2023 D3 NCAA Tournament Bracket

[The12lov3]

I am with you. I think the entire nascac should get in. Why stop at 5 teams? They all have great losses. Just look at Bates. They have tons of quality losses. I am starting to think they all should just be given the natty.

Below are both their schedules and win/lose record. Neither one of them played a difficult OOC schedule but I would have to give the edge to Amherst with the York win. That is why they would get in over Bowdoin. When you have Emerson on your schedule, you're not really playing good competition. WNE used be good but has not been relevant in years. If these teams want to ensure that they get into the NCAAs, they have to beat good OOC opponents. While it is hard to predict yty who is going to be good, Bowdoin could have played a harder OOC schedule.

Bowdoin
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/RESULT STATUS
3/5/2023 at Middlebury Middlebury, VT L 15-21
3/11/2023 Hamilton Brunswick, ME W 17-16
3/14/2023 vs. Western New England University Tampa, FL W 19-7
3/15/2023 vs. Nazareth College Tampa, FL W 18-8
3/18/2023 at Williams Williamstown, MA. L 11-12
3/22/2023 Endicott Brunswick, ME W 18-9
3/25/2023 Wesleyan Brunswick, ME W 14-8
3/28/2023 Babson Brunswick, ME W 13-12
4/1/2023 at Amherst Amherst, MA L 12-13
4/5/2023 Bates Brunswick, ME W 22-9
4/8/2023 at Trinity Hartford, CT W 20-15
4/12/2023 at Colby Waterville, ME W 22-16
4/18/2023 Emerson Brunswick, ME W 26-9
4/22/2023 Conn. College Brunswick, ME W 13-9
4/26/2023 Tufts Brunswick, ME L 15-19
4/29/2023 at Amherst Amherst, MA / NESCAC Quarterfinal L 16-18
Footer

Amherst

3/5/2023 at Hamilton Clinton, NY W 15-10
3/11/2023 Tufts Amherst, MA L 21-23
3/17/2023 vs. Bates Stevenson, MD W 15-8
3/18/2023 vs. York College of Pennsylvania Stevenson, MD W 19-16
3/22/2023 Springfield College Amherst, MA W 17-8
3/25/2023 St. John Fisher University Amherst, MA W 22-15
3/29/2023 Western New England University Amherst, MA W 17-9
4/1/2023 Bowdoin Amherst, MA W 13-12
4/5/2023 Wesleyan Amherst, MA L 13-17
4/8/2023 at Colby Waterville, ME W 16-12
4/12/2023 Conn. College Amherst, MA W 15-11
4/15/2023 at Williams Williamstown, MA L 10-11 (OT)
4/22/2023 Middlebury Amherst, MA L 11-17
4/26/2023 at Trinity Hartford, CT W 16-10
4/29/2023 Bowdoin Amherst, MA / NESCAC Quarterfinal W 18-16
Footer

[Laxattackjack]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

[jumpman23]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Who sets a school’s schedule? The AD? The Coach?

[HomerCoach]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Who sets a school’s schedule? The AD? The Coach?

The Coach. Many OOC games are already set for next year.

[Laxisback]

Not sure if it’s been noted, but CLC does not have an AQ this year so CNU and Salisbury should take 2 of the pool C bids.

That leaves only 8 left for the
Based on regional rankings as of Wednesday and weekend results this is how I see it falling in place.

Region 1 will probably get 2 maybe 3( Middlebury, Williams, maybe Amherst) Tuffs will replace one of these if they don’t win NESCAC.
Region 2 will get 2 ( RPI, Union) RIT will replace one of these if they don’t win Liberty.
Region 3 will get 3 maybe 4( Salisbury, CNU, and possibly 2 from Centennial) York has to win conference to get in, only 1 bid coming from MAC.
Region 4 will get 1 (ODAC runner up if W&L or Hampton Sydney)
Region 5- no pool C bids

First weekend host:
TUFFS
Middlebury
RIT
Salisbury
CNU
Lynchburg(if they Win ODAC)
Union or RPI
Centennial winner

This is just my opinion based on how I see the regional rankings finishing up next week.

[SouthieLax]

WNE used be good but has not been relevant in years.

