[cpthomas]

Here's my list of games to watch during the opening weekend of D I Women's Soccer, with a few notes on some of the not-so-obvious games. I've bold faced some really big ones.

Friday

Florida v Miami FL

Loyola Marymount v UNLV (Question: Will Loyola Marymount -- 2008 RPI Rank #52 -- make it into the Tournament this year? Must win this game -- UNLV Rank #82.)

LSU v Memphis (LSU 2008 #38; Memphis #44.)

Northwestern v Wisconsin Milwaukee (Northwestern #61; Wis Milwaukee #20)

Notre Dame v Wisconsin

Penn State v Virginia

Saturday

Colorado v Oklahoma State

North Carolina v UCLA

Oregon v Portland

Texas A&M v USC (Question: Is USC still a title contender?)

Sunday

Charlotte v William and Mary (Charlotte 2008 #24; William and Mary #42.)

Marquette v Pepperdine (Marquette 2008 #41; Pepperdine #103. If Pepperdine wins this game, it may say something about the problem the RPI ranking system has ranking teams from different regions in relation to each other.)

Ohio State v West Virginia

UNC Greensboro v Wake Forest (UNC Greensboro 2008 #47; Wake Forest #18. Interesting game in terms of 2008 Tournament. UNC Greensboro got bumped from a Tournament at large spot, most likely due to its poor Non-Conference RPI. Wake Forest, despite only a #18 RPI rank, got one of the four #3 seeds in the Tournament, most likely to due its excellent Non-Conference RPI. If Wake is for real this year, they must win this game.)

[Cliveworshipper]

On Monday, Wisconins plays Wisconsin-Milwaukee(24) That should be worth paying attention to.

[IceDog]

Originally Posted by Cliveworshipper

On Monday, Wisconins plays Wisconsin-Milwaukee(24) That should be worth paying attention to.

why?

[casocrfan]

I'm interested in SCU vs. UCSB to see if Santa Clara is really back or not. Santa Barbara made the tournament last year so it's a decent test.

[Cliveworshipper]

Originally Posted by casocrfan

I'm interested in SCU vs. UCSB to see if Santa Clara is really back or not. Santa Barbara made the tournament last year so it's a decent test.

yeah, but I guess that depends on what you mean by "back". They do have to play Notre Dame in a couple of weeks.

Still, UCSB lost to UCLA last year by only a goal. Ditto their loss to USD.

[psusoccerfan]

Paula appears to have UW on the rise, at least as far as recruiting goes. Cbg2400 even had their class ranked #1 in the Big Ten. This match may be an indicator of just how far she has improved the program.

[bmoline]

Originally Posted by IceDog

why?

I'd agree with Cliveworshipper on this one. It's a good early test for Wisconsin against an NCAA (and in-state rival) opponent. Wilkins has been recruiting well at Wisconsin the past couple of years. This is a good early barometer to see how far they've come. Forget Notre Dame...don't think the Badgers are ready to pass that test, but if they win this one it's a good sign that they might be ready to move up in the Big Ten standings...perhaps even make a run to the NCAA tournament.

[bmoline]

Originally Posted by psusoccerfan

Paula appears to have UW on the rise, at least as far as recruiting goes. Cbg2400 even had their class ranked #1 in the Big Ten. This match may be an indicator of just how far she has improved the program.

Great minds think alike, eh? Didn't see your post before I submitted mine...sorry about that.

[Iron Man]

Originally Posted by casocrfan

I'm interested in SCU vs. UCSB to see if Santa Clara is really back or not. Santa Barbara made the tournament last year so it's a decent test.

If UCSB goes up first, the ghosts could come back to haunt SCU. SCU needs to build their confidence, and this game is important for that.

[MRAD12]

I'm going to the Notre Dame/Wisconsin game tomorrow. I'm interested in who Wisconsin has and how UND does with Hanks and Bock gone.

The UNC/UCLA game should be a good one. Wish I could go to that one.