As James Taylor wrote, “In my mind I'm goin' to Carolina”

This article contains my previous week’s travel to Washington DC, College Park, Maryland, Fairfax, Virginia for the DC Cup, North Carolina for the Duke tournament, Rock Hill, South Carolina for the Big South/Southern showdown and to Chapel Hill, North Carolina for an early preview to a possible College Cup match-up. Unfortunately, an early season battle between 2 Big South contenders, Liberty and High Point, was postponed because of Hurricane Lee. This article includes the following schools: Georgetown, Virginia Commonwealth, West Virginia, Maryland, American, George Washington, Howard, George Mason, North Carolina State, Southern Methodist, UCSB, Duke, Georgia Southern, Gardner-Webb, Wofford, Winthrop, Louisville and North Carolina.

Next week, I’m traveling to New England for the Dartmouth tournament.

Just a reminder, this year, I’m concentrating on just a few players at each game.

Washington, DC – In the first overtime, Virginia Commonwealth broke the scoreless draw to beat Georgetown 1-0. Either team could have won this game; neither team played to the level that I expected. The goal was scored by junior transfer (from Georgia Perimeter College) Juan Arbelaez in the 92nd minute.

 

F: Yoram Mwila, Jason Johnson

M: Joseph Haboush, Charlie Ahn

DM: Romena Bowie, Nate Shiffman

D: Juan Monge Solano, Garrett Harvey, Brad Seymour, Nick Rich

GK: Josh Pantazelos

F: Andy Reimer, Steve Neumann

M: Tom Skelly, Joey Dillon, Ian Christianson, John Snyder

D: Jimmy Nealis, Tommy Muller, Ben Slingerland, Ibu Otegbeye

GK: Tomas Gomez

 

Sophomore defensive midfielder Romena Bowie plays simply. He doesn’t try complicated actions preferring to take a direct approach. His passing and jumping is very good. Bowie is willing to allow the game to come to him rather than impressing his will on the game. I want money players to step up accept the responsibility and drive his team to win. In the 87th minute, he split 2 defenders with a one touch right-footed pass – beautiful. This is what I want to see more from Bowie. In the 52nd minute, he made a decisive one-touch pass but it was weighted too heavy.

Senior right back Nick Rich aggressively gets up the right side aiding in the attack with sizzling crosses into the box, but he needs to (or his team mates need to) connect better and convert these chances. In the 35th minute, he brought Steve Neumann with a tricky cut move. Rich needs to accelerate releasing his passes to prevent opponents from blocking his efforts. I like Rich’s tackling and grit on defense – nothing is going to be easy attacking on his side.

 

The key to the Georgetown season will again lie in the play of junior midfielder Ian Christianson. If he’s playing well, this bodes well for Georgetown. In this game, like Bowie, he didn’t raise his game sufficiently to impact the result. Christianson is a tall player with good vision and the ability to connect quickly. He doesn’t have any reluctance to be physical in the tackle. I like him and his subtle contribution. But, he’s going to play better.

In the 65th minute, he adroitly received the ball, pulling the ball behind before distributing it to Steve Neumann who wasted the effort with a weak shot. He shed Brad Seymour on a free kick in the 60th minute. 

 

Senior right back Ibu Otegbeye is a fast, small, thin player who likes to get up the line, but he didn’t control the ball acceptably in this manner. In the 75th minute, Otegbeye failed to close on the overlapping Juan Monge Solano permitting a cross to be go unchallenged. 

College Park, MD – Maryland continued their offensive fireworks beating West Virginia 3-1 on a game that was postponed because Hurricane Irene. West Virginia lost their self-discipline and subsequently had 2 men ejected.

 

F: Peabo Doue, Andy Bevin

M: Uwem Etuk, Shadow Sebele, Matt Drake, Travis Pittman

D: Francis Molasoko, Uzi Tayou, Eric Schoenle, Raymon Gaddis

GK: Pat Eavenson

F: Patrick Mullins, Casey Townsend

M: Sunny Jane, John Stertzer, Helge Leikvang, Karou Forbess

D: Tay Kemp, Alex Lee, London Woodberry, Widner Saint Cyr

GK: Will Swaim

 

Senior right back Raymon Gaddis was much better than his previous game against Virginia. He was moving smartly and passing accurately. Gaddis had one howler on a high ball that was deflected off his head out of bounds.

