According to Academic Calendars in California...Happy Cesar Chavez day (it's really tomorrow, but that doesn't stop them from celebrating the Friday of)!
Here are some links to get you started!
Coaches will miss playing Pacific
Lots of memories go around in this article.
Big West shows life in the Fresno State Lexus Classic
There were 3 top 10 finishes in the men's competition and 2 top 10 finishes in the women's competition. On top of that UC Davis has been ranked No. 25 nationally.
No. 41 UCSB dominates UCSD 6-1
The Gauchos lost the doubles point, then preceded to sweep the singles competition.
Davis wins series opener 5-3 over Hawaii
Dayne Quist went into beast mode, giving up only 2 runs while striking out 9 in 7 innings of work, as the Aggies took the opening game.
Conference play begins this week when Cal Poly plays LBSU
The Mustangs try to stay hot as they host the Dirtbags. Implications? They're 16-8, have never won a Big West title and only been to the NCAA regional playoffs once.
As the conference play begins for both baseball and softball, get out there in the sun and go watch your teams!
Be sure to like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/BigWestConfidential
Friday, March 30, 2012
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Morning Links 3/29/12
So now that everyone knows Pacific is leaving, here are some non-conference expansion links to fill your morning, mostly because the conference expansion links of today say everything that was basically stated yesterday.
Laura Beeman, assistant head coach at USC becomes Hawaii head coach
Beeman started her coaching career at Mount San Antonio College (Pasadena) and will join Hawaii in time for the Rainbow Wahine joining the Big West.
A pair of doubleheader sweeps in yesterday's softball action
UCR swept CSU Bakersfield while Oregon State swept CSU Northridge. Now the question is, after essentially a 22-game homestand, can the Highlanders win on the road?
USC holds off UCI to win 5-4
After UCI jumped out to a 2-0 lead, the Trojans took the reigns and controlled the game.
No. 13 Fullerton singles their way to victory over No. 14 ASU
I don't joke when I say "singles." The Titans had 18 of them as they beat the Sun Devils 9-5.
See anything I've missed? Comment below!
Laura Beeman, assistant head coach at USC becomes Hawaii head coach
Beeman started her coaching career at Mount San Antonio College (Pasadena) and will join Hawaii in time for the Rainbow Wahine joining the Big West.
A pair of doubleheader sweeps in yesterday's softball action
UCR swept CSU Bakersfield while Oregon State swept CSU Northridge. Now the question is, after essentially a 22-game homestand, can the Highlanders win on the road?
USC holds off UCI to win 5-4
After UCI jumped out to a 2-0 lead, the Trojans took the reigns and controlled the game.
No. 13 Fullerton singles their way to victory over No. 14 ASU
I don't joke when I say "singles." The Titans had 18 of them as they beat the Sun Devils 9-5.
See anything I've missed? Comment below!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Conference...Contraction? Pacific officially leaving the BWC to go to the West Coast Conference
Like I linked before in the Morning Links, Pacific is leaving for greener (?) pastures in the Big West. As far as I can tell, this was not a disrespectful move, or one of desperation to leave. It sort of just happened.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want Pacific to leave, but in this case, it's for the best. The Tigers were founding members of both the WCC in 1952 and the Big West in 1969, so it totally makes sense that the Tigers would essentially go back to their roots. Throw in the fact that Pacific is a private religious institution (under the United Methodist Church if anyone's curious) and the were the only private college in the Big West and this move makes Pacific feel even more at home. They were rivals with nobody really from the conference (Regionally, it is UC Davis, but Davis and Cal Poly claim each other rivals. According to various sites I've found Pacific has a rivalry with San Jose State and Utah State.), and the West Coast Conference has one thing that probably attracts them the most, outside of "higher" prestiege: no playing games on Sundays.
Now here are the things I find interesting: nowhere in the school's official statement is any kind of thank you. It's like casting off the island you lived on for over 40 years and wanting nothing to do with it. On the other side, the Big West's official statement, makes it clear that while they didn't want Pacific to leave, it was a very natural move. Maybe I'm reading into it too much, but Pacific had to have been dissatisfied with maybe one or both of the conference expansion moves. Because of the tourism sponsorship, Hawaii was easily a natural move; however, I think San Diego State may have been one where conflicts could have arisen. We're fine at 10 teams why do we need 11, especially a public school that'll probably sweep through the sports? From the time SDSU got accepted to the Big West, that's probably around the time Pacific thought it was time to move out. The monetary benefits of the WCC may be a little more (they do have an ESPN contract), but it probably wasn't significant enough to jump ship immediately, there was more thinking that had to be done. The WCC at 9 teams wanted an even 10, they had looked at Boise State, but BSU went back to the WAC for the time being (until it loses all its members, if that happens).
So does the Big West stay at 10? My initial thoughts are yes, however, do not be surprised if something falls through in the WAC. If the WAC disbands, would the Big West be willing to take other schools? Yes, but only if the Big West can get some nice television contract to help compensate adding more schools. Otherwise, the Big West will stay at 10 teams for a long time.
What do you think of the Pacific move? Now with Pacific going, is this the time to be aggressive and try and get new TV deals and more teams? Comment below.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want Pacific to leave, but in this case, it's for the best. The Tigers were founding members of both the WCC in 1952 and the Big West in 1969, so it totally makes sense that the Tigers would essentially go back to their roots. Throw in the fact that Pacific is a private religious institution (under the United Methodist Church if anyone's curious) and the were the only private college in the Big West and this move makes Pacific feel even more at home. They were rivals with nobody really from the conference (Regionally, it is UC Davis, but Davis and Cal Poly claim each other rivals. According to various sites I've found Pacific has a rivalry with San Jose State and Utah State.), and the West Coast Conference has one thing that probably attracts them the most, outside of "higher" prestiege: no playing games on Sundays.
Now here are the things I find interesting: nowhere in the school's official statement is any kind of thank you. It's like casting off the island you lived on for over 40 years and wanting nothing to do with it. On the other side, the Big West's official statement, makes it clear that while they didn't want Pacific to leave, it was a very natural move. Maybe I'm reading into it too much, but Pacific had to have been dissatisfied with maybe one or both of the conference expansion moves. Because of the tourism sponsorship, Hawaii was easily a natural move; however, I think San Diego State may have been one where conflicts could have arisen. We're fine at 10 teams why do we need 11, especially a public school that'll probably sweep through the sports? From the time SDSU got accepted to the Big West, that's probably around the time Pacific thought it was time to move out. The monetary benefits of the WCC may be a little more (they do have an ESPN contract), but it probably wasn't significant enough to jump ship immediately, there was more thinking that had to be done. The WCC at 9 teams wanted an even 10, they had looked at Boise State, but BSU went back to the WAC for the time being (until it loses all its members, if that happens).
So does the Big West stay at 10? My initial thoughts are yes, however, do not be surprised if something falls through in the WAC. If the WAC disbands, would the Big West be willing to take other schools? Yes, but only if the Big West can get some nice television contract to help compensate adding more schools. Otherwise, the Big West will stay at 10 teams for a long time.
What do you think of the Pacific move? Now with Pacific going, is this the time to be aggressive and try and get new TV deals and more teams? Comment below.
Morning Links 3/28/12
Good morning! Here's some links for you to enjoy!
EVERYONE PANIC! PACIFIC IS PLANNING TO JUMP SHIP!
So don't panic, they're looking at the WCC. This makes sense because Pacific is the lone private school in the conference, who are religiously affiliated. The Big West shouldn't worry though, we have SDSU and Hawaii incoming, with also the possibility of CSU Bakersfield if the commissioner wants to go that route.
Kristina Santiago named honorable All-American
And do you blame AP for this decision? She was practically unstoppable, and she's getting scouted professionally.
CSU Northridge volleyball coach Stork selected to Volleyball Hall of Fame
Outside of the potential joke that is "I didn't know they had a Volleyball Hall of Fame"...Stork's playing resume is pretty impressive, one that highlights a gold medal in the 1988 Olympics.
Tuesday's softball recaps
The highlight of which would be Pacific's dominance in a doubleheader against CSU Bakersfield.
Tuesday's baseball recaps
In what could have been a close loss, UCSB turned it around and beat Pepperdine 10-5. Other games yesterday: ASU beat the Titans 1-0 and SDSU beat UCR 7-3.
Seen anything I've missed? Comment below!
EVERYONE PANIC! PACIFIC IS PLANNING TO JUMP SHIP!
So don't panic, they're looking at the WCC. This makes sense because Pacific is the lone private school in the conference, who are religiously affiliated. The Big West shouldn't worry though, we have SDSU and Hawaii incoming, with also the possibility of CSU Bakersfield if the commissioner wants to go that route.
