-be-snubbed Brockport side, only to turn right around and drop a SUNYAC semifinal to that same Brockport 3-2.  Cortland can be mercurial within the same game.  In the 2nd round of the NCAA tournament, Cortland drew host and perennial Round 2/Sweet 16 teaser Franklin & Marshall and quickly fell behind 2-0.  The Red Dragons came out of halftime spitting fire and scored three before allowing the Dips an 89th minute equalizer.  In the end Cortland earned a 7-6 PK advance and traipsed out of Amish Country singing that 1970s Dylan ditty "One-way ticket to Hoboken."  Cortland is a confusing 13-5-3 with 59 goals and 33 allowed.  Coach Steve Axtell is in his 11th year at the helm and has taken the Red Dragons to four Sweet 16s since 2014.  A star Cortland GK back in the day, Axtell's love affair with Cortland soccer extended to nuptials with the Cortland women's coach.  The heart and soul of the team is #6 senior SUNYAC Co-Defensive POY Ian Blugh.  The offensive punch comes courtesy of fellow All-SUNYAC first teamers #7 junior Jack Coleman (12 G, 5 A) and #10 junior Mateo Marra (9 G, 9 A), and All-SUNYAC 3rd teamer #20 senior Riley Williams (5 G, 2 A).  #8 soph Matt Schultz has chipped in as well (9 G, 5 A). 

Catholic
Catholic rolls into Hoboken 13-3-4 with 45 goals and 15 allowed.  Coach Travis Beauchamp is in his 16th season and under his tutelage the Cardinals now have seven NCAA appearances since 2009.  Beauchamp is a Washington College HOFer who starred in both soccer and baseball.  Catholic has incurred three losses to Eastern, Mary Washington, and Scranton scattered across a solid but not spectacular resume.  The Cardinals sweated out a Pool C invite and proceeded to honor an invite with an impressive first weekend in the tourney, knocking the enigmatic duo of Region VI stalwarts Lynchburg and Christopher Newport out of the dance.  Now we'll see what happens with another step up in quality.  #7 senior Darius Siahpoosh (12 G, 1 A) is the Landmark conference Offensive POY, and the Cardinal attack runs through him.  He does have help in the form of a pair of fellow Landmark 1st teamers, #19 junior Gordie "The Hammer" Bernlohr and #24 soph Dominic Caltabiano (8 G, 10 A).  All of the above were 1st team Landmark selections.  The Catholic backline is buttressed by #6 soph CB Owen Maher, another Landmark 1st teamer and #25 soph outside back Andrew Lowman, a 2nd teamer.  According to Simplecoach, the Cardinals are an athletic bunch who employ something akin to an "Amherst lite" style.  In other words, aesthetics be damned, let's just go out there and win the daggum game.

John Hopkins
If only this was med school admissions...the Blue Jays would already have the title plaque in the trophy case.  But of course Hopkins is more than one of America's premier medical institutions, and this year's edition of the men's soccer program has the talent to eclipse all previous Hopkins squads.  The Blue Jays are 14-1-7 with 29 goals and 9 allowed.  Noteworthy results have included wins over Rowan, Mary Washington, and Cortland but draws with Emory, Lycoming, Dickinson, and Muhlenberg.  The skipper is long-time Hopkins coach Craig Appleby who installed what has become one of the nation's foremost possession-oriented styles.  Sometimes Hopkins has been dinged by pundits for being too wedded to that approach, or at least too prone to style consistency over a more flexible strategy that places a greater emphasis on results (and scoring).  Hopkins even this year was becoming notorious for a slew of 1-0 wins and too frequent draws.  Time will tell as they say, but the re-match with John Carroll in the 2nd round seemed to herald in a more aggressive, more intentional approach...one still fueled by skill and possession dominance but hyper-boosted by increased interest in end product.  Hopkins has been viewed as a contender throughout the season, but now, considering some of the surprise 1st round exits and glimpses of a high-octane attack, the Blue Jays have vaulted into "one of the favorites" status.  The roster features #6 grad student and Centennial DPOY, the bespectacled Tim Treinen.  It never hurts having a D1 transfer grad student and Centennial 1st team GK either, and that describes #0, Alex Morgret.  A pair of brothers lead the offensive charge, #7 senior Alex Whamond (6 G, 3 A), another Centennial 1st teamer, and #17 soph Ian Whamond (3 G, 6 A), the Centennial ROY a year ago and now a 2nd teamer.  #8 junior Francis Meyer facilitates out of the midfield, and he also earned Centennial 1st team honors.  A deep postseason run often can be aided by a fresh, hot hand, and that is exactly what Hopkins appears to have in #12 frosh Scotty Coleman who unlocked an acclaimed John Carroll defense to earn a brace.

