Fantastic! I hope the weather is good. Please let us know about your overall experience .... and the soccer. I suggest going to the web site of the team you are interested in and go to their schedule page. There should be links there to home game videos. Once you get to the video page, some teams offer 'on demand' or 'archive' games. Sometimes those require a fee. I think Messiah's archived games are free and I think Carnegie Mellon's games are on YouTube (free). Here are links to the 2016 and 2015 NCAA finals and semis: [ I would have to think hard or check the highlight videos to make any recommendations regarding which of these are "good games."] 2016 championship http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...championship-washington-st-louis-messiah-full 2016 semis http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...inal-washington-st-louis-brandeis-full-replay http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...-soccer-semifinal-chicago-messiah-full-replay 2015 Championship http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...-championship-washington-williams-full-replay 2015 semis http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...-soccer-semifinal-williams-centre-full-replay http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...ccer-semifinal-washington-messiah-full-replay The 2016 Big Soccer D3 thread is here: https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/division-3-2016.2034211/ The 2015 Big Soccer D3 thread is here: https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/division-3-2015.2019553/ Have Fun! 8609
Ole, I believe the top D3 players would excel at the mid-majors. The kids I know who went to the mid-majors from my daughter's club team would not make the cut at the top D3 programs from soccer standpoint. The kids I saw who went to the D1 mid-majors tended to be great athletes but not great overall soccer players. For example, one was a quick as lightening forward who never learned to kick with her left foot.
In looking at the Chicago vs Wheaton box yesterday, it seems that the Maroons didn't have a lot of problems dispatching Wheaton. What surprised me most about the game was the shot count. Wheaton only had 1 shot the entire game. Chicago had 15 shots with 6 on frame. I thought that Wheaton would give Chicago a bit more of a challenge. The 15 shots that Chicago had, while a lot, might be a little on the low side for them, though. I'm wondering why Wheaton's stud frosh forward Isabelle Oliver, the CCIW newcomer of the year, didn't play. Anyone? I don't think her presence would have changed the outcome of the game but Wheaton may have had a few more shots and possibly even put 1 on the scoreboard. She is a difference maker. I was surprised that UW-LaCrosse beat WashU, 2-1, yesterday. It looks like Chicago is taking it to them today, though. In the American Regional today, Ohio Northern beat William Smith, 1-0, in OT. The OT period was only 23 seconds in. Some may view this as a big surprise but ONU has a solid side. Last week in ONU's 2-0 win over Illinois Wesleyan, they out-shot the Titans, 19-6. That is pretty impressive given IWU's stout defense. IWU did have a few season-ending injuries but that is still impressive.
I'm a little surprised by some of these scorelines today. I'm not necessarily surprised by the teams that won. It's the margins of victory and number of goals scored that is surprising to me - and that the victorious teams shut out the opponents. I wouldn't be surprised by the scores in the 1st or 2nd round but I wouldn't expect this in the Sweet 16. TCNJ 5 Lynchburg 0 Chicago 4 UW-LaCrosse 0 Williams 4 Cal Lutheran 0 Messiah 5 MIT 0
I went to the William Smith – Ohio Northern and Carnegie Mellon – Hardin Simmons games today. Thankfully it did not rain during either game. It got colder and the wind picked up during the second game. Weird Day in the sweet sixteen. Two 5-0 games and two 4-0 games and the 1-0 score line against both Carnegie Mellon and William Smith was definitely opposite the run of play over the course of both games. William Smith lost in the first minute of OT, when Ohio Northern’s first year Jenna Fuller (F, Countryside, IL) fully anticipated the line drive through-ball from first year Sydney Leshnak (D, Liberty Township, OH), and was running full speed, past two defenders when the ball was kicked, She finished the 1 v 1 chance against the keeper. In retrospect, the WS defense blundered once near the beginning of the game and then again near the beginning of the