Kristina Santiago named honorable All-American
And do you blame AP for this decision? She was practically unstoppable, and she's getting scouted professionally.
CSU Northridge volleyball coach Stork selected to Volleyball Hall of Fame
Outside of the potential joke that is "I didn't know they had a Volleyball Hall of Fame"...Stork's playing resume is pretty impressive, one that highlights a gold medal in the 1988 Olympics.
Tuesday's softball recaps
The highlight of which would be Pacific's dominance in a doubleheader against CSU Bakersfield.
Tuesday's baseball recaps
In what could have been a close loss, UCSB turned it around and beat Pepperdine 10-5. Other games yesterday: ASU beat the Titans 1-0 and SDSU beat UCR 7-3.
Seen anything I've missed? Comment below!
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Morning Links 3/27/12
Good morning everyone: here are links to complete your morning.
Anteaters need to find an ace pitcher, fast.
Some of you are wondering, "isn't Kyle Hooper dominating?" Hooper was dominating, but a nagging elbow injury suffered against Nevada has kept him out, and unfortunately, UCI doesn't have a second dominating pitcher to fill in the slot.
Mustangs' shortstop Miller named Conference POW
He did that by going 11-23 with 7 RBIs last week. Miller is now batting .379 on the season.
Kristina Santiago invited to a pro-workout during the Final Four
This workout is one that invites all the top seniors around the nation, so this is quite an honor.
LBSU's Casper Ware receives an honorable mention for the AP NCAA All-America list
At first, I thought "big whoop" but then I realized that well, there's only 5 people on a "1st team" etc... this list honors the top 50 players in the nation. If you realize there are 300+ teams in Division I basketball, 11-15 players/team, that is quite a high honor. Arguments can be made by saying that they took one player from each conference, which is true. However, Ware's presence to the team is definitely more than that of a top conference player. Put him in any uniform in the Big East, and he would be a first or second team consideration.
Softball recap: UCSB splits doubleheader with Sac State
They won the first game 4-0, snapping the Hornets 9-game win streak, only to narrowly lose the second game 2-1.
Baseball recaps from Monday
Tigers swept Brown, UCD lost to Nevada and LBSU got dominated by Washington State. Only two more days of non-conference play before the push for the Big West crown begins.
UCR men's tennis puts their win streak to 3, beats Idaho State 4-3 in Las Vegas
While the doubles teams lost 2-1 to give the doubles points to ISU, the singles took 4 of 6 to win the competition.
That's it for today. See anything I missed, comment below.
Anteaters need to find an ace pitcher, fast.
Some of you are wondering, "isn't Kyle Hooper dominating?" Hooper was dominating, but a nagging elbow injury suffered against Nevada has kept him out, and unfortunately, UCI doesn't have a second dominating pitcher to fill in the slot.
Mustangs' shortstop Miller named Conference POW
He did that by going 11-23 with 7 RBIs last week. Miller is now batting .379 on the season.
Kristina Santiago invited to a pro-workout during the Final Four
This workout is one that invites all the top seniors around the nation, so this is quite an honor.
LBSU's Casper Ware receives an honorable mention for the AP NCAA All-America list
At first, I thought "big whoop" but then I realized that well, there's only 5 people on a "1st team" etc... this list honors the top 50 players in the nation. If you realize there are 300+ teams in Division I basketball, 11-15 players/team, that is quite a high honor. Arguments can be made by saying that they took one player from each conference, which is true. However, Ware's presence to the team is definitely more than that of a top conference player. Put him in any uniform in the Big East, and he would be a first or second team consideration.
Softball recap: UCSB splits doubleheader with Sac State
They won the first game 4-0, snapping the Hornets 9-game win streak, only to narrowly lose the second game 2-1.
Baseball recaps from Monday
Tigers swept Brown, UCD lost to Nevada and LBSU got dominated by Washington State. Only two more days of non-conference play before the push for the Big West crown begins.
UCR men's tennis puts their win streak to 3, beats Idaho State 4-3 in Las Vegas
While the doubles teams lost 2-1 to give the doubles points to ISU, the singles took 4 of 6 to win the competition.
That's it for today. See anything I missed, comment below.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Morning Links 3/26/12
It's Monday again! We just can't seem to get rid of the damn thing. Oh well, here are some links:
Baseball recaps spell out WIN on Sunday
Big west teams went 4 for 5 on Sunday as LBSU beat Wichita State, Pacific beat Brown, Gauchos won the rubber game over USF and the Matadors split a doubleheader with St. Mary's.
Softball recaps from Sunday shows Big West continuing to improve
UCR won it's doubleheader, Pacific split it's doubleheader and Cal Poly and UCD both fell to their respective opponents.
Women's Water Polo boasts No. 11 UCD continuing it's winning streak
The Aggies are now on a 7-game winning streak as they beat SCU while No. 14 UCSB lost to No. 2 Stanford.
It's quiet for a Monday, so if you have any interesting links you would like to share, comment below.
Don't forget to like us on Facebook!
Baseball recaps spell out WIN on Sunday
Big west teams went 4 for 5 on Sunday as LBSU beat Wichita State, Pacific beat Brown, Gauchos won the rubber game over USF and the Matadors split a doubleheader with St. Mary's.
Softball recaps from Sunday shows Big West continuing to improve
UCR won it's doubleheader, Pacific split it's doubleheader and Cal Poly and UCD both fell to their respective opponents.
Women's Water Polo boasts No. 11 UCD continuing it's winning streak
The Aggies are now on a 7-game winning streak as they beat SCU while No. 14 UCSB lost to No. 2 Stanford.
It's quiet for a Monday, so if you have any interesting links you would like to share, comment below.
Don't forget to like us on Facebook!
Saturday, March 24, 2012
"Playoffs? PLAYOFFS? You kidden' me? PLAYOFFS?"
Yes...playoffs, college basketball playoffs for that. Why are we back talking about basketball playoffs? Because while we had the open threads and some coverage, we really had no closure of the teams who made the different playoffs. So thank you to those who reminded me that I needed to finish, this one's for you.
Friday, March 23, 2012
Morning Links 3/23/12
A very early happy Friday to all of you.
Early morning links today, so there might be later morning articles that I unintentionally miss:
Thursday's baseball recaps
RALLY! RALLY! RALLY! That's what happened in yesterday's games as No. 13 Fullerton rallied while ahead throughout the game and UCI rallied in the bottom of the ninth to beat their respective opponents, Oral Roberts and Dartmouth.
Shepard one hits Princeton as Pacific Softball wins 5-0
Kelsey Rodriguez went 2/3 with a solo HR, single and a walk and Pacific continued their winning ways.
Women's Water Polo preview for this weekend
The top story is, can UC Davis keep their 5-match win streak going? We'll find out...
Track and Field preview for the weekend
UCI has been officially announced as the school hosting the Big West Championship.
LBSU Women's Tennis dominates Dartmouth 6-1
The 49ers swept doubles competition and took 5 of 6 in the singles to utterly rout Dartmouth.
See anything I missed? Comment below! And as always, have a good weekend.
Early morning links today, so there might be later morning articles that I unintentionally miss:
Thursday's baseball recaps
RALLY! RALLY! RALLY! That's what happened in yesterday's games as No. 13 Fullerton rallied while ahead throughout the game and UCI rallied in the bottom of the ninth to beat their respective opponents, Oral Roberts and Dartmouth.
Shepard one hits Princeton as Pacific Softball wins 5-0
Kelsey Rodriguez went 2/3 with a solo HR, single and a walk and Pacific continued their winning ways.
Women's Water Polo preview for this weekend
The top story is, can UC Davis keep their 5-match win streak going? We'll find out...
Track and Field preview for the weekend
UCI has been officially announced as the school hosting the Big West Championship.
LBSU Women's Tennis dominates Dartmouth 6-1
The 49ers swept doubles competition and took 5 of 6 in the singles to utterly rout Dartmouth.
See anything I missed? Comment below! And as always, have a good weekend.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Morning Links 3/22/12
Good Morning everyone. Here are some links to start the day:
Conference play starts this weekend, so what does the Daily Titan do? PREVIEWS EVERYONE!
Softball has been down in the Big West this year, in the win-loss column...but with conference play starting this weekend, we'll know who is really at the top of the peak.
New Tourney changes to women's basketball
According to the Press Enterprise (and the Big West's twitter handle), the first round at the women's tournament will be on campus in one location, before moving to the Honda Center. This is good because everything will be almost one location, bad because on a year-by-year basis it gives one team specific home team advantage. I'll say this, after watching the WAC for years, there's a reason they moved their conference tourney to Las Vegas...
Coach Dan Monson recieves coaching honor
He was named District 9 honor of the 24-All-District coaches by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. This is his second straight year receiving this honor.
