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2019/20 off-season Buff soccer news & awards

AztecBuff

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I always like to set up these threads for all the sports to account for any off-season and (in this sport) spring scrimmage and training period news.

To start with, congrats to Taylor Kornieck for being named 1st team all-region and J.J. Tompkins 2nd team!



Direct links - https://cubuffs.com/news/2019/12/2/soccer-kornieck-tompkins-earn-all-regin-selections.aspx

"
KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Colorado soccer's Taylor Kornieck and Jalen Tompkins added more postseason honors to their collection on Monday. The two seniors were selected to the United Soccer Coaches Women's All-Pacific Region Teams.

The honor marks Kornieck's third consecutive with first-team selection, while Tompkins was honored with a second-team selection.

Kornieck, a Henderson, Nev., native, finished the year with a career-high 30 points. She scored a career-high 12 goals, helping lead the Buffs back to the NCAA Tournament. She ranks seventh in the NCAA with 5.0 shots per game and was tied for the nation's lead with a perfect showing from the penalty spot, going 4-for-4 this season. Kornieck had four game-winning goals in 2019 and five multi-point matches. Kornieck averaged 1.36 points per game, ranking fourth in CU history.

Kornieck, solidified herself among the all-time greats at Colorado this season. She became the first player in school history to surpass 100 career points, finishing with 102. Kornieck tied the school record for career assists (24) and finishes second in career goals (39). Kornieck also leaves CU as the career leader in points per game (1.24), shots (332), shots per game (4.05) and penalty kicks made (9).

Tompkins, a senior from Phoenix, Ariz., posted 12 wins in net this season for the Buffs. She made a career-high 101 saves and totaled eight solo shutouts. Tompkins, playing her first season as the full-time starter, ranks fifth in the NCAA with 2046:25 minutes played. She finished the season with 1.19 goals-against average and a.789 save percentage.

Tompkins finishes up her career at Colorado as the program's all-time leader in wins (49), saves (369) and save percentage (.841). She also played the most games as a goalie (85) and started the most games in net (82). Her career .90 goals-against average ranks second and her 4.34 saves per game ranks third.
"
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Also, wanted to mention the Pac 12 continues to have STRONG results at the NCAA Tournament. As I mentioned in the last match thread, 1/2 of the 8 quarterfinal teams was made up of Pac 12 teams. Now, after those matches last Friday, 3 of the final 4 will be from the Pac, as Stanford, UCLA and WSU have advanced, with only USC losing. (They lost to the same tough UNC team that defeated the Buffs in the round of 32.)

Hopefully the Pac schools, esp. the California ones, will be able to take some "home field" advantage to the final 4 and final matches, as they are being held in San Jose this Friday (semis) and Sunday (finals).
 
Congrats to Ms. Kornieck!



"
By: Seth Pringle, Assistant SID

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—
Colorado senior Taylor Kornieck was named third-team All-America by the United Soccer Coaches on Thursday. The honor is her second consecutive All-America recognition.

Kornieck becomes CU's second two-time United Soccer Coaches All-American, joining Fran Munnelly as the only other student-athlete to be recognized by the organization. Kornieck was a second-team selection in 2018. Munnelly earned second and third-team selections in her tenure as a Buff in 2004 and 2005.

She becomes the 11th multiple-time All-American across Colorado's women's team sports (basketball, soccer, tennis, volleyball).

"Taylor had her best season in 2019," head coach Danny Sanchez pronounced. "We are very happy that she was recognized as an All-American again. To be only the second two-time All-American in Colorado Soccer history, along with CU Hall of Famer Fran Munnelly, is a tremendous accomplishment. She drove our program to new heights. Taylor has a fantastic professional career ahead of her and we can't wait to see where her talents and our beautiful game take her."
...
"
 
Looks like the team, after having 2 surprise (at least to me) commits from Europe announced for the frosh class of 2020, will continuing to be recruiting hard internationally. (Per the tweet's label, Coach Green is in Sweden. One of the formal 2020 commits is also from Sweden, so assume his trip may also be a chance to check in with and personally welcome her to the Buffs.)

 
In what is becoming the best kind of "broken record", congrats to Ms.'s. Tompkins and Kornieck!



Direct link - https://cubuffs.com/news/2019/12/16/soccer-awards-continue-for-tompkins-and-kornieck.aspx

"
BOULDER—Colorado seniors Jalen Tompkins and Taylor Kornieck picked up more individual honors on Monday. Tompkins was selected first-team United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-West Region, while Kornieck was honored as a third-team TopDrawerSoccer.com's Best XI selection.

Tompkins excelled on and off the field during her tenure in net for the Buffs. The senior from Phoenix, Ariz., earned first-team recognition with her 3.79 GPA while majoring in psychology.

