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Listened to Nazareth last week - the song "Telegram":

"Here we are again playin' the same old scenes
Lookin'for someone who will share our dreams"

Games I saw for at least a little bit:

• CMU - looked totally dominate to begin the game - got the two goal lead before 20 minutes. Not sure what happened second half but Salisbury missed a golden opportunity to tie it in the 84-85th minute - shot from inside the 6 the CMU defender somehow prevented from going in
• Otterbein - all the scoring late in the first half - from what I saw a fairly even affair - very windy - made the game a bit choppy.  Otterbein needs to tighten things up in the back.  Last year's keeper decided to play baseball exclusively so we'll have to see how the new players do.
• CWRU-Berg - a beautiful goal from Case - all they needed but Berg impressed me.  They were in this game throughout - their keeper made some nice saves.  But they have attacking talent, and - as usually - Case's defenders smothered their attempts. Very interested to see Berg again
• Capital-Geneva - game played on grass - historically not Cap's favorite surface.  Very dominant first half for Cap - several near misses. Second half Geneva comes out strong = tips the field for 15 minutes.  Cap adjusts and balances out the game for the rest of the half and steals the game in the first OT.

Not Great Lakes but I tuned in to see the end of the Chicago- Macalester.  Boxscore shows the dominance of Chicago - the small amount of the game I saw was UC attacking a parked-bus . . .

Other thoughts:

• OWU - boxscore indicates a dominant performance that is negated by a late 'Zoo goal.  Got Calvin today.
• Headscratcher of the day goes to Denison. Juniata has won 9 games since 2016, Denison projected to be in the top 4 of the NCAC
• ONU - first time under a new coach for many years - draws away from home.  Tough equalizer conceded late - stats lean towards a strong performance by ONU.

On Denison/Juniata, 6+ Denison freshman started. Apparently a different game in the second half when it was more of the regular line up -- live feed cut out early in the game so don't really know what it looked like.

Nice bounce back for Big Red today - but Juniata taking Transylvania to OT today? Maybe they have something this year?

Some very good wins for GL teams this weekend.  Did not see the OWU-Calvin game; did watch Otterbein at SLU, John Carroll at Rochester, attended Capital at Grove City.  Good wins against solid teams - all coming on the road.

Of the three I saw - gritty and grinding is how I'd describe them.  All three featured lots of mid field battles - lots of contact.  SLU had the better of field position for most of the first half.  Otterbein gets a fluky goal last in the first half and then sets in to beg SLU to break them down.  Otterbein gets a few counters in the second half and then a second goal.  Similar for John Carroll - although JC did have more possession than did Otterbein did in their game. 40 fouls - 23 by JC: this tells you how physical and gritty this game was.  Capital went down early - against the run of play - but got two back quickly.  Second half questionable PK tied the game before Cap came back with two more. 27 fouls in this one - 4 YC to Cap.

JC received 4 YC - 3 to players also.  A slippery slope to complain about officiating, but the Cap-GC CR had a poor game.  It is hard for me to understand how one teams receives all the YC in physical games while the home team receive none.  After UR tied up JC (very suspect PK) a JC defender is dribbling out of the area and a UR player throws a forearm into the neck-shoulder area of this player - foul given but clearly a cardable offense.  Similar situation at Cap with an attacker ready to dribble into the area - slide tackle from behind - no ball - no card.

Attended the Mt Union vs Wooster game Sat evening.  As even as the stats indicate.  A sad but legit PK the difference in this game.  Sad because the ball was heading out of the area - two players chasing to get it, Wooster player clumsily runs through the back of the MU player. Two different styles of play - both could yield results over the course of the season.  Very interested to see Mt Union at CWRU today.

Other thoughts: UAA results certainly enough to raise an eyebrow.  Heartland favorites Transy 2-0 but hardly dominate against Juniata - with Hope and Calvin this week we'll know more.  Marietta received lots of praise from the Eastern coach after their 2-0 loss at Eastern - stats were closer than one might think.  But did not expect the 4-1 result at Oberlin (watched most of this one around lightning delay).  Definitely a team to watch in the OAC. Baldwin Wallace will score goals - but will give up too many soft ones.  That first goal yesterday - the difference in a 3-2 loss at PSU-Behrend - was a tragedy. NCAC teams - the only notable win being OWU.  The rest of the conference's wins were against historically lesser opponents - and some not by impressive margins.  The OWU tourney this weekend will be a beauty - and the NCAC and OAC head-to-head matches over the next two weeks will separate those with real chances for post season bids and the also-rans.

Mount Union played as close to flawless as a team could - for 60 minutes.  First half the owned the possession - partly in response to CWRU's patient style of sit-in and punish mistakes.  Their goal against Berg was a result of forcing  turnover and cashing in; they almost had one in the first 20 minutes yesterday but for a great save from MTU's keeper.  An unfortunate misplay of a free kick by the CWRU keeper gave MTU the lead at half.

CWRU came out much more aggressive in the second and pushed the attack for the first 15 minutes - MTU was up to their challenges.  The turning point was a foul on MTU's keeper around the 60th minute.  The keeper was fouled earlier int he first half going up for a ball - this fouls was a cardable offense.  No card given to CWRU but one given to MTU for USB - kicking the ball away in frustration.  Case scores on a corner 2 minutes later.  For the game 4 YC to MTU, none to Case.

MTU is loaded with senior and junior leadership and are a real contender for the OAC title.  Based on very early games I've seen I think they "should" be one of the 6 teams to make the post season OAC tourney.

First, let me note that JCU has a roster of 50+ players.

Big win by JCU at Rochester and now Kenyon at home tonight.

Kudos to JCU on a killer schedule........Rochester, Kenyon, CWRU, Carnegie Mellon, Messiah, OWU...plus a road game that might be tricky at Denison...and of course a full OAC slate.

Huge win for OWU at Calvin, which more than makes up for loss to Kzoo.  I saw bits and pieces and OWU seemed to outplay Calvin in general.  OWU was fortunate in the sense that in OT Calvin had 2-3 point blank type chances just a couple of minutes before OWU scored off a corner.  At any rate, this will almost certainly be a ranked win come November, so OWU comes out of the weekend with something very valuable.  In addition, OWU should be buoyed by beating Calvin at Calvin in terms of believing that this indeed could be a big year for the Battling Bishops.  The senior class came in with some fanfare and high expectations, so we'll see how they do in their last run.

Big weekend upcoming with Colorado College and Wheaton (Ill) visiting Kenyon and OWU on consecutive days.

I don't recall a JCU starting XI this young - 3 srs, 3 jrs, 5 sophs and freshman. I was at last year's game at Kenyon - JCU had two starters out with flu/injury - but it was a complete victory from Kenyon.  My guess is this will be another win for Kenyon, but I'm curious as to how much physicality there will be.  I think JCU will be in the 15-20 fouls range, and we'll have to see how Kenyon responds to this.  3-0 minimum for Kenyon.

Thoughts on JCU's 3-2 win against Kenyon? The beginning of perhaps a special season for JCU or more of a one time thing?

Hopefully this will be at least 10% informational to supplement the 90% of catharsis.

I was fully prepared for Kenyon to have a down season, even a really down season.   Then I saw the preseason ratings with Kenyon predicted to somehow handle major losses better than other elite programs with similar losses.  Then I saw the preseason review where Coach Brown sounded far more relaxed and optimistic about this year's team than I expected.  Then the new roster came out replete with 15 new frosh and a quartet of internationals.  Then last Friday I saw the gorgeous Kenyon pitch with EPL-level mowing as the Lords demolished some rag-tag NAIA outfit.  Doesn't take a much to get a sucker back in the swing of things.  Now I can calm down and re-assess.

I'm guessing that JCU is very good.  The only thing I don't get is barely getting by Oberlin in the 90th minute, but maybe Oberlin will be a little better this year and it's hard to make too much out of the first game of the season.  Now JCU is in the very enviable position of having what likely will be two ranked wins already come November (Rochester and Kenyon).  We won't have to wait too long for how "for real" the Blue Streaks are with more highly rated teams waiting on the near horizon. 

I thought JCU was better than Kenyon, and I was thinking that even when the Lords were up 1-0 at the half and then again 2-1 midway thru the 2nd half.  JCU looked like the more mature team and I don't want to say that Kenyon got punked, but Kenyon got punked.  JCU is very physical and in response Kenyon resorted to fouling a ton and repeatedly in the final third which gave JCU a bunch of dangerous free kicks.  And indeed JCU scored a couple of beauties off two free kicks with the Lords looking clueless.  The second one to tie the game at 2-2 was eerily similar to CWRU's free kick to draw even in last year's Sweet 16 tilt.  Watching from a computer screen many miles ways, I didn't have any obvious complaints about the officiating.  Kenyon could have had a PK but JCU had an argument for one as well.  Kenyon was fouling in an effort to keep up and hold on while JCU appeared much more comfortable with physicality and did not give up the kind of final third free kicks that they got.  I'm guessing JCU and Capital will slug it out for the OAC title, or maybe that's just because they both play on football field turfs and win a lot.  The latter two schools especially appear to have replaced longstanding top dog, Ohio Northern.  The Turrittin kid is a player and appears to have the clutch gene.  Three straight GWs, and his free kick to tie the game last night for the first time was sublime.  He's going to be an All-American as long as he stays healthy.  They have several other very good players, and even though they only scored once from the run of play off a phenomenal long pass from the left wing that put the goal scorer in on the Kenyon GK, my impression was that JCU carried more of the possession.  They also played a Kenyon style press and swarm defense better than the Lords who did have some possession but rarely in a manner that was threatening.

There is still hope for the Lords but I'm not purchasing any Final Four or even NCAA tickets yet.  They have a very long way to go with figuring out lineups and how to play together.  As they have in the past, I thought they gave up far too many overloaded counters with way too much space.  They had remarkably few really good chances, and Kenyon's speed players never got loose into space or near the goal except for one missed sitter in the first half that would have put Kenyon up 2-0.  Even though I do believe they got outplayed, it was disheartening to not walk away with at least a draw given how the scoring played out.  No shame in losing at Don Shula Stadium to a strong opponent, but at least last night Kenyon did not look like a top-tier squad. 

Watched the entire game. Also watched JCU vs Rochester - entire game.

I use "T's" to evaluate teams: Technical - can the kids trap and pass; how well? Under pressure?
Tactical - what's the team approach to the game - how well to they maintain it? When do they abandon it? Thinking - decision-making; and Toughness. Toughness IS the most important. Every time some frosh parent complains about "where did the beautiful game go?" I give them a copy of the Tufts-Calvin final on DVD.

JCU is just reloading - much the same way Calvin does. Much the way ONU used to. Tough kids, technical and able to adapt to game situations. The "thing" about last night was Kenyon. Toughness without thinking is just stupidity, and that was the dumbest game I've seen them play in 6 years. THEY were the aggressors, they committed the most fouls and the majority of the fouls were stupid. JCU's first two goals came directly off restarts from fouls in their defensive third - neither of which needed to be committed.

History always dominates the first couple weeks of a new season - but is the UAA really off to
a 4-8-4 start? Messiah dropping to 0-2? Too early to tell about Kenyon but if they come to Delaware this weekend doing what they did last night they're in trouble.

I'm at Wooster today, be at Three Tigers in Granville tomorrow, CWRU At Cap Friday and the double header at OWU Sat. If you're in Granville tomorrow let's have a beverage at Three Tigers.

Domino, I don't want to put a damper on your weekend but Kenyon is playing CC and Wheaton in Gambier.

I thought I was clear that JCU plays physically more naturally than Kenyon and that Kenyon indeed did foul more and yes often stupidly.  For me this was a function of not being able to match JCU physically and so they resorted to flailing away and as you said a bunch of stupid, unnecessary fouling.

As for re-loading, you compare JCU to Calvin and ONU.  JCU has had 2-3 strong years recently but not close to matching Kenyon's six year run.

Shoot - there goes my Sat plans. But if you look at my pregame comments I expected JCU to be the aggressor - but they weren't. At half fouls were 10-8 Kenyon - but two of JCU's whistles were for handling. As a 30 year referee the fouls Kenyon committed weren't honest - they were lazy and flippant. I'm sure they'll hear it in practice this week.

This was uncharacteristic of Kenyon in many ways. Their possession (yes it was turf) was not up to par as was their defending.

Massey be damned but my eye test has Mount Union as the best GL team I've seen. Looks like I'll have to choose to go to OWU on Sat - so I'll get to see them in person. But Wooster vs MTU was only decided by a Pk and Berg made a silly turnover in their 1-0 loss to Case - I'm 30 minutes from seeing how they do against one another

Quote from: Domino1195 on September 04, 2019, 04:37:53 PM
Shoot - there goes my Sat plans. But if you look at my pregame comments I expected JCU to be the aggressor - but they weren't. At half fouls were 10-8 Kenyon - but two of JCU's whistles were for handling. As a 30 year referee the fouls Kenyon committed weren't honest - they were lazy and flippant. I'm sure they'll hear it in practice this week.

This was uncharacteristic of Kenyon in many ways. Their possession (yes it was turf) was not up to par as was their defending.

Massey be damned but my eye test has Mount Union as the best GL team I've seen. Looks like I'll have to choose to go to OWU on Sat - so I'll get to see them in person. But Wooster vs MTU was only decided by a Pk and Berg made a silly turnover in their 1-0 loss to Case - I'm 30 minutes from seeing how they do against one another

Yeah, I think we're just missing each other.  I'm agreeing with you.  Saying JCU is better at and more naturally physical doesn't mean I was saying they were fouling more.  They had their fair share, just as they did vs Rochester, but I agreed that Kenyon fouled more and did so because they could not handle JCU....like grown men versus a bunch of college freshmen...and the latter fouling to keep the stronger, more physical players from getting around them.  And I agree about the stupidity.  They had to know about Turrittin and they just kept gifting him more bites at the apple from dangerous spots.  Anyway, I think JCU is going to be tough to beat...a team like Tufts that is even bigger and even more physical but more skilled overall would be the kind of team to knock JCU out of the tournament but of course recent history says Tufts would knock anyone out of the tournament. 

The GL is stronger than ever.  It's used to be OWU and the field.  Now it's CWRU, Kenyon, OWU, JCU, Capital, CMU...and also Mt Union, Otterbein, and maybe Grove City, Geneva, etc.  The OAC has definitely become stronger while the NCAC has weakened.  Denison has done nothing since about 2010 or 2011 and DePauw has fallen off quite a bit.  Good to see programs like Wabash and maybe Wooster on the rise.  Calvin should be considered an honorary GL member given how often they play GL teams and end typically up in the same NCAA sectionals.

Did you see Amolo is on the coaching staff at Kenyon East?

Quote from: Domino1195 on September 04, 2019, 04:58:17 PM
Did you see Amolo is on the coaching staff at Kenyon East?

I knew he and Clougher had been in Massachusetts over the summer and I assumed Tony might have gotten a spot in admissions or coaching or both.  I think JJ Jemison also was there for several years.  As for the pipeline, I think that's been a bit overhyped.

The video quality at Wooster is poor and perhaps due to camera being directly in the sun?

Now video is better.  Can't believe Woo didn't just score.

Speaking of Berkshire, Penas for Kenyon has yet to play this season.  He's on the roster so I assume some kind of injury.  Hopefully not to serious as he is arguably their best player and definitely helps with possession and organizing the offensive attack out of midfield.

Enjoying the comments on here.   I have a son on the JCU squad and was pleased to see people recognizing the abysmal officiating in the Rochester game ( all in the second half) but JCU was clearly the better side.  The same can be said about Kenyon...they simply weren't strong enough and lost many 50/50's because of it.  Someone said is this the making of a special season for JCU and there is a long way to go with their schedule, but it should be a solid year with more to come.  The team is actually fairly young, they had a strong class of freshman enter so I assume they will be even stronger next year.  I'm curious to see everyone's take on Capital, OWU and Case.   I have never comment on a board before, so if I sound like an idiot..please let me know. 

Quote from: jcudad on September 05, 2019, 10:46:32 PM
Enjoying the comments on here.   I have a son on the JCU squad and was pleased to see people recognizing the abysmal officiating in the Rochester game ( all in the second half) but JCU was clearly the better side.  The same can be said about Kenyon...they simply weren't strong enough and lost many 50/50's because of it.  Someone said is this the making of a special season for JCU and there is a long way to go with their schedule, but it should be a solid year with more to come.  The team is actually fairly young, they had a strong class of freshman enter so I assume they will be even stronger next year.  I'm curious to see everyone's take on Capital, OWU and Case.   I have never comment on a board before, so if I sound like an idiot..please let me know.

Welcome aboard, jcudad!  Your perspective on the OAC and other goings on in the Great Lakes region will be valued in the weeks ahead.  This board is a friendly place and a great venue in which to make your posting debut.

Echoing the sentiments to JCU Dad.  I go to a lot of games and watch many online.  No longer with an active player in the game but like Paul - still enjoy D3 soccer.

Per the refereeing comments - have been a former ref for 30 years - I will say the level of officiating is infinitely better in college than HS.  But you will have one-two games a year that aren't equally adjudicated, and you hope things balance out over a season.  Refs love it when a fan/player/coach says "The ref cost us the game."  Our trained response was:"Well, that means there's a fan/player/coach telling people that a ref gave them the game."  I've never heard that . . .

Wednesday:
Wooster-Berg: stats indicate more of a lop-sided game than it actually was.  Having seen Wooster twice this year: they did not use the width of the field as effectively as they did against Mount Union.  Their playmaker #5 did a good job keeping the ball moving out of the middle and to the flanks but ultimately skill/touch let them down.  This was another fairly evenly played game that could have gone to either team.
Otterbein handles Oberlin - tried to watch while driving (shame).  Bein missed a penalty that was not managed well by the CR.  All kinds of shenanigans by the Oberlin team and especially the keeper before the take.  Must have lasted close to two minutes. Bein player set the ball on the spot and then picked up and walked around with it waiting for the keeper to take his position. It worked for the keeper but the CR should have put an end to that nonsense a lot sooner.
Muskingum get a fluky goal 10 seconds into the first OT - almost identical to Otterbein's goal against STL.  I can go back through the records but I believe it has been years since the Muskies started a season 2-0.  With Thiel and Waynesburg up next they have a chance to add two more wins (Waynesburg will be a much tougher opponent)

I'm struggling with the definition of "shots" this year - Denison's first half last night another example (and did Baldwin Wallace take 31 shots on Allegheny last night??).  There is a level of subjectivity for the official score keeper but I feel there is a bit of overstating based on games I've attended.

Marietta at Denison.  I thought a lot about how to describe this game. Stylistically - Marietta played beautiful soccer.  Their personal technique - and I mean the majority of their players - was a 4 out of 5.  They all had above average first touch skills - I saw more one-touch passing than I've seen all year.  Their tactical formation had players where they needed to be so often that players could send a ball blindly to a space and a teammate would be there.  But they lost.  A missed PK in the last two minutes might be a simple way to chalk it up, but they missed 3 unobstructed shots from about 12 yards out - all three hitting the keeper in the stomach.

