BB: NWC: Northwest Conference

[NWBaseballFan10]

Scheibe = Beast

Majors kudos to Scheibe this afternoon.

[wildcat11]

Scheibe = Beast

Majors kudos to Scheibe this afternoon.

Just gotta tip my cap to that effort. Damn....

[Jack Parkman]

Wow, that is impressive. Nothing you can do, if you are Linfield, but tip your cap. The best thing for a team like Linfield (if they go 0-2) is there are more games next weekend.

[NWBaseballFan10]

Nice bounce back this morning by the Cats. Complete game shutout for Thomassen (his 3rd straight CG) after missing the last 2 weekends. It's nice to have him back.

Cats await loser of Whitworth/PLU now...my guess is they get a rematch with the Pirates this evening. PLU still the favorite thanks to their pitching depth and surge in offense of late.

[NWBaseballFan10]

Cats await loser of Whitworth/PLU now...my guess is they get a rematch with the Pirates this evening. PLU still the favorite thanks to their pitching depth and surge in offense of late.

HA! I'm as good at picking these games as I am at bowl games and March Madness

Another strong pitching performance from Whitworth this time by the lefty Ansett. Whitworth can really shake things up in the NWC and the West with a victory tomorrow...

[wildcat11]

'Cats and Lutes all tied up at 6 in the 8th inning.

[NWBaseballFan10]

Well it looks like I will be a PLU fan tomorrow  ...A Whitworth victory tomorrow would likely be the nail in the coffin for the Cats' playoff chances. 4 errors and 9 walks is not a playoff-caliber performance.

[Westside]

Whitworth puts a 4 spot on PLU in the first inning.

A Whitworth win would completely change the West Region outlook.

[Jack Parkman]

Whitworth puts a 4 spot on PLU in the first inning.

A Whitworth win would completely change the West Region outlook.

Agreed.  I would figure it ends up something like this (not seeded this way, just numbered):

1. Whitworth
2. PLU
3. SCAC Winner
4. ASC Winner
5. SCIAC Winner
6. Pool C possible from the SCIAC or ASC or neither gets a pool C and they fly someone in.

[(509)Rat]

The best thing for a team like Linfield (if they go 0-2) is there are more games next weekend.

[Jack Parkman]

The best thing for a team like Linfield (if they go 0-2) is there are more games next weekend.

Yep, I think that goes out the window with Whitworth winning the NWC Tourney.  Unless PLU loses their next 3 and Linfield wins out, I don't see any way Whitworth and PLU aren't the only 2 that go to regionals.  One thing I do know, anyone facing Whitworth in game 1 is in for a tough assignment.

[wildcat11]

The best thing for a team like Linfield (if they go 0-2) is there are more games next weekend.

Yep, I think that goes out the window with Whitworth winning the NWC Tourney.  Unless PLU loses their next 3 and Linfield wins out, I don't see any way Whitworth and PLU aren't the only 2 that go to regionals.  One thing I do know, anyone facing Whitworth in game 1 is in for a tough assignment.

Agreed...this weekend was one of the reasons i'm against the conference tourney. All of the work of the season gone is a puff of smoke this weekend.

However, i also saw the other side of the coin with Linfield softball being the 4 seed in the nwc tournament and winning the auto bid by taking the tourney.

Good luck to both Whitworth and PLU

[Westside]

I agree Linfield is likely done. But if there is ever a year that the NWC is shown some love, it is this year. The NWC has sent a team to the CWS for three straight years, so their national resume is solid. They have three teams that are deserving to make the regional. It seems crazy that Linfield would all of a sudden not be a regional team after beating Fox, then losing 2-0 and 7-6 to two teams that will make the regional.

I agree they won't send 3 NWC teams to the West Region, but I think there is still an outside chance that Linfield could get shipped off to another regional. And we know it can be done. Just last year, UW-Steven's Point was shipped to the West Region and they were the 3rd team from the WIAC to make a regional.

So there is still a sliver of hope, albeit a very small sliver.

[WestisBest]

It's funny, the outcome of the tournament is exactly why I'm in favor of the tournament.

If this was a season in which one team clearly separated itself from the rest of the conference, I'd probably feel differently.  But this year, there was really not too much to separate Whitworth, PLU or Linfield.  Whitworth was the hot team at the right time. Linfield wasn't good enough when it mattered.

It'll be instructive to see how the NCAA tournament committee views PLU and Linfield. Now that the NWC has the postseason tourney to determine the automatic qualifier, when it comes to assessing a second conference bid, will the NCAA give more weight to the regular-season conference champion (PLU)? Or will it give more weight to a team's out-of-conference record (Linfield)? If neither PLU nor Linfield get a Pool C bid, it'll be clear evidence the NCAA places an undo value on the postseason tournament.

[wildcat11]

will the NCAA give more weight to the regular-season conference champion (PLU)? Or will it give more weight to a team's out-of-conference record (Linfield)? If neither PLU nor Linfield get a Pool C bid, it'll be clear evidence the NCAA places an undo value on the postseason tournament.

I think the NCAA will put more weight on PLU's head-to-head advantage and regular season title.  If they take a 2nd NWC team, it will be PLU.  Like Westside said...there is still an outside chance Linfield gets in and shipped to a different region but I'm not holding my breath.