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Swansea City and Chivas Guadalajara tie

By WTOP Staff

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The friendly between Swansea City and Chivas Guadalajara turned out to be a bit more edgy.

Giovani Hernandez scored on a penalty kick in the 90th minute, lifting Chivas into a 1-1 tie with Swansea in the first professional soccer game at Miller Park on Wednesday night.

A player from each team was ejected. Four players received yellow cards and 23 fouls were called.

“There’s no such thing as a friendly, is there?” Swansea head coach Garry Monk said, laughing. “It was good for us.”

Swansea scored first in the exhibition match when Nathan Dyer controlled a cross from Marvin Emnes in the 57th minute and shot past goalkeeper Luis Ernesto Michel and inside the far post from 15 yards. The Swans lost Neil Taylor and Chivas saw Jesus Sanchez ejected in the 80th minute for a shoving incident.

Chivas forward Carlos Fierro was pulled down in the penalty box in the 90th minute. Goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel anticipated the kick going to his left, but Hernandez blasted the ball behind him.

“It’s frustrating when you see a goal right at the end of the game,” Swansea midfielder Leon Britton said. “It’s a friendly match and these things happen and you have to get on with it.”

It was the third of four friendlies for Chivas, which opens the regular season in the MX Liga on Sunday.

“I certainly don’t like things to be chippy,” Chivas head coach Carlos Bustos said through an interpreter. “The chippiness really just happened because the other team is certainly more physical. They play in a very physical league. That’s the English Premier League.”

It was Swansea’s first preseason game of a North American tour. The Swans begin the regular season in August.

“Obviously, Chivas were a little bit further ahead of us in terms of their preseason,” Monk said. “We’ve only been doing it for a week and a half in terms of our preseason.”

The Milwaukee Brewers converted their infield and outfield into a pitch approved by Major League Soccer. It stretched between the warning track in left field and the first base line.

Neither team had trouble with the footing despite the pitcher’s mound and a layer of the dirt infield being removed and covered with sod.

The field was 109 yards long, but only 66 wide instead of the usual 70 to 80 yards for an exhibition game.

In order to compensate for the narrower pitch, Monk said the Swans practiced on a field with the same dimensions.

“I thought the pitch was very, very good, considering it’s not a football pitch,” Monk said. “The work they had done on it in such a short space of time, all in all, it played very, very well.”

Bustos said the shorter width really didn’t matter.

“It certainly was a more narrow pitch, but it really didn’t matter to us in the end,” he said. “It didn’t lead to any tactical changes or anything.”

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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