Virginia 2020

I've heard/read you making this same point multiple times. I guess you are passionate about it.
Do you have an idea for a different format?
All major sports I'm aware of have championships. I believe most of them on the collegiate level are single elim. (Beach volleyball has a different format).
Publicity in the US is important if we want to grow the sport.

 

Why do you think that is? One thing i looked at is the score based on lineups. Ie when does a team concede. Is it with the majority of their A players out there or not? Is it "real" or an gross individual error etc. Bottom line, if a team tries to give player exposure, time on the field as a priority as opposed to matching up, they will reduce their chances of winning. Fans assume that every coach is trying to win first. I dont think that is true. Maybe UVA dont win the big one like you say, but maybe that is a function of how they choose to play. Food for thought.

 

I dont have care about the format. I just dont draw the same conclusions from the results as maybe others do.

 

I don’t know what it is. Ill give last year a pass. That one was because of the injury to the goalkeeper.

I think it may be more of a mental thing. Once you have a reputation for it then it builds more and more pressure because its like the elephant in the room. Maybe UVA goes into the tournament expecting something bad to happen which causes you to play tighter. It could be they don’t get enough tough games during the season so they are use to just absolutely dominating regular season games outside of a handful of games. When they get into the tournament and all of a sudden are in a tight game they haven’t been in that position enough and think oh crap here we go again.

 

Respect your opinion, but maybe they just try and play their style and live with the results? They play a very challenging schedule. Its interesting that you think otherwise. Go look at UNC or FSU schedules and tell me why they are more challenging. Repeating myself, but fan perception is every coach is doing everything he can to win todays game. That is not true. Stanford missed the tournament this year with talent STILL on the roster than has been drafted high AND other YNT players that, over the years, have been called great. Do they get a pass because they won the NCAAs on PKs last year? They failed to score vs UNC at a neutral site the same year UVA lost to UNC in OT. After the starting GK was KO'd in regulation, In NC and 3 inches off a post is a UVA win. 1-2 UNC.

Obviously you can build a narrative around the result, but it self fulfilling. Can you see a situation in say Mens Bball where the team that finished 3rd in the ACC gets no seed in the NCAAs, but the the 4th and 5th get one ?

This stuff is what it is, but logical, it is not. Given what I know, I try and keep it in perspective. If the information was more freely available, I think many people would view this stuff differently.

PS that Stanford team had Macario AND Smith. Both touted as locks for long term FULL team success. Both earning a great living as pros.

 

Some corrections are needed here.

BYU did not play USC twice. They lost to and then beat Santa Clara (then ranked number 9 or 11 so they do have a top 25 win).

Virgina is underranked and a second round match against BYU is quite bizarre, but you're definitely underestimating a highly athletic and proficient BYU team. They have the most goals in the NCAA this season and are ranked 3rd if we're counting by game. This is a team that made it to the Top 8 last tournament before losing to Stanford. So not sure what you mean by "easy" bracket.

On paper, BYU is a better team than UVA and from games I've seen they pass the eye test better as well. Not to mention the extra rest with the first round bye. The edge definitely goes to BYU, but UVA winning wouldn't exactly be an upset. Like Virginia, BYU has a history of underperforming in the NCAA tournament.

But UVA has a first round match to win before any of that.

 

Thanks for the corrections.
On their schedule I saw SC. Wish they used USC for SoCal.
I have no problem with your opinions and takes.
As has been pointed out, the matchups are key, and there is no way to do that perfectly.
I really see this game as an even matchup. Having played them and barely won, I expect that has colored my opinion.
I don't see the big paper difference.
I believe UVA to be a top 10 team. Losing to WVU late probably didn't help.
I don't keep up well with BYU (shame on me) much. Are they a more direct team, or a more possession team?
It seems to me that more direct high pressure teams give UVA more problems. UNC beat UVA more easily than we did, although we beat them at UVA, which is hard for anyone.
As to the rest, not sure it makes a difference with the 4 days between games this year. I just noticed there are only 3 days between those first two games, probably due to BYU's no Sunday play policy. That is an advantage.
As to the "easy" bracket, I am referencing the bracket with top 2 seeds being the 4 and 5 seeds. A bracket with any of the top 3 seeds would be more difficult to win IMO.
***As I have pointed out elsewhere, I am so glad the NCAA is scheduling 4 days between games this year (BYU exception). In the past, you play the CC on Friday and Sunday. This year it's Thursday and Monday! Please keep it that way NCAA.