 

Freshman forward Andy Bevin continues to impress. He’s the real deal. In the 7th minute, he was able to hold off a Maryland defender and touch the ball in from close distance. The play began with Gaddis getting the ball forward to Uwem Etuk who put the ball in centrally to “Shadow” Sebele who made a fantastic pass getting the ball wide back to Etuk. Etuk called off Peabo Doue to allow the ball to go wide giving West Virginia more time and space. Etuk centered the ball to Bevin for the goal.

 

Bevins uses his body to shield defenders out of the passing lanes.

Junior midfielder Travis Pittman is a creative, hard player. In the 44th minute, he got low to dispossess Alex Lee before getting it wide to Bevin. Pittman drives his crosses and he is good passer. He can pass with accuracy with his first touch. He understands the game. Pittman has got taller and leaner – and most importantly more mature. He has satisfactory speed and quickness. I don’t expect that he’ll Generation Adidas, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he signs a DC United home grown contract – but I would expect after next year – not this one.

The senior Tayou brothers had nightmares after this match. Franck came off the bench and promptly earned a red card for a meaningless challenge on a high ball where he trundled into Maryland goalkeeper Will Swaim. My opinion the challenge warranted a yellow – not a red. Uzi earned a yellow card and surrendered a penalty kick with an incredulous hand ball – swatting the ball away like he was fending off a wasp.

 

Junior left back Taylor Kemp had a sensational match. He was very involved getting forward. His highlight in this match was a hooking 45 yard free kick that found junior midfielder John Stertzer’s head and he buried it. The free kick was on a string perfectly weighted, positioned and it would have been more difficult for Stertzer to miss the shot – but he buried it. Kemp is an above average height with a slim frame. He moves well with nice acceleration and I like the way that he reads the game. Unsurprisingly, given that Maryland trains players to play better than when they arrived. The left-footed back is an exceptional passer and has above average technical skills. I wouldn’t be surprised if he accepts a Generation Adidas contract after this season.

Stertzer is coming into his own this year after becoming an integral piece of Maryland’s attack last year. After the first 2 games, he has scored 3 goals. Prior to the header (described above), he buried the penalty kick in the 54th minute with a powerful strike in to the left side. Stertzer has a nose for the ball and he’s willing to go hard into 50/50 balls – though I recall when I first saw him playing at the Potomac Academy both he and Andy Reimers (Georgetown) played very hard. Stertzer has taken his game up a notch. If he can continue to be consistent, he could be a competent professional – however, I think he’ll play all 4 years at Maryland. I like his size/speed combination.

Fairfax, Virginia – American University held off cross-town rival George Washington 3-2 in the opening match of the 2011 DC Cup at George Mason University.

 

 

F: Seth Rudolph

M: Yoni Berhanu, Zach Abaie

DM: Joe Holleran, Bailey Hinners, Mattia Melillo

D: Mike Burke, Matthew Scott, Brice Carr, Jamie LaFleur

GK: Brendan Lafferty

F: Seth Goldman

M: Alassane Kane, Colin Seigfreid, Chris Kuramoto

DM: Marco Dej, Ryan Morales

D: Cristobal Soto, Alex Tilatti, Adem Gokturk, Jack Scott

GK: Matt Makowski

 

Senior midfielder Yoni Berhanu scored the first George Washington goal from a 46th minute penalty kick. Berhanu is a clever player employing slick tips and touches to get the ball wide to his teammates. He is a good athlete with above average technical skills. Berhanu runs off the ball much better with more thoughtful tactical decisions.

Berhanu is an active player who is essential for George Washington’s success. He is very quick on the ball.

