Virginia 2020

Didn't really think it mattered, really. White has played 250 minutes and defended a total of 9 corners. The only two that stick out in my mind vs Lousiville were cleared by Ordonez, and the last game she played, her CBs were Sieracki and McCormack. I don't think there is any rapport between anybody in the backline.

Ivory is poor on corners. Two years ago we were dreadful against corners and that bugaboo certainly raised its head yesterday. I'm just surprised that no one has ever taught Ivory how to punch the ball. I can't remember her ever punching one away. Can you?

I'm looking forward to seeing White next year between the sticks and watching her career progression. Tech, BC and Louisville ain't exactly the toughest of opposition...

 

HoosPlace writeup of Virginia at Boston College: https://hoosplace.com/2020/10/30/wsoccer/3411/


It was a dark and stormy night…

For the fourth time in this abbreviated season, Virginia played in heavy rain. Only this time the temp was 42 degrees. I don’t care how tough you are, 42 is cold and it’s insane when one is soaked clear through.

Virginia 2
Boston College 1


Perhaps my favorite quote from the world of sport comes from Manchester United’s Roy Keane. As an Arsenal fan, it is hard to admit that I admired him, but a fire burned through him on the pitch that was legendary. Man Utd had just dispatched some bottom table team with an important Champions League game coming up. A journalist was interviewing Keane post-game and he said something along the lines of wasn’t it nice to have had a tune up game ahead of the upcoming clash. And Keane glared at the journo and spat through gritted teeth, “They’re all hard!”

Keane’s point, of course, is that you have to play all the games, and teams that look past supposedly weaker teams frequently get victimized. And this game against Boston College was just such a game for the Cavaliers. The Eagles had nothing to play for and their only win on the season was against a similarly hapless Syracuse team. The weather was frightful, and yet here were 40 women playing because the game demands it.

In a typical soccer game, the first five minutes can be kind of patchy – both teams are trying to figure each other out and everyone is just trying to get a touch or two on the ball – but just about the entire first half was patchy. Did I mention the near-freezing rain? Lots of missed passes -- while those that connected were often to the back foot – and heavy touches. Virginia had two-thirds of the possession in the first half, but the counting stats – 5 shots and only 1 on goal – reflected the struggles on the pitch. I only took two pages of notes for the entire first half, and a third of that was the starting lineups for both teams.

Coach Steve Swanson, in an interview earlier in the day with the announcers, mentioned that his team had “left meat on the bone” all season in terms of failing to convert chances as they had in previous years. In the first half, leaving meat on the bone would have been an improvement.

The second half was a brighter affair. The Cavaliers recorded 7 shots and the Eagles had doubled their first half shot total, all in the first 15 minutes. It looks like corners are going to continue to be a bugaboo for Virginia, and BC had a dangerous one of those as well. But on the second BC corner of the half, magic happened. Emma Dawson and Anna Sumpter combined to clear the corner to waiting Alexa Spaanstra. She collected the ball, sped downfield and was overtaken by the speedier Rebecca Jarrett. For the second game in a row, Spaanstra split the defense and found the streaking Jarrett. Jarrett’s first touch on the ball was heavy and she pushed the ball wide of the six yard box. I thought we’d blown the counter but Jarrett squeezed the ball past BC’s keeper, Allie Augur, on the near post. Jarrett’s speed ought to prevent teams from smelling Virginia blood and selling out on corners.

Virginia kept up the pressure and four minutes later had increased their lead to 2 – 0 after Claire Constant buried a save from a Diana Ordonez shot. Now TV pundits often claim that the most dangerous lead to protect is the 2 – 0 lead. Perhaps it is just to keep eyeballs on the screen, perhaps it is that the winning team loses a bit of focus. Whatever the reason, Virginia failed to kill off the game. BC played its most effective ball of the game over the last 15 minutes, maybe taking advantage of the second team that Swanson had subbed on by that point. The pressure mounted and Virginia finally cracked, unsurprisingly off a corner, when BC’s Emily Knous hit a divine half-volley following a weak clearance. There would be two more BC corners in the last 7 minutes as Virginia, to be frank, looked a bit frantic. After the BC goal, Swanson rushed several starters back into the game and the Cavaliers were able to hold on for the win.

The final verdict? An ugly game, punctuated by a moment of brilliance for each team. Class won out in the end, but it was a gut check for both teams, and I would think Roy Keane would have approved of the fight displayed by both teams.


