You all know how this works, dive in!
It’s April! The last regular season matches have mostly been played, and we’re now in Championship season. Give me your predictions on who wins each of the 11 Pool A conferences.
AMCC: Ramius: PSU-Behrend, Harvey: Geneva Bradley: Medaille Johnny: PSU- Behrend
CCIW: Ramius: Carthage Harvey: Carthage Bradley: North Central Johnny: Carthage
CUNYAC: Ramius: Hunter Harvey: Baruch Bradley Hunter Johnny: Abstain
CVC: Ramius: Rutgers-Newark, Harvey; Juniata Bradley Southern Virginia Johnny: RU-N
GNAC: Ramius: Wentworth, Harvey: WIT Bradley: Wentworth Johnny: Wentworth
MAC: Ramius: Stevens, Harvey: Messiah Bradley: Stevenson Johnny: Stevens
MCVL: Ramius: Fontbonne, Harvey: Fontbonne Bradley: Mount Union Johnny: Fontbonne
NACC: Ramius: Dominican, Harvey: Dominican Bradley: Aurora Johnny: Dominican
NECC: Ramius: Endicott, Harvey: Endicott Bradley: Endicott Johnny: Endicott
SKYLINE: Ramius: St. Joseph’s College – Long Island, Harvey: St. Joe’s (LI) Bradley: SJLI Johnny: St. Joes
UVC: Ramius: New Paltz, Harvey: SJFC Bradley: New Paltz Johnny: New Paltz
Which conference championship will have the biggest effect on post season at-large bid discussions? Which one are you most excited to watch?
Ramius: Arguably all of the power conferences are significant, since an upset in any of the championship matches starts the domino effect. Of them all, the MAC is looking like it will have the biggest impact. Messiah just lost a close 5-set match to Stevens which demonstrated how even both squads are in terms of talent. If Stevens wins the MAC the projections will be very easy, Messiah winning is the nightmare scenario for anyone hoping for an at-large as Stevens gets dropped into the Pool C discussion.
Which one am I excited to watch though? My normal answer is the UVC because I am a fanboy (and I will definitely be in attendance this year), but I’ll say it’s the CVC. Rutgers-Newark, SVU, Juniata, Marymount, Randolph-Macon and Kean… it’s very likely the best conference tournament top to bottom this year.
Harvey: I’ve got my eye on the UVC. It’s looking like a one bid league and all 6 teams are capable of beating each other on any given night.
Bradley: You never really know which conference has the biggest implications. Odds are one of the top dogs will lose in their conference final and that could make the at-large process much simpler for the committee. I’ll give you an easy breakdown though – win your conference, earn your bid. Simple as that. When conference finals are over, you don’t want your destiny in the hands of the committee. You want your ticket punched. With that being said, I will be keeping my eyes on the UVC as it will be a dog fight. Every one of those teams will be playing with their backs against the wall and the UVC always plays top ball in April. Go Hawks.
Johnny: I’m looking at the CCIW. With NCC and Carthage on opposite ends of the bracket they are posed to meet in the championship. However, NCC is playing Loras in the first round. Loras has been known for upsets and could cause some wakes if they pull it off. I believe either team could beat Carthage. If Carthage loses in the championship, they probably soak up one of the at-large bids.
Harvey posted a list of athletes to watch this year as “Break Out” picks, who on his list lived up to the name in 2022.
Ramius: It was the year of the Break Out middle for me! Pat Wing (New Paltz), Jeremy Cardenas (North Central College), and Danny Quay (Rutgers-Newark) all did huge things for their programs this year and were threats on every scouting report. I refuse to write about Laboo for his inability to appreciate a good water fountain.
Harvey: All of them, I’m a genius. Kidding aside, it’s Laboo.
Bradley: Gotta be Laboo and Wing here. Laboo is a candidate for D3 MVP and Wings numbers are just insane. Round of applause to Harvey for these phenomenal picks. He never disappoints.
What teams in your mind are locked for an at-large bid as the regular season has ended?
Ramius: As of Sunday I’m fairly confident Stevens, Rutgers, and SVU are locked for bids at this point of all the schools who have tough conference championship paths. Dominican should fairly easily win the NACC but barring an upset they’ll be locked in as well in my book. Springfield is very clearly the Pool B bid winner, but they’ve lost as many games this year as they did last year and we all know how that turned out.
Harvey: Too much at stake for anyone to be locked into Pool C at the moment.
Bradley: “Locked” is not a fun term to use in early April when talking about the dance for d3mvb. It’s so hard to predict the future. But “locked” would be approximately the top 3 teams in regional rankings if they all lost their conference final. These teams would be Carthage, Rutgers and Wentworth. They’ll all be dancing if they lose their conference final.
Johnny: Keeping with my conference to watch, I think whoever is runner up in the CCIW will get an at-large. With the caveat that if there are two upsets in the first round. NCC and Carthage have been hot all year.
Who do you see as the front runner for player of the year/newcomer of the year ?
Ramius: I touched on a few candidates last week, but I’d still hazard a guess it’s a two horse race between Jarrett Anderson (Springfield) and Jacob LaBouliere (Wentworth). Newcomer of the year would be locked for David Markes (Carthage) but I’m not sure if the committee will allow a sophomore transfer to be eligible (regardless if it’s his first year competing). Tim Flanagan (Stevenson) and Koby Sherman (Stevens) would be my guess if we are sticking with true freshmen.
Harvey: I’ll stick with Jarrett Anderson as well, even though he has cooled a bit. Koby Sherman from Stevens is a name to keep an eye on for Newcomer of the Year.
Bradley: I could probably name 5 guys before Johnny’s pick, but I’ll just name one. Jarrett Anderson.
Johnny: POY is still going to be Jack McGuire. He’s the leader of, what I believe, is the best team in the country. For my NOY, I’m going to agree with Ramius on this and say Tim Flanagan. The kid is on fire.
As always, we end by asking who your top five is as the regular season has concluded?
Ramius: Springfield, Carthage, Dominican, Rutgers-Newark, Stevens
Harvey: Springfield, Carthage, Dominican, Rutgers-Newark, Stevens
Bradley: Springfield, Carthage, Stevens, Rutgers-Newark, Dominican
Johnny: Dominican, Springfield, Carthage, RU-N, Stevens