2023 NCAA Tournament

[saint_forever]

Coach Ortega isn't even an assistant coach, anyone who knows Amherst soccer knows Shea and Serpone do everything. Ortega basically lays out the pylons at practice and was waiving goodbye to people who he didn't even play against. If he does get a head coaching job somewhere, I wouldn't expect it to be a team who will ever play in the NCAA tournament. Classless and pathetic.

[flyingdutchman]

I think we are blowing some of this out of proportion. The waving is just common sports antics and a classic reaction to a group of fans that have tormented you the entire game. They cross the line by grabbing the private parts and the coach joining in on the waves. While it's hilarious watching back, I'm sure both are looking back at this and regretting their decisions. Putting all the blame on Serpone for all of this is a stretch and not enough to warrant a suspension of coach Serpone.

[camosfan]

Players should never engage their opponent's crowd, not a good idea.

[SKUD]

Is this coming from a Conn parent?

[College Soccer Observer]

No.  Read his posts.  He supports Tufts.

[camosfan]

Jombo parent and a general fan of NESCAC.

[Another Mom]

How about Washington Collage or St. Olaf? We've had no discussion about them!

I'm still peeved at Massey. W&L is ranked lower than four teams we beat.

[camosfan]

I would not worry about rankings if we were in your position, the lack of recognition could be to your advantage.

[Rcjh2245]

Just an observation from someone who just saw their first Amherst game yesterday. Why are the fans so close to the field? What are the seating options there? It looked like a youth soccer game with barely enough room for an AR.

[Hopkins92]

Yeah, AM... The nice thing about the Massey rating is also it's negative... There's almost zero subjectivity, it's just a formula. (You could say how he creates and tweaks the formula is certainly his prerogative and injects his subjective view into things.)

I once got into a rather silly debate with paclassic because I'm not a numbers person and I "took issue" with his RPI posts. (I think there might've been something about his framing of things that got me going, but whatever...) Now I look forward to another helpful and often quite predictive tool to see where teams stack up, especially once we get into October.

Congrats to you and your son. Hope you can celebrate down NC in a few weeks!

[camosfan]

Just an observation from someone who just saw their first Amherst game yesterday. Why are the fans so close to the field? What are the seating options there? It looked like a youth soccer game with barely enough room for an AR.


Good question, I kept looking for a fence.

[Hopkins92]

How about Washington Collage or St. Olaf? We've had no discussion about them!

I'm still peeved at Massey. W&L is ranked lower than four teams we beat.

As for the Shorepeople and the best logo in the Centennial (I voted and that decides it): I have a very skewed opinion on them, because Hop beat them twice by 2-0 scores. Both games were a little closer than that scoreline, but not fluky or undeserved Ws by any stretch. I wouldn't say I'm shocked that they are in the F4... But I am very VERY surprised.

I always root for the CC, so I'm definitely pulling for them.

[Bucket]

How about Washington Collage or St. Olaf? We've had no discussion about them!

I'm still peeved at Massey. W&L is ranked lower than four teams we beat.

I actually have non-NESCAC, non-W&L content to contribute!

One of my son's former high school (and former local club) teammates is a first year on the St. Olaf squad:

https://athletics.stolaf.edu/sports/mens-soccer/roster/trey-bosworth/12524

He hasn't played much as a first year, but he's a member of a team in the Final Four. As a kid who played at a small public high school in Vermont and was on a local (i.e., not national travel) club team, Trey personifies all that is right with the game we all share a passion for. At least I think so.

[Freddyfud]

Scientifically speaking none of these young men have fully developed brains yet.  They will make a lot of mistakes.  In the meantime they will be shaped by team character given the time commitments to these programs.

I went back and watched SC's interview with WAC Coach Dunshee.  After agreeing with SC on strength of culture as a factor for team success he says:

"For culture you have to set an environment.  The best way to do that is to model good leadership.  If you want your players to be good leaders, then you have to be a good leader. I try to lead by example in everything I do.  The key, of course, is in recruiting.  I can make a player better.  It's harder to make a person a better person, if it's not there.  I think we have a fantastic culture in our team right now.  I'll take credit for rounding those guys up.  I will not take credit for who they are.  That credit belongs to their families."

At WAC families of players are considered part of the team.  After each game, win or lose, families join the team for a meal.  They volunteer for tasks and events.  It's easier to preach leadership when you have reinforcements.

As the clock ran out on their victory yesterday the team immediately went straight to their families in the stands.  This was their captured moment as a team:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz181HTPKCI/

Not to say other programs don't have high cultural standards--it was great to read some examples here like Messiah and others.  Recruits are paying attention.  If not they should be.

[Freddyfud]

How about Washington Collage or St. Olaf? We've had no discussion about them!

I'm still peeved at Massey. W&L is ranked lower than four teams we beat.

As for the Shorepeople and the best logo in the Centennial (I voted and that decides it): I have a very skewed opinion on them, because Hop beat them twice by 2-0 scores. Both games were a little closer than that scoreline, but not fluky or undeserved Ws by any stretch. I wouldn't say I'm shocked that they are in the F4... But I am very VERY surprised.

I always root for the CC, so I'm definitely pulling for them.

Not sure there is anyone who isn't surprised.  I watched their games and noticed they played great defense.  But as I look at the other semifinalists W&L and Amherst actually allowed less goals in the tournament--only one for each.  I cringed during the second half of their last two games against Mary Wash and Conn, teams which scored well above 2 goals per game during the regular season.  At about the 65 minute mark in both games they parked the bus.  Guessing Coach was confident in his defense.  Looking ahead to St Olaf, a team that scored just under 3 goals per game in the regular seasons and has scored 14 in the tournament, I'd be a little worried.

Edit: And I actually like St Olaf's crest.  Reminds me of English football.