Denison was tougher.  Marietta was just a step slow to getting to the all - said another way - Denison's desire to win the ball was clearly stronger last night.  Marietta's miscues were on defense - backs got caught too flat on a couple occasions - first goal came from such a situation. Through ball - see you later . . . Second goal - cross finds a striker in-between the two center backs - beautiful header puts it away.

Case at Cap tonight.  They played twice last year - Case winning in OT in the regular season 1-0 and 3-0 in the second round of the NCAA tourney.  Case hasn't been down to Cap for a couple years (reg season) - their first road game of the year.  Tonight's beers will be provided by Harvest Pizza - directly across the street from the stadium.

Too many games without Scottie to beam me from place to place!

• OAC wins versus Case, CMU and Hope hopefully help the conference's actual SOS. Hope was a preseason stretch; CMU - I'm on the fence - nice possession style but results? Case will rebound.
• Ironic I was talking to another fan tonight about a JCU let-down coming soon - and it happened tonight. But - they won. And as young as they are - this was the perfect game to learn the lesson: don't get cocky, take every opponent seriously, every game one at a time.
• Mt Union - going to sing their praises - but look what happened to JCU tonight. Watch out  for a letdown.
• OWU tomorrow night. Need to see them but could be #1 ranked in first GL rankings.
• Non NCAC, UAA and OAC teams are currently a liability to the region. Someone will win the PRAC - thought it would be Grove City. Yikes. PSU-B doing what's necessary for the AMCC to date. Impressive for Transylvania tonight. Curious to see Otterbein at Hanover tomorrow.

As for the JCU let down, I'd give a lot of credit to Mt. Aloyuis or however you spell it coaches.  They knew the only chance they had was to pack it in and put 9 in the box and that is what they did....The goalie made some outstanding saves and they hung around waiting for the JCU error and when it came they tied it up.   JCU had about 80 percent of the possession and out shot them 32 or 34 to 4 or 5 on the game.  It was certainly a mediocre performance by the Blue Streaks...but have a feeling they will face this strategy against lesser opponents and we'll see how they grow from it.   As for Denison and Marietta game...I still think Marietta far better team, but time will tell.  The OAC is going to be fairly balanced and should make for some interesting games up and down the table.

Still a bit too early for most teams to say who might be overrated/underrated and whether any team's performances to date provide a clear indication of how their season will go.  For fun I took a look at Massey Ratings and sorted by the greatest deltas YTD.  Variances will be very large in the beginning on the year as initial rankings rely on LY history, but as a measure of who is playing better than expected:

• top 10% largest increases - all +50 - include Mt. Union, Hanover, Denison and JCU. Next group includes Rose-Hulman and DePauw.
• top 25% include Muskingum (+39), OWU, Heidelberg, Capital, Wilmington and Baldwin Wallace (+25)

JCU off to a great start - but no clean sheets. I saw the goal against yesterday - wasn't thrilled with it.  No one stepped to the shooter, and the keeper's approach to the shot was awkward.  Heavy schedule to start the year - got a week off before facing Denison Saturday. 

Speaking of which - Denison away at Capital Wednesday and home vs. JCU Saturday (week off and then Mt. Union).

Mt. Union taking 3 out of 4 points from UAA opponents now has Hiram and Defiance this week. Need to avoid a let down. Also need to learn how to play with the target on your back.  Programs that haven't, historically speaking, been used to be the favorite will see teams bring extra effort against them. They will also experience tactics that may frustrate them (parking the bus for example).

Wooster losing a tough one in OT at Case last night has Baldwin-Wallace and Calvin this week; Capital next week.  I think they are in the mix for sure for the 3rd and 4th place spots in the NCAC post season tourney - along with Denison, Wabash and DePauw.  Wabash hosts Rose-Hulman this week - ought to be a good one.  Rose-Hulman also takes on DePauw next week - love it when regional powers take each other on in pre-conference.

Over the next two weeks there are many Great Lakes match-ups that feature potential post-season candidates.  We'll know a lot more by Monday the 23rd and how the United Coaches Poll looks on the 24th.

http://ww2.nscaa.com/rankings/8390/NCAADivisionIII/men/GreatLakes/Poll1

First regional ranking out - no real issues except for PSU-B ranked higher than (anyone) OWU. OWU's pre-conference schedule has no easy games, then they have their conference. PSU-B plays only one challenging team pre-conference (Mt. Union) and then their conference, which currently has one team with a winning record right now. Current SOS over 300 (out of 419 teams).

Not a PSU-B hater but when you play in crap conference - play a challenging pre-season, will ya?  I believe it was 2-3 years ago when they lost the conference tourney to Mt. Aloysius and missed the NCAA's with a gaudy W-L record. Setting themselves up for a similar scenario this year.

Agreed. My son was in that title winning Mt Aloysius team who lost 1-0 to Calvin in the NCAA.
Behrend almost always win the title and AQ berth, but when they don't they and no other AMCC team will get a bid selection as their respective SOS struggles to make .500.

I was at that game at OWU - they gave Calvin quite a scare!

Yeah, Calvin scored after like 2 mins and that was it. I watched frustrated from across the pond like I did for many games.

Congrats to the Blue Streaks.....#3 in the D3 soccer poll and #4 in coaches poll.  Pretty rarefied air. 

Capital -Denison is scoreless draw at end of regular time.

Capital Denison  ends 0-0 after double OT. That's game.

Wow. Absolute scenes at Geneva last night. CWRU takes a corner with about 20 seconds left and #11 Garrett Winter (one of the more prominent jersey numbers in Case history and Winter has lived up to the hype) gathers the ball and slots home with only three seconds left in the game. The goal prevented CWRU from playing their 4th straight overtime game. Bianco must be preaching conditioning at practice if these kids are able to go that long consistently, what a coach! Looking forward to the battle of Cleveland between Case and JCU coming up, should be a good game considering Case has had JCU's number recently. Geaux tigers!

As a devoted fan (and I am) Kenyon can be so infuriating.  2-0 over Spalding today but a horrific performance imho by all involved.  A slightly better team would have made the Lords pay and Spalding almost did as Kenyon played them into multiple fabulous chances that a CWRU, JCU, OWU, Capital (well just about anyone) would have punished.  Playing out of the back way too much with the GK having more touches than the center mids, almost begging the other team's forwards to steal the ball, playing the ball into a recycling mid who has a guy hanging all over him, repeated lazy, soft passes backwards.  The exact kind of plays that burned them versus JCU this year and especially in the first game versus CWRU last year.  And what's crazy is that they don't wake up.  When Spalding almost scored and Kenyon probably should have gotten red on a horrible soft pass that was intercepted with a clear path into goal, two other Kenyon players did the exact same thing in the very next 30 secs!  Kenyon acted like they were up 5-0 and if Spalding had gotten just one in (and like I said they were gifted plenty of chances) then the Lords would have been in real trouble.  Then a GK who maybe has never played a minute comes in and immediately tries to be Messi in the back.  Geez, get a sweat first and kick a few balls away and then try to play short right into the opponent's striker's path.  I'm glad we're playing a ton of players, but do not disrespect your opponent.  This stuff out of the back is just insane.  We've lost two Elite 8 games with horrible errors in the back and both totally unnecessary.  I don't know if it's stubbornness or stupidity, or both.  We have no compactness and there is no way to beat several good teams in a row with these errors.  Kenyon has enough talent to be a pretty good team, and they are allowed some time to figure out who to play and where, but they have to be more solid (like a ton more solid).  Alexander Garuba (AA for Centre) must be licking his chops.

John Carroll beats Denison, 1-0, goal was around 70th  minute.

Albeit only winning 1-0, Kenyon put in a more mature performance versus a Centre squad whose fling with increased national attention appears to have flamed out at least for now after back to back home losses to the Knox Prairie Fire and Kenyon.  The Lords do seem to be accumulating injuries (and to key players), a trend which is oddly juxtaposed with the sort of good problem of having too many guys to play.  Almost everyone on the roster getting to play is great for morale but finding a rhythm isn't easy when trying to work in 25 or more players.  My guess is that the starters and regular subs aren't set until very late in the season, and of course injuries could play a significant role therein.

The NCAC as a whole is struggling.  The OAC has an overwhelming record against the NCAC thus far.  Wooster, at least in terms of results, has yet to make the leap some of us hoped for at 1-5 (although did push Calvin into OT last night).   Wabash is struggling at 3-3 versus relatively average competition.  DePauw has bounced back from an opening day 3-0 loss to Berry with 4 straight wins (but none of the more impressive variety).  Denison has recovered from the debacle at Juniata to play very competitively, earning a draw away at Capital and a respectable 1-0 home loss to Great Lakes leader John Carroll, but the Big Red needs some good wins to be considered a real challenger.  Oberlin, Hiram, Wooster, Wittenberg and Allegheny are fighting over cellar dweller status.  Speaking of Allegheny, the Gators used to have some pretty good teams.  Not sure what has happened with their program.  Kenyon is good but not great, and the season may not be long enough for them to develop enough to be great.  OWU is the wild card, as the Battling Bishops in some ways have looked the best of the NCAC bunch and perhaps only second to John Carroll in Great Lakes, but they sit at 3-2-1 after not cashing in on significant statistical advantages against KZoo, Ohio Northern and CWRU.  OWU will have a chance soon to show their mettle with a date at John Carroll on the near horizon.  I think it is safe to say that OWU has the best combination of talent AND maturity in the NCAC but whether that means a lot more nationally we'll have to see.  As I noted earlier OWU does have the nugget of an almost certain ranked win against Calvin in its pocket.

Speaking of John Carroll, we'll have to see if Great Lakes superiority translates more nationally as well.  The record looks great but the individual games were not overwhelming victories.  #3/#4 in the nation is too high for the Blue Streaks imho.  My sense is that they have 3-4 players who could go toe to toe with a Tufts, but that's 3-4 against 18-19.  And that may not mean a lot either as long as you avoid Tufts' sectional as I don't see more than a few teams capable of competing on even or close to even terms with the Jumbos.  Great scheduling and great preparation for a NCAA run...especially Messiah away which will simulate a Sweet 16 or Elite 8 type match.  I suspect Capital is the only OAC team that poses a serious threat to JCU.

JCU's next four....at CWRU, at Carnegie Mellon, at Messiah and home versus OWU. 

CWRU and CMU aren't going anywhere and both will have opportunities for ranked wins in the UAA.  I really like CWRU and they can be very successful with their counter-punching style and strong GK play, but one wonders if they have more of a ceiling and/or less margin for error than some other top outfits.

And yes, I'm aware of PS-Behrend.

Attended the OWU-Case game Sat.  OWU did have a key midfield starter out for the entire game but still controlled much of the field position throughout - except for the final third.  Case actually had the better scoring chances - hitting the post in the first 5 minutes of the game - and then 2-3 good chances in the last 15 before OT. OWU's keeper made a very good save on a dipping shot to keep it clean.

There are several teams that must feel like they're playing in a house of mirrors when playing one another.  Identical styles and skill level, same strengths and weaknesses. Case, Cap, Denison and Mt. Union built to defend and counter. Scoring is a weakness.  Like the baseball analogy - good pitching beats good hitting - these teams will rely on a lot of 1-0 games when they play one another (or 0-0 as we saw with Cap and Denison, OWU-Case this past week).

And if Cap's challenge of replacing over 50% of their goals due to graduation wasn't tough enough they lose their leading returning scorer to a broken jaw (against Case - gone for quite a while). This on top of losing a senior starter in the last preseason scrimmage (torn ACL).  Yet, through 4 games, Cap has conceded at total of 5 shots on goal. Defend and wait . . .

JCU and Kenyon - OWU to a degree - are different because they can attack AND score. Kenyon has one challenge left - they can't look past anyone - but OWU is their last opponent who could beat them.  Marietta this weeks sets up as a potential let-down game for them, and as a redemption game for Marietta (who has under-performed to date this season.  They win head-scratcher of the week for their loss at Anderson.  Gave up three shots on goal - all go in.  Take 24 shots - 14 on goal - 2 goals for).

JCU has an incredible road scheduled this year - the next three games at Case, CMU and Messiah - only to come home to play OWU in their last non conference game. Hard to see them getting through this schedule without a blemish.

PrAC - Grove City finally gets a win in OT vs Fredonia.  They have a chance to make noise against PSU-B tomorrow, CMU on Friday.  But Geneva seems to be ahead of schedule with their rebuild.  Westminster has a history of causing trouble in the post-season tourney (winning at Thomas More couple years ago and at Grove City last year) - the single NCAA bid comes down to one of these three.

Heartland - Hanover gives up two goals in the first ten minutes to Thomas More.  With ONU and OWU this week, Spalding and Capital next week we'll see how much of a chance they really have.  I think it's Rose-Hulman's year, and their two games at ONU and DePauw this week will be their toughest challenges YTD.

And then there's PSU-B  . . .

I check Massey daily - to see the effects of a win or loss by a team and how it impacts the ranking of a team previously played.  Today's example is Mt. Union dropping a couple places primarily because of CMU's loss to an 0-5 Allegheny team.  I understand this is how SOS's go up and down, but can someone explain how the UAA - the conference and individual teams - continue to receive the rankings and future SOS they do when the conference is playing as poorly as it is?  I would think by now the impact of actual performance would drop them a notch or two???  18-16-9 YTD with a future SOS ranking at #1. 

And I'm sure a couple UAA teams will be in the Elite 8, but I'm wanting to understand future SOS (and defensive rankings while I'm at it) based on current performance.

Today's GL rankings will cause some discussion - and I don't understand why Kenyon is ranked 6th - I don't agree with it.  5 teams from the OAC, which will probably be the high water mark for this conference this season.

Anyone see tonight's games, live or livestream? Wooster beats Capital 3-1, Otterbein over OWU 1-0, Oberlin beats Baldwin Wallace 2-1, Depauw over Rose Hulman 2-1 in OT, John Carroll beats Case Western 2-1, and Kenyon beats Marietta 2-0. I thought tonight's results would give some indication of who rises to the top but it seems like, on any given night, it might be anyone's game to win.

ONU beats Hanover 2-0 and Hanover beat Otterbein 3-1.

While the difference - quality, tactics, etc. - among GL teams with winning records isn't great, we are seeing some separation for those truly at the top. JCU has nothing left to prove except can they avoid let-downs and play the rest of the year with a target on their back. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. They will get the A+ game from every opponent from here on out.  They may drop a game in conference - ONU or Mt. Union would be my picks. But 2-3 losses maximum - if that.

I warned several times about Wooster and the quality they have. Three losses to Case and Calvin -  away in OT - and to Mt. Union 1-0 on a PK. The ball was going to bounce they way sometime over a full season. Their work ethic got them a lead last night, and playing a 5-3-2 afterwards allowed them to sit in and challenge Cap to do anything in the final third. Cap's scoring issues, previously noted, were very much on display last night. Committing more numbers to get the equalizer left them vulnerable to counters - two more goals for Wooster.

Otterbein might seem like a head-scratcher but after the Hanover game their senior goalkeeper, who quit the team to focus on baseball, returned. He played 80 minutes in the Transylvania win and all of last night. He was an important part of their Sweet 16 team two years ago and his return can be significant for Otterbein.

By the end of the season JCU and Kenyon will be 1 and 2 in the GL - not sure who gets 1 but JCU will have an extraordinary SOS.  PSU-B has one very strong game left pre-conference against Mt. Union and a conference away game at Geneva - maybe 2-3 losses - but a SOS of over 300. When the "rankings that matter" come out - those used for NCAA positioning - PSU-B will be lower in those rankings than in the coach's poll.
Looking ahead to THOSE rankings - Mt. Union, ONU, RH may round out the top 6.

A nice away win (all of about 8 miles) for JCU last night, but still 3 more tough ones upcoming.  I'm obviously biased with a son in the program, but it is good to see so many programs excelling or improving. The D3 soccer landscape in the Great Lakes seems to be on the rise and there will no doubt be some head scratching results coming in over the remainder of the season.   Will be fun to see things unfold.

Quote from: Domino1195 on September 19, 2019, 07:27:05 AM
ONU beats Hanover 2-0 and Hanover beat Otterbein 3-1.

While the difference - quality, tactics, etc. - among GL teams with winning records isn't great, we are seeing some separation for those truly at the top. JCU has nothing left to prove except can they avoid let-downs and play the rest of the year with a target on their back. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. They will get the A+ game from every opponent from here on out.  They may drop a game in conference - ONU or Mt. Union would be my picks. But 2-3 losses maximum - if that.

I warned several times about Wooster and the quality they have. Three losses to Case and Calvin -  away in OT - and to Mt. Union 1-0 on a PK. The ball was going to bounce they way sometime over a full season. Their work ethic got them a lead last night, and playing a 5-3-2 afterwards allowed them to sit in and challenge Cap to do anything in the final third. Cap's scoring issues, previously noted, were very much on display last night. Committing more numbers to get the equalizer left them vulnerable to counters - two more goals for Wooster.

Otterbein might seem like a head-scratcher but after the Hanover game their senior goalkeeper, who quit the team to focus on baseball, returned. He played 80 minutes in the Transylvania win and all of last night. He was an important part of their Sweet 16 team two years ago and his return can be significant for Otterbein.

By the end of the season JCU and Kenyon will be 1 and 2 in the GL - not sure who gets 1 but JCU will have an extraordinary SOS.  PSU-B has one very strong game left pre-conference against Mt. Union and a conference away game at Geneva - maybe 2-3 losses - but a SOS of over 300. When the "rankings that matter" come out - those used for NCAA positioning - PSU-B will be lower in those rankings than in the coach's poll.
Looking ahead to THOSE rankings - Mt. Union, ONU, RH may round out the top 6.

Congrats again to JCU.  A long way to go but on course to match or exceed the magical season of a couple of years ago.  Impressive win over CWRU whom I'm sure was primed for a big performance as CWRU also has high expectations and needed a result right now more than JCU.  Beforehand I would have predicted there was no way JCU would get through the gauntlet that is their pre-conference schedule without a blemish, but completing that task now seems doable.  The biggest variable is that CMU and OWU badly need a big win (and Messiah to a lesser extent), but CWRU needed a big win too so we'll see.  JCU at Messiah shapes up to be one of the blockbuster tilts of the season so far.

In terms of eventual NCAA regional rankings I don't see any way that Kenyon could challenge JCU for #1.  JCU has the head to head, will have more ranked wins (by a substantial margin), and will have a far superior SoS.  Not a close call even if Kenyon ran the table which is unlikely.  I don't see where Kenyon is going to pick up any ranked wins (unless Colorado Coll and/or Wheaton get hot).  I will say that Kenyon's loss to JCU doesn't feel quite as bad, as although outplayed to some degree, the Lords had a 2-1 lead pretty deep into the 2nd half and screwed themselves by repeatedly giving up free kicks in dangerous areas.  But the loss still hurts as much as losing 5-0, as the Lords failed to get a ranked win or even a ranked draw in what may have been one of their only chances to get one.

