UP v U-23 National Team at Merlo, 4/18, 7PM

I know this info has been out for a while, but I just got a special email offer from Ticketmaster... if you type in the code U23 when you buy tickets online, they are only $5. What a deal!

http://www.ticketmaster.com/promo/x2vlc5?dma_id=362

And the original release about this game:

http://www.portlandpilots.com/news/2009/3/6/WSOC_0306093557.aspx

Stonehouse wrote:I know this info has been out for a while, but I just got a special email offer from Ticketmaster... if you type in the code U23 when you buy tickets online, they are only $5. What a deal!

http://www.ticketmaster.com/promo/x2vlc5?dma_id=362

And the original release about this game:

http://www.portlandpilots.com/news/2009/3/6/WSOC_0306093557.aspx

Does that including their handling charges? They are $7 at the box office for General Admission. Got mine...

I paid $20.50 for two supposedly $5 tickets, thus the total fees ($10.50) were more than the tickets themselves. Since the $5 was cheap compared to the normal prices I went ahead with it, but I hope that UP does not continue to deal with Ticketmaster. The fees are an outrage. I'd much rather see money going to the UP than to an outside ticket agent.

Bah... didn't even check the fees. I just saw the email from Ticketmaster and posted it.

$#%#ing service charges... (grumble)...

:rant:I got an offer for one of those $5 ticket "deals" for some game a while ago. With the fees I would have saved about a dollar off the regular price. And just speaking generally, $2.50 to print my own tickets? It's my ink and paper I'm using. But they're such nice people they won't charge you extra to send them by standard mail..


Ticketba$tard sucks. I delete their e-mails on sight.

The U-23s look very different without their pro players, Pilot Players and those full team players who are age eligible but not participating.

GOALKEEPERS (3): Kristin Arnold (Texas A&M; Centennial, Colo.), Alyssa Naeher (Penn State; Seymour, Conn.), Kristin Olsen (USC; Orange, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (9): Lauren Barnes (UCLA; Upland, Calif.), Lauren Fowlkes (Notre Dame; Lee’s Summit, Mo.), Kimberly Germain (James Madison; McLean, Va.), Nikki Marshall (Colorado; Mead, Colo.), Lizzy Nichols (Harvard; Princeton, N.J.), Carly Peetz (Nebraska; Lincoln, Neb.), Kat Reynolds (Santa Clara; Medina, Wash.), Brittany Taylor (UConn; Campbell Hall, N.Y.), Brianne Young (Texas A&M; Castle Pines North, Colo.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Sinead Farrelly (Virginia; Havertown, Pa.), Ali Hawkins (UNC; Encinitas, Calif.), Kelly Isleib (Utah; Park City, Utah), Katie Oakes (California; West Hills, Calif.), Sophie Reiser (Columbia; Seattle, Wash.), Kylie Wright (UCLA; R. Santa Margarita, Calif.)
FORWARDS (6): Kiki Bosio (Santa Clara; Mission Viejo, Calif.), Melissa Henderson (Notre Dame; Garland, Texas), Alex Morgan (California; Diamond Bar, Calif.), Kelley O’Hara (Stanford; Fayetteville, Ga.), Christen Press (Stanford; PV Estates, Calif.), Katie Schoepfer (Penn State; Waterford, Conn.).

Kelsey and company get a chance to face Stanford forwards Christen Press and Kelley O'Hara again. Think it will be different this time around with Michelle Ellie and Keelin back to help?

Looking forward to seeing Alex Morgan (CAL)...who is a very dangerous striker. A lot has been said of her speed. Alex teamed with the Stanford forwards or Kiki Bosio (SCU..who's also very good) ...we'll have our hands full!

Yes...feels good to have Keelin and Ellie on our backline against these players. But add JTsao's experience as a member of the U-23 squad too. There are some nice matchups to watch for next week. At the same time, Michelle and Sophie should give their backline a lot to worry about....we should expect to see some intense battles.

GO PILTOTS!!!

Nice of you to list the U-23 squad, Auto Pilot. Plenty of talent to choose from there. I hope we get to see Sophie Reiser (Columbia; Seattle, Wash.) -- she made a big impact in the Ivy league.

What burns me about TicketMaster is the UNMITIGATED GALL of calling it a "convenience fee." Real freakin' convenient ... for them to rake in more $$$.

If we don't see her on Saturday, you could see her at Nike on Thursday or next year at the Husky Classic if you go see the Pilots in Seattle.

Sophie Reiser article

I gotta get my eyes checked. I keep seeing double.

Why oh why does this have to be at the same as the Blazers playoff opener? I'll be able to watch most of the first half of the Pilot's match before I am distracted by the NBA stat-tracker on my phone.

An unfortunate result: 3-2 for the U-23s. Our gals outshot them and arguably outplayed them. All three goals, I felt, were the result of defensive breakdowns. Michelle O. was injured in the first half and didn't play again. Our first goal was by Danielle F. in the last minute of the first half on a 1 v. 1 with the keeper (who was injured on the play), tying the score at one. In the second half Sophie scored on a p.k. tying it at two. But they scored again with about five minutes left. The offense looked good, the defense less so. Come on Cloee!

harryb wrote:An unfortunate result: 3-2 for the U-23s. Our gals outshot them and arguably outplayed them. All three goals, I felt, were the result of defensive breakdowns. The offense looked good, the defense less so.

That's exactly what I was thinking. The defense looked a little gassed at the end. I'd have to say, though, that the Pilots played a better match this spring than they did last spring against the U23s.

I thought the offensive end of things was midseason form. there's no question UP controlled the midfield . I think the defense faltered a bit after MO went out. Other than the Bosio slip-up, I thought even the defense was pretty solid. they were winning challenges.

I think that perhaps they shouldn't have pushed up quite as much when she left, the u23's had some speed merchants (OK, Alex Morgan) who got too much room in back of the defense to set up the two scores, Had the defense set up even a few yards closer to our goal, I don't know if that room would have been there either for her of for the players that ran onto the ball.

Still, I'm pretty happy with the effort. we took it to them, and it's exactly the way I want to see UP play next season. There aren't a lot of teams that have that kind of speed and ball handling skills. UP pressured from all over the field, and every college team has weaknesses somewhere. I would have been pretty unhappy if we went out and bunkered.

Spring teams are always short in some area, but this team played as well as any team since 2005. We probably have some more places we can try people, but the level of play was pretty high.

I'm pretty happy.

April isn't such a bad time to have the defense get a little bit exposed. There's plenty of time to improve...