UCI Women's Basketball coach fired
Molly Goodenbour was 44-76 after four seasons at UCI, despite making the No. 3 seed in the Big West Conference Tournament this season.
Softball recap: LBSU 5, LMU 2
A complete game by Erin Jones-Wesley followed by high offense led to a great win over a good team.
6-run explosion in bottom of the sixth leads Cal Poly to a 9-8 win over Dartmouth
After giving up 4 runs in the top of the sixth and down 8-2, the Mustangs went into beast mode in the bottom frame scoring 6 runs, then finishing off Dartmouth with a David Armendariz RBI single.
Former UCI standout Colin Mello replaces Rodgers at Bellarmine College Prep school for Water Polo
This is huge news because Larry Rodgers coached at Bellarmine, one of the top high schools for Water Polo, for 30 years. To follow that kind of legacy will be very difficult.
Spurs retire former Titan Bruce Bowen's jersey number
Raise your hand if you knew Bruce Bowen played for Cal State Fullerton. That's what I thought... Anyway I personally saw Bowen as one of the best defensive players in the game, and to get his jersey number retired shows how much he did for the Spurs.
See anything I missed? Comment Below. Also don't forget to "Like" us on Facebook!
Conference play starts this weekend, so what does the Daily Titan do? PREVIEWS EVERYONE!
Softball has been down in the Big West this year, in the win-loss column...but with conference play starting this weekend, we'll know who is really at the top of the peak.
New Tourney changes to women's basketball
According to the Press Enterprise (and the Big West's twitter handle), the first round at the women's tournament will be on campus in one location, before moving to the Honda Center. This is good because everything will be almost one location, bad because on a year-by-year basis it gives one team specific home team advantage. I'll say this, after watching the WAC for years, there's a reason they moved their conference tourney to Las Vegas...
Coach Dan Monson recieves coaching honor
He was named District 9 honor of the 24-All-District coaches by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. This is his second straight year receiving this honor.
UCI Women's Basketball coach fired
Molly Goodenbour was 44-76 after four seasons at UCI, despite making the No. 3 seed in the Big West Conference Tournament this season.
Softball recap: LBSU 5, LMU 2
A complete game by Erin Jones-Wesley followed by high offense led to a great win over a good team.
6-run explosion in bottom of the sixth leads Cal Poly to a 9-8 win over Dartmouth
After giving up 4 runs in the top of the sixth and down 8-2, the Mustangs went into beast mode in the bottom frame scoring 6 runs, then finishing off Dartmouth with a David Armendariz RBI single.
Former UCI standout Colin Mello replaces Rodgers at Bellarmine College Prep school for Water Polo
This is huge news because Larry Rodgers coached at Bellarmine, one of the top high schools for Water Polo, for 30 years. To follow that kind of legacy will be very difficult.
Spurs retire former Titan Bruce Bowen's jersey number
Raise your hand if you knew Bruce Bowen played for Cal State Fullerton. That's what I thought... Anyway I personally saw Bowen as one of the best defensive players in the game, and to get his jersey number retired shows how much he did for the Spurs.
See anything I missed? Comment Below. Also don't forget to "Like" us on Facebook!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
And now, some national random baseball stats for your enjoyment...
If you're like me, you don't just love the game of baseball. You love all the statistics behind it, you want to know how your team is doing, not just on a conference (or division if MLB) level, but also nationally. And so, in celebration of our nerdiness: I present to you Big West teams/players in national rankings.
Here's how it works, in a statistical category, I'll give players and teams who are nationally ranked (sounds simple enough, right?). You can make your own judgements as to how good/bad that is.
So here we go:
Here's how it works, in a statistical category, I'll give players and teams who are nationally ranked (sounds simple enough, right?). You can make your own judgements as to how good/bad that is.
So here we go:
Morning Links 3/21/12
Happy Wednesday: here's the links of the day
LBSU Women's basketball team can look at their season with pride
The Long Beach Press Telegram writes a good story on how these underdog 49ers came within a victory of making the NCAA tournament (remember that they entered the BW Tourney as a 7 seed).
The Daily Titan reviews the season, speculates for next season
Reading this, I didn't realize that Fullerton had such bad chemistry throughout the year. That being said, they created a great season out of it.
Mustangs Men's Tennis stays hot
Andre Dome is giving them hell out there. The No. 25 player in the country defeated his singles rival and also upset the No. 35 doubles team of Matt Spindler and Matt Siow, with his partner Matt Fawcett.
LBSU Women's tennis nearly pulls off upset against No. 25 Nebraska
They won in doubles results, but couldn't finish off in the singles. Final scores: Doubles, LBSU 2-1 Singles, Neb 4-2
Tuesday's baseball scores (no recaps yet):
Like us here at: www.facebook.com/BigWestConfidential
See anything I missed? Comment below
LBSU Women's basketball team can look at their season with pride
The Long Beach Press Telegram writes a good story on how these underdog 49ers came within a victory of making the NCAA tournament (remember that they entered the BW Tourney as a 7 seed).
The Daily Titan reviews the season, speculates for next season
Reading this, I didn't realize that Fullerton had such bad chemistry throughout the year. That being said, they created a great season out of it.
Mustangs Men's Tennis stays hot
Andre Dome is giving them hell out there. The No. 25 player in the country defeated his singles rival and also upset the No. 35 doubles team of Matt Spindler and Matt Siow, with his partner Matt Fawcett.
LBSU Women's tennis nearly pulls off upset against No. 25 Nebraska
They won in doubles results, but couldn't finish off in the singles. Final scores: Doubles, LBSU 2-1 Singles, Neb 4-2
Tuesday's baseball scores (no recaps yet):
- Sac State 6, Pacific 3
- Northridge 12, LMU 1
- Pepperdine 12, LBSU 2
Like us here at: www.facebook.com/BigWestConfidential
See anything I missed? Comment below
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Morning Links 3/20/12
Sorry, no links yesterday due to the crazy little thing called Finals. We're back and at 'em again though so lets get started!
Not sports related, but made the front page of Google News
So Cal State schools are planning on freezing enrollment next spring. I'm not going to get spidery about this, you can come to your own conclusions. However, it is a good read.
This weekend is the final weekend of non-conference play in baseball
Can anyone top the Titans to win the conference?
Big West SAAC brings over $10K fundraising to give towards Breast Cancer research
Once again, not really related to the sports aspect, but it's nice to see SAAC put funds towards community services.
Women's Water Polo recaps
The top news is that the No. 12 Matadors beat Bucknell 17-11 after losing to No. 8 SDSU
Baseball recaps from yesterday
Minnesota beat the Mustangs in the rubber game of the series 4-3, while St. Mary's beat UCD 5-2
See anything I missed? Comment below.
Not sports related, but made the front page of Google News
So Cal State schools are planning on freezing enrollment next spring. I'm not going to get spidery about this, you can come to your own conclusions. However, it is a good read.
This weekend is the final weekend of non-conference play in baseball
Can anyone top the Titans to win the conference?
Big West SAAC brings over $10K fundraising to give towards Breast Cancer research
Once again, not really related to the sports aspect, but it's nice to see SAAC put funds towards community services.
Women's Water Polo recaps
The top news is that the No. 12 Matadors beat Bucknell 17-11 after losing to No. 8 SDSU
Baseball recaps from yesterday
Minnesota beat the Mustangs in the rubber game of the series 4-3, while St. Mary's beat UCD 5-2
See anything I missed? Comment below.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Morning Links 3/16/12
Happy Friday everyone! Here are some links to start your day:
Long Beach goes down to New Mexico thanks to Drew Gordon and Kendall Williams
While I did predict the upset here, it wasn't a bold choice. The 49ers played toe to toe with New Mexico and would have won if shots fell the last 2 minutes. Still, New Mexico is a very good team and should be easily in the Sweet 16 now.
UCD loses to Oregon State in opening round of WNIT
Courtney French was the key player for the Aggies going 4-6 beyond the arc. Nobody else was able to get into double digits in scoring.
Softball recaps from Thursday
Congratulations to Kelly Zboralske for hitting her first collegiate home run, a grand slam.
Thursday's Baseball recaps
The Gauchos beat Rhode Island and UCI fell to Nevada as each team will continue their 3-game series today and tomorrow.
See anything I missed? Comment below
Long Beach goes down to New Mexico thanks to Drew Gordon and Kendall Williams
While I did predict the upset here, it wasn't a bold choice. The 49ers played toe to toe with New Mexico and would have won if shots fell the last 2 minutes. Still, New Mexico is a very good team and should be easily in the Sweet 16 now.
UCD loses to Oregon State in opening round of WNIT
Courtney French was the key player for the Aggies going 4-6 beyond the arc. Nobody else was able to get into double digits in scoring.
Softball recaps from Thursday
Congratulations to Kelly Zboralske for hitting her first collegiate home run, a grand slam.
