At the midseason mark of this year’s college season, we take a look at the year’s surprise teams, the teams that need to put in some extra work for the postseason, and the players who have made their mark. Also, which teams have a shot at the College Cup and the teams that could be poised to cause an upset in the NCAA tournament.
Which team(s) have surprised you the most this season?
Rachael Caldwell: I’m going with Kansas in the Big 12 this season. While the Jayhawks have yet to play conference favorites Texas Tech and West Virginia, certainly no one had them tabbed to be sitting undefeated in first halfway through the conference season. With wins over Texas and a slowly recovering Oklahoma State, Kansas looks the part of a potential Big 12 tournament, and perhaps NCAA, dark horse.
JJ Duke: I’m going with Virginia Tech and Pepperdine. The Hokies lost a few big parts of their team from last year and have still figured out a way to post good results this season. Meanwhile, Pepperdine has temporarily become the team to beat in the West Coast Conference, backed by Lynn Williams’ 10 goals. If things hold true, Pepperdine’s end-of-season battle against BYU should determine the WCC Championship.
Ruth Moore: Clemson isn’t exactly one of the usual ACC representatives in the women’s soccer consciousness, but this season the Tigers have appeared both in the rankings and the news. Central Florida has also been a surprise, maintaining a presence in the standings despite losing German Lena Petermann following the U-20 Women’s World Cup as she opted not to return to the college game.
Brandi Ortega: Losing Lena Petermann was a blow for Central Florida, but they’ve held up well. Out west, Pepperdine. Their 1-0 victory over North Carolina wasn’t a fluke as the Waves have earned wins over Kentucky, Santa Clara, and Southern California.
Let’s talk postseason. Which team has some work to do?
Caldwell: Kentucky could be in trouble. Despite all the talent this squad has, they’ve struggled ever since they dropped a 3-2 overtime result to Pepperdine and haven’t really recovered. The Wildcats still have to play South Carolina, Florida, and make a visit to Georgia in SEC play, and they’re already on the outside looking in for the NCAA tournament. While everything could change with a strong run in the SEC tournament, they just don’t look the part from what I’ve seen in regular season play.
Duke: While the Big East is nowhere as strong as it used to be, I expected a little more from St. John’s and Marquette to this point. While both hold records above .500, I thought these sides would sustain their usual forms from seasons past. St. John’s still has to face Georgetown and DePaul before the regular season is over after a midseason four-match losing streak. They, along with Marquette, will need to go deep in the Big East tournament to confirm a NCAA tournament bid.
Moore: The Portland Pilots are 5-7-2 right now with most of their wins coming from a one-goal margin of victory. The WCC doesn’t have a conference tournament, so Portland’s late heroics need to keep coming throughout the final stretch of the regular season.
Ortega: I’ll be roasted for it, but UCLA. Yes, the defending national champs are formidable, but imagine how they’d look if they finished their chances in front of net?
Which players have stood out? Who are early MAC Hermann contenders?
Caldwell: Hard to pick anyone besides Morgan Brian, but just for the sake of variety I’ll throw out the names of Jannelle Flaws and Shea Groom. While Flaws probably won’t remain on the MAC Hermann radar if Illinois doesn’t manage to make the NCAA tournament by some act of magic, she still has 15 goals through 14 games which deserves a lot of respect. Groom is a more likely candidate, with 12 goals and two assists so far for an A&M squad hoping to defend its SEC tournament title.
Duke: Probably Morgan Brian and Sarah Killion. Brian has been a stalwart for Virginia this fall and consistent while balancing duties for both the Cavaliers and the U.S. Women’s National Team. Killion is also a top prospect as she plays the distributor role for a very dangerous UCLA team, already producing nine assists in 14 games.
Ortega: Have to go with a defender, so Abby Dahlkemper. She’s led a strong UCLA defense. And Morgan Brian, who will win.
Which team could play the part of Cinderella and cause an upset in the NCAA tournament?
Caldwell: Picking a “Cinderella” is perhaps the least accurate yet most rewarding parts of knockout postseason tournaments. For me, a squad that could make some noise is Stephen F. Austin out of the Southland Conference. The Lumberjacks are currently undefeated in conference play, and seem to be heading to an automatic NCAA bid. While their conference isn’t the toughest week in and week out, during nonconference play they played Texas A&M close and tied LSU. They’ve posted eight shutouts so far this season, and while the offense isn’t exactly dynamic, they’ve found ways to score goals and get results.
Duke: As someone who went to a “mid major” school, one of my favorite topics to discuss is figuring out the lesser known Division I schools that could pull off the upset in the tournament. The team to keep an eye on is Eastern Tennessee State University out of the Atlantic Sun. They have the leading NCAA goalscorer in Hannah Short, who has scored 20 goals in 14 matches, and the two players tied for second in assists in Austrian international Sarah Zadrazil and Jasmin Dutton, who each have 15 assists. If the Bucs can get through their conference tournament, they can be a team to make some noise in the NCAA tournament.
Which team outside of the Top 10 could crash the College Cup party?
Caldwell: They’re currently sitting at No. 11 in the NSCAA rankings, so I feel a bit like I’m cheating by picking them, but I’ve got to go with Penn State. Tied for first in the Big Ten, the Nittany Lions’ only losses this season have come at the hands of North Carolina in double overtime, and just recently to Rutgers in conference play. While Raquel Rodriguez and Mallory Weber have been humming right along this season, freshman Frannie Crouse has been a wonderful addition to the offense.
Duke: This one is tough to call because everyone inside the Top 10 could find themselves in the College Cup but I’ll give a nod to Clemson. They’ll be battle-tested from playing against top quality competition in the ACC tournament and will have to win a tough match (or two) on the road. They’ve already done it this year at South Carolina and will have another crack at a good road test against Notre Dame before the regular season is over.
Moore: Not just playing favorites, but I think Penn State has the best shot outside the Top 10 of going to the College Cup. When Rodriguez returns after World Cup qualifiers, the Nittany Lions will have the pieces to move through the postseason. Regardless of the results of the Big Ten tournament, Penn State will have been tested throughout the season and could have the endurance to pull off some upsets in the bracket.
Ortega: I like Penn State. They’ve been progressing so I think if their current form holds, they’ll be ready for the postseason.
[divider]Contributors[/divider]
Rachael Caldwell will be graduating from the University of Arkansas in 2015 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and minors in Spanish and Business Management. Rachael played soccer from when she was three until her senior year of high school, where she was the captain of her state championship winning team. Rachael looks forward to writing more for Our Game Magazine and also writes about women’s soccer on her blog, rachaelfc.wordpress.com.
JJ Duke graduated from Rider University in New Jersey with a degree in Digital Media Studies. Although his playing days may have ended back in high school, he still prides himself on being a decent shot-stopper and an all-around fanatic of the beautiful game (fervent supporter of Manchester United and the founder of a Rider supporters group, the 206 Ultras). He was the Student General Manager at 107.7 FM The Bronc while at Rider and contributed to various local newspaper and Web sites in the Trenton, NJ, area of high school and collegiate sports including T and Fish4Scores.com.
Ruth Moore serves Our Game Magazine as a College Editor and the magazine’s Design Editor. She holds a degree in Professional Writing from Kutztown University, freelances in communication design and loves coffee.
Brandi Ortega designs, writes, and plays soccer in Southern California. She graduated from UCLA with a degree in English. Find her on twitter at @brandiortega.