Back in Greensboro...

[carolina stang]

Unfortunately, I didn't bring us any luck today. Still, what a great year by our Mustangs. The late goal in the first half seemed to carry over to the second. Our guys never gave up though and it could have gotten real ugly real quick after the flurry of Maryland goals

Hat off to the Soccer Mustangs and their parents and families. A large group of parents and other family members were on hand. (I'm guessing double last week's group if not more and we all sat together again.) I'm sure East Stang was there, but I am not sure which one he was. I saw Jim Copeland from a distance again.

I've really enjoyed these last three weeks of following the team. I'm hooked. Go Ponies!!

[peaker]

Stang,

Help me out here in Texas being you were there in Cary. Was the PK a result of a dive? Not that it would have made a difference but 3-1 sounds better than 4-1.

Plus it seemed that players on both teams were slipping on the pitch which means either it was wet (I know it was snowing in Baltimore earlier) or I was looking at winter rye. Any feed back on that as well would be appreciated.

[carolina stang]

To answer your first question, I'm not sure. We had some Maryland people in front of us that kept moving and changing seats, so they obstructed my view of the play.

It rained alot here this week, so the field was damp. However, it was sunny today. (Still cold though, so not that much drying) I noticed driving in to the parking lot it was muddy. Field wasn't in bad shape from my vantage point, but some slipping.

[No Cal Pony]

Carolina, thanks for the post game update. Glad you were there. I listened to the game as much as I could while @ work. Your interest in the team is to be commended.

Peaker, I wasn't there, but it sure sounded like the field was slick. We had a good steady rain overnight, and while the sun came out, it sure stayed very cool. I'm sure that the situation reflected that. SAS Soccer Stadium is a fine complex, but I don't think they intended to have play this late in the year there. (On any regular basis anyway.) This whole region is notorious for being slick after rains.

I was still very proud of the team. I got home to watch some "highlights." The team played very well once they got going. As carolina stang mentioned, that first goal was rough.

My fear was that maryland's experience would be their advantage, which it seems was true. Yes, they are bigger, but we've beat teams that have similar size to maryland. The difference to me is that the maryland club has very solid experience and senior leadership.

I know the team will be disappointed, but they did great. They made us proud. Thank you again all.

GO PONIES!

[PK]

The condition of the field should not matter...both teams played on the same field. There was a reason Maryland was the number one seed and it showed. SMU played a good series of games to get where they were today and have nothing to be ashamed of. Making it to the NCAA semifinals of the College Cup was a hell of a feat and they should be proud of what they have accomplished this year. This was a great experience for this young team...next year ought to be very interesting.

Go Mustangs!!!

[EastStang]

I sat in Section 103 for Carolina Stang's benefit. My take was that Maryland was bigger and stronger at the striker and midfield positions. Hopefully as our young players mature, we'll see them fill out some. I was proud how our team battled until the end against a very good Maryland team. Take away about 3 minutes and it was a good game. I hope some of our fans saw what having an intimidating "home" crowd can do for you. When our goalie moved to right in front of their fans, he and the defensemen were clearly dazed and bewildered at first. We need to have some of that at our field. As far as the penalty kick was concerned, it occured at the other end of the field, so I didn't have a real good view. From where I sat it looked like there was contact, but the guy certainly enhanced his fall. I gave him a 5.6 on the dive. In the what if department. If their goalie had not made that save midway through the first half, it could have been an entirely different game.