second half and was not burned either time……….. Carnegie Mellon lost when Hardin Simmons’ first year Morgan McAdams (M, Abilene, TX) scored directly from a corner kick. Morgan McAdams curved a corner kick toward the net that was just over the arms of freshman Carolyn Botz (St. Louis, Mo. / MICDS) in the 77th minute. Kirsten Parrish was at the front post and prevented Botz from getting to the service that curved over the two and across the line. – CM website. The kick came from the far side corner and the wind that was increasing in speed during the game was blowing straight toward the goal. Initially junior Kirsten Parrish (5’10”, D, Granbury, TX) was given credit for the goal. I thought she was HS best player, by dominating the center of the defense and being an aerial threat on all free kicks into the box. I immensely liked Carnegie Mellon’s play – they play on turf and clearly work very very hard to receive balls smartly and overall to keep the ball on the floor and to execute a short-passes-to-the-feet game. Seniors Haili Adams (F, Kirkland, WA) and Tori Iatorola (M, West Dundee, IL) played up to my high expectations, and attacking full back Katie Strycharz (Sr, Potomac Falls, VA) was great, too. Hardin-Simmons has size and athleticism up the middle, with Parrish in the back, first year Taylor Bernal (Abilene, TX) alternating central midfield and target forward, and junior target forward Kami Jones (Comfort, TX) up top. D3 goal scoring leader Kenne Kessler (So, Highland Village, TX) played withdrawn forward when either Bernal or Jones were up top. Kessler was a non-factor in the game. D3 leading assist maker Josey Meyer (So, Waco, TX) played right wing and also was prevented from doing….anything, really. Irrelevant observations: Hardin Simmons only had two starters who wore long sleeves and first year Kendall Groom (D, Frisco, TX) had her short sleeves rolled up a la Becky Saurbrunn (badass ). At the start of the second half, there were a lot more gloves on the hands of their field players. It seems that “first year” appears a lot in this post. I’ll be at Hardin Simmons vs. Ohio Northern tomorrow; I invite you folks please to watch some Sunday D3 soccer. -CJ 8832
I was surprised that Cal Lutheran lost by such a lopsided score. I missed the game but was told that Williams completely dominated and outmatched CL athletically and technically.
My daughter and me did go see the games on Saturday. TCNJ vs Lynchburg and Messiah vs MIT . Not sure what to tell you about the games. Both games were 2-0 on the 1st 10 min of the game and at halftime. Then both games were 4-0 with 35 min to go in the game. So I guess you can say TCNJ and Messiah both played fast and overwhelmed their foes. Lynchburg and MIT were both overmatched today for sure. It was cold for the 1st game and then cold and raining for the 2nd game. Spoke with a TCNJ parent and he informed me that most of the team is made up of girls that played at PDA. So that team should good, PDA is a top youth club. Also , spoke to a Lynchburg alum who just came to support his college. He was more disgusted by how much the Lynchburg parents and fans yelled and cried to the refs. Both teams that won I believe had 5 different girls score for them. So it as not just one girl that stood out, it was the whole team I LS'd the Messiah vs TCNJ game today and it was a great game. What you would expect from these 2 schools. I think there had to be 10 to 20 mph winds today. Both teams play a 3-5-2 setup. So both teams go forward and press. I would say TCNJ had the better of the play but it was only 60/40 possession. The game was well played. It went to Pks and TCNJ gk made the 1st 2 saves and TCNJ shooters made the 1st 3 to win. After watching TCNJ play, I think they will win the whole thing. I watched Chicago play and I don't think they will beat TCNJ. Then I feel in the finals they will play Williams. I feel TNCJ will be Williams in the final.
I watched much of TCNJ/Messiah. Was Lynchburg that bad or TCNJ just that good on Saturday? Clearly, neither team on Sunday got many good chances but it was a pretty good end-to-end game for a 1-1 draw in high winds. Both goals were from corners though (and I think Messiah scored both actually). TCNJ keeper won that shootout for sure. I also like TCNJ to win it as well but have not seen Hardin Simmons and they have crazy numbers, 110 goals?! That's pretty crazy. And I love D3 streams, before the shootout, some NJ parent just stood in front of the camera for minutes and they almost missed the pks...funny.
