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PNCLL Championship Hosted by SFU- Who will Take the Title? Who Will Go to "The Show"? |
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Headline News
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| Washington Lacrosse News | |||
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PNCLL Playoffs will commence this coming weekend April 30-May 1st in Burnaby, B.C. hosted by Simon Fraser University. Simon Fraser hosts the tourney at the Burnaby Lake fields making this show, extra special!
Saturday will draw the semi-final matches between the top four seeds in each division, and Sunday will present the championships for a trip to nationals in Blaine, Minnesota May 10th-14th. Here is where things get interesting. Oregon has almost locked in their spot to go to nationals, without even winning the PNCLL title based on the latest MDIA poll. Now, before everyone gets upset, UW and Simon Fraser still have a shot at going, but will have perform miraculously to do so being so far away from the top 12 ranked teams- They will have to win the title to become the automatic qualifier for Nationals. Looking at the latest MDIA A Division poll, only Oregon maintains a top 10 status. This may change however, with a lackluster performance this coming weekend against either UW or Gonzaga to start. One possibility may be that if Oregon does lose, two PNCLL teams will go, both the PNCLL champion and possibly the Ducks as well. However, in that scenario, a higher seeded team from another division may go instead. Seems strange to any of you? Depends, really. If each division were equal, sure the league Champion should attend nationals. However, there is a huge disparity in talent across the board, and the ranking system supports the process for selection for teams other than the Title-bearers, or leagues that do not get an automatic qualifier for their title.
Dan Wishengrad contributed a little insight to the playoff picture...
The PNCLL
has an automatic qualifier, which goes to Nationals. Any of the four teams
-- Oregon, Washington, Simon Fraser or Gonzaga -- earns the Automatic
Qualifier (AQ) by winning on Saturday and Sunday. If Oregon loses, however,
the Ducks (currently ranked #7) have a chance to also go as one of the eight
at-large teams. Eight leagues have AQs, including the PNCLL. One, the RMLC,
has only five "A" teams so gets no AQ in 2005. The eight at-large teams
picked will be the eight highest ranked teams that don't win an AQ. One
league, the Similarly, the new B tournament has eight leagues sending an AQ. The Pioneer League doesn't have enough B teams for an AQ, so they don't send a representative...
University of Washington is hungry though. Coming off a close win in exhibition against Gonzaga, some may say their destiny lays in the hands of Oregon, I would say differently. With two solid wins through the weekend, the PNCLL title is very attainable for the Huskies. The same can be said for SFU- neither of these two teams are ranked in the top 20, but stellar performances may make a last minute date for the dance. Let's put first things first- one of the most exciting semis in recent history will pit UW against the Clansman in a contest against virtual equals. Home field advantage not withstanding, this should be the game of the weekend to watch.
B league play will see rivals Linfield and PLU do battle in what some are predicting to be an upset. This should also be a great game to watch. Montana uncontested for most of the season, should have no problem with Whitman and will play the #2/#3 seed victor in all likelihood. Look for a show from the late-blooming Lutes, they may have the post-season magic.
Join the Lax fans around the Northwest in your support this weekend, and go see the Tourney in Burnaby, B.C!
A Division MDIA Top 25 B Division MDIA Top 25
Schedule- PNCLL PLAYOFFS
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