BB: ODAC: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

[hasanova]

Quakers improved to 12-8 yesterday with a 14-0 (mercifully) rain-shortened win over Ferrum.  ODAC play resumes Saturday with a trip to W&L.

[LTBB1971]

VWC finally gets back in the win column with 4-3 win over Methodist in Norfolk, VA.  Seems like the only team they have had success against.  Pitching held their own giving up only 2 ER.  Guy that really impresses me continues to be SR transfer Anthony Siracusa 1B/P and FR 3B Alex Lambert.  Good job on coach Booth recruiting both of them.  Siracusa has a 1.99 ERA and is hitting .545 at the plate!!!  Problem is not much else has gone right for VA Wesleyan.

[hasanova]

Tufts blocked the Guilford extra point and put a "jumbo"-sized defeat on the Quakers today in Greensboro, 24-6.  All kidding aside, the Jumbos beat W&L in Lexington yesterday, 18-4, and must have some great hitters.  They're 3-0 and on a lengthy southern road trip, so watch out!

[LTBB1971]

VWC barely gets a split with Roanoke 1-10 and 8-7.  Really can't believe what's happened to the Marlins last 2 years as this program has derailed from the top of the ODAC.  Starting Justin Payne in game 1 I thought was the correct move as he has shown flashes of a good pitcher.  Game was over in 2 innings as the Maroons jumped on VWC early.

Game 2 saw VWC get down 4-0 again before they could blink but 4 9th inning runs made it a great comeback for Coach Boothe squad.  Not sure why Anthony Siracusa didn't pitch game 1 or 2 as he has been their best starter.

No light at the end of tunnel as VWC has next few vs very good Averett, Lynchburg, Tufts and Salisbury teams.

[VTHokie22]

VWC barely gets a split with Roanoke 1-10 and 8-7.  Really can't believe what's happened to the Marlins last 2 years as this program has derailed from the top of the ODAC.  Starting Justin Payne in game 1 I thought was the correct move as he has shown flashes of a good pitcher.  Game was over in 2 innings as the Maroons jumped on VWC early.

Game 2 saw VWC get down 4-0 again before they could blink but 4 9th inning runs made it a great comeback for Coach Boothe squad.  Not sure why Anthony Siracusa didn't pitch game 1 or 2 as he has been their best starter.

No light at the end of tunnel as VWC has next few vs very good Averett, Lynchburg, Tufts and Salisbury teams.

I spoke with some friends about these games and was glad to hear Roanoke was able to split. After just finishing my four years there it's good to see that they have started to get the talent to play with some ODAC and usas schools. I thin they just need some coaching changes and they will be good to go.

I hope to see two unfamiliar teams in the tournament this year, Roanoke and E&H. This is probably very wishful thinking though :-)

Is it true that vwc lost some seniors bc of coaches? Or is that just some false rumor?

[narch]

now that emu is 22 games into the season, i'd like to see what the emu fans or posters with knowledge of the emu program think...and i'm not trying to be an arse...i legitimately want to see if the vibe about the new coaching staff is still positive despite less than spectacular results - 7-15 (.318) is around where they've been for most of the last decade, but looking at their remaining schedule, it's hard to project more than 3 or 4 more wins - are they playing better, but still losing? i noted a number of close losses to solid teams...

[Will2Win]

Overall, I still think they are better now than they have been the last 3-4 years. The brand of baseball they play now compared to years past is like night and day. They're aggressive on the bases and they can swing it relatively well. A few things I have noticed that hasn't changed are pitching and defense.They could be a lot better defensively, particularly in the infield, if they just moved their feet. Too many times i've seen them caught flat footed or not moving their feet at all. Not getting around the baseball which would allow them to put their bodies in position to make a play after the ball is fielded (that's half the battle)...So I suppose there is still a bit of coaching that could be done, but all in all I think the coaching staff has done well with what they have. Another area of concern is the pitching staff...you're not going to beat too many teams with a team e.r.a. floating around 6.00...which is how it's been for the last 4-6 years. Not to take anything away from the kids currently on the roster (as i'm friends with a few of them), but keep in mind Coach Stu is doing this with players he inherited from Mace...I'm anxious to see what kind of ball players he brings in, if he is given the chance. That's when you're really going to be able to gauge how successful he is. They're still 2-3 years away from being able to compete in the ODAC and have a +.500 winning % IMHO.

