American Rivers Conference 2018

Started by Dubuquer, August 13, 2018, 04:13:58 PM

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Dubuquer

We can talk about IIAC, oops, I mean ARC soccer here.  And in case you hadn't heard, the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is no more.  With the addition of Nebraska Wesleyan and hopes to expand into other states, the IIAC is now dubbed the American Rivers Conference.  It's not a bad name and geographically appropriate but it's going to take a while to get used to the ARC moniker.

Story here: http://www.iowaconference.com/news/2018/8/7/american-rivers-conference.aspx

And to get back on topic I predict Loras will win the ARC this year. 


doolittledog

Preseason coaches picks were...

1 - Loras
2 - Luther
3 - Dubuque
4 - Wartburg
5 - NWU
6 - Simpson
7 - Central
8 - BVU
9 - Coe

Agree?  Disagree?
Coach Finstock - "There are three rules that I live by: never get less than twelve hours sleep; never play cards with a guy who has the same first name as a city; and never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body. Now you stick to that and everything else is cream cheese."

gustiefan04

Looking forward to the GAC @ Luther match up tonight. Should be a good game between two teams looking to prove they are best the North this year. 

Prediction- GAC 2 Luther 1

Dubuquer

Well GAC v Luther wasn't close with Luther putting 3 in the net in the first 15 minutes.  Luther now is sitting at 5-0 and looks good.  Loras dominated St Olaf in a game that felt like it could have erupted in fisticuffs at any moment in the last 10 minutes of the game; Loras should get credit for keeping their cool. The St Olaf keeper owned the box like he should and kept them in the game.  From the early going it looks like it will again be Loras and Luther at the top of the IIAC, oops... ARC this year with a showdown on October 6.  I expect that this weekend's games against Carthage and Chicago will give us a lot more insight as to what sort of team Loras actually is.  I'm reserving judgement.

gustiefan04

Luther came out flying and looked like a very polished side. possessed well, finished well. GAC looked completely flat, lots of passes right to defenders feet. Not the performance I was expecting, and definitely the worst they have played in the early part of the season.

I haven't seen Loras yet this year, but they seem to be coming out strong. I was impressed by Luther, they were big, fast and skilled. Should be an exciting IIAC season.

Dubuquer

My thoughts on Loras so far... They are deep and can play 25 players without suffering too much dropoff so expect the same high pressure style.  The keeper position looked to be a question mark as what I saw against St Olaf did not inspire much confidence.  They have two big bruisers in Simon and Broderick who have size and skill up front and could give defenders issues.  Pacholski and Berardi will again anchor a defense; both are very solid and dependable but I'm not sure who will step up to join them in the back; Lenke might look like he's about 5 feet tall but he's impressed me on defense.  I was disappointed to see that a couple of my favorite players to watch from last year who were skillful contributors are not apparently on the roster (Galvez and O'Connell). I'll be interested to see how freshman starter Talbot develops.  He's definitely got potential. And again despite a high level of skill it appears it will be rare for Loras to string together more than a couple passes...

Madhatter513

Standings so far:
SCHOOL              A-R-C            ALL   
Luther                   1-0              8-1   
Loras                     1-0              5-1   
Simpson                 1-0             6-2-1   
Wartburg                1-0             4-4   
Buena Vista            0-0              0-9   
Neb Wesleyan         0-1            4-4   
Central                    0-1              3-6   
Dubuque                  0-1              2-5   
Coe                          0-1            0-7-1   

Four ARC games tonight:
Wisconsin-Whitewater @ Wartburg - UWW is always a strong team but I think they are down this year with already having three loses. Same with Wartburg and they are at 4-4 this year. Should be a decent game but considering UWW only lost by 1 to Luther (4-3) and that's the only game Luther gave up more than 1 goal, I'm thinking they will nudge Wartburg in the game. 3-1 UWW

Iowa Wesleyan @ Loras - Don't know much about Iowa Wesleyan but this should be a easily handled game by Loras as long as their 2-0 win over UD doesn't get to their heads and they come out lax. 3-0 Loras

North Park @ Dubuque - North Park seems like a decently strong team course they haven't played many quality teams besides U of Chicago, which they lost 2-4. UD seems a bit down this year compared to years past starting the season at 2-5 I don't think this is the game they turn the season around. 2-0 North Park

Waldorf @ Simpson - Who??? 4-0 Simpson

Dubuquer

Loras took it to Iowa Wesleyan, scoring 6 goals in the first 45 minutes and 1 more after the half.  It was a good opportunity for Loras' deep bench to get some playing time.  Loras just about doubled their season scoring and maybe they can springboard off this confidence-booster and their 2-0 win over UD and make a nice run through the conference.  Loras-Luther is coming up in just over a week!

Dubuquer

Luther v Loras on Saturday in the Rock Bowl in the game that likely will determine the regular season ARC title.  Hopefully there is a little break in the weather and the rain stays away.  After last night's win over BV Loras now has 21 goals on the season, scored by 15 different players with nobody having netted more than 2.  Nobody has more than 5 points total.  It's nice to have balance, but will the lack of someone who seems able to shoulder the burden of scoring and being the go-to guy hurt the team in the long run?


KICKIN95

DuHawks are layin' the smack down on the Norse! 2-0 with 8 minutes to go.  Don't come in the RockBowl with an attitude cause if you do you're going home with an L.
Master of all things "DuHawk"

4samuy

I watched the game tonight.  Can you give any insight on the Spanish play by play.  Just curious.

KingDuhawk

Quote from: 4samuy on October 06, 2018, 10:54:04 PM
I watched the game tonight.  Can you give any insight on the Spanish play by play.  Just curious.

Spanish commentary was a part of the Latino Heritage Night that the team co-sponsored with the Intercultural Program Office.


Dubuquer

My wife and I loved the Latino Heritage Night last night and the Spanish broadcast.  It was a great atmosphere and turnout in the Rock Bowl! Hopefully it becomes an annual thing! Luther is good and quite skilled but Loras weathered Luther's few good chances and had the better opportunities and capitalized on them.  The Duhawk are definitely in the driver's seat for the home field advantage through the conference tournament.  They've got another good test coming up Tuesday night against UW-Platteville.  There were a few Pioneers at the game last night and there won't be any surprises; the teams are full of players who know each other well.