2018 Colorado Buffaloes

yes these buffs may surprise some people this year

 

I wrote and attempted to post a report on Sunday's scrimmage and some observations, but I could not get anything to post and I neglected to save a copy of what I wrote and it all disappeared so I'll try again tomorrow (Thursday).

Two of our freshmen do flip throw-ins. Kayleigh Webb is one of them. She sets the ball down on the ground and backs up like she's going to take a free kick from out of bounds. She runs up to the ball which is just sitting on the ground and starts her flip, shown below. Notice that her hands are on the ground, not holding the ball. Mid-flip, she somehow grabs and launches the ball which stays in the air forever, more altitude than distance but once she gets the trajectory lowered a bit, she'll be aiming for the far post.

I cannot do this.

 

I don't see us losing to all four California teams. But Arizona will be tough, they outplayed us last year on our field in a 0-0 tie, and we go there this year.

 

Must have been a gymnast, which explains how she can do what she does and grasp and throw the ball.

 

https://cubuffs.com/news/2018/8/8/soccer-forwards-preview.aspx

A good article on the dilemma at forward ... a nice problem to have. I will guess that Libby Geraghty and Jorian Baucom will start, but there will be a LOT of rotation. And that's only a guess.

 

So why did Cassie Phillips leave the team last week?

 

Looks like first game at Air Force will be streamed this year.

Colorado @ Air Force 6PM MT

 

I will probably be there. I work as a cashier at Target to supplement the feeble retirement income, and I have the day off. The Boulder Target is normally the busiest one in the country (there is no Wal-Mart) and the students have been filtering back since the end of July so it's already been nuts for two weeks and I am already burnt out and the freshmen start moving in on Saturday and we will see approximately all of them and their families and I need a pleasant distraction and I can't think of anything (well, almost anything) better than a short road trip to watch the Buffs start their season.

 

Some belated thoughts on the scrimmage ten days ago ...

They played three thirty-minute periods, with some of them switching sides at each break. Scout Watson and JJ Tompkins combined to hold the score down to 1-1. With mere mortals in the nets, it would have been higher. Freshman Jesse Loren made a freshman mistake early in the first period by taking Marty Puketapu down in the box, Taylor Kornieck's penalty kicks are pretty much automatic and not even JJ could save it, 1-0. Very late in the second period JJ blocked a blast from the right side near the end line but the ball squirted loose and Tatum Barton was in the right place at the right time (she does that a lot), 1-1.

In the Familiar Faces Department, Bianca Jones and Morgan Stanton played.

There are four true freshmen and two redshirt freshmen and every one of them appears absolutely ready to play at this level.

There was a casualty. Camilla Shymka went down hard and didn't get up immediately and it looked like she was waiting for a foul call that didn't come and the ball and everybody and everybody's attention went the other direction and it seemed like quite a while before the game noticed that she hadn't gotten up. Oh, no, not another knee injury! Oh, yes, not another knee injury, she was holding her hamstring. Help arrived and tried to get her across the field to the sideline but quickly u-turned and headed to the locker room. There is a silver lining, she was at the picnic afterward although her thigh was heavily taped. Camilla is a very speedy forward and here's hoping we see her back on the field not too long from now.

We have another transfer!! Defender Gabbi Chapa, a sophomore who started eight games for Illinois last year. We have six transfers ... Jorian Baucom via LSU, Isobel Dalton via Union College and Lindsey Wilson College, Megan Massey via Tennessee, Tatum Barton via Texas Tech, Sofia Weiner via Virginia, and Gabbi. Jorian is from Arizona and Isobel from Australia, the other four are Colorado girls who have come home. We have Sofia for four years, she was injured last year and it took her only one semester at Virginia to realize where she belonged.

Nancy Best was not there but it was a family situation I think and she'll be with us at Air Force. Libby Geraghty wore a large knee brace but it didn't seem to affect her play at all, and it won't surprise me if she starts tomorrow and all season and the next three. She started as a freshman in the first game last year and clearly showed why, but went down and out with an ACL. From what I heard she ferociously attacked her rehab.

Very few people can knock Jorian off the ball and her feet. Stephanie Zuniga is one of them.

SERIOUS bummer about Caitlin McPherson having to retire from soccer for an undisclosed medical reason. We never got to see her play, but she was definitely the goalkeeper of the future. Scout is a senior and JJ a junior, so we need to recruit another GK for next year. The good news is that Caitlin will remain at CU.

I should be at Air Force. The church I attend is two blocks from Prentup Field and the service ends at 10:45 and the first of the three games on Sunday is at 11 so I'll catch all three. Too much soccer in one day? There is no such thing.

 

Brian is Kayleigh's (#2, freshman holding midfielder, she who runs up to her flip throw-in without the ball) dad. WELCOME !!

Live stats for this evening's game are here
http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=224717

and the live stream is here (thank you Mountain West Conference)
http://www.themw.com/watch/?id=141866

Air Force has played an exhibition game, losing at Michigan 6-1. Both teams substituted liberally. Air Force did not miss a shot.