It took more than twenty years, but Maryland finally got a victory over perpetual national power UNC yesterday, 2-1, their first in 33 attempts. The fact that it took that long is no disgrace -- UNC has done that to a lot of people. Coach Anson Dorrance has 20 titles in 32 years, so they ain't bad. And btw, they are the defending national champions. Beating them, especially in Chapel Hill, means something.
Maryland has had some pretty good coaches over the years including two of Dorrance's former players, April Heinrichs and Shannon Higgins Cirovski, both of whom are in the US Soccer Hall of Fame. Their respective tenures sandwiched the three year term of Alan Kirkup who went to the NCAA Tournament three years in a row. One thing those three share: they were never able to beat North Carolina. Brian Pensky just did.
Pensky has done a tremendous job with this program -- a testimony to the importance of being patient. The man suffered during his first four years (2005-2008) when it seemed there was one injury after another on a team that never had anything close to the kind of talent that UNC had, or for that matter teams like Virginia, Florida State, Duke, and other ACC powers. Pensky has patiently, painstakingly built the program. First, closing the talent gap with the rest of the league through the recruiting process, and then teaching up the people he has.
He has had four years in a row of recruiting classes in the Top 20. That should be read carefully. He still doesn't get #1 classes like UNC, nor has he gotten Top 5 classes, but that may change soon. In any case, he is getting the best out of what he has right now. He has a talent for getting both diamonds in the rough as well as some prep A-A's that were widely coveted.
Maryland entered yesterday's encounter with UNC as the #4 team in the country. They have proven that they deserve it, despite the nerds in online soccer sites like BigSoccer.com who live and die on RPI ratings and who continue to question Maryland's strength of schedule. In the month of September, yes, that was a legitimate concern. Not now. Maryland has earned their way to their high ranking. They deserve the respect they have gotten and it starts with the work their coach has done over the long term. The win over UNC yesterday was earned starting several years ago.
There is no telling what will happen the rest of the season. The sense is that Div I women's soccer is a closer call than in the past. The Top 20 has more potential national contenders than in the past. The main thing we know is this: Maryland is now a major factor.
Nobody was saying that a month ago.
Maryland has had some pretty good coaches over the years including two of Dorrance's former players, April Heinrichs and Shannon Higgins Cirovski, both of whom are in the US Soccer Hall of Fame. Their respective tenures sandwiched the three year term of Alan Kirkup who went to the NCAA Tournament three years in a row. One thing those three share: they were never able to beat North Carolina. Brian Pensky just did.
Pensky has done a tremendous job with this program -- a testimony to the importance of being patient. The man suffered during his first four years (2005-2008) when it seemed there was one injury after another on a team that never had anything close to the kind of talent that UNC had, or for that matter teams like Virginia, Florida State, Duke, and other ACC powers. Pensky has patiently, painstakingly built the program. First, closing the talent gap with the rest of the league through the recruiting process, and then teaching up the people he has.
He has had four years in a row of recruiting classes in the Top 20. That should be read carefully. He still doesn't get #1 classes like UNC, nor has he gotten Top 5 classes, but that may change soon. In any case, he is getting the best out of what he has right now. He has a talent for getting both diamonds in the rough as well as some prep A-A's that were widely coveted.
Maryland entered yesterday's encounter with UNC as the #4 team in the country. They have proven that they deserve it, despite the nerds in online soccer sites like BigSoccer.com who live and die on RPI ratings and who continue to question Maryland's strength of schedule. In the month of September, yes, that was a legitimate concern. Not now. Maryland has earned their way to their high ranking. They deserve the respect they have gotten and it starts with the work their coach has done over the long term. The win over UNC yesterday was earned starting several years ago.
There is no telling what will happen the rest of the season. The sense is that Div I women's soccer is a closer call than in the past. The Top 20 has more potential national contenders than in the past. The main thing we know is this: Maryland is now a major factor.
Nobody was saying that a month ago.