Thursday's Baseball recaps
The Gauchos beat Rhode Island and UCI fell to Nevada as each team will continue their 3-game series today and tomorrow.
See anything I missed? Comment below
Thursday, March 15, 2012
NCAA TOURNAMENT: 2ND ROUND OPEN THREAD
Long Beach State takes on New Mexico at 1:10 pm PST
Here's a list of times and score updates for all the games today
You can watch March Madness online for $3.99 (which is total BS because it's been free for at least the last 5 years). Or you can watch them on TV alternating the channels between CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV.
I'll be busy throughout and will be checking in periodically.
Some questions to think about:
Here's a list of times and score updates for all the games today
You can watch March Madness online for $3.99 (which is total BS because it's been free for at least the last 5 years). Or you can watch them on TV alternating the channels between CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV.
I'll be busy throughout and will be checking in periodically.
Some questions to think about:
- Who will be LBSU's top scorer?
- Will LBSU move on to the next round?
- Just what exactly is a Lobo (it's a wolf!)?
- Who will be the first No. 1 seed to fall?
- Who is this year's Cinderella?
Morning Links 3/15/12
Beware the Ides of March
Here are some links:
Mountain West Connection gives a nice preview of today's game
And I said BRING IT! The blog bet is on! Here's to LBSU winning today!
Caspar Ware has now gotten the attention of ESPN...
Is this a good thing? I think so, it brings some much needed attention to our little conference.
Wednesday's baseball recaps feature UCI shutting down Washington State
and CSU Northridge losing very badly to Rhode Island...
Titans and Gauchos seasons ended with losses in the Collegeinsider.com Postseason Tournament
I think the biggest story here is that three teams of the BWC made it to some sort of post season competition. The Gauchos loss probably stung more as they were down 17, came within one and lost by 3.
UCSB water polo defeats Iona and Bucknell in a double header
Being ranked 16 in the nation, 2 more wins can't hurt to move up.
Kristina Santiago finishes her college career, as Cal Poly loses to Washington in first round of the WNIT
Santiago had 28 pts, Ashlee Burns had 16 and Kayla Griffin had 10, but the Mustangs still fell by a score of 90-71.
See anything I missed? Comment below. The NCAA Tourney OT should be up here momentarily.
Here are some links:
Mountain West Connection gives a nice preview of today's game
And I said BRING IT! The blog bet is on! Here's to LBSU winning today!
Caspar Ware has now gotten the attention of ESPN...
Is this a good thing? I think so, it brings some much needed attention to our little conference.
Wednesday's baseball recaps feature UCI shutting down Washington State
and CSU Northridge losing very badly to Rhode Island...
Titans and Gauchos seasons ended with losses in the Collegeinsider.com Postseason Tournament
I think the biggest story here is that three teams of the BWC made it to some sort of post season competition. The Gauchos loss probably stung more as they were down 17, came within one and lost by 3.
UCSB water polo defeats Iona and Bucknell in a double header
Being ranked 16 in the nation, 2 more wins can't hurt to move up.
Kristina Santiago finishes her college career, as Cal Poly loses to Washington in first round of the WNIT
Santiago had 28 pts, Ashlee Burns had 16 and Kayla Griffin had 10, but the Mustangs still fell by a score of 90-71.
See anything I missed? Comment below. The NCAA Tourney OT should be up here momentarily.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Morning Links 3/14/12 (the not so morning edition)
Evening all,
VERY LATE links today on account due to work and finals. So here we go:
LBSU softball beats Iowa 1-0
That is LBSU's third straight shutout, can the streak continue?
Baseball recaps from yesterday
Big news is that Washington State upset No. 15 ranked CSU Fullerton in 11 innings.
Interesting article on how the Big West's NCAA ranking is an elitist problem
Basically, even though LBSU's RPI was 34, their ranking was 51, which sends a hypocritical message about the NCAA.
UCSB's preview against Idaho for the Collegeinsider.com Postseason Tournament
Game is at thePalouse Outhouse, er Kibbie Dome, er Cowan Spectrum. Here's to a Gaucho victory
See anything I missed, comment below!
VERY LATE links today on account due to work and finals. So here we go:
LBSU softball beats Iowa 1-0
That is LBSU's third straight shutout, can the streak continue?
Baseball recaps from yesterday
Big news is that Washington State upset No. 15 ranked CSU Fullerton in 11 innings.
Interesting article on how the Big West's NCAA ranking is an elitist problem
Basically, even though LBSU's RPI was 34, their ranking was 51, which sends a hypocritical message about the NCAA.
UCSB's preview against Idaho for the Collegeinsider.com Postseason Tournament
Game is at the
See anything I missed, comment below!
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
NCAA Women's Tournament 2012 Bracket: UCSB Is 16, Will Face Baylor On March 18
The 2012 NCAA Women's Tournament bracket and field has been announced, and the UCSB Gauchos will receive a 16 seed in the Des Moines region. UCSB's first
opponent will be the No. 1 ranked Baylor Bears, and they will play on March 18 at 11:45 am
in Bowling Green, Ohio. If the Gauchos win their first matchup, they will face
the winner of No. 8 Ohio State/No. 9 Florida on March 20.
Click here for a link to the complete NCAA Women's tournament bracket.
The Gauchos earned the 16 seed by winning the Big West Conference tourney despite entering as a No. 6 seed. Their overall record is 17-15 (14-15 before the conference tourney) in a weaker conference. For the Gauchos to beat the number one team in the nation they'll have to play their top defense against a Bears team and keep them under 60 points to have a chance.
Here's a look at the Des Moines of the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket:
No. 1 Baylor vs. No. 16 UCSB, March 18 at 11:45 am PST
No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Florida, March 18 at 9:15 am PST
No. 5 Georgetown vs. No. 12 Fresno State, March 18 at 9:20 am PST
No. 4 Georgia Tech vs. No. 13 Sacred Heart, March 18 at 11:50 am PST
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 15 UT Martin, March 17 at 1:10 pm PST
No. 7 DePaul vs. No. 10 BYU, March 17 at 3:40 pm PST
No. 3 Delaware vs. No. 14 UA Little Rock, March 18 at 2:20 pm PST
No. 6 Nebraska vs. No. 11 Kansas, March 18 at 4:50 pm PST
Morning Links 3/13/12
Slow day? Start your morning with some Big West links!
Huffington Post analyzes West Region: picks Long Beach State as a Sweet 16 sleeper
I would say that this is less of a sleeper and more than possible. New Mexico has had ups and downs, but they can be beaten. And the next round, they potentially face Louisville in a rematch of the regular season. While they did lose, by no means was it a blowout and if Monson can keep these kids focused, who knows what they can do.
Nice USA Today story on LBSU coach Dan Monson
Focuses on his relationship with his father Don Monson, who was the basketball coach at Oregon and Idaho.
UCI Women's tennis team suffers first conference loss against LBSU
UCI freshman Kat Facey could have been player of the match with her performance though, winning 6-2, 6-3 in her single's match.
Not much other news today. I'm trying to work on a blog bet with Mountain West Connection for the New Mexico/LBSU game. I'll give more information as it comes.
Huffington Post analyzes West Region: picks Long Beach State as a Sweet 16 sleeper
I would say that this is less of a sleeper and more than possible. New Mexico has had ups and downs, but they can be beaten. And the next round, they potentially face Louisville in a rematch of the regular season. While they did lose, by no means was it a blowout and if Monson can keep these kids focused, who knows what they can do.
Nice USA Today story on LBSU coach Dan Monson
Focuses on his relationship with his father Don Monson, who was the basketball coach at Oregon and Idaho.
UCI Women's tennis team suffers first conference loss against LBSU
UCI freshman Kat Facey could have been player of the match with her performance though, winning 6-2, 6-3 in her single's match.
Not much other news today. I'm trying to work on a blog bet with Mountain West Connection for the New Mexico/LBSU game. I'll give more information as it comes.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Morning Links 3/12/12
Happy Monday everyone, here are some readable links:
LA Times gives the Big West love: compares some stats and sports against the Pac12, specifically USC and UCLA
I love the fact that the Big West banner is making more than just a blip on the radar, and if UCSB (women's) and LBSU (men's) can do some damage in the tournament...we're going to become more recognizable even before Hawaii and SDSU join.
Recap of UCSB's win over LBSU
The Mercury News also pointed out that it was the first time since 1990 that the men's and women's teams from two schools met for the final (UCSB and LBSU, the last time was LBSU and UNLV).
West Region preview
Upset pick: 49ers over New Mexico. Guess what I've got a small surprise and I'll tell you about it later today.
Baseball recaps
Biggest news is that the Dirtbags beat No. 9 ASU to tie the series this weekend
Sunday softball recaps
Pacific was the story here, as the Tigers went 4-1 in the Diamond Devil Invitational.
