BB: CCIW: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

I want to preface this comment by saying I believe Luke Johnson should be the COY more so than Dennis Martel, and that I think the coaches will probably vote for the two men to share the honor.

That being said, to base the job a coach did on their preseason ranking as voted on by the coaches is silly to me.

Why is it silly? You give no reason as to why there should be a discontinuity between the preseason poll and the COY award. Who votes in the preseason poll? The CCIW's head coaches. Who votes for the COY award? The CCIW's head coaches. Same constituency.

I think most people would agree that IWU was voted to win the conference based simply on the fact that they were National Champions last year.

Why should the coaches' reasons behind their preseason votes matter? The poll is what it is. Regardless of their rationale(s), the CCIW's head coaches selected IWU to win the CCIW title in 2011.

In looking at their roster turnover, of their top 5 pitchers in terms of innings, Pankau is the only returning pitcher. Their top 4 hitters in the lineup were either not on the team last year or played a very limited role.

Again, it's irrelevant with regard to how the coaches view it, because they've already spoken to this point by selecting IWU first. If they had agreed with you that the Titans had been hollowed out by graduation, would they have picked them to finish first in the league? Sure doesn't seem like it to me. And, as for overcoming the loss of key contributors from last season, Viking Blue has already spelled out in detail how North Park has had to compensate for the untimely loss of Mike Giovenco, Ryan Javech, and Alex Silverthorne.

In my opinion, this is the best coaching job Martel has done in the 12 years that I have been following IWU baseball.

In my opinion, this is the best coaching job any Vikings baseball coach has done in the 32 years that I have been following NPU baseball.

And I say that while mindful of the fact that Bosko Djurickovic had some really, really good years helming the Vikings back in the '80s and early '90s.

In 2006, Luke did win Coach of the Year after finishing in a tie for fourth (with an 8-13 record).

That's already been established. Are you insinuating that he therefore doesn't deserve another one?

Maybe I am reading the previous posts incorrect or just interrupting them in a way to create conflict (I have been known to do this over my life and for that i apologize)

Why apologize? Arguments are what makes these rooms fun.

, but this notion that North Park would have been shorted in the event that Luke is not COY just seems like whining.

Not whining so much as really, really angry complaining about an injustice.

He has done great things with that program and has done something this year that Coach Wallace has never been able to do at Augustana and that is win a conference championship.

... and, given how many good teams Augie has had during Wallace's tenure, that certainly puzzles me. After all, you'd think that a coach whose teams have won 30 or more games seven times over his thirteen-year tenure would've won the title at least once.

[Gregory Sager]

Trevor Popp was named Male Athlete of the Year.

Congrats to Trevor. Winning NPU Male Athlete of the Year was a significant accomplishment in 2010-11, as one of the other three contenders, Lars Tenglin, has a very good shot at winning a Walnut and Bronze in the javelin at the D3 national track & field championships later this month. Tenglin is the only three-time CCIW javelin champion in league history, and he owns the league's record distance as well. Beating him out for Male Athlete of the Year speaks well of Trevor Popp's body of work in four years as a North Park baseball player.

[Viking Blue]

I want to preface this comment by saying I believe Luke Johnson should be the COY more so than Dennis Martel, and that I think the coaches will probably vote for the two men to share the honor.

That being said, to base the job a coach did on their preseason ranking as voted on by the coaches is silly to me.

Why is it silly? You give no reason as to why there should be a discontinuity between the preseason poll and the COY award. Who votes in the preseason poll? The CCIW's head coaches. Who votes for the COY award? The CCIW's head coaches. Same constituency.

I think most people would agree that IWU was voted to win the conference based simply on the fact that they were National Champions last year.

Why should the coaches' reasons behind their preseason votes matter? The poll is what it is. Regardless of their rationale(s), the CCIW's head coaches selected IWU to win the CCIW title in 2011.

In looking at their roster turnover, of their top 5 pitchers in terms of innings, Pankau is the only returning pitcher. Their top 4 hitters in the lineup were either not on the team last year or played a very limited role.

Again, it's irrelevant with regard to how the coaches view it, because they've already spoken to this point by selecting IWU first. If they had agreed with you that the Titans had been hollowed out by graduation, would they have picked them to finish first in the league? Sure doesn't seem like it to me. And, as for overcoming the loss of key contributors from last season, Viking Blue has already spelled out in detail how North Park has had to compensate for the untimely loss of Mike Giovenco, Ryan Javech, and Alex Silverthorne.

In my opinion, this is the best coaching job Martel has done in the 12 years that I have been following IWU baseball.

In my opinion, this is the best coaching job any Vikings baseball coach has done in the 32 years that I have been following NPU baseball.

And I say that while mindful of the fact that Bosko Djurickovic had some really, really good years helming the Vikings back in the '80s and early '90s.

In 2006, Luke did win Coach of the Year after finishing in a tie for fourth (with an 8-13 record).

That's already been established. Are you insinuating that he therefore doesn't deserve another one?

Maybe I am reading the previous posts incorrect or just interrupting them in a way to create conflict (I have been known to do this over my life and for that i apologize)

Why apologize? Arguments are what makes these rooms fun.

, but this notion that North Park would have been shorted in the event that Luke is not COY just seems like whining.

Not whining so much as really, really angry complaining about an injustice.

He has done great things with that program and has done something this year that Coach Wallace has never been able to do at Augustana and that is win a conference championship.

... and, given how many good teams Augie has had during Wallace's tenure, that certainly puzzles me. After all, you'd think that a coach whose teams have won 30 or more games seven times over his thirteen-year tenure would've won the title at least once.

