2016 D3 Season: NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

[Ron Boerger]

I don't know why you don't just call the match after the first period - neither team is getting anything out of it.    I guess if you're the coach of a 5-8-2 squad on senior night you just keep piling it on, and they actually scored more goals in the second period (12) than the first.   Maybe the offer was made and rejected.

This is only the second year MAC has played the game.   In a story on their web site the coach talks about his pride in a GK who is having to save 30+ shots a game.   There are only 14 players on the roster, 9 of whom are freshmen.   Per US News total enrollment is 205.   Sadly, this was the second 20-1 loss suffered this season.

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

MAF Power Rankings
1. Chicago (14-0-0)
2. Messiah (12-0-3)
3. Rowan (13-1-1)
4. Ohio Northern (14-0-3)
5. Amherst (11-1-1)
6. Trinity Tx (15-0-0)
7. F&M (11-1-3)
8. Middlebury (9-1-3)
9. Kenyon (12-2-0)
10. Oneonta St (11-3-1)
11. Capital (12-1-2)
12. Calvin 13-2-0)
13. Newark (16-2-0)
14. Haverford (9-2-3)
15. Rochester (8-1-3)
16. Cortland St (13-2-0)
17. Mass-Boston (13-1-1)
18. St. Lawrence (10-3-0)
19. Springfield (13-1-1)
20. St. Thomas (12-0-3)
21. Lynchburg (10-1-3)
22. W&L (11-3-0)
23. Newport (13-2-1)
24. Colorado College (12-2-1)
25. Williams (8-2-3)

RV: Etown (11-2-1), Gordon (10-3-1), Tufts (8-3-2), Kean (14-4-0), PSU-Behrend (13-1-3), Wash U (9-2-1), Loras (10-4-0), Whitworth (8-3-2), Redlands (13-3-0) Leb Val (11-2-0), Montclair (12-4-1), Oberlin (12-2-1), Macalester (10-3-2), St. Olaf (6-2-6) 

[PaulNewman]

Nice job, MAF.

DePauw might deserve RV with wins over Kenyon and OWU.  I see you included Loras and Tufts.  Can't sleep on either of those.

[NEsoccerfan]

TOP 50: STRENGTH-OF-SCHEDULE AS PER NCAA
(games through Sunday, October 16)
(used for Regional Rankings and At-Large Selections)

TEAM (W-L-T)	SOS
Chicago (14-0-0)	.670
Emory (8-3-1)	.636
Rutgers-Camden (8-4-3)	.633
Rowan (12-1-1)	.630
Brandeis (6-4-3)	.628
Oglethorpe (5-4-3)	.628
Rochester (8-1-3)	.627
Carthage (11-3-0)	.626
Wheaton (Ill.) (4-7-3)	.624
Lynchburg (10-1-2)	.618
TCNJ (7-6-2)	.614
Brockport State (2-9-2)	.611
Case Western Reserve (4-7-3)	.610
Rutgers-Newark (15-2-0)	.607
Babson (8-4-3)	.606
Stockton (4-7-4)	.601
William Paterson (6-7-2)	.601
Alvernia (3-10-0)	.600
Loras (9-4-0)	.600
Hardin-Simmons (6-3-2)	.599
North Central (Ill.) (5-7-1)	.597
Oneonta State (11-3-1)	.597
Tufts (7-3-2)	.596
Colby (4-7-2)	.594
Montclair State (11-4-1)	.594
Rhode Island College (10-3-1)	.594
Dickinson (5-7-2)	.593
Christopher Newport (12-2-1)	.590
Muhlenberg (3-7-3)	.590
Gustavus Adolphus (5-8-1)	.588
Oswego State (4-11-0)	.588
Luther (10-3-2)	.586
Messiah (11-0-3)	.584
MIT (4-8-1)	.584
Cortland State (12-2-0)	.584
WPI (7-2-4)	.584
Macalester (10-3-2)	.582
Williams (7-2-3)	.582
Hobart (7-4-3)	.581
Ramapo (8-3-2)	.580
Washington and Lee (10-3-0)	.579
UW-Whitewater (10-4-3)	.579
Virginia Wesleyan (6-4-3)	.578
Washington U. (8-2-1)	.578
Amherst (11-1-1)	.577
St. Olaf (6-2-6)	.577
Heidelberg (5-7-1)	.576
North Park (9-3-1)	.576
Potsdam State (7-5-2)	.576
Western Connecticut (5-7-1)	.576

So the team with BY FAR the toughest schedule (so far) in the entire country is also 1 of 2 remaining teams without a blemish? This Chicago team is SCARY good.