UCSD students vote no to Div-I referendum by 60-40
The Tritons will have to wait for another time period to bring up the issue again. While the margin seems large (20%), in many ways the 40% could be looked at as a moral victory for a school that focuses so highly on academics.
See anything I missed? Comment below
LA Times gives the Big West love: compares some stats and sports against the Pac12, specifically USC and UCLA
I love the fact that the Big West banner is making more than just a blip on the radar, and if UCSB (women's) and LBSU (men's) can do some damage in the tournament...we're going to become more recognizable even before Hawaii and SDSU join.
Recap of UCSB's win over LBSU
The Mercury News also pointed out that it was the first time since 1990 that the men's and women's teams from two schools met for the final (UCSB and LBSU, the last time was LBSU and UNLV).
West Region preview
Upset pick: 49ers over New Mexico. Guess what I've got a small surprise and I'll tell you about it later today.
Baseball recaps
Biggest news is that the Dirtbags beat No. 9 ASU to tie the series this weekend
Sunday softball recaps
Pacific was the story here, as the Tigers went 4-1 in the Diamond Devil Invitational.
UCSD students vote no to Div-I referendum by 60-40
The Tritons will have to wait for another time period to bring up the issue again. While the margin seems large (20%), in many ways the 40% could be looked at as a moral victory for a school that focuses so highly on academics.
See anything I missed? Comment below
Sunday, March 11, 2012
NCAA Tournament 2012 Bracket: Long Beach State Is 12 Seed, Will Face New Mexico On March 15
The 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket and field has been announced, and the Long Beach State 49ers
will receive a 12 seed in the West region. New Mexico's first opponent
will be the New Mexico Lobos, and they will play on March 15 at 1:10pm PST in Portland, Oregon. If the 49ers win their first matchup,
they will face the winner of No. 4 Louisville/No. 13 Davidson on March
17.
The 49ers earned the 12 seed by winning the Big West regular conference title by going 15-1 in conference play and by winning the conference tournament. They went 25-8 this season.
Follow me after the jump the 2nd round games in the West region:
Follow me after the jump the 2nd round games in the West region:
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Let's go Dancing: Big West Conference Tournament Finals OPEN THREAD
Good morning everyone,
We had some exciting matches yesterday and we have two awesome matchups today, featuring a double header of teams.
First, the women's final: No. 7 seed LBSU 49ers vs No. 6 seed UCSB Gauchos 2 pm PST
My Prediction: No. 4 seed UCD vs No. 6 seed UCSB
Well, I was half right, UCSB took care of business by dominating the competition up to this point, defeating UCI 61-51 and routing Pacific 84-66. They've become stronger as the tournament goes on, and they had three players last night with 20+ points in Emilie Johnson, Nicole Nesbit and Melissa Zornig. LBSU on the other hand, has played scrappy ball, first edging out CSU Northridge 57-52, then knocking off Cal Poly 51-48. Devin Hudson had a double-double (10 pts, 10 reb) and will look to be the X-factor in tonight's matchup.
Final Prediction: UCSB 72, LBSU 68
Now the men's final: No. 1 seed LBSU 49ers vs No. 3 seed UCSB Gauchos 7 pm PST
My Prediction: No. 1 seed LBSU vs No. 2 see CSU Fullerton
With the way the bubble teams have been falling in their respective conference tourney, there is absolutely no reason, outside of a horrible 10+ pt loss, that LBSU should not be in the Big Dance next weekend. That being said, this is the third straight year that these two teams are meeting up, and that does not bode well for the 49ers as the Gauchos have won the last two years. I think with Larry Johnson being out, the 49ers will have a tough time tonight as they had to work to put away the pesky Anteaters last night.
Final Prediction: UCSB 81, LBSU 80 but both these teams will go dancing due to LBSU's RPI being high and bubble teams falling like flies.
Who are you pulling for? Does the Big West deserve two teams? Leave your comments below!
We had some exciting matches yesterday and we have two awesome matchups today, featuring a double header of teams.
First, the women's final: No. 7 seed LBSU 49ers vs No. 6 seed UCSB Gauchos 2 pm PST
My Prediction: No. 4 seed UCD vs No. 6 seed UCSB
Well, I was half right, UCSB took care of business by dominating the competition up to this point, defeating UCI 61-51 and routing Pacific 84-66. They've become stronger as the tournament goes on, and they had three players last night with 20+ points in Emilie Johnson, Nicole Nesbit and Melissa Zornig. LBSU on the other hand, has played scrappy ball, first edging out CSU Northridge 57-52, then knocking off Cal Poly 51-48. Devin Hudson had a double-double (10 pts, 10 reb) and will look to be the X-factor in tonight's matchup.
Final Prediction: UCSB 72, LBSU 68
Now the men's final: No. 1 seed LBSU 49ers vs No. 3 seed UCSB Gauchos 7 pm PST
My Prediction: No. 1 seed LBSU vs No. 2 see CSU Fullerton
With the way the bubble teams have been falling in their respective conference tourney, there is absolutely no reason, outside of a horrible 10+ pt loss, that LBSU should not be in the Big Dance next weekend. That being said, this is the third straight year that these two teams are meeting up, and that does not bode well for the 49ers as the Gauchos have won the last two years. I think with Larry Johnson being out, the 49ers will have a tough time tonight as they had to work to put away the pesky Anteaters last night.
Final Prediction: UCSB 81, LBSU 80 but both these teams will go dancing due to LBSU's RPI being high and bubble teams falling like flies.
Who are you pulling for? Does the Big West deserve two teams? Leave your comments below!
Friday, March 9, 2012
Big West Tournament Men and Women Semi-finals: OPEN THREAD
Like I mentioned earlier, I'm out of town this weekend, however here's an open thread for your enjoyment. Games and times are listed below:
Women's Semi-final:
No. 1 Cal Poly vs No. 7 LBSU 12:00 pm PST
No. 5 Pacific vs No. 6 UCSB 2:30 pm PST
Men's Semi-final:
No. 1 LBSU vs No. 7 UCI 6:30 pm PST
No. 3 UCSB vs No. 4 Cal Poly 9:00 pm PST
Some questions to think and comment about:
Women's Semi-final:
No. 1 Cal Poly vs No. 7 LBSU 12:00 pm PST
No. 5 Pacific vs No. 6 UCSB 2:30 pm PST
Men's Semi-final:
No. 1 LBSU vs No. 7 UCI 6:30 pm PST
No. 3 UCSB vs No. 4 Cal Poly 9:00 pm PST
Some questions to think and comment about:
- How has your team done in the tourney so far?
- Who's going to win?
- If LBSU gets upset, do they still get an auto-bid (especially since now, Washington, Oregon and UCLA all lost essentially giving the Pac 12 only 2 bids AT MOST?)
- Who has the best chance of knocking off LBSU?
- Can anyone stop Kristina Santiago?
- With only lower seeds left, is Cal Poly a shoe-in for the Big Dance?
Morning Links 3/9/12
Sorry I'm late getting these up: I'm out of town this weekend.
Day 2 of the Big West Tourney begins today at noon.
Full recaps from last night's games
If you were checking up on the open thread, you would know the scores. This is just what actually happend.
Schedule for men's tournament tonight
Just remember there are actually 4 games being played today, not 2 games.
In case you forgot, here are the women's recaps and schedule for today
Will we see more upsets? I hope so...
UCI beats BYU in baseball, 3-1
My player of the game? Pitcher Kyle Hooper, who went 6 IP, 1 ER, and 7 K's to shut down the Cougars
LBSU splits their games on Day 1 of the Long Beach Invitational
The 49ers beat Eastern Kentucky 10-7, but then lost to Oregon State 12-2. Next game is tonight at 7 pm against UCLA.
UCR hosts UCSB in Track and Field, will be the first "home" game since 2005
This is big because, those of you who watch TV and Undercover Boss, this was one of the projects that someone donated to...having a new track built for the Track and Field team.
See any links I missed? Comment below.
Day 2 of the Big West Tourney begins today at noon.
Full recaps from last night's games
If you were checking up on the open thread, you would know the scores. This is just what actually happend.
Schedule for men's tournament tonight
Just remember there are actually 4 games being played today, not 2 games.
In case you forgot, here are the women's recaps and schedule for today
Will we see more upsets? I hope so...
UCI beats BYU in baseball, 3-1
My player of the game? Pitcher Kyle Hooper, who went 6 IP, 1 ER, and 7 K's to shut down the Cougars
LBSU splits their games on Day 1 of the Long Beach Invitational
The 49ers beat Eastern Kentucky 10-7, but then lost to Oregon State 12-2. Next game is tonight at 7 pm against UCLA.
