The Hills have Eyes - Ludwig field

[TMAN]

No it's not the latest horror schlock from director Wes Craven coming to Ludwig field but for opponents such as Standford last night it might a be a grizzled scene this soccer season. With a record crowd there last night (and I mean the grass surroundings last night heading for the golf course were covered with fans), Sasho's gang put on a show that the Brazilians would of been proud of. It was a scintiliating performance by the Terps and it was on National TV. Standford is a young team and they have pretty good talent. The kid Zak Batter from Lebanon PA is a true striker and Sasho tried to recruit the kid. So Standford isn't without talent. But Maryland hit the grove last night and Tsumnai came in and there were no Standford surviors. Sasho probably wished to himself that he could of bottle some of that elixir for North Carolina game at the end of the year (LOL). At least for last night that bottle contained 80% Jet Fuel.

Maryland is a work in progress still and a lot of neutral people are still saying that Maryland is missing this or that and they're year away. They may be right and it's early. But I always say talent will rise to the top. Maryland has talent. What I liked about this squad is Sasho's group is showing some grit so far with 2 come from behind wins. This squad has shown me so far that they won't spit the bit when things are tough and not going there way. Ludwig field was simply a shark tank last night as Standford was chum. I had to think that Sasho might of paused to himself during the game and said "this is a pretty good slice of time for Maryland soccer". When you get your soccer on national TV , put on an super entertaining scene out there, and it's happening in one of the top 5 venues in the country, it's hard not to drool (or should I say dribble) with satisfaction. Sasho's been doing this for 19 years and I've been followng this guys program for about 18 years as that is when I first noticed that all of sudden Maryland, yea Maryland who basically had no program was getting me to take notice. The coach who had an focut to his when I first saw thig guy all of sudden was signing high school all americans, the kids were getting their degrees, his squads were giving the Bruce Arneas of the world fits,and his recruiting classes start getting ranked higher and higher. Then I was sold as I knew Maryland hit the mother load when Sasho class included not one but two national players of the year in the same year (Nick Downing and Taylor Twellman). That's when I said Whoa.

With this Maryland squad, three games doesn't make a season and the back four hasn't been tested yet. Wil Swain is still being eyed by many observers and some are wondering if he'll be eventually replaced by star frosh Keith Cardona and the same things are being said about one of the Maryland midfielders to be eventually benched by number 1 recruit Alex Shinsky. But coaches like Sasho know what they're doing after being through the wars. Sahso will ride the Wil Swains of the world all the way to the NCAAs and hopefully to the cup. Terps are 3 - 0 and right now and things are feeling pretty good. Radford comes up and it will be interesting to see if the kids come out like it's a rec league game. With an Ol school coach, he'll remind them this isn't the purple thunder from the Annandale B league. I wouldn't expect anything less from the Yugoslavian coach.

Wait a minute, the ref has blowned the whistle. Will someone please have that spectator of the Maryalnd crew move slightly back in the stands. Time for a goal kick.

Tman

 

[Fekula]

And now, after the destruction of Boston College...

My view is beginning to change. Demolishing Stanford was one thing -- an unranked team that is traditionally strong but had already lost their opener to a St. Mary's a squad that is not going to be confused with Wake Forest. Stanford is also young and a work in progress. But it is another thing to do the same number on Boston College, a squad that came in with the #8 ranking and was looking to make a statement. BC is another level up (maybe two levels up) from Stanford, and the Terps ran over them anyway. The only real difference in the games was that Maryland had their better half in the 2nd half vs. BC, as opposed to the Stanford game where they started off like a rocket and then seemed to settle back to the level of their opponent.

Now I have been saying all along that it is highly questionable to have bigtime expectations about a team that sent Zac MacMath, Matt Kassel, and Ethan White to the pros. I still maintain that when you have a guy like White starting for DC United practically from Day One of the MLS season, who could have been the anchor of your backline, you just can't say it is that easy to replace him. It was White's two years of experience in the ACC wars as much as his talent that is missed. Ditto that for Kassel and MacMath. We may not find out until the NCAA Tournament how much they and the others are missed, if at all.

To draw an imperfect analogy, look at what happened last spring when Women's Lacrosse lost Karri Ellen Johnson just before midseason to a concussion -- a player who preseason had been named national POY in one survey. Maryland kept winning anyway, right up until the national title game and it was only until they lost to Northwestern in that title game by one goal that all of a sudden Maryland fans began to ask "what would have happened if Karri Ellen had been there". For that matter, it was after the loss in the national title game that some Terp fans began to pay attention to the fact that two super-freshmen, Brooke Griffin and Kelsey Horton, both considered Top 10 freshmen in the nation in the preseason, had been done for the year before it started because of near identical ACL injuries.