Senior center back Brice Carr has a sharp soccer mind, but he lacks the speed that I’d like for a center back. I like his instincts shutting down the passing lanes and his ability to play 1v1. In the 25th minute, he was able to stop the athletic forward Alassane Kane. In the 82nd minute, Carr chose to challenge a ball 35 yards from his goal. He lost the battle for the air ball and Kane overlapped for a dangerous opportunity. This was a tactical mistake that Carr should have evaluated better. I like his raw tools.

Junior forward Seth Rudolph continues to shine with his quick feet. In the 80th minute, he took a Bailey Hinners pass, getting behind the defense and slotting the shot into the far post that was well placed.

 

In an interesting trend in college soccer, American University moved one of their better attacking options back to the wide defender position. Senior Jack Scott who came to American as a forward started as right back similar to George Mason’s Draymond Washington – but to the left back. It’s a smart move because Scott wasn’t a professional quality forward, but with his athletic ability, he has a chance at defender.

Scott has top-end speed and he is willing to get up the line to aid in the attack – and he’s a viable threat doing this. He needs to close faster – i.e., in the 85th minute, but I believe this was contributable to losing his legs. He had a sloppy pass a few plays later. He started the attack for the first goal in the 35th minute. 

Scott got the ball forward to sophomore Patrick Mehlert who crossed the ball to Alassane Kane who tapped in his first goal of 2 in this game. His second goal (and the game winner) was scored in the 73rd minute moments after trying to incite Carr – but who wasn’t suckered into the altercation. But, Kane got his revenge when he accepted the ball from sophomore Colin Seigfreid and buried it from the far post. 

Mark O’Day is actually not an Irish national and his name is really Marco Dej (but sounds like Mark O’Day phoenetically) and he’s German. The junior is a nifty player who deserves additional observation.

Fairfax, Virginia – Howard was humiliated losing 9 to 0 by George Mason. In a rare occasion, I left at half time because it was impossible to glean anything from this game due to the mismatch.

I do have to commend Howard that their charter bus is top notch.

 

F: Akinbola Richardson, Patrick Rose

M: Myles Jackson, Frederick Todd, Vincent Johnson, Austin O’Brien

D: Christopher Sutherland, Gary Clark, Nidjitade Badje, Jeremy Swann

GK: Eric Hamilton

F: Taylor Morgan

M: Sean O’Reilly, Verneri Valimaa, Leo Stolz, Timmy Mulgrew

DM: Julio Arjona

D: Draymond Washington, Paul Andrews, Hugh Roberts, Alex Herrera

GK: Dustin Butcher

 

I can’t understand why Howard can’t settle on their roster numbers until moments before the match begins. Why wasn’t Howard in white as the visiting team?

 

Given the competition, here are the goals in the first half.

In the 9th minute, talented freshman Verneri Valimaa freed junior Taylor Morgan behind the line. Morgan’s first touch was rough, but he was able to recover the ball and release a shot. The goal keeper blocked Morgan’s first shot, but was unable to stop the second shot for the first goal of the game.

In the 15th minute, Morgan took a pass from West Virginia University sophomore transfer Julio Arjona and Morgan took the open shot, but again the goal keeper Eric Hamilton was able to stop the initial shot, but Arjona was able to shoot the rebound but was blocked again by Hamilton but the third try was volleyed into the net by Arjona.

In the 22nd minute, Sean O’Reilly drove in a cross from the near sideline that fooled the Hamilton who had to dive back but could only tip it into his own goal. 

The fourth goal was scored by Timmy Mulgrew in the 31st minute. The play started with Leo Stolz crossing the ball into the box that Morgan flicked onward to Mulgrew on the far post. Mulgrew side volleyed the ball into the goal. 

The final goal of the half was scored by Morgan in the 37th minute. Again, Valimaa sliced the Howard defense finding Morgan in the box. A quick turn and hard shot ended the scoring in the first half.

Durham, NC – North Carolina State scored an overtime goal directly from a corner kick by Gbenga Makinde though freshman Ollie Kelly is asking to see the tape before relinquishing credit (note -Kelly was eventually awarded credit)! Southern Methodist had numerous credible opportunities to end this game early, but they didn’t convert any of their chances.

