NCAA Tourney: Wazzu @ Portland, Friday 11/9, 7pm

DoubleDipper wrote:

harryb wrote:And Dees scored on the 5th penalty kick. It takes a lot of chutzpah to send your goalie up fifth.

....and it seemed so easy for her, and with such confidence. Garrett obviously had confidence in her too.

So, did anyone notice? Garrett was wearing a cap tonight...he finally looked like a coach, not a player.

Dees shot and made hers last year against Oregon State as well.

This will be one of those "I was there" nights.

Don't forget the two excellent goals by the Pilots tonight. And also look out for WSU next year. They were very impressive.

This just came across my timeline. Guess who:

Doing it for the name on the front of the shirt. Glad I could be there for my team. #18strong

From the O




see the rest.
http://photos.oregonlive.com/photo-essay/2012/11/pilots_vs_cougars_womens_socce.html

The new wallpaper on my tablet (thanks, Oregonian):

What a heart-stopping game! Erin was phenomenal, along with Kendall and many others. Looking forward to next weekend. Wouldn't it be nice if Penn St. lost tomorrow? :-)

The Pilots broke a pattern tonight regarding PK shootouts. In their past 5 shootouts, they were 3-0 away from Merlo (@Stanford '02, Penn State in national semis in '05, @OSU '11), and 0-2 at Merlo (Santa Clara '03, UW '11). They finally won a shootout at home!

Erin had a very good game prior to the shootout. And then in the shootout, how did she possibly manage to block all three save-or-go-home shots? Amazing!

You've got to feel for the WSU players. A number were in tears after the game. They were so close three different times (and in fact a few got confused at one point and celebrated prematurely, not realizing that they needed to make one more PK to seal the deal).

Erin tweets

@ErinDees: Doing it for the name on the front of the shirt. Glad I could be there for my team. #18strong

One of the great nights at Merlo.

This is not the most talented team we've seen at Merlo, although Kendall ranks up there with the great players, but no team has more heart than this one. I'm proud to be a fan. They left everything out on the field and they just kept playing.

To quote Andre Villas-Boas, coach of my beloved Spurs, Dees was a player of "immense human dimensions" last night. The Cougars must be devastated because they were one kick away from winning three or four times I think. Dees stopped three of them. Breath-taking, nerve wracking, drama.

WSU was athletic and physical. The ticket sales for the game had interesting effects because there were Cougar fans in section B last night, which was a little weird. I sat next to a visitor and he said before kick off that they would be rough, and he was right. The referee let the game be played that way and the Pilots were at a disadvantage because of it. He (the WSU fan not the ref) was also gracious enough to say, during the game, how dangerous UP looked when they started to string passes together and really play, and that the Pilots were the better soccer players.

Everyone in white was a heroine last night. Dees has already been hailed. Kendall was magnificent, Taylor not far behind her. Both in the great tradition of Pilots outside defenders. Rebekah has developed into one tough mama in the center mid, another Pilot tradition. Emily Sipple was banged around like a pinata last night. It's a miracle that she was still on her feet in OT.

Ellen was hurt and did not feature, Micaela made a couple of cameo appearances. Missing these two made a big big difference. Other labored mightily in their place and credit to them but it wasn't quite the same.

But the overarching sentiment is pride and appreciation for a valiant effort. Well played and bravo to all the players and to the coaches who inspired them.

While I echo a lot of the comments already made, I wanted to tip my hat to WSU. While UP appeared flat in the first half, credit needs to be given to WSU for playing aggressively and for taking the game to the Pilots. The Cougars played a great game were fun to watch.

Definitely one of the most exciting games I've seen through the years. My only regret is the games aren't available on replay, as this is one I'd like to watch again.

Midway through the game last night, my friend Mark reached into his parka pocket and pulled out a ticket that he didn't know he still had. It was from last year's opening-round playoff game down at OSU. Somehow it had not been ruined by that night's rain or tossed in the year since. It was a lucky charm as last night's game ended tied, went through two scoreless overtimes and progressed to PKs. Mark has a sense about shoot-outs; he has correctly predicted the Pilots' shocking PK loss to the Huskies a couple seasons back (he says it's all about the body language of the players and the keeper) as well as the Pilot's shootout win last year versus the Beavers. Erin Dees intimidated the Beavs that time after not even playing in regular time and being put in just for the shootout. Well, Dees was loose and ready for her grand moment again Friday, showing nothing but energy as she prepped to face the shooters. I loved to watch the Pilots on the bench shouting, bouncing, disbelieving as she made 3 saves -- pure, authentic joy and amazement on their faces as they jumped and hugged each other. I told Mark, "Keep that ticket!"

Go, Pilots -- such a sweet result.

What a game, it was tough sitting in the stands watching that shootout.

