EasyG

I think the ECNL would like to replace the clubs. But there's at least one more round of DA announcements and they're likely looking at the same dance partners. Also a possibility that the ECNL has to deal with a few more defections. The DA hasn't made an announcement on the final size of the DA program but I think a program similar to the boys is a pretty safe assumption.

Several days ago US Soccer announced an additional 28 clubs to the DA program ... see link. U.S. Soccer Announces 28 Additional Clubs to Be Included in Girls’ Development Academy - U.S. Soccer If I'm not mistaken, several were ECNL teams and/or aligning themselves with the ECNL path. Seems OE is in a tough position and likely in a mild state of panic. IMO, there position statement doesn't seem to align with their past positions and actions.

Yes ... but I don't think its a "monumental" game changer ... especially in the short run. If the DA pulls 40 quality HS aged varsity players from the "Tri-State Region," the level of play is affected. But keep in mind the pool of kids includes those already playing club year round, and that 40 kids is a pretty small percentage of the entire "Tri-State Region" player pool. Its also likely the pool of players extends to Lexington, Louisville, Indy, Columbus, etc. More importantly, I don't think it reduces the HS soccer experience for the rest of the players. Arguably it opens some opportunities for others to continue enjoying the soccer experience. Could individual teams be impacted more because they lose a higher proportion of their top players? Absolutely. But good soccer programs develop and attract others to fill those spots. Something that could unravel my theory in the long run, is if "year round" club soccer gains additional momentum from the success of the DA ... and there's a trickle down affect to the other club levels. So maybe we'll have to dig up this thread in about 5 years and see where things landed.

Agree with LB ... very entertaining game. Scott is a pretty tough defensive assignment ... kid can get to the lane. I liked Conner's style of play ... lot's of movement off the ball, attack the lane, and get pretty good looks without having a lot of size. They also handled the press pretty well. Shout out to Padgett ... always enjoy watching smart players get the most out of their abilities. Weyer did some damage posting up and getting to the rim, Breds made a few more plays down the stretch, and buried enough free throws to hang on.

Ally Johnson starts the first 10 minutes of the game on fire ... four threes I believe. Tigers were very patient with ball early and got good looks against the zone. Breds weather the hot shooting, switch to man, and make an adjustment to hedge and jump the high screens more aggressively. Nice job defensively the rest of the game against Johnson and the rest of the Tigers. Tigers struggled with Ms Rice down low. They worked hard to gain position and take charges but Ajia did a nice job controlling her post moves and scoring from deep in the lane. Davenport with a smooth 22 ... nice standing O when she checked out. Tigers play hard ... Todd coaches hard. Kids should be proud when they bring that kind of effort. Stoll and Breds staff do a great job. I've got a lot of respect for Stoll's game planning, adjustments, and sideline demeanor.

Missed that part ... thought it was a more general reference to the "Bank Vault" ... won't be the last time something gets past me.

How much impact will the Vault have on the shooting percentages? Both teams have to deal with it ... but does it have a bigger impact on the hot 3-pt shooting Breds? I don't have the stats, but memory is telling me shooting percentages seem a little lower when the HS teams take to the large court and open areas behind the baskets.

NCC wins 1-0

Want to point out a non-soccer observation from Monday's game. It was NCC's Senior Night ... moved from Saturday's rain out. Kick off was 4:30, so they held the Senior intro's with their parents, etc., after the girl's game and before the start of the boy's game. The vast majority of the ND parents and players hung around to honor the NCC seniors. Very classy. With the time it took to set things up, get organized, etc. it would have been very easy for the ND supporters to slip out and head home. Most didn't. Thank you.

Not sure about other schools but no tri-matches listed on the schedule for the Lady Breds this year...8 game schedule.

Likely not the norm for teams playing at fields without lights. Lack of daylight prevents the triple headers and the Frosh games are played on different day and/or different field.

I think that chant is reserved for my alma matter ... St. Henry!

Watched three halfs at BOK tonight. Might be coincidence but nobody shot well on the "open/bleacher" end of the floor. Basket to the right if you're sitting on the bench. All teams shot well at the other end.

Interesting article by Tom Goldman: Young Athletes Risk Back Injury By Playing Too Much : Shots - Health News : NPR There were a couple of recommendations offered by Dr. Jayanthi that seemed like reasonable "rules of thumb" regarding participation levels: 1. "Young athletes can reduce the risk of back injuries by not spending more hours a week than their age playing sports, Jayanthi says. They also should not spend more than twice as much time playing organized sports as they spend in gym class and unorganized play." 2. "Jayanthi also recommends something that many young athletes and parents would find inconceivable – don't specialize in one sport before late adolescence."

