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SLU 2 Lasalle 0

Some lineup changes for SLU.

Bri Arthur gets the start at right wing back. She’s had a couple of strong games off of the bench for SLU recently. also…Summers, (up top at forward, Lawler  at defensive mod with Kohl. Miller moved up to attacking mid. Hatfield also starting on left wing with Friedrich on right side. Halverson, Heckel, Houck, Arthur. Stram didn’t start. Bri Hatfield received a lot of minutes on the wing. Some of the changes are due to injuries and some are due to SLU trying to be more effective. So, a little but different personnel, playing in some different positions. Overall formation remains similar.

Arthur and Halverson at wingbacks, playing a bit deeper than vs Duquesne. (They tried this last game as well.)

8th minute, Arthur and Hatfield created a few opportunities on the right side. 

Walsh for Lawler less than 20 minutes in, which moves Miller back a bit. 

Gaebe for Summers up top, 23 minutes in. Sawyer for Friedrich 27 minutes in. Kelly and Brinkman in at wide mid wing and defensive mid for Hatfield and Miller. 

A little bit of Gaebe to Sawyer late, but mostly uneventful offense either way. Lasalle played a roughly similar formation to SLu using its interior defensive mids  to front those passes. 

2nd half, Gaebe up top and Walsh at attacking mid the starting changes. 

SLU goal, after cleared corner won by Gaebe, Hatfield lays it off wide for Friedrich with cross to Heckel (who was up from the corner. Remember risk/reward from last game.) making a run in the box. 

Caroline Kelly finally gets her first goal of the season on a pass from Miller in alone at the 64th minute. Big, meaningful goal for Kelly. She had just checked back into the game moving up top, after playing on the wing earlier. This moved Gaebe to wing for the first time this season, with Summers on the other wing.

 

She also had 3 separate near misses later with goal saving stops from Lasalle’s keeper. 

 

Summers slotted a nice pass for Gaebe in alone, anorher great save but Gaebe would like that finish back.

SLU also tried playing Preusser and Walsh together, Walsh deeper at defensive mid. 

Karsen Kohl had a very nice game for SLU in the defensive midfield, stepping in front to win balls, and with distribution. 

Shots were 15-3 SLU. Corners were 12-1 SLU.

 

 

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Rankings: Xavier fell out of the top 25 (21) after losing their high profile showdown game with Georgetown (25, now 23) 2-1 in OT. 

Speaking of rankings, 2022 SLU commit Taylor Krueger is leading the #2 Nationally Ranked United Soccer Coaches Poll Jesuit High School (Portland), (6 goals 4 assists) as an attacking midfielder. She was also the team’s leading scorer this past Spring as a Forward. 

Krueger is in her 4th season as a starter. Her team is seeking their 4th straight State Title in Oregon. They recently gave up their first goal in 26 games. (She plays for Crossfire United in ECNL)

2022 SLU commit Lauren Hiatt’s team/state also plays fall girls soccer for high school. She is an experienced leader in back for Ravenwood. (Nashville) The defensive midfielder/outside back, and her team, are seeking their 3rd straight Tennessee AAA State Title. And, they are off to a strong start. (She plays for TSC, Tennessee Soccer Club in ECNL)

2022 SLU commit Ellie Paloucek, and 2022 SLU commit Hannah Smith play Spring Girls Soccer. They are playing their respective club ball fall ball. Paloucek plays Midfield for 18/19’s LFA in Girls Academy League. And, Smith plays Forward/Right Wing for SLSG 18/19’s in ECNL. 

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1 hour ago, courtside said:

Rankings: Xavier fell out of the top 25 (21) after losing their high profile showdown game with Georgetown (25, now 23) 2-1 in OT. 

Speaking of rankings, 2022 SLU commit Taylor Krueger is leading the #2 Nationally Ranked United Soccer Coaches Poll Jesuit High School (Portland), (6 goals 4 assists) as an attacking midfielder. She was also the team’s leading scorer this past Spring as a Forward. 

Krueger is in her 4th season as a starter. Her team is seeking their 4th straight State Title in Oregon. They recently gave up their first goal in 26 games. (She plays for Crossfire United in ECNL)

2022 SLU commit Lauren Hiatt’s team/state also plays fall girls soccer for high school. She is an experienced leader in back for Ravenwood. (Nashville) The defensive midfielder/outside back, and her team, are seeking their 3rd straight Tennessee AAA State Title. And, they are off to a strong start. (She plays for TSC, Tennessee Soccer Club in ECNL)

2022 SLU commit Ellie Paloucek, and 2022 SLU commit Hannah Smith play Spring Girls Soccer. They are playing their respective club ball fall ball. Paloucek plays Midfield for 18/19’s LFA in Girls Academy League. And, Smith plays Forward/Right Wing for SLSG 18/19’s in ECNL. 

Sorry, Courtside but you are incorrect on Ellie Paloucek's team.  She is in the Girls Academy League, but she plays for the Sporting Red Devils (a St. Louis team)which has won at least 3 and maybe 4 straight MO State Cups for their age group.  They played LFA in a Girls Academy game a few weeks ago and pretty much embarrassed the LFA team.  It was 4-0 at half and Sporting pretty much called off the dogs, removing starters, passing the ball around in their backfield and eventually winning 5-0.  I saw about 20 minutes of each half and Ellie is very aggressive, strong with the ball and has a strong leg.

