CINCI CLIMBING BACK: Cougars 1, Bearkats 2 (Blog date October 4, 2013)

Houston Cougars 1, Cincinnati Bearkats 2
W-D-L: 1-3-5            6-0-7
October 3, 2013
7:00 pm @ University of Houston

I never imagined that a soccer game could cause such a writer's block. I should just follow my own advice in overcoming a slump and do what comes naturally (see blog entry dated September 27, 2013). Usually, when it comes to this beautiful game, I can talk about it all day and all night. I guess I've been overthinking this. This is what I will do - what comes naturally - even if I have to be brutally honest with myself and face my mixed emotions. I was excited, relieved, overjoyed to see the return to the pitch of Houston senior Kylie Cook, one of this blog's favorite midfielders. If readers recall, Kylie's last appearance on this blog was against Stephen F. Austin when she went down hustling typically hard to maintain possession of a ball on its way out, and then subsequently left the field in an ambulance (see blog entry dated September 3, 2013). Her playmaking presence in the midfield has been sorely missed. But admittedly, it was not a warm welcome she received on the pitch. This game was a showdown between one program that is working hard to avoid finishing with its worst record in school history and another that is bouncing back from its worst record in school history, so the Cincinnati Bearkats were not about to lay out a welcome carpet for Kylie. 

Cincinnati has a long hard climb to where they were in their glory days of last century. Between the program's inaugural season in 1980 to 2002, the Bearkats posted losing percentages only four times. Under Coach Meridy Glenn's tenure, six of those seasons ended with a berth in the NCAA tournament, capturing four Conference USA cups and three league titles, twice winning the double. Cinci has not fared as well over the past decade since, making the Big East post-season only once. The 2012 campaign saw Cincinnati's worst record in school history, winning just one out of 11 conference matches and finishing with a -26 goal differential. Joining the new American Athletic Conference, Cincinnati most probably would like to forget the past ten years and start fresh. At Houston's expense, these current Bearkats have already escaped a repeat, thanks to five freshwomen in their starting lineup who have no memory of the atrocious last season, including the two goal-scorers Katy Couperus and Bailey Wilson. If the performance of this freshwoman generation is any indication, Cincinnati's climb back has begun.

Katy Couperus (20) heads a rocket into the back of the net. Katy is one of five freshwomen in Cincinnati's starting lineup clawing their way back from the worst season in school history.

Defender Jae Atkinson (9) is an instrumental presence for the Bearkats, all the way into the offensive third.

Cincinnati effectively applies an aerial advantage. Bailey Wilson (21) swats in the winner. Both Bearkat goals come from the air. 

Kelsey Zamora (7) is very busy in Houston's attacking third, where she fights to get past Kayla Utley (5).

The return of Kylie Cook (2) to the Houston midfield is most welcome. Now sporting a cast along with her signature tongue in cheek, Kylie brings an irreplaceable playmaking creativity that has been missed.

Freshwoman defender Taylor Nelson (16) confronts Kylie Cook (2)...

...who changes direction inwards to split the defense and take space...

...leaving Taylor and Jae Atkinson (9) in the dust. Welcome back Kylie.

 

(All photos by Kokoy Severino.)

UPCOMING MATCHES OF THE WEEK: 

Friday Oct 18 Colorado College (#24) @ Rice (#134) 7:00 pm (C-USA)

Thursday Oct 24 University of Central Florida (#12) @ U of H (#232) 7:00 pm (AAC)

Friday Oct 25 Grambling State University (#325) @ TSU (#327) 7:00 pm (SWAC)

Sunday Oct 27 University of South Florida (#174) @ U of H (#232) 1:00 pm (C-USA)

Friday Nov 1 Sam Houston State University (#206) @ HBU (#252) 5:00 pm (SLC)

Monday Nov 4 Conference USA Tournament 1st Round @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Wednesday Nov 6 Conference USA Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Friday Nov 8 Conference USA Tournament Semi-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Saturday Nov 9 Red River Athletic Conference Tournament Final @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 5:00 pm
Sunday Nov 10 Conference USA Tournament Final @ Rice 1:00 pm
Friday-Sunday Nov 15-17 NCAA Division I Tournament 1st Round @ Campus TBA
Sunday Nov 24 NCAA Division I Tournament 3rd Round @ Campus TBA
Friday-Saturday Nov 29-30 NCAA Division I Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Campus TBA
Saturday Dec 7 NCAA Division III Tournament Final @ Blossom Stadium, San Antonio 1:30 pm 

(Kokoy's Matches of the Week are those which I plan to attend. Schedule subject to change.) 

