tough result

The loss was tough, but not crucial. gotta go back and regroup for USC Sunday

By the way-

Great job by Jason Brough on the play by play. He also said they are trying to get sponsorship for free video broadcasts and even do soccer games, if they can figure out a way to get a feed out to the press box.

that would be great.

Yes. Tough Loss.

But, how that sudden death goal occurred...sounded very familiar? Didn't it? Our defense seems to be prone to those very small lapses in judgement and focus. Unfortunately, its enough of an opening for good teams to capitalize and take advantage off. Loose ball in the box that got past Kelli and then a strong shot that Kelsey couldn't hold unto.

What did you all make of Sophie's debut? I have mixed feelings based on what I heard on the broadcast. Would like to see her live yet. Maybe it was all was just about getting used to her teammates and style of play? Do you think she's still catching up from the world cup? Kara Lang didn't seem to have a problem. She killed us tonight.

Let's regroup and get after the Trojans.

Sophie didn't practice all week so I'm happy with what I heard.

the Sophie - Lang comparison isn't fair. a defender always needs to be right.

a scorer? they can screw up 9 out of 10 times and that's considered good.

Your right Geezer. I give you that! Defensive mistakes are certainly more noticible and much less tolerable than offensive mistakes!

With offensive mistakes...its....Ahhh, shucks!!!!
With defensive mistakes...its....Ohhh Sxxx!!!!

What I really wanted to highlight was a tendency this season for the Pilots defense to beat themselves sometimes. There's been some heart stopping and head-shaking moments in the backline. Anyone's guess is as good as mine as to why? Missing players? Injured players? New players? Different Liineups? Its a department that still is working on an identity. The reasons could be one...or all of the above.

I can accept a goal and loss when the opposition just flat out beats us. I can applaud good play by other teams. But, its harder to take a loss when we beat ourselves with defensive lapses. The last UCLA goal was one where it sounded like we hurt ourselves. I would've like to have seen it myself to make a better jugdement...instead of listening to someone else's interpretation over an audio broadcast. As the play developed, I thought I heard..."the Oh- Oh"...in Jason's voice.

I think you saw a preview of where the back line is going. Come playoff time it might be Lopez, Michaelman, Kroncrite, and Schmidt across the back. Looks like Winters is securing a spot for herself at holding mid.


That's a pretty solid lineup.

Good points, Phantom and Geezer.

Stephanie Lopez has a calming effect on this team, and I expect her to really solidify that back line. Not much gets by her. Also, Sophie is still adjusting to college life, (she's way behind in her studies), and needs a good week or two of practice to get in sync with her new teammates. Kelli and Emily need to continue to play lock-down defense the rest of the way.

I want to see shutouts: against USC and the Ducks. And then continued high level play when the conference season begins. We want to win the conference outright and get that automatic tournament seed. I don't like leaving things up to the tournament committee. Winning the conference lets us control our own destiny.

One other area of concern, as we have been discussing the past few weeks: finishing.
Maybe I've been spoiled by Sinclair, the Rapinoes and Michelle Enyeart last season, but we aren't scoring goals at anywhere near the pace of previous years. Our possession game seems to continue to be strong, but why so few goals? (I know Geezer and I agree Budge should be up top and Enyeart at outside mid, like last year. It worked very well, so why change it now)?

Any other thoughts?

Fanatic, I think the biggest thing we have to keep in mind is that this isn't going to be like recent years for the obvious reasons: Injuries to some of our best players, World Cup, loss of a seasoned goalkeeper (Cori was a four year starter) and starting freshmen filling in gaps and learning the college game on the fly. This is leading to a lot of experimentation and adjustments before the games become critical. Considering all the obstacles to success, they've fared well.

This team is playing together better now than they were at the beginning of the month. The real key is to learn from these experiences in September because learning them in late November will lead to an early exit in the tournament.

Thanks for the perspective, pms268.

I took a look at the box score. UCLA outshot the Pilots 11-7. In the first half UCLA had a 4-1 shot advantange. But in the second half, the Pilots actually kept pace with shots (UP-6, UCLA-5). The Pilots had fought back and shifted offensvie momentum. I like that they began to threaten more and put UCLA on its heels a little bit. But, if you take a second look at shots on goal...considering both teams are offensive juggernauts...it was more telling of a defensive battle! Those numbers are on the low side, don't you think?

I trust Coach Smith's comments about the game in today's Oregonian. He said... (early in the second half when the Pilots started to take control).... that he " didn't care what the final score was because this is a performance I like".

Just like everyone else ...I want the team to go undefeated every year and annihilate everyone we play!! A loss still hurts...but that's just pride speaking in my behalf! Hey...we may experience a couple more losses to suck up and move on from. But...sometimes we just have to step back and take a look at the bigger picture. Is the team improving as the season progresses? Will they be ready and primed for deployment come tournament time? All I'm saying is I'm going to try really hard... NOT to get emotionally involved with statistical data like Wins, Losses and Rankings. It may not always be a reliable measuring stick for how the team is doing.

So without any emotion...I can calmly say...let's annihilate USC....and the Ducks too!!

GO PILOTS!!

Great last line, Phantom!

Thanks for a lot of good thoughts. Getting emotionally involved with something you can't control is not healthy. The big picture is always a clearer view of what's happening with a team.