PNCLL Week 8 Preview
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PNCLL Schedule for Wednesday, March 19th – Tuesday, March 25th
Friday, March 21st
Simon Fraser at Washington 7:00pm
Saturday, March 22nd
San Jose State vs Willamette (at Southern Oregon) 12:00pm
Western Oregon at Pepperdine 1:00pm
Humboldt State at Southern Oregon 3:00pm
Sonoma State vs Simon Fraser (at Washington) 5:00pm
Oregon at Colorado 7:00pm
Sunday, March 23rd
Humboldt State vs Willamette (at Southern Oregon) 12:00pm
Sonoma State at Washington 1:00pm
Western Oregon at UC Irvine 1:00pm
Oregon at Northern Colorado 2:00pm
San Jose State at Southern Oregon 3:00pm
Monday, March 24th
Boise State at San Diego 5:00pm
Montana at USC 6:45pm
Tuesday, March 25th
Oregon at Colorado State 4:00pm
Wednesday, March 26th
Boise State at St. Mary’s College 4:00pm
Montana at University of San Diego 5:00pm
Division 1 Preview by Dr. Jason Stockton
Of the ten games this week featuring PNCLL Division 1 teams, only one of those games is within the division. On Friday No. 11 Simon Fraser (6-1) travels to Seattle to battle the Washington Huskies (5-1) at the Dempsey Indoor Arena on UW’s campus. Both teams are undefeated in league play, and the winner of this game will still be alive in the battle for the regular season PNCLL title. This is a game featuring two very powerful offenses, so the fans will likely see a high-scoring contest Friday night. The best hope for UW to pull off the upset is likely goalie Cameron Moore, the PNCLL leader in save percentage at 66%. He’ll see a lot of SFU’s Ben Towner (35g, 4a) – the leading goal-scorer in the PNCLL.
On Saturday we’ll see two great games between highly ranked teams. First, No. 5 Oregon (8-0) travels to Colorado to face No. 10 Colorado. The Buffaloes are coming off an impressive win over Texas and a one-goal loss to NCAA DIII Colorado College. Oregon has been demolishing their competition, but this will be their first game against a ranked team in 2008. Oregon always plays one of the toughest schedules in the country, but the Ducks’ schedule is backloaded in 2008. As Oregon heads into the meat of their schedule, 5 of their last 8 games are against teams ranked in the top-11 in the nation.
Also on Saturday, two rising teams collide as No. 9 Sonoma State (6-0) travels to Seattle to face No. 11 Simon Fraser. Sonoma is coming off a big win over No. 2 Colorado State, and SFU had two wins last week over ranked opponents, vaulting them nine spots in the latest Lax World MCLA poll. Sonoma’s defense is suffocating, allowing less than six goals per game in 2008. SFU on the other hand has not been held to single digit goals in any game this season. This should be a great match up featuring two very different styles of lacrosse. The team that controls the tempo will likely come out on top of this one.
On Sunday the Husky Invitational will conclude as Sonoma will face the host Huskies before heading back to California. Washington will have a day to rest and scout the Cossacks, so they will be primed and ready for this contest. Also on Sunday Oregon will face D2 No. 13 Northern Colorado. This game will likely tell us more about UNC than it does about Oregon, but the Ducks will need to be careful not to overlook Northern Colorado with the CSU game on the horizon. For UNC, they’ll need a good showing here to recover from their disappointing loss to Metropolitan State last week that dropped them out of the top-10 in the D2 poll.
With Spring Break beginning for many schools, weekday games will be common over the next two weeks, starting with Montana (2-3) and Boise State (1-4) traveling to California. First the Griz will take on the USC Trojans (3-7), and then on Wednesday they will take on the University of San Diego (2-4). Boise State will take on the Toreros on Monday, before facing St. Mary’s College (1-7) on their way back home.
The game of the week in the entire MCLA this week features the Oregon Ducks visiting No. 2 Colorado State (6-2) in Fort Collins on Tuesday. One can rest assured that the Rams have not forgotten the 19-6 pasting they received from the Ducks last season. Add to that CSU coming off a tough loss to Sonoma State last week, and Oregon will definitely be flying into the eye of the Hurricane on Tuesday.
Division 2 Preview by Dan Wishengrad
Spring Break rules this week, with only a few OOC games involving PNCLL teams. That being the case, this presents a good opportunity to review the standings and teams in the playoff hunt. Below are the playoff contenders, ranked by where they now sit and where they could wind up in the final regular season standings, with conference record in parenthesis:
1. Puget Sound (6-0) – The Loggers have clinched a post-season spot and likely need only one more win in their final three games to ensure a first round bye. A win over WOU would also almost surely clinch the #1 seed for UPS — barring upset losses to PLU and WU, that is. A terrific start to the ‘08 season for the Loggers, one of the most pleasant PNCLL surprises of the year to date. Kyle Berggren has to be a candidate for Coach-of-the-Year given the low pre-season ranking for UPS and their subsequent undefeated record. But UPS must win the title to get to Dallas, as the absence of any OOC games on its schedule means no at-large bid will be forthcoming no matter how highly the Loggers wind up ranked in the final national poll.