In order to be eligible for Scholar All-Region recognition student-athletes must maintain 3.30 GPA, must be a junior or above in academic standing; and, if a transfer student, in second year at school and start more than 50 percent of all games and significantly contribute to their team.
...
"
 
Have been wanting to note a couple things on this thread:
  • 1st, wanted to note that, as had already been mentioned in the recruiting thread awhile ago, topdrawersoccer.com had the Buffs with the #10 ranked recruiting class in the country for 2020 heading into the signing period that began November 13th. Topdrawersoccer.com updated those rankings at the end of 2019 and, after the Buffs signed 2 European players that were not known of before they were officially announced by the team, the Buffs ranking was raised to #8 in the country.

Also (mainly for my own reference when next season gets close to starting), have been meaning to just put in one place some Buff soccer facts and figures for last season:
  • The Buffs ended up with a 12-8-2 overall record, and 3-6-2 in conference play. Those 11 points earned in conference meant they finished in a tie (with OSU) for 9th place in the final standings.
  • Scoring-wise, the Buffs ended up with a 36-27 edge in goals scored vs. goals allowed. (Note- I did this all by adding numbers in my head from the cubuffs.com schedule, so would NOT take these numbers as "gospel".) That was made up of the following goals for and against by phase of the season:
    • Pre-season non-conference (9 matches) - 19-5 (3 of the goals allowed were to then #6 Florida State in an overtime loss with some SUSPECT officiating)
    • Conference (11 matches) - 11-21 (The Pac had 4 teams make it to at least the Elite 8 this season (Champion- Stanford, Final 4- UCLA and WSU, and Elite 8- USC), and the Buffs were outscored a combined 2-13 by them.)
    • NCAA Tournament (2 matches) - 6-1 (All 6 Buff goals were scored in their 1st round match vs. Northern Colorado, while the only goal allowed (thanks partially/ mainly to an incredible match by senior goalie J.J. Tompkins) was against eventual Championship runner-up North Carolina (AKA the "other" UNC)
Re RPI-
  • At the time of tournament selection:
    • the Buffs had the #43 RPI, with a .5941 score.
    • As a conference, the Pac 12 was the highest rated in the country, with a .6044 score. (The ACC was 2nd at .5942.)
  • Not that it matters as much, but at the end of the season(after the tournament was over), the final RPI ratings were:
    • After one win, a loss to one of the top teams in the country (North Carolina ended up with the #2 RPI), and a generally VERY good tournament for the Pac 12 overall, the Buffs final RPI moved up 3 spots to #40 (with a .5936 score).
    • Overall, the Pac 12 extended its "lead" as the top conference in the nation, as it ended up with a .6141 score, with the ACC still in 2nd (at .5933).
In the final Massey rankings (I don't believe they matter for selection, but are another way to evaluate a team):
  • The Buffs ended up #28 with a 1.78 score, with the #20 strength of schedule in the country.
  • As with RPI, the Pac 12 was also the top rated conference in Massey, with a 1.91 score, ahead of the ACC's 1.74. (I have NO idea how Massey differentiates its calculation from RPI, but it is obviously different. For example, in the RPI ratings, the Ivy League ended up the #5 conference with a little cushion over the #6 conference (the Big 10), while it was #7 in Massey, significantly behind #6 (the WCC), and with 2 other conference only .02 behind it.)
 
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Wanted to mention tomorrow could be a huge day for a talented Buff senior or two, as that's when the main U.S. pro league (NWSL) draft is being held (in Baltimore), starting at 9:00 AM MT (11:00 local/ Eastern time). (Like most sports, assume even un-drafted players will sometime after the draft be signing contracts to join teams as free agents.)

For the Buffs, I saw in a list released back on the 10th (https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/col...releases-updated-draft-eligible-list_aid47523) that Goalie Jalen Tompkins and midfielder/ forward Stephanie Zuniga were the 2 registered for the draft*** at that point. At minimum I'd assume Taylor Kornieck will also have registered by now.
(***Per the NWSL draft page, It reads like registration is necessary if someone wants to play in the league at all this coming season, even as a "free agent" (look to be called "Discovery players" in the NWSL). Registration deadline is at 2:00 PM MT today, so hopefully we'll see a final list of registered Buffs sometime later today.))

An article on draft coverage - https://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/art...20-college-draft-broadcast-details-and-talent

From that article -
Video Coverage - "Fans can watch the draft live by visiting: Facebook.com/NWSL, YouTube.com/NWSL and NWSLsoccer.com ."