Haven’t been relevant in years? WNE made the 3rd round of the NCAAs…just last year. They pounded Lynchburg in the tournament when they were having a similar season to this year and Lynchburg was #10. So why wouldn’t Bowdoin schedule them? Of course, if Bowdoin beat Lynchburg this year instead of WNE, people would be raving about the quality win.

Bottom line, there is a lot of self interest in propping up some teams by coaches etc…. From what I saw Lynchburg was humiliated by the northern teams they faced, St. Lawrence and Tufts and lost to Randolph-Macon (worst loss by any team in the Top-20). WNE would very likely beat Lynchburg again if they played again this year. But beating Lynchburg is still considered an elite win and WNE is a soft opponent.

[laf]

http://www.laxmath.com/men3.pdf

[InsiderRoll]

Not sure if it’s been noted, but CLC does not have an AQ this year so CNU and Salisbury should take 2 of the pool C bids.

That leaves only 8 left for the
Based on regional rankings as of Wednesday and weekend results this is how I see it falling in place.

Region 1 will probably get 2 maybe 3( Middlebury, Williams, maybe Amherst) Tuffs will replace one of these if they don’t win NESCAC.
Region 2 will get 2 ( RPI, Union) RIT will replace one of these if they don’t win Liberty.
Region 3 will get 3 maybe 4( Salisbury, CNU, and possibly 2 from Centennial) York has to win conference to get in, only 1 bid coming from MAC.
Region 4 will get 1 (ODAC runner up if W&L or Hampton Sydney)
Region 5- no pool C bids

First weekend host:
TUFFS
Middlebury
RIT
Salisbury
CNU
Lynchburg(if they Win ODAC)
Union or RPI
Centennial winner

This is just my opinion based on how I see the regional rankings finishing up next week.

I think your reasonably accurate on you pool c selections,

It should be noted that Lynchburg had a better record and resume last year and finished as the top ranked region IV team. They were rewarded with a trip to Schenectady in the first round where they played a tough WNE team. I seriously doubt any of the ODAC teams have a resume that would allow them to host.

Look for both Gettysburg and Dickinson to host if they are in the centennial finals. With likely 7 losses RPI will not host, Denison and York are options, with Denison allowing for non flight travel for some region V teams. They could easily send an ODAC and York there along with a region V play in to save money. Although that would interfere with bracket integrity. I’m really just giving you insight into the way the committee will think about these things.

[InsiderRoll]

http://www.laxmath.com/men3.pdf

This is the D1 selection criteria, not the D3. 2/3s of the categories mentioned are non factors for selection.

[ah23]

This forum could use a spam filter to preemptively mute comments that are just made to whine about the NESCAC. Give it a rest.

[InsiderRoll]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Bowdoin does have a natural disadvantage for scheduling opponents. Yes it could be overcome, but it isn’t as easy as just scheduling whomever you want.

1) The NESCAC schedule is tricky, especially when you are on the farthest most edges of the league geographically. You can only travel certain distances for midweek games so that forces your hand to play certain teams on weekends. Bowdoin had a conference game every single weekend until April 15th, including their spring break. So outside of spring break they cannot travel an extended distance. When you are in Maine that pretty much limits your out of conference to NE teams only.

2) Their only bye weekend from the NESCAC is in mid April, it is very challenging to get out of conference games at that time of year and most teams are in the thick of their conference schedule.

3) They chose to take a spring break trip to Florida, that has been their norm. Not many teams want to do that anymore. So if that’s the route you chose you’re at the mercy of the other teams that have the same spring break and are willing to travel to Florida. Because they had back to back Saturday NESCAC games during their spring break they couldn’t even schedule a game with a team that had break the week before or after.

4) If they are looking for a team that would return the trip to Brunswick then they are going to have a small list of teams.

None of these are insurmountable, but they have to be managed.

There are also a great many NESCAC coaches that complain a lot that Tufts has had their Saturday bye in mid March for a decade. Which can be frustrating if you struggle finding great out of conference games.

[The12lov3]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Bowdoin does have a natural disadvantage for scheduling opponents. Yes it could be overcome, but it isn’t as easy as just scheduling whomever you want.

