UNC Tar Heels 2016

Discussion in 'Women's College' started by uncchamps2012, Nov 21, 2015.

  1. UNC4EVER

    UNC4EVER Member

    Sep 27, 2007
    I would agree that Lindsey Harris has emerged as an unexpected (?) and exceptional addition to the cohort of truly amazing athletes to emerge from the 2016 college ranks. In my opinion, she is among the finest players to take the field this year in the college game-- and UNC has Much to thank her for as a result!
     
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  2. uncchamps2012

    uncchamps2012 Member

    Jul 9, 2011
    Hey folks.... Our team is in the College Cup for the first time since 2012. Yeah, it's on the west coast when it should have been down the street, but they made it! Amazing. Did anyone predict UNC would win the College Cup in 2012 when they went out in the first round of the ACC tournament? I sure didn't, though I remember thinking the rest would be good for them. This time, we basically have the hottest team in the country since mid -October, with a goal keeper playing out of her mind, a freshmen reserve suddenly scoring at all the most clutch moments, and a team with some really excellent team chemistry. Add to that a remaining field with no clear favorite and perhaps UNC could actually win this. If they do, I will personally have a hard time figuring out whether 2012 or 2016 is more surprising , but I think that would have to go to 2016. Really love this team. Go Heels!
     
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  3. Soccerhunter

    Soccerhunter Member+

    Sep 12, 2009
    I'm keeping my fingers crossed! (And my wife and I have decided to bite the bullet and go to San Jose! Just finished making arrangements for work, and getting the cat fed.....) Wild. Surreal.
     
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  4. cpthomas

    cpthomas BigSoccer Supporter

    Portland Thorns
    United States
    Jan 10, 2008
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Wow! Awesome! Have a blast!
     
  5. Glove Stinks

    Glove Stinks Member+

    Jan 20, 2014
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    If you happen to wander by a USC tailgate tomorrow (two white pop ups) stop and say hello. I'll be setting up around 1pm
     
  6. uncchamps2012

    uncchamps2012 Member

    Jul 9, 2011
    Oh well. I thought they played pretty well against an extremely talented team. It was a shame to give up the set piece so close to the goal, but the actual score was more individual quality than directly resulting from that. Heckuva powerful shot. Shultz's chance was a great one , but still not a totally straightforward finish. Great season.
    2017 team is going to be strong with the two u20s coming back.
    Farewell to a great group of seniors. Gardner , Harris, castleberry, firstenberg were the best of the graduating seniors, one leaves as a national champ - Gardner. Glad to see her have a fine season after some tough luck with injuries.
     
  7. Kazoo

    Kazoo Member

    Nov 1, 2015
    I thought UNC played pretty well. That was a helluva strike by Abam. I, for one, am not a fan of programs like WVA and FSU that stock their roster with foreign players. WVA has 9 foreign-born players. Feels a bit like cheating to me.
     
  8. uncchamps2012

    uncchamps2012 Member

    Jul 9, 2011
    Immigrants... they get the job done! (Line from Hamilton)
    I am fine with teams giving opportunities to anyone.
     
  9. Eddie K

    Eddie K Member+

    May 5, 2007
    Really? WVU went to Canada for NT level players years ago because they had to. It's West Virginia. They aren't getting kids that want to go to Stanford, ND, Duke, UVA/UNC and the other big State schools in the P5. That's why what Izzo-Brown has done there is so awesome. Hopefully some of those 'elite' US players will answer her calls and emails now but I think the way she's built her roster is awesome. 7 pretty local kids, 7 Canadians, and you only need a few more from the traditional club and ynt pipelines.
     
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  10. UNC4EVER

    UNC4EVER Member

    Sep 27, 2007
    Well, AD does sometimes have a way with words... "... I'm not totally disappointed with this first half...not much of a soccer game..." That pretty much says it for today's game until WV scored-- too bad it took a goal against to wake our team up! I know from personal experience that the soccer goal looks So Big, until you try to put a ball into it-- there are so few ways to score, and a million ways to miss-- I know our kids feel badly and want those end of game shots back, but no reason to feel badly-- we started putting up shots, and that was a good thing! Misses happen all the time.

