We are officially in the end game of the season. Conference championships are just around the corner and some of the most consequential games of the year are about to be played. Dive into our takes below on the last week of matches.
At this point of the season, it’s very clear NYU and Southern Virginia have separated themselves from the rest of the league. Are these two destined for a finals appearance? What teams could possibly trip them up beforehand.
Ramius: I’m going to say yes. NYU has looked vulnerable at times only to come out on top with a victory, whereas SVU has been running roughshod over their competition. As it stands now they seem to be on a path to meet in the finals and I’d be shocked if they got upset along the way. The only two teams I suspect have a shot of derailing either of them are Carthage and Cal Lutheran.
Harvey: It certainly feels like they are on a collision course at the moment. NYU is a bit more battle tested having some close calls, but SVU looks unstoppable ( they certainly did in person). Carthage would be my pick to trip them up with their combination of size, serving, and pin termination to hang with both teams.
Lindsay: I think it’s poetic that SVU had one loss last season and it happened to be NYU in the NCAA tournament. I’ll give you a firm answer once we see SVU vs Springfield but I’m trending towards yes. Don’t forget there were so many upsets in the last NCAA tournament, so if you believe that can happen again, we can’t guarantee anything.
Which result caught your eye the most last week?
Ramius: I’ll take the big result. A lot of eyes were on the Juniata/SVU matchup, and Southern Virginia essentially dominated the match in every aspect. I don’t think anyone was really expecting how thoroughly Southern Virginia would win the match, so consider it a huge statement win for the Knights in their 2025 campaign. Southern Virginia is firmly in control of the CVC at this point and I don’t think there is anyone stopping them in the conference.
Harvey: Fisher over Hobart 3-1 following the Statesmen win over Vassar felt big. They have a chance to stay in the race for UVC top overall seed and if not can still cement themselves in the Top 3 to stay on opposite side of bracket from NYU.
Lindsay: I’m very invested in the trio of Wittenberg, Mt Union and Baldwin Wallace. BW lost to Witt, Witt then lost to Mt Union. BW doesn’t play Mt. Union until April. The MCVL is probably the most wide open conference this year with any of those 3 having a realistic chance to win the NCAA bid. I’m not sure there’s another 3 team race like that in any other conference.
What games should we keep on our radar this week? Any potential upsets?
Ramius: Stevens vs Messiah is the one I have on my radar. Messiah just recently overtook Stevens in our T100 model to become the favorite in the MAC. I’m curious to see if they hold up to what our algorithm predicts.
Harvey: Attention Ramius: Don’t think you can call Messiah over Stevens as an upset with those teams next to each other in the rankings. I’ll take Hobart over Cal Lutheran with Andrew Kim reinvigorated underneath the California Sunshine
Lindsay: I wanted to pick a Nichols upset over Wentworth, but this might not go out until Wednesday, so either that’s my pick or just completely ignore this entire sentence. St John Fisher vs NYU is really intriguing to me. Ian Rauh was awarded an AVCA national player of the week selection. NYU is coming off a 5 set grind vs Stevens to keep them undefeated. I’m not calling for the upset, but I’m excited to see the battle in the middle between 4 top tier guys.
Whos the favorite for each conference?
| Conference | Ramius | Harvey | Lindsay |
| UVC | Anyone who makes the tournament (but probably NYU) | NYU | NYU |
| CVC | Southern Virginia | SVU | SVU |
| MAC | Messiah | Stevens | Messiah |
| GNAC | Wentworth | WIT | Wentworth |
| AMCC | Buffalo State | Buffalo State | Buff state |
| CUNYAC | Baruch | Baruch | Baruch |
| NACC | Aurora | Aurora | Aurora |
| CCIW | Carthage | Carthage | Carthage |
| UEC | Lancaster Bible | LBC | Lancaster Bible |
| MCVL | Mt. Union | Baldwin Wallace | Mt Union |
| Skyline | SJLI | NJCU | NJCU behind the 40 yr old |
| ODAC | Randolph-Macon | RMC | Randolph-Macon |
| NEVC | Nichols | Nichols | Nichols |
| PAC | Thiel | Thiel | Thiel |
Who’s your top 5?
Ramius: NYU, SVU, Carthage, Springfield, Cal Lutheran
Harvey: SVU, NYU, Carthage, Springfield, Juniata
Lindsay: SVU, NYU, Springfield, Carthage, Cal Lu