Between the lines
Stevens and Hopkins will be bitterly disappointed if they don't advance to the Elite 8 for a monumental clash and shot at real glory (or more heartbreak).  Cortland St could not be less interested in what those teams want as the Red Dragons are sick and tired of fizzling out at this stage.  Cortland has the offensive chops to make Stevens chase the game, and that's not a recipe that's very tasteful for the Ducks.  A joke about feasting and ducks would be good here, but I digress.  Cortland proved they have the grit to come from behind as they did against F&M, but that's not usually what works for the Red Dragons and spotting Stevens a two goal lead no doubt will result in staring at a barren Thanksgiving plate.  But what if Cortland's very capable attack gets a two goal lead on Stevens?  Well, the Ducks haven't been in that position all year, and one would think Cortland might have less trouble locking down in defense with the Elite 8 in view.  Oh, I haven't mentioned Catholic yet?  That's like throwing the Cardinals a fat fastball right down the middle, and remember, Coach Beauchamp knows a thing or two about hitting a baseball.  Nothing motivates Catholic like a healthy dose of disrespect, and they'll be hoping that Hopkins disrespects them all the way back to Baltimore.  The Cardinals won't be awed as they've played some big teams, and they will like their chances if they're still level or up a goal late.  And if the Cards can take out the Blue Jays there's no reason to believe they can't overcome Stevens or Cortland.  Same with Cortland if the Red Dragons get by the Ducks.  If the seeding holds, then Stevens and Hopkins should produce a battle that will go down to the wire and quite possibly an unlikely hero will carry one of them to Roanoke.

FYI and overlooked I believe, Cortland's keeper is the 3rd string keeper.  Apparently and not totally sure, the keepers ahead of him quit the team before or shortly before the NCAA's.  The keeper there now has given up 5 goals of which at least 2 were not great efforts by him. Not saying this is much as the former freshman keeper who started every game before this gave up 25 goals in 18 games. However, Cortland does have 6 D1 transfers to include Taylor. They have a pretty relentless offense with good foot skills, but week defense.  So it will depend on what team shows up and how much pressure Stevens can put on the keeper.

[PaulNewman]

Two questions/wild cards...

Don't know if Nardiello-Smith will play after coming out against Calvin with what looked like was maybe a concussion thing....but if he does he could be an X factor for Kenyon.

What did the Calvin win mean, if anything?

[FBALLISLIFE]

Two questions/wild cards...

Don't know if Nardiello-Smith will play after coming out against Calvin with what looked like was maybe a concussion thing....but if he does he could be an X factor for Kenyon.

I was going to mention him, but wasn't sure whether he would play after that knock.  I hope he can go. Francis (er, Mac) has been a winner at every level.  He can be a definite x-factor on Saturday if he's fit.

[Gregory Sager]

St. Thomas' players definitely won't be used to the arctic cold of the winter wind whipping off Lake Michigan into Hyde Park, but it's not like they're from Southern California and the SCIAC where cold means below 65 degrees.  During St. Thomas's games last weekend in Belton, Texas, it was in the mid-40s with wind chills dropping it down to feel like the high 30s in the second half during the evening.  Many of the players were wearing field player gloves, so they weren't completely unprepared.  Still, as someone who did grad school at Chicago, I know it's a different kind of cold.  I can still feel it in my bones. 