[Mr.Right]

MASSIVE win for Fredonia St over Oneonta St today 2-1. That win just might get Fredonia a Pool C as they will surely be moving up in the East rankings..

[Flying Weasel]

Wow, just when you think Oneonta has put behind a rough opening weekend against strong competition and can again be dependably good and a national title contender as we have come to know them in recent years, they drop two of four to teams that they shouldn't lose to.  I can't remember a season as unpredictable as this one week to week, game to game.

[PaulNewman]

Prediction:  Wheaton (Ill), now at 5-7-2, will beat North Central tonight and sneak into CCIW playoffs and win the CCIW AQ.  I don't know anything about the status of their injured players, but if they are close to their full squad by tourney time they also could then make a run.

[PaulNewman]

Results of interest around the country...

F&M sneaks by Haverford in OT, 1-0.

Babson tops WPI, 2-0.

Vassar gets huge win over Rochester, 3-0, despite being outshot 14-5.

Whitman hurts Puget Sound's chances with 2-1 OT win, and Whitworth gets by Pac Luth 2-1 in OT.

Maryville (TN) keeps rolling with big win over NC Wesleyan, 2-1 in OT.

Tufts beats Williams, Amherst survives late versus Wesleyan, Bates shocks Midd in OT, and Bowdoin and Conn Coll draw. Hamilton with impressive long distance win over Colby. 

Carleton knocks off St. Olaf 2-0.

CWRU upsets North Park, away, 2-0. 

Chapman gets key West region win over enigmatic Redlands, 2-1.

New Paltz damages Buff St, 1-0.

Endicott halts Wentworth, 2-0.

TCNJ dents Kean' Pool C hopes, 3-2.

UW-Platteville takes Dubuque, 3-2.

Springfield stays hot over MIT, 1-0.

Skidmore gets key win over Clarkson, 2-0 while SLU gets by RIT, 2-1.

Hopkins avoids upset to Muhlenberg, 2-0.

Eastern outlasts King's, 1-0

DePauw remains a contender with win over Denison, 2-1.

Hood and Lyco draw 0-0.

William Paterson stuns RUC, 1-0.

Coast Guard and Wheaton (MA) shoot it out, 4-4.

Fredonia shocks Oneonta, 2-1.

Susquehanna and E'town draw 2-2.

Newport keeps winning, 4-2 over PS-Harrisburg.

W&L auto-corrects with 2-0 win over Randolph.

[PaulNewman]

NCAC NE Top 15 (Homestretch edition)

1) Chicago
2) Rowan
3) Messiah
4) Rutgers-Newark
5) Amherst
6) Franklin & Marshall
7) Ohio Northern
8) Trinity (TX)
9) UMass-Boston
10) Calvin
11) Carthage
12) Tufts
13) Cortland St
14) Kenyon
15) Christopher Newport

Stellar surprises (random order) -- Geneva, Springfield, St Thomas, Maryville (TN), New Rochelle, Clark, Grove City, Capital, Hanover, Mary Washington, PS-Behrend, Lebanon Valley, St. Norbert, St. Josephs (ME), Knox, Rhode Island College

Heavyweights still looming (random order) -- Haverford, Middlebury, Rochester, Carnegie Mellon, Wash U, Emory, Brandeis, OWU, Montclair St. Oneonta St, Loras, Babson, Washington & Lee, Lynchburg, St Lawrence, UWW, Whitworth, DePauw, Colorado College

Still hopeful (random order) -- Gordon/Endicott/Wentworth, Scranton, Texas-Dallas, Dominican, Morrisville St, La Verne, Chapman, Johns Hopkins, Vassar, Skidmore, Oberlin, Wabash, Conn College, Williams, Bowdoin, Eastern, John Carroll, Rose Hulman, Transy, Redlands, St. Mary's, Elizabethtown, Macalester, Gettysburg, Luther

[Falconer]

Two results today with some national implications, at least potentially.

Lycoming beats Oneonta, 3-2 in 2 OT.  Lyco got 5 yellow cards and was outshot almost 3-1, but they won the category that counts.  This can't possibly give Lyco a chance for a pool C, but it certainly could hurt Oneonta.

Williams decisively beats Middlebury, 3-0.  Likewise, this doesn't help Midd and probably won't really help Williams.  If you have an opinion on this one, Mr. Right, I'm all ears.   

