Confessions of a Soccer Nobody: NCAA Soccer Powers Coming to Pennsylvania
Not quite sure what to do with yourself now that the Harrisburg City Islanders’ season is over? Fear not, some fantastic soccer matchups are on tap at Pennsylvania colleges this week as national powers Akron and Maryland travel to Penn State and Lehigh respectively. These games will be exciting, filled with future MLS stars, and, best of all, free to attend. So gas up your car and head to the Lehigh Valley or Happy Valley for some top notch college soccer.
#4 Maryland (7-2-1) at Lehigh (4-4-2), Tuesday, October 12 at 7:00 pm
Maryland rolls into the Lehigh Valley on a three-match unbeaten run that includes victories over #9 Duke, #2 UConn, and a 7-0 pasting of Virginia Tech. That’s right, the Terps scored a touchdown against the Hokies! Loaded offensively, Maryland is led by Matt Kassel (5 g, 5 a), Jason Herrick (5 g, 1 a), Patrick Mullins (4 g, 2 a), and Casey Townsend (4 g, 0 a). Head coach Sasho Cirovski has built a perennial contender at College Park, having led the Terps to National Championships in 2005 and 2008. Maryland has outscored their opponents 28-8 and should prove a tough task for Lehigh. If the Mountain Hawks upset the mighty Terrapins, it will probably be on the strength of their defense.
Lehigh has surrendered only nine goals in ten games, but they’ve only scored nine goals themselves in that span. Joe Puleo (4 g, 0 a) and Austin Decker (2 g, 0 a) lead the way on an offense that has struggled to find the net. This is a rare non-conference road game for Maryland, but that will matter little as the talented Terps take this one easily.
#1 Akron (9-0-1) at #18 Penn State (8-3-0), Wednesday, October 13 at 7:00 pm
For those who aren’t too familiar with college soccer, the Akron Zips might be a surprise as the #1 ranked team in the nation. But make no mistake about it, coach Caleb Porter’s squad is a powerhouse. The Zips have posted a 94-13-13 record since 2005 and hasn’t lost a game in nearly two seasons (their penalty kick loss in last year’s National Championship is considered a tie statistically). Akron returns eight starters from last year’s 23-1-1 squad, including preseason All-Americans Anthony Ampaipitakwong (2 g, 2 a), Darlington Nagbe (3 g, 5 a), Kofi Sarkodie (4 g, 2 a), and Zarek Valentin. The good news for Penn State fans is that Ampaipitakwong missed the Zips’ last game and it remains to be seen if he’ll be ready for Wednesday’s match. But even without him, Akron has tons of talent, including Darren Mattocks (7 g, 2) and Michael Nanchoff (2 g, 5 a), and has been impressive yet again this season, outscoring their foes 26-2.
The Nittany Lions enter Wednesday’s clash with a two-game winning streak, including Sunday’s 2-1 win over last week’s #18 Michigan State. Penn State is explosive offensively (27 goals scored) but struggles mightily on defense (14 goals conceded). First year head coach Bob Warming has turned to redshirt freshman Brendan Birmingham after Warren Gross struggled in goal, but the Penn State backs remain disorganized and easily exposed. The Nittany Lions do feature two of the top scorers in the nation, sensational striker Corey Hertzog (11 g, 4 a) and midfield setup man Matheus Braga (3 g, 11 a), while Mackenzie Arment (2 g, 6 a) and Drew Cost (2 g, 4a) have performed well in the midfield. But until the Nittany Lions’ porous backline pulls it together, this team won’t be title contenders. The good news is that Penn State has not been shut out in 2010 but they haven’t faced a defense like Akron’s yet either. In addition, Cost and Andres Casais missed their last match and their status for Wednesday remains uncertain.
Penn State has the talent, but can they put it all together? The Nittany Lions often play to the ability of their opponents, so expect a great performance before a rowdy home crowd. Still, managing a tie against Akron would be a pretty big deal.
Throw-Ins:
• The Harrisburg City Islanders recently announced their move to USL PRO for the 2011 season. The City Islanders previously played in the USL-2, the third tier of professional soccer in the United States, but the United Soccer Leagues have condensed the USL-1 and USL-2 into one professional division. This isn’t really a move up for Harrisburg because the USL PRO will retain third division status after the U.S. Soccer Federation instituted new rules governing the second division. Harrisburg joins their USL-2 rivals the Richmond Kickers, Charleston Battery, and Charlotte Eagles in the reconfigured league, while new foes will include the Dayton Dutch Lions, Antigua Barracuda FC, and Puerto Rican clubs Sevilla FC Juncos and River Plate. A Caribbean division will be one of several within USL PRO, expect Harrisburg to appear in a northeast alignment to help defray travel costs. More teams will be joining USL PRO in the coming months.
• Former City Islander Sheanon Williams has become the starting right back for the Philadelphia Union, a tremendous accomplishment for someone who donned a Harrisburg jersey just two months ago. While Williams has started Philadelphia’s past six matches, former City Islander J.T. Noone has not yet appeared for the Union.
• Speaking of the Union, their home stadium, PPL Park in Chester, will host the United States national team on Tuesday night as they play Colombia in an exhibition match. Bob Bradley’s squad will not include Landon Donovan, but World Cup stars Clint Dempsey and Jozy Altidore should play. The U.S. tied Poland 2-2 in Chicago this weekend, with Altidore and Oguchi Onyewu tallying goals.
Thanks for coming and suckling Daddy's Sugar Ball...