Yep.

The wind won't be "whipping off Lake Michigan into Hyde Park" on Saturday afternoon, as the wind will be coming out of the west. Nevertheless, "the Hawk", as we call it here -- that bone-chilling cold winter wind that Chicago singing legend Lou Rawls used to describe as "just like a giant razor blade blowin' down the street, and all the clothes in the world can't help you" -- will be here in force, as winds will be around 18 mph or so. Noon temperature is predicted to be somewhere around 28 degrees or so, with a wind chill of about 15 degrees.

I'm betting that the Celtics will not enjoy it.

[blooter442]

Kudos to PN may sound generic at this point, but seriously impressive roundups. I had only watched ~1-2 D3 games this season up until last weekend, but after reading that I feel like I know each of the teams pretty well.

[Ejay]

I think Catholic has a real shot at beating Hopkins, who tends to play to the level of their competition. This is not a good matchup for the BlueJays.

[Hopkins92]

- I really hate the comparison that SC and PN continually bring up between Amherst and Catholic.

In fairness to PN, I'm your Huckleberry ... on this one.  Sorry, always wanted to use that line.  This is going to be one long post so I apologize in advance.

I think I speak for the group... Please don't feel the need to apologize for a long post.

This board has been absolutely on fire and none of us are going to ask ANYONE to pipe down and keep it short.

I also want to specifically call out kuiper... Just incredible posting and depth this season. THANK YOU for all that you've contributed this season.

[Hopkins92]

PN has been running away from predicting the Kenyon/W&L matchup all week, so here's an assist.  Loving the write-ups, PN.  Thanks for spending the time.

Kenyon

The number 3-ranked Owls of Kenyon boast a 18-1-1 overall record this season (7-0-1 in the NCAC), with their only two blemishes coming at the hands of traditional rival Ohio Wesleyan.  Notable wins on the season came against fellow NCAA tournament participants Ohio Northern (W 6-2), John Carroll (W 2-1), Case Western Reserve (W 4-0), and Calvin (W 4-0).  They host the Sweet 16 sectionals after a 6-1 win against Greenville University and a 4-0 win against Calvin.

The Owls play an attractive brand of soccer that emphasizes purposeful possession and opportunistic shotmaking with a lockdown defense that doesn't make anything easy.  The Owls average 20.5 shots per game, which is 6th in the nation, and put 9.8 of those on goal per game, ranking 7th in the country.  They are scoring 9.75 points per game, which is 5th in the nation.  On the defensive side of the ball, the Owls simply don't allow goals.  Through the regular season and conference tournament, they allowed only 9 goals, and recorded 11 shutouts in 12 games from September 11 through October 22.  Their defense is physical, responsible for 13 fouls per game, which is among the highest in the nation (by comparison, Amherst leads with 15).  The combination for offensive firepower and defensive commitment has been lethal, as the Owls boast a goal differential of 62, ranking second in the country.

Kenyon is a deep team.  20 guys have 13+ games played, and 14 have 8+ starts.  18 Owls have played more than 500 mins on the year.  Although 25% of their goals come from one man, you cannot scheme to take him away because he doesn't even start and 16 others have notched goals on the year.  For assists, 22 men have recorded at least 1, but only 3 have at least 5 on the year.

The Owls are lead on the offensive end by super-sub Alem Duratovic, a 6-foot sophomore midfielder from Deerfield, Ill.  Duratovic leads the team with 18 goals, despite having never started a game in his career.  Look for him to enter off the bench at about the 20th minute where he typically feasts off the opponent's second units.  His 59 shots on the year average just under one every 7 minutes, and he manages to put well over half of them on goal.  Duratovic has an eye on an NCAA Championship to add to the USYS National Championship he won with Chicago FC in 2021.