Kokoy Severino has been coaching junior high school soccer in the public school system of the Greater Houston area for 19 years. He holds a National Youth Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, two coaching certifications from the United States Soccer Federation, and a Master in Educational Leadership degree from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. His research focuses on the relationship between interscholastic competitive soccer and the academic success of at-risk students. He returns regularly to his native country of the Philippines and conducts soccer training sessions for economically disadvantaged youths.

"This blog is to document the intensity, the depth, the passion, the strategic and tactical nuances, the stars, the spectacular play that I witness in the women's teams at the college level. And in doing so, it is my hope that others might be inspired to discover for themselves the beautiful game brought by the women." (Kokoy, from blog entry dated Nov 4, 2012)

UNDERDOGS SWARMED ON THE ROAD: Roadrunners 2, Owls 0 (Blog date September 30, 2013)

Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners 2, Rice Owls 0
W-D-L: 2-1-8                                       3-2-4
September 29, 2013
1:00 pm @ University of Texas, San Antonio

If you are a regular reader of this blog, I'm sure you have detected a definite bias towards schools in the Greater Houston area. It's not just because I live here - well, okay, it is. But also because I have always had a tendency to gravitate towards the underdog. My adopted home field has a real underdog complex. You've read this over and over - fourth largest municipality in the country, seven Division I schools in the area, four of them located well inside city limits, the other three within a 90-mile radius, and not a single representative in the 2012 national tournament. What's wrong with this picture? Houston has never had a Super Bowl team, no World Series, NHL is not even present, and the 21st century Rockets struggle just to get out of the first round of playoffs. The Comets have yet to make it back to the WNBA championship in the post-Cynthia Cooper era. The Dynamo is the only perennial championship contender this city has, but even they are consistently the underdog, the past two years in a row falling in the finals to MLS glamorboys LA Galaxy. Rice won a national baseball title eons ago, but even at the peak of Phi Slama Jama, U of H couldn't bring home a championship.

Comparable cities around the country were well-represented in the 2012 NCAA national soccer tournament bracket. New York sent four - Long Island, Stony Brook, Hofstra and Princeton (located 50 miles from the City). Los Angeles had two of its schools qualify (Stanford and UCLA), facing each other in the quarter-finals. The San Francisco Bay area was represented by Oakland and Cal. Chicago, Washington DC, Miami, Denver, Milwaukee, Dallas, Seattle, San Diego, Philadelphia, Boston... Conspicuously missing from this list is Houston. Of the five Texas schools that made it to the big dance, none were from the state's most populous city.

Sometimes, I don't like being right. The last time I saw the UTSA Roadrunners, they were run over by the Lamar Cardinals on their own turf. And I observed that this UTSA squad needed just a few matches under their belt to effectively gel. I would have preferred that it took one more week (see my blog entry dated September 4, 2013). When the Rice Owls arrived at the Alamo city for the second match in a back-to-back away weekend, they encountered a home team beginning to hit the dangerous stride I had predicted. The schedule didn't help the Owls much either; a hard-fought win against a higher-seeded Texas at El Paso clear across the state just two nights before still wore on the faces of Quinney, Gabi, Lauren and Holly. Kaytee, Laylla, Kauwela and Taylor, on the other hand, looked fresh, stringing together crisper passes to possess the ball forward, and applied swarming pressure on the slower Owls attackers to achieve a landmark first win in four meetings against Rice.

Kauwela Neal (second from left) smacks in her first goal of the year, as Kelsey Rightmer hits the deck and Quinney Truong (left) tries to close in. The second match of a long road trip, the Owls are just a half-step behind. Kelsey, keeper Amy Czyz (00) and the rest of the Owls defensive backs have a very busy day under tremendous pressure from Brianna Livecchi (2) and a Roadrunner offense that is gelling.

In the battle for center-midfield, Kaytee O'Brien (9) has the upper hand...

