Saturday, October 30, 2021

Indy Eleven vs Memphis 901 FC - 08.33


Summary

- Opponent: Memphis 901 FC
- Location: AutoZone Park
- Attendance: 4,015
- Final Score: 3-0 L

- Starting XI: Farr, Buckmaster, Timmer, Adewole, Seagrist, Koffie, Partida, Moon, Ayoze (C), Vassell, Arteaga
- Substitutions: Gutjahr 61' (Sissoko); Moon 61' (Vassell); Liu 76' (Arteaga)
- Unused: Edwards, Doyle, Hackshaw, Ouimette

- Scoring Summary:
MEM - Lamah 2' (assist Salazar)
MEM - Murphy 32' (assist Kissiedou)
MEM - Fortune 56' (assist Kissiedou)

- Bookings:
MEM - Fortune 7' (Yellow)
IND - Vassell 25' (Yellow)
MEM - Reynolds 66' (Yellow)
IND - Moon 80' (Yellow)
MEM - Carroll 82' (Yellow)
IND - Partida 85' (Yellow)

- Referee: Matthew Franz
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

Would you expect anything less from Indy Eleven this year than a 3-0 loss to close out a season that has been underwhelming and disappointing? Last year's team finished like a semi-truck tire that was showing its issues and then explodes violently on the interstate. This year's team was more like a tire with a slow leak. Indy tried to put some more air in the tire with some late season signings, but Indy found themselves on the side of the road in Memphis with a tire that just couldn't go any further.

On paper, this team seemed like it should have been a contender. In results, Indy finishes the season in 6th place in the Central Division, with a 9W-8D-15L record and a different coach than which they started. Haworth played just 4 games. Hackshaw couldn't play the final 7 games. Cochran couldn't play in the final 11 games. Farr missed 8 games in the middle of the season. Law and late season addition Ledesma missed the final 2 games. Wild missed the final 3. Vassell missed 7 games due to international team duty and difficulty getting back into town. Seemingly, if things could go badly, they did.

This game was no different. Even the USL match center was ready for the Indy season to be complete, as it took a break for about 20 minutes of game time and even restarted the clock a few times despite being 60+ minutes into the game.

Memphis got on the board early in the 12th minute as Salazar and Lamah easily worked themselves around the Indy defense; thereby allowing them the ability to sit in and knock the ball around as much as they wanted. Knowing Indy was going to want to press the issue if they wanted the draw/win, Memphis was content to play keep away when they could, bunker when needed, and counter at key opportunities. At no point did Indy look like they were going to win this game after giving up that early goal. A Kyle Murphy goal in the 32nd minute put this game to bed with 58 minutes of game remaining. The 56th minute (offside) goal by Fortune just made the game difficult to watch for Indy fans as the Eleven didn't put a single shot on target in the second half. 

The slow tire leak finally put Indy on the side of the road. 

Also of note was that Ouimette was not in the starting lineup, which means he finishes the season (and maybe his Indy Eleven career?) at one game less than 100 starts for the club, which would have made him the first player to hit that mark. When Karl hit the 99 game start mark with 6 games remaining, I really thought we would see our first Indy player with that milestone, but Ouimette played 18 minutes total in the final 6 games. Not sure why he fell so far out of favor with Rogers, but Ouimette didn't have much say in the final games of the season.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

Ayoze. For no other reason that he's about to turn 36, playing like he's found the fountain of youth.

Sunday, October 24, 2021

Indy Eleven vs FC Tulsa - 08.32

 

Summary

- Opponent: FC Tulsa
- Location: Carroll Stadium
- Attendance: 6,499
- Final Score: 1-1 D

- Starting XI: Farr, Buckmaster, Timmer, Adewole, Seagrist, Koffie, Partida, Moon, Ayoze (C), Vassell, Arteaga
- Substitutions: Moon 65' (Sissoko); Gutjahr 86' (Vassell); Ouimette 90' (Koffie) 
- Unused: Edwards, Doyle, Hackshaw, Liu

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Vassell 71'| (assist Ayoze)
TUL - Johnson 78' (assist Marlon)

- Bookings:
TUL - Fenwick 32' (Yellow)
IND - Arteaga 43' (Yellow)
IND - Adewole 72' (Yellow)

- Referee: Melvin Rivas
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

As a result of Tulsa's Wednesday win against Atlanta, this game meant absolutely nothing as it related to the Central Division standings...from Indy's perspective. Tulsa's 4-0 win against Atlanta United 2 finally put Indy on the wrong side of the math. Indy would be spending the playoffs like the rest of us; watching from the comfort of our homes instead of at the stadiums. However, Tulsa knew that a draw against Indy would secure their spot in the playoffs. So, one team was playing just hard enough to not lose and the other was playing for pride.

