(Boston, MA – Wednesday, May 4th)
After a definitive loss at the hands of the Omaha Heart, the Liberty were hoping for a bounce back game this past weekend in Austin. With two more weeks of solid practice, New England worked on eliminating some of the mental mistakes that did them in while playing the Heart. Whether it was getting the play off on time, staying onside, or getting in and out the huddle, the Liberty had a laundry list of items to correct. At times, they still looked out of sorts with not being lined up correctly, or players not being on the field at the right time, but it was an improvement from Omaha. These errors need to be eliminated going forward. Unforced errors were far fewer in Austin, but the defensive side of the ball resembled Swiss cheese for a majority of the game. Teams can’t expect to win many games while giving up forty-two points, especially on the road. Poor tackling, pass coverage, and minimal pressure on the quarterback were key factors in the fate of the Liberty defense.
Defensive back Glenda Cancel struggled mightily throughout the game, especially on rub and pick routes when the Acoustic went three wide. The Austin quarterback seemed to pick on her constantly down by the end zone. (See Below)
Cancel will need to improve technically going forward to remain a starter. Jessica Johnson, Jolie Efizokhae, and Kristen Beckham took some bad angles, and were late helping in coverage on key plays in the game. Danielle Green also had issues setting the edge and containing the run game, often with her back to the play (See below).
The Liberty defense as a whole tackled extremely poorly. Lulu Jackson played valiantly in the loss while setting the tone on defense with both her play and her attitude. New England would be all the better if they had seven Lulu Jacksons on defense.
The center-to-quarterback exchange was much better than the Omaha outing with Rachel Murphy settling into her role. Jolie Efizokhae had a questionable fumble late in the first half which could have really changed the tone of the game. The ball hit the wall, which typically means the play is dead, but it was overturned in the Acoustic’s favor (See Below).
Jolie made up for the fumble in the second half with an acrobatic grab for six, on a beautiful pass from Alex Drake. The Liberty offense still has room for improvement, especially on third down where they failed to convert finishing the night 0 for 9 on third down conversions. The defensive side of the ball is where the most work needs to be done by getting back to fundamental football.
New England has some time off before their next game on June 25th against the Chicago Bliss. This gives them an opportunity to improve technically and work on some of the issues that have plagued them through the first two games. This will be the ultimate test of will for the Liberty. Do they choose to pack it in and become the Omaha of 2016, or rise to the occasion and play spoiler for the rest of the Eastern Conference. Only time will tell…
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