...threatening with the ball deep in Rice territory...

...and down the right flank to deliver some lethal crosses.

Jasmine Isokpunwu (8) is double-teamed by Laylla da Cruz from behind and Kaytee O'Brien (9) in front. The Roadrunners are able to swarm the road-worn Owls defensively. 

Quick, physical and smart, Jasmine Isokpunwu (8) has developed into a major aerial scoring threat for the Owls from her stopper position. She forces goalie Bubba Makela (orange) to take a precarious punch at an incoming cross in Rice's second-half scramble to score.

Reinforcements Jessica Howard (10) and Bella Hernandez (9) log some effective minutes for the Rice offense. But Bubba prevails to complete her third shutout of the season.

Strikers Holly Hargreaves (12), Lauren Hughes (7) and Danielle Spriggs (19) threaten often in the second half, but Shelby Wright (22), Tyane Ramos (4) and the Roadrunner defense stay a half-step ahead of the Owls.

Alexis Alaniz (5) contains Gabriela Iribarne (6) along the sideline.

Double-teamed, swarmed and chased by Courtney Bertholf (23), Quinney Truong (21) is left with few options.

(All photos by Kokoy Severino.)

Fans like me tend to be impatient with our teams. We have to always be mindful that in the sport of soccer, patience is a strategic virtue. Championships are not won in a year, but over the course of several years' hard work. Indeed, the road to the highest league on the planet, the World Cup finals, is a minimum two year process, sometimes more, even for the most advanced teams in the world. For the minnows like my country the Philippines, who are still in the nascent stages of national team development, it will likely take a couple of generations to arrive at that caliber - that is if we stay the course of hard work, and continuous dedication to development, which Coach Ernie Nierras has embarked us upon. In the U.S. college system, championships are usually won in four-year cycles, starting with a freshwoman recruiting class. When we set aside our impatience as a fan, and focus on our perspective as a patient and dedicated coach, we can see the development track more clearly.

With only three seniors on the roster, this junior class, including Quinny Truong, Gabi Iribarne, with fellow starters Kelsey Rightmer, Ashton Geisendorff and keeper Amy Czyz, and sophomores like Jasmine Isokpunwu, Holly Hargreaves and Lauren Hughes, have already made their mark at conference level with a league championship in 2012. These Owls are poised to dominate C-USA in 2014, Quinny and Gabi's senior year. With the C-USA tournament hosted by Rice next month, the Owls may make it even further than one would expect in the current season. On the other hand, I have already spoken about UTSA's crop of stellar junior transfers, such as Kaytee O'Brien, Taylor Wingerden, Happy Orere-Amadu, Teresa Offerman joined by a sophomore class featuring the likes of Kauwela Neal and Alexis Alaniz. By all indications, they are gelling. Thus, what we witnessed today in the Roadrunners' brand new not-even-on-the-map-yet soccer-specific stadium is a preview of next year's collision between the two teams this blog predicts will vie for the Conference USA cup and league.

It will be sweet indeed when a Houston school finally sheds this underdog stigma.

UPCOMING MATCHES OF THE WEEK: 

Thursday Oct 3 University of Cincinnati (#140) @ U of H (#232) 7:00 pm (American Athletic Conference)

Friday Oct 18 Colorado College (#24) @ Rice (#134) 7:00 pm (C-USA)

Thursday Oct 24 University of Central Florida (#12) @ U of H (#232) 7:00 pm (AAC)

Friday Oct 25 Grambling State University (#325) @ TSU (#327) 7:00 pm (SWAC)

Sunday Oct 27 East Carolina University (#174) @ Rice (#134) 1:00 pm (C-USA)

Thursday Oct 31 LSU (#55) @ Tx A&M (#56) 7:00 pm in College Station (Southeastern Conference)

Friday Nov 1 Sam Houston State University (#284) @ HBU (#242) 5:00 pm (SLC)

Monday Nov 4 Conference USA Tournament 1st Round @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Wednesday Nov 6 Conference USA Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Thursday Nov 7 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park
Friday Nov 8 Conference USA Tournament Semi-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Saturday Nov 9 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 
Saturday Nov 9 Red River Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 
Sunday Nov 10 Conference USA Tournament Final @ Rice 1:00 pm
Friday-Sunday Nov 15-17 NCAA Division I Tournament 1st Round @ Campus TBA
Sunday Nov 24 NCAA Division I Tournament 3rd Round @ Campus TBA
Friday-Saturday Nov 29-30 NCAA Division I Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Campus TBA
Saturday Dec 7 NCAA Division III Tournament Final @ Blossom Stadium, San Antonio 1:30 pm 

(Kokoy's Matches of the Week are those which I plan to attend. Schedule subject to change.) 

