we're crazy

here we are,gettin ready to watch a game that doesn't count-

out of season-

at dawn-

in weather where there's a skim of ice forming on my Starbucks cup-

and loving it.


See the rest of you there!

i cant go... but i expect a full report!

GO PILOTS!

The essentials first.

Garrett's hay fever looks like it's doing much better. there's definitely much less puffyness around the eyes, and I don't think he had to reach for a Kleenex once the whole game. by season start, he should be fine.

The Drum squad needs some work, though. I can't be too hard on them, because their numbers were clearly down. They probably had members with spring ball commitments elsewhere. But there are things they clearly need to work on if they expect to be ready for the season.

First off, they had their shirts on and no painted letters on their chests. I know it was 34º at game time, but it WAS sunny. It seems to me they should take these spring sessions more seriously if they expect to be on top the NCAA during the season. If they had their dorm extension numbers on their backs, I sure couldn't see them. And they made no attempt at a "Go Pilots" cheer with the stands on the other side (understandable, because the 12 of us over there weren't going to take our hands out of our pockets, much less cheer). They need to find a way to shore up the bass drums by kickoff in the fall.
The 1-nil song was OK, but a bit slow in forming. But to their credit, they managed to rally with a nice "left...right...left..right.......SIDDOWN!" near the end of the game. I'm sure they will be ready for the season.

It looked like most everyone was in town except Sophie, so we didn't get a chance to see her, and the Rapinoes sat, which I'm sure they'll do all Spring. No sense rushing things.

The team played a typical Spring game. The roster started with deYoung in goal, and Tsao, Kelly, Nicholson, and Sweeney across the back , Winters and Jackman in the midfield With Reed and ? outside, Jacka and Enyeart up top. It was nice to see the two redshirts doing well enough to mix it up. Kelsey played the second half. Both keepers got some work on 1 v 1's - not something I hope will happen during the year.

UP tried playing the touch game, and Spring ball being what it is, they didn't connect as well as they are accustomed, but still managed to dominate play. The defense had some miscues, but that's to be expected. They had a few nice attempts , but didn't connect on many. As the game wore on, players played everywhere, and I think most everyone played. Ellie played outside defender some, and Kroncrite did a stint at forward in the second half. Scifo got time, - well, you know how it goes in the Spring with a short roster.
I think everyone came away without injury, though it looked like Tsao took a hit and sat the second stanza.

WSU played with a strong defense and tried countering, but didn't actually pose too much of a threat.

The main feature of the day was to sit there in the sun and watch players do what they do.

Oh yeah, final score UP-2 , WSU-1

Scoring for UP was by Enyeart off a shot in the box, and by Winters on a beautiful free kick over the wall that just made it under the bar from about 25 yards.

WSU scored on a PK against Kelsey. The ref made some sort of misguided call about a takedown in the box. A good Pilot fan would have called that a 50-50 ball. Those guys need work too.

The ? other outside mid was Chandhoke, who played a pretty good game. Looks in much better condition than last year and was pretty active over a lot of the field.

Enyeart's goal: A pass back to the keeper, which the keeper controlled. The keeper took a touch so she could run onto the ball to kick it deep. Enyeart saw how far away from herself the keeper had played it and burnt the grass getting to the ball way ahead of the keeper, faked around a defender, and left-footed the ball into the goal. To quote WNT player Kai, who did the same thing in the Algarve Cup against Norway, "I saw how far away she played the ball and ran for it like my Momma was after me with a paddle!"

I guess the game report should have ended--

"Some of the fans looked like they were asleep"

I hope Momma forgets why she was looking for the paddle before she finds it.

sophie was there, she just didnt play. saw her at half going off the field with kelly. i was impressed with the obvious improvement of kristen kelly an sarah jackman, they didnt look like the scared, intimidated freshman of last fall. especially was impressed with kristen's poise on the ball.
keelin's free kick was a thing of beauty. it appeared to me that she fooled the keeper by taking some pace off the shot making the keeper jump too early. enyeart's goal was a pure hustle play. she was all over the field all game long.
elli played the entire 3/4's of the game i saw [got there late] at left back. after watching her there i am willing to keep an open mind about her at that position. would still like to see her not get knocked off the ball so easy. an jacka too for that matter.
it was great to be back at merlo, in the sun with the lucious green grass even for a spring game. i was in need of a fix.

by the way, after the game i saw lauren hanson walking off the field with an apparent high schooler an the girl's mother. i dont know who she is, but after googling images of courtney verloo i will say that i am 95% sure it was her.

