SCU @ Pilots - 11/02/2008

Last home match of regular season. Dangerous rival that has struggled this season in the Santa Clara Broncos. Never a team to take lightly!

It's after 1:30pm now and the match has begun!

GOAL!!! PILOTS 1 - 0, 13 minutes into match.

Tsao great move into the box, 1v1 with the GK, passes off to Schmidt for the solid finish into the net!

GOAL #2!!!!! PILOTS 2 - 0.

About 18th minute in, Tsao leading Megan Rapinoe into the box and Megan strikes!

FANatic, thanks for the updates! It sure helps to have a FAN such as you!!

HALFTIME SCORE: Pilots 2 - Broncos 0.

mikemac65 - Thanks fellow Pilots' fan. I don't have much goin' today, so I thought I'd just try to update Pilot Nation a little. It's very slow on here because most fans are either at the game or watching it on ESPNU. I don't get that channel, so I'm just messin' around in between watching Bonanza.

Go Pilots!

GOAL #3!!! PILOTS 3 - 0!!!

Michelle Enyeart wonderful run up through the defense, past the keeper and a relatively easy finish for the GOAL! Assist Michelle Olivier. 75th minute.

Plenty of great opportunities to score for the Pilots in the 2nd half. SCU keeper Bianca Henninger has been terrific in goal with several great saves.

GOAL #4!!! PILOTS 4 - 0!!! 84TH MINUTE.

Beautiful (Can't wait to see the video replay) Header Goal by Sophie Schmidt! 2nd goal in the match. 3rd Assist today for Jessica Tsao on her birthday!

The penalty kick call was totally bogus. The keeper came out for the ball, Sophie jumped over her, and the ref whistled to the spot. I wonder if Megan kicked it up the middle on purpose for the sake of justice.

Our Jessica really let her star shine today. 3 assists what great assists they were. She was making runs up the field all day long exploiting SCU's 3 back line. Sophie on her first goal was her usual self being positioned perfectly to bury the back door cross from Jessica who dribbled so fast around her defender that Michelle O. got a part of the assist after sending it to Jessica breaking wide. Sophie's second goal came of a perfect centering ball from Jessica off the goaline right to a charging Sophie for the header past the keeper.

Megan's goal was vintage Megan R. , one timing the cross over the diving SCU keeper, also assisted by Jessica, was one for the alltime highlight reel. Cat Whitehill commented that it was a world class strike and one the best goals she has seen in a long time.

Michelle Enyeart's goal really took the SCU keeper to school who had a good game over all. She showed the speed and finishing that we will be missing come playoff time.

Defensive treat of the day was Korie Nicolson absolutely sticking a tackle on a breakaway in the middle of the field just outside the 18. If you wondered whether she can play there, question answered. Kelsey made a good save but was constantly unfavorablely compared to the SCU keeper by the ESPNU commentator who was keeping a running account of a stat I never head of before. Which keeper touched the ball more. Crazy. Cat Whitehill set her straight about what makes the better keeper.

Anyway Garrett let Racheal on the field for the last minute as a tribute which drove the fans nuts. Nice sign in the Purple section thanking the parents of the Rapinoes. In Megan's interview after the game she commented that she thought today was the Pilot's best game of the year specifically mentioning intensity level.

This bodes well to carry us into the San Diego game and the Playoffs.
Also noteworthy was an ESPNU special during the half with members of the Purple pride who got to make their case on national TV why we deserve a playoff at home. Probably the best statement made about the game all day.

Replay of the foul leading up to the PK shows the foul was unwarranted but I doubt Megan tried anything other than to get the ball in the back of the net. The announcers said there was some communicating between Jerry Smith and their keeper about which way Megan would go and they had scouted her right. It was a nice save by the keeper but the Pilots were relentess and made sure the call did not affect the outcome of the game.

This was a great effort by the Pilots. I worried that they might come out flat, but that didn't happen. They were fired up to play today against their perrenial rival. I especially liked the duel of the #3's. Megan R. vs. Jenny Laponte. They were attacking each other all day long all over the pitch.

Megan got the better of that exchange after Laponte took a clearance ball to the face. Non intentional by Megan but it really rocked Laponte. She should be watched for a concusion or broken jaw.