 

I would say this BYU team is more direct than previous years have been. Their biggest strength is their midfield domination with x2 Hermann trophy watchlist and second round NWSL draftee Colohan directing all the traffic. Teams will mark her but the problem is BYU has 4 players with 8 or more goals. In general they're very attack-minded with the outside backs contributing a lot too -- hence the no shut outs and most goals in the NCAA.

So I think UVA's key is to win is to win the midfield battle or skip it altogether. I think long balls and set pieces can be issues for BYU. If the game becomes a track meet then BYU is probably going to win. They are very fit with a deep bench and lots of players. I think high elevation teams always have an advantage there.

BYU's undoing will surely be their defense. Last year it was their strong point but this year they have one returning defender (who is good, but was the weakest of the 4 and the only one without all conference honors). Their keeper is one of their weakest in many years. She has her moments but plenty of shaky outings as well. Granted this is all relative so a below average BYU defense is still quite good. But will likely be the thing that keeps them from getting to the College Cup. They only lose 2 players and 1 starter this season though, so with a little more experience on the backline they should be quite scary next year.

Then again, this is a weird year and I really think absolutely anything can happen. In any case, BYU vs UVA is a tougher 2nd round match than either team deserves. But if I was a betting person I'd put my money on BYU.

No disrespect to SIUE lol but I don't think BYU coaches are doing much prep for them.

 

Your right they do play some tough out of conference games. Maybe they are just a team that gets up for the hard games but aren’t focused enough on games they should win. Honestly I don’t watch virginia enough to know. I just look at the results and catch them a few times a year. I know vs Pitt this year they dominated the game but wasted so many chances and all of a sudden Pitt got one goal and the game was in overtime. They let lower teams hang in with them and championship level programs don’t do that

 

Just for information UVA is a very good possession team, but they have the speed up top to go direct anytime they need to. This could be a very entertaining game to watch.

 

jerricah Are you a BYU fan? I have a wife and daughter who graduated from there.

 

Yes, I think it will be a second round highlight even though it should be a Sweet 16 or even Elite Eight game with the caliber of teams. Or at least has the potential to be. You never know what you're gonna get in the big dance.

And yes, BYU is my alma mater so I am quite biased. But my husband is from VA.

 

Good luck. I should have mentioned that one son-in-law also graduated from BYU. If you have followed these boards then you know that I am an FSU fan which is my alma mater.

 

Congrats to UVA.
A tale of two halves!
IMO, the story of the game was BYU failing to capitalize on scoring opportunities while UVA, specifically Alex Spaanstra did not fail to capitalize on hers.
BYU would have good looks and kick it right to Ivory. I don't think she ever had to dive for a save.

 

Big players need to play big in games like this.

 

Unseeded. Conceded one goal vs SIUE. Played some of the better attacking teams in College soccer and shut them out. Defense was much maligned by many going into the tournament. Experts told us UVA would "bunker" vs FSU. Dominated FSU in wide areas in the first half and with better finishing/box prescence, who knows? With of the goal line denies the best shot of the game. FSU adjust in 2H and decide to double wide and leave on CB central. UVA fail to make any adjustmetns to counter that and get pushed deeper by FSU. Nothing too threatening, but FSU certainly ball dominant. OT, UVA look stronger and have a central header inside teh 6yd bow to win. Dont convert. UVA still push and fail to score.

Penalties are about holding your technique under pressure. FSU did that and should be commended for it.

Game was a classic example of why I tend to focus on the bigger games to assess players. Rankings, awards, All this all that. Throw it out and watch who performs in these games. Watch the adjustments coaches make and why. That tells me who is really good.

 

Really good observation.

 

Val or 007, do you know who, if any among your seniors and RS seniors plan to come back next year? UVA should be really strong next year.

 

Even though FSU dominated possession in the 2nd half, I thought UVa. would win this match by getting the ball to Ordonez in the box, and she'd score. I thought she'd be the difference because she is a true scorer and FSU, for all its possession, was doing little more than spinning its wheels. It had corners but its corner kicks weren't very good, either. And Ordonez got the one chance, late, but couldn't do enough with the header. Tough loss, but the Cavs should be very good next year with most of its top players back.

 

Ncaa baseball and softball are double elimination Tournaments You have to lose to two teams.

since you play more than one game against each opponent in some rounds, you can loose 4 games and still be crowned champion.