Colorado State University Athletics
Break Between Matches was Anything but for Rams
9/21/2021 10:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Hagen used time to reinstruct heading into conference play
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – For most teams, there would have been another game. But circumstances – namely the timing of Keeley Hagen's hire during the summer – added obstacles out of her control when it came to building a schedule for the upcoming season.
A 12-day layoff might not be viewed as ideal heading into Mountain West play, but Hagen and her staff found a way to turn it into a positive.
They went to work. With five matches of film to dissect where the Rams had excelled and where more polish was needed, the time off was anything but a bye.
"I think again, we've been able to pinpoint just the processes in order to help us get better in the things we need to get better and the things we need to get better in the game, but also prepare us for conference," Hagen said. "If we would have had a game this weekend, we're still preparing for conference, but now we can take a fine-tooth comb through it and pinpoint what we need to do."
She likes to quote legendary coach John Wooden on "repetition, repetition, repetition," which is exactly what her Colorado State soccer team received over the span. It allowed her and the staff to push the team hard, but also give them time to taper heading into conference home matches with San Diego State (Thursday, 4 p.m.) and New Mexico (Sunday, 1 p.m.). The focus was on speed of play, speed of thought, exactly what can be attained with added practice time.
Coming off a win – a big win at that – makes the teaching process much easier. When a team can play quicker by reacting to the action instead of thinking about the next step, the flow can improve dramatically, so the Rams set out to improve their reaction time piece by piece.
"She definitely emphasizes that and giving us options as a defense," Baylee Bedard said. "Basically, our midfield needs to move for the defense to be able to have a person to pass to. Working on defense to offense transition, we did a lot of that and focusing on what do you do when you get the ball and what is your best option. There are fail-safe options for us to play the ball and have a really good option.
"It made us realize we're struggling in these areas, and we actually had time to work on it. With a game coming up, you have maybe two days to work on it fully in practice and then you have to play. We had time to focus on defensively this is what we need to, everybody get reps defensively. Now, move to midfield, everybody get reps in midfield, then forward. We were able to slow things down and work on things that we really needed to work on, and a lot of teams don't have time to work on that."
There wasn't a whole lot new to it, just the approach to get even better at the things they have been working on consistently. Bedard looked around the country and saw other teams playing, and yes, part of her wishes the Rams did, too. But she also saw the benefits first hand of what a 12-day training camp in midseason could really mean to the team heading into the most important portion of their schedule.
They sit 1-2-2 overall, but all of their real goals can be achieved through winning conference matches. Hagen has been seeing progress, as evidenced in the record-setting six-goal outburst in the win over Idaho State which preceded the break in match play. Even with the progress the team has shown, there was still instruction she wanted to give, and the opportunity fell at a really good time.
They're all getting better, but even better can be improved.
"I think everyone has across the board. Our backs are getting so much better in their footwork; it's becoming more natural now," Hagen said. "They're understanding how to read the game quicker, which is great. Our attackers are understanding the importance of focusing on getting shots on goal, and not just shooting the ball, but being intentional about where you're placing it.
"When we did this in preseason, they're hearing this for the first time after coming off a three-month break. Now we just continue to train those. Kristen Noonan is hitting the face, Gracie Armstrong is hitting the face -- our front five are now hitting the face of the goal and being focused on how we find the corners. I feel they've been so much more intentional because of the repetition."
It was all work, but even a bit of fun could be mixed into the equation. Again, that fun also held a more central purpose.
They called it "combat," and the mere mention of it brought a smile to Kaitlyn Abrams face. The team didn't wear normal practice jerseys those sessions, but instead old T-shirts, because the team didn't want to ruin any gear. In drills they were allowed to get physical, much more so than what would be allowed in a game. Much more.
"Haylee Blach and I had a wrestling match. It was fun though," Abrams said. "It ended, time was up, and we were still on the ground and the ball was a few feet away of us. The goal was to get the ball from our opponent, and out there, you get angry and you want to win. I think all of us just get feisty out there."
Had it been a match, officials would have run out of red cards. Bedard said she went up against a couple of smaller teammates, so she just lifted them up and threw them to the ground. Not allowed in a match, but all was fair game in combat.
She knew what the underlying meaning was from Hagen: To be and play aggressive. To be relentless, but also to have fun doing it, and to be prepared for when a match starts to reach a physical level and be mentally set for it to happen.
"It gave us an opportunity to be really physical and aggressive and beat each other up, basically, so our practice would be harder than a game," Bedard said. "I don't think a lot of teams practice that way. When you get to a game, you want it to be easier, and I think that was her mentality with it. Let's practice and go as hard as you want, as hard as you can, and a game will be easier. You don't always get the call in the game. Sometimes things don't get called."
It was anything but a break for the team. It gave them a chance to go back to the beginning for a refresher course in what Hagen and her staff initially brought to the table. The opportunity was there to clean up some things, smooth out some others and make adjustments to what they've seen in practice, and more importantly, in matches.
The ability to go hard for an extended period of time, then ease back for conference play was welcomed, and being able to do it coming off the high of their first win was found to be a perfect blend for a team still forming in Hagen's mold.
"It gives us time to go back to the basics of who we are and what we're going to do," Abrams said. "In training, it's the little things – our touch, just clean, solid passes. The speed of thought, that's' what we work on, and we get there by repetition and doing those things every day. It's not just repetition, doing it to do it, it's how you're going to do it in a game and with your max effort into every run, every pass, everything.
"We took from our last game, and then we're building upon it. What we can alter and change just to be that much better. It was a pause to have any alterations and work on who we are and what we're doing."