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17 hours ago, bauman said:

Sorry, Courtside but you are incorrect on Ellie Paloucek's team.  She is in the Girls Academy League, but she plays for the Sporting Red Devils (a St. Louis team)which has won at least 3 and maybe 4 straight MO State Cups for their age group.  They played LFA in a Girls Academy game a few weeks ago and pretty much embarrassed the LFA team.  It was 4-0 at half and Sporting pretty much called off the dogs, removing starters, passing the ball around in their backfield and eventually winning 5-0.  I saw about 20 minutes of each half and Ellie is very aggressive, strong with the ball and has a strong leg.

Habit. Attached below is a photo of one of their Spring 2021 LFA Academy games this year) Ellie (gray sweatpants) is next to SLU’s Emily Gaebe and Madelyn Smith. Also pictured next to them is Xavier’s Chloe Netzel) Some of those players won the 2019 16’s USYS National Title. Their club 05 team also finished 2nd Nationally that year. They lost a lot of players to graduation. And some club staff structure and coaches have also changed a little bit.

Ellie is a very good player and she’ll make an impact at SLU. She’s a versatile attacking midfielder. She has good length, she can create/distribute for others or finish herself oit to distance. She is strong on the ball, and she can play with pace. Hard worker. (She’s also a very good basketball player.)

It’s 4 State Cups for Sporting Stl Red Devils with Bobby Kittner’s, and Mike Preusser’s (SLU’s Jess Preusser’s dad) group. 3 of their players attended SLU’s ID Camp this Summer. Several attend SLU games, as do players with some other clubs. 

Both St. Louis Girls Academy clubs, play in the same, Texas heavy, Frontier Conference of GA. Both had recent lopsided losses in preseason friendlies vs Sporting Blue Valley KC. 4-0 SBV over LFA and 5-0 SBV over Sporting Red Devils. But that’s a pretty strong SBV team with the Watts sisters etc..SLSG (SLU commit Hannah Smith’s team) is also strong in that age group. KCA is also strong. We’ll get into some of that later and how it pertains to SLU.

Sporting Stl Red Devils have had 4 recent notable college commits, (Iowa, Coastal Carolina, Mizzou, Missouri St.) including one this past week. 

(LFA’s current strength is in its 07 and 08 teams that reached the Girls Academy League National Finals and National Semifinals respectively this summer. Former SLU assistant Bri McCarthy works with some of these teams.)

How does all of it affect SLU? and, how is SLU doing? The short answer is SLU is recruiting at a higher level now, more consistently, than in the past. (2022 SLU commits Taylor Krueger, Lauren Hiatt, Hannah Smith, Ellie Paloucek, 2023 SLU commits Ashley Koch, Jordan Gary, Autumn Jackson, Lucie Schwartz) They are getting some players to consider SLU now that would not have a few to several years ago. There’s always room for improvement. They aren’t getting everyone they want. I will post something separately about some of that when I get a chance because I know some people have some interest in it.

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, courtside said:

It’s 4 State Cups for Sporting Stl Red Devils with Bobby Kittner’s, and Mike Preusser’s (SLU’s Jess Preusser’s dad) group. 3 of their players attended SLU’s ID Camp this Summer. Several attend SLU games, as do players with some other clubs. 

 

How does all of it affect SLU? and, how is SLU doing? The short answer is SLU is recruiting at a higher level now, more consistently, than in the past. (2022 SLU commits Taylor Krueger, Lauren Hiatt, Hannah Smith, Ellie Paloucek, 2023 SLU commits Ashley Koch, Jordan Gary, Autumn Jackson, Lucie Schwartz) They are getting some players to consider SLU now that would not have a few to several years ago. There’s always room for improvement. They aren’t getting everyone they want. I will post something separately about some of that when I get a chance because I know some people have some interest in it.

 

 

 

-those girls look cold

-hope Jess P enjoys SLU as if Dad is running a program that could get us quality players that would be great

-this is great:The short answer is SLU is recruiting at a higher level now, more consistently, than in the past. - and if this leads to more quality, well even better: They are getting some players to consider SLU now that would not have a few to several years ago 

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VCU 1 SLU 0. 

Transition defense. Restart defense. Personnel and formation changes to provide more offense.

Another tough one. It was a pretty even, spirited, competitive game. Stats were also pretty even.

Goal: A familiar defensive challenge for SLU this season. 74th minute, quick final third restart for VCU (Miller foul) ground pass wide for a back post service. Nice play and finish for Gutzmer. Not ideal foul there, a little too much space from Arthur on the service. (first time Jerabek cut right all game and switched feet) and Halverson went for the inside cut fake when the player went outside. (VCU clearly has practiced that play) 

For the first time all season, with 15 minutes left, SLU switched to 3 across the back and played 2 forwards together. SLU isn’t string final third passes together, wings, central attacking midfield, forwards. 

Another VCU opportunity worth noting   in 41st minute. Matsuhisa receives a pass from right wingback newe midfield, wins the 50/50 ball, and she takes the space all the way to the top of SLU’s box unmarked. D-mids were caught up, Halverson gave good support at left back where VCU had numbers, yet provided good support in the middle of the defense. Arthur was quick enough to get back but was too wide and needed to provide tighter central d support. Stram gave an enormous amount of space and wasn’t able to break up the play or block the shot. Nice Puricelli save to her low left. This type of play and variations of it have been a big challenge this year.

Puricelli brought her “A” game all game. Here she is saving a first half PK. VCU was able to cut inside on the right wing. Heckel who otherwise played a good game, especially moving up higher defending, provided good help defense, but she full speed flattened the VCU player for the PK call. This has happened a few times the past two seasons. 

