A disappointing game last night. 7 offsides calls (to zero) and 12 fouls (to 8) really hurt. Need to be more disciplined.

An improved outing last night on the road vs. Pacific. Still need to work on discipline, as UCD had 2x as many fouls as UOP, gave up 3 more corners than we won, and had 2 offsides to none for the Tigers.

I like that Mertz is playing lots of people in the first two games, including two goalies for a half each. Traci Joyner is an outstanding coach, but one criticism I had was that she plays field starters too much. That trend is continuing in her first two games at Oregon. And only gave one goalie any playing time at all.

Mertz is having to deal with the fallout from that now. Only 5 of the Aggies' returning players had anything close to significant playing time under Joyner. In addition to the lack of truly experienced players returning this season, research indicates that greater playing time potentially compromises running performance during late season and postseason competition. Maybe partly why Davis didn't get over the hump in the Big West Tournament.

From my own coaching experience, I believe players need actual game experience as well as practice time to develop optimally. And, if players know they really can or will get regular, significant playing time, they work harder in practice. Not just for the opportunity, but to prepare themselves to take advantage of it.

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