Other coverage - "To follow all the action of the 2020 NWSL College Draft, use #NWSLDraft and follow the NWSL on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. "

The NWSL's draft homepage - https://www.nwslsoccer.com/collegedraft

A couple notes of things I can see:

  • Don't know if they are guessing or whether the young women have formally announced their plans, but if the mock draft is accurate the Pac 12 may be losing 2 of its bigger stars before their eligibility runs out, as they have Stanford sophomore forward Sophia Smith (who attended Fossil Ridge high school and is from Windsor CO) as the 1st overall pick, and UCLA junior midfielder/ forward Ashley Sanchez as the 6th pick. (An article I found from a week ago (https://www.espn.com/soccer/united-...re-no-1-pick-in-nwsl-draft-from-orlando-pride) did note that Stanford's 2 time defending national player of the year (and likely generational-level talent) Catarina Macario does intend to return to the Cardinal for her senior season.)
 
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#ForeverBuff Joss Orejel selected to Mexico's roster for the upcoming CONCACAF matches that will determine which teams will qualify for the Olympics.

Best wishes to her!



Per https://www.concacaf.com/en/olympics-qualifying-women/schedule-results#tab_team=rounds and / or https://www.concacaf.com/en/olympic...oncacaf-women-s-olympic-qualifying-tournament:
  • Mexico's in Group B with Canada, Jamaica and Saint Kitts and Nevis , with Mexico's opening match against Jamaica scheduled for January 29th in Edinburg, TX
  • The U.S. is in Group A (with Haiti, Panama and Costa Rica), and their group matches are in Houston.
  • Overall, looks like the top 2 of each group will advance to the semis, with the 2 semi winners qualifying for the Olympics. The semis and finals are being held in Los Angeles.
  • Overall, the schedule looks very condensed, with only ~3 days between the group matches, the semis scheduled for Feb. 7th, and the final on Feb. 9th.
 
congrats to both taylor and Joss. Orejel was always one of my favorite players and it would be great to see her in the Olympics
 





From the start of Brian Howell's article-

"
One of the greatest players in Colorado women’s soccer history didn’t have to wait long to hear her name called during the National Women’s Soccer League draft on Thursday.

Taylor Kornieck, who graduated as CU’s all-time leader in points, was selected third overall, by the Orlando Pride. Orlando, which finished ninth in the nine-team league last season, traded up in the first round to get Kornieck, a 6-foot-1 midfielder from Henderson, Nev.

“It’s surreal,” she said during an interview on the NWSL’s draft broadcast. “I am just so grateful to be here, I’m so humbled to be here. I’m speechless, honestly.”

This is the fourth year in a row that CU has had a player selected in the NWSL draft, and she is the fifth player drafted in the eight-year history of the league.
...
"
 
big day for soccer in Colorado as 3 of the top 6 picks in the draft were from Colorado. Sohpie Smith and Ally Watt played high school in state and Taylor.
 
Danica Evans still with the Pride?


Edit: Nope, got released and "will play in Europe".
 
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Article after Friday evening's annual banquet. Congrats to all, and hope the future for all the current and now former Buffs holds only positive times!



Direct link - https://cubuffs.com/news/2020/1/24/soccer-celebrates-2019-season.aspx

"
BOULDER— The Colorado soccer season put a cap on the 2019 soccer season on Friday. The Buffaloes hosted their annual end of the year banquet, handing out team awards and celebrating the success of the past season.

Colorado finished the year 12-8-2 overall and was ranked as high as No. 17 in the nation. The 2019 season was highlighted with a return trip to the NCAA Tournament. It was CU's third tournament appearance in the last four years and 11th overall. Colorado, which was ranked as high as No. 17 during the season, advanced to the second round of the tournament, earning a trip to North Carolina.

2019 Team Awards
Buff Cup* – Taylor Kornieck
MVP – Taylor Kornieck & Jalen Tompkins
Offensive MVP – Taylor Kornieck
Defensive MVP – Jalen Tompkins
Herbst Academic Award – Hannah Cardenas
Strength & Conditioning Award – Camilla Shymka
Newcomer of the Year – Tessa Barton

*Buff Cup award is given to the player with the most accumulated points from competitions amongst the team during the spring season
...
"
_______________________________________________________________________________________

And, post-season video-
 


Match coverage for Mexico vs. Canada scheduled to start at 4:20 PM MT today on FS2 (Fox Sports 2). Given the stakes of this match, assume this is the Mexican "A" team starters, and great to see Ms. Orejel on it.

(The loser of this match will have to beat the top ranked U.S. in the tournament semi-final match this Saturday in L.A. to qualify for the Olympics, while the winner will be playing lower ranked Costa Rica, with the winner of that semi match also going to Tokyo.

Looks like Canada has the goal differential advantage; don't know if that means in this tourney Mexico needs to win to get the group win and Canada will advance if they tie, or if they'd play OT and possibly resort to penalty kicks to determine a match and group winner since they both are 2-0-0 so far?)

Edit- per the announcers, Canada does advance with a tie.
 
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Congrats to Ms. Kinzner, and best wishes to her and all the other soccer Buffs putting in work around the globe!

 
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