Pilots vs. UNC

Pilots up 1-0 at the half!

Ellen Parker's goal in the 5th minute is the difference... Let's hold on for another 45 minutes to get the W!.

PILOTS WIN! 1-0

Portland's first win over UNC in WSOC.

CONGRATS, PILOTS!!

WOOHOOO!!

the monkey is off the back.

great job!

I started counting down in 5 minute increments in the second half. The last time I did that was in Greensboro against the Tarheels. We didn't quite make it then, but we did today. Great team defense!

It really was something to behold, UNC shuttling in players on a regular basis and the Pilots stifling them all.

Some other points to consider when you look at what the defense did:

No Taylor Brooke (no Sippel either, who was dressed but not wearing boots).

Kendall looked like she was never gone.

Coolest of all: Haylee DeGrood went the full 90 at right back against North Carolina in her first college game. Amazing.

Not only did Haylee play the full 90 minutes, but she looked like she belonged out there, a very impressive debut.

A_Fan wrote:Not only did Haylee play the full 90 minutes, but she looked like she belonged out there, a very impressive debut.

The outside backs had the wings locked down tonight. If this season is going to be about the team playing together, we're off to a good start.

A tip of the “well done” cap to UNC goalkeeper Adelaide Gay. Although the Tar Heels outshot UP by something like 20-7, the shots on goal we very even, and UP could have easily been up by three goals if Gay hadn't made such nice, quick-reaction, saves. My first thought when I saw her was, "she's too small," but man, was she quick!

Nice to chat with Sophie and Christine.....still just kids, despite their maturity since UP. (Saw Geez taking their pictures, hope he'll post them).

I knew UNC had won 20 National Titles, but I thought for sure UP had beaten them at least once in history. Not so, as it turns out.......and I owe a beer to "Mrs Dipper" for losing yet another bet.

Our record was 0-7-1 before tonight....but not anymore!

I thought the whole back four was terrific.

I expected it from Kendall. But DeGrood was amazing in her college debut. The two center backs were also very good, and both worked together very well. Great understanding from all of them.

Also Kudos to the whole team for playing the short passing game. Garrett was putting a lot of emphasis on trusting each other in the practices.

And the very last thing they worked on in Yesterday's practice was set piece corners and free kicks. Garrett saw something in how UNC defends them, and he was going through with the team how to attack it.

I thought the corners and fee kicks from the side were all very dangerous.

Geezaldinho wrote:I thought the whole back four was terrific.

Also Kudos to the whole team for playing the short passing game.

Especially in the second half. It took them a half of football to settle-in, but settle-in they did; looking very comfortable and trusting in their teammates at critical junctures.

It's only one game, but a definite improvement over last year.

Keep the pedal down; no let-up vs. OSU!

So I was looking over the rosters in my program. We've talked about how the big schools build their squads but looking at it really drives some things home.

The Heels have 33 total players, with 11 true freshmen. No problems with scrimmaging in training, then. And there's FIVE GKs! Seriously! What do you do with five keepers? I mean, they're collecting players like a Premier League club but at least over there you can loan them to lower level clubs so they can see some time on the pitch. The whole thing just seems a little insane to me.

Coolest of all: Haylee DeGrood went the full 90 at right back against North Carolina in her first college game. Amazing.

Yep, I agree. The freshmen did a great job! They're an impressive group. They all played with so much maturity. Wow! A special thumbs up to Noelle La Prevotte too! I thought she displayed some excellent dribbling skills. A couple of moves she made to get around Tarheel defenders was shear brilliance. She's gonna be fun to watch! I have not seen a player with that kind of ball-at-the-feet skill since Angie Wuznok.

GO PILOTS!!!

Hooray for the players for a great team win. The game also must be very satisfying for Garrett.

And, a win against UNC might help a little with recruiting. With Notre Dame coming up in a couple of weeks, wouldn't it be great to win that one too?

Oops, my old friend "thinking ahead." One game at a time. On to Oregon State on Monday, which beat UAB today 1-0.

Some Kudos to those guys doing the villa Drum squad imitation. I assume there were some fill-ins there as well.

VillaDrumSquad (@VillaDrumSquad)
8/17/12 10:57 PM
Direct quote from a UNC coach walking out of the stadium at halftime: "does the crowd do this every game?"

You guys earned that

And that, my friends, is why you play the games.

If we're honest, none of us gave the Pilots much chance against UNC going into the game. Pilots start with a freshman at right d, and with Sarah Bridges making her regular season debut at the heart of the d. Pinch a goal after five minutes and hang on by their fingernails through the rest of the first half. UNC has most of the possession in that half, Pilots passes are going astray, Parker clears one off the line, UNC players have time on the ball and lots of room to play.

