BB: CCIW: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

I think UW-Lacrosse is the team to beat in the regional, but it's loaded.  Greg, if you're going to be there, let me know.  I might leave work early to see a game or two.

I'll probably get to the UWW ballpark sometime in the middle of the St. Thomas vs. St. Norbert game, which precedes the NPU vs. St. Scholastica game.

(Given the lineup of teams in this regional, perhaps I should start referring to my alma mater as St. North Park, or as UWNPU. )

Hopefully North Park can continue their recent good play as they face a tough St. Scholastica team.  They are currently 3rd in the nation in team batting average.  One kid is actually hitting .459 on the season!!   

I think UW-Lacrosse is the team to beat in the regional, but it's loaded.  Greg, if you're going to be there, let me know.  I might leave work early to see a game or two.

For a team to go 21-0 in their conference like Scholastica did, you sure have to wonder about the quality of opponents they face.  I'm certain they have some good players, but wonder how battle tested they will be (especially in an 8-team regional).

Along those lines, check out the season standings in the UMAC:

St. Scholastica	21-0	33-9
Bethany Lutheran	14-5	22-17
Northwestern	14-6	25-16
Northland	9-12	16-25
Presentation	9-12	13-24
Martin Luther	7-14	8-22
Minnesota-Morris	6-13	6-30
Crown	2-19	3-23

Food for thought.

Catchers always seem to stick up for one another. Catchers must be like the Marines -- you're never an ex-catcher, just a retired one.

There is some truth to that.  But try doing up downs for 8 innings and then see how much bat speed you have left in that critical moment in the 9th.    

Plus, we have to deal with pitchers more than anyone, which, as most know, are a weird breed anyway.....

Fire away.

I'd consider what you just said catchers do, and then ask yourself....who's the weird one?

In case you haven't figured it out, Viking Blue was a pitcher.

Nope. Sanchez beat Nathan in almost every non-counting-stat hitting category, and he beat him in most counting-stat categories as well -- in spite of the fact that the Titans have played three more games to date than the Vikings. And are you really serious about Sanchez and CCIW baserunners, or is the smiley indicating that you're not? 'cause only seven CCIW baserunners even tried to run on Sanchez (and, thus, NPU). That's less than half of what each other team in the league had to face in terms of attempted steals.

I realize that Sanchez and Nathan are different types of hitters; Nathan's a table-setter, while Sanchez is a run-producer. But Sanchez basically had to function as NPU's only legitimate power threat this year due to Brad Medina's struggles at the plate. For him to thrive in a situation in which he hardly ever got to see a serious fastball due to the lack of protection behind him in the lineup is a testament to his ability as a hitter.

I am a little late to the conversation, but are we talking about all game stats or conference stats?

Both. Sanchez dominated the overall stats. The CCIW stats were split, with Nathan winning the on-base stats and Sanchez winning the power stats.

My knowledge of the all-conference was that it was selected based on conference statistics.  Am I wrong?

Conference statistics and tournament statistics, as far as I know. I believe that that's why the coaches wait until the tournament is over before selecting the All-CCIW team. And, as has been pointed out, Sanchez probably would've been the CCIW tourney MVP this year, if there was such an award, while Nathan had a pretty undistinguished (.273/.292/.364, with a run and two RBI) tourney.

Congrats to former North park pitching coach Steve Hardman who won the NAC Coach of the Year award. He took Dominican University to a 21-22 overall record as they reached the NAC tournament in his first year.

I'll second that. The Stars improved by 12 games this season, with one of those 21 wins they accumulated being a 21-4 romp over Elmhurst at the end of March.

[CCIWFAN6]

I think UW-Lacrosse is the team to beat in the regional, but it's loaded.  Greg, if you're going to be there, let me know.  I might leave work early to see a game or two.

I'll probably get to the UWW ballpark sometime in the middle of the St. Thomas vs. St. Norbert game, which precedes the NPU vs. St. Scholastica game.

(Given the lineup of teams in this regional, perhaps I should start referring to my alma mater as St. North Park, or as UWNPU. )

Hopefully North Park can continue their recent good play as they face a tough St. Scholastica team.  They are currently 3rd in the nation in team batting average.  One kid is actually hitting .459 on the season!!   

