Loyola Greyhounds 2021

[NovaHound]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

[laxbro11]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

I assume you are happy with our offensive output?

We can look at the stats, stats do not have emotions attached to them. If we were to look at some of these starters should not even see the field.

This is what i would do:

1. I would have players that could pass and catch... How many times the last two years have we seen a pass that is off a bit that slows the offense down and allows the defense to catch up. How many times have we seen a bad pass that leads to a turnover.
2. Our strength is our attack. We need to get the attack open. Lindley and Olmstead do not have the strength to bully dodge and shoot.
3. It is obvious that our Midfield is not very good... I have posted the stats for the most part they cannot shoot... and a poor shot is a turnover.
4. We tend to rush our offense, we do not take the time to set it up and reset if need be,
5. I would run a 1-3-2, i would go with 4 attack, but we would have to move the ball quickly, which would free up our scorers.

Just a few thoughts

[houndace1]

Any chance fans will be allowed at Ridley this weekend? Hopkins had fans (probably parents) last Saturday.

No Fans... Outbreak of covid in the dorms.

On a positive note heard that McNulty will be back next year, can anyone confirm

Bummer about the outbreak. I hope that doesn't affect any of the players.

I've heard the same about McNulty. He definitely has anothe year of eligibility because of his medical redshirt as a freshman.

Thoughts about Bucknell? They've had a rough start, with their first 3 games canceled. They've played us tough the last few times. I'm always shocked that they try the 10-man ride against an athletic team like Loyola, but it's their identity and they tend to stick with it. We handled UVA's ride well. I'd love to see some long-pole goals on an empty net!

Well in terms of standings, its a needed win in the PL south division since Bucknell is a member, along with lafayette, lehigh and navy. So far Loyola is 1-1 in PL south. A win takes the team to 2-1. Bottom line is that they need to win the rest of their games along the way. Top two teams in each division make the 4 team PL tournament.

Survive and advance. I think right now the team is in 2nd place in the PL south division. They have to keep it that way, or improve. I'll be looking at other teams and see how they do. I''ll really be looking into that upcoming Army Lehigh game and the result for that

[GreyingHound]

Any chance fans will be allowed at Ridley this weekend? Hopkins had fans (probably parents) last Saturday.

No Fans... Outbreak of covid in the dorms.

On a positive note heard that McNulty will be back next year, can anyone confirm

Bummer about the outbreak. I hope that doesn't affect any of the players.

I've heard the same about McNulty. He definitely has anothe year of eligibility because of his medical redshirt as a freshman.

Thoughts about Bucknell? They've had a rough start, with their first 3 games canceled. They've played us tough the last few times. I'm always shocked that they try the 10-man ride against an athletic team like Loyola, but it's their identity and they tend to stick with it. We handled UVA's ride well. I'd love to see some long-pole goals on an empty net!

Bucknell worries me. Slow starts, anemic offense, struggle at the faceoff X. These are all legitimate concerns. I hope that Vanarsdale has made some changes, if he keeps doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is a sign of insanity. There may be a good reason Lars did not keep him on at Virginia. Game may have passed him by.

I had similar thoughts about Metzbower, but then he promptly left and won a National Championship at UNC in 2016.

[Laxfan01]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

[GreyingHound]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

I assume you are happy with our offensive output?

We can look at the stats, stats do not have emotions attached to them. If we were to look at some of these starters should not even see the field.

This is what i would do:

1. I would have players that could pass and catch... How many times the last two years have we seen a pass that is off a bit that slows the offense down and allows the defense to catch up. How many times have we seen a bad pass that leads to a turnover.
2. Our strength is our attack. We need to get the attack open. Lindley and Olmstead do not have the strength to bully dodge and shoot.
3. It is obvious that our Midfield is not very good... I have posted the stats for the most part they cannot shoot... and a poor shot is a turnover.
4. We tend to rush our offense, we do not take the time to set it up and reset if need be,
5. I would run a 1-3-2, i would go with 4 attack, but we would have to move the ball quickly, which would free up our scorers.

Just a few thoughts

I agree overall. Lehigh is a very good team,, and our faceoff struggles were unexpected, but we need to change up some things going forward.