Having gone through combat, the Rams feel they're even more prepared for Mountain West play.
A 12-day layoff might not be viewed as ideal heading into Mountain West play, but Hagen and her staff found a way to turn it into a positive.
They went to work. With five matches of film to dissect where the Rams had excelled and where more polish was needed, the time off was anything but a bye.
"I think again, we've been able to pinpoint just the processes in order to help us get better in the things we need to get better and the things we need to get better in the game, but also prepare us for conference," Hagen said. "If we would have had a game this weekend, we're still preparing for conference, but now we can take a fine-tooth comb through it and pinpoint what we need to do."
She likes to quote legendary coach John Wooden on "repetition, repetition, repetition," which is exactly what her Colorado State soccer team received over the span. It allowed her and the staff to push the team hard, but also give them time to taper heading into conference home matches with San Diego State (Thursday, 4 p.m.) and New Mexico (Sunday, 1 p.m.). The focus was on speed of play, speed of thought, exactly what can be attained with added practice time.
Coming off a win – a big win at that – makes the teaching process much easier. When a team can play quicker by reacting to the action instead of thinking about the next step, the flow can improve dramatically, so the Rams set out to improve their reaction time piece by piece.
"She definitely emphasizes that and giving us options as a defense," Baylee Bedard said. "Basically, our midfield needs to move for the defense to be able to have a person to pass to. Working on defense to offense transition, we did a lot of that and focusing on what do you do when you get the ball and what is your best option. There are fail-safe options for us to play the ball and have a really good option.
"It made us realize we're struggling in these areas, and we actually had time to work on it. With a game coming up, you have maybe two days to work on it fully in practice and then you have to play. We had time to focus on defensively this is what we need to, everybody get reps defensively. Now, move to midfield, everybody get reps in midfield, then forward. We were able to slow things down and work on things that we really needed to work on, and a lot of teams don't have time to work on that."
There wasn't a whole lot new to it, just the approach to get even better at the things they have been working on consistently. Bedard looked around the country and saw other teams playing, and yes, part of her wishes the Rams did, too. But she also saw the benefits first hand of what a 12-day training camp in midseason could really mean to the team heading into the most important portion of their schedule.
They sit 1-2-2 overall, but all of their real goals can be achieved through winning conference matches. Hagen has been seeing progress, as evidenced in the record-setting six-goal outburst in the win over Idaho State which preceded the break in match play. Even with the progress the team has shown, there was still instruction she wanted to give, and the opportunity fell at a really good time.
They're all getting better, but even better can be improved.
"I think everyone has across the board. Our backs are getting so much better in their footwork; it's becoming more natural now," Hagen said. "They're understanding how to read the game quicker, which is great. Our attackers are understanding the importance of focusing on getting shots on goal, and not just shooting the ball, but being intentional about where you're placing it.
"When we did this in preseason, they're hearing this for the first time after coming off a three-month break. Now we just continue to train those. Kristen Noonan is hitting the face, Gracie Armstrong is hitting the face -- our front five are now hitting the face of the goal and being focused on how we find the corners. I feel they've been so much more intentional because of the repetition."
It was all work, but even a bit of fun could be mixed into the equation. Again, that fun also held a more central purpose.
They called it "combat," and the mere mention of it brought a smile to Kaitlyn Abrams face. The team didn't wear normal practice jerseys those sessions, but instead old T-shirts, because the team didn't want to ruin any gear. In drills they were allowed to get physical, much more so than what would be allowed in a game. Much more.
"Haylee Blach and I had a wrestling match. It was fun though," Abrams said. "It ended, time was up, and we were still on the ground and the ball was a few feet away of us. The goal was to get the ball from our opponent, and out there, you get angry and you want to win. I think all of us just get feisty out there."
Had it been a match, officials would have run out of red cards. Bedard said she went up against a couple of smaller teammates, so she just lifted them up and threw them to the ground. Not allowed in a match, but all was fair game in combat.
She knew what the underlying meaning was from Hagen: To be and play aggressive. To be relentless, but also to have fun doing it, and to be prepared for when a match starts to reach a physical level and be mentally set for it to happen.
"It gave us an opportunity to be really physical and aggressive and beat each other up, basically, so our practice would be harder than a game," Bedard said. "I don't think a lot of teams practice that way. When you get to a game, you want it to be easier, and I think that was her mentality with it. Let's practice and go as hard as you want, as hard as you can, and a game will be easier. You don't always get the call in the game. Sometimes things don't get called."
It was anything but a break for the team. It gave them a chance to go back to the beginning for a refresher course in what Hagen and her staff initially brought to the table. The opportunity was there to clean up some things, smooth out some others and make adjustments to what they've seen in practice, and more importantly, in matches.
The ability to go hard for an extended period of time, then ease back for conference play was welcomed, and being able to do it coming off the high of their first win was found to be a perfect blend for a team still forming in Hagen's mold.
"It gives us time to go back to the basics of who we are and what we're going to do," Abrams said. "In training, it's the little things – our touch, just clean, solid passes. The speed of thought, that's' what we work on, and we get there by repetition and doing those things every day. It's not just repetition, doing it to do it, it's how you're going to do it in a game and with your max effort into every run, every pass, everything.
"We took from our last game, and then we're building upon it. What we can alter and change just to be that much better. It was a pause to have any alterations and work on who we are and what we're doing."
Having gone through combat, the Rams feel they're even more prepared for Mountain West play.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Soccer2025 Soccer Experience
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