UCR hosts UCSB in Track and Field, will be the first "home" game since 2005
This is big because, those of you who watch TV and Undercover Boss, this was one of the projects that someone donated to...having a new track built for the Track and Field team.
See any links I missed? Comment below.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
2012 Big West Conference Tournament Quarterfinals OPEN THREAD
So I'm going to try a new experiment today: an open thread.
Since this is a sports blog, and we have something big going on in the Big West (and really in all of college sports right now), I'm going to create an open thread for this occasion.
What is an open thread? For those of you new to reading sports blogs, an open thread is where the commenters seize the opportunity to drive the conversation. This could be done in multiple ways, analyzing the games, friendly trash talking or even off topic conversations about things that have nothing to do with the event going on.
Good examples of open threads: Here, the second half of the Alabama/LSU national championship game, and here: yesterday's spring training open thread for the Padres games.
Obviously this is going to take some time to build up an active conversation, but it's definitely worth a try.
Some rules (awww, no fun):
No. 6 Pacific vs No. 3 UCSB -- 12pm PST
No. 7 UCI vs No. 2 CSU Fullerton -- 2:30pm PST
No. 8 UCD vs No. l LBSU -- 6pm PST
No. 5 UCR vs No. 4 Cal Poly -- 8:30pm PST
Have fun!
Since this is a sports blog, and we have something big going on in the Big West (and really in all of college sports right now), I'm going to create an open thread for this occasion.
What is an open thread? For those of you new to reading sports blogs, an open thread is where the commenters seize the opportunity to drive the conversation. This could be done in multiple ways, analyzing the games, friendly trash talking or even off topic conversations about things that have nothing to do with the event going on.
Good examples of open threads: Here, the second half of the Alabama/LSU national championship game, and here: yesterday's spring training open thread for the Padres games.
Obviously this is going to take some time to build up an active conversation, but it's definitely worth a try.
Some rules (awww, no fun):
- While trash talking is fun and encouraged, NO PERSONAL ATTACKS. This is for the safety of everyone's mental health, and we are not YouTube.
- Cursing is allowed, but once again, can not be directed at someone personally.
- If you can post pictures or .gifs, do so, it makes the conversations a lot more entertaining. That being said, only Safe For Work (SFW) pictures are allowed. If you want to go looking for Not Safe For Work (NSFW) pictures, please do so at your own discretion and try using THE REST OF THE INTERNET, NOT HERE!
- No politics or religion posting. This is a sports site...we talk about sports and other stuff. Politics and religion are "spidery" topics and gets everyone involved in a non-friendly, heated debates. So if you do post that kind of stuff around here, it will get deleted.
- While trolling is allowed, it must be clever and funny...any non-clever or non-funny trolling will be deleted.
No. 6 Pacific vs No. 3 UCSB -- 12pm PST
No. 7 UCI vs No. 2 CSU Fullerton -- 2:30pm PST
No. 8 UCD vs No. l LBSU -- 6pm PST
No. 5 UCR vs No. 4 Cal Poly -- 8:30pm PST
Have fun!
Morning Links 3/8/12
Happy Thor's Day everyone! You ready for the men's Big West Tourney today? Let's get linked to start the day:
SB Nation continues it's bracket coverage of Big West tourney, reminds 49ers fans that Gauchos exist to cause misery for them
Seriously though, it's a good reminder of when the games will be taking place for your entertainment. Not sure how much coverage there will be (but that's why you're reading this blog, right?).
LBSU's tournament preview
...provided by gazettes.com. It's actually a really good in depth article about what happened last Saturday and what needs to happen this weekend.
Fullerton looks to crash the party...
They already started, but this article gives an interesting take on where these kids started from two years ago.
Preview of Pacifc vs UCSB
The big question lies here, can the Gauchos make it to the Dance for the third year in a row?
Cal Poly has a high morale about this tournament, plays UCR tonight
The Mustangs play in the late night game tonight and are using last years overtime upset to motivate them
Preview of UCI-CSU Fullerton match
The OC rivalry continues tonight, but with Fullerton riding high over their win against LBSU...no one expects the Anteaters to pull off the upset.
No. 7 Arizona rallies in bottom of the eighth, beats Davis 6-4
That would have been a great upset if the Aggies could've held on...but the Wildcats are ranked No. 7 for a reason.
UCR sweeps Eastern Kentucky, UCD loses to top ranked Cal in softball
The big news here is that the Highlanders hit 6 HR in their double header yesterday. The Aggies need to get a strength of schedule award, and really need to start getting wins.
We're going to try something new here in a little bit, but in the meantime...see something I missed? Comment below!
SB Nation continues it's bracket coverage of Big West tourney, reminds 49ers fans that Gauchos exist to cause misery for them
Seriously though, it's a good reminder of when the games will be taking place for your entertainment. Not sure how much coverage there will be (but that's why you're reading this blog, right?).
LBSU's tournament preview
...provided by gazettes.com. It's actually a really good in depth article about what happened last Saturday and what needs to happen this weekend.
Fullerton looks to crash the party...
They already started, but this article gives an interesting take on where these kids started from two years ago.
Preview of Pacifc vs UCSB
The big question lies here, can the Gauchos make it to the Dance for the third year in a row?
Cal Poly has a high morale about this tournament, plays UCR tonight
The Mustangs play in the late night game tonight and are using last years overtime upset to motivate them
Preview of UCI-CSU Fullerton match
The OC rivalry continues tonight, but with Fullerton riding high over their win against LBSU...no one expects the Anteaters to pull off the upset.
No. 7 Arizona rallies in bottom of the eighth, beats Davis 6-4
That would have been a great upset if the Aggies could've held on...but the Wildcats are ranked No. 7 for a reason.
UCR sweeps Eastern Kentucky, UCD loses to top ranked Cal in softball
The big news here is that the Highlanders hit 6 HR in their double header yesterday. The Aggies need to get a strength of schedule award, and really need to start getting wins.
We're going to try something new here in a little bit, but in the meantime...see something I missed? Comment below!
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Morning Links 3/7/12
Morning all,
I went 2/4 on games last night so lets review with links:
49ers upset Matadors with a 31-4 final run
While I predicted it would be close, but Northridge would pull it out, Long Beach did their job and held the Matadors to under 60 points in a shocking come from behind victory. This was not just one person scoring everything though, the 49ers manages to spread the points fairly evenly.
Pacific ousts Davis, 59-51
There goes my prediction of Davis winning it all. The Tigers outclassed the Aggies in every way, and one could predict the game was over when Pacific was up 23-7 in the first half. Next up: Pacific vs Cal Poly
Gauchos upset Anteaters, 61-51
I'm glad I predicted one upset in this tournament. UCSB kept UCI's star player, Kassandra McCalister, quiet with only 5 points and 4 turnovers en-route to a convincing win. The 6 seed Gauchos vs 7 seed 49ers should be a very interesting matchup on Friday.
Santiago scores 31 as Mustangs dominate Fullerton
This game wasn't even close, and with the way Santiago is playing, Cal Poly might be dominant enough to go to the Big Dance.
An interesting preview of the Big West tourney by CBSSports
H/T to Jeremy Mauss of the Mountain West Connection and The Skip Shot for bringing this article to my attention. The article itself points out a couple really good things, but I still disagree that the 49ers wouldn't be a lock if they didn't win the conference tourney.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh wait, you're serious? Chris Dufresne may have just become my favorite columnest ever...
Dufresne points out that "Southland's" (A.K.A. Southern California) only NCAA tourney participant will probably be from the Big West, suggesting that Big West wins the drama factor this weekend with LBSU and Fullerton both fighting for a potential 1-bid spot.
See anything I miss? Comment below.
I went 2/4 on games last night so lets review with links:
49ers upset Matadors with a 31-4 final run
While I predicted it would be close, but Northridge would pull it out, Long Beach did their job and held the Matadors to under 60 points in a shocking come from behind victory. This was not just one person scoring everything though, the 49ers manages to spread the points fairly evenly.
Pacific ousts Davis, 59-51
There goes my prediction of Davis winning it all. The Tigers outclassed the Aggies in every way, and one could predict the game was over when Pacific was up 23-7 in the first half. Next up: Pacific vs Cal Poly
Gauchos upset Anteaters, 61-51
I'm glad I predicted one upset in this tournament. UCSB kept UCI's star player, Kassandra McCalister, quiet with only 5 points and 4 turnovers en-route to a convincing win. The 6 seed Gauchos vs 7 seed 49ers should be a very interesting matchup on Friday.
Santiago scores 31 as Mustangs dominate Fullerton
This game wasn't even close, and with the way Santiago is playing, Cal Poly might be dominant enough to go to the Big Dance.
