BB: NWC: Northwest Conference

Started by Tezbaseball, December 30, 2005, 06:53:46 PM

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wildcat11

idalogger,

I think saying it was a wild weekend is spot on.  I could live with Linfield giving up that game to Dittrick to kick off the series but giving up a 3 run lead on Sunday was a bitter pill to swallow.  Just have to forget it and move on.  6 more NWC weekend series so there is plenty of time.  Props to Pacific for battling.

L&C and Willamette both did Linfield and Pacific a favor this weekend which was nice to see.  It's going to be an awesome race this year and like I was thinking there are no gimmies.  Yeah, there are a few "bad" teams but if you don't bring it you can get tripped up any weekend.





Piobark

The Lewis & Clark squad, for the second year in a row, took one out of three from George Fox, snapping a 0-13 start to the season.

At the beginning of the year I was very concerned about the high percentage of Freshman making up the roster but they seem to be growing up quickly. Last week they put a scare into Linfield, this weekend featured three competitive games against a traditionally strong George Fox.

Pitching is still definitely thin, with just three pitchers providing nearly all of the innings. Michael Ball has made the transition to starter and looked really solid the last two weekends, pitching CGs both weekends and is hitting well. In general, the hitting seems much better that last year with many of the returning players improved and with some of the freshman doing extremely well. Andrew Traver has 4 HRs and is hitting .277 and fellow freshman Kris Brown has a great looking swing in limited (due to injury) ABs.

Bottom line - L&C won't win league this year but I do think they have shown improvement already and are likely to continue to improve as the season goes along - especially since they have the Linfield and Fox series behind them!!!

Whatagame

Yeah, the report I got was that it got a little ""rowdy" at Borleske Stadium this weekend.  Hopefully the majority of negative stuff was coming out of the bleachers as opposed to the dugout.  Learning how to win also includes learning how to carry yourself.  We'll see how Whitman can carry this over to next week, on the road.  Got my fingers crossed.

wildcat11

....and *poof* just like that, this morning never happened.   ;) 

Jim Dixon

Poof.  Look for a new feature on D3baseball.com coming out tomorrow: The D3baseball.com Team of the Week. 

It will be similar to the football and basketball sites based on nominations from the previous weeks games.

wildcat11

Quote from: Jim Dixon on March 06, 2012, 02:14:15 PM
Poof.  Look for a new feature on D3baseball.com coming out tomorrow: The D3baseball.com Team of the Week. 

It will be similar to the football and basketball sites based on nominations from the previous weeks games.

Very nice Jim.  As you saw this morning, looks like you have a willing former poster that might be good to add to your "team of the week" voting body.  Only if I could remember the his name........

Tarheel0550

Just spouting off again from the not so cold northeast this year,but does Pac -Lu have a chance to make regionals this year or is thier schedule a little weak?I dont think they can top Linfield , but whats the consensus up thier?

CrashDavisD3

Quote from: Tarheel0550 on March 22, 2012, 06:43:09 PM
Just spouting off again from the not so cold northeast this year,but does Pac -Lu have a chance to make regionals this year or is thier schedule a little weak?I dont think they can top Linfield , but whats the consensus up thier?

Win the conference then you get the automatic Pool A bid to the regionals

Dont win the conference and compete with  all the teams that did not get a Pool A bid to get a Pool C bid. Pool C bids are awarded nationally not regionally.  Many good teams stay home because they did not get their Pool A AQ bid from their conference and playing a weak schedule with good winning record could mean you stay home
This... is a simple game. You throw the ball. You hit the ball. You catch the ball.  "There are three types of baseball players: those who make things happen, those who watch it happen, and those who wonder what happened."
Crash Davis Bio - http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/minors/crash0908.html

Whatagame

I'm not as versed in the subtleties of Pool B and C qualification, but I'm going to say that most people on these boards that do know such things would probably predict the NWC will only send one team to the playoffs (the conference champion).

However, PLU still has Linfield, Pacific and George Fox left on their schedule, so they could kind of control their destiny.

I saw PLU play a series.  Good hitting lineup, the senior first baseman absolutely crushes the ball.  The senior shortstop showed a great glove, great range and nice arm.  Outfield made some athletic plays, and covered the gaps well.  Two pretty solid catchers.  Their starting pitching looked pretty good, but maybe a notch below Pacific and Linfield across the board on the mound.

Tarheel0550

Thanks for the insight on the NWC guys,always nice to get an educated guess from the experts lol.I hope your guys weather turns out to be as nice as it has been in the Northeast this year,even though i did just get back from watching the SUNYAC games in Florida this week.Stop in the SUNYAC conference sometime and chat for awhile.Good luck to all the teams.

Westside

Big match-up in Oregon this weekend with Whitworth (5-1) traveling to Linfield (9-3). It should be a battle of strengths as Whitworth's bats match up against the pitching of Linfield. Whitworth comes into the series with a team BA of .302, and Linfield boasts a team ERA of 2.92. This series will give a little bit of clarity on top of the standings for the NWC.

Should be fun!
NWC Baseball

Piobark

When you ask about PLU, this article sums it their history nicely - http://plu.prestosports.com/sports/bsb/2009-10/releases/051710ncaa

Bottom line, in both 2009 and 2010, PLU had more than 30 wins - and still didn't get asked to the dance.

Why? Given the limited number of D3 schools in the area, NWC teams tend to have  schedules sprinkled with NAIA and D2 schools, lessening their chances for Pool C brackets. Most schools fly 1000 miles to Southern California or Arizona to squeeze in 4 or 5 solid out of conference games - sometimes going twice - but can't afford to make that trip (both financial and academic concerns) enough times to fully populate their schedule

So they still end up with some non D3 games - which don't count in the evaluation for selection under current rules. Looking at schedules for this year, Linfield has six out of division games including four games against Lewis and Clark State this year, a NAIA powerhouse. Great games, a real challenge, but won't count. PLU has 3 non counting games, Whitworth 7.

Given the history, I'd say win league or you are staying home in the NWC.

P.S. - I'd like to see the rules changed to evaluate all games. If you play and beat a Lewis and Clark State, that shouldn't be discounted.

wildcat11

Quote from: Westside4 on March 23, 2012, 01:34:22 PM
Big match-up in Oregon this weekend with Whitworth (5-1) traveling to Linfield (9-3). It should be a battle of strengths as Whitworth's bats match up against the pitching of Linfield. Whitworth comes into the series with a team BA of .302, and Linfield boasts a team ERA of 2.92. This series will give a little bit of clarity on top of the standings for the NWC.

Should be fun!

Well they took turns in beating the tar out of each other today.  I hate using the term "must win" but tomorrow is just that for Linfield, IMO.  Let's GO 'CATS!

(509)Rat

I would have looked a lot smarter had I known the baseball boards existed and actually posted it, but I liked the Ramsay hire then and it looks like it might be paying off now. His dad is a major league scout, so finding talent outside of WA should never be an issue. The resources he has available to him on that front are seemingly endless. That being said, he shouldnt have to ever go too far from home to find talent. Eastern Washington has had plenty of talent to sustain a top NWC program for years now,and judging by the roster this year, Ramsay has really gone after Spokane and Tri-City kids hard the last couple of years. I think the fact that he is young is great as far as getting 18-22 year olds excited about playing for him, but I know convincing parents has been the most difficult part.

It's nice to see another program at Whitworth show a lot of promise, even if the only way I can make it through a baseball game is if it's 80 degrees and I have an unlimited supply of beer...

wildcat11

Great series win for Whitworth.  Congrats. The loss puts the 'Cats behind a major 8 ball.