Injury Update: Alexa Spaanstra seems to be back at 100%, as witnessed by the Spaanstra/Jarrett Express. It was good to see the return of Cam Lexow who has been out for at least four games. And given the injury hex that has plagued the Cavaliers, on this rainy night, it was great to see that no one picked up an obvious knock. On the other hand, it was troubling that Taryn Torres did not play because she was clearly not match-fit versus Florida State. Maybe Swanson held her out as a precaution, given the appalling weather. Lacy McCormack was also noticeably absent.

I could list all the players that have missed time, whether due to injury or coronavirus protocols, but it’s easier to list the players who have been available to Coach Swanson all season: Lizzie Sieracki, Sarah Clark, Rebecca Jarrett and Lia Godfrey. That is a troublingly short list and I have no doubt that this has been the most challenging year of Swanson’s tenure on Grounds. He started his 9th different lineup of the season.

Next Up: At Syracuse, a team that Boston College beat handily, in the concluding game of the ACC regular season. This is the final tuneup before the conference tournament. Virginia currently sits fourth, a half game behind Clemson and a half game ahead of Notre Dame.

 

Well, we officially suck at corners.

 

True. But we had more physical power two years ago and sucked on corners then as well.

 

Sure, I always want UNC, moreso after Brianna Pinto.

 

Virginia v Syracuse game report: https://hoosplace.com/2020/11/02/wsoccer/3490/

Syracuse keeper Lysianne Proulx came into the game leading the nation in saves/game, which is a dubious honor. It’s kind of like your safety leading the team in tackles: it means your defense isn’t very good. Despite three top-notch saves from Proulx, UVa blitzed Syracuse for 5 goals, but there are troubling signs as the Cavaliers head into next week’s ACC Tournament.

Virginia 5
Syracuse 3

Much like Boston College, Syracuse entered this game playing purely for pride and for the Seniors (last year’s Senior Night for the Orange, also versus Virginia, was rained out.) It was another sub-50 degree day for the game, as for the second game in a row, Virginia departed one day ahead of snow.

Frigid days usually lead to sluggish starts, but maybe Virginia was better acclimated to the cold because they jumped all over Syracuse and it took but 20 seconds to Rebecca Jarrett to drive half the length of the field and fire a shot. We had three other fine chances in the first 6 minutes before Lizzie Sieracki unlocked the Orange defense 13 minutes in with a great ball in the channel between the center backs and the wide defender. Jarrett raced onto the ball, waltzed into the penalty box and slipped a pass through to Alexa Spaanstra who had only to tap the ball into an open net. Three minutes later, Anna Sumpter jumped on a ball that failed to find the targeted Diana Ordonez and the score was 2 – 0.

This lead only stood for two minutes – see the BC game report about 2 – 0 leads – when Syracuse was awarded a free kick wide of the penalty box. We had Syracuse’s Jenna Tivnan covered, but she was the one who rose up, won the ball, and headed it home. It was a fine goal, and I’m sure it felt great, but Virginia is still much better than ‘Cuse, and we dominated the next twenty minutes and were rewarded by Diana Ordonez’ goal which made the score 3 – 1.

But Syracuse knew this was the last game of the year for them, certainly the last meaningful game regardless of what happens in the spring. The Orange will not be playing in the ACC tournament and the NCAAs are just a pipe dream. And it was the aforementioned Senior Night. They continued to attack and won a pair of corners. Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but on a nicely taken corner, Virginia was victimized again. This time Talia Staude and Samar Guidry were not flatfooted, but they missed the ball anyway and it fell to Shannon Aviza, who scored to make the game 3 – 2.

It’s official: we suck at corners and I’m trying to forget just how many we’ve conceded, but it is probably 4 or 5 in just 10 games. I’m certainly not the first to state this, but winning the aerial battle on a corner – starting flatfooted, jockeying in what is basically a mosh pit in front of the goal — is about attitude. Some players want the ball and will literally move opponents out of their way. Some players are content to just kind of jump up and hope the ball hits them in the head. We lack a player who Will. Not. Be. Denied. Sieracki, who is maybe the closest to an aerial force was out of the game at this point, and our tallest player was guarding the near post. And when opponents sniff out a weakness, it will only give them greater energy for this most dangerous situation. We’re not going to beat a UNC or Florida State if we grant them a goal off a corner.

Virginia was the more energetic team in the second half and Jarrett quickly extended the lead within 7 minutes with a very nicely placed shot from distance. After a rare case of the Syracuse keeper handling the ball after an intentional pass back (she slipped), Lia Godfrey put the ball into the roof of the net to make it 5 – 2. Ordonez and Sumpter both had nice chances denied by Proulx, and on the day, she would match her season average of 9 saves/game.