A few comments:

Enyeart-aggressive, fast, able to control & retain ball better than others; makes things happen

Sweeney-looked good on defense, able to turn the ball up-field with a defender right on her back; impressive ball control; vital part of the ball control & movement when she came up; I had seen her on the ladder agility drill and she looked impressive there, as she did today, her first competition in 9 months

Hailee-very vocal in goal, ala Kelsey; I don't recall that from her last year

I agree that Elli & Jacka get knocked off ball easily, as does Kendra; Enyeart takes better care of it

Kroncrite-saw a bit of what we missed since we only saw her previously on defense; she moved the ball around well, looked for passing opportunities, got rid of the ball more quickly than some, before she got closed down

I, too, saw the apprarent high school recruit. I have seen Verloo before; I think she is taller and more slender than the gal I saw today. Anyone have any inside info on who it may have been.

Shame on you, fozzie! Just about 14 hours after you chastised geezer for mentioning 2009 recruit Cloee, you mention a potential 2009 recruit, Courtney, or someone resembling her.

Just kidding foz!!! You know I love you. But I like hearing Geezer's updates on the future recruits. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy all over...or, put another way, it gives me great confidence to know that we are now competing nationally for top-flight players with the likes of UNC, UCLA, NotreDame, Santa Clara, etc.. I don't get too excited about these players, because I know they are not going to be here for awhile. But just knowing they are someday on the way to Merlo gives me a great feeling.

Fozzie - if it really bothers you then just don't read it. Every once in awhile I will come across a topic or post that either doesn't interest me, or I really don't want to get into. So I just skip them. No harm done.

Yah. It was a wonderful opening for Spring Soccer!! What's that old line from Apocalypse Now..."I love the smell of Napalm in the morning!?"...except of course...I'm referring to a fresh and nicely maniured grass-pitch at Merlo!! Ahhhh...Loved it! It was a nice fix indeed for futbol addicts!

Must say...WSU had a pretty nice sized contingent of family and friends who were there watching the scrimmage too.

Michelle, Elli and Keelin are definitely ahead of the curve. They just seemed to me to be already in mid-season form. The recent U-20 camps and tournaments they've participated in really showed in how sharp they performed this morning. Man....we're going to miss these 3 gals this season...if they redshirt!?

One thing that really got my attention was Megan Rapinoe. I was on my cell after the game...talking to my wife....and not particularly paying attention to any of the group of players...walking across the field back to Chiles...when some activity on my peripheral caught my attention! What I SAW..was someone doing front and back hand-springs and backfilps...maybe 2 or 3 in a row at mid-field?
It looked like Mary Lou Renton was doing a tumbling run across the field! I was flabbergasted when it registered that...THAT was Megan Rapinoe doing those gymnastic moves!! Anyone there this morning see her doing this too??

It was REALLY funny cause...the other players with Megan...were enjoying the show too! BUT...Megan must've been caught doing something she shouldn't have! It wasn't exactly the best rehab "excercise" for someone with a healing ACL to do!!! When the small group with Megan looked back at the coaches...still on sidelines...I think someone caught the gold medal performance too and called her on it! I was too far away to hear what was said...but...Megan did a "half-assed cartwheel" after that...maybe just to dumbdown the show...that they didn't see what they just saw!! Megan's agility?...Check that!! She's ready to go!! I think we might get to see her earlier! Maybe in one of the Spring Games? Hopefully against UW, UO or the U-23s! Can't wait...Megan's napalm!!!

GO PILOTS!!!

