Mid-Atlantic Region

[YoungBuck]

I have ZERO skin in the game when it comes to these two teams. Good goalie buddy went to Etown and I have lots of respect for the program.

Just my opinion that Scranton was actually building more out of the back than Etown, and the field seemed tilted toward Etown's goal most of the second half.

I'd put Catholic as 2 goal favorites over Etown on Saturday.

I'll also cop to the fact that I was heavily distracted trying to watch the game with so much grousing from the fans. Complaining about the ref pretty much the ENTIRE second half and getting into it with opposing fans. Again, grow up and get a grip.

@Hopkins92 applauding a team for building out of the back?!?!  Let's see how long into the next close Hopkins match this lasts.

[Hopkins92]

I have ZERO skin in the game when it comes to these two teams. Good goalie buddy went to Etown and I have lots of respect for the program.

Just my opinion that Scranton was actually building more out of the back than Etown, and the field seemed tilted toward Etown's goal most of the second half.

I'd put Catholic as 2 goal favorites over Etown on Saturday.

I'll also cop to the fact that I was heavily distracted trying to watch the game with so much grousing from the fans. Complaining about the ref pretty much the ENTIRE second half and getting into it with opposing fans. Again, grow up and get a grip.

@Hopkins92 applauding a team for building out of the back?!?!  Let's see how long into the next close Hopkins match this lasts.

HA!

Look, I'm a fan of possession and controlling the rhythm of a game. That's the style I tried to implement as a coach, to varying degrees of success. But I'm also in favor of switching up tactics when a) they simply aren't generating shots and danger and/or b) when you're losing in a loser go home situation.

[Christan Shirk]

MID-ATLANTIC REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - November 06, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	Johns Hopkins	14-2-1	0.613	4-2-1	14-2-1	1
2.	Franklin and Marshall	15-2-0	0.602	5-1-0	15-2-0	2
3.	Messiah	14-2-2	0.569	4-2-0	14-2-2	3
4.	Swarthmore	11-3-3	0.593	2-3-1	11-3-3	4
5.	Haverford	9-5-3	0.624	2-3-2	9-5-3	7
6.	Gettysburg	10-6-1	0.622	3-4-1	10-6-1	5
7.	Catholic	16-2-1	0.526	3-1-1	16-2-1	9
8.	Dickinson	10-7-0	0.624	3-6-0	10-7-0	6
9.	Lycoming	12-6-0	0.572	1-4-0	12-6-0	10
10.	Elizabethtown	10-5-2	0.568	0-4-0	10-5-2	8

[YoungBuck]

MID-ATLANTIC REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - November 06, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	Johns Hopkins	14-2-1	0.613	4-2-1	14-2-1	1
2.	Franklin and Marshall	15-2-0	0.602	5-1-0	15-2-0	2
3.	Messiah	14-2-2	0.569	4-2-0	14-2-2	3
4.	Swarthmore	11-3-3	0.593	2-3-1	11-3-3	4
5.	Haverford	9-5-3	0.624	2-3-2	9-5-3	7
6.	Gettysburg	10-6-1	0.622	3-4-1	10-6-1	5
7.	Catholic	16-2-1	0.526	3-1-1	16-2-1	9
8.	Dickinson	10-7-0	0.624	3-6-0	10-7-0	6
9.	Lycoming	12-6-0	0.572	1-4-0	12-6-0	10
10.	Elizabethtown	10-5-2	0.568	0-4-0	10-5-2	8

Incredibly, Swat looks poised for a Pool C without even making the CC tournament (finished 6th).  They'll be hoping for Messiah and Hopkins/F&M to come away with AQs.  Fords and Getty likely playing for their seasons (0-0 mid way through the first).  I give the winner a good chance to bump Swat, with a ranked win and a SoS boost that will further go up against F&M, regardless of that result in that game.   

[Hopkins92]

Gettysburg 1:0 Fords
Misericordia 0:1 Eastern (1OT)

[Hopkins92]

Kings 2:1 Stevens

That's an absolute dagger for the Ducks.

Lycoming wins 3:0 over Arcadia earlier today. Messiah up 3-0 on Stevenson already.

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

Kings 2:1 Stevens

That's an absolute dagger for the Ducks.

Lycoming wins 3:0 over Arcadia earlier today. Messiah up 3-0 on Stevenson already.