I watched Hardin Simmons Saturday and Sunday in cold and damp weather, once on grass and once on turf; I kept asking myself: 'How does this team average 5 goals a game?" The only impact players I observed were center back Kirsten Parrish and target forward Kami Jones. The only scores H-S got were a shot that curved directly in from a corner kick and by winning an in-the-box scrum after a corner kick. I expected to see some electricity from D3-leading goal scorer Kenne Kessler and D3 leading assist-er Josey Meyers, but there was not much there. The way Hardin Simmons' defense cleared the ball long all day, I expected to see a couple of speed demons in the forward line, but did not. So I must attribute the 110 goal total to strength of schedule. Before this weekend, Massey and Herosports ranked Hardin Simmons' strength of schedule at #179 and #168, respectively. After having just now played the #8 and #14 nationally ranked teams, H-S's strength of schedule climbed up to #110 on Massey (now Chicago is #2, Williams is #6 and TCNJ is #25). Regardless, Hardin Simmons has earned their semi-final spot: they have a 23-0 record and have won 6 straight league and NCAA tourney games, including the last two vs. tough teams on the road in the damp cold. I also wanted to mention that Messiah's team page noted: This was the fourth-straight season the Falcons were ousted from NCAA Tournament by way of a shootout. 9301
It will take a Herculean effort by TCNJ to beat Chicago. We'll find out next weekend. I like Chicago to win it all.
Don't know if you recall but D3 used to have their Final 4 this weekend at Disney. Crazy to plan and expensive so they went away from it. Now of course, there's the new-version Disney tournament. Smart I think to take this weekend off when the campuses are completely closed. Some have been all week. How expensive is it to bring all these dozens of folks back in to any campus for games over Thanksgiving?? Much less families trying to travel across the country to see games on a holiday weekend. Big reason why all these basketball games are at neutral sites on holidays. Hopefully, not too cold and good field at Greensboro.
TODAY! Semifinals LIve Streams on NCAA Site: http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule NCAA posts the full replays within 2-3 hours after game ends. 11:00 am EST: TCNJ vs. Chicago Greensboro, N.C. UNC Greensboro Soccer Stadium 1:30 pm EST: Williams vs. Hardin-Simmons Greensboro, N.C. UNC Greensboro Soccer Stadium
A quick goal, 6:00 in, for Chicago to go up, 1-0. Does anyone know why the Maroons switched out keepers 20 minutes into the game?
Chicago moves on to the final with a 1-0 win over TCNJ. The Maroons only had 9 shots - low for them. Aside from the 2-1 loss to Wash U in the regular season, 9 shots was probably a season low for them. It only takes one, though. I'm still wondering why Chicago's starting keeper only played 20 minutes.