Thanks Geez for posting the link to the Oregonians photos, they were great. I'm sure the photographer took more, too bad they didn't post them. I really liked the one of WSU's first goal with them celebrating on the right of frame and Dees right in the middle of the shot shouting at her team. I wonder what she was saying?

Congratulations to the team and the whole program. If PSU wins which they probably will, let's hope there is a watch party at UP next weekend.

A_Fan wrote:What a game, it was tough sitting in the stands watching that shootout.

I was able to sneak behind the goal for the shootout......and it was just a blur.

Seriously, when WSU was shooting, Erin was just a blur as she sailed to her right or left.

I've seen a lot of soccer at various levels, but never have I seen the goal keeping performance that Erin displayed last evening. I would love to have had Kasey Keller in attendance and heard his remarks....I think he too would have been impressed.

keeper wrote:While I echo a lot of the comments already made, I wanted to tip my hat to WSU. While UP appeared flat in the first half, credit needs to be given to WSU for playing aggressively and for taking the game to the Pilots. The Cougars played a great game were fun to watch. ....

I agree. I wasn't expecting anything less from a Wazzou team that tied UCLA @ UCLA and lost a very evenly played match to Stanford @ Stanford 2-3.

UPSoccerFanatic wrote:

keeper wrote:While I echo a lot of the comments already made, I wanted to tip my hat to WSU. While UP appeared flat in the first half, credit needs to be given to WSU for playing aggressively and for taking the game to the Pilots. The Cougars played a great game were fun to watch. ....

I agree. I wasn't expecting anything less from a Wazzou team that tied UCLA @ UCLA and lost a very evenly played match to Stanford @ Stanford 2-3.

Vega (#2) and Castain (#8.) stood out as very nice players, and they don't have a ton of seniors. They should be a quality side for some time to come.

I would also commend the Johnson-Bridges-McCluskie-Brooke back line for all going the full 110 and playing their usual solid-to-excellent games.

Here are the highlights from last night... You might want to turn down your speakers because otherwise you will hear the screaming of the two commentators over each other -- quite annoying if you ask me.

RipCityPilot wrote:Here are the highlights from last night... You might want to turn down your speakers because otherwise you will hear the screaming of the two commentators over each other -- quite annoying if you ask me.

Loud? Are you kidding? I was yelling louder just watching the replay of Erin’s saves!

Thanks for posting.

The wazzu fans were cheering loud too, and maybe a little more



What? Oh..

That football.

In watching the game last night, it looked to me that WSU was playing more of a man-to-man defense for the first 20 minutes or so, when they seemed to completely control the tempo of the game. After that, they seemed to drop into more of a traditional zone and didn't have quite the same control.

I was wondering if someone with more soccer knowledge could comment on that.

Thanks

Actually, here's the (real) WSU video....it may not be well done, but it's authentic:

DoubleDipper wrote:

RipCityPilot wrote:Here are the highlights from last night... You might want to turn down your speakers because otherwise you will hear the screaming of the two commentators over each other -- quite annoying if you ask me.

Loud? Are you kidding? I was yelling louder just watching the replay of Erin’s saves!

Thanks for posting.

Talking over each other was the issue. The shouting? Part of the game. Loved it.

Notice the slight pause Angela takes between "Holy" and "smokes."

DoubleDipper wrote:

RipCityPilot wrote:Here are the highlights from last night... You might want to turn down your speakers because otherwise you will hear the screaming of the two commentators over each other -- quite annoying if you ask me.

Loud? Are you kidding? I was yelling louder just watching the replay of Erin’s saves!

Thanks for posting.

Her exact quote ... is one to remember ... She is someone that understands the difficulty and timing precision Michelle displayed in that goal. Michelle has been playing extraordinary the last couple of weeks with a great game on Friday with a goal and a PK.

Exact Quote:

"Goal for Michelle Cruz Holy Smokes Goodness Gracious"

Portland’s Erin Dees is the TopDrawerSoccer.com Player of the Week after her goalkeeping heroics Friday night in a win over Washington State(w).

http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/rankings-reflect-first-round-of-ncaa-play_aid28048?desktop=true&utm_source=All&utm_campaign=general_11_12_12&utm_medium=email

Congratulations to Erin for a very deserving effort.

Psychotic wrote: Portland’s Erin Dees is the TopDrawerSoccer.com Player of the Week after her goalkeeping heroics Friday night in a win over Washington State(w).

http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/rankings-reflect-first-round-of-ncaa-play_aid28048?desktop=true&utm_source=All&utm_campaign=general_11_12_12&utm_medium=email

Seriously, could there have been anyone else?

I would guess her overall game, capped off by her three defeat preventing saves (and one scored PK), was a "once in a lifetime" deal!