Second half it's a different story. Pilots step it up a notch, which is all the more remarkable because they do not have many subs in the sweltering heat. They outplayed NC in the final 45 minutes. It was closer to 3-0 than it was to 1-1. One ball from Frisbie went across the face of the goal with Parker and Capelle just inches away from a tap in. Double dip after another set piece causes chaos in the six yard box, two Pilots forced saves from the otherwise dodgy keeper and the bar was in there somewhere to save NC.

A great team performance all around. Kudos to Garrett for setting them up to win. Dees looks tough at the back. One superb moment in the first half when she came strong for the ball and thumped a UNC attacker to the ground. DeGrood was remarkably poised in her debut, McKluskie played with the rampant vigor we expect from that clan. Bridges had her best game as a Pilot, Johnson is back - in presence and capability. Garrett set them up as 4-3-3 so Kurle played at the back of a midfield triangle and looked strong. Parker and Cruz were in front of her and both covered lots of ground and were on the ball often. Parker scored the goal and cleared it off the line. I think this could be the year that we see her shine; good skills on the ball and growing in confidence. LaPrevotte came on for Cruz in both halves and showed good energy and some nice touches. Front three was Frisbie and Camelli outside and Capelle up the middle. Frisbie ran and ran last night - she was gassed by the end of the game. Capelle is one of those college players where you can see them get better each season, she has enormous amounts of energy and there's always the possibility of chance if she's in the box. Jeter came on late in the second half and showed some good skill on the ball and a nice turn of pace. Given that she's 6' tall those are both nice to see.

I went to Merlo last night with low expectations for this season. 90 minutes of well organized, confident and determined football later my sense of this year is much more open to the possibility of success.

Bravo ladies!

Last time I looked NC had 18 shots, perhaps 14 of which were either five feet or more over the bar, at least two feet wide of a post, or right at Erin (though credit her with some good saves too). Ellen's clear off the line was the scariest moment.
Who was NC's number 6? The program did not list her (at least not with that number). She looked great on the field, but most of her shots were about as wild as Shaq's free throws.

UNC's number six was freshman Summer Green, who was originally number 5 in my roster list, but now is using (according to the Goheels website) number six...which originally belonged to Lindsey Horan who is now in Europe.

I pretty much agree with all that has been written thus far about the game, but my biggest praise for the Pilots is for their poise and composure against a very brutal team...one that seems to like to push our players with their hands throughout the game. I thought that wasn't allowed, but the ref must not agree with that.

The UNC version of the game is at:
http://www.goheels.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3350&ATCLID=205612765

Geezaldinho wrote:Some Kudos to those guys doing the villa Drum squad imitation. I assume there were some fill-ins there as well.

VillaDrumSquad (@VillaDrumSquad)
8/17/12 10:57 PM
Direct quote from a UNC coach walking out of the stadium at halftime: "does the crowd do this every game?"

You guys earned that

One of the fill-ins told me that there was an alumni event earlier in the day and the Villa alumni were told in advance that the drum squad would be short at game time, so they brought their drums and went to a secluded site in Forest Park to rehearse together before the game. All of the drummers, I was told, were either current Villans, or Villan alumni.

Way to rep the Villa.

Tried to watch the replay on the UP website, was able to see up to the 31st minute or so when it started buffering and wouldn't play further. Anyone else have this problem? At least I got to see the goal. The game doesn't start until several minutes into the video.

Same thing happened to me whether I tried it on the iPad or desktop.

It cut out right after Frisbie went down and was tended to.

Yup, that's when it quit for me too. Hopefully they will get the glitch fixed before they yank the video off the site.

One game doesn't make a season (think back to last year's opening win against high-ranked Florida State) but Friday felt GREAT! What a gutsy display of defense and dangerous counterattacks by the Pilots. Really, so many players have matured since the hard times last fall. Lots to smile about. Plenty of former players in the stands in addition to the Canadian bronze medalists -- Michelle O., Kassie and who knows who else.

I agree totally about our new numbers 9 and 18, really a great start for those frosh and hints of much more to come. The Pilots took everything that UNC dished out in a brutally physical game in high heat, and never wilted. Fitness is not a problem.

Even those with rose-colored glasses can't overlook the fact that UNC had several near-goals, and that the Pilots short passing game needs more practice in terms of spacing and decision-making. No one would fault the effort, hustle, fighting spirit or stamina of the Pilots. This was a great win against a powerhouse team. LOVE IT!

How many folks are on the UNC team, anyway?

Do they really need numbers in the 90's?