Yeah, what he said.

[Mr. Ypsi]

My apologies to Viking Blue and Greg (and any other NPU supporters who might have taken offense) for saying Luke Johnson deserved the COY for bringing "a dormant team back to life".  I realize now that he already did that some years ago; but I wasn't paying attention.  When IWU went 20-1, once they swept Carthage I hardly paid attention to who else had a winning record as it was all over.  Last season I well remember that IWU finished fourth, but was so shell-shocked when they won the CWS I could not even recall who finished above them.  I'm fairly new to CCIW baseball and did not do my historical homework - again my apologies for any offense I may have inadvertantly given.

Greg, I thought you were a bit unfair to FAN6 in your reply to the fifth quote.  In his very first sentence he said he thought Luke Johnson deserved COY MORE than Dennis Martel, so why the snide: "...insinuating that he therefore doesn't deserve another one."?

I, for one, would be perfectly happy with Johnson, Martel, or (especially) both as COY.

[Gregory Sager]

My apologies to Viking Blue and Greg (and any other NPU supporters who might have taken offense) for saying Luke Johnson deserved the COY for bringing "a dormant team back to life".  I realize now that he already did that some years ago; but I wasn't paying attention.  When IWU went 20-1, once they swept Carthage I hardly paid attention to who else had a winning record as it was all over.  Last season I well remember that IWU finished fourth, but was so shell-shocked when they won the CWS I could not even recall who finished above them.  I'm fairly new to CCIW baseball and did not do my historical homework - again my apologies for any offense I may have inadvertantly given.

No problem, Chuck.

Greg, I thought you were a bit unfair to FAN6 in your reply to the fifth quote.  In his very first sentence he said he thought Luke Johnson deserved COY MORE than Dennis Martel, so why the snide: "...insinuating that he therefore doesn't deserve another one."?

I didn't really intend any offense by it. I'm just puzzled as to why he brought up that previous COY award of Luke Johnson's, since both Viking Blue and I had already made mention of it. The only reason I can fathom behind his bringing it up yet again is that he's trying to make some sort of point about the worthiness (or lack thereof) of Luke's having won it in 2006 in spite of NPU's rather pedestrian fourth-place-tie finish that year. In other words, is he saying that this year -- in which, by his own admission, Luke deserves the award -- is offset by 2006, when he didn't deserve to win it?

I'm just trying to figure out what he's getting at.

[79jaybird]

Congrats to my good friend/teammate Luke and his NPU squad. Well deserved honor and great to see Luke putting the pride back in NPU.  I talked to Luke yesterday and COY awards aren't his main focus or importance.  Winning ball games by playing fundamentally sound and getting into the post season is his #1 goal.

[Viking Blue]

Congrats to my good friend/teammate Luke and his NPU squad. Well deserved honor and great to see Luke putting the pride back in NPU.  I talked to Luke yesterday and COY awards aren't his main focus or importance.  Winning ball games by playing fundamentally sound and getting into the post season is his #1 goal.

I wouldn't be making an argument for him as COY if I thought that was his main focus.

[BigPoppa]

Just prior to him landing at NPU, Luke and I coached a team of midwest kids against teams in the Dominican Republic. It was a great week of baseball and I knew within minutes of meeting him that he was going to be a great head coach once he got in the door somewhere. Single-minded focus on the field and very introspective off it. We spent most of the week picking each other's brains about the game and sharing CCIW stories. We missed playing against each other by a few seasons.

If, in fact, he gets the CCIW coach of the year, it is very well-deserved, but I would not expect this to be his last one.

[mr_b]

When are all the awards announced?  Right after the CCIW Tournament?

[BigPoppa]

When are all the awards announced?  Right after the CCIW Tournament?

I think the coaches meet the tuesday after the CCIW tourney.

[Dennis_Prikkel]

wonderful photo on north park's facebook page of the senior members of the baseball team receiving their diplomas in a special ceremony yesterday afternoon.  a very nice gesture by the school for the players and their families.

[mr_b]

wonderful photo on north park's facebook page of the senior members of the baseball team receiving their diplomas in a special ceremony yesterday afternoon.  a very nice gesture by the school for the players and their families.

It was a very nice gesture indeed.  Each student-athlete was applauded as he received his diploma, and there were many photo ops during and after the ceremony.

[Gregory Sager]

The great part about the picture on Facebook is that they're all wearing their North Park baseball caps, rather than their mortarboards, with their gowns.

[mr_b]

The great part about the picture on Facebook is that they're all wearing their North Park baseball caps, rather than their mortarboards, with their gowns.

They all wore traditional mortarboards until after the ceremony, but the caps were a nice touch afterwards.

My blue cap clashed with my burgundy gown, but I didn't mind

[CCIWFAN6]

The comment about Luke winning the COY in 2006 with an 8-13 and a tie for 4th place was intended to show that he won the award with a very mediocre season.  Off of the top of my head (not really wanting to try and look back), I do not recall any outrage for him winning.  Obviously, it was a dramatic improvement from the previous season, but I still think it was a mediocre season. 

In regards to the CCIW preseason coaches poll, I do not think that the coaches put that much thought into it.  I have had an opportunity to talk to a couple of the coaches in the league and they have said they typically go off of history. Why in the world would the coaches pick a team that finished fourth in the conference the previous year, go into the conference tournament with a 19-19 record, and lost 4 of their top 5 pitchers, to win the conference in the preseason poll if they really looked at the teams closely?