One thing that stands out to me in watching top teams like UNC and Duke that we are lacking is crisp, rapid ball movement. The ball spends too much time in our sticks.

[laxbro11]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

I assume you are happy with our offensive output?

We can look at the stats, stats do not have emotions attached to them. If we were to look at some of these starters should not even see the field.

This is what i would do:

1. I would have players that could pass and catch... How many times the last two years have we seen a pass that is off a bit that slows the offense down and allows the defense to catch up. How many times have we seen a bad pass that leads to a turnover.
2. Our strength is our attack. We need to get the attack open. Lindley and Olmstead do not have the strength to bully dodge and shoot.
3. It is obvious that our Midfield is not very good... I have posted the stats for the most part they cannot shoot... and a poor shot is a turnover.
4. We tend to rush our offense, we do not take the time to set it up and reset if need be,
5. I would run a 1-3-2, i would go with 4 attack, but we would have to move the ball quickly, which would free up our scorers.

Just a few thoughts

I agree overall. Lehigh is a very good team,, and our faceoff struggles were unexpected, but we need to change up some things going forward.

One thing that stands out to me in watching top teams like UNC and Duke that we are lacking is crisp, rapid ball movement. The ball spends too much time in our sticks.

+1.

[houndace1]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

I remember reading in uslaxmagazine for the 2020 season that the offense isnt coached or designed that way. They used it for 2019 when they had Spencer and Scanlan for running pick and rolls with.

I'm prettty sure coach toomey wants to make the offense run through midfield dodges according to the article but they know more than i do with the personnel they have. They're the guys who see what the players do in practice.

[youthathletics]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

I assume you are happy with our offensive output?

We can look at the stats, stats do not have emotions attached to them. If we were to look at some of these starters should not even see the field.

This is what i would do:

1. I would have players that could pass and catch... How many times the last two years have we seen a pass that is off a bit that slows the offense down and allows the defense to catch up. How many times have we seen a bad pass that leads to a turnover.
2. Our strength is our attack. We need to get the attack open. Lindley and Olmstead do not have the strength to bully dodge and shoot.
3. It is obvious that our Midfield is not very good... I have posted the stats for the most part they cannot shoot... and a poor shot is a turnover.
4. We tend to rush our offense, we do not take the time to set it up and reset if need be,
5. I would run a 1-3-2, i would go with 4 attack, but we would have to move the ball quickly, which would free up our scorers.

Just a few thoughts

Love this lax talk.

[Laxfan01]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

I remember reading in uslaxmagazine for the 2020 season that the offense isnt coached or designed that way. They used it for 2019 when they had Spencer and Scanlan for running pick and rolls with.

I'm prettty sure coach toomey wants to make the offense run through midfield dodges according to the article but they know more than i do with the personnel they have. They're the guys who see what the players do in practice.

Agreed-it’s clearly served us well and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Just a my meaningless opinion based on what I’ve seen so far along w our personnel. I’ve noticed some of the best offenses recently have adopted this the past couple of years-cuse penn state and duke especially this year.More common ground might be setting more picks going down hill for an alley dodge-would be somewhere in the middle of the philosophies , and I’ve noticed a good bit of teams doing it (especially duke)

[wgdsr]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

I remember reading in uslaxmagazine for the 2020 season that the offense isnt coached or designed that way. They used it for 2019 when they had Spencer and Scanlan for running pick and rolls with.

I'm prettty sure coach toomey wants to make the offense run through midfield dodges according to the article but they know more than i do with the personnel they have. They're the guys who see what the players do in practice.

Agreed-it’s clearly served us well and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Just a my meaningless opinion based on what I’ve seen so far along w our personnel. I’ve noticed some of the best offenses recently have adopted this the past couple of years-cuse penn state and duke especially this year.More common ground might be setting more picks going down hill for an alley dodge-would be somewhere in the middle of the philosophies , and I’ve noticed a good bit of teams doing it (especially duke)

ftr, the last number of years @ uva was alley dodge, spin, alley dodge, spin, alley dodge.
but one thing also in watching the coach(es) at a non-loyola team event... ball fired and quick out of sticks was coached. a lot.

spencer likely changed a lot of schematics in his time there. as did steele. now, spencer-less.