I'd guess closer to $6k (1,000 fans X $6/ticket) in ticket sales and $1k in concessions.

Couple other thoughts on the night: New floor, new stands, etc. look great. I like the stained floor inside the three point line. Seither Center looking sharp. Kudos to those responsible for making that happen. But players beware of the painted portion of the floor around mid court. Pretty slick for some reason. I'd assume the paint would be under the floor finish but several players from both teams fell victim to the newly painted mid court area. I watched all three games last night and at least two kids during each game slipped on that area when trying to make a cut or change directions. Great crowd on hand to watch the game. Numbers might have been even better if Breds boy's weren't battling the Cooper Jaguars. Brossart student section was full and having fun. Breds Frosh and JV also won in very competitive games.

Comfortable lead for most of the game. Stangs made a nice run to cut it to 6 but Breds had a three point play, a couple stops pushed lead back to 10. Ware had nice game ... really solid defensive effort. Kiernan scoreless in first half and then had a very solid second half. Watching her and Futscher compete was fun to watch. Each had good post moves and several defensive stops. Mays shot well from behind the arc. Schultz was key to the late run ... she had several nice post moves and drives to the basket. She also guarded Kiernan for most of the game.

Couldn't disagree more with the first bolded and the second bolded admits that the AD got skipped in this process. The criticism of Steve doesn't appear warranted. At a minimum, it seems he needed to be given the opportunity to resolve the issue before he should take the heat for the outcome.

Coach and kids seem to be on the same page early in the year. Sat behind the NCC bench last night ... a couple times players on the court communicated with coaches on what they saw and Dawn showed support by calling sets that fit their observations. Maybe that's easier to do when your team jumps out to a big lead but I like the chemistry between good coach and high BB IQ out on the floor.

Maybe a little Loyola Marymount ... run even on made baskets. I played on a team that was outmatched in the paint (tallest guy was 6-0) and we ran every chance we got. We scored a lot ... and gave up a lot too. But it was fun and we beat teams that we could never have beaten in half court sets. Fans had fun with it although it almost put a few oldtimers in the grave. I can picture a couple of those Bird wide receivers streaking down the sideline or following up the fast break and pulling up for threes.

Congrats JM! NKU getting a quality young man and athlete. He gets it honestly ... Griffith family is top shelf.

Witnessed a coach address a boisterous parent one time using the following technique ... he sent the athlete/daughter into the stands with the following message: " Coach said you have a lot to say to us and the referee ... so I have sit with you for the rest of the half so I can accurately relay the message. That way you won't have to yell it anymore." Parent was thoroughly embarassed and a little upset his daughter was missing playing time. Witnessed a second one during a summer league b-ball game. After 5-10 minutes of a fan yelling in the stands, the ref turned to the lady and handed her his whistle and sat down. His partner played along and made the lady come onto the floor to ref. The minute she stepped on the floor the crowd joined in and started booing. Needless to say she was thoroughly embarassed. Not a peep the rest of the season. Unfortunately it seems that some have to be thoroughly embarassed before they change their behavior. Ironic thing is they are usually embarassing themselves and those sitting around them when they are yelling in the first place ... they just don't realize it. Having to manage spectators has to be one the most difficult parts of any coach or administrator's job. Obviously the examples above might be tough to implement in a HS game environment but does anybody have any other creative ways to help coaches/administrators manage the stands?

I highly respect the approach. May be boring for some but refreshing to me. Strong sign of solidarity.

I understand most of the positions you've taken in this thread and agree with some of them, but I'm confused on your position related to the bold in the above post. It would seem both the All A tournaments and State Football championships "only allow certain schools". Both formats use the size of the school as the basis for inclusion. It's reasonable to consider each football Class as having its own tournament. Seems to me the accomplishment of winning one of the All A tournaments is comparable to winning a theoretical combined State Football championship made up of Classes A, AA, AAA, and AAAA. Approximately the same number of teams are involed in the discussion. I realize they're different sports, but as an athletic event made up of high schools in the same state ... I think they warrant some level of comparison. If that logic holds, then I also think its reasonable to have an opinion that winning an All A tournament is a better accomplishiment than winning a State Football Championship. Only reason I can come up with to think otherwise is that the person holding the opinion simply likes football better than the other sports.

Tooooooo many Classes. Six state champs generated from 30 - 40 teams per class is tough for me to support. Heck, the All "A" Tournaments invite over 100 teams. Relatively speaking, winning those tournaments is a better accomplishment than the current State Football Championships ... it shouldn't be that way.