[PaulNewman]

Luther and Loras 0-0 early 2nd half in a torrential rainstorm at the Rock Bowl.  Video still pretty decent.

[Dubuquer]

Loras takes the IIAC regular season title again with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Luther.  A lot of people have written Loras off after their mid-season struggles but don't forget that last year the Duhawks also went through a rough patch and look where they ended up.  This team is very young and talented and has a couple outstanding senior leaders so it's hard to know how deep they could go in the tournament.

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

MAF Power Rankings
1. Chicago (15-0-0)
2. Messiah (14-0-3)
3. Rowan (14-1-1)
4. Ohio Northern (16-0-3)
5. Amherst (12-1-1)
6. Trinity Tx (16-1-0)
7. F&M (11-1-3)
8. Kenyon (14-2-0)
9. Calvin (15-2-0)
10. Cortland St. (15-2-0)
11. Newark (17-2-0)
12. Mass-Boston (14-1-1)
13. Springfield (15-1-1)
14. St. Thomas (14-0-3)
15. PSU Behrend (15-1-3)
16. Lynchburg (12-1-3)
17. Colorado College (14-2-1)
18. St. Lawrence (11-3-0)
19. Middlebury (9-3-3)
20. Newport (14-2-1)
21. Loras (12-4-0)
22. W&L (12-3-0)
23. Leb Val (13-2-0)
24. Haverford (9-3-3)
25. Williams (9-3-3)

RV:  Rochester (8-2-3), Etown (11-2-2), Whitworth (10-3-2), Macalester (11-3-3), St. Joe's (13-1-4), CMU (10-2-2), Houghton (10-2-4), Oneonta St (13-5-1), Whitewater (13-4-3), Tufts (9-4-2), Vassar (10-3-2), Scranton (11-3-1), Capital (12-3-2), Carthage (14-3-0)

[PaulNewman]

MAF Power Rankings
1. Chicago (15-0-0)
2. Messiah (14-0-3)
3. Rowan (14-1-1)
4. Ohio Northern (16-0-3)
5. Amherst (12-1-1)
6. Trinity Tx (16-1-0)
7. F&M (11-1-3)
8. Kenyon (14-2-0)
9. Calvin (15-2-0)
10. Cortland St. (15-2-0)
11. Newark (17-2-0)
12. Mass-Boston (14-1-1)
13. Springfield (15-1-1)
14. St. Thomas (14-0-3)
15. PSU Behrend (15-1-3)
16. Lynchburg (12-1-3)
17. Colorado College (14-2-1)
18. St. Lawrence (11-3-0)
19. Middlebury (9-3-3)
20. Newport (14-2-1)
21. Loras (12-4-0)
22. W&L (12-3-0)
23. Leb Val (13-2-0)
24. Haverford (9-3-3)
25. Williams (9-3-3)

RV:  Rochester (8-2-3), Etown (11-2-2), Whitworth (10-3-2), Macalester (11-3-3), St. Joe's (13-1-4), CMU (10-2-2), Houghton (10-2-4), Oneonta St (13-5-1), Whitewater (13-4-3), Tufts (9-4-2), Vassar (10-3-2), Scranton (11-3-1), Capital (12-3-2), Carthage (14-3-0)

Agree with your top 12 although I might have a couple of teams in a different order in that top 12.  IMO I think you're off on PS-Behrend, Midd, and probably Springfield (all too high), Carthage (way too low), Newport (too low) and not sure about St. Josephs and Houghton making RV category.  Capital also has slipped badly.  And I would have both Oberlin and Wabash in RV and probably Endicott, Geneva, RIC, Maryville, Hanover, Dominican, Tex-Dallas and Babson.

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

I can definitely see the logic for all of that. I went off my rankings last week. So I had Capital very high (11 or 12 I believe?) so despite two losses since then I figured I would keep them as the last RV slot. Agreed Carthage should be a little higher (I missed on that one!) Springfield, St. Thomas, and Behrend have a combined 44-2-7 record...I'll take my chances slotting them together 13 thru 15. Until they mess up they deserve a little praise. Middlebury I had very high last week so again they dropped far (10 slots) based off 2 losses since then...probably should switch them with someone like UR or Etown and have them RV instead of ranked. All the others you mentioned for potential RV teams are definitely deserving of recognition.

Thoughts on Oneonta St? Chances they get an at-large bid after dropping their last 2 of the regular season? They are sitting at 13-5-1 right now. I believe they are on the wrong side of the bubble at the moment.