#1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Printable Version
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#1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - muiron - 09-30-2018
(This is a copy of a post i made on the Sears Board)
It really doesn't matter that USC is ranked #2 and that it won the NCAA in 2016, the year a terrible knee injury ended the season for Andi Sullivan and, seconds later, the #1 Stanford team. (Should have been OUR championship!) Beating USC is ALWAYS fun!!
GREAT match. It was scoreless through regulation until Sophia Smith got on to the end of a great run and pass by Madison Haley, straight up the middle, dribbling to about the penalty spot, and putting it past the USC keeper.
#1 Stanford 1
#2 USC 0
How many #2 ranked teams will we have to play this year? (That's UNC and USC so far.)
It was a very tight match. We had the better of the play, more shots, and more good opportunities, but nothing spectacular and USC always seemed dangerous. They are a very good team and very tall. In the air, they should have been dominant, except for great work and effort by some of our players, notably 4 ft, 12 in tall Kiki Pickett. SC was also very good at getting a foot into our passing lanes and deflecting or intercepting our passes.
SC played a very physical game, pushing, grabbing, and holding constantly but rarely strongly - just the short, little grab or push. The center ref let them do it - and I think it rarely exceeded the limits of what a center ref will allow - and it did have its effect on our players. The ref seemed to be warning three or four of their players, on occasion, that "next time that's a yellow" - but it never was. She must have left her cards in other uniform.
At half both teams had 5 shots, though we had had the two more dangerous. We jumped off to a very good start in the second half and it felt as though we HAD to score. We quickly went from 5 to 12 shots while they went to 6. But they weathered our storm and began to get more possession. Halfway through the second half (67:30) we had 13 shots with 6 corners; they had 7 shots with 3 corners. And in the last 30 seconds we had a corner kick lead to a scrum in front of their box. A slow roller got past their keeper, who was about 5 yards out, and slowly crossed the end line ... about 1 foot right of the post. By the of regulation, we had 20 shots and they had 10 - and I'd say we had had about 7 good opportunities and they had had zero to two.
We were similarly dominating the overtime with a good chance at about 30 seconds in but we ended the match (golden goal in NCAA) at about 7:00 into the overtime with Madison Haley fighting through (almost literally) SC players for about fifty yards before laying the ball forward to a streaking Sophia Smith, who shifted it to her right foot and nailed it. Not a blazer, but well placed. Ball game!
It was high quality soccer - I recommend watching it on the Pac 12 network, which I'm sure will show it several times. It was, in some respects, less exciting than Thursday's 3-2 win over last year's NCAA runner up, UCLA, which had 5 goals. But it was also, in some ways, better played. Just a really, really tough, tight match. And bound to be good practice for us.
Player news. Sam Hiatt got back in the game for the first time since her nose was broken. She was wearing a protective mask and didn't start but probably played about half the game. (Belle Briede got the start in her place.) Tierna is still in a boot and didn't dress but was there with the team. We won't see her again on the field this season, I strongly fear. Michelle Xiao was there, with no obvious apparatus on her knee but not dressed. In the 81st Kiki Pickett went down hard near their end line and came up, slowly, with a gimpy ankle. I don't know that I'd ever seen Kiki hurt and the crowd was hushed - not just a GREAT player but a real fan favorite. But she came back in the 85th and played the rest of way with her characteristic energy, tenacity, and skill.
An excellent win. An excellent long weekend of Stanford women's soccer: 3-2 over UCLA, last year's runner-up, and 1-0 over USC, the champ from two years ago and this year's #2 ranked team. Now I've got to change my sweaty shirt and go back for the men versus UCLA at 5:00.
Go Cardinal!
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - BobK - 09-30-2018
Just an awesome finish. WJatva team so clutch.
Whew
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Phogge - 09-30-2018
Does Stanford ever use the soccer eqivalent retaliatory “brushback.” I know zilch re soccer but a good knockdown scared a bunch of college hitters in the old FWC.
I’ve read two soccer stories and their main point was about the two #2’s getting physical. Maybe time to hit them back in the mouth.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - washingtonismoney - 09-30-2018
(09-30-2018, 09:11 PM)Phogge Wrote: Does Stanford ever use the soccer eqivalent retaliatory “brushback.” I know zilch re soccer but a good knockdown scared a bunch of college hitters in the old FWC.
I’ve read two soccer stories and their main point was about the two #2’s getting physical. Maybe time to hit them back in the mouth.
Yeah, there used to be -- like in hockey -- a designated "enforcer" or "hard man" who would basically give a good hard tackle to anyone getting out of line. But the game has generally changed: coaches demand more skill, meaning it's harder to get away with one super-physical player who doesn't offer much more; and anyway the refs are generally less tolerant of tussling play. American refs, however, are notoriously lenient on physical play relative to the rest of the world.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - 81alum - 09-30-2018
A great win. Sophia Smith is such a star.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1flAVt4rqw
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - muiron - 09-30-2018
(09-30-2018, 09:20 PM)81alum Wrote: A great win. Sophia Smith is such a star.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1flAVt4rqw
She is a great talent though she had had an oddly quiet match up to that point. For whatever reason, our offense was mainly going up the left or center and she was the right forward. Great finish - but, live, the run by Madison Haley and her pass out of it was even better.