I can see the same thing happen again with Men's Soccer. If they continue to win, nobody will say anything about the guys who are gone. If they lose early in the NCAA Tournament -- or even if they make a run and then lose -- then all of a sudden people will remember MacMath, White, Kassel, along with Jason Herrick, Billy Cortes, Doug Rodkey, etc etc etc.

Whatever the case may be, the fact is that Maryland is doing better than I had expected. I candidly admit that the idea of a midfield of Sunny Jane, Jereme Raley, Helge Leikvang, and John Stertzer did not exactly have me doing cartwheels. First of all, I saw Jane and Stertzer as forwards, not mids. I didn't see any of them as take-over players who are going to dominate the field. OK, so far all they have done is out-shoot, out-possess, and out-play anybody they have faced. The Terp midfield is the section most affected by the personnel changes and therefore is also the biggest surprise.

Somewhat more predictable was Casey Townsend and Patrick Mullins evolving into one of the best forward combinations in the country. Right now, they show all appearances of being able to carry this team into the Final Four.

I still have questions about the goalie, Will Swaim, and the defenders in front of him simply because they haven't really been tested. The Maryland front six have been so dominant that opponents haven't had much chance to mount a consistent threat to Maryland. When they have been threatened, Swaim & Co. have gotten the job done. A shutout is a shutout and the Terp Men have been almost as dominant as the Terp Women when it comes to turning in clean sheets. I watched the UVA-Duke game tonight and can see there will be stiffer challenges for Maryland's D coming very soon.

In the meantime, the most encouraging sign of all, after the midfield surprise, is the overall depth. The stat sheet shows that Cirovski used 11 reserves tonight vs. BC. That is incredible! Think about it: a week ago we were all saying "Who the hell is Makias Eticha?". Well, it turns out that this guy is becoming a significant force off the bench. You also saw guys like freshman Parker Seymour off of the Canada U-17 National Team, getting in for some minutes on the backline; Marquez Fernandez is becoming an off the bench regular, also on the backline. Here again, I didn't think we had this kind of backline depth, but there it is. The fact is they have depth out the wazoo. When guys with serious talent like Kaoru Forbess and Matt Oduaran are fighting for minutes, then you get the idea that Maryland's practices must be as intense as the games. I don't actually get to see practices (I don't even get to all the games as I also have Field Hockey, Women's Soccer, etc plus graduate school) but they must be interesting affairs.

Well, the whole situation looks brighter than I had anticipated. I didn't exactly expect them to suffer. Preseason, I had them as making the tournament, as usual, and then maybe two-and-done. At this rate, they may be in the Final Four. I mean, the current results justify higher expectations, but I still feel we have to be cautious about getting carried away. It is still early and a long season is still ahead. This much is sure: Cirovski, his staff, and the athletes are doing a tremendous job. And its not just the wins. They continue to play the interesting, entertaining, attacking style of soccer we have come to enjoy and expect all these years. They are always fun to watch and it is even more fun now.

 

[TMAN]

Blood Bath - Ludwig Field

Heck of write up Mike...

I was there last night and it was a surprised on total mass destruction of the Eagles. Don't know if you know this or not but Alex Shinsky went off with a knee injury and it did not look good. He was playing on a trick knee already. I've talked to a number of observers that have followed this kid through his club years and that is the one bugaboo with Alex. He's always seems to be nursing an ailmentt. Don't know if this is true on Alex's history but surely I didn't like how he needed help coming off the field. Plus Stertzer might of picked up a hip pointer last night as well but his injury didn't seem as serious. We both agreed that this squad has to stay healthy. Last night seeing these two guys go down didn't help the cause. I was hoping Sahso would take out his regulars MUCH SOONER than he did as BC was getting frustrated and then they got very chippy and two Maryland players get taken out on two tackles that drew yellow from the REF's. OUCH!

Maryland does need to get tested in the back four. I'm eyeing when they go down to Virginia as Brian Spain, Wil Yates and Brian Ownby can pick em up and lay em down on anyone. This trio hung 5 GOALS on Maryland in the spring game. That game is a very good test on Maryland's back 4 and Wil Swaim. I'm curious if Sasho will RS Cardona if Swain proves solid throughout the season. the jury is out on Swaim still.

Anyhow, it would be nice if Maryland could bottle this and save it for the end of the season. Right now things are lookN good. Team is more athletic, faster and every bit as deep as last year. Saint Cyr and Jane are bringing back the ghost of Rodney Wallace and Jeremy Hall. Hard to believe those two kids don't have a goal yet. Sasho surely know what the hell he's doing out there. Best program IMO that Maryland has to offer out there for the bang of your buck

T.
This post was edited on 9/10 12:46 PM by TMAN