The games seemed to be heading to an end when Virginia was called for a penalty with 10 seconds left. It would be a fairly irrelevant goal, after all, and backup keeper Michaela Moran actually was smiling prior to the take, but this was the fourth penalty conceded in, again, just 10 games. This team is leaking goals and we’re now at the stage where we are conceding to poor teams. In eight games, Syracuse had scored but twice, and here they scored 3 in one game. I doubt that this game was the tune-up that Coach Steve Swanson was hoping for.

Player Notes: For the second game since starting vs Florida State, Taryn Torres was a no-show. She is one of the few players that can handle the physicality of UNC and FSU in the center of the pitch and I had hoped that she could have used the games versus Boston College and Syracuse to get match fit. I would not expect to see her for the ACC tournament.

Lizzie Sieracki started for the second straight game at right back, ahead of Sarah Clark. She played about 25 minutes in the first half and then did not play at all in the second. There were a couple of moments when she was walking gingerly before she was pulled, but it didn’t seem major. Hopefully she was kept out in an abundance of caution, because more than ever, we need her. Her pass to Jarrett leading to the first goal is what I want to see more of. Jarret possesses elite speed and the pass Sieracki made to her was the football equivalent of the post route. Too often this team gets the ball to Jarrett as if she’s just run a button-hook. We don’t capitalize enough on Jarrett’s speed.

And lastly, Kayla White started in goal. For the fourth time this season. This can’t just be rotation. Keepers need reps and on a team as good as Virginia, the keeper usually doesn’t get many chances to impact the game. Laurel Ivory has been a starter since just about her first games at Virginia and this year, her senior season, she’s started just 60% of the games. While Ivory hasn’t played like there have been any after effects of the Brianna Pinto mugging, she did take a big hit late in the Boston College game. Again, this may be an abundance of caution on Swanson’s part. But having to possibly ration your star keeper’s minutes heading into the ACC tournament though, that’s another worrying sign.

Next Up: The ACC tournament. With these last two wins, and coupled with FSU knocking off Clemson, Virginia secured the 3rd seed and is facing #6 Louisville next Tuesday, 10 November. A potential semi-final matchup with UNC looms.

 

This was the Jarrett "offsides." Talk about a blown call.

 

Really sucky 24 hours for me. Finally got the writeup done: https://hoosplace.com/2020/11/12/wsoccer/3597/

 

HoosPlace wrap-up: https://hoosplace.com/2020/11/15/wsoccer/3643/

North Carolina (Again) Ends Virginia’s Season Prematurely

Virginia started out brightly vs North Carolina, keeping the Tar Heels on the back heel for the first 30 minutes of the half and winning the possession battle 58% to 42% for the half. UNC coach Anson Dorrance’s halftime talk might very well have been to simply post those numbers and allowing that stat to motivate his players, because it was a different game in the second half.

Virginia 0
North Carolina 2

For the first time all season, Virginia coach Steve Swanson played the same lineup on consecutive games. For the record, injuries and the pandemic forced Swanson to play 11 different lineups this year and the lack of unit cohesion may have contributed to the defeat against the Tar Heels.

The fireworks started early, very early, as Lia Godfrey struck a wonderful looping shot in the game’s opening half minute and she, and Alexa Spaanstra had fine chances in a flurry 10 minutes later. UNC had a pair of nice shoots from within the Virginia penalty box in the first 5 minutes as well.

Left back Samar Guidry had a wonderful 1st half, running the Tar Heels almost at will. Guidry is an interesting player. She is a wonderful dribbler and has fine pace, but she doesn’t know what to do when she actually has won the 1 v 1 v 1 v 1 battle and moved into space. She stops, the ball stops, and momentum is lost. It might be lack of confidence, or she may just not have a nose for the goal (she is a defender, after all,) but seeing if she can put it all together over the next three years is going to be a nice journey.

In the 28th minute Dorrance made his patented line change swapping out all six midfielders and forwards at once. The college rules obviously allow such a practice and good coaches adapt to the environment to give their teams the edge. Dorrance continues to develop US Women’s National Team players at a steady clip, so he’s not hindering his players’ growth. But it is not adult soccer. And it rankles me when it works, and it did on this night.

Five minutes left in the first half, Aleigh Gambone, one of those second shifters for UNC, got the ball outside the box, lost the ball after hitting the ball straight to Claire Constant, and it was a matter that she just wanted the ball more, as she gathered the ricochet and split Constant and Sarah Clark. Both Clark and Constant were a step slow and Clark brought down Gambone for a penalty. UNC keeper Claudia Dickey took the penalty with authority and UVa, despite matching UNC’s physicality and speed all game long, went into the locker room down 1 – 0.