GUPphantom,
i agree about hailee. i could actually hear her in goal yelling directions, but i was seated at that end of the field. kelsey in the 2nd half sounded just as loud, but she was about 50 yards further away from me. still, it was as loud as i have ever heard hailee.
secondly, i really didnt appriciate how much megan sweeney was missed last year until i saw her play this spring. what a tremendous addition she will be!!
i also saw megan rapinoe going round offs an cartwheels after the game. if anything else that makes me feel pretty confident that she is fully healed. an the best thing i saw was megan hugging rachael many times. i love how they love each other, but i have a feeling that might be a twin thing.
an for you FANantic,
i was mentioning that i thought i may have seen a top recruit with our top recruiter, a recruit who is local. as for cloee, according to geezer, she is committed. verloo is still out there as far as i know, but seeing her at a u of p 'scrimmage' an walking off the field with lauren is pretty exciting i think!!
an yes FANantic, i know you are teasing. im just excited about the possiblities. i didnt follow the pilot gilrs previuosly to tiffeny. the first national recruit after i started following the program was kylie barton. ironically, she was also from tualitan h.s. an she is also one of my all time favorite past pilots.
all in all, it was a great day!!!

Agreed, Phantom. Michelle, Elli and Keelin seemed to be the cream of the crop to me. Elli's runs up the left side were very dangerous. And she just instinctively knows when to cut into the center or go straight down the line.

Michelle reigned supreme. Most dominant player on the pitch. A couple more creative people on the offense surrounding her, and she scores 2 or 3 goals. (Danielle or Charney anyone?) One or both of those two 2008 recruits should give us Wozzie-like action in the attacking zone.

Keelin is - what can I say - just one heckuva player. I also thought Korie and Kristen played with confidence and both were very sold at center back. That's all the energy I've got left...........Great to see the ladies in game action again. Last game action I saw them in was the mess in L.A. at the end of last season........................................ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ (Don't ask...)

one thing i did notice was it seemed to me that sarah an keelin kept getting in each others way during goal kicks. but i am sure that will be rectified by the time season starts.
as for the next 'scrimmage', i will be working so i am relying on my pilot nation bretheran to keep me updated!

upswr,
let's compare notes. the gal i saw was just a little bit shorter than lauren, an i know lauren to be 5'10" tall. that makes this recruit 5'8"-5'9" tall. she is athletic looking with blond hair and dark eyebrows which is kind of unusual for blonds i think.
of course, i could be completely wrong, but i plan on asking lauren the next time i see her, which will be exactly the third time i have ever talk to her!

There were two women sitting behind me who seemed to be pretty knowledgeable, they said Verloo is waiting for her SAT's before she commits anywhere. I don't know if it's true, but it's what they said.

I was sitting close enough to the field that I could hear Garrett's comments to the team at half time. It was very interesting. He had a small piece of paper which he had obviously made notes. He had a specific comment for almost every player on something he had noticed in the first half. He told Megan Sweeny that WSU had scouted the Pilots and knew they wanted the backs to get outside and upfield. He said WSU was working to turn her in. He told her if she made a feint inside she might draw in the defender and be able to go outside.

I was listening to Garrett, too. The things I though I heard him say, from his notes: (1) Keep the ball on the ground. They have the tallest players on the field, no reason to kick it in the air to them. (2) Have active minds. (3) On free kicks, take them quickly and get the ball in play. (4) To Janelle Jacka: Instead of trying to receive the ball and moving simultaneously, trap it to your feet and then decide what to do. (5) To the defense: Stay organized. Always know who is marking a particular player. Some of them have had free runs where it wasn't clear who was marking them. Call out that you have them right away. Stay organized.

It would not have been Verloo. She is at the U-17 traing camp in Florida in
preparation for the World Cup in Auckland, New Zealand in November.

Kendall Johnson from Lincoln, maybe?

Just a shot in the dark, but I know she's blond... I met her briefly at the Oregon Sports Awards.

Kassandra McCluskie is Blond, too.

man geezer,
i dont know. yea, that could be her. i am so confused now. an while i know now courtney is in florida, i have so many questions.
#1, why would a recruit already committed to u of p come up here if she wasnt local already?
#2, while the u-17's may be in camp, do they really not get the easter weekend off?
#3, the pic you sent really does look like the gal i saw, but so does the pic's i saw of courtney. i am at a lost.
as i have stated before, you are the all know

keezer!!!

i pay homaged to you!!!!

Courtney wasn't there. The US National Team system does not care about Easter and giving player's time off for such occasion. This speculation does crack me up though: for all you know, that could have been Lauren's sister and mother, in town for the Easter holiday.

fozziewozzie,

#1, to see what the campus looks like and meet the coaches and team. What better time than a school holiday?
#2, yes (I had to read the question twice to figure out the right answer )
#3, seek counseling. especially show your last sentence to the shrink or religious guide.