1) The NESCAC schedule is tricky, especially when you are on the farthest most edges of the league geographically. You can only travel certain distances for midweek games so that forces your hand to play certain teams on weekends. Bowdoin had a conference game every single weekend until April 15th, including their spring break. So outside of spring break they cannot travel an extended distance. When you are in Maine that pretty much limits your out of conference to NE teams only.

2) Their only bye weekend from the NESCAC is in mid April, it is very challenging to get out of conference games at that time of year and most teams are in the thick of their conference schedule.

3) They chose to take a spring break trip to Florida, that has been their norm. Not many teams want to do that anymore. So if that’s the route you chose you’re at the mercy of the other teams that have the same spring break and are willing to travel to Florida. Because they had back to back Saturday NESCAC games during their spring break they couldn’t even schedule a game with a team that had break the week before or after.

4) If they are looking for a team that would return the trip to Brunswick then they are going to have a small list of teams.

None of these are insurmountable, but they have to be managed.

There are also a great many NESCAC coaches that complain a lot that Tufts has had their Saturday bye in mid March for a decade. Which can be frustrating if you struggle finding great out of conference games.

While I acknowledge there are challenges, there are teams in the Empire 8 that they could play which would boost their OOC schedule.

[SKUD]

Albany is a quick 4-1/2 hour drive.

Bowdoin plays one of the toughest schedules in the country. They are not York or Stevens who have no quality in conference games. I am not a NESCAC fan and live south of the Mason-Dixon. NESCAC is heavy cream, everyone else is half & half down to skim milk.

[InsiderRoll]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Bowdoin does have a natural disadvantage for scheduling opponents. Yes it could be overcome, but it isn’t as easy as just scheduling whomever you want.

1) The NESCAC schedule is tricky, especially when you are on the farthest most edges of the league geographically. You can only travel certain distances for midweek games so that forces your hand to play certain teams on weekends. Bowdoin had a conference game every single weekend until April 15th, including their spring break. So outside of spring break they cannot travel an extended distance. When you are in Maine that pretty much limits your out of conference to NE teams only.

2) Their only bye weekend from the NESCAC is in mid April, it is very challenging to get out of conference games at that time of year and most teams are in the thick of their conference schedule.

3) They chose to take a spring break trip to Florida, that has been their norm. Not many teams want to do that anymore. So if that’s the route you chose you’re at the mercy of the other teams that have the same spring break and are willing to travel to Florida. Because they had back to back Saturday NESCAC games during their spring break they couldn’t even schedule a game with a team that had break the week before or after.

4) If they are looking for a team that would return the trip to Brunswick then they are going to have a small list of teams.

None of these are insurmountable, but they have to be managed.

There are also a great many NESCAC coaches that complain a lot that Tufts has had their Saturday bye in mid March for a decade. Which can be frustrating if you struggle finding great out of conference games.

While I acknowledge there are challenges, there are teams in the Empire 8 that they could play which would boost their OOC schedule.

Let me be more specific, NESCAC schools are not allowed to travel more than 90miles for a midweek game unless they are on spring break. Albany is over 300 miles away from Bowdoin.

[The12lov3]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Bowdoin does have a natural disadvantage for scheduling opponents. Yes it could be overcome, but it isn’t as easy as just scheduling whomever you want.

1) The NESCAC schedule is tricky, especially when you are on the farthest most edges of the league geographically. You can only travel certain distances for midweek games so that forces your hand to play certain teams on weekends. Bowdoin had a conference game every single weekend until April 15th, including their spring break. So outside of spring break they cannot travel an extended distance. When you are in Maine that pretty much limits your out of conference to NE teams only.

2) Their only bye weekend from the NESCAC is in mid April, it is very challenging to get out of conference games at that time of year and most teams are in the thick of their conference schedule.

3) They chose to take a spring break trip to Florida, that has been their norm. Not many teams want to do that anymore. So if that’s the route you chose you’re at the mercy of the other teams that have the same spring break and are willing to travel to Florida. Because they had back to back Saturday NESCAC games during their spring break they couldn’t even schedule a game with a team that had break the week before or after.

4) If they are looking for a team that would return the trip to Brunswick then they are going to have a small list of teams.

None of these are insurmountable, but they have to be managed.