Too many flat footed shots from distance for SLU, and not enough short passes. Corners that didn’t produce enough. Connecting passes in the final third wasn’t there enough. The game itself it was a pretty even back and forth game.

Pairing a target forward that can come back and show for ground passes from the back line, with a forward that can play in space is an option. It’s challenging up front, without Larson, Groark, (especially Groark who was expecting a big season) and a less healthy Friedrich this season. But you have try different things and put other players in position to be more successful. And many players have been put into unexpected positions with unexpected playing time. But you have to find more ways to win with what you have. 

Playing 3 in back is more of a challenge for SLU because of the injuries to Beach and Halverson this year at outside back and the limited foot speed in the middle. That formation would rely more upon a Kohl type of faster defensive mid than the others there. Arthur brings speed and technical ability, and poise at outside back but she’s inexperienced defending there. (SLU fans are going to love Autumn Jackson playing there.). So, SLU rotated 5 back line players last night, something they haven’t done as much this season.

Sawyer had a couple of chances (and another yellow card). Off of a corner clear here, tipped over the bar:

And providing pressure, forces poor back pass from VCU here:

Against the better teams, SLU is making that one or two costly mistakes defensively that have been the difference in the game. Against the other teams, SLU has more time, and chances to develop more offense. And, some of the other teams have made that one or two great plays just a little more often. 

A few RPI notes from beginning of the week, SLU opponent Xavier is at 14. SLU opponent Purdue is at 19. SLU opponent Louisville is at 33. SLU opponent Kansas is 44. Those are the good ones. Iowa is 105 (good record, soft schedule) VCU is 39. SLU is 175. (These will be slightly different after last night’s games.)

Lots of season left. One game grind at a time.

 

 

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SLU 4 George Washington 0

A good win for SLU.

One of the things missing when SLU Men played SIUE was John Klein’s final third of the field connecting passes. (He missed the game with 2 yellow card accumulation). SLU Women have struggled with it at times, but it was much better vs GW.

First 5 minutes, 3 good ones from Jess Preusser, who received the start in the central attacking midfield, and, she made the most of it. Really good passing quality for SLU.  

Bri Halverson had a really strong game, her best of the season. Vintage Halverson out of both  wingback position. And she also effectively played some wing too.

Gaebe off of the throw in turns left foot top box just wide. 20th minute. Sawyer also had a few chances wide on the right wing.

Kelly shoots off of the post in the 28th minute on pass from Sawyer.

Bri Arthur played 3 different positions (left wing, and left and right back) in the 1st half. Preusser did well starting at attacking mid, and Sydney Beach came in late first half for first time in many games at left back with heavy wrap. (right quad). 

2nd half:

49th minute. Gaebe with a nice pass to Kelly behind the defense for far post finish. Ref correctly let play continue as Preusser was taken down from behind. Gaebe kept playing and made the play alto Kelly who beat her defender 1v1. 1-0 SLU. (I’ve been a proponent of Gaebe and Kelly playing together.)

Just after that a nice run from Halverson weaving in and out to Gaebe on left side, cuts in for service. (could have shot that one) close chance. Just minutes later, Halverson again attacking, slots to Gaebe, left foot finish high short side. 2-0 SLU.

Kelly. 3-0. Friedrich with a nice pass splitting two defenders. Kelly right side low far left post.

 

3 of SLU’s goals came with Kelly and Gaebe playing together. 

Near miss from Sawyer late, as SLU pressured for a few more. 

Mattyn Summers adds a 4th SLU goal. Low long ball for Sawyer skips past on the wet grass. (it rained) and Summers grabs it and cuts in with left foot far post. 4-0 SLU.

SLU’s reserves kept up the level of pressure on GW.

SLU ‘s back line and D mids did well stepping up into plays and breaking up plays. 

No Lawler. She played few minutes vs VCU as well. Beach played some both halves. Phelps played much of the 2nd half in goal. 

Good win for SLU where they created a lot of first half chances, and, they put several away in the 2nd, wearing  down an opponent. Complete game. 

 

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, courtside said:

SLU 4 George Washington 0

A good win for SLU.

One of the things missing when SLU Mem played SIUE was John Klein’s final third of the field connecting passes. (He missed the game with 2 yellow card accumulation). SLU Women have struggled with it at times, but it was much better vs GW.

First 5 minutes, 3 good ones from Jess Preusser, who received the start in the central attacking midfield, and, she made the most of it. Really good passing quality for SLU.  

Bri Halverson had a really strong game, her best of the season. Vintage Halverson out of both  wingback position. And she also effectively played some wing too.

Gaebe off of the throw in turns left foot top box just wide. 20th minute. Sawyer also had a few chances wide on the right wing.

Kelly shoots off of the post in the 28th minute on pass from Sawyer.

Bri Arthur played 3 different positions (left wing, and left and right back) in the 1st half. Preusser did well starting at attacking mid, and Sydney Beach came in late first half for first time in many games at left back with heavy wrap. (right quad). 

2nd half:

49th minute. Gaebe with a nice pass to Kelly behind the defense for far post finish. Ref correctly let play continue as Preusser was taken down from behind. Gaebe kept playing and made the play alto Kelly who beat her defender 1v1. 1-0 SLU. (I’ve been a proponent of Gaebe and Kelly playing together.)

Just after that a nice run from Halverson weaving in and out to Gaebe on left side, cuts in for service. (could have shot that one) close chance. Just minutes later, Halverson again attacking, slots to Gaebe, left foot finish high short side. 2-0 SLU.