At the other end of the spine for the Owls sits the absolutely massive sophomore goalkeeper Jack Pedreschi.  Standing at 6'5", Pedreschi has started every game for the Owls this year between the sticks and has conceded only 8 goals against 46 saves.  The Groton High School graduate has not been tested much this year, facing a season high 6 shots only once, and that coming back in a Sept. 3 tilt against John Carroll.  He cemented his place in the Owls' starting lineup during conference play last year as a freshman when he turned away 4 shots in successive 2OT wins against Ohio Wesleyan and Wabash.  He started both of the Owls' NCAA games last year against Catholic and Messiah, earning the win against Catholic and recording the heartbreaking loss against Messiah.

Between Duratovic and Pedreschi are some true ballers.  Fifth-year seniors Sebastian Gaese, Scott Upton, and Sam Carson are as fine a trio as you will see in the tournament.  Gaese is a 6'3" German captain who has started every match during the 2022 campaign and has proven to be a consistent producer on the offensive end.  His 10 goals on the year are second only to Duratovic, and this year, he has found his way to the assist table as well, doubling his career mark with 8 assists.  Look for him to combine with Carson, as the two have assisted each other on 5 goals on the year.  Upton is a 5'9" midfield sparkplug who ignites the offense for the Owls.  A 50-minute man in the middle, Upton was named the NCAC Midfielder of the Year in 2022 to go along with his third first-team all-conference selection. He was also the NCAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2019 and a third-team All-American selection.   Not to be outdone, Carson was named as the 2022 Offensive Player of the Year by the NCAC, which also recognized him with his third All-Conference selection. 

The defensive dominance begins with Senior Luke Muther.  At only 5'9", the speedy defender is dangerous down the right side for the Owls, where puts pressure on opponents' left backs.  His penetrating outside run in the 17th minute against Calvin culminated in a cross to Gaese that ignited the Owls for the 4-0 second-round NCAA win.  Aidan Burns, a 6-foot junior from New Jersey, and Matt Nguyen, an impressive 6'1" freshman from Massachusetts, also anchor the back line.  Both were all-NCAC selections, Burns for the second time and Nguyen for the first. 

The Owls are not going to dominate you with size, or an overwhelming aerial attack, preferring to keep the ball on the ground with crisp passing and speedy off-the-ball movement.  It's an attractive brand of soccer that features overlapping backs and wingers taking advantage of the outside channels with pairs of forwards and midfielders making opportunistic front- and back-post runs that occupy the central defenders.  If the defense leaves the slightest opening, shots will come by the dozens.  And these finishers make the best of their chances.

Washington and Lee

At 16-2-4 overall (7-1-2 in the ODAC), the number 22-ranked Generals from Lexington, Virginia, are in familiar territory.  Every member of the current roster has participated in the Sweet 16 in every season of their career.  The senior-heavy Generals will be looking to lean on that experience this weekend as they face host side Kenyon on Saturday.
Ask any 10 D3 followers what they know about W&L this year, and 9 of them will mention either senior-sensation Michael Kutsanzira or the 4-1 home loss to Messiah on opening day.  Few will know that Kutsanzira did not play in that game (serving the controversial sit-out from the controversial red card in the 2021 Final Four), and none will know that of the 11 W&L starters against Messiah, only 5 remained starters, and 6 have not played more than 26 minutes on average since.  If the only time you've watched W&L this year is against Messiah, take another look.

For the year, in addition to the Messiah loss, W&L also fell to lowly Guilford in its final match of the regular season match.  Notably, W&L's roster was depleted in that match as well, with Kutsanzira out with a concussion and at least four other starters injured or ill, including starting GK, freshman Will Joseph.  Notable wins were hard to come by as well, as W&L tied NCAA participants Lynchburg and Christopher Newport on the road, along with Emory and Virginia Wesleyan.  The side's best wins probably came against Roanoke, who they beat twice, and the 7-0 revenge game against Guilford in the ODAC opener.  They enter the Sweet 16 sectionals after a 5-1 win against Brevard and a 5-2 win against Muhlenberg.