 

F: Arthur Ivo, Juan Castillo

M: Robbie Derschang, Zach Barnes, T. J. Nelson, Damian Rosales

D: Diogo de Almeida, Aaron Simmons, Adam Still, Ian Kalis

GK: Jaime Ibarra

F: Monbo Bokar

M: Nazmi Albadawi, Ollie Kelly, Matt Ingram

DM: Ryan Metts, Michael Osei

D: Gbenga Makinde, Moritz Steidten, Simon Cox, Justin Willis

GK: Fabian Otte

 

I was surprised with the seemingly lack of team fitness. For example, sophomore forward Juan Castillo called for a substitution in under 20 minutes. Really? Other players were cramping throughout the match.

Senior forward Arthur Ivo has a talented left foot that can be dangerous. He takes all the set pieces with quality efforts. He is of average size and his biggest detriment is that he lacks that final gear to create separation and/or maintain that separation. He drops underneath the target forward linking with the wide backs and the midfielders. He has quality ball skills and he understands the game well. Ivo drives his corner kicks. In the 29th minute, his free kick was struck too hard and wound up a goal kick.

Sophomore midfielder Zach Barnes has a sensational first touch and a marked determination buzzing around the field. He’s good on the ball. He beat sophomore Michael Osei who could do nothing but wave his hands with a fake shot and moving around him. In the 35th minute, Barnes made a pass to freshman Tyler Engel getting behind Gbenga Makinde forcing Makinde to foul and pick up a yellow card. In the 24th minute, he quickly turned with his first touch. Instantly his head was up looking for options. Very nice. His passing is very incisive and dangerous. Barnes had a quiet second half.

Senior center back Adam Still is a sturdy defender who lacks extraordinary athletic ability but overcomes this limitation with astute understanding and reading of the game. On deep plays to his far left (when he’s the last player), he cheats back to compensate for his mediocre speed. Early in the game, he was stopping attackers before they were able to turn or prepared. The speedy North Carolina State freshman forward Monbo Bokar caused Still problems with his speed. Still had difficulty marking him horizontally across the top of box. Additionally, Bokar was able to shield the much larger Still off the ball. Late in the second half and over-time, I grew to appreciate Still’s heart and his body positioning. Still stilled exerted to disrupt the North Carolina State at midfield.

Freshman center back Aaron Simmons is worth watching more closely.

 

Sophomore left back Gbenga Makinde is stronger than I recall him last year. He’s still thin and wiry, but he’s able to battle better in tight action. Makinde is a threat going forward and with his talented left foot drives accurate crosses into the box. Makinde is a competent defender who seems to be learning how to technically play defense rather than solely relying on his quickness. But, he has a way to go for the next level, but his speed is enticing.

Makinde can expose defenses dribbling, but he gets going too fast (at times) and then he telegraphs his passes. He’s a work-in-progress that can be very good with the proper training – I have faith in new coach Kelly Findley’s. At this point, I prefer Makinde to the prior NC State left back, Korede Aiyegbusi – now at Sporting KC.

Durham, NC – In a closely contested match, UCSB won 3-2 in overtime over host Duke. This was an entertaining well-played match by both teams.

 

F: Sam Garza, David Opoku, Dom Sarle

M: Nic Ryan, Luis Silva, Fifi Baiden

D: James Kiffe, Peter Schmetz, Tim Pontius, Mathew Glodack

GK: Andre Grandt

F: Nick Palodichuk, Christopher Tweed-Kent

M: Daniel Tweed-Kent, Jonathan Aguirre, Andrew Morales, Rob Dolot

D: Alex Sauciuc, Nat Eggleston, Andrew Wenger, Riley Wolfe 

GK: James Belshaw

 

Sophomore forward David Opoku is a mountain of a man with soft feet and exceptional speed. Opoku’s is a quick learner – he tried exposing Andrew Wenger with speed, but Wenger countered with outstanding body positioning in the 17th minute. However, when Opoku was matched against freshman Nat Eggleston, Opoku beat him with speed. Later in the half, Opoku used a tricky heel pass that created a shot for junior forward Sam Garza but the shot was off-target. Later, he took a pass from Garza and Opoku decided to get the ball wide – good decision. I really liked at the end of the first half, when Opoku received the ball in the box, bringing it down with a thigh trap demonstrating his confidence and skill. Opoku sprang sophomore Saint John’s transfer Dom Sarle for the winning goal in the 99th minute.