Indy started the game without Law, Ledesma, or Wild on the game day roster, and Moon was on the bench. While Indy has other options for their offense, those are four dynamic players to not have at your disposal. As a result of each team's goals for the game and Indy's roster, Indy started the game dominating possession, but with very little to show for that possession. Tulsa's back four and midfield set a wall that Indy couldn't find a way to break. The game was evenly played, with both Indy and Tulsa getting 9 shots, and Tulsa edging Indy 5 to 4 on shots on target. 

Then Indy scored in the 71st minute off a rocket from Vassell and the entire plan changed for Tulsa. The draw was now out of play. With upcoming games on Wednesday and Saturday against a surging Memphis and a potential other playoff team in OKC, Tulsa decided that they needed to go for the win in Indy rather than wait. Seven minutes later, Tulsa equalized from a scrum off of a free kick. 

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
The good news is that Indy held on for the draw in front of their fans on "Fan Appreciation Night" to give the last part of the season something resembling positive results, with a 1W-3D-1L record in their last five games. 

Indy was also able to celebrate another player reaching 100 appearances with the team as Ayoze reached the milestone with this game. It's difficult to say how many more games Indy gets with Ayo based on his age, but even though he'll turn 36 years old in November, he's still playing better than many guys in this league. We hated to see him play against Indy when he was with the Cosmos, but definitely glad we've been able to get 100 games for Indy. 

Additional Thought

Remember last game when I said that you're going to get some "NO NO NO NO NO" moments from Farr. This one exemplifies it. "This is trouble," is exactly right Brad. I'm not sure why Jordan thought he needed to come out that far, but it nearly put Indy down early in the first half.



The Game Beckons Game Ball

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
Despite my regular concerns about Vassell's ability to hold onto the ball, the guy played his ass off in this game and he was unafraid to take shots on goal. Something that the team drastically needed because Indy had 0% accuracy on 8 crosses. Vassell, on the other hand, was unafraid to shoot whenever he got the chance. Vassell was responsible for 3 of Indy's 4 shots on target. 

It may not have been the game winner that the team wanted, but it was enough to get Vassell the GBGB.

Sunday, October 17, 2021

Indy Eleven vs Louisville City FC - 08.31

 


Summary

- Opponent: Louisville City FC
- Location: Carroll Stadium
- Attendance: 6,499
- Final Score: 1-0 W

- Starting XI: Farr, Buckmaster, Timmer, Adewole, Seagrist, Koffie, Partida, Moon, Ledesma, Law (C), Arteaga
- Substitutions: Ayoze 72' (Ledesma); Vassell 73' (Moon); Gutjahr 79' (Partida)
- Unused: Edwards, Doyle, Ouimette, Sissoko

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Arteaga 85'

- Bookings:
LOU - DelPiccolo 43' (Yellow)
LOU - Gomez 78' (Yellow)
LOU - McCabe 82' (Yellow)
IND - Buckmaster 90'+2' (Yellow)

- Referee: Ricardo Fierro
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
Indy Eleven came into the game against Louisville with 1W-1D-1L record this season, with Louisville having a history of getting positive results in games held in Indianapolis (in all locations really, but we'll keep it to Indy for this discussion). Before the game, Indy held a 2W-5L-1D record with 6 goals for and 14 goals against across all competitions held in Indianapolis. Thanks to an 85th minute goal by Arteaga, Indy walked away from the game with a win, won the season series, and kept LOU out of the top spot in the Central Division, now held by Birmingham. The win was the first step in keeping Indy's playoff hopes alive. The front office spelled out what it would take in this game's preview, so let's run through it quickly with some edits and emphasis from me:

When it comes to possible postseason inclusion, “The Math” has finally caught up to Indiana’s Team, which knows it must win Saturday – and over the following two weekends – in order to keep its slim USL Championship Playoff hopes alive.