    On the day, for the vast majority of the game, I thought WV out-hustled us to the ball; showed more raw speed; played a better possession game-- I thought they earned the win and got it. Congratulations to them! For the Heels, I was touched and inspired that when we went down a goal, our team did not fold the tent-- instead they dug deep and found an entirely different level of play. With reasonable good fortune, we tie or win in the last 12 minutes! This is the program I have known and loved for so many years: never give up, never acknowledge the possibility of defeat, stay focused, work the problem, and find a way to win!

    Today it didn't click for us, but this year's team has shown more growth and development over the course of the season than any I can remember in Tarheel history. So for me, that is a new 'first' for the lady-Heels: most improved squad in the history of the program! Congratulations! This year's team so outperformed early season expectations and did so much better than was predicted-- what a great 'building year'... the Final Four! Well done!

    Thank you to each member of this year's team for an exciting season and a result that far exceeded expectations! To this year's 4-year seniors who are leaving (for the first time in the history of the program) without a national championship, I would just like to say that it is your leadership that took a team from whom folks expected so little, and turned it into a program which accomplished so much! Should your underclassmates win the NCAA next year or the year following, they may thank you for your leadership, spirit, and determination to continue the Tarheel tradition of excellence. So thanks to each of you!

    To each member of the team, and to the coaching staff, thanks once again for a truly wonderful season of soccer! I look forward to a great 2017. Go Heels!
     
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  11. uncchamps2012

    uncchamps2012 Member

    Jul 9, 2011
    Great post.
    A rep just wasn't enough:)
     
  12. cpthomas

    cpthomas BigSoccer Supporter

    Portland Thorns
    United States
    Jan 10, 2008
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The Tarheels had a great season. The Abam goal was spectacular. There's nothing for the UNC players to feel bad about, other than the natural disappointment. Their performance was so far beyond expectations it's crazy!
     
  13. Soccerhunter

    Soccerhunter Member+

    Sep 12, 2009
    Thanks, CP, I did have a blast today, although I am, of course, disappointed in the outcome.

    I don't know what the announcers may have said, but is was bitterly cold at the stadium today. While the temps were in the 50s, the constant wind was seriously chilling for any who didn't come prepared with several extra layers and a wind breaker. (The concession stands constantly sold hot drinks and completely sold out of the official sweat shirts they had on hand.) My wife and I got seriously chilled.

    I thought that both games were fair in their outcomes. However, the four teams were enough evenly matched such that reversing the scores would not have felt completely out of the realm of normalcy. I thought that UNC was a little slow for much of the game, especially at times marking in the box. I agree that they really picked it up in the last 15 minutes when they were down a goal and could have easily tied the game. But, as has been said so many time during this tournament, "that's soccer." In these games, at least there were no capricious Soccer Gods controlling the outcome.

    The UNC fans were great....good positive cheering and a lot of love for the team. I must also say that the fans supporting all of the teams were generally quite gracious with each other. It is nice to be in such an atmosphere (as opposed to some of the vitriol sometimes heard.) The choice of words is important!

    The quality of the pitch was surprisingly poor. Divots and small bare areas all over. (I wondered what type of grass was used??) Otherwise, the stadium was very nice. I especially liked the night lighting, and the seats were reasonably comfortable.

    Now on to catching up on the scores over on the contest thread...

    Best wishes to all.
     
  14. Glove Stinks

    Glove Stinks Member+

    Jan 20, 2014
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Didn't get to watch the UNC game but saw the goal and oh my. Spectacular. The pitch was horrible
     
  15. Soccerhunter

    Soccerhunter Member+

    Sep 12, 2009
    #490 Soccerhunter, Dec 29, 2016
    Last edited: Dec 29, 2016
    Well, Well.... before we close out the 2016 thread, I'll comment as a UNC fan regarding the Top Drawer posting of the top 100 college DI upper class and top 100 freshmen women's soccer players this past season.