Kokoy Severino has been coaching junior high school soccer in the public school system of the Greater Houston area for 19 years. He holds a National Youth Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, two coaching certifications from the United States Soccer Federation, and a Master in Educational Leadership degree from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. His research focuses on the relationship between interscholastic competitive soccer and the academic success of at-risk students. He returns regularly to his native country of the Philippines and conducts soccer training sessions for economically disadvantaged youths.

"This blog is to document the intensity, the depth, the passion, the strategic and tactical nuances, the stars, the spectacular play that I witness in the women's teams at the college level. And in doing so, it is my hope that others might be inspired to discover for themselves the beautiful game brought by the women." (Kokoy, from blog entry dated Nov 4, 2012)

NORTHWESTERN STATE CUTS OFF HOUSTON BAPTIST STREAK: Huskies 1, Demons 2 (Blog date September 28, 2013)

Houston Baptist Huskies 1, Northwestern State Lady Demons 2
W-D-L: 1-1-7                         3-1-6                                          
September 27, 2013
7:00 pm @ Houston Baptist University, Houston

Many of the most productive and hard-working athletes in the world have gone through slumps every now and then. Even the best ones. Michael Jordan's shooting slump in 1992 lasted several games. LeBron James went through a memorable slump in the middle of the most recent NBA championship series against the Spurs. Maria Sharapova has been struggling as of late. The greatest woman golfer of all-time Annika Sorenstam went through a notorious slump in the middle of last decade. Alex Rodriguez, Leo Messi, Brett Favre, Tiger Woods - and these are just a few of the best in history. Even Manny Pacquiao has been described by his faithful as being currently in a slump. HBU's junior forward Natalie Hager, one this blog's favorite strikers, has some distinguished company. Natalie finished at the top of the team's goal-scoring table each of her first two years as a Husky - netting eight last year and seven as a freshwoman straight out of Port Neches-Groves High School. By this stage in the 2012 schedule, Natalie had already chalked up five on her way to a second straight All-Great West Conference first team selection. Now going into the current conference schedule, Natalie has seen the back of the net just once in eight games. 

Despite the goal-production deficiency however, Natalie still remains a critical component in the Huskies' offensive scheme. What the stat sheets never show are the multitude of soccer's intangibles, aspects of the game which are nearly impossible to quantify, that can only be seen through the prism of a holistic qualitative sensibility. How would one statistically compute, for example, that when Natalie is on the point, the epicenter of HBU's offensive drives move deeper into opposing territory by a good, I would say, 10-15 yards average? Natalie's innate ability to find effective spaces inside the box, and get there quickly, takes HBU's offensive sequences closer to goal, thus forcing defenses to execute more often in recovery positions, leaving her striking partners with more time. Great players naturally find alternate ways to contribute.

The Northwestern State Lady Demons' twenty returning letter-earners, including ten starters, eight seniors and every one of their top five goal-netters, came to the bayou city seeking to avenge last year's 3-1 home loss against Houston Baptist in which two goals were struck by - guess who - Natalie Hager. As a matter of fact, NSU had lost both previous outings against the Huskies, and needed to find a way to cut this streak off, now that HBU is in the Southland Conference and this matchup actually means so much more. It took two of their top scorers, including Guyana international Ashlee Savona, who netted the golden winner in overtime after Cassandra Briscoe answered Allison Abendschein's first half goal to end regulation in a 1-1 tie. Northwestern State and their Ontario contingent, comprising seven of their starters, welcomed their new conference-mates by erasing the memory of a 5-1 aggregate deficit over the last two seasons.

