NOVEMBER 30, 2007

Oh, the agony of defeat. And I do mean agony.

UP lost to UCLA in the playoffs today in an absolute heartbreaker of a game. UP dominated the first half and were up 1-0 at halftime, but UCLA came out in the second half thirsty for blood, which they got in the form of two goals and, with less than two minutes left in the game and UCLA ahead 2-1, it looked like it was all over for UP. But then, with 68 seconds left to play, UP scored a stunning equalizer and sent the game into golden goal (first team to score wins) overtime. The teams duked it out in the first overtime without scoring, although UP came close several times, so the game went to double overtime and that's when it happened. In the blink of an eye, amidst the chaos of a corner kick, UCLA popped the ball into UP's goal off a header and won the game.

So it's over. UP was eliminated from the playoffs and it was a heartbreaking way for them to go out. Granted, it's never fun to lose but with how incredibly close the game was and how close UP came to winning, it makes the loss that much more devastating. In the hours since Ross has been fuming about how the ref made a lot of bad mistakes, one of which likely cost UP the game, and he's right about that. If the ref had called UCLA on the egregious foul they committed in front of their own goal and awarded UP the penalty kick that should've resulted, UP likely would have won and that's a bitter pill to swallow right now. But bad refing is common and, for however infuriating and unfair it is, no amount of complaining about it will change the end result and I'm already so depressed about the game that I can't stand to think about what might have been if only the ref hadn't been an idiot.

Now the long and dreary off season begins but, right now, that almost seems like a necessary evil. Between the Timbers and UP, soccer season lasts eight months and after spending that long riding the non-stop emotional roller coaster of my two favorite teams, my heart is a little banged up and I could use a few months off to recoup. Mind you, in just a few weeks time I'll once again be pining for a game, going through footy withdrawal, and counting the days until the Timbers' season begins, but that's one of the nice parts of the off season. It gives you something great to look forward to in the form of new seasons, clean slates, and the opportunity for hope reborn.

So here's to my beloved UP who really deserved to win today, the 2008 soccer season, and the already burgeoning hope that it will be the year when both my teams win championships.

listening: vnv nation . reading: --

walk: 10 minutes . weight lost: 12.5 pounds

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