Alas, here’s all that needs to happen for the Boys in Blue to make a mind-bendingly complicated run to the postseason come to fruition:

  • Indy wins its final three games (would earn maximum of 40 points)
    • Louisville - Check
    • Tulsa - 
    • Memphis - 
  • Tulsa (currently on 39 pts.) loses their final five matches
    • Tulsa would end on 39 points - drew to Atlanta tonight, putting them on 40 points
    • TUL owns fourth tiebreaker – regular season wins vs. in-division opponents – over IND (would be 10 vs. 11) - Ruh roh, it seems like the FO had a mistake here because even with Tulsa's result last night, Indy still isn't officially out of the playoffs. Though, a Tulsa non-loss does that, no matter what Indy does in the next two games.
  • OKC Energy (currently on 36 pts.) loses their next two matches AND defeats TUL in season finale
    • OKC would end on 39 points - play today against Birmingham and a win for OKC seals Indy's fate.
    • OKC owns second tiebreaker – goal differential in head-to-head meetings (5 to 4) – over IND
  • Atlanta United 2 (currently on 34 pts.) ties or loses to its next match to Memphis AND defeats Tulsa in its season finale - lost to Memphis
    • ATL could end on 37 or 38 points
    • ATL owns first tiebreaker – head-to-head regular season record – over IND
As Mr. Incredible says, "math is math," and right now that math looks like it has finally caught up to Indy, despite playing one of their better games. I receive the press releases for both Indy and Louisville and both teams had an argument for them being the better side and deserving of the win. Looking at all of the stats and putting on whatever rose-colored glasses you might be wearing as a supporter of either team, they're both right. This was an even game and some more clinical finishing by either team and this could have had a very different result to it.

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
I had two key notes in my book as I watched the game (finally back in the stadium after my back surgery). The first note was in the first half and I wrote that either or both of the Manu's would be getting a yellow card in the second half. Somehow, neither of them did. I'm not perfect.

My second note was at halftime when I wrote that this game had the feel of a game that was going to be decided by a single significant mistake. Given how the Indy season has gone, my fear was that mistake was going to be made by Indy. Fortunately for Indy, that mistake actually happened in the 85th minute when a Nicky Law cross/chip to about 8 yards from the goal line was attempted to be cleared by Gomez, who swung and missed, and the ball dropped perfectly to Arteaga who powered it home past Hubbard. Cue the smoke and cue the archery.

In Louisville's attempt to find the equalizer, Arteaga nearly had another and Vassell had a chance too in the closing minutes. In the end, the single significant mistake by Gomez was what decided the game and Indy's fans rejoiced a much needed win against a rival, not caring about the other results that could go against them. 

For further proof that I really don't know what the hell I'm doing and why anybody would read what I have to say...

In the 72nd/73rd minute, Max Rogers subbed off Ledesma and Moon, who I thought had been the most dynamic players moving forward for most of the night. In fact, I wrote in my notes that Moon seems to be the only player whose first instinct is to go forward, rather than backwards. He will make a pass backwards, but he seems to do it begrudgingly. In a game where Indy had to get the three points and needed to score goals, it seemed like an odd choice, particularly for Vassell who I have thought all season has had difficulty holding onto the ball and is easily dispossessed. Yet, after that substitution, the heat map confirms what the eyeball test believed to be true. The field was tilted towards LOU's goal and twelve minutes later, Arteaga found the back of the net and the defense held on to give Indy the win.

Rivalry games in lower division soccer seem like they are mostly for the fans because the players come and go so frequently that it's hard for the players to be as invested in the rivalry. So the fans' explosion of joy after the win was cathartic against a team that has had their number over the years, but after the game Max Rogers stated, “I think it’s more for the fans, to be honest with you, it’s bragging rights for them. In the team, we want to look at the bigger picture more and get into the playoffs and be challenging for things higher up the table. But for the way this year has gone, there’s no reason why we can’t be very pleased with how we’ve done in the series [against Louisville].”

As it stands, Indy took care of the first step and a long line of dominos have to fall to make the playoffs. They did the first step, winning the season series against Louisville along the way. Whether the game against Tulsa next Saturday means anything beyond pride for the players, could be answered later tonight.

Additional Thoughts

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
I missed her name (those kinds of announcements are hard to hear when the Exitos radio commentators are working the pre-game in the press conference), but will add it when I get it from the team. However, I think her performance of the national anthem was my favorite one of the season. Thank you Sha' Howard for an excellent version.