I would not count out OWU despite the recent scoring drought.  They have time to right the ship, as the entire NCAC regular season awaits, and per usual the Battling Bishops will be a major threat to win the NCAC tournament.

Otterbein is pushing into the battle for second place in the OAC with Mt Union, Capital and ONU.  If fortunes break their way Otterbein also could be sitting on a couple of ranked wins already.

CWRU, while off to a slower than expected start, has the hugely important advantage of multiple opportunities for ranked wins and should also have a sky-high SoS.

OWU has been missing a key midfield player the past two games - not an excuse but just an FYI.  I had to check that PK in double OT in the DePauw game last night - definitely legit - and so are RHIT and DePauw.

The NCAC is shaping up for an interesting race for the 3 spots behind Kenyon.  OWU isn't necessarily a lock for the top two spots and they are away at Denison and DePauw.  Denison has all three of the potential playoff teams at home (Wooster, DePauw and OWU).  I've seen Wabash a couple times and I don't think they are in the mix this year. Wooster has three very winnable games next and could be back to .500 when they host DePauw. Wooster was also without senior leader Max Robinson last night - not sure of the reason.

I have not seen DePauw so I don't feel comfortable assessing their play, but Denison and Wooster are fairly even.

OWU seemed flat against Otterbein.

Offense cannot find the back of the net for the 3rd game in a row.

Midfield is better this year with #28.  #13 is back this year at striker.

Team has talent. It seems over the last few years it has been tough for the talent to play together.

Hanover is today. Lets see if any adjustments will be made.

Quote from: justplaysoccer on September 21, 2019, 09:24:31 AM
OWU seemed flat against Otterbein.

Offense cannot find the back of the net for the 3rd game in a row.

Midfield is better this year with #28.  #13 is back this year at striker.

Team has talent. It seems over the last few years it has been tough for the talent to play together.

Hanover is today. Lets see if any adjustments will be made.

Where's Branche???

It appears he has not played in any games.

Kenyon on top of Thomas More 4-1 at the half.

Kenyon spots Thomas More a goal and then scores 7.  None of the usual starters played today and the game means nothing in terms of NCAA credentials with TMC now being a NAIA school.  Brown still played 21 kids which should be good for morale.  TMC has had some decent results this year, but this is not close to an Austin Juniet era TMC squad.

OWU 2-1 over Hanover.

Quote from: justplaysoccer on September 21, 2019, 04:14:23 PM
It appears he has not played in any games.

I know - even some of the regular OWU fans were commenting last week about his absence. Key player to not have played at all this year.

OWU takes care of Hanover 2-1 today. The Hanover goal on a PK - really hard to see the foul given the distance/non-zoom use of the camera. Hanover plays well enough but with the mistakes they make on defense I can't see them being a factor in the Heartland race.  RHIT first - Transylvania and Hanover battle for second. 

Absolute travesty of the day - so far - PSU-B being gifted a PK with 1:22 left in regulation. Ball launched into the area from midfield cleared easily by a Mt. Aloysius defender - behind him by a couple yards two players collide - never was the ball involved. Ridiculous homer call.

Third PSU-B game I've seen this year. Solid group of connected players, very similar to Mt. Union. Fitting that they will play each other next week.

Lightning delay at Otterbein - heavy storm coming through - could see a delay of 30-60 minutes.

Quote from: Domino1195 on September 21, 2019, 05:57:16 PM

Quote from: justplaysoccer on September 21, 2019, 04:14:23 PM
It appears he has not played in any games.

I know - even some of the regular OWU fans were commenting last week about his absence. Key player to not have played at all this year.

OWU takes care of Hanover 2-1 today. The Hanover goal on a PK - really hard to see the foul given the distance/non-zoom use of the camera. Hanover plays well enough but with the mistakes they make on defense I can't see them being a factor in the Heartland race.  RHIT first - Transylvania and Hanover battle for second. 

Absolute travesty of the day - so far - PSU-B being gifted a PK with 1:22 left in regulation. Ball launched into the area from midfield cleared easily by a Mt. Aloysius defender - behind him by a couple yards two players collide - never was the ball involved. Ridiculous homer call.

Third PSU-B game I've seen this year. Solid group of connected players, very similar to Mt. Union. Fitting that they will play each other next week.

One day they will stop experimenting with their defense early in the season. That seems to be the norm in recent years.

OWU got the win. It is hard to tell who played better. OWU was more efficient with goals vs. shots compared to their other games. The freshman Harr (#25) is speedy up top.

Otherwise, Capital is up next. We will see which version of either team shows up for that matchup. It could go either way this season.

Kenyon, is rolling along. Steam rolling along. :) Will they repeat NCAC? Looking like it thus far.

Wow.  That coach at Otterbein has done an incredible job there.  I think he played at Univ of Kentucky.  Beat Brockport 1-0 and quietly has a nice little resume.

Quote from: PaulNewman on September 21, 2019, 10:58:16 PM
Wow.  That coach at Otterbein has done an incredible job there.  I think he played at Univ of Kentucky.  Beat Brockport 1-0 and quietly has a nice little resume.

Had Hoffman (GK) not been the nets it would have been at least 3 for Brockport. He returned to the team after the Hanover loss - 3 straight clean-sheets since. Their defense is not as strong as the 2017 team so he does deserve a lot of the credit.

After a 90 minute weather delay the game started - ended around 10:30. Brockport plays at Capital at 3 today - got to wonder how this quick turn-around will impact them.

Thanks to the aforementioned weather delay I watched the first half of ONU-RHIT. ONU - same as it ever was. Not driving down to the byline and crossing hard on the ground - at least according to what I've seen - but a side that possesses and shares the ball among all 10 field players. They swing it and have great awareness of the open spaces on the field. 

Compare that last night to RHIT - they are technically competent but made one poor decision after another last night.  Playing the ball right back into pressure, playing a forward pass to a teammate surrounded by 3 Polar Bears  :) , getting trapped against the touchline and refusing to play the ball back to an open teammate. It was 2-0 at half - not sure what adjustments RHIT made in the second, but the damage was done.

Mt. Union continues doing what it does best - maybe the most consistent winning team in the GL. Consistency in style of play, of scoring just enough to win and not giving up goals.

And Case seems to have their MO down. You have to wonder whether their performance will be strong enough to make them a contender in the UAA. Not sure they are top 3 material - outside of Chicago as #1 the #2 spot looks wide open. At least they're playing teams with winning records and scraping out wins/draws. Next Sat at home against Otterbein . . .

Some thoughts on GL games today.  Three potential 0-0 games to start.

• PSU @ Mt. Union: PSU with their first true road game of the year (2 early games at neutral sites).  Mt. Union with a much tougher schedule - 4 games won by a score of 1-0. Have only concede 3 goals this year.  Outside of another generous PK I can't see PSU scoring, but Mt. Union doesn't light it up either.  If SOS means anything in this game - Mt. Union should win.
• Capital @ OWU: one of those mirror games.  Solid defenses, both teams concede a PK last game, both teams took Case into OT 0-0. Tempted to go to this one with 80 minutes left to catch the scoreless OT.  Gorgeous fall day in central Ohio - Cap not a great grass team, OWU's field a disaster this year.
• Denison @ Otterbein: Denison with its third straight game against a strong GL opponent, dropping the last two 1-0 to JCU and Mt. Union.  Otterbein 3-0 with the return of senior GK - all clean-sheets.  Got 0-0 written all over it.

Marietta has under-performed of late and Case loves OT.  Playing tonight on Marietta's navy blue field - if Marietta solves their defensive lapses they could nick a result here.
Grove City at Baldwin Wallace - I'm thinking high scoring game of the day?  Especially compared to the games listed above.

Marietta takes down Case 2-1 in last minute. They are better than their results to date suggest.

I am sure JCU would have been thrilled before the start of the season to know they would be 8 -1-1 after the first 10 games.  Their schedule is about as difficult as possible, but today I watched them play the best team (by far) they have played to date.  Messiah is king in D3 and had they been full strength at the beginning of the season I can't see them having a defeat.  Nothing against the teams that beat them, but my son was recruited by Ithaca and we watched a couple of games and there is no way that team is on the same level as Messiah.   They took advantage of their depth in the heat  ( believe 20 players saw the field) and regardless who was on the field the play was basically the same.   The first half was a dead heat with Messiah getting a gift on a poor pass to the goalie for a 1-0 lead.  In the second half Messiah dominated the last 20 minutes. The game was far closer than 3-0, but Rochester, Kenyon, Case, and Carnegie Mellon were nowhere near the team I watched today.    A great start for JCU, but now Ohio Wesleyan comes to town.  Go Blue Steaks.

Quote from: jcudad on September 28, 2019, 03:37:46 PM
I am sure JCU would have been thrilled before the start of the season to know they would be 8 -1-1 after the first 10 games.  Their schedule is about as difficult as possible, but today I watched them play the best team (by far) they have played to date.  Messiah is king in D3 and had they been full strength at the beginning of the season I can't see them having a defeat.  Nothing against the teams that beat them, but my son was recruited by Ithaca and we watched a couple of games and there is no way that team is on the same level as Messiah.   They took advantage of their depth in the heat  ( believe 20 players saw the field) and regardless who was on the field the play was basically the same.   The first half was a dead heat with Messiah getting a gift on a poor pass to the goalie for a 1-0 lead.  In the second half Messiah dominated the last 20 minutes. The game was far closer than 3-0, but Rochester, Kenyon, Case, and Carnegie Mellon were nowhere near the team I watched today.    A great start for JCU, but now Ohio Wesleyan comes to town.  Go Blue Steaks.

jcudad, your comments are classy. Kudos to you. I appreciate your analysis of what you saw this afternoon, in light of what you've seen in other JCU games so far. A little while ago on the Mid-Atlantic thread I voiced a similar view of where Messiah is now, with most of their key players back in the lineup and getting back into the flow. I knew what I saw, but your opinion is worth more than mine, since JCU has played so many really good teams lately--none of which I've seen yet. The Falcons looked good, but not really good, in several early games, and they lost (quite properly) to other good teams that had more veteran starters ready to go. Especially on the offensive end, Messiah didn't look like Messiah, though they were making some bad plays on the defensive end, too--and they still are, though they are improving there also.

You're right that the game was closer than the score, despite the Streaks failing to have a SOG. JCU is unquestionably a tournament team, one way or another, and nothing would make me happier than seeing another game with Messiah in November. Last week, quite honestly, I thought JCU will be there but the Falcons might not be there. I now think both teams are a lock for the tournament--barring another major injury or two to the Falcons. That's been their Achilles heel the past two seasons. Best of luck to you and your son, jcudad.

Quote from: jcudad on September 28, 2019, 03:37:46 PM
I am sure JCU would have been thrilled before the start of the season to know they would be 8 -1-1 after the first 10 games.  Their schedule is about as difficult as possible, but today I watched them play the best team (by far) they have played to date.  Messiah is king in D3 and had they been full strength at the beginning of the season I can't see them having a defeat.  Nothing against the teams that beat them, but my son was recruited by Ithaca and we watched a couple of games and there is no way that team is on the same level as Messiah.   They took advantage of their depth in the heat  ( believe 20 players saw the field) and regardless who was on the field the play was basically the same.   The first half was a dead heat with Messiah getting a gift on a poor pass to the goalie for a 1-0 lead.  In the second half Messiah dominated the last 20 minutes. The game was far closer than 3-0, but Rochester, Kenyon, Case, and Carnegie Mellon were nowhere near the team I watched today.    A great start for JCU, but now Ohio Wesleyan comes to town.  Go Blue Steaks.

I also felt these teams are a little closer than the final score would indicate. Mistakes, as often happens, were the cause of the first 2 goals and Messiah just did not make such mistakes and that was the key. Messiah held the possession advantage and looked the sharper of the two teams, but also did not have to travel and were playing on a surface they are more familiar with (grass). It looked like JCU had some nice spurts of good play after falling behind 0-2 and were somewhat dangerous later in the game so I don't feel that Messiah was as dominant as you indicated in the final 20 minutes but definitely played with the strength of knowing they had a nice lead. They are a solid side for sure and will be a tough draw for anyone later on. In any case, 8-1-1 is indeed a great start and hopefully the JCU squad will learn some things about themselves from this experience and be better prepared to compete at this level come November.

Whoops... that should have been 7-1-1. I do not have a crystal ball, and was not making a prediction about Wednesday's game.  ;)

And bad mistakes
I've made a few
I've had my share of sand kicked in my face
But I've come through

Mistakes happen - more to teams that have fundamental short comings in skill, poor implementation of tactics and/or decision making.  Come tournament time there will be several 1-0 games where "a mistake" will be blamed for the loss.  Always troubles me that in a 90 minutes game the "mistake" becomes so glaring that it seems to negate the other 89 minutes and 55 seconds.  Of course, the other side of a mistake is a team - or a player - who has a great game, who exhibits great skill . . .

AMCC:  PSU-B played a great game against Mt. Union.  They forced a turnover by a player, who IMO will be a first team Ohio player at a minimum.  That mistake was compounded by the two central defenders both going for the player with the ball, leaving a streaking PSU-B player alone for the pass and uncontested shot for the first goal.  I can't see them losing - unless they make a mistake.  Away at Franciscan and Medaille are the two most likely chances to lose.  With their SOS they have left themselves no wiggle room - must win the conference tournament: although - what if they win out and lose the conference championship? 19-1, with a current SOS of 255, future SOS of 321.

PrAC: a disaster pre-conference schedule with Westminster (Massey 233 - everyone else deep down the list) the only team with a winning record.  I predict someone will win this conference  ::)

Heartland: as with the PrAC only one team with a winning record - RHIT. But Hanover's schedule - currently 47 (Massey) may have prepared them better for conference play. And of the likely challengers for the conference title - RHIT and Transylvania - Hanover has both of these games at home.  Hanover lost in 2018 and 2017 in the HCAC championship game, in PK shoot-outs, to Transy and RHIT respectively.  Maybe it's their turn.

NCAC: Watched the Kenyon-Wilmington game - gift of a PK for their first goal, but they concede a tying goal on a "mistake".  Get the go-ahead goal - then Wilmington misses a rebound from 6 yds with 5 minutes to go.  Kenyon clearly the better skilled team but not convincing in this win.  Attended OWU vs Capital and Case - we get to see them away against JCU tomorrow.  As with most years its shaping up to be these two for 1 & 2 and then the battle for spots 3 & 4 for the conference tourney.  DePauw, Denison and Wooster the likely candidates - not totally ready to rule out Wabash or Oberlin for that matter.  But I do think there will be more tight games this season and Denison's SOS to date is just behind that of Kenyon's (OWU's in the top 25). Having seen them play several times I believe 3rd is the lowest they finish and Depauw finishes 4th.

OAC: there are consistent performances - good and bad, and inconsistent performances.  The three teams that should finish 1-3 are JCU, ONU and Mt. Union - not necessarily in this order.  JCU and ONU have shown more ability to score as well as defend - they are the likely two team to receive the tournament byes. Mt. Union is a defensive machine and they will continue to win tight games. Many seniors and juniors on this side.  Would be shocked if any of these teams went undefeated and would not be surprised if the conference champion only has 7 wins.

The return of GK Hoffman to Oterbein changed their season dramatically.  Finally concedes 2 against Case this weekend - no fault of his (first Case goal was just a beautiful soccer play.  Not spectacular, but from the transition from their defensive end to the magisterial ( ;D ;D) assist on the goal - just a great soccer goal from Case). The team has a consistent will-to-win, although technically they are prone to mistakes.  They could finish higher but I feel 4th is right for them.

Now for the consistently inconsistent teams: Capital and Marietta are talented teams whose records belie their ability. Should they continue with their current inconsistencies they could finish 5th and 6th - higher - or out of the conference tournament.  Capital cannot score and current injuries have revealed some issues with bench depth. As it is October - the month for scary movies - watch their second half against Hanover . . .  Other than the Anderson loss Marietta has had a good start.  If they cut back on their defensive mistakes they are in the top 6.

7th and 8th: Wilmington has been fairly consistent but hasn't played a great schedule.  They give Kenyon a decent battle and then follow that up with a 1-1 draw against Anderson.  They have not beaten a team with a winning record - 305 SOS.  They will win a few games - maybe 4-5 or 5-4 for the season. Baldwin Wallace scores, but concedes. Ruple is an all-American scoring machine - either this year or next (or both). Only one win against a winning team - 329 ranked Pitt-Bradford. The two goals against PSU-B were penalties - and not from imminent scoring threats. Same W-L prediction as Wilmington.

9 and 10: Muskingum has had a fine start to the year, but that SOS of 400 will catch up to them.  Berg doesn't appear to be in the running this year. 

Anyone at the OWU-John Carroll match tonight? Online scores are not updating and the end of the video cuts off, it looks like OWU scores in the last seconds. or maybe the feed just ends?

Never mind . . .  OWU has recap posted on its website, scores in last minute of 2nd OT, that's why feed ends. My bad.

Quote from: midwest on October 02, 2019, 11:44:51 PM
Anyone at the OWU-John Carroll match tonight? Online scores are not updating and the end of the video cuts off, it looks like OWU scores in the last seconds. or maybe the feed just ends?

As you noted, OWU scored in the final minute of the second OT session to win 1-0. JCU had the possession advantage but OWU seemed slightly the more dangerous team when it did attack. JCU played a more direct game through the air and OWU indirect (which is definitely my preference).

I did watch the entire game and replayed the goal several times as the camera focus was so far away - tried to see what happened after the throw was flicked on into the mixer.  All I could see was the ball hitting the ground and then OWU players were celebrating.

But this is exactly how I expect the GL region to play out this year.  There are a dozen teams capable of playing solid defense, giving up few quality looks and shots on goal, and waiting for a counter or a break - as OWU created last night.  I have seen 30? games so far this year and I do not think there is ONE team that is truly superior to the others in the region.  I see a lot of equality in skill, toughness and tactics - specifically defend first and wait for your break.  I believe any of the top12 teams in the region can beat any of the other top teams on any given day.

I will say that teams like ONU, JCU, and Kenyon seem to be better able to impose their will in a given game, more consistently - to be able to attack and defend.  Others in the region are heavily reliant on defend and counter.  My concern with JCU and Kenyon is with some of the goals I've seen them concede this year. But it's now conference play and every team has a chance to make their conference tourney.

Those of us who have followed GL for a while (and for far longer than me) know that you never count out OWU.  The Battling Bishops will always be in the mix, and while their current record doesn't look stellar they are in the very enviable position of holding what will almost certainly be two ranked wins (Calvin and JCU) come selection time with possibly a ranked draw or two, as well as another opportunity coming up with Kenyon.  In other words, OWU is in a really good position right now.

As for JCU, the law of averages (and maybe a bit of fatigue) finally caught up to the Blue Streaks.  After a slew of nailbiter wins they were due for a nailbiter loss.