[Laxfan#1969]

Im hearing we might be getting a player back this weekend...which should be good for the long run in April and hopefully May

[MDlaxfan76]

I'll take the bait.... What changes would you suggest? Floor's all yours....

I assume you are happy with our offensive output?

We can look at the stats, stats do not have emotions attached to them. If we were to look at some of these starters should not even see the field.

This is what i would do:

1. I would have players that could pass and catch... How many times the last two years have we seen a pass that is off a bit that slows the offense down and allows the defense to catch up. How many times have we seen a bad pass that leads to a turnover.
2. Our strength is our attack. We need to get the attack open. Lindley and Olmstead do not have the strength to bully dodge and shoot.
3. It is obvious that our Midfield is not very good... I have posted the stats for the most part they cannot shoot... and a poor shot is a turnover.
4. We tend to rush our offense, we do not take the time to set it up and reset if need be,
5. I would run a 1-3-2, i would go with 4 attack, but we would have to move the ball quickly, which would free up our scorers.

Just a few thoughts

Love this lax talk.

+1...been a long year!

[laxbro11]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

I remember reading in uslaxmagazine for the 2020 season that the offense isnt coached or designed that way. They used it for 2019 when they had Spencer and Scanlan for running pick and rolls with.

I'm prettty sure coach toomey wants to make the offense run through midfield dodges according to the article but they know more than i do with the personnel they have. They're the guys who see what the players do in practice.

Agreed-it’s clearly served us well and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Just a my meaningless opinion based on what I’ve seen so far along w our personnel. I’ve noticed some of the best offenses recently have adopted this the past couple of years-cuse penn state and duke especially this year.More common ground might be setting more picks going down hill for an alley dodge-would be somewhere in the middle of the philosophies , and I’ve noticed a good bit of teams doing it (especially duke)

ftr, the last number of years @ uva was alley dodge, spin, alley dodge, spin, alley dodge.
but one thing also in watching the coach(es) at a non-loyola team event... ball fired and quick out of sticks was coached. a lot.

spencer likely changed a lot of schematics in his time there. as did steele. now, spencer-less.

That has been my point, without Spencer this offence does not work well. And i disagree, i do think a majority of the problem is the jimmie and the joes. If you want the offense to move through the midfield, then have some midfielders that can create. Our starting midfield line has not produced. They do not create doubles or slides, teams know that they can man them up and shut them down. Our top four middies are 17 of 84 on shots and only 6 assists amongst them, and one is 2 of 18 and brings nothing to the table. Some of our starters have more turnovers than points. It is hard to argue facts. At some point you have to realize that the right mix is not out there, there is no chemistry on the offense.

This team has some players on the roster, we have said all along that Toomey can find the diamonds in the rough, t has been two years now of an anemic offense.

If we keep playing this way, we may not even make it to the conference playoffs

[Laxfan#1969]

I too am a bit worried about this weekend-solid, scrappy opponent mixed with us being very thin the last few weeks due to Covid issues with the freshmen (really a constant the whole semester). Another negative is that I too agree that the offense hasn’t been up to par, but I think it could all be fixed schematically-I personally don’t think it’s the jimmies and Joe’s. I’m no coach, but I personally would:
-attack the goal more from the wings and work to get to the middle of the field, rather than sprint down the alley. This could help our low shooting percentage, as it increases the amount of cage to shoot at. Also tends to put more pressure on defenses bc teams aren’t used to Sliding adjacently in the middle of the field
-could also be done using 2 man games/picks to free guys up: for an offense that struggles with dodging, I can’t understand the lack of picks. This can free up the ball carrier, as well as create mismatches (say olmestead or James getting matched up with a SSDM).
Definitely looking forward to this weekend and seeing how the guys come out.

I remember reading in uslaxmagazine for the 2020 season that the offense isnt coached or designed that way. They used it for 2019 when they had Spencer and Scanlan for running pick and rolls with.

I'm prettty sure coach toomey wants to make the offense run through midfield dodges according to the article but they know more than i do with the personnel they have. They're the guys who see what the players do in practice.