The 3 back lineup surprised me, because I don't think they have the personnel for it. You have to have really good defenders who are quick and good 1v1 , and you have to have mids who can support really well. Jerry may be having them play with the personnel he would like to have, not who's left.

Maybe he was thinking what is the point of switching the defensive system in the second to last game of the year. On a good note for SCU the announcer mentioned that Brandi Chastain, Jerry's wife completed the New York Marathon.

great game! the keeper for santa clara was a sub in the second half an she absolutely stonewalled the pilots on several occasions. the score could have very easily been 7-0 if not for her.

jessica was OUTSTNADING not just for her 3 assists, but there were a couple of times where the ball was bouncing around dangerously in our box an it was jess who cleared it. as great of a game she had offensively, she was equally as good defensively!!

best goals of the game were megan's second off of jess's cross. i hope there is video of it somewhere because it wasn't that simple or easy. an sophies header to close the scoring. difficult angle for both jess an sophie. i'm amazed it went in!!

KATU had highlights just now of Megan's goal and Sophie's second goal, with Jessica's assists. On the last goal the guy was raving about the assist, not the goal.

I imagine they will do it again at the 11:00 news.

The yellow cards were flying like autumn leaves today. Santa Clara looked desperate and overmatched but never gave up. Portland dished it right back at them. Beautiful goals, feisty play, a hat trick of assists fo Jessica, the last-minute tribute to Rachael ... can't top that. Smiles all around on the Pilots after this one.

On to San Diego!

They were raving about the assist in the ESPNU broadcast booth also. Christine Sinclair came in started doing the color with Cat Whithill and she commented that Jess was able to get her hips turned on the ball which allowed her to play it back right to Sophie's head. Evidently Christine has been coaching the team on this subject as the commentator called her a proud mother after she made the twisting the hips point.

Love those amazing Rapinoe sisters! Thanks to the whole Rapinoe family for all the wonderful seasons at Merlo.

Waiting for her daughters to join her and some adoring fans at the rail above the Pilots bench after the game, proud mom Denise Rapinoe commented, "It's gone by so fast!" Luckily it's not over quite yet.

Coach J Smith paid Megan the ulimate compliment and respect today by giving her a special Senior Day Gift....assigning
her a shadow!

I think a lot of us believes what Coach J Smith believes...as Megan goes...so goes the Pilots! But trying to stop Megan's influence on a game...is easier planned than executed. I have not seen a Pilot marked as closely as Megan was today since Christine. And...Megan was not even playing attacking-mid. She was on the left wing.

I must say...the other #3 (Jenny LaPonte)...a freshman...worked her butt off trying to stay in Megan'a back pocket! Kudos to her. It was a tough job. She was a very physical mark that did not back down whatsoever. It was hard not to keep my eyes off the pair as they engaged in their own personal battle. Wow!...I started to feel SORE myself by the half! \

I think Coach J Smith's plan may have backfired a bit though. Having Jenny in Megan's face all game only fired her up and kept her more actively involved in finding ways around the defensive tactics. Heck...she slipped away from Jenny for enough of a moment....and volleyed in a beautiful strike off a cross! And of course....putting a mark on Megan...only opens up other Pilots for more chances. Today...I think Sophie and Jessica were key players who also hurt the Broncos.

I for one am gonna miss watching Megan's intensity and will to win at Merlo!

GO PILOTS!!!

wow!! #3 who was in megan's back pocket for most of the game is only a frosh?!! santa clara will be back an the rivalry will contintue!!

Well, that was a great way to end the women's home season. All four goals were beauties. When Megan scored hers my reaction was "no way did she just do that." And Rachael is my choice for woman of the match.

I have no idea how you get a penalty or a card when you are on the ground holding the ball. Likewise, I don't know how you call Megan's handball deliberate. Of course it was handball, but on purpose? Both those cards were terrible.

When the Rapinoes came over after the match both were so grateful ohhh_yeahh would do that for them (he made the signs; we just held them). Rachael actually said, "This means the world to me."

Well, the Pilots mean the world to me. So, thank you.

ppt,
as for megan's card. i have to say that it was her third hand ball during the match an i thought it was dileberate. i actually saw a side of megan i have not seen previously. she is much more physical an much more the rascal i think any of us would have thought. that make me appreciate hr all the more!!