Freedom
#2 Eastern vs #4 Kings

Commonwealth
#1 Messiah vs #2 Lyco

Landmark
#1 Catholic vs #3 Etown

Centennial
#5 Gettysburg at #1 Franklin and Marshall
#3 Dickinson vs. #2 Johns Hopkins
Winner A vs Winner B

CSAC
#3 Keystone vs #4 Rosemont

NEAC
#5 Lancaster Bible at #1 Penn State-Harrisburg
#6 Keuka vs. #2 Penn State-Abington
Winner A vs Winner B

[DucksFan02]

As a Stevens supporter, sad to see the Ducks season come to an end vs Kings. Fair play to Kings, who didn't sit in and played attacking soccer vs the Ducks, in Hoboken no less. The last 15 minutes showed what Stevens was capable of, and with 3 goal line opportunities, Ducks will have a lot to think about over next 9 months. Cheers to the two seniors on the roster, who no doubt had a large impact on the program over the course of their 4 years, and best of luck to them going forwards! For the rest of the lads, returning the same starting 11 next season, expectations have to be high in the Ducks camp. I will be watching the Eastern vs Kings game and will be rooting for the winner throughout NCAA tournament. #COYD

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

MID-ATLANTIC REGION - NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS - November 06, 2019

Rank	School	. Div. III . Record	. Div. III . SOS	. R-v-R .	. Overall . Record	. Prev. . Rank
1.	Johns Hopkins	14-2-1	0.613	4-2-1	14-2-1	1
2.	Franklin and Marshall	15-2-0	0.602	5-1-0	15-2-0	2
3.	Messiah	14-2-2	0.569	4-2-0	14-2-2	3
4.	Swarthmore	11-3-3	0.593	2-3-1	11-3-3	4
5.	Haverford	9-5-3	0.624	2-3-2	9-5-3	7
6.	Gettysburg	10-6-1	0.622	3-4-1	10-6-1	5
7.	Catholic	16-2-1	0.526	3-1-1	16-2-1	9
8.	Dickinson	10-7-0	0.624	3-6-0	10-7-0	6
9.	Lycoming	12-6-0	0.572	1-4-0	12-6-0	10
10.	Elizabethtown	10-5-2	0.568	0-4-0	10-5-2	8

Incredibly, Swat looks poised for a Pool C without even making the CC tournament (finished 6th).  They'll be hoping for Messiah and Hopkins/F&M to come away with AQs.  Fords and Getty likely playing for their seasons (0-0 mid way through the first).  I give the winner a good chance to bump Swat, with a ranked win and a SoS boost that will further go up against F&M, regardless of that result in that game.   

Haverford is done after yesterday and I think they were done regardless unless they reached the final and tied then lost in PKs. 6 losses isn't necessarily too many, especially this year, but the 9 blemishes equaling their win total is and also results in a poor win %. SOS and RvR is half decent but their bubble has burst and depending on other results I think you will see them drop significantly by Monday's selection show and final regional rankings. Surprised to see Etown still ranked but I guess I am not sure who else could fill that slot. Maybe Eastern if they end up winning the Freedom? Depending on outcomes in the Centennial semis, I think you will see Lycoming and Catholic both jump up a few spots as well trying to position themselves for a long shot bid if all else fails. Both will have increase in SOS and a chance for another ranked opponent if they can get a result and PK situation as mentioned above for the Haverford situation. Lycoming now moves to 13 wins on the year which is the 4th most in the region behind only Catholic, F&M, JHU and Messiah. Catholic having 3 ranked wins is impressive (if that holds I haven't looked at anything recent if teams dropped out or jumped in) and despite the low SOS, the win% and RvR is hard to overlook at this point. Dickinson tying or losing I think makes both Lyco and Catholic jump and stay ahead of them seeing Dickinson lost to both teams with the head to head. Gettysburg is in an odd scenario as parts of their resume doesn't look as good as their ranking but time will tell. Hard to overlook now 4 ranked wins and that incredible SOS. Unlike the Fords, Gettysburg has it all going for them except the blemish category. If they lost to F&M and pick up a 7th loss how does that factor in for the rest of the teams still chasing and trying to move? Swat missing the playoffs might be the best thing that could have happened for them as they don't pick up more blemishes and keep a strong SOS and resume in tact although I personally feel if you miss your conference playoffs you shouldn't be rewarded with an at-large berth. It just doesn't make sense to me  Similar to last season I think regionally and nationally we will see a TON of movement from the 3rd rankings to the final rankings and have some surprises come the selection show.

Final Rankings Preview 11/7

Safe and Dancing
JHU
F&M
Messiah

Bubble
Gettysburg
Swat
Catholic
Lyco
Dickinson

Wrong Side of Bubble
Haverford
Etown

The bubble and wrong side of bubble teams currently are hopeful for the favorites or locks to win unless they are competing against them for the AQ (ie: Gettysburg, Lyco, Dickinson) Swat really throws a wrench into this region for the committee to figure out. 