W&L is built on shut-down defense, long-diagonals to space on the wings, and creativity in the mid-field.  The Generals average 21.55 shots per game, which is 3rd in the nation, and put 10.5 of those on goal per game, again ranking 3rd.  They are scoring 3.05 goals and 8.82 points per game, which ranks 10th and 7th in the nation respectively.  On the defensive side of the ball, the Generals are stingy.  Through the regular season and conference tournament, they allowed only 22 goals, with only 14 coming off of starting GK Joseph.

Over the past four years, the Generals have earned their national reputation through defense.  And they will have to continue to step it up on that side of the ball to advance past Saturday.  Having graduated two four-year starters at center back, one of them a four-year starter, W&L moved seniors Charlie Colby and Tyler Smith to anchor the back line in front of Joseph.  Colby, a 6'3" Kansas native, has played across the back line throughout his four years, finally cementing himself at the center-back position this year.  A first-team All-ODAC performer, he has scored three goals in his last 5 games, including the game winner against Roanoke in the ODAC Championships.  Smith, a 6'2" aerial magician from Alexandria, is the two-year team captain.  A starter in the midfield for his first three years, he handled the transition to center back well, earning first-team All-ODAC honors and was named the ODAC Defensive Player of the Year.  A two-year captain for the Generals, Smith is playing in his seventh national championship tournament out of nine years, having qualified for USYS nationals in every year but one, and for the NCAA in the past three years.  He was named best XI in the 2019 USYS nationals as a midfielder.

Flanking Smith and Colby on the left will be freshman Willy Hall.  At 6'0", he has the speed and touch to play stand-up 1v1 defense in space on the flank, but will make interior and overlapping runs when in possession.  On the right, look for whether W&L will be able to return 6'1" sophomore PJ Ryan, who has been out, or whether they will start Asa Tuke, another 6'0" sophomore.  Ryan is a two-time All-ODAC defender, but Tuke has showed well late in the season as a more physical presence capable of matching up against anyone.

The midfield combination of Kutsanzira, Senior Sam Bass, and Junior Grant McCarty may be the best trio W&L has ever had.  Kutsanzira, a Zimbabwe native, was a second-team All-American in 2021, is three-time All-ODAC, and is the 2022 ODAC Offensive Player of the Year.   He will have the attention of the Kenyon midfield all day Saturday.  But that's just fine with his running mate Bass, who is another 2021 second-team All-American and four-time All-ODAC performer.  With his goal and two assists against Brevard in the first round, Bass became the all-time W&L career assist leader. 

With the departure of Adrian Zimmerman up top for W&L, it's all about 6'1" sophomore Weyimi Agbeyegbe.  The Atlanta native followed up last year's ODAC Rookie of the Year season with a 2022 campaign in which he was named First-Team All-ODAC and was the ODAC Tournament's MVP.  A monster presence as a target striker, look for Agbeyegbe to try to occupy center backs and open channel runs by McCarty, Bass, and Kutsanzira.  And that's where he's least effective.  Having spent his career on the wing, when he gets in space, his combination of speed and size can be a handful for anyone.

The Generals and Owls are built the same way.  Although the Generals probably hold a size advantage that can play to their advantage, especially on set pieces, both teams prefer to possess with speed and skill.  Look for W&L to feature longer diagonals to force the Owls to add more width to their back line, allowing W&L to feature their midfield trio.  But it starts with Kutsanzira.  If he gets going and can facilitate while breaking lines off the dribble, the Generals will be hard to stop.  If the Generals midfield freezes up in the Ohio cold, it'll be a long drive back to Virginia. 

One thing is for sure in this game... take the over on shots, but not necessarily on goals. 

Biggest Fans

For Kenyon:  PaulNewman
For W&L:  Another Mom's Hat

I just read this three times.

This site is really turning into something special.

