>> [William Aiken] Hey, 7-0 against AU isn't exactly making anyone better either!<<
My guess [and it's only a guess] is that you're talking about a CESA pool game. The reason I'm guessing is that scores aren't readily available to anyone outside of the people who were actually there [at least not to me!]
Several things to note -- I hope non-defensively. First, there were actually two pool games scheduled at about the same time that day -- one against AU and one against a series of teams at Winthrop. Remember -- a ton of kids participate in this and it's not "team-based." The players selected for AU tended toward younger players. Secondly, my guess [and it's only a guess] is that given the level of players participating, that there's a valid theory that it is a higher level of competition -- particularly for kids playing at less competitive schools. Finally, I know that whatever the result I appreciate AU agreeing to play -- and remember, a lot of times these college teams have lots of players who aren't able to play [seniors, trips, injuries, etc.]
I spent Easter weekend in West Virginia; Marshall hosted some games between a CESA pool and Marshall [and the University of Charleston]. The pool selected was very diverse in terms of age and skill. The games were competitive, Marshall was a great host, and I'm sure it was a thrill for the players to play in a 30K+ seat stadium.
I guess I don't like very much the "either/or" model some folks have -- it seems to me that the more kids we can have playing soccer, and the more we can let them play if they want to, the better off we are. I hate it when kids decide not to play high school. I just think it's almost always self-defeating behavior to try to limit choice to force someone to make the choice you want them to make. [Note: I don't think that's at all what you're suggesting.]