Ashlee Savona (9) runs the midfield for Northwestern State, creating some key possessions, and scoring the winning golden goal. Ashlee is one of seven Demon recruits from the province of Ontario. She was capped by Guyana for 2010 Gold Cup action, in which she logged extensive minutes during Caribbean qualification and the group stage in Cancún.

Rebekah Tovar (21) and Amina Radoncic (26) are a critical presence in the middle of the HBU offense.

Danielle Harding (10), Shannon Danku (19) and the Lady Demons' defensive line take tremendous pressure from Alessia Dal Monte (9)...

...and Natalie Hager (13).

Natalie (13) often finds space deep in opposing boxes. When Natalie is on the point, the median center of the HBU offense moves forward significantly...

...forcing defenders like Taylor Mulnix (22) to make plays from positions of recovery.

Striker Molly Missimer (12) takes on Taylor (22) and Jackie Strug (5).

 

The pressure pays off for the Huskies, as freshwoman Allison Abendschein (10) scores her first goal as a Husky.

Chelsea Schaeffer (26), Brooke Eastburg (8) and Cassandra Briscoe (7) bring the Lady Demons offense to life after the interval. Cassandra's goal sends the game into overtime.

The performances of goalkeepers Shelby Horn (30) and Jessica Danku (00) keep the game even.

(All photos by Kokoy Severino.)

The consensus from sports psychologists out there seems to be that athletic slumps, when not caused by injury or trauma, are largely a mental thing. The most commonly recommended remedy to get out of such a slump seems to be relaxing and stop thinking about it so much; too much forethought, it seems, causes players to overwork themselves to an unnatural state. So if Natalie is reading this blog, hopefully she forgets everything I just said, and just go out there, continue to work hard and perform the way she naturally does. She will find her target I'm sure. All great athletes do. 

UPCOMING MATCHES OF THE WEEK: 

Sunday Sep 29 Rice (#134) @ UTSA (#234) 1:00 pm (Conference USA)

Thursday Oct 3 University of Cincinnati (#140) @ U of H (#232) 7:00 pm (American Athletic Conference)

Friday Oct 18 Colorado College (#24) @ Rice (#134) 7:00 pm (C-USA)

Thursday Oct 24 University of Central Florida (#12) @ U of H (#232) 7:00 pm (AAC)

Friday Oct 25 Grambling State University (#325) @ TSU (#327) 7:00 pm (SWAC)

Sunday Oct 27 East Carolina University (#174) @ Rice (#134) 1:00 pm (C-USA)

Thursday Oct 31 LSU (#55) @ Tx A&M (#56) 7:00 pm in College Station (Southeastern Conference)

Friday Nov 1 Sam Houston State University (#284) @ HBU (#242) 5:00 pm (SLC)

Monday Nov 4 Conference USA Tournament 1st Round @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Wednesday Nov 6 Conference USA Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Thursday Nov 7 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park
Friday Nov 8 Conference USA Tournament Semi-Finals @ Rice 4:30 and 7:00 pm
Saturday Nov 9 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 
Saturday Nov 9 Red River Athletic Conference Tournament @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 
Sunday Nov 10 Conference USA Tournament Final @ Rice1:00 pm
Friday-Sunday Nov 15-17 NCAA Division I Tournament 1st Round @ Campus TBA
Sunday Nov 24 NCAA Division I Tournament 3rd Round @ Campus TBA
Friday-Saturday Nov 29-30 NCAA Division I Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Campus TBA
Saturday Dec 7 NCAA Division III Tournament Final @ Blossom Stadium, San Antonio 1:30 pm


(Kokoy's Matches of the Week are those which I plan to attend. Schedule subject to change.) 

Kokoy Severino has been coaching junior high school soccer in the public school system of the Greater Houston area for 19 years. He holds a National Youth Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, two coaching certifications from the United States Soccer Federation, and a Master in Educational Leadership degree from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. His research focuses on the relationship between interscholastic competitive soccer and the academic success of at-risk students. He returns regularly to his native country of the Philippines and conducts soccer training sessions for economically disadvantaged youths.

"This blog is to document the intensity, the depth, the passion, the strategic and tactical nuances, the stars, the spectacular play that I witness in the women's teams at the college level. And in doing so, it is my hope that others might be inspired to discover for themselves the beautiful game brought by the women." (Kokoy, from blog entry dated Nov 4, 2012)