[LTBB1971]

I'm going to side with Bossman BUT they were 6-7 before the current slide (lost 9 of last 10).  Pitching from what I have seen has been BAD...BAD...BAD...EMU's guys are definitively not hitting their spots.  The weekend starters have ERA's of 7.36 and 9.00.  That's not going to get it done.  I hope this weekend at Guilford, they throw JR Casey Harlow and maybe SR Beau Benglesdorf...just need some change to get something going. 

Offensively they have been much better than I though but defense is hurting them as well.  37 errors in 23 games is very poor.  Coach Stu is still the guy to get it done I believe if given a chance as with next year recruiting class we should see his style of players.

[LTBB1971]

EMU finally comes thru!  Monkey is off the back...won a sluggfest 17-13 vs Southern Virginia (10-13).  Same usual story as offense pounds 18 hits but 6...yes I said 6 errors and poor pitching keep SVU in the game.  Hampden Sydney Saturday is going to be no easy task.  At least game is at home.  Sitting dead last in the ODAC, if there is any chance the Royals will make the tournament, they will need a sweep this weekend.

[wasper68]

Congrats to the EHC baseball team on making the conference tourney after being picked last in the preseason poll.

[rolln2]

ODAC followers and other south board followers.  The question of the day is.  If Lynchburg does not win the championship game today.  Does the ODAC get two teams into the south region?  Both Bridgewater and Lynchburg.

[Boysofsummer21]

IMO no as neither team has the SoS really to strenghten their bid. I think the ODAC is a Pool A bid only no matter who wins the championship. The reason is if Lynchburg looses then they get compared to Shenandoah and SU wins that one evrytime.

[gr8day4bsbll]

Well, it doesn't matter now...Lynchburg captures the ODAC title beating Bridgewater 2-1 behind another complete game from Senior pitcher Robert Garrett (his second complete game of the tournament).  Lynchburg's pitching was dominant, giving up a total of 3 runs in 4 games in the ODAC tournament, with the starters pitching 34 of 36 innings.  The Hornet bats weren't as vocal as they have been all season, but they were vocal enough when it counted, and the Hornets win the ODAC in style, finishing the conference season with a 34-8 record and setting a Lynchburg school record for most wins in a season.

As for Bridgewater, I don't see how they get a pool C bid with 14 losses and not ranked in top 6 in the region.

[LTBB1971]

At 30-14 and 12-6 in Conference, I believe Bridgewater still strong enough to get in.  They have quality wins vs Cortland St. (4-1), Thomas More (8-4), Husson (3-1), CNU (13-12), and Catholic (15-2).

[Ralph Turner]

At 30-14 and 12-6 in Conference, I believe Bridgewater still strong enough to get in.  They have quality wins vs Cortland St. (4-1), Thomas More (8-4), Husson (3-1), CNU (13-12), and Catholic (15-2).

SOUTH (Regional Rankings April 27th)

   
  Rank School                           In-Region Record      Overall Record   
  1     Christopher Newport          21-7                      30-7                Pool A
  2     Birmingham Southern          31-7                      31-7               Pool A
  3     Salisbury                          25-6                      29-7               Pool A
  4     Shenandoah                      24-8                      27-10             Pool C
  5     Lynchburg                         26-7                      30-8              Pool A
  6     Huntingdon                       21-11                      26-11            Pool B/C


The problem LTHSdad is that Bridgewater is already behind 2 schools. If Huntingdon is not taken as a Pool B, then they are re-considered as a Pool C bid.

IMHO Bridgewater is way out on the bubble.
Cortland is not "in-regon".  None of the other strong wins (except that game against CNU) is in primary criteria.

You are only 1-4 versus regionally ranked teams.