After the game, I was milling about and kids had started wandering onto the field after one of the security guards realized there wasn't any harm in it and either walked away entirely or was turning a blind eye to it. As I stood there, a little boy and his mom walked up beside me. You could just tell that he wanted to join the other kids, but was afraid he was going to get in trouble, despite his mom saying that he could go onto the field. She even said, "is the field lava?" at which point I made sure I caught his eye and jumped back off the field saying, "the field is lava?" About a minute later, mom was still trying to convince him that it was okay, when I noticed an unused ball near me. I went over to it, caught his eye again, and passed him the ball. The second that ball hit his foot, his eyes got bright, he smiled, and took off with the ball straight to the goal. Where he played with the other kids until mom and dad made him leave. I told her that it reminded me of a quote by a player (I left out that it was the quote by Luke Boughen that created the name for my site), where he said, "When the ball is kicked towards me, I consider the game beckoning me. The game wants me." That's all that kid needed. He needed the game to beckon him and know that the game wanted him. Whatever else happened last night with the game itself, it's that moment that I hope sticks with me for a long time because it made me so happy to know that such a simple thing from me helped convince him and brought him (and his parents) joy.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer
You know you're going to get a couple moments from him where his sweeper-keeper mentality is going to make you yell, "NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!," but Jordan Farr is also going to make some great saves along the way too. If we're honest, of the three keepers that have played this year, you trust Farr's feet much more than the other two. The save immediately after halftime where he managed to get a paw to the ball to push it wide of net despite starting to lean the wrong way was athletic and required strong hands. He also had some really good punches on Louisville corner kicks to help clear the danger and let the defense reset. So for his effort, Jordan gets the GBGB tonight.

Sunday, October 10, 2021

Indy Eleven vs Birmingham Legion FC - 08.30


 Summary

- Opponent: Birmingham Legion FC
- Location: BBVA Field
- Attendance: -
- Final Score: 3-1 L

- Starting XI: Farr, Timmer, Adewole, Seagrist, Koffie, Partida, Ayoze (C), Moon, Ledesma, Law, Arteaga
- Substitutions: Vassell 67' (Ayoze); Wild 67' (Ledesma); Gutjahr 81' (Partida); Sissoko 81' (Koffie)
- Unused: Edwards, Doyle, Ouimette

- Scoring Summary:
BHM - Brett 8' (assist James) 
IND - Law 42' (assist Moon)
BHM - Crognale (Eli) 74' 
BHM - Rufe 90'+4'

- Bookings:
BHM - Kavita 45' (Yellow)
BHM - Vancaeyezeele 54' (Yellow)
BHM - Rufe 90'+4' (Yellow)

- Referee: Sergii Demianchuk
- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

After seeing the Match Notes from Indy, I posted the following on Twitter: 


Well, Indy did their part in that equation. FC Tulsa, however, lost to El Paso and this is being written before Memphis plays. So, once again, Indy is still mathematically eligible for the playoffs. The end of this season is like watching a car crash in super slow motion. You know the end result, but you can't take your eyes off of it and each incremental step is more and more painful since you know you can do nothing about the result that you know is eventually coming.

Indy gave up an early goal in the 8th minute to Nico Brett, but managed to pick one back right before halftime thanks to a Moon cross that Law one-touched over Van Oekel. Moon was playing right back as part of Rogers' ten-man bunker in the first half. At times, it looked like a 5-4-1, with the 5 and 4 portion of that arrangement being separated by 10 yards and the 1 part of that arrangement 30 yards away. This was after they were already down a goal.

In what has become an all to regular refrain, if it can go badly for Indy, it will go badly for Indy. Down a goal, with time running out, Indy pulled Farr up to Birmingham's box on a corner kick. Bounce around, ends up with Rufe, who promptly kicks a 55-yard ball up the field and into Indy's goal. His first ever goal came from the opposite side of midfield.

That's just kind of the way this season has gone.

It feels like this was the final straw, but the math doesn't say that it is. As a viewer watching the slow motion car crash, I kind of want the wreck to happen so that we can assess the damage and begin to tend to the wounded. 