    First the results of the upper class top 100 (listing the number of players included in the list)

    6 players - BYU
    4 players - Clemson, Florida State, Georgetown, Stanford, USC, West Virginia
    3 players - Auburn, California, Connecticut, Duke, Florida, Minnesota, South Carolina
    2 players - BC, DePaul, Long Beach State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Virginia
    1 player - 35 additional Division I schools (one of which was UNC)

    So, as a UNC fan, it was interesting to see that the Heels had only player listed in the 68th position --keeper Lindsey Harris. She was the 6th keeper chosen. It is amazing that a team that went to the final four has no field players worthy of a pick? (How the heck did they get to San Jose with no serious talent??? )

    And so TDS also puts out a top 100 freshmen list. The ACC coaches voted the top freshman in the conference to be Bridgette Andrzejewsky. TDS decided that she was actually the 5th best rookie in the ACC last year. (Clearly the TDS scouts are five times better at picking talent than the ACC coaches!)

    All this is to say that I disagree and think that the Heels actually had some pretty talented players on the field this year who, yes, worked really hard.

    With heart felt thanks to all of their effort. It turned out to be a great season! Best wishes to all!
     
  16. cpthomas

    cpthomas BigSoccer Supporter

    Portland Thorns
    United States
    Jan 10, 2008
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Soccerhunter, I think maybe you've forgotten how poorly TDS did in the NCAA tournament prediction contest? The did :eek:
     
  17. UNC Soccer Dad

    UNC Soccer Dad New Member

    May 14, 2016
    So what is considered a good recruiting class? Do the TDS Player Rankings matter or have any predictive power? I see for 2018 UNC has 4 verbal commits in the TDS top 50 - Brianna Pinto, Rachel Jones, Racheal Dorward, Jordan Taylor, and for 2019 also 4 verbal commits in the TDS top 50 - Maycee Bell, Tori Hansen, Maggie Pierce, and Marzia Josephson. With most of the top 100 girls in 2018 verbally committed already, is 4 to UNC a good year?
     
  18. olelaliga

    olelaliga Member

    Aug 31, 2009
    TDS relies very heavily on early accolades. Get invited to u14 GNT camp and rocket to the top 20. Get Invited to a u20 camp two years up and maybe you don't move much from 50th to 30th...

    There are kids who have been invited to older aged camps who actually move down after a camp invitation while kids who were invited 2 years previously hang in. They also see a very few games at certain events and pick an event top XI from their very limited viewing. Those kids picked in the top XI move up even though they probably only saw 1/30th or less of the total teams playing and to call them a top XI for the whole event borders on travesty.

    Having said that Rachael Dorwart (t not d) may easily have the biggest impact of the 4. Big, strong, fast, skilled and smart. Real goal scorer and decent creator too.
     
  19. england66

    england66 Member+

    Jan 6, 2004
    dallas, texas
    I am not really sure TDS knows everything....I have a sophomore girl at the school where I coach who recently verbally committed to play for a D1 program at a top drawer academic school. This school were totally unaware of her until they came to watch another girl play in a high school game in Dallas and noticed the girl in question.

    There are many high school girls out there who can play 'at the next level' who do fly under the radar. One only has to look at the lack of recent success of the USA U17 and U20 women's teams to understand that something is most definitely wrong with the selection process....either that or the rest of the world has truly caught up in the women's game and the USA 'pay to play' system's flaws are now being exposed in a big way. This will only get worse and there is no way the coming D.A. league will improve the situation.....where will the D.A. players come from..? They will come from the ECNL....who will coach them..? The same coaches they have now....
     
  20. Soccerhunter

    Soccerhunter Member+

    Sep 12, 2009
    #495 Soccerhunter, Mar 17, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 17, 2017
    Speaking as someone who has spent far more time than I should going about the business of ranking players and recruiting classes, I can say that that whole enterprise is pretty suspect for several reasons. First and foremost, for all but a handful of players, there is a LOT of development that goes on from let's say 17 to 21 years old. So how you did in high school or in the youth leagues, may or may not transfer to college. As Anson has stressed repeatedly, the trick is to somehow identify the players whose drive and commitment to excel and compete on the field remains unflagging after they turn 18 and are understandably distracted by by all of the changes that going away to college represents. It is the ones who continue to be dedicated to hard work and improvement that prove to be the difference makers, not necessarily the ones who excelled at age 15 and 16. Consequently, one can argue that a reasonably accurate ranking of players might well lead to a meaningful ranking of recruiting classes, but being based on past performance it still doesn't reliably predict future performance.