Kelly. 3-0. Friedrich with a nice pass splitting two defenders. Kelly right side low far left post.

 

3 of SLU’s goals came with Kelly and Gaebe playing together. 

Near miss from Sawyer late, as SLU pressured for a few more. 

Mattyn Summers adds a 4th SLU goal. Low long ball for Sawyer skips past on the wet grass. (it rained) and Summers grabs it and cuts in with left foot far post. 4-0 SLU.

SLU’s reserves kept up the level of pressure on GW.

SLU ‘s back line and D mids did well stepping up into plays and breaking up plays. 

No Lawler. She played few minutes vs VCU as well. Beach played some both halves. Phelps played much of the 2nd half in goal. 

Good win for SLU where they created a lot of first half chances, and, they put several away in the 2nd, wearing  down an opponent. Complete game. 

 

 

 

 

Curious as to why beating the last place team at home a good win? 

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5 hours ago, Bills71 said:

Duh...Any win is good!

It's not duh, it's clear something is not right with this team besides injuries. Why are your expectations so low for a team with such a recent winning pedigree? Other than the 2 major injuries, it's almost the exact same team as last year. This team shouldn't be losing conference games even without Hannah Larson.

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9 minutes ago, billikenfan05 said:

It's not duh, it's clear something is not right with this team besides injuries. Why are your expectations so low for a team with such a recent winning pedigree? Other than the 2 major injuries, it's almost the exact same team as last year. This team shouldn't be losing conference games even without Hannah Larson.

You stole that line of thought from me. Please give me credit 

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11 hours ago, billikenfan05 said:

Curious as to why beating the last place team at home a good win? 

I’m curious if you saw the game. (I know by your own admission you frequently analyze games you didn’t see.) I’m also curious why you would troll the SLU Women’s Soccer Team. The team thought it was a good win. The coaches thought it was a good win. Recruits thought it was a good win.

SLU played well in all phases, while scoring its most goals in a game thus far this season. That seems pretty good. They did it against a GW team coming off of a recent win over Richmond, and a 2 OT loss vs VCU, the team SLU lost to in regulation a few days prior. GW is also two seasons removed from an A-10 Final, 14 win team. 

Also for some Women’s soccer perspective VCU’s top 40 RPI last week (they won twice after) was better than UCLA, South Carolina, BYU,  Stanford, Cal (nation’s top recruiting class), Santa Clara the defending national champions, etc..and lots of Power 5/Big East teams.

When the SLU Men’s Soccer team defeated UMass, you tweeted that SLU was “favored” to win.  UMass was a 2021 NCAA Tourney team that returned 14 of its top 16 players. The United Soccer Coaches were impressed enough with UMass to give SLU its biggest ranking boost of the season after that game.

You said on your recent podcast, that you don’t know soccer well. (your words not mine) And that’s okay. It isn’t required here in this thread. Anyone is welcome here regardless of soccer knowledge, as long as they post sincerely and respect others.

Back to why it was a good win. SLU played well. They created opportunities the entire game until the end. They finished several of those opportunities. It was the most goals they scored in a game so far this season. They also defended well. They did all of it for 90 minutes without let up, with a variety of personnel. Good win for SLU. 

SLU defended well in back, stepping in front of attacking players. They distributed well from the back and in the midfield. Passes were accurate with pace. They had multiple players that played well, that have either had injuries this season, or, who had not played as much this season. Those players took advantage of their opportunities. They also had a few players that played new positions successfully. What’s not to like?

Of all of the opportunities, subtopics, and specifics to choose from, you’ve now engaged with me twice this year in this thread. Once it was to ask (insincerely) about a recruit that committed elsewhere. And now here, to question whether SLU’s well played 4-0 win, was a good win for SLU. That’s curious to me.

This was a tweet of yours apparently during the game. Since I know some of the specifics of some of these incorrectly speculated things, it did give me a laugh. (There’s plenty of opportunity in the thread for more specific sincere discussion with a variety of posters, about a variety of subtopics. Clearly you are frustrated with SLU’s season this far.)

 

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28 minutes ago, courtside said:

I’m curious if you saw the game. (I know by your own admission you frequently analyze games you didn’t see.) I’m also curious why you would troll the SLU Women’s Soccer Team. The team thought it was a good win. The coaches thought it was a good win. Recruits thought it was a good win.

I think it is more than fair for someone to criticize the team or say that the season has been a disappointment so far.  As long as they aren't making personal attacks on players or coaches or just generally being negative for no reason, it's totally fine.  It doesn't have to always be rainbows & sunshine about SLU athletics.

I also don't know much about soccer, but I know enough to say this season has been a disappointment so far.  I understand SLU Women's Soccer returned an incredibly talented group of players.  They were expected to make some noise against bigger schools in nonconference and to finish 1st in the A10 again.  They're currently 5-7-1 overall & 3-2 (tied for 5th) in A10 with losses to Duquesne and VCU.  Their biggest flaw seems to be that they've struggled to finish scoring chances.  That they did that against GW in the 2nd half is good, but we need to see that more consistently against better competition to believe they've turned a corner.

It seems like a 4-0 drubbing of GW in W Soccer would be similar to the men's basketball team blowing out Fordham by 25+.  It's nice to do and better than the alternative, but it is what is expected.  That W alone doesn't move the needle at all in terms of rankings or whether the season is viewed a a success.

