BB: Midwest Region

[Ralph Turner]

Metrodome roof collapses under snow fall.

There may some Vikings fans who are concerned about the remainder of the season, but the real question is

"Will the Metrodome be ready for the opening of the 2011 D3 baseball season?"   

http://www.youtube.com/v/kh5iE5FA84g&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3

Does it not have to stop snowing before repairs can start ?

I don't know.  I defer to the resident ice fishermen who have to deal with that weather on a daily basis.   

Give me 102 degrees any day over 28 degree weather!   

[CrashDavisD3]

Metrodome roof collapses under snow fall.

There may some Vikings fans who are concerned about the remainder of the season, but the real question is

"Will the Metrodome be ready for the opening of the 2011 D3 baseball season?"   

http://www.youtube.com/v/kh5iE5FA84g&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3

Does it not have to stop snowing before repairs can start ?

I don't know.  I defer to the resident ice fishermen who have to deal with that weather on a daily basis.   

Give me 102 degrees any day over 28 degree weather!   

A blue skied 87 degree day in SoCal in December...

[BigPoppa]

Teaching only a few miles from the Metrodome (and considering myself the resident ice-fisherman) I have seen the damage first-hand. I would think it can, and will, be repaired prior to the baseball season. The dome makes a ton of money off renting it out for baseball (as well as serving as the University of Minnesota's practice and game field). They stand to lose a ton of money if they cannot repair it in a timely manner.

That being said, it should be done for d3 games in late February. Specualtion has it done in a few weeks.

[biggio34]

That being said, it should be done for d3 games in late February. Specualtion has it done in a few weeks.

Looks like speculation is wrong...   I see that St. Olaf has canceled all their Dome games.
http://www.stolaf.edu/athletics/baseball/schedule/

[formman]

That being said, it should be done for d3 games in late February. Specualtion has it done in a few weeks.

Looks like speculation is wrong...   I see that St. Olaf has canceled all their Dome games.
http://www.stolaf.edu/athletics/baseball/schedule/

The Metrodome will be "closed" until sometime in March. The media says 300+ baseball games will be canceled.

[BearBaseball]

St. Scholastica has scheduled 3 games with WashU the first week in March to make up for the loss of the dome games. Should be a good test for both teams.

[MIACLUV]

How the Midwest is starting:

GOOD
UWW - 5-1 (Good in region wins vs Olaf & St. Thomas & Wash U)
St. Olaf - 7-1 (All in region, Split with UWW is good come selection time)
UWO - 3-1 (Not many beat Wooster 3 in a row)
St. Scholastica - 9-3 (2-1 in region. 3 losses by 3 runs including D1 Ill Chicago)
Bethany Lutheran - 5-2 (2-2 in region, playing a decent schedule in Fla)

SO SOUWSP - 2-2 (Losses to Ogelthorpe & Allegheny are head scratchers)
St. Johns - 5-4 (on the fence, need to play some defense to have a shot)
Conc. Chic - 9-3 (5-3 in region, couple not so good losses in Fla)
Edgewood - 5-4 (Sweep Ripon, played Olaf twice hard, may be there in the end)

UGLY
St. Thomas - 0-5 (Schedule is brutal, but should be at least 2-3)

[scrapper]

I think that your in-region records are wrong.  I believe that you have games against the Central region included in your in-region records.  I don't think that games against the Central region are counted as in-region games.  Correct me if I'm wrong.

[biggio34]

The Tommies respond to being called out by beating Whitewater 6-4. 

Also, those games are in the same geographic region... I don't know the exact wording or exactly how it works, but I do believe WW's games against Wash U for example are in region wins, even though one team is in the Midwest and the other is in the Central.

[Just Bill]

I think that your in-region records are wrong.  I believe that you have games against the Central region included in your in-region records.  I don't think that games against the Central region are counted as in-region games.  Correct me if I'm wrong.

There's four ways to play an in-region game:

1. The most obvious, play someone from your sport's defined region, as in Midwest vs. Midwest
2. Play a school that is located within 200 miles from your school
3. Play a school located in the same NCAA Administrative Region as your school. There are four of those, but the one germaine to this discussion is Region 4. Region 4 includes Wisconsin, Illinois and every state west of the Mississippi River.
4. Play a team in your conference (really only applies if you are in the UAA or SCAC.)

So as you can see MOST (if not all) games among Midwest and Central region teams are "in-region" for the NCAA's purposes.

http://www.d3baseball.com/interactive/faq/ncaaTournament#region

[scrapper]

Thanks for the info. This helps clear up the in-region question.

[cubs]

In a big Midwest Region match-up today, Point sweeps St. Thomas 4-2 and 9-0.  I don't have any oter details, so who knows what the pitching match-ups looked like.

[biggio34]

In a big Midwest Region match-up today, Point sweeps St. Thomas 4-2 and 9-0.  I don't have any oter details, so who knows what the pitching match-ups looked like.

A 2-8 start for the Tommies, ouch!  When is the last time this team was not ranked?

[MIACLUV]

No excuses for the Tommies. They are not the Tommies of the past. There is nothing dominant about this club. They are very young and I can't see them being down for long. They've played a brutally tough schedule so far with little success. I expect them to right this ship as they get into conference play. They're not one of the top 5 teams in the region, but they still have the talent to be in that next tier. Don't count them out yet.

[biggio34]

As scores continue to roll in this week and games are starting to pile up, it appears that several teams are (or have the chance to be) good to very good while others are surprisingly not playing well.

I have questions for those in the know about the following teams.

So here goes...

1.  St. Olaf - Impressive schedule and an even more impressive record.  Their pitching staff is obviously setting the tone.  I thought they would be improved from last year... I'm surprised they improved by this much.  Are they as good as their record looks?

2.  UW-Oshkosh - Along the same lines as Olaf... thought they would be better, surprised at how good it sounds like they are playing.  Its looking like these JUCO transfers are legit??  The pitching staff seems deep too? 

3.  St. Thomas - Again, a tough early schedule, but alot of their games have not even been that close, which surprises me.  It's one thing to lose games, but they seem to have been over matched in some of these scores.  Are we looking at a team that just isn't that good, or have they been unprepared, or have their opponents just brought their A game every time?

4.  Bethany Lutheran - They won some close games early, I know they are deep on the mound, but will their offense be able to keep up with the better teams in the region?  Will this squad be in the conversation at the end of the year when its regional time?


I have not seen a single game yet this year, so my ability to comment is limited to box scores and articles.  Sounds like a lot of games in the region will be canceled this weekend.  Never thought I would say this, but I miss the Metrodome.