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Glad to see the interest. I haven't heard much yet. With last season being cancelled, we're probably entering a season knowing as little about most teams, than we ever have before. Going to be hard to know what to expect.
I just hope that the players and programs are able to have full uninterrupted seasons. Soccer was one of the only sports to suffer a complete loss of all competition. Track has started last year and there were a couple of meets. And, baseball was able to resume and complete their season. Soccer took the worst of the Covid cancellations.
They deserve to have a full, fun season this year.
So, apparently (and here's a case where it went largely unknown on Varsity Bound) Columbus hung tough with CF for a 1-1 tie. They have at least one senior who was a significant contributor on the 2019 team (9 goals and 19 assists)word on the street is Waverly will be strong this year. Waterloo Columbus lost 9 seniors so they may be rebuilding. GCGR looks to be good. hard to gauge with no games last year. many teams will be rolling out new players that haven't started varsity yet.
I'm guessing the rosters may be on the schools. VB can only post what information they have.Seems like a lot of the same programs who were strong a couple years ago, will be really tough once again.
We'll get a lot more games this coming week to get an idea where things stand a bit better.
I agree that Varsity Bound has a lot of potential, but it isn't being utilized right now. And, if underutilized, will be a worse experience than what we had with QuikStats.
Can't even go to the 'standings' page now to get a list of all teams and their records.
The rosters still aren't right. Schedules aren't in there for everyone. Scrimmages are counted as official games.
They really need to clean it up, but I don't know how they do it at this point.
Hey Menace, welcome to the discussion - Good to get some extra 3A input as well!Hey all! I’ll be following as my son is a varsity striker for CR Jefferson. Assisted the City High equalizer for 1-1 in that game. Unfortunately Cedar Falls was 4-1, but should have (and I can’t stress that enough. Legit should have) been 3-2 with a wildly offside goal for CF’s first, and an uncalled tackle straight from behind by the last defender on a breakaway into the box. Too bad there was no 2020 season. Jefferson would have had a group of my son’s class of Freshmen and Seniors that would have absolutely been state qualifying contenders. They have so many quality sophomores starting. Definitely miss the defenders and their top defensive mid that were all Seniors.
Thanks!v Feel for your son. Sad. I think Jeff was every bit as good as Kennedy last night (and probably moreso) in a 2-1 loss. VERY dubious PK call was the difference. Jeff dominated possession, particularly in the second half after a 0-0 first half. Kennedy got a corner after being pinned back for about 15 minutes to start the second and capitalized, then the dubious PK, and finally Jeff was able to capitalize on one of their chances in the box. Their lack of height in the back means crosses and set pieces will be a problem. They had two cleared just off the line, including one straight to the keeper from wide open and five yards out, and another in the last seconds, a low hard shot that slipped under the goalkeeper in the wetness before he reached behind him as it was crossing the line. Should have been 1-1, and COULD have been 2-2 or 2-1 the other way.Hey Menace, welcome to the discussion - Good to get some extra 3A input as well!
I have a son who missed his Senior season last year, so, yes, really lost some big opportunities.
So, do you think Jeff is the top CRSD school this year?
Also, since you're closer to it, what do you think about Prairie's defeat of IC West? Is Prairie for real? What about Marshalltown, are they a contender again? Who's on your early 3A State qualifier list? Any surprise teams to watch?
True, and I don't believe the kid offside actually touched the ball, but obstructed the keeper. It was one of those arching free kicks into the box at a diagonal angle that no one touched but found its way inside the back post.Jeff looked really good last night, very fast and athletic. Kennedy had a goal called off because of offside on a free kick.
Bett @ PV - PV could run the table in the East.Thoughts? Any other match-ups you're watching?
City High vs Xavier appears to be postponed (COVID?). Having seen both in person, that would be a coin flip. City High looked better against Jeff than Xavier did, yet gave up the late equalizer. Xavier looked was absolutely dominated in possession for stretches, but capitalized on a slip by Jeff and survived some very close calls to win 1-0. Could see it go 1-1 or 1-0 either way.Big Matches tonight
Xavier at City, I give the edge to Xavier despite the cross class, but it's going to be hard fought
Williamsburg vs CPU - I should have had CPU in my others getting votes this week - A win tonight will ensure CPU is in the conversation - A loss by Williamsburg may push them out of the conversation
W'loo Columbus at Denver - A win by Columbus solidifies their place, a win by Denver keeps them in the hunt
St Alberts @ Treynor - One of these will rise and one will fall in what looks like a pretty even matchup going in.
West LIberty home with Assumption - West Liberty probably won't put up as many goals as they have been lately. It will be interesting to see what their defense has when facing what should be a good Assumption team. The comets first real test since Muscatine
Wash hosting Kennedy - Interesting cross town rivalry - not sure it means much from a statewide perspective - maybe it keeps one of them in the conversation
SEP @ Centennial - One of these could insert themselves into the conversation that's dominated by Waukee and Valley in the region
Marshalltown hosts Dowling - Marshalltown believes they are a championship quality team - they need this win to stay relevant - a loss would drop them into the "pretty good team" group
Thoughts? Any other match-ups you're watching?
