I had the pleasure of watching my daughter and her team play in the D3 National Champiosnhip game this past weekend in Salem VA. Case Western and John's Hopkins met in the final as 2 undefeated teams with Hopkins taking home the title with a 2-1 victory. We were also fortunate enough to make the trip out to Cleveland for sectionals when Case Western secured thier trip to the final four in the snow and 20 degree weather. For those who are considering D3 soccer all I can say is it was the best decision for my daughter who is a sophomore and has found a home at Case Western where the academics and soccer are top notch.
Womens D3 National Championship
- Thread starter Overtime
- Start date
Hey Overtime big congrats to your daughter and Case Western for having such a great season, that must have been a thrill! So cool for her to go to such a strong academic school that also happens to have a really strong soccer team. Just this week our daughter got accepted early decision to a high academic D3 school where she was recruited to play soccer so we have been watching a ton of D3 games this Fall (as well as D1). I have my own impressions but am curious to hear your thoughts on how the higher ranked D3 soccer schools compare to D1, both in terms of the individual athletes and for quality of play.
Ajaxahi-congrats to your daughter as well. Like I said before the school and conference my daughter plays in at Case is the ideal mix of strong academics and high quality soccer....D3 is where she fits in best. My observation is that most of the higher ranked D3 schools play a good brand of soccer stressing more posession and ball movement. The high level D3 schools have players that are technical and understand the game very well but for the most part are not as athletic or strong as the D1 teams. The lack of the 2-3 superior athletes per team in D3 lends itself to more posession and team play vs find my best athlete who can beat yours. The influx of D1 5th year transfers into D3 this year showed that those D1 players that saw minutes in D1 previosly were difference makers at their D3 programs and for the most part the best players on their team. Good luck to your daughter!