I think UW-Lacrosse is the team to beat in the regional, but it's loaded.  Greg, if you're going to be there, let me know.  I might leave work early to see a game or two.

For a team to go 21-0 in their conference like Scholastica did, you sure have to wonder about the quality of opponents they face.  I'm certain they have some good players, but wonder how battle tested they will be (especially in an 8-team regional).

Along those lines, check out the season standings in the UMAC:

St. Scholastica	21-0	33-9
Bethany Lutheran	14-5	22-17
Northwestern	14-6	25-16
Northland	9-12	16-25
Presentation	9-12	13-24
Martin Luther	7-14	8-22
Minnesota-Morris	6-13	6-30
Crown	2-19	3-23

Food for thought.

Catchers always seem to stick up for one another. Catchers must be like the Marines -- you're never an ex-catcher, just a retired one.

There is some truth to that.  But try doing up downs for 8 innings and then see how much bat speed you have left in that critical moment in the 9th.    

Plus, we have to deal with pitchers more than anyone, which, as most know, are a weird breed anyway.....

Fire away.

I'd consider what you just said catchers do, and then ask yourself....who's the weird one?

In case you haven't figured it out, Viking Blue was a pitcher.

Nope. Sanchez beat Nathan in almost every non-counting-stat hitting category, and he beat him in most counting-stat categories as well -- in spite of the fact that the Titans have played three more games to date than the Vikings. And are you really serious about Sanchez and CCIW baserunners, or is the smiley indicating that you're not? 'cause only seven CCIW baserunners even tried to run on Sanchez (and, thus, NPU). That's less than half of what each other team in the league had to face in terms of attempted steals.

I realize that Sanchez and Nathan are different types of hitters; Nathan's a table-setter, while Sanchez is a run-producer. But Sanchez basically had to function as NPU's only legitimate power threat this year due to Brad Medina's struggles at the plate. For him to thrive in a situation in which he hardly ever got to see a serious fastball due to the lack of protection behind him in the lineup is a testament to his ability as a hitter.

I am a little late to the conversation, but are we talking about all game stats or conference stats?

Both. Sanchez dominated the overall stats. The CCIW stats were split, with Nathan winning the on-base stats and Sanchez winning the power stats.

My knowledge of the all-conference was that it was selected based on conference statistics.  Am I wrong?

Conference statistics and tournament statistics, as far as I know. I believe that that's why the coaches wait until the tournament is over before selecting the All-CCIW team. And, as has been pointed out, Sanchez probably would've been the CCIW tourney MVP this year, if there was such an award, while Nathan had a pretty undistinguished (.273/.292/.364, with a run and two RBI) tourney.

Congrats to former North park pitching coach Steve Hardman who won the NAC Coach of the Year award. He took Dominican University to a 21-22 overall record as they reached the NAC tournament in his first year.

I'll second that. The Stars improved by 12 games this season, with one of those 21 wins they accumulated being a 21-4 romp over Elmhurst at the end of March.

The single most important statistic for quantifying offensive value is OBP.  Nathan's OBP was over 100 pts higher than Sanchez.  That is a much larger gap than the difference between their power statistics (3 HR vs. 2 HR, 6 2b vs. 4 2b). 

[Mr. Ypsi]

The Titans fall to #1 seed Birmingham-Southern, 7-4.  Sweeney pitched a heckuva a game, leading 3-2 after six, but was chased in the 7th, with BSC getting 3 runs.  They added 2 more (unearned) in the 8th after a throwing error on what would have been the third out in a 1,2,3 inning - I HATE when that happens!

[jester13]

Have a day Joe Belmonte .

[OshDude]

It's been a frustrating game to listen to. Let's see who gives away more runs. In a twist of the phrase, it's a shame one team has to win this game. I'm sure it'll be beautiful to the winning team, but this is a war of attrition.

[Bronko7]

[/quote]

For a team to go 21-0 in their conference like Scholastica did, you sure have to wonder about the quality of opponents they face.  I'm certain they have some good players, but wonder how battle tested they will be (especially in an 8-team regional).[/quote]
[/quote]

They looked pretty battle tested today coming back against the mighty CCIW squad. Especially giving NP a nice early lead with poor D.