I tend to agree with Domino that 12 teams could beat any of the others on a day, but with that said, I would put JCU, Kenyon, OWU and CWRU on the same level, with Mt. Union, ONU, CMU, PS-B and maybe Capital in the next tier.

I'd also be curious to know the percentages of a goal scored versus games ending in draws once contests get to the 106th minute (last five minutes).  My rough recollection is that goals often are scored in that final five minutes (sometimes a great goal, sometimes a team just willing itself to a goal, sometimes a fluke, sometimes the other team's fatigue, and/or some combination therein).

Coach's ranking today:

• Kenyon
• PSU-B
• JCU
• MTU
• ONU
• OWU
• WILM
• RHIT
• WABASH
• BW

The NCAA Regional Rankings will probably look very different, with low SOS teams like BW, Wilmington, Wabash and PSU-B either not making the rankings or being ranked lower than the coach's poll. The top 5 right now, IMO, would be JCU, ONU, OWU, Kenyon and PSU-B - in that order. And based on future SOS the first 4 mentioned have the greatest chance for an at-large bid - should they need it. For their sake teams like PSU-B and RHIT need to take care of business as there will be almost no chance for an at-large should these teams fail to win their conference tournament.

I just don't think Case and CMU will be in the running for a look at an at-large this year.  I don't see either team finishing above 3rd in the UAA.

As far as the NCAC goes, whose teams only play once this week, on Saturday: Denison hasn't beaten Kenyon in 8 years, but if they needed a signature win this weekend would be the time to do it. But should they lose I think they have a great chance to finish 7-2, 6-3 and take 3rd.  Much like Capital, Denison plays decent defense but struggles to score. Weather may be a factor in Ohio Saturday - an oddity this fall as we're currently in abnormally dry/minor drought conditions. OWU has Wooster at home - has beaten them 2-1 three consecutive years. Probably more of the same this year - a tight one.

OAC has become clearer with the top 3-4 separating from the rest of the conference.  Wednesday's contest between JCU and MTU will be a beaut.  Last year MTU was 8-0 - 8 straight shut-outs to start the year - heading into their match at JCU. JCU comes from behind to score the first goal of the year against MTU and then gets the winner in double OT. Only 1 YC and 19 total fouls last year - I'm taking the over on both totals this year.  MTU needs this game more than JCU as the SOS for JCU and ONU would be strong enough for a potential at-large if they don't win the conference tournament.  ONU has BW at home, off a great road win at Capital (first time since 2014 for BW), and then Marietta on Saturday. Winners of 8 straight, conceding only 3 goals during this streak, they should pick up 2 W's.  As for the rest of the conference . . .

At this point IMO Kenyon is now the top team in the GL.  A ton of sophs and frosh have gotten valuable experience, and they are getting goals from a bunch of players.  Carpenter returned from injury to get limited minutes in the last game, but Penas (arguably the best player on the team and a playmaker) has not played a minute all season (and I assume may be out for his entire senior year) and Taylor (starting holding mid) has been out now for a while.

The problem for the Lords is that they could end up with zero ranked wins.  Seems like every year Kenyon is in a precarious spot because of SoS and/or ranked wins.  And every year when you look at their schedule (while not the strongest in the country by any means) one would think there are opportunities for a decent to good SoS and at least a few ranked games.  OWU on the other hand already has two ranked wins at a minimum.

All that said, I would be surprised if ANY GL team gets beyond the Sweet 16.

P.S. CWRU and especially CMU have struggled, but if either finishes 3rd or 4th (or maybe even 5th) they'll have a good shot at a Pool C because that would mean they likely picked up some ranked wins (in addition to whatever they already have).  The ranked wins and draws can end up just as big as SoS it seems at selection time.

Kenyon's in the same boat as they were in 2016, with a weak (relative to other GL teams) SOS.  Knowing how important SOS is to a team's NCAA ranking Kenyon would be 5th at best if the rankings were published today.  But by Oct 23rd Kenyon will have played OWU and that result will be critical.  But I wouldn't count out Wheaton or Centre for ranked wins.  Centre's last real challenge was a win this weekend against Marysville, but the South Atlantic is so strong not sure they can crack the top 8.  Wheaton has some challenging games left - should they win out I'd think they'd easily make it into the top 7 Central teams.

ONU, my pick for best GL team currently, "could" have 4 more wins by the first ranking, which would include a win over JCU. JCU has the toughest road over the next two weeks - could pick up 2 to 4 wins. Otterbein has a strong SOS and two away games at Baldwin Wallace and JCU - both currently ranked over them.  Should they pick up results they have a chance to be regionally ranked.

The NCAA Committee has some significant changes in personal that "could" affect GL bids.  Bianco is no longer the national chair - that now belonging to Serpone.  Bianco's GL seat belongs to asst. AD at Kenyon. New leadership, new rep for the GL, politics . . .

I don't see the GL getting 3 at-large bids this year - 2 maximum. The runner up in the NCAC and OAC have the greatest opportunity.  The South Atlantic - right now - looks more deserving than the GL.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 09, 2019, 09:39:25 AM
Kenyon's in the same boat as they were in 2016, with a weak (relative to other GL teams) SOS.  Knowing how important SOS is to a team's NCAA ranking Kenyon would be 5th at best if the rankings were published today.  But by Oct 23rd Kenyon will have played OWU and that result will be critical.  But I wouldn't count out Wheaton or Centre for ranked wins.  Centre's last real challenge was a win this weekend against Marysville, but the South Atlantic is so strong not sure they can crack the top 8.  Wheaton has some challenging games left - should they win out I'd think they'd easily make it into the top 7 Central teams.

You obviously haven't watched Wheaton much this season, especially lately. The Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance are struggling against every team they meet, and they're losing as many as they're winning. Never say never, of course, but right now they in no way resemble a team that's gonna win out.

I was just expressing my own personal opinion about the current top team, separate from the regional ranking criteria (which I acknowledged is a potential big problem for the Lords). 

And yes, at the start of the season one could be forgiven for thinking Colorado College, Wheaton and Centre would have decent chances to be ranked come November, and now all three are unlikely.

Quote from: Gregory Sager on October 09, 2019, 10:56:57 AM

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 09, 2019, 09:39:25 AM
Kenyon's in the same boat as they were in 2016, with a weak (relative to other GL teams) SOS.  Knowing how important SOS is to a team's NCAA ranking Kenyon would be 5th at best if the rankings were published today.  But by Oct 23rd Kenyon will have played OWU and that result will be critical.  But I wouldn't count out Wheaton or Centre for ranked wins.  Centre's last real challenge was a win this weekend against Marysville, but the South Atlantic is so strong not sure they can crack the top 8.  Wheaton has some challenging games left - should they win out I'd think they'd easily make it into the top 7 Central teams.

You obviously haven't watched Wheaton much this season, especially lately. The Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance are struggling against every team they meet, and they're losing as many as they're winning. Never say never, of course, but right now they in no way resemble a team that's gonna win out.

That's why I said "should" they win out. Right now they're in that second group below Calvin, UC, Wash U and NP, and should they win the next three I'd think they'd be ranked come Oct 23.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 09, 2019, 12:37:22 PM

Quote from: Gregory Sager on October 09, 2019, 10:56:57 AM

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 09, 2019, 09:39:25 AM
Kenyon's in the same boat as they were in 2016, with a weak (relative to other GL teams) SOS.  Knowing how important SOS is to a team's NCAA ranking Kenyon would be 5th at best if the rankings were published today.  But by Oct 23rd Kenyon will have played OWU and that result will be critical.  But I wouldn't count out Wheaton or Centre for ranked wins.  Centre's last real challenge was a win this weekend against Marysville, but the South Atlantic is so strong not sure they can crack the top 8.  Wheaton has some challenging games left - should they win out I'd think they'd easily make it into the top 7 Central teams.

You obviously haven't watched Wheaton much this season, especially lately. The Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance are struggling against every team they meet, and they're losing as many as they're winning. Never say never, of course, but right now they in no way resemble a team that's gonna win out.

That's why I said "should" they win out. Right now they're in that second group below Calvin, UC, Wash U and NP, and should they win the next three I'd think they'd be ranked come Oct 23.

I don't think that Wheaton's in a second group. I think that Wheaton's in a third group. Calvin, Chicago, and NPU are clearly better, Wheaton's tie with Chicago notwithstanding. North Central appears to be better as well, as NCC beat Wheaton on Wheaton's home pitch. Hope, Kalamazoo, and Adrian may be better as well. Wheaton's more on par with Elmhurst, which has actually defeated Wheaton already by two goals. Wash U is harder to place; Wheaton beat the Bears, but it was at Wheaton and it appeared to be at least evenly-played (Wash U put 14 shots on goal to Wheaton's 8). On a neutral pitch I'd take Wash U anytime, especially lately.

Having said all that, it doesn't make me one bit less nervous about NPU's trip to Wheaton on the last night of the regular season. Won-lost records and matchup issues tend to get thrown out the window in a rivalry game, and Wheaton will come out with its ears pinned back playing at home against archrival NPU in front of a couple thousand geeked-up Wheaton fans in orange.

Medaille hasn't beaten PSU-B since 2011?? Up early 1-0 off a corner. Not sure PSU has trailed this year. We shall see . . .

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 09, 2019, 06:23:49 PM
Medaille hasn't beaten PSU-B since 2011?? Up early 1-0 off a corner. Not sure PSU has trailed this year. We shall see . . .

1-0 final correct? Behrend will win the conference again anyways but if they don't things could get interesting for everyone in this region.

JCU since becoming a national darling has slumped to 1-2-2 in the their last 5 (which admittedly has been a tough schedule stretch with the exception of the lone win versus lowly Muskingum).  The Blue Streaks with multiple ranked wins and a sky-high SoS should still be fine for a NCAA Pool C if needed, but one can wonder if JCU is just in a lull or more of a fade.  Did the Streaks peak too early? Or did the percentages just catch up with them in cliffhanger-type tilts?  JCU only had a single shot on goal in 110 minutes Mt Union last night.  The Raiders have proven to be a very stout defensive outfit, but from what I saw JCU dominated play and yet could not create many decent chances despite being in the Mt. Union half for much of the contest.  JCU also, for example, only had 5 shots total versus CWRU.  I have noted before JCU's reliance on Turrittin and set pieces and they aren't going to get far in the NCAA tourney if they can't score from the run of play.  JCU has three more relatively tough OAC games in a row before the schedule lightens up at the end.

Based on Domino's insights I took a closer look at ONU.  The Polar Bears are indeed having a fine season and should rack up three more wins in their next three before they end the season with a trio of more competitive foes.  Mt Union is also proving to be a legit contender in the OAC although one wonders if they can produce enough offense in big matches as the season progresses.

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 10, 2019, 10:16:57 AM
JCU since becoming a national darling has slumped to 1-2-2 in the their last 5 (which admittedly has been a tough schedule stretch with the exception of the lone win versus lowly Muskingum).  The Blue Streaks with multiple ranked wins and a sky-high SoS should still be fine for a NCAA Pool C if needed, but one can wonder if JCU is just in a lull or more of a fade.  Did the Streaks peak too early? Or did the percentages just catch up with them in cliffhanger-type tilts?  JCU only had a single shot on goal in 110 minutes Mt Union last night.  The Raiders have proven to be a very stout defensive outfit, but from what I saw JCU dominated play and yet could not create many decent chances despite being in the Mt. Union half for much of the contest.  JCU also, for example, only had 5 shots total versus CWRU.  I have noted before JCU's reliance on Turrittin and set pieces and they aren't going to get far in the NCAA tourney if they can't score from the run of play.  JCU has three more relatively tough OAC games in a row before the schedule lightens up at the end.

Based on Domino's insights I took a closer look at ONU.  The Polar Bears are indeed having a fine season and should rack up three more wins in their next three before they end the season with a trio of more competitive foes.  Mt Union is also proving to be a legit contender in the OAC although one wonders if they can produce enough offense in big matches as the season progresses.

Couple things Paul:

• Goals from the run of play might as well be on the endangered species list in the GL - especially from the teams that will be ranked. Set pieces have to be close to 65% of goals scored this year.
• Trying to watch JCU-MTU on my phone while at the Cap game was challenging but from what I saw: this was a typical game for both sides.  And I want to acknowledge I was wrong on the cards and fouls - a very well played game - both teams keeping their focus and executing as they have been all year.
• JCU might have had a couple bounces go their way earlier - the late PK at Rochester - and maybe some of those bounces are going against - the OWU goal in the 109th minute. But fundamentally they are playing the same - maybe even a little better on defense (Messiah game an exception).  They are one of 2-3 teams in the GL that will be able to dictate how a game is played the majority of the time.
• MTU has so many juniors and seniors - they played Capital to 0-0 results twice in 2016 (second time Capital winning in the OAC tourney in double OT).  But this is what they do: knock the ball around in the back, wait for the opposition to press up a bit - then see what opens up and send a direct ball to the 3 up front.  Last night no shots after the first half - 7 for the game. But their defense is like the Black Knight: None shall pass.

Denison could easily have a record like MTU and JCU if they got a ball to bounce their way in the three 1-0 losses to JCU, OWU and MTU. They have had only 3 home games this year, away at Kenyon on Sat.  If they don't lay an egg as they did at Otterbein Saturday's game could be much like their other 1-0 games (and the 0-0 game at Capital for that matter).

The surprise of the night for was that ONU only got one against BW.  And I see one of the two saves recorded by ONU was a team save - usually means the ball got by the keeper and was saved inside the 6. Both Wilmington and BW have much greater challenges ahead, given their competition YTD, but that was a good results for BW at ONU.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 10, 2019, 01:19:21 PM

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 10, 2019, 10:16:57 AM
JCU since becoming a national darling has slumped to 1-2-2 in the their last 5 (which admittedly has been a tough schedule stretch with the exception of the lone win versus lowly Muskingum).  The Blue Streaks with multiple ranked wins and a sky-high SoS should still be fine for a NCAA Pool C if needed, but one can wonder if JCU is just in a lull or more of a fade.  Did the Streaks peak too early? Or did the percentages just catch up with them in cliffhanger-type tilts?  JCU only had a single shot on goal in 110 minutes Mt Union last night.  The Raiders have proven to be a very stout defensive outfit, but from what I saw JCU dominated play and yet could not create many decent chances despite being in the Mt. Union half for much of the contest.  JCU also, for example, only had 5 shots total versus CWRU.  I have noted before JCU's reliance on Turrittin and set pieces and they aren't going to get far in the NCAA tourney if they can't score from the run of play.  JCU has three more relatively tough OAC games in a row before the schedule lightens up at the end.

Based on Domino's insights I took a closer look at ONU.  The Polar Bears are indeed having a fine season and should rack up three more wins in their next three before they end the season with a trio of more competitive foes.  Mt Union is also proving to be a legit contender in the OAC although one wonders if they can produce enough offense in big matches as the season progresses.

Couple things Paul:

• Goals from the run of play might as well be on the endangered species list in the GL - especially from the teams that will be ranked. Set pieces have to be close to 65% of goals scored this year.
• Trying to watch JCU-MTU on my phone while at the Cap game was challenging but from what I saw: this was a typical game for both sides.  And I want to acknowledge I was wrong on the cards and fouls - a very well played game - both teams keeping their focus and executing as they have been all year.
• JCU might have had a couple bounces go their way earlier - the late PK at Rochester - and maybe some of those bounces are going against - the OWU goal in the 109th minute. But fundamentally they are playing the same - maybe even a little better on defense (Messiah game an exception).  They are one of 2-3 teams in the GL that will be able to dictate how a game is played the majority of the time.
• MTU has so many juniors and seniors - they played Capital to 0-0 results twice in 2016 (second time Capital winning in the OAC tourney in double OT).  But this is what they do: knock the ball around in the back, wait for the opposition to press up a bit - then see what opens up and send a direct ball to the 3 up front.  Last night no shots after the first half - 7 for the game. But their defense is like the Black Knight: None shall pass.

Denison could easily have a record like MTU and JCU if they got a ball to bounce their way in the three 1-0 losses to JCU, OWU and MTU. They have had only 3 home games this year, away at Kenyon on Sat.  If they don't lay an egg as they did at Otterbein Saturday's game could be much like their other 1-0 games (and the 0-0 game at Capital for that matter).

The surprise of the night for was that ONU only got one against BW.  And I see one of the two saves recorded by ONU was a team save - usually means the ball got by the keeper and was saved inside the 6. Both Wilmington and BW have much greater challenges ahead, given their competition YTD, but that was a good results for BW at ONU.

I'm well aware of JCU's style, and hence my assessment.  Are you saying you aren't concerned with JCU's offensive limitations?  Controlling play versus BW or Marietta isn't the same as having the firepower to get by a Calvin or Chicago or OWU in a Sweet 16 game.  Take out the Muskingum game and JCU has not scored a single goal in 309 minutes of play.  JCU absolutely is a very good team, especially compared to other competition in the GL, but just about 10 days or 2 weeks ago some or many were considering JCU to be a top 5 team in the nation.  I just don't see that.

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 10, 2019, 02:06:59 PM


I'm well aware of JCU's style, and hence my assessment.  Are you saying you aren't concerned with JCU's offensive limitations?  Controlling play versus BW or Marietta isn't the same as having the firepower to get by a Calvin or Chicago or OWU in a Sweet 16 game.  Take out the Muskingum game and JCU has not scored a single goal in 309 minutes of play.  JCU absolutely is a very good team, especially compared to other competition in the GL, but just about 10 days or 2 weeks ago some or many were considering JCU to be a top 5 team in the nation.  I just don't see that.

There aren't any offensive powers in the region - again qualifying this statement with "those that are likely to be ranked come November."  Just looking at NCAC and OAC (if any GL team is going to win their first two NCAA games it will most likely come from these conferences): through the first two conference games each conference has scored 29 goals.

If a GL team does get to the round of 16 they will do it on defense. Which could be said about any team that gets to the round of 16. I feel the parity that is being discussed on these boards has a lot to do with teams adopting defensive, counterattacking tactics.  That's why so many GL team look the same - to me.

I haven't compared stats to previous seasons but there are 27 teams with a 3.00 goals per game average or higher.  Of these teams only two have a Massey SOS in the top 50: Calvin and North Park.  Teams that average 2.5 to 2.99 goals a game with SOS in the top 50 include Wash Lee, Amherst, St. Mary (MD) and Conn College. If you were looking for a group to pick a national champion from - this isn't a bad list.  Teams that defend AND score!

Oh all right. Just made my hotel reservation for JCU tomorrow. Frickin' 40 degrees - and I don't even have a kid playing anymore . . .

So JCU-Capital was the "marquee" match of the weekend, but Kenyon-Denison was a better match than the 3-1 Kenyon win makes it sound. A fairly balanced match through much of the first half, with both teams having some opportunities. I've seen Denison barely hold back dominating attacks, and that was not this game. Kenyon led 1-0 at the half, Denison got the equalizer a few minutes into the second half. We heard a Kenyon prospect ask if Kenyon usually played that evenly with teams like Denison. Unfortunately for Denison, things fell apart shortly after substitutions were made to the back line after the 70th minute, as Kenyon went up 2-1. The third goal came from goalie error. Not a game Denison was expected to win, but not as bad a match as the score makes it look.