Oh yeah, How'd I miss that one - Looks like PV took it 1-0. 3A substates in the East will be interesting (but aren't they always?)Bett @ PV - PV could run the table in the East.
Loving these recaps. I have a friend who is a former football player at West Branch, so he's very interested in 1A soccer now, and how WB will shake out.Some thoughts on last night's matches:
CPU moves up in relevance and Williamsburg takes a step back with a 1-0 CPU win
DCG over Grinnell 3-1 feels like somewhat of a statement win in this early season
Same with a 3-1 win by CCA over Benton
Beckman's 2-1 over South Tama keeps Beckman moving forward and Columbus' big 4-1 over Denver may be somewhat telling.
Postville's 1-0 win over 2A Decorah is a big win for that program supporting their position in the rankings
St Albert over Treynor 4-3 gives some direction to the battle in the west but they loss shouldn't hurt Treynor much.
Assumption's 3-2 win over West Liberty is exactly what Assumption needed and a exactly not what West Liberty Needed - There could be a dogfight in 1A in the East again this year.
Centennial over SEP by 2 and Kennedy over Washington 2-0 both start to add some direction in 3A
I think Marshalltown's over Dowling 4-0 is a big win for that program and I look for it to propel them through mid season. They've shown they belong in the conversation.
Only two matches on the state schedule tonight:
Western Dubuque at Beckman - I believe WD is a 2A and they've been mercy ruled 3 matches in a row to 2A and 3A competition. I don't think life gets any easier with 1A Beckman tonight, even with Beckman going back to back two nights in a row.
Regina goes to Dav Central - Seems like DC is probably in the middle tier of 3A this year. It's Regina's first match of the year. While it's a tall order to expect 1A Regina to post a win, it's not far-fetched. Regina leads the series 7-2, but they are 2-2 over the last 4 meetings. So, I look for this to be hard fought. The outcome will only be potentially telling if it's lopsided.
The question I have is if programs like Kennedy, Wash, CF and Senior and City might be in the conversation at that point. Either by virtue of rising to the top or if not be in the top, play substate spoiler.PV, Bett, West and Prairie will be battling each other near the end I think (on the east side). They've got strong teams and programs.
Based on seeing them in person, Cedar Falls is a yes. Big, fast, and experienced. Kennedy would seemingly be next in line. Don't count out Jeff and Linn Mar as potential spoilers. Both are pretty young teams. Linn Mar needs to find their defense and Jeff needs to find their offense, but it will be a problem for other teams if they get those sorted.The question I have is if programs like Kennedy, Wash, CF and Senior and City might be in the conversation at that point. Either by virtue of rising to the top or if not be in the top, play substate spoiler.
So, Regina dropped their match to Dav Central 5-3. Not a huge failing given the 1A vs 3A aspect. I'd really like to know what happened in this match. According to the box score, Regina led 4-0 at half, so really curious about what changed in the second half. Hope it wasn't injury driven or anything like that. I'm sure regals will drop in the rankings, but I don't see much impact on the question of if they'll be around at the end.....yet.Loving these recaps. I have a friend who is a former football player at West Branch, so he's very interested in 1A soccer now, and how WB will shake out.
Linn Mar topped Jefferson in OT last night, 2-1. Slight edge in possession to the Lions. The large metro CR-IC schools are such a coin flip right now. Anyone can beat anyone on any given night it seems. Jefferson needs to find a bit more offense beyond Exauce Amisi against Washington, and they'll be right with all the other schools. Seems CR Prairie and IC West might just be slightly ahead the pack, and the two favorites for state berths in the area. I'm not yet sure about Dav North or Dubuque Senior, but they certainly seem like contenders with PV.
Thanks for the update - The box score must be wrong in Varsity Bound. Was the failure to handle the long ball a back line failure or the midfield not giving enough support? (and by failure, I'm not casting aspersions, I know it was a first game effort and coach Larew can make adjustments.)Regina was actually down at the half. Central's offense consisted mostly of just bombing long balls downfield and it worked early on. Might have been in part due to it being Regina's 1st game of the season and Central's 7th.
But, 2nd half Regina got it sorted out and came roaring back, got it to 4-3 and were all over them with the tying score seeming to be a certainty. But, they got caught up pushing for that tying goal and got burned for the final goal near the end.
We'll know more soon as Regina plays #2 Solon this Saturday.
West Branch had their first varsity year in 2019. They play a very weak schedule by design, so it is hard to tell much about them. The West Liberty game will be a good measuring stick. Otherwise, they won't play any top teams until the playoffs. When that happened in 2019, Assumption beat them handily in the playoffs if I recall.
Tipton appears not to have a record prior to this year.Hard to say, it seemed to be corrected pretty well by the second half.
I'm not sure if Tipton played in 2019 or if 2020 was going to be their first year.
Cascade hasn't beaten a team with a win yet this year.
It looks like their games with West Liberty and Mid Prairie will be the only chance to see how good they might be.
Those should be some good ones.Some good games tonight:
#4 Beckman at #2 Solon tonight at 5:30. KCRG will be airing the game on their 9.2 channel.
#5 Iowa City West at #12 Muscatine
#2 CR Prairie at #3 WDM Valley.
#7 Marshalltown at #1 Waukee