Early on when they were losing the games at the beginning of the season, I largely wrote those off because of playing good competition while missing key players due to injury or suspension.  I reasoned that A10 play & the A10 tournament was what really mattered because that was the ticket to the NCAAs.  Winning the A10 tournament is obviously still the goal & very much an attainable one.  However, I'm not nearly as confident as the start of the season.  A team that struggles to finish chances is going to have a tough time making it through a elimination tournament unscathed.  I hope I'm wrong & this GW game is a turning point.

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1 hour ago, courtside said:

I’m curious if you saw the game. (I know by your own admission you frequently analyze games you didn’t see.) I’m also curious why you would troll the SLU Women’s Soccer Team. The team thought it was a good win. The coaches thought it was a good win. Recruits thought it was a good win.

SLU played well in all phases, while scoring its most goals in a game thus far this season. That seems pretty good. They did it against a GW team coming off of a recent win over Richmond, and a 2 OT loss vs VCU, the team SLU lost to in regulation a few days prior. GW is also two seasons removed from an A-10 Final, 14 win team. 

Also for some Women’s soccer perspective VCU’s top 40 RPI last week (they won twice after) was better than UCLA, South Carolina, BYU,  Stanford, Cal (nation’s top recruiting class), Santa Clara the defending national champions, etc..and lots of Power 5/Big East teams.

When the SLU Men’s Soccer team defeated UMass, you tweeted that SLU was “favored” to win.  UMass was a 2021 NCAA Tourney team that returned 14 of its top 16 players. The United Soccer Coaches were impressed enough with UMass to give SLU its biggest ranking boost of the season after that game.

You said on your recent podcast, that you don’t know soccer well. (your words not mine) And that’s okay. It isn’t required here in this thread. Anyone is welcome here regardless of soccer knowledge, as long as they post sincerely and respect others.

Back to why it was a good win. SLU played well. They created opportunities the entire game until the end. They finished several of those opportunities. It was the most goals they scored in a game so far this season. They also defended well. They did all of it for 90 minutes without let up, with a variety of personnel. Good win for SLU. 

SLU defended well in back, stepping in front of attacking players. They distributed well from the back and in the midfield. Passes were accurate with pace. They had multiple players that played well, that have either had injuries this season, or, who had not played as much this season. Those players took advantage of their opportunities. They also had a few players that played new positions successfully. What’s not to like?

Of all of the opportunities, subtopics, and specifics to choose from, you’ve now engaged with me twice this year in this thread. Once it was to ask (insincerely) about a recruit that committed elsewhere. And now here, to question whether SLU’s well played 4-0 win, was a good win for SLU. That’s curious to me.

This was a tweet of yours apparently during the game. Since I know some of the specifics of some of these incorrectly speculated things, it did give me a laugh. (There’s plenty of opportunity in the thread for more specific sincere discussion with a variety of posters, about a variety of subtopics. Clearly you are frustrated with SLU’s season this far.)

 

You need to chill, I watch almost every game. I sat at a bar watching for 90 minutes on my phone yesterday. I know quite a bit about soccer, but I'm not as deep into the strategy as you are. Your holier than thou attitude towards soccer is extremely repellent. This season has been a disappointment, plain and simple. George Washington is terrible, 4-0 win is okay, but it's far from a "good win". It's a ho-hum win and we move on. All of the programs in this conference are ho-hum wins save for Dayton and VCU, but SLU should still have at least drawn VCU on the road.

 

I did not speculate, I simply said that questions could be asked whether suspending so many players for what is rumored to be a minor infraction and essentially giving away 2 potential early season wins against good opponents was the right move. You do not know me personally as far as I know, and I don't believe I know you personally so maybe can it with speaking like you do. You also don't know what connections I have to the women's soccer team. What I say in the moment on an entertainment podcast should never be taken completely seriously, I don't script anything and I shoot from the hip.

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1 hour ago, RUBillsFan said:

I think it is more than fair for someone to criticize the team or say that the season has been a disappointment so far.  As long as they aren't making personal attacks on players or coaches or just generally being negative for no reason, it's totally fine.  It doesn't have to always be rainbows & sunshine about SLU athletics.

I also don't know much about soccer, but I know enough to say this season has been a disappointment so far.  I understand SLU Women's Soccer returned an incredibly talented group of players.  They were expected to make some noise against bigger schools in nonconference and to finish 1st in the A10 again.  They're currently 5-7-1 overall & 3-2 (tied for 5th) in A10 with losses to Duquesne and VCU.  Their biggest flaw seems to be that they've struggled to finish scoring chances.  That they did that against GW in the 2nd half is good, but we need to see that more consistently against better competition to believe they've turned a corner.

It seems like a 4-0 drubbing of GW in W Soccer would be similar to the men's basketball team blowing out Fordham by 25+.  It's nice to do and better than the alternative, but it is what is expected.  That W alone doesn't move the needle at all in terms of rankings or whether the season is viewed a a success.

Early on when they were losing the games at the beginning of the season, I largely wrote those off because of playing good competition while missing key players due to injury or suspension.  I reasoned that A10 play & the A10 tournament was what really mattered because that was the ticket to the NCAAs.  Winning the A10 tournament is obviously still the goal & very much an attainable one.  However, I'm not nearly as confident as the start of the season.  A team that struggles to finish chances is going to have a tough time making it through a elimination tournament unscathed.  I hope I'm wrong & this GW game is a turning point.

I’d like documentation that a few people think I am too Blue Kool-Aid soft discussing SLU sports. Lol.

I’m happy to discuss any of the several things you mentioned separately. 

