After the maybe top 5 teams (I'm being slightly generous), there is quite a drop in talent. I believe folks are really scrambling as they try to figure out rankings past #8. It will get better, but give other schools some time. Limited scholarships will step in as the big dogs fight for premium players.
Not to make excuses for USC, but it seems like very ambitious scheduling. They played four tough matches on the weekend (add in travel etc.) and the girls have to be a little tired playing this morning match.
Day of Duals, Atlanta, GA #2 USC, #10 South Carolina, #18 Georgia State Mar 12 10:00am : South Carolina - USC 3-2 (!) Mar 12 12:30pm : USC - Georgia State
Waves Invite, Malibu, CA TV: p1440 #3 Pepperdine, #7 Cal Poly, #13 LMU, #20 TCU Mar 13 11:00am : Pepperdine - TCU Mar 13 12:00pm : Cal Poly - LMU Mar 13 1:00am : Pepperdine - Cal Poly Mar 13 2:00am : LMU - TCU Mar 13 3:00am : Peppredine - LMU
I know it's their tournament but this scheduling is definitely favorable to Pepperdine. I know teams were scheduling (arguably unfairly) for themselves two years ago, but I thought there was a trend toward fairer scheduling this season?
Not to make excuses for USC, but it seems like very ambitious scheduling. They played four tough matches on the weekend (add in travel etc.) and the girls have to be a little tired playing this morning match.
Must have been wake-up at 3:00 am PST or earlier for USC's East coast breakfast. Bad timing.
Post by sunger4222 on Mar 12, 2019 14:46:12 GMT -5
No excuses, USC lost. I'm a Trojan fan, but I also love the sport, so congrats to the other SC. Very surprised that the USC 1's went down, but Hughes and Claes also dropped a contest to a virtual unknown; it happens. And it will happen again unless the 4's and 5's get involved. Drop back, regroup, and kill em' next time.
#1 UCLA head coach Stein Metzger: "Often times when you win, you don’t take a deep look into where we can get better and what we can improve on – that’s our challenge right now. (...) We’re just trying to overturn every possible stone to see what’s going to make us the strongest in the fours and fives, and I think that’s a strength of our team. We’re awfully hard to beat in the fours and fives."
UCLA senior Nicole McNamara said the pair – which is the shortest on court one in the nation – has been working on ways to beat taller opponents. "We’ve been focusing a lot on passing closer to the net and speeding up our offense just to throw off some of the bigger blockers that we face."
-----
Sarah Sponcil: "Me vs. Superman. Who you got?" - USAVBeach: "You. All day. 💪"
Day of Duals, Atlanta, GA #2 USC, #10 South Carolina, #18 Georgia State Mar 12 10:00am : South Carolina - USC 3-2 (!) Mar 12 12:30pm : USC - Georgia State 4-1
Waves Invite, Malibu, CA TV: p1440 #5 Pepperdine, #7 Cal Poly, #13 LMU, #20 TCU Mar 13 11:00am : Pepperdine - TCU 5-0 Mar 13 12:00pm : LMU - Cal Poly 4-1 Mar 13 1:00am : Pepperdine - Cal Poly 3-2 Mar 13 2:00am : TCU - LMU 3-2 Mar 13 3:00am : Peppredine - LMU 5-0
Last Edit: Mar 18, 2019 5:44:37 GMT -5 by sandball