Wonderful win!
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Viking_Guy - 09-30-2018
A couple of comments.
(1) Hiatt makes all the difference in the world. When she came on in the first half, Stanford started stringing together more passes, and looked much more composed. But then, Ratcliffe decided to sub off most of the starters at the same time, and that's where Stanford almost came apart in the latter stages of the first half. McAlpine's strategy, of starting in a defensive posture, then bringing in his best offensive players against a tired and then sub-laden Stanford lineup, nearly paid off.
More generally, I think a lot of the season's outcome is going to depend on keeping the starters healthy, including Hiatt (VERY glad it was just a broken nose, and not post-concussive symptoms, btw.) When the bench came in, Stanford broke down - less coverage of defense, less awareness of where passes should go, all the signs of non-starters on the pitch. They may be skilled, but they definitely were not used to playing as a unit.
Hiatt getting healthy and her form back may determine how far this team can go. Goad, Breide, and others can play the spot, but they are not nearly the two-way player that Hiatt is - they are much more tilted toward offense. And the connection between backline and forwards was much more tenuous when Hiatt was out. What it felt like was that she feels comfortable changing the point of attack from her spot, while our other midfielders often only seem to do that by going all the way back to Cook, Girma, and Jahansouz. And then we play around with the ball a while in the back, trying to draw the other team forward.
(2) Girma again with a superlative game. A few times she got turned, but that's against several of the best attackers in the country in Pruitt, Demelo et al.
(3) That said, again the key to beating Stanford appears to be pressure the backline, crowd your own box, and look for the counter after a long period of Stanford possession. Several times Stanford's midfield got caught way forward on a turnover and left the backline exposed. And the backline's pushing the ball around the back actoss the face of their own goal is eventually going to bite them in the butt.
(4) Don't look now, but it feels like the road trip to Spokane is going to be the toughest game left, as part of a season-ending three straight on the road - UW, WSU, and C.al. The Cougs are 10-0-0, albeit against a much weaker schedule. But they've been tough at home for the last few seasons, and they did beat UCLA on the road 1-0.
(5) Lastly, and this is just my observation as a keeper - Jahansouz NEVER punts the ball. In today's game, several times she threw the ball to Cook or Girma sideways from her own goalmouth as they were standing just ahead of the endline rather than punch it up the field with her foot. Maybe a concession that we're not that great in the air, but it just feels like completely abandoning a tool that could spring a Stanford counterattack if the other team is deep in our half. Her distribution pattern only rarely is leading to anything other than Stanford trying to build a slow attack out of the backline, and several times today she or Cook booted the ball away awkwardly as the Toejams were pressing the closer outlet options.
A very solid win. Great turn (and physical win) of the ball by Haley, then a deftly weighted ball right into Smith's run, and a good quick finish off as she was being bodied off-balance by Sophia.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Spiny_Norman - 10-01-2018
(09-30-2018, 04:21 PM)muiron Wrote: How many #2 ranked teams will we have to play this year? (That's UNC and USC so far.)
Don't forget Santa Clara. They were #2 in the RPI last week (and #4 in the coach's poll).
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - muiron - 10-01-2018
Funny, I haven't been that impressed with Hiatt. She seems to me a step or two slow and makes too many poor passes, often because she passes a second after the right time. BUT I never played and am a late life soccer convert...I think I'm pretty knowledgeable for the background I've got but I'd grade my soccer fan knowledge at no better than B+. And the knitting together of the team away from the ball is one of my known weak spots. I'd be much happier if we could put Tierna either at defensive mid or at CB and move Girma to defensive mid. But that won't happen this year - and, even though I'm not a brobdingnagian fan of Sam, I was very happy to see her back on the field, both for her sake and for ours. I don't think Beattie or Belle are better than Sam; I'm just less convinced that they are worse.
I agree with everything else, especially the praise for Naomi Girma, who is an amazing true frosh - such preternatural poise for a young player! Andi had it, Tierna has it, but it is rare.
I thought Alison Jahansouz had an unusually bad match today, not at saves or good play in the box but at her distribution. Way too many bad kicks, both in the middle of play and from goal kicks. I don't remember that from before - maybe just an off day. And SC did press a lot.
Great win!
[quote="Viking_Guy" pid='231516' dateline='1538374947']
A couple of comments.
(1) Hiatt makes all the difference in the world. When she came on in the first half, Stanford started stringing together more passes, and looked much more composed. But then, Ratcliffe decided to sub off most of the starters at the same time, and that's where Stanford almost came apart in the latter stages of the first half. McAlpine's strategy, of starting in a defensive posture, then bringing in his best offensive players against a tired and then sub-laden Stanford lineup, nearly paid off.