Midwest, hope you enjoyed your time in Gambier. I know you've had some questions about the facilities at Kenyon...how was the field?

You obviously saw the game live.  I would just add that watching the stream I had the impression that the Lords easily could have been up 3-0 or 4-0 at just the first half.  The Denison GK appeared to be phenomenal, stopping a PK and having at least 3-4 other incredible saves (again, in the first half alone).  Kenyon appeared to be not just living in Denison's final third but spent a good deal of time inside Denison's 18.  Stats showed shots 22 to 9 and 13 to 3 (SOG).  As for the recruit's comment/question, I'm not quite sure what "like Denison" means.  We all know that Denison and Kenyon have a long rivalry history, only eclipsed especially since 2012/2013 by the outstanding OWU-Kenyon rivalry.  At any rate, Denison typically does play Kenyon very competitively with frequent one-goal and/or OT contests.

John Penas did get his first minutes of the season for Kenyon which is great news for the Lords.  I imagine it will take him at least a few games to regain his form.  With Carpenter also back I think that only leaves Max Taylor as a significant piece still on the sidelines.

Quote from: midwest on October 14, 2019, 06:50:47 AM
So JCU-Capital was the "marquee" match of the weekend, but Kenyon-Denison was a better match than the 3-1 Kenyon win makes it sound. A fairly balanced match through much of the first half, with both teams having some opportunities. I've seen Denison barely hold back dominating attacks, and that was not this game. Kenyon led 1-0 at the half, Denison got the equalizer a few minutes into the second half. We heard a Kenyon prospect ask if Kenyon usually played that evenly with teams like Denison. Unfortunately for Denison, things fell apart shortly after substitutions were made to the back line after the 70th minute, as Kenyon went up 2-1. The third goal came from goalie error. Not a game Denison was expected to win, but not as bad a match as the score makes it look.

I tried watching this game while driving to the JCU-Cap game (don't judge me!) but Brown is among the better keepers in the GL that I have seen - but prone to a costly mistake every now and then (the Marietta goals come to mind).  But I still believe 3rd place is where Denison will finish.  This is a critical week for them as they take on two of the three challengers (Wabash and DePauw) for the 3rd and 4th spots in the NCAC tourney.  In the Wabash games I've seen - they can be weak with their marking, especially on backside runs.  I truly believe they have the potential to finish 7-2 in conference.  Wooster has two winnable games this week - they cannot afford to drop points.

GL thoughts:

• PAC - Grove City wins at Geneva Saturday and visits Westminster on Wednesday.  While W&J is also tied for first I don't see them staying there for long.  Westminster "stole" GC's NCAA bid last year by winning the conference tournament - GC should be plenty motivated.
• HCAC - since losing at ONU 2-0 RHIT has reeled off 5 straight SO - albeit against teams without a winning record. Away at Hanover on Wednesday, who dominated a poor Earlham team this past Saturday but didn't score until the 75th minute.
• OAC - most interesting result to me was the 0-0 draw at Mount Union.  Wilmington hasn't been challenged much with their schedule but they were ready for this contest.  MTU had a little more of the play in the first half but Wilmington was the better side in the second.  Not a lot of quality shots on goal - Wilmington may have had the best chance midway through the second half - would have loved to have seen the shot but the MTU cameraman had trouble keeping up with the game ALL DAY. MTU is also a team that struggles to score (two-straight 0-0 draws) but I was impressed with Wilmington's defending. Not sure they can hold the best scoring team in the OAC, ONU, without a goal on Wednesday.  But ONU has JCU on Saturday and this game against Wilmington is a potential trap game.
• The winner of JCU-ONU Saturday should go on to win the conference.  Attended the Cap-JCU game Saturday.  I don't know if the ball has "bounced" Cap's way all season, but you have to create opportunities for that to happen.  They did better than they have in recent games - they do rely on long throws and corners to create havoc in the box. But for as many times as the ball hit the ground near the 6 the JCU defenders blocked and cleared all.  JCU should have had 3, 4 more goals - missed some wide open opportunities. Can't afford to miss these chances on Saturday and the JCU keeper has to be stronger on balls in the air.
• NCAC - The Game is Wednesday at OWU.  I will be there for sure even though the forecast calls for rain.  Both Kenyon and OWU are in great form right now - should be a treat!

Quote from: midwest on October 14, 2019, 06:50:47 AM
So JCU-Capital was the "marquee" match of the weekend, but Kenyon-Denison was a better match than the 3-1 Kenyon win makes it sound. A fairly balanced match through much of the first half, with both teams having some opportunities. I've seen Denison barely hold back dominating attacks, and that was not this game. Kenyon led 1-0 at the half, Denison got the equalizer a few minutes into the second half. We heard a Kenyon prospect ask if Kenyon usually played that evenly with teams like Denison. Unfortunately for Denison, things fell apart shortly after substitutions were made to the back line after the 70th minute, as Kenyon went up 2-1. The third goal came from goalie error. Not a game Denison was expected to win, but not as bad a match as the score makes it look.

This week's GL USC poll has Wabash at 9 and DePauw at 10.  If Denison takes both games this week they will surely be ranked in the coach's poll.

OWU, winners of 4 straight by SO, at 6?  PSU-B, losing once this week, and MTU with two draws this week, above them? A minor thing but I would think the deserve 4th.

ONU jumps to second behind Kenyon, JCU third.

@PaulNewman -- Kenyon field looked gorgeous, and it was a beautiful brisk fall day, no complaints! My concern had been about the impact of mid-day, mid-week games for teams traveling, thinking about Wabash which played Kenyon last year mid-day in the NCAC tournament. The Kenyon recruit's comments about "like Denison" seemed to be surprise that a nationally ranked program was tied 1-1 with an unranked team going into the last 20 minutes of the match. Looking to tomorrow, I'm pleased the Denison-Wabash is a mid-day game so I can watch Kenyon OWU livestream in the evening! As a parent observer to this world, I always appreciate the observations of you more experienced folk, thank you!

Quote from: midwest on October 15, 2019, 09:28:11 AM
@PaulNewman -- Kenyon field looked gorgeous, and it was a beautiful brisk fall day, no complaints! My concern had been about the impact of mid-day, mid-week games for teams traveling, thinking about Wabash which played Kenyon last year mid-day in the NCAC tournament. The Kenyon recruit's comments about "like Denison" seemed to be surprise that a nationally ranked program was tied 1-1 with an unranked team going into the last 20 minutes of the match. Looking to tomorrow, I'm pleased the Denison-Wabash is a mid-day game so I can watch Kenyon OWU livestream in the evening! As a parent observer to this world, I always appreciate the observations of you more experienced folk, thank you!

Well, I hope the recruit didn't cross Kenyon off his list based on the Lords' performance!

As an aside, and I'm assuming your son has been at Denison for at least a couple of years, do you have any insights or observations about why  Denison hasn't had more success over the past 6-8 years?  Great school, competitive academic profile, and rich tradition, and seemingly right in the sweet spot of very good schools where admissions may be a little more forgiving (similar to Conn Coll, Trinity, Union, SLU, DePauw, Centre, Rhodes, etc). 

P.S.  So is Denison heading to Wabash today/tonight for tomorrow's game?  That is what I presume usually is the protocol, and especially for any playoff games.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 14, 2019, 03:26:47 PM

Quote from: midwest on October 14, 2019, 06:50:47 AM
So JCU-Capital was the "marquee" match of the weekend, but Kenyon-Denison was a better match than the 3-1 Kenyon win makes it sound. A fairly balanced match through much of the first half, with both teams having some opportunities. I've seen Denison barely hold back dominating attacks, and that was not this game. Kenyon led 1-0 at the half, Denison got the equalizer a few minutes into the second half. We heard a Kenyon prospect ask if Kenyon usually played that evenly with teams like Denison. Unfortunately for Denison, things fell apart shortly after substitutions were made to the back line after the 70th minute, as Kenyon went up 2-1. The third goal came from goalie error. Not a game Denison was expected to win, but not as bad a match as the score makes it look.

This week's GL USC poll has Wabash at 9 and DePauw at 10.  If Denison takes both games this week they will surely be ranked in the coach's poll.

OWU, winners of 4 straight by SO, at 6?  PSU-B, losing once this week, and MTU with two draws this week, above them? A minor thing but I would think the deserve 4th.

ONU jumps to second behind Kenyon, JCU third.

One down, one to go for Denison. Two goals in one minute (or so) - but I pointed out how Wabash can be beaten with back side runs.

Fluky goal for Hanover with 3:45 left to steal the win from RHIT. Should they meet again in the conference tourney I think RHIT gets an emphatic win.

Patchy drizzle and 48 degrees at 6:15 pm in Delaware. I suppose I'll still go but it's damn comfortable in Old Dog Ale House . . .

Well, I thought there would already be some comments, so I'll jump in.

As a Kenyon fan I'm disappointed that the Lords didn't pull out a win (because they actually needed a win more than OWU), but all in all, I'm OK with the result, and while I presume OWU was disappointed especially given a significant stats advantage I think the draw was a good result for both teams.  Both teams had their chances, including both hitting a post or crossbar.  Although they don't share a lot of love I think the two programs have developed a very healthy respect for one another and view the other as very worthy opponents.  Jay Martin in his post-game blurb said "this was a good college soccer game between two very good teams" while adding he thought OWU edged the play in the 2nd half.  Kenyon-OWU ranks right up there with any other rivalry in the country.

Kenyon could/should have been down 2-0 before even getting off the bus.  They looked flat to me but maybe it was nerves because of so many sophs and frosh being on that stage for the first time.  The Lords seemed to either hold the ball too long or get rid of it too quickly when there was no need.  The Lords eventually recovered after about 15-20 minutes and had some stretches of pushing and carrying the play.  Momentum seemed to shift back and forth as one might expect.  At any rate, all of Kenyon's young crew got some invaluable experience, and they did so without having to walk away with a loss. Some might be surprised to realize that Kenyon's last loss to OWU was the Sweet 16 nightmare of 2014, two weeks after beating OWU for the first time in years.  Since then I believe the Lords are 5-0-3 in the series.  They also have gotten their injured upperclassmen back and hopefully those players can round into form over the next few games.  Frosh sensation Mac Nardiello-Smith did not play, so hopefully he will not be out long.  Kenyon may be missing an AA type who can take over a game, but they are so deep I'm not sure Brown has figured out who he wants to play.  OWU is a mature squad with loads of talent, fully capable of beating any team in the nation.  These squads likely will play again in a few weeks and of course could end up playing a third time (if both make the NCAA tourney).

One other observation....I never expected Sam Hosmer-Quint to be this good as a CB.  I don't think he's as athletic as Sam Justice, Myers or Lowry, but he's very smart with good timing and pretty good distribution.  The other CB, Bruneau, a frosh who got a chance because of injuries, has been very impressive as well.  Soph standout Scott Upton started the game with 4 or 5 errors in a row and I thought should have been pulled, but the Lords need him to play well and he improved as the game progressed.  And of course the goal yielded was off the same kind of set piece that haunted Kenyon against JCU earlier this year and versus CWRU in their Sweet 16 game last year where CWRU ended up advancing on PKs.

And congrats to Denison on a good win at Wabash.

Paul - per the stats: OWU pads everything.  I've been at games where they listed the attendance at 900  :D :D :D :D :D
I was there until OT but the shots listed for OWU was ridiculously high.

Kenyon had the better of ball control - OWU plays tenaciously when they don't have the ball - but I didn't think Kenyon was too slow on the ball. OWU was  much like Canada vs US Tuesday - relentless pressure for the entire game

As you pointed out Kenyon used almost all their players - once they subbed 7-8 players at once.  Getting these younger players game experience in a contest like this will benefit Kenyon come tourney time. I will say this is the smallest Kenyon team I've seen in the past 6 years.

I sat with Kenyon parents - the players you have been asking about - #10 Penas - just back from a ACL ? tear - one of those types of knee injuries. There is another player that is also just coming back from a similar knee injury.

Per Nardiello-Smith:  there's a crud going round Ohio - maybe he got a touch of it.  I know Ruple from BW played maybe 30 minutes in their loss to Heidelberg and Capital has a couple players suffering.

Other GL thoughts:

• Westminister's margin of victory over Grove City surprised me a bit - 4-0.  Odd scheduling for Westminster to play CWRU right before their last conference game against Geneva, but I think Westminster is now the team to take the PAC spot in the NCAA's.
• Looks like both JCU and ONU were looking ahead to their match-up this Saturday.  Dominant performance by both yet ONU loses and JCU needs OT to get past a scrappy Otterbein team.  Wilmington's game winner came off a corner - ONU defender dove head-first on the goal line to clear the ball but the AR declared the ball had crossed the line. I watched the replay several times - the AR's position was perfect and he didn't hesitate with his call - sprinted up the sideline and took the post goal position per procedure.  The ONU defender raced towards the CR and AR to protest - maybe he wanted them to look at VAR??
• Wilmington, Wilmington, Wilmington. I fully expected them to make the OAC tourney this year - but I did not have them doing this well.  Their two losses are to11-1-1 Kenyon and to a  9-4-1 Adrian. Their draw against Anderson is a head-scratcher - but other than that they're very impressive.  Coach Van der Sluijs achieved almost impossible results at Defiance - coaching both the men's and women's programs simultaneously and obtaining winning records for both.
• Capital scores two odd goals - both from long FK's from midfield (one directly goes in the other flicked on) at Marietta, temporarily giving them the 6th spot for the OAC tourney.  With 5 games to go for all conference teams I think the top 5 spots are set (Otterbein and Wilmington have work to do but the way they are playing they would need to implode to lose the 4th and 5th positions).  They need to make a statement against Mt. Union at home Saturday - a team they have not beaten in the regular season since 2015.
• DePauw shot themselves in the foot with that loss at Wittenberg yesterday.  I was fairly certain Denison would win yesterday and - unless they draw in a future game - I think they finish 7-2 in conference.  The 4th spot is wide open - but Wabash has a difficult schedule and I think they falter.  And DePauw gives up too many goals - so at this point I think Wooster is the 4th team in the NCAC tourney.  Final game of the season has Wooster at Denison - a tourney berth could be on the line that day.

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 17, 2019, 09:53:37 AM
Well, I thought there would already be some comments, so I'll jump in.

As a Kenyon fan I'm disappointed that the Lords didn't pull out a win (because they actually needed a win more than OWU), but all in all, I'm OK with the result, and while I presume OWU was disappointed especially given a significant stats advantage I think the draw was a good result for both teams.  Both teams had their chances, including both hitting a post or crossbar.  Although they don't share a lot of love I think the two programs have developed a very healthy respect for one another and view the other as very worthy opponents.  Jay Martin in his post-game blurb said "this was a good college soccer game between two very good teams" while adding he thought OWU edged the play in the 2nd half.  Kenyon-OWU ranks right up there with any other rivalry in the country.

Kenyon could/should have been down 2-0 before even getting off the bus.  They looked flat to me but maybe it was nerves because of so many sophs and frosh being on that stage for the first time.  The Lords seemed to either hold the ball too long or get rid of it too quickly when there was no need.  The Lords eventually recovered after about 15-20 minutes and had some stretches of pushing and carrying the play.  Momentum seemed to shift back and forth as one might expect.  At any rate, all of Kenyon's young crew got some invaluable experience, and they did so without having to walk away with a loss. Some might be surprised to realize that Kenyon's last loss to OWU was the Sweet 16 nightmare of 2014, two weeks after beating OWU for the first time in years.  Since then I believe the Lords are 5-0-3 in the series.  They also have gotten their injured upperclassmen back and hopefully those players can round into form over the next few games.  Frosh sensation Mac Nardiello-Smith did not play, so hopefully he will not be out long.  Kenyon may be missing an AA type who can take over a game, but they are so deep I'm not sure Brown has figured out who he wants to play.  OWU is a mature squad with loads of talent, fully capable of beating any team in the nation.  These squads likely will play again in a few weeks and of course could end up playing a third time (if both make the NCAA tourney).

One other observation....I never expected Sam Hosmer-Quint to be this good as a CB.  I don't think he's as athletic as Sam Justice, Myers or Lowry, but he's very smart with good timing and pretty good distribution.  The other CB, Bruneau, a frosh who got a chance because of injuries, has been very impressive as well.  Soph standout Scott Upton started the game with 4 or 5 errors in a row and I thought should have been pulled, but the Lords need him to play well and he improved as the game progressed.  And of course the goal yielded was off the same kind of set piece that haunted Kenyon against JCU earlier this year and versus CWRU in their Sweet 16 game last year where CWRU ended up advancing on PKs.

And congrats to Denison on a good win at Wabash.

Paul, a tie was a fair result when you look at the overall play by both teams. However, your comment "Kenyon could/should have been down 2-0 before even getting off the bus" is very accurate. The centerback #15, got the bouncy ball in front of the goal for his first, then his header was not has snappy as it needed to be. Missed opportunity. He did not play for the first six games, however the team has been 4-0-2 since he has started with four shutouts. Makes you wonder.

What cost OWU the win, occurred on a nice shot on goal by a Kenyon player that was obviously going wide; However, a trailing OWU defender back healed it in front of the goal, which eventually resulted in Kenyon's goal.

I thought Kenyon passed the ball well and were quicker to the ball than OWU. #4 is really quick. OWU was tenacious on defense. Another game with a lot of shots, but no goals by OWU. OWU #17 out ran the left back numerous times, but could not get the right touch and score. If the exact game was played at Kenyon's field the score may have been 5-4 or 6-5.

Lastly, my only complaint is that the Kenyon players were flopping a bit much. I have been told that is a norm for Kenyon, however, I did not see that the last two matches in Kenyon. One of those matches Kenyon did not have to flop. ;D

If the stars are aligned and Kenyon manages to score in a playoff game again with 2 seconds left, OWU will see you again in the NCAC finals.

Potentially tough match for you tomorrow against Wabash. I hope it is a good match.

