Nov. 19, 2009
Brett Simon and Adam Jahn Postgame Quotes
Even though the scoreline might not reflect it, St. Mary's had a great season and they were a difficult opponent... I think this was one of our best games of the year. I think it has to do with the preparation from the conference being difficult. That said, I think everybody was ready tonight and played certainly not a flawless game but an attractive game and a purposeful game. We're really excited to move on to the next round.
On facing Irvine and potentially undefeated Akron next weekendI guarantee we won't look beyond this next game, which is Irvine...Before we worry about Akron or whoever we face in the next round, we have to be at our best for this game at Irvine.
Adam Jahn on how the season has progressed so farWell, for this game I felt really good. It's the first time I've been in the tournament and all of our other guys, none of them have been here. So it's no one single victory and we all played as a team...So we're really happy and now we're just getting ready for Irvine. We had a little rocky start in the preseason. I think we all bounced back and we just realized we had the potential to be a great team. Once we started getting wins, our confidence kept going up. I think we're peaking at the right time.
Coach Simon on returning to the tournament[The fact that we didn't have a player on our team who had been to the tournament] concerned our staff that we weren't sure how we would react as a group. I think everyone helped each other stay focused and treat this like we try to treat every game as the most important game of the year. I think within a few minutes of the game that everyone settled in and that the nerves were passed. I'm very proud of [the team]. This would have been an easy game for players to struggle with in confidence... and I think our team hit it right on the head.
Gaels coach Adam Cooper Postgame Quotes
We played the game without Jordan Grider, the Defender of the Year in our conference, and we certainly missed him and his confidence on the field. That being said, I think we battled. We came out a little nervous. Certainly we're a very young team, and this was the first time we've been in the tournament. I think that after they scored the first goal, we played. We did what we could. Overall, I'm very proud of our boys and our effort.
On approaching Stanford and ending the seasonTactically, it was [what we expected]. Technically, I don't think we were as sharp on the ball as we have been. I think part of that was some nerves, part of that was Stanford disrupting our rhythm a little bit. Tactically, I thought we did what we were supposed to do. We've had a great season. Certainly we've raised the expectations of our program. Even though we didn't win today, it gave everyone a taste, a hunger for next year.