2014 D-I College Championships - Women's Division Day 1 Recap
Erick Starkey
Posted: May 24, 2014 12:02 AM
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Day one of the Division I College Championship in Mason, Ohio, is in the books. Pool play is half over with the other half to continue on Saturday at Heritage Oak Park.
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Pool A
The day began with the old fashioned rivalry of Ohio State against Michigan, taking place in a city located just over an hour from the Ohio State campus. Ohio State jumped out to a 6-1 lead, but Flywheel would settle down in the big game and bring it back to a 6-5. Fever took half 8-6 and after half, Fever's zone defense helped them cruise to a five-point victory. In Fever’s second game of the day, the top seed in the women’s division took on the five seed from their pool in Kansas. Ohio State took half 8-4 and continued to steamroll after half to a final score of 15-6.
Flywheel and Hydra traded points in the beginning of their match up, which turned out to be the game for second place in the pool after day one, but Michigan pulled away from a 5-5 tie with a three-point run to take half. They did not look back, and despite a late push from Hydra, eked out the game 14-13. Despite coming in as the fourth seed, Virginia used quick handler movement to beat Victoria, the third seed, 15-5. The Vixens made their second game against Betty interesting, even after taking half 8-5. Betty came back and tied the game at 11s, using their height to score on deep hucks, but Victoria would take the win on universe point, 13-12.
Pool B
Fugue began their day against Colorado College; the teams traded points to begin, before Fugue began to pull away. Although Strata's offense had glimpses of greatness, they could not match the fire power of Oregon. Fugue glided to their first win of the day 15-10. Oregon would later meet the second seed from Pool B in Stanford. They were evenly matched at the beginning; Superfly snagged a few early breaks to take the lead, but Fugue broke back and used their athleticism and superb defensive play to create turns, which they converted to take half at 8-7. After continuing to trade points out of half, Fugue's defense took over and earned them an important 15-13 victory.
Stanford did hold their second seed in the pool after defeating Tufts. Superfly fell to an early deficit, but with great handling and a general team enthusiasm, they were able to claw their way back to tie the game at 11-11 with the soft cap on. Stanford went on to earn the last two points and clinch the win 13-11. Tufts’ second game of the day pitted them against Western Washington, and Ewo was able to pull off the upset. Although Chaos was patient in working their way through the Ewo zone, they could not keep up. The game was still within sight for Western Washington at 12-10, but Tufts would run away at the end to take it 15-11. Western Washington could not get themselves together later in the day as they got upset again by Colorado College. Strata took half and followed it up with three more right after half before convincingly closing out the game 15-8.
Pool C
Central Florida started the day late with their first game kicking off at 2:30 p.m. with a match up against the number two seed in Pool C, Carleton College. The game was full of wind and zone defense. Central Florida took half 8-3. After half, Carleton started to get going, but it was too little to late, even after they made some adjustments and fixed their offensive struggles from the first half. Central Florida took the game 15-9 and played again right afterward. Colorado made their best effort to keep up with Central Florida with some speed and good handler work of their own, but the skill of the Sirens earned them their second convincing win of the weekend 15-7.
Carleton College came out on top in their second game, the two v. four seed match up. The game went back and forth with each team throwing hucks deep and seeing who could come down with them, with Carleton taking the edge at half, 8-6. The second half became a defensive battle when the wind picked up. Despite trailing 11-7, Northeastern tried to mount a comeback, tightening the score to 11-9, but the Carleton’s zone helped them win 15-10. Northeastern would go on to pull off an upset later in the day against the evenly matched British Columbia squad. Northeastern took half 8-7, and the teams continued to trade points until the soft cap horn blew. With the score tied at 13s and a game to 14, Northeastern’s offensive line held to pull out the win. The day was not all heartbreak for the Thunderbirds as their fast-paced game helped them take their game against Colorado Kali 15-5.
Pool D
Washington began their day with what turned out to be an easy contest against Cornell. Washington's zone defense proved tougher than Cornell’s, and Element’s steady offensive play helped them cruise to a 15-3 victory. Element's second game against California-Santa Barbara was a back-and-forth affair of multiple runs. The Burning Skirts pulled out to an early three-point lead, but Element used their strong defensive play to cause turns and convert scores. After Washington took half 8-7 and a subsequent point for each team, Element took off on a six-score run with energy always coming from the sidelines. California-Santa Barbara did attempt a last minute come back, but Washington had worn them down and closed out the game and their second win of the day.
The Burning Skirts proved they deserved the number two seed in the pool when they played BLU. Both teams settled for hucks at the beginning of the game, but the wind necessitated a new strategy. The teams turned to moving the disc slowly down the field, which California-Santa Barbara did just slightly better. The Skirts eventually closed out the game 15-9. Whitman met Cornell at the beginning of the day, and the game seemed evenly matched before the speed of Sweets took over, earning Whitman the game, 15-10. UCLA pulled off the only upset in Pool D against Whitman. BLU's handlers kept hucking deep, and their strategy seemed to work for them as they took half 8-7. Whitman held close throughout, but the zone defense of UCLA kept Whitman from capitalizing on possessions, and BLU took the game 15-11.
Saturday Games to Watch
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Washington Element v. Whitman Sweets 8:30 a.m.
Washington will be looking to cement their number one seed in the pool, coming off of two wins on Friday, one against the pool’s second seed. The Sweets were upset by UCLA and need to rebound to stay in contention for the championship bracket. Whitman has a tough day ahead. They will face the one seed in Washington, followed by the two seed.
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Stanford Superfly v. Colorado College Strata 10:30 a.m.
With each team in the mix in Pool B with a win and a loss, Colorado College will be looking to ride the momentum of their upset over Western Washington to see if they can break seed on the weekend and make it to the championship bracket. Stanford will try to solidify their spot as the number two seed in the pool.
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Michigan Flywheel v. Victoria Vixens 12:30 p.m.
Fever seems cemented in the Pool A’s top spot, but this game will help determine the order of the pool’s middle teams and may help decide who will be heading to the championship bracket and who will be forced to the consolation bracket. To add to the excitement, Flywheel will be looking for revenge as the Vixens have already beaten them twice this season.
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Carleton College Syzygy v. British Columbia Thunderbirds 2:30 p.m.
Carleton will start off day two after a less-than-stellar performance against Central Florida, so it will be interesting to see if they have a short memory and can rebound against the Thunderbirds. British Columbia is also entering the day after a Friday upset.
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Day 1 Highlights - Images by CBMT creative
(Extended Gallery)
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