The unofficial online home for fans of the Old Dominion University Monarchs. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

(05-26-2021 06:44 PM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  With 8-team double limitations. You got to win 5 games before you lose two. Now CLT has to win 5 straight...I think thats right.

4 if you’re undefeated. Two 4 team brackets, double elimination. The winners of each bracket move on to a single elimination championship game.

(05-26-2021 06:16 PM)bit_9 Wrote:  Any word on LTech/utsa game start time?

LT up 2-1 in the 4th inning.

(05-26-2021 06:00 PM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  MTSU threw their ace and CLT held their's weekend starters back for later in the tourney. It was a gamble, we'll see how it works out. I like it so far for us.

I'm no strategist but I think it makes sense. No matter who they throw tomorrow, chances are ODU's going to bring the lumber, so why blow your ace in a game in which you're still going to have to score a ton of runs to win? If they lose, it's easier to win four in a row than five. And if they do win the scoring contest, they're one win away from the championship game. Anything's possible in baseball.

(05-26-2021 08:55 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 06:00 PM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  MTSU threw their ace and CLT held their's weekend starters back for later in the tourney. It was a gamble, we'll see how it works out. I like it so far for us.

I'm no strategist but I think it makes sense. No matter who they throw tomorrow, chances are ODU's going to bring the lumber, so why blow your ace in a game in which you're still going to have to score a ton of runs to win? If they lose, it's easier to win four in a row than five. And if they do win the scoring contest, they're one win away from the championship game. Anything's possible in baseball.

We held back Gregory, our best pitcher but our starter and relief (Moore & Hartline) were both 2nd team all conference players so we definitely weren’t looking past FAU like Charlotte apparently was MT. It was a gamble that didn’t pay off. Winner of our game tomorrow rests Friday while the two one loss teams battle it out then would have to lose a double header Sat to miss the title game. So winning the first two is a huge advantage. But……you have to win the first game first.

(05-26-2021 09:25 PM)mturn017 Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 08:55 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 06:00 PM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  MTSU threw their ace and CLT held their's weekend starters back for later in the tourney. It was a gamble, we'll see how it works out. I like it so far for us.

I'm no strategist but I think it makes sense. No matter who they throw tomorrow, chances are ODU's going to bring the lumber, so why blow your ace in a game in which you're still going to have to score a ton of runs to win? If they lose, it's easier to win four in a row than five. And if they do win the scoring contest, they're one win away from the championship game. Anything's possible in baseball.

We held back Gregory, our best pitcher but our starter and relief (Moore & Hartline) were both 2nd team all conference players so we definitely weren’t looking past FAU like Charlotte apparently was MT. It was a gamble that didn’t pay off. Winner of our game tomorrow rests Friday while the two one loss teams battle it out then would have to lose a double header Sat to miss the title game. So winning the first two is a huge advantage. But……you have to win the first game first.

I should clarify that I thought Middle Tennessee did the right thing by using their ace out of the gate. Not sure if Charlotte thought they could handle their ace, or when they even knew that was their starter. It probably didn't help either team that they didn't play each other this season; at least ODU and FAU got a good look at each other.

(05-26-2021 09:43 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 09:25 PM)mturn017 Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 08:55 PM)Cyniclone Wrote:  

(05-26-2021 06:00 PM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  MTSU threw their ace and CLT held their's weekend starters back for later in the tourney. It was a gamble, we'll see how it works out. I like it so far for us.

I'm no strategist but I think it makes sense. No matter who they throw tomorrow, chances are ODU's going to bring the lumber, so why blow your ace in a game in which you're still going to have to score a ton of runs to win? If they lose, it's easier to win four in a row than five. And if they do win the scoring contest, they're one win away from the championship game. Anything's possible in baseball.

We held back Gregory, our best pitcher but our starter and relief (Moore & Hartline) were both 2nd team all conference players so we definitely weren’t looking past FAU like Charlotte apparently was MT. It was a gamble that didn’t pay off. Winner of our game tomorrow rests Friday while the two one loss teams battle it out then would have to lose a double header Sat to miss the title game. So winning the first two is a huge advantage. But……you have to win the first game first.