[Falconer]

The nearly annual (lately) Messiah-Lycoming conference championship game is scheduled for 7 pm Saturday. Currently the forecast is for close to freezing temperatures with some light winds. Overall not the greatest outlook, but it could be worse.

Both teams are in the midst of winning streaks, for Lyco going back to their 1-0 loss to the Falcons in Williamsport, a game about as close as the score; for the Falcons, it's 11 wins in a row since a scoreless tie at home vs Salusbury--a game that nearly ended twice, when each team in succession failed to convert a PK. The Falcons had won 3 in a row before the Salusbury game, going all the way back to their uncharacteristic opening two weeks when they were 1-2-1.

IMO, neither team is as dangerous offensively as they have been the past few seasons--although admittedly the Warriors generated much of their scoring in that period from set plays, not from the run of play. But, each team lost hugely important players to graduation last spring and (for the Falcons) also the previous season when they won it all. You don't just replace AAs Nick West, Sinclair Tueno, or Colby Thomas. The absence of similar players has left both teams less dangerous than they were one or two years ago.

Nevertheless, the Falcons (for their part) seem to have addressed their early season inability to put the ball into the net. It didn't hurt that injured veterans healed up; and, this year's sophomores (some of whom also missed chunks of their first season) are much more experienced, and physically stronger. Lucas Kokolios has been especially good on the attack, replacing Jonathan Groothoff (out for the season) on the wing; while SR Micah Fitz on the other wing is even better and bigger than he was last season, when he was a very effective assist man and occasional scorer. He now has a complete game to match his excellent speed. The Falcons have figured out how to score without West; they now have 10 players with at least 2 goals and 5 with more than 10 points. Conference rookie of the year Ben Lefever has been stellar--there's no evidence that he's just a FR. Cooper Robbins' good health all season (a huge contrast with 2018, when various injuries cost him the possibility of being an AA and contributed to the Falcons missing the Final Four) enabled him to be named Conference Defensive Player of the Year--an accolade I totally endorse, after watching him very closely in the past few games. He has dominated very player he's marked and set up the offense from the back. At this point, he might even be as good as his brother Carter Robbins from the great teams a few years ago.

Lycoming is still very tough defensively. Despite key losses, they have regrouped and are a very difficult opponent for anyone. However, I think they are done if they do not earn the AQ this weekend--they presently are just 1-4-0 R v R, and another loss to Messiah won't help one bit. Look for them to come out ferociously and try to get an early goal, probably off a set piece or a scrum. If they do, then hold on to your butts; if not, I see them losing by 2 or 3 goals. Either way, the Falcons will keep playing, though certainly not at home the opening weekend of the Big Dance.

[Flying Weasel]

Either way, the Falcons will keep playing, though certainly not at home the opening weekend of the Big Dance.

Being an odd-numbered year, the women have hosting preference for the opening 1st/2nd Round weekend, and men have hosting preference for the Sectionals.  With Messiah women ranked #1 in the nation by everyone and #1 in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic regional rankings, they certainly will be hosting opening weekend, so the men will be on the road regardless of what happens in the conference final.

[YoungBuck]

https://www.abc27.com/news/local/lancaster/photos-show-fm-students-wore-disturbing-culturally-insensitive-costumes/

Probably not the best timing for the CC tournament hosts to be facing questions about players' Halloween costume decisions.  This will be an interesting one to follow if these are actually F&M soccer players and the school decides to take any action.

[Hopkins92]

"The student made chinky-slanted eyes," said junior Vi Bui, who called the photos deeply disturbing. "My question is: how many games are these players being benched for?"

I'm not good with irony... Is that irony?

At any rate, it's pretty horrible that these student athletes (apparently) are getting away with what amounts to being a stern lecture. It's also incredible that F&M doesn't have a diversity officer or a formal means of reporting this stuff, let alone a disciplinary structure. I don't really want to hear "this could happen anywhere" because that's simply not true. Places that focus on inclusion and acknowledging diversity don't leave space for this kind of crap.

[BJBeliever]

Probably nothing done to the players until full investigation which will conveniently last beyond post season.

[FelixCloudy]

Probably nothing done to the players until full investigation which will conveniently last beyond post season.

2 basketball players and 3 soccer players part of the crew.  Protestors forced a cancellation and postponement of last night's basketball game against York by a holding a sit-in protest on the court.

Wagner quoted in article and said players have received death threat and are good kids who made a mistake. "I will do anything I possibly can to stand with anyone," said soccer coach Dan Wagner.

https://www.wgal.com/article/hundreds-of-f-m-students-rally-in-response-to-what-they-call-racist-halloween-costumes/29739737#

Going to be huge media coverage today, and likely more protests.  F&M and CC officials should be prepared.