I know Mr. Right has done some great work in NESCAC-land.. The fact that folks are starting to spread their wings in other regions is just phenomenal.  I don't mean to be such a cheerleader, but I said this last month... This site has the potential to really elevate D3 soccer like BigSoccer did in the late 90s.

Love. It.

[Hopkins92]

@FOOTBALLISLIFE...

Third, now I'm obviously curious how you know so much about both of these teams.  You can't fake that level of detail and insight.

Paul. Let's just let the knowledge flow, my internet friend.

[PaulNewman]

@FOOTBALLISLIFE...

Third, now I'm obviously curious how you know so much about both of these teams.  You can't fake that level of detail and insight.

Paul. Let's just let the knowledge flow, my internet friend.

That is knowledge flow, lol.  And I wanted to extend my compliment.  As you suggested, some of the better stuff we've seen for a while and probably a long while.

[Hopkins92]

@FOOTBALLISLIFE...

Third, now I'm obviously curious how you know so much about both of these teams.  You can't fake that level of detail and insight.

Paul. Let's just let the knowledge flow, my internet friend.

That is knowledge flow, lol.  And I wanted to extend my compliment.  As you suggested, some of the better stuff we've seen for a while and probably a long while.

I think I'm reacting to some of the personal messages I've received lately... Wanting to keep the ability for folks "in the know" to post freely.

Just... great stuff all around.

[PaulNewman]

Yeah, I understand how what I wrote could have been read like that, but I wasn't asking him or her to share anything personal unless wanted to...it's just interesting that someone knows so much about both teams while obviously really knowing soccer as well.  Like it's interesting to me that there actually are people who care that much to bother to know so much.  A fair number of folks here might be able to break down Hopkins and F&M or Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan, but Kenyon and W&L aren't teams that one thinks about as a pairing like those traditional conference-type rivals.

[Kuiper]

St. Thomas' players definitely won't be used to the arctic cold of the winter wind whipping off Lake Michigan into Hyde Park, but it's not like they're from Southern California and the SCIAC where cold means below 65 degrees.  During St. Thomas's games last weekend in Belton, Texas, it was in the mid-40s with wind chills dropping it down to feel like the high 30s in the second half during the evening.  Many of the players were wearing field player gloves, so they weren't completely unprepared.  Still, as someone who did grad school at Chicago, I know it's a different kind of cold.  I can still feel it in my bones. 

Yep.

The wind won't be "whipping off Lake Michigan into Hyde Park" on Saturday afternoon, as the wind will be coming out of the west. Nevertheless, "the Hawk", as we call it here -- that bone-chilling cold winter wind that Chicago singing legend Lou Rawls used to describe as "just like a giant razor blade blowin' down the street, and all the clothes in the world can't help you" -- will be here in force, as winds will be around 18 mph or so. Noon temperature is predicted to be somewhere around 28 degrees or so, with a wind chill of about 15 degrees.

I'm betting that the Celtics will not enjoy it.

They are the "Celts"  They also have a lion for a mascot, so that's one for the list of mascots that don't match the nickname.

As for cold preparation, here's a twitter post with a photo of the players going to or coming back from practice.  I'm guessing the school bought them matching warm jackets because none of the kids owned a jacket sufficient for this weather!

https://twitter.com/USTAthletics/status/1593436842145169409?s=20&t=rCPzjK3NoOaTZRDFwcM8fA

[Kuiper]

- I really hate the comparison that SC and PN continually bring up between Amherst and Catholic.

In fairness to PN, I'm your Huckleberry ... on this one.  Sorry, always wanted to use that line.  This is going to be one long post so I apologize in advance.

I think I speak for the group... Please don't feel the need to apologize for a long post.

This board has been absolutely on fire and none of us are going to ask ANYONE to pipe down and keep it short.

I also want to specifically call out kuiper... Just incredible posting and depth this season. THANK YOU for all that you've contributed this season.

Thanks.  Just trying to provide a little flavor from Region X, although I have to confess that there were times during the season where I wasn't sure anyone was reading my posts in the West and North thread at all!