Agreed-it’s clearly served us well and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Just a my meaningless opinion based on what I’ve seen so far along w our personnel. I’ve noticed some of the best offenses recently have adopted this the past couple of years-cuse penn state and duke especially this year.More common ground might be setting more picks going down hill for an alley dodge-would be somewhere in the middle of the philosophies , and I’ve noticed a good bit of teams doing it (especially duke)

ftr, the last number of years @ uva was alley dodge, spin, alley dodge, spin, alley dodge.
but one thing also in watching the coach(es) at a non-loyola team event... ball fired and quick out of sticks was coached. a lot.

spencer likely changed a lot of schematics in his time there. as did steele. now, spencer-less.

That has been my point, without Spencer this offence does not work well. And i disagree, i do think a majority of the problem is the jimmie and the joes. If you want the offense to move through the midfield, then have some midfielders that can create. Our starting midfield line has not produced. They do not create doubles or slides, teams know that they can man them up and shut them down. Our top four middies are 17 of 84 on shots and only 6 assists amongst them, and one is 2 of 18 and brings nothing to the table. Some of our starters have more turnovers than points. It is hard to argue facts. At some point you have to realize that the right mix is not out there, there is no chemistry on the offense.

This team has some players on the roster, we have said all along that Toomey can find the diamonds in the rough, t has been two years now of an anemic offense.

If we keep playing this way, we may not even make it to the conference playoffs

Hard to argue with you here...our midfield has been bad...and of course it didn't help that unit when we had to take away our best middie (James) and move him to attack after the Kamish injury...just made things worse...hopefully the right combination emerges...VERY SOON...or you are right...no conference playoffs...let's hope that's not the case

[GreyingHound]

During halftime of the Syracuse/Holy Cross game they showed the top 5 plays of last week. McNulty's goal against Lafayette was #2. Carc jokingly said Loyola should put Mcnulty on the extra man unit. Hhmmm...

BTW, Scanlan has 6 goals against Holy Cross as of the middle of the third quarter. Sigh.

[GreyingHound]

Family of players in the stands at Ridley today.

https://loyolagreyhounds.com/sports/202 ... ocols.aspx

[GreyingHound]

WOW! I did not see that coming. Great effort today by the Hounds. It was awesome to see Kamish back in the lineup, and the way we mixed it up with James and Kamish on attack/midfield.

I can't resist mentioning that I called the long-pole goal against Bucknell's 10-man ride. Blows my mind that Bucknell tries this every time we play them despite the fact that it never works.

I don't think I saw Seth Higgins out there today. Anyone know if he is hurt?

[laxbro11]

WOW! I did not see that coming. Great effort today by the Hounds. It was awesome to see Kamish back in the lineup, and the way we mixed it up with James and Kamish on attack/midfield.

I can't resist mentioning that I called the long-pole goal against Bucknell's 10-man ride. Blows my mind that Bucknell tries this every time we play them despite the fact that it never works.

I don't think I saw Seth Higgins out there today. Anyone know if he is hurt?

Was he one of the freshman quarantined because of covid?

Loyola played well. Bucknell not very good. You are right on the 10 man ride. They just don’t have the athletes.

Did matt Higgins get hurt?

Still struggling at middie. Hopefully we keep the momentum

[Laxfan#1969]

WOW! I did not see that coming. Great effort today by the Hounds. It was awesome to see Kamish back in the lineup, and the way we mixed it up with James and Kamish on attack/midfield.

I can't resist mentioning that I called the long-pole goal against Bucknell's 10-man ride. Blows my mind that Bucknell tries this every time we play them despite the fact that it never works.

I don't think I saw Seth Higgins out there today. Anyone know if he is hurt?

Was he one of the freshman quarantined because of covid?

Loyola played well. Bucknell not very good. You are right on the 10 man ride. They just don’t have the athletes.

Did matt Higgins get hurt?

Still struggling at middie. Hopefully we keep the momentum

I think Higgins was caught up in the campus covid quarantine...hope they are out soon

Bucknell is not great, just like Utah isn't good, and Lafayette is awful...either way, 25 is a lot of goals...it's good to just take care of business vs the teams were supposed to beat...tougher games are coming which leads me to the next story of the day...

It was GREAT to have Kamish back...it was rumored he would be back today...he looked good for only being back in practice for a couple days...he is so smooth and patient with the ball in his stick...big frame...our best ball carrier...glad he's back...and keep James on the field with him...they both should be out there as much as possible