#4 Maryland (7-2-1) at Lehigh (4-4-2), Tuesday, October 12 at 7:00 pm
Maryland rolls into the Lehigh Valley on a three-match unbeaten run that includes victories over #9 Duke, #2 UConn, and a 7-0 pasting of Virginia Tech. That’s right, the Terps scored a touchdown against the Hokies! Loaded offensively, Maryland is led by Matt Kassel (5 g, 5 a), Jason Herrick (5 g, 1 a), Patrick Mullins (4 g, 2 a), and Casey Townsend (4 g, 0 a). Head coach Sasho Cirovski has built a perennial contender at College Park, having led the Terps to National Championships in 2005 and 2008. Maryland has outscored their opponents 28-8 and should prove a tough task for Lehigh. If the Mountain Hawks upset the mighty Terrapins, it will probably be on the strength of their defense.
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#1 Akron (9-0-1) at #18 Penn State (8-3-0), Wednesday, October 13 at 7:00 pm
For those who aren’t too familiar with college soccer, the Akron Zips might be a surprise as the #1 ranked team in the nation. But make no mistake about it, coach Caleb Porter’s squad is a powerhouse. The Zips have posted a 94-13-13 record since 2005 and hasn’t lost a game in nearly two seasons (their penalty kick loss in last year’s National Championship is considered a tie statistically). Akron returns eight starters from last year’s 23-1-1 squad, including preseason All-Americans Anthony Ampaipitakwong (2 g, 2 a), Darlington Nagbe (3 g, 5 a), Kofi Sarkodie (4 g, 2 a), and Zarek Valentin. The good news for Penn State fans is that Ampaipitakwong missed the Zips’ last game and it remains to be seen if he’ll be ready for Wednesday’s match. But even without him, Akron has tons of talent, including Darren Mattocks (7 g, 2) and Michael Nanchoff (2 g, 5 a), and has been impressive yet again this season, outscoring their foes 26-2.
The Nittany Lions enter Wednesday’s clash with a two-game winning streak, including Sunday’s 2-1 win over last week’s #18 Michigan State. Penn State is explosive offensively (27 goals scored) but struggles mightily on defense (14 goals conceded). First year head coach Bob Warming has turned to redshirt freshman Brendan Birmingham after Warren Gross struggled in goal, but the Penn State backs remain disorganized and easily exposed. The Nittany Lions do feature two of the top scorers in the nation, sensational striker Corey Hertzog (11 g, 4 a) and midfield setup man Matheus Braga (3 g, 11 a), while Mackenzie Arment (2 g, 6 a) and Drew Cost (2 g, 4a) have performed well in the midfield. But until the Nittany Lions’ porous backline pulls it together, this team won’t be title contenders. The good news is that Penn State has not been shut out in 2010 but they haven’t faced a defense like Akron’s yet either. In addition, Cost and Andres Casais missed their last match and their status for Wednesday remains uncertain.
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Throw-Ins:
• The Harrisburg City Islanders recently announced their move to USL PRO for the 2011 season. The City Islanders previously played in the USL-2, the third tier of professional soccer in the United States, but the United Soccer Leagues have condensed the USL-1 and USL-2 into one professional division. This isn’t really a move up for Harrisburg because the USL PRO will retain third division status after the U.S. Soccer Federation instituted new rules governing the second division. Harrisburg joins their USL-2 rivals the Richmond Kickers, Charleston Battery, and Charlotte Eagles in the reconfigured league, while new foes will include the Dayton Dutch Lions, Antigua Barracuda FC, and Puerto Rican clubs Sevilla FC Juncos and River Plate. A Caribbean division will be one of several within USL PRO, expect Harrisburg to appear in a northeast alignment to help defray travel costs. More teams will be joining USL PRO in the coming months.
• Former City Islander Sheanon Williams has become the starting right back for the Philadelphia Union, a tremendous accomplishment for someone who donned a Harrisburg jersey just two months ago. While Williams has started Philadelphia’s past six matches, former City Islander J.T. Noone has not yet appeared for the Union.
• Speaking of the Union, their home stadium, PPL Park in Chester, will host the United States national team on Tuesday night as they play Colombia in an exhibition match. Bob Bradley’s squad will not include Landon Donovan, but World Cup stars Clint Dempsey and Jozy Altidore should play. The U.S. tied Poland 2-2 in Chicago this weekend, with Altidore and Oguchi Onyewu tallying goals.
Thanks for coming and suckling Daddy's Sugar Ball...
Posted by Soccer Nobody at 10/12/2010 9:00 AM 
Categories: Confessions of a Soccer Nobody
Tags: Penn State Drew Cost Darren Mattocks Casey Townsend Brendan Birmingham Patrick Mullins Joe Puleo Harrisburg City Islanders Lehigh Matt Kassel Austin Decker Michael Nanchoff Kofi Sarkodie USL PRO Mackenzie Arment Jason Herrick Bob Warming Philadelphia Union Caleb Porter J.T. Noone PPL Park Anthony Ampaipitakwong Zarek Valentin Corey Hertzog Sasho Cirovski Bob Bradley Sheanon Williams Darlington Nagbe USMNT Akron Matheus Braga Maryland
Categories: Confessions of a Soccer Nobody
Tags: Penn State Drew Cost Darren Mattocks Casey Townsend Brendan Birmingham Patrick Mullins Joe Puleo Harrisburg City Islanders Lehigh Matt Kassel Austin Decker Michael Nanchoff Kofi Sarkodie USL PRO Mackenzie Arment Jason Herrick Bob Warming Philadelphia Union Caleb Porter J.T. Noone PPL Park Anthony Ampaipitakwong Zarek Valentin Corey Hertzog Sasho Cirovski Bob Bradley Sheanon Williams Darlington Nagbe USMNT Akron Matheus Braga Maryland
Correction: Lehigh will be charging a $5 admission for adults for tonight's game. Lehigh students and faculty will be free.
Akron's Ampaipitakwong supposedly has been cleared to play against Penn State, but no word has been issued on Cost and Casais of the Nittany Lions.
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