Preseason, Day 4: Brown 0, UVM 1

Samuel Goldwyn once said, "The harder I work, the luckier I get." He later added, "But sometimes I work hard and play sweet soccer, but still lose to freaking Vermont."

Such was the case for Brown on Day 4 of preseason. Despite controlling the play and smacking shots off the post, the goalkeeper, and the force field across the UVM goal, they emerged on the wrong side of a 1-0 game. There were, however, plenty of positives to take away, notably some impressive combination play between forwards and midfielders. As Coach Noonan put it, "Combination play this early in the season is a VERY good sign." Leave it to Coach Noonan to take a loss and use it to apply even more pressure to the team.

Afterwards, the players, coaches, parents, staff, friends, and an alarming number of babies gathered at Coach Noonan's house for a post-game reception and BBQ. Seriously, did everyone affiliated with Brown Soccer pop out a baby this summer? The little creatures were everywhere. We can only assume that their births were timed so their parents wouldn't miss a single game this fall--a system of priorities, I should note, that we expect of all fans.

At the BBQ, parents shared grilling duties, while players shared eating duties. The 7,000 calories that each consumed should partially replace what they will burn tomorrow, during Day 5.



Sophia Levesque, laughing at a futile attempt to restrain her.