The second half belonged to UNC. The Cavaliers couldn’t maintain possession and just 10 minutes in I wrote in my notebook that we needed a London Perrantes on the pitch. After recording no corners in the first half, Carolina had three in the first 10 minutes. As might be expected, they were harrowing affairs for the Cavs and UNC should have scored on one of them.

This was an extremely physical game and we didn’t have an answer, really, to the Tar Heel pace and strength. They pushed Virginia all over the pitch. UNC ended up being called for 16 fouls and they received 3 yellow cards. Those are simply astronomical numbers for the women’s game where the refs call games as if these women were genteel schoolgirls. Rebecca Jarrett, the only Cavalier to play in all 12 games this fall and the most impactful player on the season, was matched up against UNC’s Emily Fox. Three seasons ago I wrote that Fox was the best player in the ACC, and though she’s had injury woes of her own the past two seasons, she is every bit as fast as Jarrett and she’s much stronger. She bullied Jarrett off the ball all game long.

One of the side effects of playing during the pandemic in front of empty stands is that we can hear the coaches on the sidelines. All season long Steve Swanson has been pretty quiet on the sidelines – soccer is a player’s game after all – but on this night he was much more vocal as the team was seemingly incapable of pressing as a team and as time was expiring on the season.

Now, these women don’t give up. The never do, and they struggled to claw themselves back into the game, but chasing a result is risky. As UVa got stretched, the Tar Heels started looking for the longer ball and not surprisingly, Virginia got caught on the counter. A much-rested Isabel Cox easily out-maneuvered Talia Staude chasing down a long ball and fired home for the icing goal. 2 – 0 and it would be the Tar Heels who would advance to the final vs Florida State.

For the Cavaliers, it was a second straight loss to UNC and now that Maryland has departed the ACC, I hate losing to the Tar Heels more than any other team. That UNC is ACC and women’s soccer royalty makes it worse. Their record in the ACC Tournament: an eye-popping 71 – 6 – 5.

Analyst Arrogance

I have never played or coached at this level, and all I do is watch the games, and it is frankly arrogance on the part the internet nabobs who criticize coaches and players alike. Over the past three years I have sought to be resolutely positive, a task made easy by the quality of the coach and his program and the attitude and drive of the players. But I am in a prescriptive mood, so here is what I would like to see going forward:

Lia Godfrey: Last spring Cam Lexow added a flip-toss to her arsenal. Someone on this team has to learn how to take free kicks. 10 minutes left in the game, we’re down 2 – 0 and in desperate need of a goal, and UNC was called for foul 25 yards away from the goal. Diana Ordonez and Taryn Torres stood at the ball. I was praying that Torres would take the free kick, and she did. Only she skied it over the crossbar. It wasn’t close. We need someone who can at the very least put the ball on frame. Or drive it between the defensive line and the keeper. I think that Lia Godfrey could be that person.

Diana Ordonez: Spend the spring with men’s basketball strength and conditioning coach, Mike Curtis. Ordonez’s natural inclination is to set up to receive the ball with her back to the goal. She’s not nearly strong enough to be able to do so, even against weaker ACC center backs. Curtis is a legendary S&C coach and it would be time well spent.

Steve Swanson: We are the third team in the ACC’s Big Three and we lack the strength and physicality of both Florida State and UNC. Both teams play attractive, possession soccer, but that is after the strength battle has been won. We went toe-toe with FSU with 8 players unavailable while Florida State started the same lineup all 10 games. We had our chances with UNC on this day. But there was a (slight) feeling of inevitability in the final scorelines of both. Swanson wants technically skilled and tactically flexible players and we play lovely soccer. But this year’s freshmen are illustrative of the strength divide: six of nine newcomers are 5’5” or smaller. Sure, Leo Messi is 5’7” and Diego Maradona was 5’4”, but soccer is a physical game and we need to get stronger.

ACC Superlatives

Five Cavaliers placed on the ACC all-season teams. These teams are chosen by the coaches, but please remember the coaches are idiots. On the first two teams, you know, with 20 field players, the coaches could only bring themselves to select five defenders. Every team in the league plays with at least four in the back, but apparently most of those 56 starters suck. At least the coaches picked a keeper for each team.

Lia Godfrey is the Freshman of the Year and as such she’s on the All–Freshman team. Godfrey was also chosen for the All-ACC Second team.

Samar Guidry joins Godfrey on the All-Freshman team.

Rebecca Jarrett highlights the All-ACC Second team and she is joined by Diana Ordonez.

Alexa Spaanstra is Virginia’s lone representative on the All-ACC first team.

Both Ordonez and Spaanstra were selected for the All-Tournament team, which may be a dubious honor since ACC coaches distinguished themselves by selecting two goalkeepers for that 11-player team.