TODAY - Finals! 2:30 pm EST: Chicago vs. Williams http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule Semifinals full replays, in chronological order: http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...mifinal-university-chicago-college-new-jersey http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...semifinal-williams-hardin-simmons-full-replay If you have 15-20 minutes and would like to see Williams play very pretty soccer, please watch the first 15-20 minutes of their game. This is where I write my annual complaint that the D1 athlete-students get to rest a day between the semi and the final, but the D3 student-athletes do not. We have games to watch and talk about, however UCS did announce the 2017 D3 All-American Teams: https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/web...ches_reveals_NCAA_DIII_All-America_Teams.aspx 10036
Recaps of semis and final and Full Replay of the Final http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-women/2017-12-01/diii-womens-soccer-2017-semifinal-recap http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-women/2017-12-02/diii-womens-2017-soccer-championship-recap http://www.ncaa.com/video/soccer-wo...cer-championship-williams-chicago-full-replay 10132
A really good thing about the semis and final was the weather; it was not cold or wet. The low sun was a bit of a problem, however, in December that is going to happen anywhere. All the games were 1-0, reflecting on the quality of the teams and team defense. I did note that fatigue became really noticeable with about 15 minutes left in the final, likely due to the players having played tough games on the day before. For me the best aspect of the 3 games was Williams’ possession and passing game. According to the table below, in the first five games, including the semi-final games, Williams scored the second most goals of the four teams. One might say they have possession with a purpose. Williams has a deep roster, so much that Michelyne Pinard uses a ‘platoon’ type system and subs 6 or so players en mass at about halfway through the first and second halves. Play does not suffer. She has done that for the past 2-3 years, from what I have observed. In the final, when Williams did try and pass directly to a running forward, Chicago’s back line did a great job of making the runner off side; I would have given the player of the game award to Williams’ junior goalkeeper Olivia Barnhill; I think she was the biggest difference-maker on either team. I previously noted that Hardin-Simmons' single goals in each of the Sectional games came from corner kicks. The announcers during the semis said that 40+ of the 110 goals on the season for H-S were a result of corners. In the semifinal loss to Williams, they were ‘out-cornered’ 4-3 by Williams. (After H-S averaged 9.5 corners in the previous four games). The table below is for the 5 NCAA games each team played, including the semifinals. I believe it supports the maxim “Defense wins championships.” CollegeGoals ForGoals AgainstSOG ForSOG AgainstCK ForCK Against Williams13046152421 Chicago14044135116 Hardin-Simmons8424263125 TCNJ1214793311 10321
D3 United Soccer Coaches (USC) All Americans 2017 – Congratulations to All ALL AMERICANS https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/web...ches_reveals_NCAA_DIII_All-America_Teams.aspx 3 each from TCNJ and Chicago 2 each from Carnegie Mellon, Hardin-Simmons, Messiah, SUNY Geneseo, Trinity (TX), Wisconsin La Crosse, WashU, William Smith, and Williams Three Time All Americans Mia Calamari, Chicago (Sr., M, Barrington, IL) Emily Maxwell, Lynchburg (Sr. D, Camp Lejeune, NC) Six two-time All Americans No First Year made the list Also, the Final USC/NCAA Ranking was posted today; http://www.ncaa.com/sports/soccer-women/d3 10493
