@Chico Escuela posted:I especially feel for Franklin & Marshall, who finished with the same conference record as Swarthmore and split with them in the regular season. Swat won the tiebreaker and was the #1 seed, but I know F&M wanted their shot in the tournament.
After the decision, F&M seems to have scheduled a last-minute game at Scranton (non-conference, but an extra game nonetheless) because they are hoping for an at-large bid. Game is at 6 PM tonight.
Was the decision a way for the administrators to emphasize these are academic institutions where athletics is very secondary? In the moment the decision really sucks. But in the big picture of what these kids will accomplish in their lifetime it’s not that relevant. But they won’t forget. Someday, when the kid is a dad he’ll tell his kid about the jackass decision made in his conference tournament.
@RJM posted:Was the decision a way for the administrators to emphasize these are academic institutions where athletics is very secondary? In the moment the decision really sucks. But in the big picture of what these kids will accomplish in their lifetime it’s not that relevant. But they won’t forget. Someday, when the kid is a dad he’ll tell his kid about the jackass decision made in his conference tournament.
We can only speculate as to the conference's motives. I have heard (purely rumors) that the affected schools' Athletic Directors had no problem with moving the games. IMO, it was mostly inertia/lack of imagination. The conference rules say that if games couldn't be completed by the end of the day, then the #1 seed is the champion. There are no specific rules about moving games or playing beyond the arbitrary deadline if all the schools involved agree. So to take a different path would have required some leadership and creativity. For whatever reason, that was in short supply on Sunday.
What really rankles is that this was not an "act of God." It rained, but the conference softball championships were played on Sunday on a field literally adjacent to the Swat baseball field. The issue apparently was that the tarp (which smoke says is new) blew off the baseball field during the night. I'm confident this was just a mistake--I don't think for a second that Swarthmore had any ill intent (and again, their coach agreed to move the games and play out the tournament). But this isn't the kind of situation the rules had in mind. The conference effectively rewarded Swat (and punished three other teams) for Swat's groundskeeping error. (Once again I hasten to add--Swat did not try to take advantage of the situation.) I think Swarthmore's baseball team is going to hear a lot of chirping next year (there already has been a lot on Twitter). That's not fair--the conference made the decision, and Swat did win the regular season title. But it's one more way things are twisted, and one more source of discontent.
Were any of the remaining schools in the middle of finals? This could have had a bearing on the conference level decision. Otherwise, there wasn’t a rush. A D3 team a friend coaches is just starting g their conference tournament tomorrow through Saturday.
@RJM posted:Were any of the remaining schools in the middle of finals? This could have had a bearing on the conference level decision. Otherwise, there wasn’t a rush. A D3 team a friend coaches is just starting g their conference tournament tomorrow through Saturday.
Good question. Based on the briefest of Google searches, looks like a mixed bag: one school had finished exams, one was in the middle of them, two started finals this week. All the teams were planning to play as many as four games on Sunday. Hard to see how moving the games to another field would have made much difference to players already used to managing school and baseball. And the conference didn't offer academic calendars as a reason for its decision.
Anyhow, it's done. I'd like to see them revisit the rule for next season. But for 2022: Good luck to Swat.
The latest report from son:
Yesterday, all four teams petitioned again to continue the tournament. Its unclear who exactly the petition went to. It could’ve been the conference office, or all the league athletic directors, or a select group of some kind.
Today, word came back that the petition was denied. No other details.
The rule should be revisited. one option would be to start league play a week earlier so there’s more time to complete a tournament.
As RJM mentioned, finals may have been an issue. Son’s in the middle of his now.
I got the same word from my son that smoke did: Last night the 4 schools/teams filed a petition (with the conference, as I heard it) asking to play the remaining tournament games, but the petition was denied today.
Kudos to Swat for joining the petition. Time to turn the page. (In my son's case, the pages in his stats and chemistry notes, so he can get ready for exams...)
@smokeminside posted:The latest report from son:
Yesterday, all four teams petitioned again to continue the tournament. Its unclear who exactly the petition went to. It could’ve been the conference office, or all the league athletic directors, or a select group of some kind.
Today, word came back that the petition was denied. No other details.
The rule should be revisited. one option would be to start league play a week earlier so there’s more time to complete a tournament.
As RJM mentioned, finals may have been an issue. Son’s in the middle of his now.
I think this has escalated past "contretemps"
yeah.
I think we’ve reached the cataclysmic stage.
@smokeminside posted:yeah.
I think we’ve reached the cataclysmic stage.
You didn’t like the PM I sent you?!? I thought you would enjoy that story
Terrible. Sorry to Smoke and Chico and their sons!
D3 BASEBALL PODCAST, EPISODE 101
FROM 6:50-12:38 COMMENTS ON THE CENTENNIAL CONFERENCE DECISION.
Entertaining and accurate, based on my knowledge of the situation.
Also, if you're a D3 fan, this podcast is a lot of fun. Two ex D3 baseball guys put their hearts into it, and given that it's a volunteer effort, it's really good.