I should clarify that I thought Middle Tennessee did the right thing by using their ace out of the gate. Not sure if Charlotte thought they could handle their ace, or when they even knew that was their starter. It probably didn't help either team that they didn't play each other this season; at least ODU and FAU got a good look at each other.

Oh, I thought you were talking about Charlotte’s decision, their starter was a freshman with only 3-4 prior starts. Yeah, might as well if you’re MT, a pretty big underdog.

FWIW, Charlotte used like 14 different starters this year. They really don't have a strong pitching staff so they are going to have to hit the ball.

McGowan is ok but their best pitcher might be a reliever (Lothes). Outside of that their pitching was pretty bad.

(05-26-2021 04:01 PM)ODU AGGIE Wrote:  Can anybody explain this to me?

RPI

11 12 Old Dominion C-USA 38-14 16-6 0-0 22-8 0-0
14 11 East Carolina AAC 38-14 11-9 0-1 27-4 0-0
18 18 Charlotte C-USA 39-17 12-11 0-0 27-6 0-0
25 25 Southern Miss. C-USA 35-17 13-8 0-1 22-8 0-0
30 29 Louisiana Tech C-USA 36-16 16-6 1-0 19-10 0-0

TOP 25 RANKING

11 East Carolina 38-13 11
18 Louisiana Tech 36-16 14
19 Southern Miss 35-17 19
22 Charlotte 39-17 22
24 Old Dominion 38-14 NR

We beat ECU.
Went 2-0 with Tech -- in Ruston.
Went 5-3 with Charlotte.
Have a .731 winning record to USM's .673

More home runs than any of the other four.
Better batting average than three of them, and LA Tech has a .309 average to Monarchs' .308.
Scored more runs than any of the other four.
Better team ERA than LA Tech and Charlotte.
Fifth in team fielding percentage at .969, but LA Tech is at .970 and ECU is the best at .977only eight 100ths of a percent ahead of the Monarchs.

So, the Monarchs have the best RPI of all five of these teams, better head to head records with three of them, a better winning percentage than the fourth team, hits, slugs and scores better than all of them, has a better ERA than two of them, and only marginally behind in fielding percentage -- and yet all four are ranked ahead of ODU. I just don't get it.

in my opinion (and I have been following college baseball somewhat closely for 40 years), it's a matter of three things:
1. RPI is a bit flawed this year because of COVID scheduling, and
2. Old Dominion, and Charlotte for that matter, do not carry as big a baseball "name" as LT, USM, Rica, and FAU from CUSA. We had a good year going last year until COVID killed the season. If that season played through, it would have helped us this year. And,
3. We are the #4 seed in the CUSA tournament although the top 4 seeds are only separated by two games.

And honestly, not being considered as a host site for the Regionals is hurting us too.

I listened to a "Nerdcast" on D1Baseball.com from last Sunday and they barely mentioned us. That's why D1Baseball has given us a lower ranking of the major polls.

Let's hope the Committee sees through all that. There is a chance we can be a traveling #1 seed in Columbia or Greenville. We won't go to Charlotte because they won't likely have two CUSA teams in the same region. The only other possibility is Pittsburgh for being a traveling #1 as I see it.

While there is a big difference in a #1 vs. #2 seed as far as the first Regional game goes, there would also be a big difference between being a high #2 vs. a low #2. That's my big fear. Being a #2 in a region where the host is a top 6 or 7 team would be an injustice if we get to the CUSA championship game (win or lose).

Our current RPI is #11 (which is really more like #10 because we will certainly be seeded higher than Fairfield). Our best scenario going forward without winning the CUSAT would be to beat MTSU, face and beat CLT in game 3, and lose to LT on their home field in the Championship. Best scenario might be to face and beat USM in the Championship game which would give us winning records against all top CUSA teams over the season making us the clear cut leader despite the #4 CUSAT seed.

This was updated, ODU as a #13 seed overall and traveling as a #1 seed to South Carolina. Talk about baseball 'name', all but a handful of their 'L's' were to ranked teams.