NWSL released its preliminary list of 82 players registered for the 2018 draft (a lot shorter list than previous years): http://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/#nws...yers-eligible-for-the-2018-nwsl-college-draft I spotted 2 D3 players, as well as 2 NAIA players and 3 D2 players. D3 Alyssa Bolger, M/F/D, Susquehanna University (14-5-2) From Stanhope, NJ USC D3 All Region Team Led team with 10 G & 1 A Emmy Manset, 5’5””, Forward/Midfield, Willamette University (13-4-3) From Ventura, CA USC D3 All West First Team Led team with 13 G & 2 A NAIA Both players are from University of Maine at Fort Kent. UM Fort Kent won its 5th straight USCAA national championship (NAIA) with a 17-1-3 record. The 2017 roster had 6 players from Jamaica, 4 from California, 1 from Ghana, and 1 from Ecuador. Sherifatu Sumalla, from Tamale, Ghana 2017 senior Forward: 7G & 6A Played for Ghana in FIFA youth world cups: two U-17 and one U-20 Jennifer Cudjoe, from Accra, Ghana 2016 senior Forward,: 16G & 7A Played for Ghana in FIFA youth world cups: one U-17 and two U-20 D2 Caitlin Hayes, 6’0”, Defense, Mississippi College (15-4-1) From Warrington, England USC D2 All South First Team Led team to 12 shutouts; had 4G & 4A Played in Manchester City, then Everton development programs Gabriella Mencotti, 5’11”, Forward, Grand Valley State University (20-4-0) From Novi, MI USC D2 All American First Team Led D2 in goals with 30 G & 10A, also led D2 in goals in 2016 Katlyn Merino, 5’1”, Midfield, Molloy College (8-8-2) From Queens,NY 3G & 5A
December 8, 19, and 20 News –USC Announced: NCAA D3 National Staff of the Year: Williams College, led by head coach Michelyne Pinard NCAA D3 Player of the Year: Danielle Sim (Bel Air, Md.), Williams College NCAA D3 Scholar Player of the Year: Jenna McKinney (Tampa, Fla.), University of Chicago GPA 3.77 in Economics [Impressive. The University of Chicago has had an unbelievable 29 winners of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences.] NCAA D3 Scholar All Americans https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/web...on_III_Women_s_Scholar_All-America_Teams.aspx 39 Remarkable Women! As a career engineer and part time educator, I love to see the many of Science, Math, Technology and Engineering Majors. Here is the First Team Pos Player Name Yr. School Major GPA Hometown K Emily Bowers Jr. Tufts University Biopsychology 3.71Needham, Mass. D Kirsten Parrish Sr. Hardin-Simmons University Biology 3.96Granbury, Texas D Hannah Reich Sr. Ohio Northern University Athletic Training 3.4Howell, Mich. D Danielle Sim Sr. Williams College Biology (Pre-Medicine) 3.45Bel Air, Md. M Megan Barwick Jr. William Smith College American Studies 3.74Seattle, Wash. M Mia Calamari** Sr. University of Chicago Public Policy 3.49Barrington, Ill. M Darcy Cunningham Jr. Washington University (Mo.) Business Marketing 3.33West Chicago, Ill. M Gabby Gillis Jr. Christopher Newport University Psychology and Sociology 3.52Leesburg, Va. M Jenna McKinney* Jr. University of Chicago Economics 3.77Tampa, Fla. F Haili Adams Sr. Carnegie Mellon University Biology 3.61Seattle, Wash. F Kenne Kessler Jr. Hardin-Simmons University Biology 4Highland Village, Texas F Christine Levering* Sr. College of New Jersey Special Education 3.8Robbinsville, N.J. *Asterisks indicate number of previous Scholar All-America selections. 11418
NWSL released its updated list of 143 players registered for the 2018 draft. http://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/#updated-preliminary-list-of-players-eligible-for-the-2018-nwsl-college-draft I spotted 7 additional non-D1 players: 1 D3 , 1 NAIA, and 5 D2. D3 Elizabeth Donovan, 5’6”, Defense, Simmons College (10-7-2) From Nashua, NH Conference 2nd Team 7 shutouts NAIA Rachel McCloskey, 5’5”, Midfield, Menlo College (10-5-3) From Runnells, IA NSCAA (NAIA) All Region Team 3G & 3A D2 Gabriela Braga, 5’2”, Defense, Franklin Pierce University (12-5-2) From Porto Alegre, Brazil USC All Region 1st Team 10 shutouts Anita Maryskova, 5’7”, Midfield, Northwest Nazarene University (11-7-0) From Liberec, Czech Republic Team Record most wins in a season 0G & 5A Loran Wyrough, 5’6”, Forward, Wilmington University (14-6-1) From Hamilton, NJ USC All –East Region 3rd Team 17G & 5A Helen Seed, 5’11”, Defense, Carson Newman University (21-1-1) From Preston, England USC NCAA 3rd Team All American; 4G & 1A 14 shutouts CNU lost NCAA championship game in KFTPM (Seed made hers) Lauren Wade, 5’8”, Forward, Carson Newman University (21-1-1) From Coleraine, Northern Ireland USC NCAA 1st Team All American; 18G & 13A NCAA Women’s D2 Scholar Player of the Year CNU lost NCAA championship game in KFTPM (Wade did not kick) [Carson Newman head coach Simon Duffy is from Ireland. International players on the roster are from: England(3), Northern Ireland(2), Iceland(2), Portugal(1), Germany(1), and Canada(1)] 11632