Opoku has the power and the skill to be a MLS forward. He still has to continue to develop, but I expect that he’ll a Generation Adidas candidate this year.

Garza scored the first goal off a mental error by freshman right back Riley Wolfe. On the play Wolfe saved a ball from going over the sideline but put the ball onto Garza’s foot. Garza scampered 40 yards before slotting the ball around the Duke goalkeeper in the 7th minute. This is a classic freshman mistake by Wolfe.

Garza is bigger and stronger when I last saw him playing for Denver. He is a strong runner. Garza earned the penalty kick on a trip in the box – which I thought was a little light for a penalty kick from my perspective. I like Garza’s left footed corner kicks that are both accurate and well paced.

Senior attacking midfielder Luis Silva is a very interesting player. He has exceptional technical skills converting harsh passes into well paced balls for his team mates. Silva hit the penalty kick into the upper 90 with confident power in the 80th minute. Because of Machael David’s 3 game suspension, Silva had much more defensive responsibility that David would normally handle. This was good to see Silva’s work rate. Additionally, Silva battled with Duke’s Jonathan Aguirre who has professional potential, too. Silva has quick feet dispossessing Rob Dolot in the 15th minute.

Silva picked up a silly yellow card for blocking a free kick in the 20th minute. On a Garza corner kick to Silva at the top of the box, Silva popped up the ball which negated his shot on his second touch. Silva has professional skills, but it will be difficult for him in MLS at attacking midfielder. I suspect that with the right team that he’ll be successful.

Tim Pontius should have been presented with a straight red card for a nasty studs up tackle on junior Ryan Brown in the second half.

 

Duke lost momentum when sophomore defensive midfielder Jonathan Aguirre left the game in the 25th minute. It was all UCSB from that point in the half. With Silva being freed from this harassment, he was able to more positively influence the game.

Aguirre was quicker to the ball with more urgency and desire to win the ball than Silva. In the 60th minute, Aguirre made a hard tackle on Silva, dispossessed Opoku and then his pass was poor. Aguirre did the hard work, but didn’t finish the play. I like his heart.

In the 77th minute, Aguirre got thumped from behind, because his team didn’t talk to him, but additionally, he was unaware of opponents behind him. After the goal, Aguirre moved to left back and Wenger moved up top.

Wenger scored the second goal less than 7 minutes after moving up top in the 87th minute. The play started with freshman Andrew Morales 50 yard free kick that goalkeeper Andre Grandt came out but didn’t punch cleanly clear. Freshman Nat Eggleston touched it to Wenger and he finished it from 6 yards.

Morales has a lot of energy and is very good on the ball. He’s worth a watch.

In the first minute, senior Christopher Tweed-Kent scampered around the left corner (where normally UCSB senior right back Peter McGlynn would patrol, but he was out with a minor ankle injury). Tweed-Kent drew the defense to him before crossing to the far post and freshman forward Nick Palodichuk finished from 10 yards. Palodichuk is better than when I saw him 2 weeks ago. He’s going to be a very good prospect in a few years.

Tweed-Kent was quick with a plethora of turns, frustrating the UCSB defense. This was the best that I’ve ever seen Tweed-Kent play. I’d like for Tweed-Kent to be more selfish, taking shots when given the opportunity, not necessarily playing the supportive role. Duke doesn’t have a killer scorer; Tweed-Kent may need to take this responsibility.

Tweed-Kent could have earned a penalty kick in the 96th minute from a trip in the box after a scintillating turn – but the foul wasn’t called.