An interesting preview of the Big West tourney by CBSSports
H/T to Jeremy Mauss of the Mountain West Connection and The Skip Shot for bringing this article to my attention. The article itself points out a couple really good things, but I still disagree that the 49ers wouldn't be a lock if they didn't win the conference tourney.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh wait, you're serious? Chris Dufresne may have just become my favorite columnest ever...
Dufresne points out that "Southland's" (A.K.A. Southern California) only NCAA tourney participant will probably be from the Big West, suggesting that Big West wins the drama factor this weekend with LBSU and Fullerton both fighting for a potential 1-bid spot.
See anything I miss? Comment below.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Big West Softball Update: 3/6/12
So far, the biggest upside to Big West Softball has been Pacific, who has the only winning record in the conference at 10-8 (beat SJSU today 6-0). Pacific also, as of today's rankings, has started receiving votes for both top 25 rankings. Field Player of the Week, Catcher Nicole Matson, has been a monster at the plate, raking in 16 RBIs (leads BWC) and 5 HRs (2nd in BWC). The Tigers' Amy Moore has also made Great Britain's National Softball Team and will join the team after the season is over. This is quite an accomplishment as she will become the first player in Tigers history to make the active roster of a national team. Pacific will finish up the week at the Diamond Devil Invitational, where one of their matches will be against No. 5 ranked Arizona.
Cal State Fullerton came into the week with a record of 9-12 (they are playing East Carolina right now) and have been an offensive machine, leading the Big West as a team in batting average (.284), runs scored (91) and OBP (.362). The Cathedral City Classic was not kind to the Titans though, as they went 1-4 , winning their only match versus Boise State. They have an opportunity to get back to .500 in the Mayfair Tournament this weekend, where they are shared hosts along with LBSU. This should give them a much needed "home field advantage" in which to intensify the atmosphere.
Cal Poly has recently been on a hot streak lately, winning 4 of the last 6 matches. The Mustangs' Pitcher Rebecca Patton, won Player of the Week honors for her spectacular play last week, posting a 0.79 ERA, with 14 K's and 5 walks. Cal Poly travels this weekend to Palo Alto for the Louisville Slugger Classic, where they have a difficult schedule this weekend, playing Ole Miss, Colorado State, James Madison, San Jose State and No. 10 hosts Stanford. This weekend will be considered a great success if the Mustangs can go 3-2.
UC Riverside has also been on a hot streak lately winning 5 of the last 7 (including today's win against St. Joseph's). Alexis Pickett has been automatic this year batting .389, slugging .481 and an OBP of .459. She also has collected 11 RBIs without any HR's. The Highlanders play Eastern Kentucky in a double header tomorrow before hosting the Amy S. Harrison Classic. Being at home should give UCR a continued advantage, and that might bring them to .500 at the end of the weekend.
UCSB has been on a recent losing streak and hopes to turn that around this weekend at the SCU Invitational. Their season has been defined this year by streaks, a long losing streak followed by a winning streak followed by another losing streak. Can UCSB get on a winning this weekend? It'll be doable with matches against St Mary's (4-9), Santa Clara (3-16) and SJSU (10-12) and with a strong showing, the Gauchos will be prepared for their second home tournament of the season.
LBSU has been another team who has been in a rough bit recently, winning only one of their last 11 games. The bright spot is that the 49ers host their tournament this week. For these wins to start rolling off again, Ashlynn Booker has to continue her hot season (.340 BA, 4 HR, 12 RBI). If not, LBSU will have a hard time getting a win streak going.
UCD looks to turn around their ways, however it won't be easy. They play No. 1 ranked California tomorrow before heading home to host the Aggie Stampede II. The good news is, that they play Idaho State (3-13) three times and Sacramento State (8-8) twice. Look for the Aggies to go 3-2 or 4-1 this weekend and get back on the winning track.
Cal State Northridge has gotten back on track a little bit after starting out the season 1-15. Their last 4 games they've gone 3-1 and return home this weekend to host the Northridge Classic. All their matches have been on neutral fields and so a home tournament might help the Matadors. For this to happen though, the team must bat better than a pitiful .190 average. Mikayla Thielges should be able to provide some inspiration through her bat (.286, 6 HR, 13 RBI). If she can rile up the troops, then the Matadors should have an excellent weekend this weekend.
Who do you think looks to be in the best shape in the last couple weeks before heading into conference play? Leave your comments below.
Cal State Fullerton came into the week with a record of 9-12 (they are playing East Carolina right now) and have been an offensive machine, leading the Big West as a team in batting average (.284), runs scored (91) and OBP (.362). The Cathedral City Classic was not kind to the Titans though, as they went 1-4 , winning their only match versus Boise State. They have an opportunity to get back to .500 in the Mayfair Tournament this weekend, where they are shared hosts along with LBSU. This should give them a much needed "home field advantage" in which to intensify the atmosphere.
Cal Poly has recently been on a hot streak lately, winning 4 of the last 6 matches. The Mustangs' Pitcher Rebecca Patton, won Player of the Week honors for her spectacular play last week, posting a 0.79 ERA, with 14 K's and 5 walks. Cal Poly travels this weekend to Palo Alto for the Louisville Slugger Classic, where they have a difficult schedule this weekend, playing Ole Miss, Colorado State, James Madison, San Jose State and No. 10 hosts Stanford. This weekend will be considered a great success if the Mustangs can go 3-2.
UC Riverside has also been on a hot streak lately winning 5 of the last 7 (including today's win against St. Joseph's). Alexis Pickett has been automatic this year batting .389, slugging .481 and an OBP of .459. She also has collected 11 RBIs without any HR's. The Highlanders play Eastern Kentucky in a double header tomorrow before hosting the Amy S. Harrison Classic. Being at home should give UCR a continued advantage, and that might bring them to .500 at the end of the weekend.
UCSB has been on a recent losing streak and hopes to turn that around this weekend at the SCU Invitational. Their season has been defined this year by streaks, a long losing streak followed by a winning streak followed by another losing streak. Can UCSB get on a winning this weekend? It'll be doable with matches against St Mary's (4-9), Santa Clara (3-16) and SJSU (10-12) and with a strong showing, the Gauchos will be prepared for their second home tournament of the season.
LBSU has been another team who has been in a rough bit recently, winning only one of their last 11 games. The bright spot is that the 49ers host their tournament this week. For these wins to start rolling off again, Ashlynn Booker has to continue her hot season (.340 BA, 4 HR, 12 RBI). If not, LBSU will have a hard time getting a win streak going.
UCD looks to turn around their ways, however it won't be easy. They play No. 1 ranked California tomorrow before heading home to host the Aggie Stampede II. The good news is, that they play Idaho State (3-13) three times and Sacramento State (8-8) twice. Look for the Aggies to go 3-2 or 4-1 this weekend and get back on the winning track.
Cal State Northridge has gotten back on track a little bit after starting out the season 1-15. Their last 4 games they've gone 3-1 and return home this weekend to host the Northridge Classic. All their matches have been on neutral fields and so a home tournament might help the Matadors. For this to happen though, the team must bat better than a pitiful .190 average. Mikayla Thielges should be able to provide some inspiration through her bat (.286, 6 HR, 13 RBI). If she can rile up the troops, then the Matadors should have an excellent weekend this weekend.
Who do you think looks to be in the best shape in the last couple weeks before heading into conference play? Leave your comments below.
Morning Links 3/6/12
It's super Tuesday...and by that I mean that it's a super day for being a Tuesday. Here are some links to complete your morning:
With all the seeds set, the Women's conference tourney begins tonight at 7 P.M. PST
Remember from last night, the quarterfinal matches are played at the home courts of the higher seeds.
Big West DPOW, 49ers Larry Anderson, doubtful for Big West Tourney
This is a significant blow to LBSU, mainly because it may or may not have been coincidental that the 49ers lost their first conference match when he went down with the sprained knee.
SB Nation predicts LBSU as the only Big West representative and a No. 11 seed
Despite my bold prediction last night, I feel that if LBSU wins the tourney, that an No. 11 seed, while not quite fair...is an accurate placement.
Write in the comments below if you feel I've missed anything. And, as always, have a good day.
With all the seeds set, the Women's conference tourney begins tonight at 7 P.M. PST
Remember from last night, the quarterfinal matches are played at the home courts of the higher seeds.
Big West DPOW, 49ers Larry Anderson, doubtful for Big West Tourney
This is a significant blow to LBSU, mainly because it may or may not have been coincidental that the 49ers lost their first conference match when he went down with the sprained knee.
SB Nation predicts LBSU as the only Big West representative and a No. 11 seed
Despite my bold prediction last night, I feel that if LBSU wins the tourney, that an No. 11 seed, while not quite fair...is an accurate placement.