More generally, I think a lot of the season's outcome is going to depend on keeping the starters healthy, including Hiatt (VERY glad it was just a broken nose, and not post-concussive symptoms, btw.) When the bench came in, Stanford broke down - less coverage of defense, less awareness of where passes should go, all the signs of non-starters on the pitch. They may be skilled, but they definitely were not used to playing as a unit.
Hiatt getting healthy and her form back may determine how far this team can go. Goad, Breide, and others can play the spot, but they are not nearly the two-way player that Hiatt is - they are much more tilted toward offense. And the connection between backline and forwards was much more tenuous when Hiatt was out. What it felt like was that she feels comfortable changing the point of attack from her spot, while our other midfielders often only seem to do that by going all the way back to Cook, Girma, and Jahansouz. And then we play around with the ball a while in the back, trying to draw the other team forward.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Viking_Guy - 10-01-2018
Muiron--
I don't think either Breide or Goad are near the defender that Hiatt is, especially in winning the ball in the air, and I think that's what this team needs. Also, Breide had a tough match yesterday, getting caught in possession a few times where she could've delivered a dangerous ball but kept on dribbling forward. She seemed to have a tough time reading how long she had to deliver the ball. Goad seems much more of an attack-minded player, unless the ball is near her zone.
OTOH, I don't think Sam is as effective an attacker as Goad or Breide. But just in terms of this side, as a complement to DiBiasi and Boissiere, I think she makes the team stronger.
I also have a weakness for big holding mids who are strong in the air (what I wouldn't give to have Mariah Nogueira on this side...)
And yes, I would love to have Tierna as a holding mid behind Jordan and Jaye, with Girma doing her apprenticeship to take over for Cook next year as the lead CB.
Looking over some other results, I may have been a bit too sanguine about WSU being our major test. As of October 1's TDS rankings, the Pac-12 had (with some others for context):
(1) Stanford
(2) (Tarholes)
(3) $C
(4) (TAMU)
(5) WSU
(6) Santa Clara
(13) UCLA
(17) Colorado
(20) Arizona
Three of the top 5, and 6 of the top 20. All of those could be fun matches.
VG
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - oldalum - 10-02-2018
Without Tierna this season, I like having Hiatt as holding mid and Boissiere as center mid. Boissiere is much more offensive minded and can advance the ball into the attacking third and distribute or even penetrate and shoot, she is just really dangerous up there, while Hiatt is most effective at defense.
The USC game made clear a possible depth vulnerability: we don't have a good outside back substitute, do we? Did JoJo replace Kiki for the few minutes?
I agree AJ's distribution was cringe-producing this game. I don't understand why, when she is not pressured, she doesn't take a touch and then kick the ball rather than one-time it which is what usually leads to the errant passes.
I reviewed on video UCLA's penalty kick goal against us, because the real problem was not Haley's handball (which she couldn't help) but that a UCLA attacker got the ball on a corner kick directly on her feet a few feet in front of the penalty spot with time to unload a rocket shot on-frame. It was actually Alana's mark, but it wasn't really Alana's fault: she moved away from her mark to head the ball away, and put herself in the perfect position to do so, but Tegan jumped up and just grazed the ball which lifted it over Alana's head and right to the UCLA player. Just bad luck. Ironically, if Haley had been standing 6 inches to her right, AJ would have blocked that shot because it was not well aimed and she had seen and reacted quickly to it.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - CTcard - 10-02-2018
(10-01-2018, 06:17 PM)Viking_Guy Wrote: Looking over some other results, I may have been a bit too sanguine about WSU being our major test. As of October 1's TDS rankings, the Pac-12 had (with some others for context):
(1) Stanford
(2) (Tarholes)
(3) $C
(4) (TAMU)
(5) WSU
(6) Santa Clara
(13) UCLA
(17) Colorado
(20) Arizona
Three of the top 5, and 6 of the top 20. All of those could be fun matches.
VG
Doesn't that still make WSU on the road our major remaining test by a wide margin?
The only other team from that list on the remaining schedule is Colorado - at Stanford.
RE: #1 Stanford W Soccer Beats #2 USC - Viking_Guy - 10-02-2018
Sorry, should have been clearer. I didn't think that there was a tough game left except for WSU. Stanford will still be a heavy favorite, but Oregon is undefeated at home and lurking on the fringes of the top 25, and Colorado is undefeated at 9-0-3 (with a dispositive game hosting the Cougars on Thursday). So those games might be tougher than I initially thought. And UW and C.al away are going to be interesting.
Agree on the depth at outside back, and yes, Harber came in at that spot when Kiki had to leave the field after a knock late in regulation. Interesting how many of our players are listed as "defender/forward" on the roster. Really points out the changing nature of what is expected of outside backs.
VG