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/...eld-of-64/

(05-27-2021 08:06 AM)DaBigBlue Wrote:  This was updated, ODU as a #13 seed overall and traveling as a #1 seed to South Carolina. Talk about baseball 'name', all but a handful of their 'L's' were to ranked teams.

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/...eld-of-64/

Here's another with us in Columbia but as a #11 National Seed

https://www.collegesportsmadness.com/bas...acketology

Too bad the Virginia Beach Neptunes didn't come to pass. Their proposed stadium (Wheeler Field) would have seated 5,000 and been an appropriate venue for ODU to offer as a prospective host (presumably it would have been easier to work with an independent-league team with regards to scheduling flexibility than a Triple A team, though to be fair we'll never know)

Gotta say this tournament is shaping up nicely for ODU. Charlotte goes to the losers bracket, LT plays 12 innings and USM plays long after last call. Now ODU just needs to take care of business today against MT and they’ll get a day off tomorrow and have two chances on Saturday to win one to go to the finals.

(05-27-2021 07:12 AM)The Flagship Wrote:  in my opinion (and I have been following college baseball somewhat closely for 40 years), it's a matter of three things:
1. RPI is a bit flawed this year because of COVID scheduling, and
2. Old Dominion, and Charlotte for that matter, do not carry as big a baseball "name" as LT, USM, Rica, and FAU from CUSA. We had a good year going last year until COVID killed the season. If that season played through, it would have helped us this year. And,
3. We are the #4 seed in the CUSA tournament although the top 4 seeds are only separated by two games.

And honestly, not being considered as a host site for the Regionals is hurting us too.

I listened to a "Nerdcast" on D1Baseball.com from last Sunday and they barely mentioned us. That's why D1Baseball has given us a lower ranking of the major polls.

Let's hope the Committee sees through all that. There is a chance we can be a traveling #1 seed in Columbia or Greenville. We won't go to Charlotte because they won't likely have two CUSA teams in the same region. The only other possibility is Pittsburgh for being a traveling #1 as I see it.

While there is a big difference in a #1 vs. #2 seed as far as the first Regional game goes, there would also be a big difference between being a high #2 vs. a low #2. That's my big fear. Being a #2 in a region where the host is a top 6 or 7 team would be an injustice if we get to the CUSA championship game (win or lose).

Our current RPI is #11 (which is really more like #10 because we will certainly be seeded higher than Fairfield). Our best scenario going forward without winning the CUSAT would be to beat MTSU, face and beat CLT in game 3, and lose to LT on their home field in the Championship. Best scenario might be to face and beat USM in the Championship game which would give us winning records against all top CUSA teams over the season making us the clear cut leader despite the #4 CUSAT seed.

FS, thanks. I appreciate you taking the time to provide some insight for me. Hopefully, we:

1. Win the CUSA tournament (and right now we are off to a good start), and
2. Are a No. 1 seed in a close-by regional tournament.

Anything beyond that would just be gravy on an already super year for the Monarchs. (But a trip to a super regional and then on to Omaha would be pretty darn nice!)

Cheers!

If Charlotte doesn’t get the bats going, they could be headed home early. Down 6-2 to FAU after 3 innings.

It may not make much if any difference, but if ODU is a travelling 1 seed, I could see them getting a little more attention than a typical 9-16 overall seed because it's been so long since it's happened (2010 Florida State as a 1 at the UConn regional, per Baseball America].

Charlotte now in real trouble down 9-3 going into the bottom of the 7th.

And FAU pitcher has struck out 4 of last 5 CLT batters.

(05-27-2021 11:49 AM)bit_9 Wrote:  And FAU pitcher has struck out 4 of last 5 CLT batters.

He's a stud, he beat us with a shutout thru 8. Not many teams do that.

Charlotte with a rally in the 9th. Now 9-6 with one out, a man on second and a new pitcher coming on.

EDIT: Rally comes up one run short and FAU wins it 9-8.

FAU imploding this inning

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