There are also a great many NESCAC coaches that complain a lot that Tufts has had their Saturday bye in mid March for a decade. Which can be frustrating if you struggle finding great out of conference games.

While I acknowledge there are challenges, there are teams in the Empire 8 that they could play which would boost their OOC schedule.

Let me be more specific, NESCAC schools are not allowed to travel more than 90miles for a midweek game unless they are on spring break. Albany is over 300 miles away from Bowdoin.

Then they need to schedule some Sunday games like Middlebury. There are ways around it.

[InsiderRoll]

If Amhearst wins this next game, they are definitely in. Even if they lose, they have a good argument. In their defense, schedules were made in the fall. At that time SJF was highly ranked. So was York. And doing the mustang classic was also strong. Bowdoin didn’t even try to schedule anyone outside of their conference. They must have assumed they would get in on conference reputation.

Bowdoin does have a natural disadvantage for scheduling opponents. Yes it could be overcome, but it isn’t as easy as just scheduling whomever you want.

1) The NESCAC schedule is tricky, especially when you are on the farthest most edges of the league geographically. You can only travel certain distances for midweek games so that forces your hand to play certain teams on weekends. Bowdoin had a conference game every single weekend until April 15th, including their spring break. So outside of spring break they cannot travel an extended distance. When you are in Maine that pretty much limits your out of conference to NE teams only.

2) Their only bye weekend from the NESCAC is in mid April, it is very challenging to get out of conference games at that time of year and most teams are in the thick of their conference schedule.

3) They chose to take a spring break trip to Florida, that has been their norm. Not many teams want to do that anymore. So if that’s the route you chose you’re at the mercy of the other teams that have the same spring break and are willing to travel to Florida. Because they had back to back Saturday NESCAC games during their spring break they couldn’t even schedule a game with a team that had break the week before or after.

4) If they are looking for a team that would return the trip to Brunswick then they are going to have a small list of teams.

None of these are insurmountable, but they have to be managed.

There are also a great many NESCAC coaches that complain a lot that Tufts has had their Saturday bye in mid March for a decade. Which can be frustrating if you struggle finding great out of conference games.

While I acknowledge there are challenges, there are teams in the Empire 8 that they could play which would boost their OOC schedule.

Let me be more specific, NESCAC schools are not allowed to travel more than 90miles for a midweek game unless they are on spring break. Albany is over 300 miles away from Bowdoin.

Then they need to schedule some Sunday games like Middlebury. There are ways around it.

That is fine, but I think you’re making my point. In order to play a good team like York they’ll have to play say Wesleyan on a Saturday then travel to York that night, wake up and play York on Sunday, then travel 9hrs back to Maine.

I’m not sure that’ll yield the OOC results you all say they need. Not to mention the considerable budgetary costs

[DaFuqDude]

I am with you. I think the entire nascac should get in. Why stop at 5 teams? They all have great losses. Just look at Bates. They have tons of quality losses. I am starting to think they all should just be given the natty.

I totally agree NESCAC back on TOP!!!!

[JustOneTime]

This is what makes the Mustang Classic at Stevenson so great. Some northern schools can come down and play schools they normally would not play and boost their out of conference schedule. It would be awesome if it could somehow get expanded to include more teams.

[HomerCoach]

This is what makes the Mustang Classic at Stevenson so great. Some northern schools can come down and play schools they normally would not play and boost their out of conference schedule. It would be awesome if it could somehow get expanded to include more teams.

Or, another school steps up and hosts an event similar.

[SpartanLaxFanatic]

I think it's unrealistic to ask Stevie to add more teams to the Classic when they have 10 teams already. Pretty absurd at how fluid the event is when you consider the manpower it must take to put that on.

I also don't think it's too much to ask some of these NESCAC teams to schedule some tougher games OOC. Bowdoin went on spring break to Florida and played WNE and Nazareth. Amherst went to the Mustang Classic, Tufts went and played Cabrini and Stevens. Used that week to boost your OOC if you have institutional restrictions that make it tough to get good non-conference games in otherwise.

Again, I don't have a dog in the fight but when Bowdoin misses the NCAAs they have nowhere to point except for their OOC. Also would've helped if they could've knocked off a few more NESCAC w's.