GL Thoughts:

• AMCC - for all their dominance PSU-B could actually find themselves not hosting the final tourney game.  If Medaille wins out, they will be top seed. Nothing left really in this conference except for the championship game on November 9th.  But Medaille and Franciscan might give PSU-B a challenge.
• PAC - there are games defined by parity and their are games that can only be seen as a lost opportunity. Westminster should not have dropped points at Waynesburg - no matter how nettlesome Waynesburg has proven to be this year (three ties against conference opponents at home this season).  But I think the four tournament teams are set, given the remaining games: Westminster, Grove City, W&L and Geneva.
• HCAC - same for this conference - top four currently will be the four tourney teams: Transy, RHIT, Hanover and Manchester. Transy still has both RHIT and Hanover left to play, away at Hanover on Wednesday. Hanover has a cake walk after Wednesday - if they beat Transy they will hold the tie-breaker over both Transy and RHIT and have home field throughout the HCAC tourney - a very likely scenario.  I posted a couple weeks ago that this may be Hanover's year given the disappointing tourney final losses to RHIT and Transy the past two season.
• NCAC - cannot see either of Denison's or Kenyon's results Saturday as being due to parity.  I've seen Wabash play several times this season: results against Trine, Olivet, barely beating Franklin, concede 2 goals to Mt St Joe - SOS 270.  Coming off a home loss to Denison. Sadly I tuned out when Kenyon finally scored . . . Denison squanders a 1-0 lead at home in a critical game with tourney implications.  I think it very possible that Denison and Wooster will be 5-3 when they meet at Denison last game of the NCAC season.  DePauw has at difficult schedule ahead of them, but they could be 4-3 when they face Wabash, who will likely be 4-2-1 for that game.  I know I'm discounting Oberlin's chances - but with their remaining schedule I don't think they win more than one game (maybe two if they can win at Wooster)
• OAC - marque match-up on Saturday goes to JCU - very nice side volley scored directly from a ball received from a corner kick.  JCU dictated the pace and flow of this game, forcing ONU to react for the most part.  First regional rankings should have JCU, Kenyon and OWU as the top three but JCU is should be the #1 spot IMO.  Wouldn't be surprised to see OWU at #1 tho.  Can understand Wilmington being a bit flat after their big win against ONU - but they were beaten soundly by Marietta and they have a very tough final 4 games in the OAC.  Maybe that weak SOS is catching up to them. Capital plays their best game since Case - over 6 weeks ago.  Amazing what can be done when playing with a lead.  Mt. Union still plays as consistently as they have been all season - but they trailed only once this season (PSU-B) and that for only 5-7 minutes.  Was interesting to see them have to push to get an equalizer for almost 70 minutes.  After Heidelberg on Wednesday ONU finishes up with Capital, Otterbein and Mt. Union.  As of today I don't think anyone moves JCU out of first; Otterbein and ONU vie for second and third. Wilmington, Capital and Mt. Union fight it out for positions 4-6.
• Case and CMU - CMU rises to .500 with two wins this weekend; Case concede two more goals in the final minutes of the game - on Sunday with 1 second left (corner kick converted by UR).  CMU may sneak into the top 8 regional rankings but their last three games are on the road, including at Chicago - they won't finish above .500.  Case is also looking at a possible losing record - also currently at .500 with four games to go.

Nobody outside of CMU/Roch/Emory supporters probably watched the 2 CMU games this weekend.
As a supporter, these 2 performances were by far the best of the season - much more dangerous in attack, with defense coming up big with 2 shutouts.
Will be interesting to see how they do in their final 3 games: WashU, Chicago, CWRU - seems very possible to me, if they continue with this form, to see them grab at least 2/3 wins.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 14, 2019, 03:26:47 PM


This week's GL USC poll has Wabash at 9 and DePauw at 10.  If Denison takes both games this week they will surely be ranked in the coach's poll.

OWU, winners of 4 straight by SO, at 6?  PSU-B, losing once this week, and MTU with two draws this week, above them? A minor thing but I would think the deserve 4th.

ONU jumps to second behind Kenyon, JCU third.

Same 10 teams ranked by the coaches this week - lots of reordering:

JCU jumps back to #1, Kenyon slipping down one to #2. PSU-B and OWU move up to 3rd and 4th, respectively.  ONU drops to 5 with two losses last week, Wilmington moves up two spots with a 1-1 week. Mt. Union drops to 7th, Wabash with a 0-1-1 week MOVES UP to 8th (????????), RHIT and DePauw at 9 and 10.

Coaches:  I know you're busy lads but watch a game once in a while . . .

A very disappointing week to be a Kenyon fan. 

I can't even remember the OWU game a week ago today, although all in all that was the Lords' best result over the last week.  A win would have been helpful but a draw was fine.  Then Kenyon follows up three days later, at home, on Parents Weekend, with a listless, lackadaisical performance against Wabash that basically handed the regular season title and home field for the NCAC tournament to the Battling Bishops.  The Lords went up around the 80th minute via Trevor Gleason, a frosh who has been a 3rd or 4th line forward and the last forward to get in games for 5-10 minutes at most.  He's already scored some big goals in limited minutes that hopefully will help him earn a jersey next year that's not in the 30s.  At any rate, Kenyon only needed to see out 10 minutes for a fortunate win given how they played (although still dominated statistically).  With about 7 minutes left, Stengel got taken down in the box pretty blatantly and there was no call.  In the confusion over the non-call Wabash started a break and a Kenyon defender right around midfield or even still in the Wabash half commits what looked like a typical, unremarkable  professional foul to interrupt the Wabash counter. The defender was not close to being the last defender, and yet the referee issued a red.  The call appeared to be a very defensive reaction to just having blown the call that would have given Kenyon a PK and a potential 2-0 lead.  With less than a minute left in regulation Wabash scores off (of course) a 40-45 yard free kick similar to almost every goal the Lords have conceded all year (and some last year as well including in the Sweet 16 game with CWRU).  Apparently a free kick from midfield is more of a threat to the Lords than corners.  Kenyon either needs to stop fouling and giving away free kicks from 60 yards out or closer, or they have to figure out how to defend in those situations.   And then a bad result almost turned disastrous as Wabash had an excellent chance in the 2nd OT that looked headed for the upper right 90 but just missed.

Just two days later (yesterday) the Lords traveled for an afternoon tilt against a hungry and jacked up Wooster side.  Kenyon again could not hold a lead and conceded about five to 5-6 minutes into the 2nd half on a play where the Wooster player waltzed around the top of the 18 unmarked and drilled a shot into the lower right corner.  Kenyon resumed a domination of possession, but as often is the case, created very few dangerous chances with no shots that troubled the Wooster GK.  Wooster later had 2-3 great chances to win it, including in the last minute as Kenyon continued to struggle with set pieces from distance and in closer.  Coach Brown started writing notes for OT when right in front of him a frosh defender struck a free kick inside his own half that somehow landed at one of the Icelandic frosh's feet and ended up in the Wooster net with .4 seconds left. 

Coach Keller at Wabash has done a phenomenal job with that program and Wooster is much improved and competitive.  That said, my sense is that any mid-level to bottom tier NESCAC squad (excluding Trinity) would dispatch these teams fairly easily.  I think Bates for example would just have too much talent for Wabash or Wooster.

Kenyon very well may need to win the NCAC tourney to get a NCAA bid (while OWU already has a Pool C locked up if needed).  They are young and deep with a roster full of decent to good players.  They don't appear to have any great players, and they also do not seem to have a clue about an optimal line-up.  I've said I thought expectations were too high this year at least externally, and the Lords were due for a rebuilding year.  They are 12-1-2, but they don't look good right now, and they likely have no really good wins (as in "ranked").  I would be happier if they played with more urgency, stopped with the soft passes and adventures in the back often including the GK, learned how to handle 50-60 yard free kicks, and stopped fouling in bad spots.

The "if's and but's" year Wooster has had . . . they could very easily be 12-3 with 2-3 ranked wins.  I watched sympathetically yesterday as Coach Zidron slapped his hand on the ground as the game ended.  I went to a HS playoff game last - two very good players from that game are planning to go to Wooster next year. Wooster is just about 50/50 in-state vs out-of-state players, but landing more Ohio players seems to be in their future.

Today's rankings will tell us a lot about SOS versus W/L records that might be a bit inflated due to weak schedules.  I believe OWU will be #1 based on W/L and their SOS - currently the toughest according to Massey.  JCU should be #2 based on the same criteria.  Most interested to see where PSU-B and RHIT are ranked.

Quote from: Domino1195 on October 23, 2019, 11:35:44 AM
The "if's and but's" year Wooster has had . . . they could very easily be 12-3 with 2-3 ranked wins.  I watched sympathetically yesterday as Coach Zidron slapped his hand on the ground as the game ended.  I went to a HS playoff game last - two very good players from that game are planning to go to Wooster next year. Wooster is just about 50/50 in-state vs out-of-state players, but landing more Ohio players seems to be in their future.

Today's rankings will tell us a lot about SOS versus W/L records that might be a bit inflated due to weak schedules.  I believe OWU will be #1 based on W/L and their SOS - currently the toughest according to Massey.  JCU should be #2 based on the same criteria.  Most interested to see where PSU-B and RHIT are ranked.

Sorted GL data according to SOS and listed the current week ranking in the right column.  As we have seen, SOS means the most, followed by W's.  Should Teams like Denison, Case and CMU get above .500 they will most likely become ranked.
Kenyon's SOS looking much better as Colorado College, Wheaton and Centre are all currently ranked in their respective regions.

 

Institution	In-Division W/L	In-Division SOS (weighted OWP-OOWP)	Overall WL  Pct	Week 1
John Carroll	11-2-2	0.622	11-2-2	1
Ohio Wesleyan	9-3-3	0.617	9-3-3	3
Ohio Northern	10-4-1	0.613	11-4-1	4
Kenyon	9-1-2	0.594	11-1-2	2
CWRU	5-5-4	0.586	5-5-4
Mount Union	8-2-3	0.574	8-2-3	5
Denison	5-7-1	0.566	5-7-1
Otterbein	9-5-0	0.565	9-5-0	6
Hanover	6-4-1	0.562	7-5-1	7
Carnegie Mellon	6-6-1	0.557	6-6-1
Capital	6-4-3	0.556	6-4-3	8

GREAT LAKES REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - October 23, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	John Carroll	11-2-2	0.622	--	11-2-2	--
2.	Kenyon	9-1-2	0.594	--	11-1-2	--
3.	Ohio Wesleyan	9-3-3	0.617	--	9-3-3	--
4.	Ohio Northern	10-4-1	0.613	--	11-4-1	--
5.	Mount Union	8-2-3	0.574	--	8-2-3	--
6.	Otterbein	9-5-0	0.565	--	9-5-0	--
7.	Hanover	6-4-1	0.562	--	7-5-1	--
8.	Capital	6-4-3	0.556	--	6-4-3	--

Steady rain in much of the Great Lakes region today, could make for some unexpected results. I had Wabash/OWU live stream up for a bit, and it looks miserable. 0-0 at the half.

Update -- Wabash scores a few minutes into the second half, leads 1-0.

Update, and that's 3 points to Wabash. Kenyon has to be celebrating, as OWU will drop out of 1st in NCAC.

And final update -- lots of misery in Ohio tonight. Pouring rain, winds. If my math is right, Wabash clinched its spot in NCAC tournament by beating OWU, while Kenyon is celebrating being back on top of the NCAC. Oberlin beats Wooster in OT. Denison loses in pouring rain to Wittenberg at W'berg on its senior night. Not the outcomes anyone would have predicted on a regular night, but with those winds and slick ball/fields, a night for the lucky rather than skilled.

As poster midwest foreshadowed, yesterday saw a wild and unpredictable day/night in NCAC land.  We'll never know if the weather was causative or coincidental, but certainly weather days like yesterday are to be expected over the course of a Fall season including in Ohio (and Indiana).  And one might also say that parity in the form of mediocrity yields results like these as well.

The day overall belonged to Wabash.  I honestly did not see Wabash getting a win over OWU for the very first time ever dating back 32 years to 1977 (with OWU 26-0-2 during that span).  The Little Giants could actually win the NCAC if Kenyon has another stumble, and although I'm no expert on the tiebreakers at a minimum Wabash could force OWU to travel for a NCAC semi (where again OWU would be clearly favored).  The bigger news for OWU was ceding control to Kenyon after the Lords had coughed up control courtesy of the same spoiling Wabash crew.

Knowing that they received a gift earlier in the day, Kenyon did not gain a lead at hapless Hiram until the 82nd minute despite a 19 (11) to 2 (1) shots advantage and similar advantage of 13 to 2 for corners.  The Lords should win the next two versus Oberlin and DaPauw (both at home), but that is far from guaranteed.  Even a draw in one of those tilts could lift Wabash or OWU into the top spot.  The Lords surely would like to avoid a trip to a semi in Crawfordsville.

Wooster, after a heartbreak ending against Kenyon, again at home grabbed disappointment out of the jaws of hope and change by dropping a double overtime affair to Oberlin.  A crushing defeat and yet the Scots are still alive given that Oberlin and DePauw are far from locks to pick up another W in their final two.

Denison spit the bit at Wittenberg in a contest that stats-wise was pretty even (with Witt having a slight edge irrc).

At any rate, the top three spots (if not the order) appear set, and the 4th spot is still very much up for grabs with a decent chance of DePauw, Oberlin, Denison and Wooster all sitting at 4-4 heading into a final game.  DePauw versus Wabash mid-week and/or Wooster versus Denison next Saturday could prove determinative.

OWU still will be one of the two favorites to earn the NCAC AQ, and with a strong SoS and gaudy RvR the Battling Bishops should still be in good shape for a Pool C although they are cracking the door open for a nervous selection day if their blemish total reaches 8.

Kudos to the camera operator at Wabash Saturday for trying to keep the lens clear of rain, which proved to be an impossible task.  Very difficult to weigh in on what  I saw except to say passing for OWU was way off. After getting the lead Wabash dropped their forwards back to midfield and defied OWU to open them up, which of course proved to be very difficult.  I do not think Wabash goes 2-0 this week, although it's not impossible that they can win at DePauw and Oberlin.  OWU should not have any issues going 2-0. As for the 4th spot - flip a coin. Too much inconsistency from the teams vying for the last place in the NCAC tourney, and this team gets to play at Kenyon so . . .

Hanover has all but clinched home field for the HCAC tourney - should go 2-0 this week but they have a tricky final game away at Defiance, who has a chance to take the 4th spot away from Manchester.

PrAC is still up in the air - Westminster has one conference game left - best they can do is 6-0-2, but if W&J finishes 2-0 they will have home field for the tourney.  Last game of the year at home vs Grove City; assuming these two win their games Wednesday the winner finishes second (or potentially first for W&J).  Westminster tonight at home versus Case . . .

Medaille and PSU-B to get the first round bye's in the AMCC tourney, which starts this Saturday.  I hope we see a rematch for these two teams for the automatic NCAA bid.

JCU has pretty much sewn up 1st in the OAC.  Everything after that is still very wide-open.  Cap played ONU to a draw on Saturday, the weather impacting the first ONU goal - unfortunate for Cap fans.  Cap led twice, the second time conceding the tying goal with 90 seconds left.  With Otterbein currently second at 5-2 and Cap and ONU at 4-2-1, MTU at 3-1-3 - any of these teams can finish in second and get a first round bye. Otterbein away at ONU Wednesday, home Saturday against Cap - they are playing the strongest soccer in Ohio behind JCU at the moment.  They CAN score - unlike most teams in Ohio - and have been in every game since the return of their senior GK (after the Hanover game). I attended the Wilmington game this past Wednesday - they aren't flawless on defense - but they are excellent at controlling midfield and winning 50/50 balls.  ONU is 1-2-1 in their last 4 - and that win was an OT win against struggling Heidelberg.  Current form indicates an away win for Otterbein, but the weather forecast calls for rain beginning Wednesday evening in Ohio . . . ONU then has MTU at home on Saturday.

CWRU defeats Westminister 4-1 last evening.  The impact of this game will not factor into regional standings this week but Case's results can be important to many Ohio and GL teams these next two weeks. CWRU is the "Kevin Bacon" of GL teams - all the potential NCAA teams from the region either played Case or are one degree away from Case via an opponent.  Should Case get any positive results this weekend they may find themselves entering the regional rankings as their SOS is plenty strong.

GREAT LAKES REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - October 30, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	John Carroll	13-2-2	0.614	4-2-1	13-2-2	1
2.	Kenyon	11-1-2	0.573	3-1-1	13-1-2	2
3.	Ohio Wesleyan	10-4-3	0.619	5-3-2	10-4-3	3
4.	Ohio Northern	11-4-2	0.596	3-3-1	12-4-2	4
5.	Mount Union	9-2-4	0.546	1-1-1	9-2-4	5
6.	Otterbein	11-5-0	0.560	1-3-0	11-5-0	6
7.	Hanover	8-4-1	0.550	2-3-0	9-5-1	7
8.	Capital	7-4-4	0.556	1-2-2	7-4-4	8

Second regional rankings sorted by SOS.  Might be interesting for some to compare the rise and fall of SOS and RvR as each week passes. These two measures have been most critical to gaining a Pool C in past years.

Not a single change from week 1.  OWU with the strongest SOS in the GL, 10 of their 17 games against ranked opponents - wow. Coach's Poll has them 8th  ;) ;) ;)

In 2017 Capital (12-7-2) jumped CMU (10-4-3) in the last ranking, taking perhaps one of the last Pool C bids in the country.  From week three to week four the changes were as follows:

Week 3:#4 CMU:      SOS .636, RvR 2-3-3#6 Capital:  SOS .586, RvR 3-4
Week 4:#5 Capital:  SOS .609, RvR 4-5-2#6 CMU:      SOS .623, RvR 1-3-3

This also highlights the disadvantage to UAA teams for not having a conference tournament.  Capital played two more games against ranked opponents in the last week due to the OAC tournament, and then benefited from two previously unranked opponents becoming ranked in the fourth rankings.

I also listed the USC Coach's Poll to show how completely irrelevant they are . . .

 

USC	Institution	Vs Ranked	SOS Week 1	SOS Week 2	Week 1 RR	Week 2 RR
#8	Ohio Wesleyan	5-3-2	0.617	0.619	3	3
#1	John Carroll	4-2-1	0.622	0.614	1	1
	Ohio Northern	3-3-1	0.613	0.596	4	4
	CWRU	1-2-3	0.586	0.590
	Carnegie Mellon	0-3-1	0.557	0.576
#2	Kenyon	3-1-1	0.594	0.573	2	2
#6	Otterbein	1-3-0	0.565	0.560	6	6
	Capital	1-2-2	0.556	0.556	8	8
	Heidelberg	0-5-0	0.538	0.554
#10	Hanover	2-3-0	0.562	0.550	7	7
#9	Mount Union	0-5-1	0.574	0.546	5	5
	Denison	1-1-1	0.566	0.546
	Allegheny	0-2-0	0.536	0.540
	Wooster	0-5-1	0.53	0.536
	Marietta	1-4-0	0.508	0.536
	Transylvania	0-6-0	0.538	0.527
	Oberlin	0-4-0	0.516	0.513
	DePauw	0-2-0	0.518	0.503
	Manchester	1-3-0	0.507	0.502
	Baldwin Wallace	1-2-0	0.477	0.502
	Medaille	0-1-0	0.509	0.491
	Grove City	0-1-0	0.491	0.489
	Wittenberg	0-2-0	0.486	0.489
	Hiram	0-2-0	0.478	0.481
	Alfred St.		0.436	0.480
	Wilmington (OH)	1-2-1	0.463	0.477
#4	Rose-Hulman	1-2-0	0.478	0.475
	Anderson (IN)	0-2-0	0.495	0.474
#3	Penn St.-Behrend	1-0-0	0.487	0.470
#5	Wabash	1-0-1	0.451	0.463

You can stick a fork in Oberlin and Wooster. NCAC 4th is for DePauw to lose and Denison to make DePauw sweat. Rain going to be a factor in all 7pm Ohio games. 