Indy return to Carroll Stadium on Saturday to play this year's final installment of LIPAFC against Louisville. The guys are still fighting to the end, but the math seems like it is catching up to them and the car wreck is going to happen. Having the car wreck happen against LOU might be a fitting and painful way to officially miss the playoffs.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

Just to simplify things for me, tonight's GBGB goes to the goal scorer in Nicky Law. He had the goal and 2 of the 4 shots on target. One the other side of the ball, I thought Timmer had a good game as well.

Sunday, October 3, 2021

Indy Eleven vs Atlanta United 2 - 08.29

 


Summary

- Opponent: Atlanta United 2
- Location: Carroll Stadium
- Attendance: 7,999
- Final Score: 1-1 D

- Starting XI: Edwards, Gutjahr, Timmer, Adewole, Seagrist, Koffie, Sissoko, Ayoze (C), Torres, Wild, Arteaga
- Substitutions: Partida 45' (Sissoko); Law 45' (Torres) ; Vassell 82' (Wild); Ouimette 90'+2' (Arteaga)
- Unused: Farr, Doyle, Liu

- Scoring Summary:
IND - Arteaga 53' (assist Ayoze)
ATL - McFadden 90'+5' 

- Bookings:
IND - Ayoze 15' (Yellow)
IND - Wild 25' (Yellow)
IND - Koffie 50' (Yellow)
ATL2 - Benitez 67' (Yellow)
ATL2 - Mertz 85' (Yellow)
IND - Seagrist 90'+4' (Yellow)
IND - Farr 90'+6' (Yellow - post-game altercation)
ATL2 - Diop 90'+6' (Yellow - post-game altercation)

- Referee: Greg Dopka|
- Adage goals: One

Thoughts and Opinions

The thing about being an Indy Eleven fan this year is that you know the bad things are going to happen. It's just a matter of when. Lately, it has also started to take on a feel of "just make it stop" and "when can it all be over?" That second one might have been officially answered tonight. Despite the additions of Doyle, Adewole, Partida, and Ledesma in recent days/weeks, tonight's loss (and Memphis' dismantling of Tulsa), in all reality puts the playoffs out of the picture.  

The depth has been tested as Hackshaw, Haworth, Moon, Buckmaster, & Cochran were all unavailable for the game. An 18-year old Academy player is starting games (to be fair, he has looked good, but was muscled off the ball a few times tonight). Gutjahr and Seagrist are playing right and left backs, respectively. One of my concerns early in the season was how Law would hold up towards the end of the season having come directly from playing with Exeter City, who were still in the midst of their season. Five games in 15 days and the turf at Carroll kept him on the bench in the first half. Rogers stated after the game that "Nicky’s obviously played a lot of minutes for me and done really well, so we have to manage him." Looks like my early fears may be coming to fruition at a key time for the guys.  Partida, who looked to be the most lively in the game in OKC on Wednesday, isn't really at full match fitness and also sat the first half on the bench. Both of those players came into the game immediately after halftime for Torres and Sissoko, with Rogers indicating that “the game plan in a sense went away in the first half. We saw it and didn’t really love it, so we brought on those lads to help us in the second half."

Halftime Possession

I feel gutted for Edwards because of the 90'+5' minute goal by McFadden that Edwards just couldn't seem to get in his grasp, but this game feels like a microcosm of the season. The bounces continue to go against Indy, they can't seem to capitalize on the chances they do get, and Indy absolutely allowed ATL2 to have possession tonight. ATL2 held a 71.2% to 28.8% advantage in possession at halftime, which only decreased slightly by the end of the game. Bunkering in OKC, which apparently was the game plan in OKC according to Interim Coach Rogers on Soccer Saturday, was also the game plan tonight and didn't work well in the end. 

However, Indy toyed with disaster for most of the game tonight. If ATL2 had been more clinical in their shooting, this game may not have even been close. ATL2 had 20 shots, with only 4 of them officially on target, but a few of them squeaked by just wide of the posts. Indy had just 6 shots, with 3 shots on target; the goal by Arteaga, a second shot by Arteaga that went straight to the keeper, and one by Law from 25 yards out that also went straight to Rios Novo. On a night when the rain and weather could have created all kinds of weird issues for the keepers (see the end of the game), Indy didn't attack the goal enough. I'm going to come back to that in a minute.

