For those who are knew to the pond, this article is a roundtable discussion amongst the Frogjump contributors (Harvey, Lindsay, and myself) about D3VB. We’re all given the same set of questions to answer, and each writer speaks from their own point of view, providing individual insight and opinions regarding the storylines of men’s D3VB.
Before we dive into more specific questions, are there any general observations you’d like to share about the last week and a half of games?
Lindsay: Five setters, reverse sweeps and competitive volleyball on opening weekend. I think we could do an entire write-up on the Slug Slam alone. By my count we had close to 15 five-set matches on the weekend. Just when we thought the dramatics were over, Sunday brought us a NYU five set win over NCC.
Harvey: Division III looks a whole lot different this year. Even though we are in the final season of Covid waivers, there are still a number of hugely talented individuals that need to be replaced in lineups and rosters.
Second piece I’d like to talk about, is the need for depth in the current landscape. Gone are the days where your 4 match weekends have one gimme against the Petite University Tiny Tims, every match is a war – and if you don’t have confidence to go to the bench, those long weekends can get even longer.
Ramius: General observation, there were A LOT of 6-2’s flying around this weekend and it made me sick (for those who don’t know, I despise the 6-2, it’s dumb and stupid and nobody should ever use it. Pick a starting setter and let them win the game. Sheesh).
More useful observation, we had two incredibly strong tournaments this weekend, the Slug Slam and the Clash at Kean. The clash at Kean highlighted some early narratives on the east coast, mainly Stevens and Vassar continuing their reign as top programs in the east after having lost sizable portions of their rosters from last year.
The Slug Slam could very well have been Midwest NCAA pod, the games were that good and honestly it may happen again. Dominican, Carthage, UCSC, and Cal Lutheran all look the part of NCAA tournament teams this year, and it’s sad to say but it’s very likely if they all make the tournament they will all be placed in the same geographic pod. The NCAA won’t pay for flights to break up teams for bracket balance when they could simply have the two California teams go to the Midwest site. Sad, but true. On the bright side, the Slug Slam was pretty electric this year, which bodes well for the NCAA Tournament later in April.
Which result caught your eye the most this past week?
Harvey: Messiah being the only team to walk away from their Invitational undefeated certainly caught my eye. Alex Kagoro looks like he has leveled up and will be in All-American discussions this year. More importantly, Brandon Sharp has full reins to the offense and is competing with increased poise and confidence.
Lindsay: I think the easy one to talk about is Cal Lutheran. The opening weekend loss to Mount Union (congrats to the purple raiders!) gave everyone pause about how things would go this season for the defending champs. They started off by beating Santa Cruz on Friday, then Dominican and New Paltz on Saturday and finally Carthage on Sunday. That’s a truly impressive run. They have 11 days until they travel to Illinois and I suggest the entire team sleeps for at least 72 hours. Cooper and Stahl are approaching a combined 500 swings already.
Ramius: A little under the radar as it was a DIII vs DI/II crossover, but Springfield was fairly competitive in their opening exhibition against Hope and first game against Concordia Irvine. The Pride have had some inconsistency at the left pins the last few years, but they seem to have upgraded the roster with transfers Jake DesLaurier and Richard Eber Jr. this season. Keep your eyes on the Pride this year.
Also under the radar was NYU’s beatdown over some of the midwest programs this weekend. Two dominating wins over Benedictine and IIT followed up with a five set win over NCC is a great way to start the season. The Violets look the part of a top 5 team to start the year.
What are some of the best matches to keep our eyes on as we head into this opening weekend? Who’s potentially on upset alert?
Ramius: Aurora vs Augustana this Saturday is a Midwest matchup I think will be worth a watch. Both programs have flirted with our Top 20 the past two seasons, and Aurora most recently has been receiving votes in the AVCA Top 20 poll. Aurora will be looking to establish themselves amongst D3VB’s upper echelon, and Augustana will be looking to rebound from their loss to Benedictine.
Not sure if I’d consider this a potential upset, but #11 St. John Fisher should be considered on the hot seat when they play #15 UCSC this weekend. The Slugs look the part of top 10 team this year, adding a win over SJF will tremendously help their cause.
Harvey: I’m last to fill this out, so all the good answers are taken!
All eyes on Cleveland, OH for the Baldwin Walrus tournament. I’ll take BW on a double dip upset over UCSC and SJFU. Coach Mars has collected a ton of depth at the pins and i think that will pay off over the long weekend.
Lindsay: Loras vs Southern Virginia is what I’m looking forward to seeing the most. Two teams that haven’t really played yet. Southern Virginia certainly returns more but they both were great last season. It’s hard to pick an upset this early on and I’m usually very terrible at this, but I will pick Mount Union over Santa Cruz. They already took down Cal Lu so it’s not crazy right? Santa Cruz is very good and I think they’re going to factor in to the post-season
Who’s your top 5 based on the last week of matches?
Ramius: Southern Virginia, NYU, Cal Lutheran, Carthage, Stevens
Harvey: NYU, SVU, Cal Lu, Springfield, Carthage
Lindsay: Southern Virginia, Cal Lutheran, Springfield, NYU, Carthage