The short and sweet question or subtopic was did SLU get a good win Sunday? That’s the question. That’s it. Pretty simple. The answer is yes because of the variety of reasons I mentioned of how SLU played. SLU played well. If I thought otherwise I would say so. Every game I mention things SLU does well, doesn’t do well, pretty specifically. I even add suggestions of alternative things SLU could do. Even in this game I mentioned that SLU plays better when certain players play together as opposed to separate. And so on. 

So if anyone watches a game, it’d be very easy to have a more specific back and forth discussion about that game. I can add what I may know from practice/training, injury, recruiting as appropriate that some may not know. 

You then pivot to talk about the season in general. That’s a different topic worthy of a different discussion.

Each of the things you reference, merit specific discussions individually in order to make sure you have the information to better inform you. It’s part of the reason why I referenced the avoidance of speculation in the past. Injuries, suspension, scoring goals, recruiting etc are separate specific topics.  If I see someone post something, and I may know something about some of those things that they don’t, I’d say so. And that’s something I’d say here with you in your post. I’ve seen too many subtopics generalized elsewhere when more specific discussion about each separately would improve knowledge, communication and analysis. I’m happy to discuss any specific SLU Soccer topic in the SLU soccer threads. 

Again, did SLU get a good win and play a good game Sunday? Yes. Why? The specifics of how they played the game that were mentioned. Full stop right there. That’s a different subtopic than the several other subtopics you mentioned. Just because SLU would prefer to be having a better season to this point doesn’t mean they didn’t play well and get a good win Sunday.

 

 

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I said it before and I'll repeat it losing Hannah Larson was a bigger loss than most people seem to realize. With all due respect to Hannah F and some others, Hannah L was their best player last year. She alone changes the way you defend them. She's the only player SLU had last year and I haven't seen another this year that can take defenders on 1v1, with more than just powering by them. She's easily their most creative player also despite Hannah F's great assist numbers. 

Even with this being said I'm still disappointed to some extent with the season and feel we should have played better in a few games. 

Good thing is there is time left and the tourney to make the NCAA's again

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1 hour ago, billikenfan05 said:

You need to chill, I watch almost every game. I sat at a bar watching for 90 minutes on my phone yesterday. I know quite a bit about soccer, but I'm not as deep into the strategy as you are. Your holier than thou attitude towards soccer is extremely repellent. This season has been a disappointment, plain and simple. George Washington is terrible, 4-0 win is okay, but it's far from a "good win". It's a ho-hum win and we move on. All of the programs in this conference are ho-hum wins save for Dayton and VCU, but SLU should still have at least drawn VCU on the road.

 

I did not speculate, I simply said that questions could be asked whether suspending so many players for what is rumored to be a minor infraction and essentially giving away 2 potential early season wins against good opponents was the right move. You do not know me personally as far as I know, and I don't believe I know you personally so maybe can it with speaking like you do. You also don't know what connections I have to the women's soccer team. What I say in the moment on an entertainment podcast should never be taken completely seriously, I don't script anything and I shoot from the hip.

Let’s see if I can advance the discussion to more specifically about SLU Soccer by the end of this post. That’s why we’re here. Everyone here prefers undefeated SLU seasons and National Championships every year, Men and Women. Anyone would take that.

Here’s a thought, post here, or on social media, or talk on a podcast, the same as how you would talk in real life. Those are the only things many here will be able to go by. I’m not being facetious. It’s a suggestion if juggling personas seems to be an issue for you. Being yourself, whatever that is, always the best way to go. 

It isn’t a competition. I think you are creating one out of nothing. I did point out that I would prefer if you took info from here for your podcast, just reference Billikens Dot Com Soccer Threads when you do it. I don’t need to be singled out. I pointed it out and we moved forward. 

The other time you posted in the past and asked about a player that committed elsewhere, I took you at your word and gave you the information. It wasn’t until after, that someone mentioned to me that you were being sarcastic. (You may want to skip part of the upcoming recruiting updates I will be posting that some have asked for.) So the only track record I can go on are those few things plus you repeatedly saying to not take the things you say, post, discuss etc seriously. 

I don’t think it’s necessary to make things up to be entertaining on a podcast. There are times you may do that, and I may happen to know the answer to something. It often comes about when you are frustrated by something to which you might not the answer. RUBills posted something similar, so it’s clear some people might take what you say at your word, and expect those things to be accurate.  For me, I will either not post something because I don’t know it or at times because I am not comfortable sharing some things I may know. 

That’s why it may be more effective to post back and forth in the threads as subtopics occur. 

You didn’t think SLU had a good win Sunday. And that’s fine. That’s your opinion. Your only reason seems to be a generalized statement about their opponent instead of anything more specific about or anything specifically about SLU’s play. I thought and think that is was a good win and I explained why. 

The VCU game? Again, I spoke specifically about the game, things SLU did well, didn’t do well, things I would try or do differently etc…and I would happily go back and forth about it. Each game is different and unique, with a unique set of circumstances. 

it isn’t too difficult to get into a discussion. If I can have a back and forth about someone’s interest in SLU Women’s Soccer first names, I can probably engage in other subtopic too. Personnel, recruiting, tactics, player development, formations, injuries, strength and conditioning, etc…lots of good subtopics out there. 

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2 hours ago, slufanskip said:

I said it before and I'll repeat it losing Hannah Larson was a bigger loss than most people seem to realize. With all due respect to Hannah F and some others, Hannah L was their best player last year. She alone changes the way you defend them. She's the only player SLU had last year and I haven't seen another this year that can take defenders on 1v1, with more than just powering by them. She's easily their most creative player also despite Hannah F's great assist numbers. 