Capital to use a backup keeper tonight - no other keeper has played a minute for Cap this season. Might see a more defensive, counter attack posture from them I reckon', MM MMMMM.

The fork is in Wooster....tough stretch for the Scots.  Oberlin not totally done if they can beat Wabash on the last day, and if DePauw can't get a win over Wabash or Kenyon.  An opening for Denison if they can win two, although a DePauw win tonight versus Wabash would finish Denison I think because of head to head.

In my experience following along the NCAA regional rankings treat winning pct, SoS and RvR as pretty much co-equals with a nod to head to heads.  OWU should be in good shape with a chance to win the NCAC AQ and/or assuming they stay ahead of ONU, and assuming there aren't any shock winners of the NCAC and/or OAC tourneys.  An 8th blemish wouldn't be great but the SoS and RvR should see them into the NCAA tournament.  I think Kenyon is OK too, as the teams the Lords needed to be ranked were ranked again this week, so Kenyon won't lose those ranked wins for next week's rankings.

Keys for Kenyon (and pretty much what I've said all year)....

1) Stop giving up free kicks from 25-45 yards out, or conversely, learn how to defend them.  Any film review will clue in future opponents that free kicks from distance have been an achilles heel in terms of giving up goals.

2) Stop playing teammates into trouble areas that leave them open to counters where the Lords have lost their shape....the same player played teammates into bad spots (up against a sideline with no space) three times in a row in the 1st half against Oberlin giving the Yeoman their only half-chances of the half, and then the Oberlin goal (a beauty btw) came off a similar bad/loose giveaway in the 2nd half.

3) Understanding the importance of game management and seeing games out.  If you're up 2-0 don't act like you're down 1-0 allowing the team to get stretched and vulnerable to counters and an increased need to foul in bad spots.

4) Stop playing loosey-goosey in the back especially with soft and/or dangerous passes back and forth with the GK, especially in slick conditions.

5) Be hyper-aware that just one or two bad errors and/or what I would call low IQ play can make the difference in post-season matches.

Nardiello-Smith obviously is injured as he still has not returned and Penas did not play today.

P.S.  I will add that even though Kenyon often drives me crazy with very tough to take errors,  Coach Brown deserves a ton of credit.  He's playing 25+ kids regularly, there have been injuries, and he really hasn't had a set line-up.  They should be better next year, but that said, Kenyon yet again is sitting at 14-1-2.  He hasn't won the big one yet but his resurrection of the program and the Kenyon run since 2013 really are remarkable and the job he has done during that span has to rank among the top handful of coaches in the country over that stretch.

I looked on NCAC site and couldn't find the answer to how ties are resolved to determine top finishers in conference. Head-to-head first? Goal differential? Presumably Wabash is playing to win so they could finish 2nd -- if they use head-to-head -- and host OWU next week.  Not raining in Central Indiana tonight, so Depauw-Wabash should turn less on the weather than last weekend's games. 

As Denison supporters, we are hoping Wabash continues its winning ways. Denison dug an unnecessarily deep hole for itself, with losses to Depauw and W'berg, though in fairness, the starting GK has been out for almost 2 weeks and the senior GK who started the last several games has not played much in 4 years until now. A tough spot for someone to step into withe post-conference play on the line.

The DePauw-Wabash game should be a good one.  Beyond the historical rivalry (and the whole Monen Bell football thing), both will be highly motivated.  DePauw would love to secure a win without relying on a win in Gambier, and Wabash would love to finish as high as possible and force OWU to travel.  However, OWU would be highly favored regardless of where another Wabash-OWU game is played.  The best outcome for Wabash would be a win tonight and DePauw knocking Kenyon out of first place on Saturday.  Of course even in that scenario Wabash would still need to win at Oberlin (likely but certainly not guaranteed).

Also curious about extent of boost to SoS of OWU and ONU having Calvin in their mix.  Would be interesting to calculate SoS for a handful of teams dropping the best and worst opponent records.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=67&v=xW74vxcnskw

Game is televised on Fox Sports Midwest

P.S.  I will always love DePauw a little because of Brad Stevens.

Quote from: PaulNewman on October 30, 2019, 06:06:00 PM
The fork is in Wooster....tough stretch for the Scots.

Rain was a factor but their GK was way off today. Chipped twice - poor position and feet with roots deeper than an oak. When Wooster trimmed their deficit to 2-1 all the momentum went their way. Then two chip shots made it 4-1. The field players deserved better.

And that is Denison's season. All that's left is Senior day vs. Wooster. After holding teams like Capital to scoreless draw and JCU to 1 goal in September, finds a way to lose to Wittenberg, Hiram and Depauw in last 2 weeks. Rough season.

I wish Daltronix was still wreaking havoc in the NCAC

Wow - for the early games!  Oberlin pulls out a must-need win against Wabash, surely thinking they'd jump DePauw for 4th - and then DePauw scores in the final minute to win at Kenyon. OWU wins tonight and they finish first in the NCAC. I thought Oberlin had a chance at home today, but really didn't see DePauw's result.

Otterbein and Cap go to OT with Bein winning early in OT 2-1.  Cap bias admitted, but the CR assigned to this game, from WVA, who used laminated paper cards, was so far out of his league (and State, competence level - you name it). Cap outplays Bein all first half and this joke awards a PK on a chested ball at the top of the 18 - claimed it hit the Cap player's arm. Cap player went to HS with my son and was distraught after the game - ball never hit his arm - ref guessed. 

Second half more of the same Cap dominance. OT goal comes after a hard foul ( not called, player already on a yellow - should have had a second yellow for a very hard foul in the second half). Ball is crossed and players fall to the ground near back post - ball pushed into the goal by an Otterbein player's arm.  My son was behind the goal and saw the play.

Be careful about bitching about officiating - I know. But this game deserved better officiating and the Ohio assignor should be ashamed of his choices today.  Good news for Cap is they are playing very well - second game without the starting keeper - backup played great today.

Quote from: Domino1195 on November 02, 2019, 04:51:56 PM
Wow - for the early games!  Oberlin pulls out a must-need win against Wabash, surely thinking they'd jump DePauw for 4th - and then DePauw scores in the final minute to win at Kenyon. OWU wins tonight and they finish first in the NCAC. I thought Oberlin had a chance at home today, but really didn't see DePauw's result.

Otterbein and Cap go to OT with Bein winning early in OT 2-1.  Cap bias admitted, but the CR assigned to this game, from WVA, who used laminated paper cards, was so far out of his league (and State, competence level - you name it). Cap outplays Bein all first half and this joke awards a PK on a chested ball at the top of the 18 - claimed it hit the Cap player's arm. Cap player went to HS with my son and was distraught after the game - ball never hit his arm - ref guessed. 

Second half more of the same Cap dominance. OT goal comes after a hard foul ( not called, player already on a yellow - should have had a second yellow for a very hard foul in the second half). Ball is crossed and players fall to the ground near back post - ball pushed into the goal by an Otterbein player's arm.  My son was behind the goal and saw the play.

Be careful about bitching about officiating - I know. But this game deserved better officiating and the Ohio assignor should be ashamed of his choices today.  Good news for Cap is they are playing very well - second game without the starting keeper - backup played great today.

And....that was the women's game.

Lords 4-0....20 min left.

Congrats to Oberlin.

THAT makes sense.

Full slate of GL games today - two yesterday in the OAC:

• MTU @ Cap - as even as you can get. 2-2 through OT, MTU wins on the 6th kick from the mark.  After JCU, the OAC truly was a toss-up this year, with 8 teams having a legitimate chance to qualify for the conference tournament. Cap lost another starter midway through the first half - went to the hospital for x-rays - not sure what happened on the play.  Playing with their back-up keeper for the third consecutive game, who did very well given his limited experience this year.  MTU is the only OAC team to take a point from JCU - their senior leadership is evident in their poise and consistency.  Might snow on Thursday night at JCU . . .
• Marietta @ ONU - Marietta with a slight surprise winning at ONU 2-0.  I thought Marietta to be much better than their record - a lot like Denison where they hung in, every game, but managed to fall short. Lost at Otterbein first time, 0-0 until after the 70th minute - statistically even with Bein.  Would not be surprised to see Marietta get the win.

Depending on results OAC may only get one bid this year.  JCU is pretty much a lock; if they get the automatic qualifier that may be it.  Bein and MTU with an outside shot - see what the regional ranking tell us today.

A shout out to the Capital seniors though - tough way to end their 4 years.  But they won a conference title and earned two trips to the NCAA tournament - first time since 2009 - and gained the university's first two wins in program history.  On their death beds they will have that going for them, which is nice . . .

It's Marietta at JCU and MTU at Bein.  :)

I thought that's what it should have been but the OAC site had the pairings listed, initially, that the winner of 4v5 was at JCU.  Might have been based on an "assumption" that the higher seeds would have won yesterday, which happened in neither game.  That does change things a lot as I believe MTU or Bein may have a chance at Pool C - Bein with a stronger SOS would have the better chance as of today.

GREAT LAKES REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - November 06, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	John Carroll	15-2-2	0.596	5-2-1	15-2-2	1
2.	Kenyon	13-1-2	0.565	3-1-1	15-1-2	2
3.	Ohio Wesleyan	12-4-3	0.589	5-3-2	12-4-3	3
4.	Ohio Northern	12-5-2	0.601	4-4-1	13-5-2	4
5.	Mount Union	10-3-4	0.544	2-1-1	10-3-4	5
6.	Otterbein	12-6-0	0.565	2-5-0	12-6-0	6
7.	Hanover	10-4-1	0.528	2-3-0	11-5-1	7
8.	Capital	8-5-4	0.557	1-3-2	8-5-4	8

At the half:

PSU-B has a PK stopped but scores minutes later off a corner.  After a delay due to CR injury, play restarts with PSU-B moving directly ahead, player dribbles by two, three MTA defenders and rips one to the far post. 2-0.  Don't think I'll tune back into this one.

Missed the two goals in the Kenyon game - both PK's.  1-1 at half.

Hanover with a dominant (statistical) performance with nothing to show, then with 40 some-odd second left a player dribbles across the 18 and blasts one - upper 90 far post.  Beauty. 1-0 at half.

Downloaded the third rankings - haven't converted and sorted the data yet.  But with Capital possibly dropping out of the 8 might be interesting to project what the RvR looks like with them out.

For the third straight week the RR did not change. Couple things to note:

   
• Hanover drops 5 spots based on SOS, but based on the Pool C criteria adopted this year they won't lose the ranked win vs Capital if Cap drops out the final week.  But realistically the only team that can jump Capital is Marietta and they'd need a helluva week to do so (I cut this list to teams with SOS greater than .500)
• That ONU loss last night could be very costly, but with 4 ranked wins and the only SOS over .600, they could still be in consideration come next week.  And their SOS might go up given what OWU, Hope, Hanover and Otterbein do this week.
• MTU and Otterbein are in control of their fate. Think I'll be at that game on Thursday!

 

Institution	Vs Ranked	SOS Week 1	SOS Week 2	SOS Week 3	Week 1 RR	Week 2 RR	Week 3 RR
Ohio Northern	4-4-1	0.613	0.596	0.601	4	4	4
John Carroll	5-2-1	0.622	0.614	0.596	1	1	1
CWRU	1-4-3	0.586	0.590	0.591
Ohio Wesleyan	5-3-2	0.617	0.619	0.589	3	3	3
Carnegie Mellon	1-4-1	0.557	0.576	0.579
Kenyon	3-1-1	0.594	0.573	0.565	2	2	2
Otterbein	2-5-0	0.565	0.560	0.565	6	6	6
Capital	1-3-2	0.556	0.556	0.557	8	8	8
Heidelberg	0-6-0	0.538	0.554	0.55
Mount Union	2-1-1	0.574	0.546	0.544	5	5	5
Denison	0-5-1	0.566	0.546	0.535
Oberlin	0-5-0	0.516	0.513	0.53
Marietta	0-5-1	0.508	0.536	0.529
Hanover (10)	2-3-0	0.562	0.550	0.528	7	7	7
Allegheny	0-2-0	0.536	0.540	0.528
Transylvania	0-6-0	0.538	0.527	0.525
DePauw	0-3-0	0.518	0.503	0.525
Wooster	1-4-0	0.53	0.536	0.516
Baldwin Wallace	2-3-0	0.477	0.502	0.504

Really glad I missed the first 25 minutes of Kenyon today.  Lords gave up a PK in the first minute on what was described as a defensive blunder capped by the GK taking out Oberlin's best player.  I'd bet money that the play is what I'm been screaming about all year.  Everyone has to be on top of their games, including the coaches.  Tomas Munoz Reyes did not play today as I feared.  He's featured as just having won NCAC player of the week but also was injured in the last regular season tilt.  He scored twice and picked up a yellow.  He needed to be subbed out as he had done his job and he is prone to picking up yellows, so the coaches should have gotten him out to avoid him missing the next game with two yellows (red).  He stays in for a blowout, suffers and injury, and now I suppose he's out for a while.  Same thing with a couple of players today (Schoellkopf had a strong game but imo should have been off the field for the last 10-15 minutes).   Anyway, at this stage of the season especially, details matter.  Players and coaches have to bring intensity, urgency and concentration.

Paul - FWIW Kenyon totally took control in the second half - hitting posts and crossbars in addition to scoring 4 goals.

Looks like I'm getting most of the conference tournament match-ups to was hoping to see:

   
• HCAC - Hanover scores two crackers from outside the 18 (more on that later, OWU) to earn their spot.  RHIT and Transy had an epic battle with RHIT winning 2-1, getting a PK with about 25 minutes left.  I watched the PK several times and, given the scrappy play the CR allowed for much of the game, I think this call was harsh. Two kids battling for the ball - ball squirts out and two more kids battle for the ball - player goes down. Sorry - I need more than that to hand a game of this importance to a team.  So we have Hanover, winners of their last 9, including a 2-1 win over RHIT, versus RHIT, winners of their last 6, at Hanover.  Good thing too from a playing surface perspective.  Not sure what's going on with RHIT's field but I've seen better grass in Saudia Arabia during the summer.  Maybe use Scott's Lawn Care products? ???
• Based on what I've seen from these teams this year:  I believe RHIT is the better team. The conference championship has been decided in regular time only once in the past 6 years, twice needing PK's to declare the winner.
• PAC - W&J dream season continues - barely. Grove City ties the game up with less than a minutes left in the second half, only to fall in OT 2-1. Geneva and Westminster need kicks from the mark to settle their scoreless affair.  GC could never find a level of consistency to make a run that most expected from this team this year, but inconsistency ruled their season.  W&J spanked Geneva at Geneva this year - started to watch that game but turned it off after W&J scored 3 goals in 12 minutes (after going down 1-0).
• W&J has the third lowest SOS in the GL; Geneva took Capital to OT scoreless and lost to Case with 10 second left in regulation.  The highest rated team W&J played was Marietta, to whom they lost 3-0. My hunch is Geneva pulls an upset.
• AMCC - as I expected we're going to get a rematch of PSU-B at Medaille. These two have met in the AMCC tournament final 9 of the last 10 years - PSU-B has been to every final in the last 10 years. 2 of the 3 times Medaille won the tourney it was by PK's.  But here's PSU-B with their gaudy 19-1 record needing to win this game or be excluded from the NCAA tourney.
• NCAC - Kenyon's solid second half earned them their spot in the NCAC finals.  OWU scores early in the first half - header off a corner that most in attendance couldn't understand how the player got his head on the ball - past the back post and seemingly over his head, and then secondly - how it got in the goal.  But great skill by the goal scorer!  But if soccer kept track of possession in the 18 like the NFL does with red zone possessions, OWU would have had a dozen possessions in the first half - no shots taken!!!  They dominated possession for the first 20 minutes - things evened up for the end of the half and for much of the second half.  But they over-passed - got to take shots lads.
• OAC match-up tonight.  Supposed to have snowfall - might have accumulation, which I think would be more likely in Cleveland than in Columbus.  Tentatively going to the Otterbein-MTU game - but if it snows . . .

Re PS-B am I right to assume they have to win the AQ otherwise they don't make the big dance despite having 18/19 wins? Their SOS was under 0.500 last time I looked, do teams ever get a pool C berth at that level?

Quote from: ChrisJS on November 07, 2019, 12:06:05 PM
Re PS-B am I right to assume they have to win the AQ otherwise they don't make the big dance despite having 18/19 wins? Their SOS was under 0.500 last time I looked, do teams ever get a pool C berth at that level?

Almost impossible.  And you have to look no further than your JCU team of 2014:  17-4 record, 4-0-0 vs ranked, SOS .535.  The OAC was weaker than the NCAC then - tables turned a bit now.

Quote from: Domino1195 on November 07, 2019, 12:40:17 PM

Quote from: ChrisJS on November 07, 2019, 12:06:05 PM
Re PS-B am I right to assume they have to win the AQ otherwise they don't make the big dance despite having 18/19 wins? Their SOS was under 0.500 last time I looked, do teams ever get a pool C berth at that level?

Almost impossible.  And you have to look no further than your JCU team of 2014:  17-4 record, 4-0-0 vs ranked, SOS .535.  The OAC was weaker than the NCAC then - tables turned a bit now.

That JC team got robbed though...yes SOS was low but 4 ranked wins and undefeated vs ranked is legit. Total crime they missed out that year.

JCU and Otterbein to meet in the OAC final. JCU wins a close one, again, on a set piece, again (throw in).  Otterbein needs OT for the second consecutive match.

With the win over MTU - which I assume will be ranked in the final RR, Otterbein's resume would be 3-5-0 vs ranked.  Their .565 SOS will increase with the additional games against MTU and JCU - but by how much?  JCU could survive a loss Saturday and still get in, Otterbein may be on the bubble for a Pool C.  After the 5 GL AQ's the only sure Pool C is the loser of OWU and Kenyon for the GL.

I watched bits and pieces of both games. JCU looked decent but actually Otterbein looks like a team that could win a game or 2 in the NCAA's. They have all the size they need and they look to attack goal and are a team that  will find any scrappy goal and pounce on any mistake u give them.  Cold weather team with the right matchup could win a game or 2. They have a young 32 year old Brit as Head Coach who was never a Head Coach before this gig but has been successful so far.

JCU, Kenyon and OWU all should be Pool C locks if they don't get their AQ.  If JCU does not get the OAC AQ then that is two Pool Cs to GL already.  I would think there would be at least one more with a tight criteria battle between Otterbein, ONU and Mt Union.  There are now 21 Pool Cs.  Depending on what happens elsewhere maybe the GL gets four Pool Cs.  If JCU does win the AQ, then just three Pool Cs would get two more OAC teams in.