    My personal view of UNC's 2018 class is that it will be a strong one, but I do not know who the leaders are going to be. Certainly, the top prospect (if the recent judgment of the USWNT staff is correct) should be Brianna Pinto. But I worry about her ability to focus on the college game if she is still being invited to camps and games with the national team..... and she is very young and impressionable.

    I really do not know what to make of Rachel Dowart because I have no information as to why she has been totally out of the US Youth National Team scenario for the past two years. Usually, when that happens it is because a player has peaked as a 15 or 16 year old and has faded when compared to the up-and-comers. But not always, and a recent example to the contrary is Bridgette Andrzejewaki who no longer played with a USYNT for the last 18 months of high school, but who apparently got some good training from her father among others. Maybe Dowart will turn out as well, but I have no inside information on her training progress.

    Rachel Jones is a strong possibility for shining in college. She seems to have the drive and interest. Jordan Taylor has completely faded off of the youth national team cycles, so, like Dowart, I do not know what is happening there.

    The other two 2018 players we know about are near by kids from the same high school and club soccer team in Charlotte. Neither has national accolades. Forward Mary Elliot McCabe is an ODP and ID2 participant, while keeper Claudia Dickey will likely be decent in a back-up role at UNC and she is a notable keeper locally, although is better known as a guard on her high school basketball team. NOT that this means that either of these two players couldn't be starters (as we have seen many times at Carolina.) If they are the ones with the determination and drive, they may very well be!
     
  21. Holmes12

    Holmes12 Member

    May 15, 2016
    Club:
    Manchester City FC
    #496 Holmes12, Mar 19, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 19, 2017
    exactly. Exposure in non-revs is bought. On top of that, when players "emerge" in 9th-10th grades, the ones who want to make a leap, most often find the elite club (ECNL or flavor of the year) and ODP gates up. The "tryouts" are fixed. Emerging players and newbies have little shot. if they make, the PT won't be there unless half the team's parents decide to forget years of expenses and allow their kid to abandon the "college dream". Not happening in ECNL or flavor of the year. The clubs are committed to exposing those who have been paying them (i.e. the longest). Then they can lay claim for the "complete" development of some P5 recruit after x years in their program. College success or not means nothing to club, just another "commit" tally for their web site/twitter and on to the junior victims. ODP is very much the same way. I remember studs going out in the next to or final year of eligibility and they'd all come back with similarly lame cut reports like "not vocal enough" and "off-ball positioning not there"..etc..always coachable stuff. I felt bad for those girls. The ones who faded but were in the system early, they take again (and again). Deliberate suppression from both clubs and ODP. That was my experience in coaching anyway, but what england said, US soccer is an advert industry. Chicken, roost.
     
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  22. UNC Soccer Dad

    UNC Soccer Dad New Member

    May 14, 2016
    Good timing for the discussion as TDS just did a lookback today on their 2013 rankings to see where those girls are now. Looks like 6 of the final top 10 were drafted into the NWSL, 1 was not drafted but is on a preseason NWSL roster, 1 redshirted and is still playing in college, 1 played in college but was not drafted into the pros, and 1 was injured.

    On first glance I'd say that is a decent hit rate - with only 40 players drafted each year, getting 6 of 10 in that 40 seems ok. Of course I guess that could start another discussion about whether getting drafted into the NWSL is a good barometer of success.
     
  23. Got Jukes?

    Got Jukes? Member

    Feb 3, 2013
    Club:
    FC Tampa Bay Rowdies
    Who are the 4 named not drafted??
     
  24. UNC Soccer Dad

    UNC Soccer Dad New Member

    May 14, 2016
    TDS shows them as:
    Gabbi Miranda - UCLA - several injuries
    Anna McClung - FSU-Tennessee
    Stephanie Amack - redshirted at Stanford so will play in fall - potential pick next year
    Amber Munerlyn - UNC-UCLA I think - not drafted but on Houston Dash preseason roster
     

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