[Viking Blue]

For a team to go 21-0 in their conference like Scholastica did, you sure have to wonder about the quality of opponents they face.  I'm certain they have some good players, but wonder how battle tested they will be (especially in an 8-team regional).[/quote]
[/quote]

They looked pretty battle tested today coming back against the mighty CCIW squad. Especially giving NP a nice early lead with poor D.

[/quote]

Well stated.  Any baseball man knows not to take his opponent lightly.  Not that the Vikings did (or didn't).  Either way, time to get back after it.

[voiceofseason]

For a team to go 21-0 in their conference like Scholastica did, you sure have to wonder about the quality of opponents they face.  I'm certain they have some good players, but wonder how battle tested they will be (especially in an 8-team regional).

They looked pretty battle tested today coming back against the mighty CCIW squad. Especially giving NP a nice early lead with poor D.


Well stated.  Any baseball man knows not to take his opponent lightly.  Not that the Vikings did (or didn't).  Either way, time to get back after it.

It was a comment about their ability to compete throughout the entire tournament, not just win one game.  Everybody generally has one arm to throw out there that's going to make them competitive (today's score not withstanding).  If you're suggesting Scholastica could approach that record in the CCIW, I'd sure like to see that.

[Bronko7]

Not sure reading is a strong point on here, but I don't believe I stated anything about them going 21-0 I get the CCIW. The comment was based on a prior post questioning how tested St. Scholastica was. Yes the conference is bad, not a secret. The teams they've played outside the UMAC include: St. Thomas, Keystone, Lacrosse, Whitewater, Messiah, Wash U. All these teams are in a regional. Think they had some decent games to test them.

[voiceofseason]

Not sure reading is a strong point on here, but I don't believe I stated anything about them going 21-0 I get the CCIW. The comment was based on a prior post questioning how tested St. Scholastica was. Yes the conference is bad, not a secret. The teams they've played outside the UMAC include: St. Thomas, Keystone, Lacrosse, Whitewater, Messiah, Wash U. All these teams are in a regional. Think they had some decent games to test them.

We can debate reading comprehension, but that isn't the point.  I "wondered" how battle tested they were since they hadn't been playing good competition every weekend during the conference season.  I'm working from memory here, but I thought most of those other contests were earlier in the season.  I sensed sarcasm with the "mighty CCIW squad" comment, which is why I made the point I did.

That being said, is it really a big stretch to dismiss any school from that conference as a contender?  When was the last team from St. Scholastica's conference to win a Regional?  I'm just asking - I don't know - but I'm thinking none of those teams jump out as perennial contenders.  It's tough for any team that far north to be a powerhouse every year, IMO.

Credit where credit is due - nice win yesterday.  It will be interesting to see how the Region plays out - they were picked as the Cinderella team in the D3baseball.com regional preview.

[BigPoppa]

Neither CSS, nor any UMAC team, has moved beyond a regional setting.

[biggio34]

"It's tough for any team that far north to be a powerhouse every year, IMO."




Where is the geographical point of latitude on the map where teams start becoming powerhouses?

[BigPoppa]

"It's tough for any team that far north to be a powerhouse every year, IMO."




Where is the geographical point of latitude on the map where teams start becoming powerhouses?

It appears to be at whatever latitude St. Thomas resides at

[biggio34]

"It's tough for any team that far north to be a powerhouse every year, IMO."




Where is the geographical point of latitude on the map where teams start becoming powerhouses?

It appears to be at whatever latitude St. Thomas resides at

Touché

[Bronko7]

Each individual sport doesn't get to pick they're conference unfortunately so playing 21 games in the UMAC does CSS no favors, hence they're #6 seed. And yes CSS has not advanced to the World Series, but I will argue that the Midwest Regional is consistently one of the toughest in the country year in and year out. Has a CCIW that got moved to the Midwest ever made it through? I do know that the two times a CCIW has had to play CSS in a regional (Carthage 09 & North Park 12) they've lost. Not bad with their geographic crutch.