For three years, the Washington men’s soccer team has utilized a flip throw. For three years, they have used this weapon freely. Teams know it’s coming, but that doesn’t mean they can stop it.
“Everyone is aware of it,” said Cal coach Kevin Grimes. “Everyone they have played and everyone they will play in the future. It is certainly no secret.”
No. 3 Washington (6-0-2) has employed this tactic at will and has seen results on offense, contributing to their 18 goals in eight games. But now they visit No. 1 Cal in a much anticipated game between two of the nation’s top sides.
No. 1 vs. No. 3: It can’t get much bigger than that. It’s the Bears’ defense vs. the Huskies’ throw-in. When the dust clears, the winner of the aerial battle will have not only solidified its spot at the top of the Pac-12 but also the top of the collegiate soccer world.
A good measuring stick for the teams is their shared opponent Santa Clara. Back on Sept. 3, the Huskies blew through the Broncos, 4-1, at home. Cal, on the other hand, needed overtime to beat Santa Clara, 1-0, on Sept. 27.
Both squads opened conference play Thursday, giving the teams an extra day to rest going into Sunday’s match, as opposed to the normal Friday-Sunday format. With exhaustion being eliminated in the equation, both teams will come out in full form at 11 a.m. in Edwards Stadium.
“There is a good chance that Sunday will be quite lively, given that extra day,” Grimes said.
For the Bears, the unit that must be the most alert is the defense. Every time the ball goes out in their defensive third, Huskies’ defender Michael Harris will employ his flip throw. Although Harris is not particularly imposing at 5-foot-10, the threat he presents is revealed when he takes a big running start, flips and uses the momentum to hurl the ball toward the net.
Often, the ball soars high and lands smack dab in the middle of the 18-yard box, creating a golden scoring chance for Washington. It will be up to the Bears to prevent their opponent from cashing in on the opportunity.
“The biggest thing is to get all our big guys in there trying to disrupt and keep the attackers off our keeper,” said junior Christian Dean.
It will be up to big athletes such as Dean, defender Steve Birnbaum and forward Stefano Bonomo to drop in defensively and head the ball safely away.
Offensively, Cal will look to take advantage of untested Husky keeper Ryan Herman, who had not appeared in a single game in his three years preceding this season. Herman, whose talent was validated when he signed with the U-23 squad of FC Sounders, does not have the Pac-12 experience to back up his skills.
Although Sunday’s contest has many national implications, it may also affect late-season seeding and conference-title runs. But those are not the only reasons this game is important to the Bears, who have only recently come into their No. 1 ranking.
“It is very important that we win this game,” Dean said. “We want to prove that we should be where we are and validate the work we have put in.”
They have had three years of work leading up to this game, but 90 minutes will decide the outcome.
Austin Crochetiere covers men’s soccer. Contact him at [email protected].