Write in the comments below if you feel I've missed anything. And, as always, have a good day.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Big West Conference Tourney: Prepare Yourselves
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Follow me after the jump as I break down each matchup, give a predicted winner and possibly make a bold prediction.
Morning Links 3/5/12
Happy Monday! Lots of stuff happened over the weekend, so let's jump on those links:
Gauchos destroy Aggies to get the No 3 seed in conference tourney
Destroy is an under-descriptive term, there is no real good word to describe the 90-43 win that occurred on Saturday. However since they got the No 3 seed, that can only mean one thing...
Fullerton ruins Long Beach's conference undefeated play with an upset win
This entitles the Titans to the No 2 seed. For the 49ers, the loss puts them in danger of losing a possible at-large bid if they don't win the conference tourney.
Highlanders beat Anteaters in OT thriller 72-69
I was at this game and I nearly had a heart attack from the excitement. The game could be defined by point streaks.
Cal Poly beats Pacific to clinch No 4 seed
It was a dominating effort by the Mustangs as they held the Tigers to under 40 points. More basketball tourney stuff later.
Weekend softball recaps for you to enjoy
I see a lot of split records for the teams which translates to a decent weekend overall for the Big West teams
Baseball recaps from the weekend
Biggest news is that No 22 Cal Poly went 2-1 over the weekend which might kick them out of the top 25 temporarily
Cal Poly Women's basketball beats Pacific to clinch No 1 seed
Kristina Santiago became Cal Poly's all time leading scorer with a fantastic effort Saturday night
Matadors beat Titans, clinch No 2 seed
The Titans however in their loss, kept hold onto the No 8 seed and will be facing Cal Poly in the tourney.
Gauchos beat Aggies in Davis to clinch No 6 seed
You know when the conference is tough top to bottom when going .500 in conference play puts you in a No 6 out of 8 possible seeds.
See any links I missed? Point them out in the comments below.
Have a good rest of the morning!
Gauchos destroy Aggies to get the No 3 seed in conference tourney
Destroy is an under-descriptive term, there is no real good word to describe the 90-43 win that occurred on Saturday. However since they got the No 3 seed, that can only mean one thing...
Fullerton ruins Long Beach's conference undefeated play with an upset win
This entitles the Titans to the No 2 seed. For the 49ers, the loss puts them in danger of losing a possible at-large bid if they don't win the conference tourney.
Highlanders beat Anteaters in OT thriller 72-69
I was at this game and I nearly had a heart attack from the excitement. The game could be defined by point streaks.
Cal Poly beats Pacific to clinch No 4 seed
It was a dominating effort by the Mustangs as they held the Tigers to under 40 points. More basketball tourney stuff later.
Weekend softball recaps for you to enjoy
I see a lot of split records for the teams which translates to a decent weekend overall for the Big West teams
Baseball recaps from the weekend
Biggest news is that No 22 Cal Poly went 2-1 over the weekend which might kick them out of the top 25 temporarily
Cal Poly Women's basketball beats Pacific to clinch No 1 seed
Kristina Santiago became Cal Poly's all time leading scorer with a fantastic effort Saturday night
Matadors beat Titans, clinch No 2 seed
The Titans however in their loss, kept hold onto the No 8 seed and will be facing Cal Poly in the tourney.
Gauchos beat Aggies in Davis to clinch No 6 seed
You know when the conference is tough top to bottom when going .500 in conference play puts you in a No 6 out of 8 possible seeds.
See any links I missed? Point them out in the comments below.
Have a good rest of the morning!
Friday, March 2, 2012
Introducing the Big West Teams: Cal State University, Fullerton
Over
the next few weeks, I'm going to introduce the current members of the Big West
conference. This introduction will focus on the school, the fans, the
athletics and other random trivial facts. Hopefully, this will be an
educational and fun introduction. Of course, if you the alumni/fan of
that team would like to correct me, feel free to do so in the comment section
below or shoot me an email.
With that, allow me to introduce (in alphabetical order) the next member of the current Big West Conference: Cal State Fullerton Titans.
With that, allow me to introduce (in alphabetical order) the next member of the current Big West Conference: Cal State Fullerton Titans.
Morning Links 3/2/12
Happy Friday! Little late this morning, but lets hop into it:
UCSB continues it's pursuit of the No 2 seed with a win over Pacific
They should be able to clinch it outright with a win over the Aggies on Saturday night (remember that Fullerton plays LBSU).
Cal Poly beats Davis 69-56
Interesting fact of the night: the Mustangs had three players get into double-digits with points (David Hanson-16, Dylan Royer-14 and Chris Eversley-13)
A full slate of Women's BB recaps in conference play
UCR finished their season completely with a loss to UCI, while the Anteaters and the 49ers pause to wait for their final seeding.
Interesting piece on UCR Women's BB Coach, John Margaritis
This is basically an article showing that the coach doesn't believe in double standards. Margaritis made an example of discipline by suspending his best player the final 3 games for an unspecified incident, while still fighting to try and just make the conference tourney.
Matadors 4, USD 3
Steven Keller of the Matadors hit 2 HR's and had 4 RBI's to beat the Toreros in the Aztec Invitational.
Aztecs 4, No 22 Mustangs 3
SDSU walked off with a single to right, as the future BWC team beat Cal Poly.
Highlanders softball shutout Portland State to begin the Highlander Classic
Jordyn McDonald had a 2-hit complete game as UCR won 5-0.
See anything I missed? Comment below!
UCSB continues it's pursuit of the No 2 seed with a win over Pacific
They should be able to clinch it outright with a win over the Aggies on Saturday night (remember that Fullerton plays LBSU).
Cal Poly beats Davis 69-56
Interesting fact of the night: the Mustangs had three players get into double-digits with points (David Hanson-16, Dylan Royer-14 and Chris Eversley-13)
A full slate of Women's BB recaps in conference play
UCR finished their season completely with a loss to UCI, while the Anteaters and the 49ers pause to wait for their final seeding.
Interesting piece on UCR Women's BB Coach, John Margaritis
This is basically an article showing that the coach doesn't believe in double standards. Margaritis made an example of discipline by suspending his best player the final 3 games for an unspecified incident, while still fighting to try and just make the conference tourney.
Matadors 4, USD 3
Steven Keller of the Matadors hit 2 HR's and had 4 RBI's to beat the Toreros in the Aztec Invitational.
Aztecs 4, No 22 Mustangs 3
SDSU walked off with a single to right, as the future BWC team beat Cal Poly.
Highlanders softball shutout Portland State to begin the Highlander Classic
Jordyn McDonald had a 2-hit complete game as UCR won 5-0.
See anything I missed? Comment below!
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Big West Tennis Update 3/1/12
Tennis is an interesting sport in how it's ranked. The main governing body of college tennis is the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (or ITA). They do a top 75 ranking for Division I schools and individual rankings, which is different from RPI or Coaches' Poll. That being said, lets give our BWC tennis teams some love:
Morning Links 3/1/12
Where's the time gone? It's already the first of March! Here are some links to occupy your computer during breakfast-time:
Big West Tourney: 49ers to face Aggies in the first round
While this was predictable last week, it's nice to know that it will be official. Now that being said, here's what happened last night:
LBSU dominates UCI in final home game of the season
Caspar Ware had 16 points and T.J. Robinson had his 53rd career double-double in what turned into an old fashioned beatdown.
Titans beat Matadors to set up for a huge Saturday night
Kwame Vaughn went 5-11 from the arc to carry Fullerton to victory.
The Sacramento Bee points out that the Aggie women can host the tourney opener with two wins
Which poses the question: why aren't the women's tourney openers hosted at the Honda Center as well.
UCSB hosts Pacific tonight at the Thunderdome
The Gauchos will look to continue fighting for the No. 2 seed in the tournament. On a less serious note, does anyone else but me think that the Big West teams have the coolest names for their arenas?
Well that's it for this morning. As usual, if you feel that I missed something, comment below.
Big West Tourney: 49ers to face Aggies in the first round
While this was predictable last week, it's nice to know that it will be official. Now that being said, here's what happened last night:
LBSU dominates UCI in final home game of the season
Caspar Ware had 16 points and T.J. Robinson had his 53rd career double-double in what turned into an old fashioned beatdown.
Titans beat Matadors to set up for a huge Saturday night
Kwame Vaughn went 5-11 from the arc to carry Fullerton to victory.
The Sacramento Bee points out that the Aggie women can host the tourney opener with two wins
Which poses the question: why aren't the women's tourney openers hosted at the Honda Center as well.
UCSB hosts Pacific tonight at the Thunderdome
The Gauchos will look to continue fighting for the No. 2 seed in the tournament. On a less serious note, does anyone else but me think that the Big West teams have the coolest names for their arenas?
Well that's it for this morning. As usual, if you feel that I missed something, comment below.
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