Even with this being said I'm still disappointed to some extent with the season and feel we should have played better in a few games. 

Good thing is there is time left and the tourney to make the NCAA's again

I think that’s part of it. But I think there’s more to it than that. 

Injuries. I am generally someone that has a next player up mentality. Injuries are a part of the game, especially the Women’s game. But it’s really finding a balance between the two things. Okay, there are injuries, lots and lots of injuries, how can they be overcome?

Larson is a great player as you’ve mentioned. SLU played well and lost a PK game with Washington (who was also missing a top player due to injury) in the NCAA Tourney. And, Larson’s big loss was known and expected for many months before this season. SLU could plan for it as best they could.

Other unexpected offensive injuries have added to that. I happened to have seen some of the great summer and preseason Groark was having. She was 1st team all U23 Semi Pro ball this Summer. She was good in the exhibition game. She has the ability to play up top, or any of the offensive midfield positions. She has technical ability, pace, and she understands the roles of a Forward at this level. Anyone who saw the Illinois State game saw it a little bit there. Hannah Friedrich hasn’t been healthy all season. She has either missed games or played at less than 100% in many other games. So that’s 3 players that all would be starting attacking players with different skillsets for SLU. 

So, what that does is push less experienced players into unexpected roles offensively. Larson was a top 100 recruit. (I will be posting recruiting stuff soon). And she was an offensive playing type of top 100 recruit. It’s difficult for that level of recruit let alone others to adjust to the pace and physicality of the college game while still trying to maintain shape etc..

And we are only getting started with injuries. The injuries to Beach and Halverson were particularly challenging because they add the speed and pace component at outside back. Recovery speed on D, pushing up to play with offense, providing help d in the middle etc…It puts more pressure on the center of the defense, in the defensive midfield and middle of the back line. So, with some missing offense, SLU has had to be near perfect on D. But with some players missing there too, one goal in a tight game can make a difference.

What can SLU do differently? They can change formations (again challenging) and pair both a target and space forward together. They can change positions with a few players. (They have recently done this with a few players) Some could say that some of these changes could have come sooner. 

How is SLU giving up goals? Midfield transition towards goal, and, in play, back post service. Many of their allowed goals have come this way. There are personnel, formation and alignment things SLU can do about some of those things. 

How can SLU score more goals? Watching Sawyer’s speed illustrates the missing speed of a Larson, Groark, Halverson etc at times this season. She just needs a little time to add to her game. I’ve mentioned before that Gaebe and Kelly play better together either as two Forwards, or with Gaebe up top and Kelly in either central attacking mid or the wing. 

SLU relies a lot on set pieces for scoring chances, as well as pressing their opponents. That personnel hasn’t been there at times. And it’s also cost SLU a bit on counters.

What else can they do? SLU plays a deep two person defensive midfield. They can play their wings in tighter. They can play more diagonal balls offensively. They can mark tighter and higher in midfield and backline defensively. 

It isn’t as if SLU has been too far away despite missing a lot of players and others not playing 100%. They can do some things, but with others they will be limited based on personnel. Their margin for error is much smaller. 

I can say that SLU has a lot of season left to get good results. They return a lot of players next season, and, recruiting has been good. 

It’s good to have some SLU soccer interest and discussion. 

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1 hour ago, courtside said:

Let’s see if I can advance the discussion to more specifically about SLU Soccer by the end of this post. That’s why we’re here. Everyone here prefers undefeated SLU seasons and National Championships every year, Men and Women. Anyone would take that.

Here’s a thought, post here, or on social media, or talk on a podcast, the same as how you would talk in real life. Those are the only things many here will be able to go by. I’m not being facetious. It’s a suggestion if juggling personas seems to be an issue for you. Being yourself, whatever that is, always the best way to go. 

It isn’t a competition. I think you are creating one out of nothing. I did point out that I would prefer if you took info from here for your podcast, just reference Billikens Dot Com Soccer Threads when you do it. I don’t need to be singled out. I pointed it out and we moved forward. 

The other time you posted in the past and asked about a player that committed elsewhere, I took you at your word and gave you the information. It wasn’t until after, that someone mentioned to me that you were being sarcastic. (You may want to skip part of the upcoming recruiting updates I will be posting that some have asked for.) So the only track record I can go on are those few things plus you repeatedly saying to not take the things you say, post, discuss etc seriously. 

I don’t think it’s necessary to make things up to be entertaining on a podcast. There are times you may do that, and I may happen to know the answer to something. It often comes about when you are frustrated by something to which you might not the answer. RUBills posted something similar, so it’s clear some people might take what you say at your word, and expect those things to be accurate.  For me, I will either not post something because I don’t know it or at times because I am not comfortable sharing some things I may know. 

That’s why it may be more effective to post back and forth in the threads as subtopics occur. 

You didn’t think SLU had a good win Sunday. And that’s fine. That’s your opinion. Your only reason seems to be a generalized statement about their opponent instead of anything more specific about or anything specifically about SLU’s play. I thought and think that is was a good win and I explained why. 

The VCU game? Again, I spoke specifically about the game, things SLU did well, didn’t do well, things I would try or do differently etc…and I would happily go back and forth about it. Each game is different and unique, with a unique set of circumstances. 

it isn’t too difficult to get into a discussion. If I can have a back and forth about someone’s interest in SLU Women’s Soccer first names, I can probably engage in other subtopic too. Personnel, recruiting, tactics, player development, formations, injuries, strength and conditioning, etc…lots of good subtopics out there. 