Sure wish the GL conferences would have coordinated with my schedule before setting all start times for today's games. And considering all the Ohio HS championships take place at Crew Stadium - c'mon man!

So I choose OWU-Kenyon - best game in the region today anyway but I'll try to peek at the Hanover-RHIT game also. New Columbia boots, down jacket - do your worst Mother Nature . . .

Happy for Kenyon and mildly surprised, especially after trailing 1-0 at the half.  Lords now 17-1-2 with another NCAC double.  After losing two All-Americans (Lowry and Anderson) as well as several other multiple year starters (Koval, McNeer, etc) I did not expect this kind of season.  And  the Lords also have had a fair share of injuries to absorb.

Kenyon started fairly well and imo had the better of the play the first 20 minutes, except for repeated errors by defenders usually with no pressure.  In that sense, OWU looked far more poised and mature, and OWU looked stronger after going ahead somewhat against the run of play on yet another unforced defensive miscue.  In retrospect, OWU needed another goal to add cushion at the half and to more fully demoralize Kenyon.  After the break, imo Kenyon again controlled much of the play.  Overall an impressive win, although I continue to have trouble watching given the occasional really bad Lords errors and adventures in the box.  Still making soft 5-10 yard back and square passes just daring  strikers and midfielders to intercept with a straight line into an open Kenyon box.  The Lords look most vulnerable on their own corners and balls lost in their offensive final third as for some reason they are repeatedly exposed for counters.  Brown played 3-4 less players than usual but Kenyon's depth may have played a role in the outcome.

Not sure why OWU wasn't more consistently dangerous as they do have loads of offensive talent, but the Battling Bishops will be a tough out in the NCAA tournament.

P.S.  Chayne Bruneau, a frosh CB from Glastonbury, CT and Loomis Chaffee, was named NCAC tourney MVP.  Outstanding player who uncharacteristically made several unforced errors in the first half (maybe nerves) but had a great second half.  Somehow, Sam Hosmer-Quint, the other CB, who has been rock-solid all year (and generally again today) was left off the all-tourney selections.   

The JCU vs. Otterbein comments left me scratching my head.  JCU played mediocre in both games and the first only went to OT because of a goalie error and considering JCU still had an average shot total of 23 or 24 to 7.5 for Otterbein and a lions share of the possession...the games should have been 2 or 3-0.  Otterbein had a nice season and will only get better and in my opinon deserved to be in the dance over Ohio Northern, but JCU playing average was still enough.

Quote from: jcudad on November 11, 2019, 10:43:31 PM
The JCU vs. Otterbein comments left me scratching my head.  JCU played mediocre in both games and the first only went to OT because of a goalie error and considering JCU still had an average shot total of 23 or 24 to 7.5 for Otterbein and a lions share of the possession...the games should have been 2 or 3-0.  Otterbein had a nice season and will only get better and in my opinon deserved to be in the dance over Ohio Northern, but JCU playing average was still enough.

Not sure I followed you here or what you were responding to.  Was playing mediocre/average as you put it a choice for JCU?  Or why would they play average, especially in a conference final? 

JCU has a very good draw and a very fair chance to reach the Final Four.  No Calvin or Chicago or Messiah standing in the way, and a solid home field advantage that should continue if JCU gets through the first weekend.

OWU has a tough draw, especially on paper having to play a rejuvenated Hope squad at Hope with Chicago looming.  If OWU can sneak past Hope (probably a toss-up kind of game with Hope at home) I'd like their chances to pull an upset playing Chicago on a neutral field.  And then OWU would have a great chance to reach the Elite 8 versus Calvin or maybe North Park.

Many of us are protective of our own teams, and in that vein, imo Kenyon received no favors beyond home field and will have to play two very strong games just to get out of the weekend with potential heavyweights waiting at the Sweet 16 round.  I see some already are forecasting an early exit for the Lords.  That's totally fair based on the youth of this year's team and also until the Lords break through past the Sweet 16 and Elite 8. 

One.game.at.a.time.

Rust Belt Quad  ;) ;)

Temperatures in Ohio not expected to get above 35-37 degrees for the week - might reach a balmy 40 degrees on Sunday. Kenyon matches at 11am and 1:30; JCU matches at 1pm and 3:30pm. My plan is to see the two games at Kenyon and watch the Centre-K'Zoo game in a warm bar.

Kenyon Group:

Kenyon vs PSU-B: Kenyon's 17-1-2 record is very impressive when you consider how young this team is. Only 5 seniors, two of whom really haven't had much of an impact on the team's performance (senior John Penas played in the last three games – 60+ minutes against OWU – having missed most of the year with injuries. Could be an asset during the tournament). 60% of the scoring comes from 4 sophomores and 2 freshman. Leading scorer, freshman Alti Hrafnkelsson (9 goals), has yet to start a game. Kenyon has scored the most of any team in the RBQ.

Kenyon has used dozens of starting line-ups (no player started in all 20 games, only one player played in all 20 games) and has made deep use of their bench.
This team also has the fewest clean-sheets of any Kenyon team in recent memory – only 8.  Mistakes, miscommunication with backs and GK – leading to poor goals against (Wilmington, Wabash come to mind).  Another sore point is penalties, with Kenyon converting 4 of 7 YTD.  This conversion rate won't cut it if a game needs PK's to decide.

Penn St. Behrend is a difficult team to assess. There is that 19-1 W/L record, scoring 69 goals while only conceding 13 (second lowest total behind Kalamazoo's 11 for RBQ teams).  And then there's the SOS of .483 and only one game played against a ranked opponent, an OT win away at Mount Union.  But in that game PSU-B was every bit the equal to MTU:  great strength in midfield, high pressure (led to a MTU turnover and PSU-B's first goal) and lines that stayed connected. And in 2018 they took a similar team to JCU and beat the hosts 1-0 in double OT.
In the one game they lost this year Medaille scored off a headed corner kick. In the Baldwin Wallace game they conceded two PK's in that 3-2 win.  But since the first two games of the year, where they gave up 5 goals, they have only allowed 8 goals in the next 18 games.

What to watch for:
Kenyon will possibly face two turf opponents this first weekend.  Given the incredibly dry conditions in Ohio grass fields played like turf for most of the year, but not any longer.  The OWU-Kenyon game was marked by many players slipping and falling, including players taking goal kicks.  Studs over molded cleats would be recommended.  Offense has been clicking last 4 games – yes, two strong results against Oberlin, but scoring 16 goals over this span can fuel optimism for their forwards. PSU-B has played maybe 3 games on grass this year.  If they press Kenyon high they could force one of those turnovers that seem to occur once a game for Kenyon.  If PSU-B gets a lead they will sit-in and defy Kenyon to break them down. This game could go to OT and need PK's to decide the winner (PSU-B is 6 of 8 from the spot this year).

UR vs Hanover:  I admit I only saw UR once this year - the entire game against JCU. Good wins against Vassar, Hobart and Brandeis, not so good losses against Cortland, Wash U and CMU.  Hanover beat Otterbein, Capital, lost to OWU 2-1 - all at Hanover, and are winners of 9 straight - tied the championship game against RHIT, needing PK's to get here.  Hanover is a great group of complementary players - leading goal scorer Luke Eppler (9 goals) - but do not play well away from home, especially against quality opponents.  The 20 goals conceded is the most of the RBQ teams and they really haven't put away teams that they should have handled better.  After conceding an OG early in the Spalding game they struggled to get the equalizer in a game where I thought they were much better than their opponent.
Interesting to note is Hanover and UR are the least carded teams in the RBQ: Hanover only 12 times, UR 16 (UR has only played 17 games this year however).  Hanover is 5th lowest in the country in fouls committed.

What to watch for:
If UR wins (I think they will win 2-0) and Kenyon wins (I think its a 2-1 game either way but I'll tip the home team), will a UR vs Kenyon game be subtitled: The Battle of Paul Newman's Tuition Dollars???

Quote from: Domino1195 on November 13, 2019, 02:41:34 PM
If UR wins (I think they will win 2-0) and Kenyon wins (I think its a 2-1 game either way but I'll tip the home team), will a UR vs Kenyon game be subtitled: The Battle of Paul Newman's Tuition Dollars???

:) Love it!  And thank you for keeping us all so well-informed on the Great Lakes region all year long.

Domino, imho, that post above is your finest hour on the site.  We don't always agree but I am with you 100% on your analysis above.  And we agree on Kenyon's bug-a-boo....drives me insane...I could not believe how many ridiculous, unforced errors in a row they had versus OWU.   And the at least one a game theme was true in their narrow loss Elite 8 appearances and also against CWRU last year before ending up on the wrong side of PKs.  And Kenyon honestly would have had a better chance against Calvin than CWRU. 

But I digress....Kenyon versus UR is not a close call or call at all.  I love Kenyon.  I like Rochester.  I would pick Kenyon for myself over Davidson right now, even with Davidson enjoying a slight edge in prestige.  Just love the feel of the whole place and that would be true if I had never seen a soccer game there or had a kid play there.  IMO just a magical, magical place and a phenomenal spot to attend college.  And to think, my kid did science there which has worked out well for him, even though I personally would have been all over the humanities, philosophy and English programs.

My daughter ending up at UR is an interesting story.  Rochester is not one of the first schools folks in Eastern Mass think about, and until you know more about it many would ask "Why in the world would you want to go to Rochester?"  I had actually "discovered" UR the year before when I was thinking about the perfect school for another kid (who ended up not going because he got off the wait list at Amherst).  I was very interested in UR being in her top 5 but in the end I was devastated when she picked UR over Macalester, Bryn Mawr and NYU. 

Side trauma story....after the 2014 Sweet 16 debacle with OWU we (and we was wife, son, his girlfriend and daughter) drove from Gambier to Rochester to drop off daughter at school (about six hours) and then continued on through the night to get back home (another seven hours).  What a miserable, depressing trip.  The year before we drove home from Grantham, PA...devastating in its own way (and I wonder how the Kenyon future might have played out if the Lords had pulled out that 2013 game)....but it was still exhilarating as that was the real start of the Kenyon run (along with the wins over ONU who had been national runnerups the year before and highly rated Wheaton at Wheaton and of course Wheaton were national runnerups that next year of 2014).  Plus, it was too COLD to stay in Grantham...coldest I've ever been at a D3 soccer game.

Except for using "complimentary" vs "complementary" - thanks for your compliment !  There's a freshman on the team from Scotland - dad is a lovely man - Sean. Doesn't speak a word of English although that seems to be the language he's using. I'll be standing next to him Saturday.

I was traveling in England and Ireland in my younger days, when my mom struck up a conversation with a gentleman from Scotland on the tube. I have no idea what that dude was saying and  my mom later admitted to really just nodding in agreement the whole time, not understanding a thing he said.

:D

Quote from: Hopkins92 on November 14, 2019, 10:26:17 AM
I was traveling in England and Ireland in my younger days, when my mom struck up a conversation with a gentleman from Scotland on the tube. I have no idea what that dude was saying and  my mom later admitted to really just nodding in agreement the whole time, not understanding a thing he said.

:D

My wife and I spent a lovely week this summer in the Scottish Islands and Highlands. Didn't hear a word of English the whole time, but somehow they understood me perfectly well.  :o

RBQ - JCU Pod

Review YTD:
JCU was the preseason favorite to win the OAC, even though they had to replace many seniors. Their style of play – strong back 4 that stay well connected to tenacious midfielders - makes it easy for new players to assimilate into the team. With key contributions from so many underclassmen, kind of makes it scary to think the bulk of their players return next year.
Soph GK Conner Robinson is one of these youngsters.  JCU switched to Robinson after the 4th game of the year, and he would start all subsequent games except for the Messiah contest.  Of the 15 goals conceded by JCU, Robinson let in just 6.  Since the loss to OWU in the 109th minute JCU has gone 10-0-1 with 9 shut-outs.
JCU scored 40 goals this year, with 6 players accounting for 70% of them.  Like many GL teams this season JCU relied heavily on set-pieces. 1-0 victories over Denison, Capital and ONU all the result of set-piece goals. Of late Freshman Mario Aboumitri has become an attacker to watch, scoring both game winning goals in the OAC tournament games against Marietta and Otterbein.  3 of his goals were scored in the last 4 games, and 4 of his 6 goals were game winners.  Super Mario anyone?
JCU is a bit of an anomaly with respect to the corollary one might expect between fouls and YC/RC:  of the eight teams in the RBQ JCU has committed the most fouls (290), yet received the second fewest YC (14).  More telling is the fact that JCU has received only 5 of their 14 YC at home.  Referee standards in northern Ohio can be a bit more tolerant of physical play than in the south.  It should be expected that referees will allow more physical play in this group, and JCU doesn't back down from contact.

Review YTD:
Washington & Jefferson will represent the President's Athletic Conference this year.  Coming off a 6-10-1 season last year and picked to finish 3rd in 2019, W&J exceeded expectations thanks to 35 goals (2/3rds of the team's total goals) from four underclassmen. Freshman Dylan Mayanja scored 10 as did junior midfielder Alvaro Viadas.  That's the good news.  The bad news is W&J have conceded 37 goals, more than double any team in the JCU or Kenyon brackets.
Preconference, W&J lost 5 straight; the toughest opponent they've played all year was Marietta (SOS .552), to which they lost 3-0. Their SOS of .424 is the 4th lowest in the GL.  They have committed the second largest number of fouls after JCU, picking up 23 YC on the year.  But they are winners of 6 straight – 9-0-2 in their last 11 against DIII opponents (one loss to NAIA Point Park)

What to watch for:
W&J's chances against JCU are very slim. Conditions that could see them through:  JCU occasionally has trouble scoring against weaker opponents.  JCU out-shoots Oberlin 23-6 but needs a last minute goal to win; JCU outshoots Mt. Aloysius 32-4 and needs OT for the win. Both these games at home.  Secondly, if W&J can counter quickly and get behind the midfielders they will create scoring opportunities (Dylan Mayanja maybe?). W&J needs to take shots from distance (see Kenyon and Medaille goals), and while JCU's GK has had a fantastic season he can mishandle balls in the air.

I think JCU puts a least 4 on the board and then rests many of their starters for Sunday's game.

Review YTD:
Centre makes its 3 trip in the last 4 years to the NCAA tournament, losing last year on PK's to CMU after a scoreless match. They haven't lost since Sept 28, winners of 10 straight since then. Some key non-conference results this season include a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Hanover (trailed 2-0 in the second half), a 2-0 win away at Haverford and a 1-0 loss to Kenyon (0-0 at half).
Centre has scored 52 goals this year, second to Kenyon's 58 in this bracket.  Forward Alex Garuba is the top goal scorer in the Rust Belt Quadrant with 21 goals – 9 of which were scored in the last 4 games. El esta en el fuego!  Of the 20 games Centre has played Garuba has been held scoreless in just 5 games.
Centre is the most carded team in quadrant – 30 YC, 2 RC (no other team has more than 1 RC on the year).  Their first-team all-conference CB will miss the first game against Kalamazoo with a RC suspension.
In 2018 K'Zoo was 5-11-1 that conceded 33 goals; this year's record: 11-4-2 with 13 goals conceded.  Goalkeeping responsibilities were shared by freshman Sean Ellis (6 games) and sophomore Luke Kastran (11 games).  The pair recorded 9 shutouts in 17 games (only 3 SO in 2018). In their loss to Calvin 1-0, the only goal Calvin got was an unfortunate OG header. And they withstood 27 shots (9 on goal) from OWU in their 1-0 win first game of the year.
With only 28 goals scored K'Zoo has the lowest goals per team in the RBQ.  50% of their goals were provided by Ben Meschke (14); after that the next highest scorer has 3.  K'Zoo is also the second most carded team in RBQ, interesting as they have the third lowest number of fouls committed.

What to watch for:
Garuba, obviously.  Centre will need to replace their starting CB, not sure what that means for Meschke. Given K'Zoo's lack of scoring depth you wonder if Centre won't man-mark Meschke and try to make his day a living hell. K'Zoo has only played 5 away games this year, going 2-1-2. Centre was 9-1 on the road this season.

I think Centre wins this 1 or 2 zip.

Quote from: Falconer on November 14, 2019, 10:56:36 AM

Quote from: Hopkins92 on November 14, 2019, 10:26:17 AM
I was traveling in England and Ireland in my younger days, when my mom struck up a conversation with a gentleman from Scotland on the tube. I have no idea what that dude was saying and  my mom later admitted to really just nodding in agreement the whole time, not understanding a thing he said.

:D

My wife and I spent a lovely week this summer in the Scottish Islands and Highlands. Didn't hear a word of English the whole time, but somehow they understood me perfectly well.  :o

The official language of the EU is English.  After Brexit is complete, they plan to keep it.  But Scotland wants to be part of the EU and may split from the United Kingdom.  So the EU may have Scottish as it's official language.

... except that there's no such language as "Scottish".

There's Scots, the common Lowland speech which dates back to the Middle Ages and is a source of never-ending contention among linguists as to whether it is a true Germanic language of its own or is merely a dialect (or series of dialects) of the English language. There's Scottish Standard English, the local dialect of English, which represents the influence of the printed word and of the Church in conforming Scots to the grammar and vocabulary used by the Sasunach south of the border, especially after Scotland's royal court departed for good to London in 1603. This is the tongue of business, commerce, and the media in Scotland, and is usually associated with the middle and upper classes and with educational institutions. And then there's Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig), the modern form of the original Keltic language spoken by the Scots when they crossed the North Channel from Ireland a millennium and a half ago and conquered the northern third of the island of Britain. It's now spoken by only 1% of the people of Scotland and is largely confined to very remote areas in the western Highlands and the Outer Hebrides islands.

Quote from: Gregory Sager on December 19, 2019, 11:42:31 AM
... except that there's no such language as "Scottish".

There's Scots, the common Lowland speech which dates back to the Middle Ages and is a source of never-ending contention among linguists as to whether it is a true Germanic language of its own or is merely a dialect (or series of dialects) of the English language. There's Scottish Standard English, the local dialect of English, which represents the influence of the printed word and of the Church in conforming Scots to the grammar and vocabulary used by the Sasunach south of the border, especially after Scotland's royal court departed for good to London in 1603. This is the tongue of business, commerce, and the media in Scotland, and is usually associated with the middle and upper classes and with educational institutions. And then there's Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig), the modern form of the original Keltic language spoken by the Scots when they crossed the North Channel from Ireland a millennium and a half ago and conquered the northern third of the island of Britain. It's now spoken by only 1% of the people of Scotland and is largely confined to very remote areas in the western Highlands and the Outer Hebrides islands.

Very impressive if you really produced that off the top of your head.

Well, I didn't know how to spell Gàidhlig (and I doubt I that could spell it right now without cheating again), and I wasn't sure what the standard English dialect in Scotland -- the one that these guys are speaking (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMS2VnDveP8) -- was officially called. (In retrospect, Scottish Standard English is kind of a "duh" answer to that query.) But, yeah, most of it is just me being a walking compendium of useless information.