Rios Novo Touchmap
Speaking of Rios Novo, Indy's pressure was so relaxed at times that Rios Novo played more like a keeper sweeper. Rios Novo had 63 passes, with a 93.3% passing accuracy and routinely played +40 yards from his endline. He had a touch inside the center circle! This was all made possible because Indy has routinely shown throughout the season that their counterattacks don't always have much pace to them.

The most egregious of these counterattacks (for me anyway) happened in the 79th minute. Law pressured a ball at midfield that led to a hard pass from Stanley toward Diop. Partida went hard to the ball and poked it away to Arteaga 15 yards away. Arteaga collected the ball, turned, and dished it out to the wing to Ayoze, but then slowed down for just a tick until a streaking Law goes past him and must have said, "VAMOS!" on his way past. Wild was on the right side making a run in one of the closest things to a fast break that I can remember in the game, giving Indy a 4 vs 2 break. What resulted was no cross from Ayoze to any of the guys, but instead pulled it from within ATL2's box back towards the center circle and a safe pass to Koffie. On the other side of the field, Wild raised his hand in disbelief that nothing came from that attack. Meanwhile, Koffie sends "a nervy pass" in the general vicinity of Adewole, but Diop intercepted in a break the other way that Timmer did well to help usher over the endline for a corner. Not only did Indy not get anything out of it offensively, it nearly led to a chance on the other end.

There was another similar moment in the 72nd minute. Ayoze slipped a gorgeous pass through the ATL2 backline to a streaking Seagrist. Instead of putting a ball into the mix in the center of the 6-yard box where Arteaga was waiting and Wild was waiting on the far post, Seagrist placed a rocket into the wrong side of the side netting. 

Shots After the 53rd Minute
Indy's offense doesn't allow for many mistakes by the defense. Indy didn't create enough chances, particularly after going up a goal. After Arteaga's goal, Indy mustered just three more shots. One was the aforementioned shot on target by Law, one more by Wild in the 59th minute, and one was the aforementioned shot by Seagrist, which was Indy's last shot in the game. In the 72nd minute. 

Much like it came back to bite them in OKC, and seemingly frequently throughout the season, you can only bunker for so long before a defensive mistake overrides the lack of chances you are creating on the other end. 

The guys put 50% of their shots on target, but I don't think the tactics have been helping them recently. I'm just a "so called pundit," but whether I call it the Rennie Bunker (TM) or the Rogers Bunker (TM), it feels like a recipe for what happened tonight. There are obviously times when a bunker makes sense, but Indy attempted to do it for 90 minutes tonight and they succeeded for 90'+5', but eventually that bunker tends to break. 

At the start of the game, both Rakestraw and Hauter envisioned this game as a high paced game with both teams trying to get as many opportunities on goal as possible, because both teams absolutely needed the 3 points to give themselves a chance for the playoffs. Indy did not do that.

I don't know what to say anymore. This has been a frustrating season and the late-season reinforcements have been a necessity, but also seem like it's too late to matter. According to Stremlaw, Ledesma is now in town and so will likely be available for selection next Sunday against Birmingham. While BHM have already solidified their place in the playoffs, they're not going to let off the gas as the ability to get a home game is still in play for them. Given how differently Indy played tonight than I expected, I haven't the foggiest idea how they will try to play Birmingham.

On a more positive note, Ayoze to Arteaga. At this point, Indy should just put that on repeat. Arteaga finds ways to get his head to balls and Ayoze can still put a ball on a dime. Indy rode Pasher's ability to get past defenses last year. Indy needs to win out to give themselves a chance at the playoffs and Ayoze to Arteaga would be a good way to try and get that accomplished. Though as I said after the OKC game, "Mathematically eligible isn't the same as realistically eligible."

My favorite quote from the game tonight, that didn't have anything to do with the game was from Brad, who said, "I have a fan that oscillates. That's how I know that word." In a game were my brain was constantly wondering when the game was going to go down the toilet, that line made me laugh out loud.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

It's not easy being a late-season addition to a team. I imagine it's exponentially harder to be a late-season addition and be thrust immediately into the starting lineup. However, that is exactly what has happened for Adewole and I think he has played extremely well given the circumstances. It's always difficult for me to pick a player for the GBGB in a loss draw. With very little time with the team and absolutely minimal training time with the guys given the playing schedule, I think Adewole is deserving of some praise for his ability to lead the back line with Timmer. So Adewole gets the GBGB tonight.3

Additional Photos (@DLTPhotog)