Your attitude has convinced me to completely avoid discussing soccer of any kind with you. I honestly am no longer going to read your posts from start to finish(not that I ever did because you’re long winded) including the one I’ve quoted. You simultaneously act like you’re in favor of inclusive soccer discussion yet you have personally insulted me and been a gatekeeper when it comes to opinions I have because you perceive me as less knowledgeable when it comes to soccer. Flat out hypocrisy which I refuse to entertain. I will continue to provide a fuoking really fun and entertaining podcast for the people who enjoy myself and Peter talking about our love of Billiken sports. Our goal has always been in part to help increase interest in non-rev sports Among basketball fans. Neither Peter nor myself are Tim Howard, Taylor Twellmann, Ian Darke etc but I know soccer. Perhaps you should listen to Men In Blazers if we’re so offensive when it comes to soccer knowledge.

 

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3 hours ago, billikenfan05 said:

You need to chill, I watch almost every game. I sat at a bar watching for 90 minutes on my phone yesterday. I know quite a bit about soccer, but I'm not as deep into the strategy as you are. Your holier than thou attitude towards soccer is extremely repellent. This season has been a disappointment, plain and simple. George Washington is terrible, 4-0 win is okay, but it's far from a "good win". It's a ho-hum win and we move on. All of the programs in this conference are ho-hum wins save for Dayton and VCU, but SLU should still have at least drawn VCU on the road.

 

I did not speculate, I simply said that questions could be asked whether suspending so many players for what is rumored to be a minor infraction and essentially giving away 2 potential early season wins against good opponents was the right move. You do not know me personally as far as I know, and I don't believe I know you personally so maybe can it with speaking like you do. You also don't know what connections I have to the women's soccer team. What I say in the moment on an entertainment podcast should never be taken completely seriously, I don't script anything and I shoot from the hip.

Maybe if your posts were longer, I'd start to take your soccer knowledge seriously. 

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8 minutes ago, billikenfan05 said:

Your attitude has convinced me to completely avoid discussing soccer of any kind with you. I honestly am no longer going to read your posts from start to finish(not that I ever did because you’re long winded) including the one I’ve quoted. You simultaneously act like you’re in favor of inclusive soccer discussion yet you have personally insulted me and been a gatekeeper when it comes to opinions I have because you perceive me as less knowledgeable when it comes to soccer. Flat out hypocrisy which I refuse to entertain. I will continue to provide a fuoking really fun and entertaining podcast for the people who enjoy myself and Peter talking about our love of Billiken sports. Perhaps you should listen to Men In Blazers if we’re so offensive when it comes to soccer knowledge.

 

You keep psychologically projecting about the topic of soccer knowledge. I pointed out what you said about yourself. I didn’t say it. You said it about yourself. And I said that isn’t a requirement to post here. Everyone can learn from everyone here.

I didn’t say you talked about games you didn’t see. You said it, about yourself.

I did say at times you have speculated about some things you didn’t know out of frustration. I know this because I knew some of the information about some of those topics.

Like I said, I wasn’t a regular listener to your podcast. That’s why it took me a while to respond in the first place. I prefer a place where everyone is an equal part of the discussion instead of two people. That’s why I am here. That isn’t personal. 

So the discussion will end where it began, with you not taking part in the actual SLU soccer discussion here on this site. That’s something you haven’t done in any sincere way, despite plenty of opportunity to do so. I even offered up a lot of different subtopic discussions. 

So, if you want to discuss SLU Soccer in the SLU Soccer threads, great. If not, good luck, and let’s let the people interested in SLU soccer have the their thread back. 

 

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10 minutes ago, courtside said:

You keep psychologically projecting about the topic of soccer knowledge. I pointed out what you said about yourself. I didn’t say it. You said it about yourself. And I said that isn’t a requirement to post here. Everyone can learn from everyone here.

I didn’t say you talked about games you didn’t see. You said it, about yourself.

I did say at times you have speculated about some things you didn’t know out of frustration. I know this because I knew some of the information about some of those topics.

Like I said, I wasn’t a regular listener to your podcast. That’s why it took me a while to respond in the first place. I prefer a place where everyone is an equal part of the discussion instead of two people. That’s why I am here. That isn’t personal. 

So the discussion will end where it began, with you not taking part in the actual SLU soccer discussion here on this site. That’s something you haven’t done in any sincere way, despite plenty of opportunity to do so. I even offered up a lot of different subtopic discussions. 

So, if you want to discuss SLU Soccer in the SLU Soccer threads, great. If not, good luck, and let’s let the people interested in SLU soccer have the their thread back. 

 

You’re so full of yourself and sh!t. You think this is courtside soccer dot com. You most definitely listen to every show, otherwise you wouldn’t be quoting us. Thank you for being a loyal listener. I’m honored to have such a soccer expert give us that respect. 

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6 minutes ago, billikenfan05 said:

You’re so full of yourself and sh!t. You think this is courtside soccer dot com. You most definitely listen to every show, otherwise you wouldn’t be quoting us. Thank you for being a loyal listener. I’m honored to have such a soccer expert give us that respect. 

Like I said, good luck to you. You know where to find us if you wish to talk some SLU Soccer. Everyone is welcome here. You would have probably found more agreement on some things than you might think had you given it a try. Everyone can learn something from someone else. Nobody has all of the answers. Take care. 

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