We Need to Talk About the Frenzy…
Image courtesy of Oregon State Athletics
Sunday night, the Oregon State men’s soccer team fell 2-0 to the University of Portland at home. When the potential for the in-state matchup was announced by the tournament selection committee, I worried about it. We’d already played Portland twice this season (including an exhibition back in August), and there probably wasn’t any team more prepared to play the Beavs in the tournament than Portland. They’d already made a trip to Lorenz (a 3-2 Oregon State win last month). Conversely, we were ready for Portland, but psychologically these repeat matchups seem to favor the underdogs, especially one as capable as the Pilots.
Oregon State controlled the first 45 minutes, frustrating the Pilot attackers and holding them without a corner kick and just one harmless shot that didn’t require the attention of keeper Jesus Sanchez. Portland seemed content to play behind the ball most of the game, packing all ten field players into their own half of the field in an attempt to keep the Beavers from gaining any sort of a foothold in the game. Despite UP’s defensive mindset, the Beavs pressed forward for several chances in the first half, with Dante Williams and Mo Thiam regularly galavanting down the right sideline and forcing saves from the Portland keeper or last second deflections from a solid Pilot defensive line.
In the second half, Portland’s best chances came on mistakes by the Beavers. Sanchez had to make a diving one-handed save after his own ill-advised pass was intercepted, the Pilots first goal came after a mis-hit clearance by the Beavs, and the second goal came after a Beaver defender was dispossessed trying to dribble the ball through the front line of the Pilots, something that happened far too much in the second half. Williams and Thiam saw far fewer touches after halftime as well, slowing the Beaver attack to a crawl.
For Gael Gilbert, Mo Thiam, Adrian Molina Diaz, and Javier Armas, this marks the end of the road for their careers in Corvallis. All have been integral in establishing Oregon State as one of the most successful programs in the country over the past few seasons. Soccer, more than just about any other sport, is a game where the better team is in danger of losing on any given night. To this point, almost half (7 of 16) of the national seeds lost home games yesterday to teams that were playing their second game in four days, including #2 Washington, who lost their last two games after starting the season unbeaten in their first 18. Last year’s champion Clemson also dropped their first game of the tournament.
Beaver Nation showed up for the game last night, with a record 1,416 fans in attendance. I wouldn’t say we showed out though. The crowd sat on their hands for much of the night, perhaps a reflection of the frigid weather or lack of goals through the first hour-plus of the match. Soccer fan culture is known around the world for the lively atmosphere it creates, but it is strangely lacking in college soccer. I’d love for the Beaver Dam to organize a designated student section at the games, create some chants/cheers, and make it more of a party atmosphere at Lorenz.
As an unpaid intern, I didn’t make it to Lorenz as much as I would’ve liked this year…..this was my first trip all season. Maybe at other games when the weather is nicer or the students could get in for free it’s been livelier, but last night was not the home field advantage Lorenz could be in the future. This team is young, and should be playing NCAA tournament games for the foreseeable future. Hopefully the fans can help to make the atmosphere more Reser Stadium than Valley Library in the future.