2. Western Oregon (4-1): The Wolves have this week’s important OOC game at #23 Pepperdine to help convince the pollsters that they are worthy of their ranking and, to some extent, that the PNCLL Division 2 teams are better than our collective ranking. After the trip the Wolves return home for their final four conference games, and if they win out in these games WOU will capture it’s first regular-season title. Circle that huge April 6th game against UPS on the calendar, folks, it is ‘The Big Game’ of 2008 and could be a preview of the D2 championship game to be played at Missoula.
3. Central Washington (5-2): The Wildcats have been another huge story in ‘08, and the team’s win over WOU stands as perhaps the biggest of the season in the PNCLL’s D2. One win in the team’s final two games assures no worse than a home game in the quarter-final round. Two wins to close out the regular season coupled with a UPS win over WOU would give CWU one of the top two seeds and a first-round bye. Central has established itself as a big player in the PNCLL’s D2 this season, and a trip to the MCLA national championships is there for the taking. But CWU will need to capture the PNCLL crown to make this dream a reality, with no OOC games in ‘08 to qualify as an at-large invite to the big dance.
4. Western Washington (5-2) : The Vikings were picked as the pre-season favorite to win the D2 title and return to Dallas, but have stumbled a little with losses to WOU and UPS. Another win over either SOU or L&C will clinch a playoff-berth for Western and, likely, the right to host a first-round game in the post-season. WWU shows two OOC games on its schedule, but there is some question whether that trip to Montana State is going to even happen. If those games against MSU and Wyoming are not played, then the Vikes can not qualify as an at-large team. But WWU remains a dangerous team that not many other D2 teams would not like to have to face in May, and the Vikings will surely remain a serious contender if they get through the quarters and earn a trip to Missoula for Final Four.
5. (tie) Southern Oregon (3-2) : The Raiders were another pre-season favorite who struggled early in the season, but in the convincing win over PLU last week SOU’s offense woke up and may be a strong indicator that the team is now hitting it’s stride. The remaining schedule is a tough one, perhaps the toughest of any of the contending teams with games against WWU, CWU and Whitman left to be played. But the Raiders have their fate in their own hands and need no help to not only make the post-season, but even to secure a first-round home game by winning out. A third conference loss, however, would likely mean a need to earn a trip to Missoula with a quarter-final win on the road, instead. SOU gets to host an OOC double-header this week, playing San Jose State of the WCLL and non-MCLA Humboldt State in Ashland.
5. (tie) Whitman (2-3) : The Missionaries have three one-goal losses to three of the top teams and a convincing rout of PLU to date. WC can’t afford more than one more conference loss if it hopes to make the post-season, and still has a game at WOU on the schedule. If Whitman takes care of business against Willamette and L&C, however, it will all probably come to down to the final game of the season at SOU to determine if the Missionaries will qualify for to the post-season, something that is doubtful if the team finishes 4-5. But with one of the conference’s best offenses, WC is also capable of winning out and earning a home quarter-final game, too. With a legacy of strong coaching and a history of being a tough team late in the season, don’t count Whitman out as a team which could win D2 yet in 2008.
7. (Tie) Willamette (2-3): Riding high on a modest two-game win streak, the Bearcats have a realistic opportunity to extend that to four games this weekend in Ashland. WU will need some momentum heading into the final month, with a very tough schedule that has the team still to face UPS, WOU, PLU and Whitman. If the Bearcats can beat PLU, something that might have been almost unthinkable before the season began, WC can punch it’s ticket to the playoffs with one other upset win. Regardless of whether they do earn a post-season berth, Willamette has nevertheless taken big strides forward under first-year Head Coach Will Patton in ‘08.
8. Pacific Lutheran (2-4) : The Lutes have been a playoff team every year since D2 was formed, and began the pre-season with a national ranking. But PLU is on life-support now, and must win all it’s remaining three games to have any chance to return to the post-season. A road game at WOU becomes make-or-break for the Lutes, and if they can pull off that upset in Salem they still have a chance if they go on to beat WU and then cross-town rival UPS in the final game of the season. Don’t count the Lutes out just yet.
Good luck to Western Oregon, Southern Oregon and Willamette in this week’s OOC games – represent the PNCLL well! The rest of you enjoy your Spring Break, and please come up to UW if you can to watch some great D1 action at Dempsey Indoor, with two of the MCLA’s top teams in town to play each other and the Huskies this Easter weekend.
