The Daily Snitch--Pool 2

by Andy Marmer | March 27, 2013

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of the IQA.

Today's Daily Snitch will look at Pool 2. Any questions about how teams will fare, email editorial@internationalquidditch.org.

Photo by Deanna Edmunds

Teams

No. 12 Silicon Valley Skrewts (Mountain View, CA) No. 25 Pennsylvania State University (University Park, PA)

No. 38 Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)

No. 44 University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)

No. 82 Loyola University Chicago (Chicago, IL)

How They Got Here

No. 12 Silicon Valley Skrewts reached the World Cup with a semifinal appearance at Western Cup IV. California's first community team (Lost Boys: please note that this is not an indication of favoritism, but simply a fact) cruised through their pool on the first day with a 3-0 showing, defeating the Utah Crimson Fliers (Salt Lake City, UT), University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ), and Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA). In pool play, the Skrewts scored no fewer than 170 points, and gave up no more than 50 in their three games en route to a +500 point differential. In bracket play, the team qualified for the World Cup with a 170*-50 victory over the University of California-Berkeley (Berkeley, CA). The Skrewts' attempts at a Regional championship were uprooted in their next game, a 100^-60* semifinal loss to arch-rivals, the Lost Boys (Lomita, CA).

No. 25 Penn State University qualified for the World Cup by reaching the semifinals of the Mid-Atlantic Regional tournament. A 4-1 record in pool play left Penn State as the fourth seed prior to bracket play, earning them a World Cup spot in the process. They then reached the semifinals with a narrow victory over Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD) 80*-40. Penn State lost just twice during the tournament, both times to Villanova University (Villanova, PA) by a snitch catch: 140*-80 in pool play, and 110*-80 in bracket play.

No. 38 Rochester Institute of Technology earned their World Cup spot by reaching the semifinals of the loser's bracket at the North Eastern Regional Championship. After finishing 3-1 in their pool, RIT entered bracket play as the sixth seed. An 80*-30 upset by Macaulay Honors College (New York, NY) sent RIT into the consolation bracket, where they needed to defeat Stony Brook University in the loser's bracket quarterfinals (Stony Brook, NY) and win one of their next two games to earn a spot. The RIT defense proved more than equal to the challenge as they held Stony Brook to just 10 points in a 70*-10 victory. In their next match, it was defense and seeking again that led the way, as RIT overcame the University of Massachusetts-Amherst (Amherst, MA) 40*-20.

No. 44 University of Florida easily earned a return trip to the World Cup after making the finals last year. A perfect 6-0 record in pool play was enough to send the Gators to the quarterfinals at the Southern Regional tournament, with a 140*-20 win over Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton, FL.) to clinch their berth. An upset by Tennessee Technological University (Cookeville, TN) 110*-50 in the semifinals ended Florida's chance at a regional title.

No. 82 Loyola University is the newest addition to the Division I World Cup field. Loyola finished 10th after pool play at the Midwestern Regional tournament with a 2-1 record, but was knocked out by the University of Kansas 110-30* with a World Cup spot on the line. When spots opened due to teams being unable to attend, Loyola was the third and final team offered a spot, after Cal and Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant, MI).

Outlook

I am confident that the Silicon Valley Skrewts, Penn State, and Florida will be the top three teams in this pool; however, the order is a complete mystery to me. Three players will look to lead their respective teams to the top of pool 2, and it could come down to which of the three players is the best.

Kevin Oelze might as well rename himself Mr. Skrewt, but that team is more than just him. The Skrewts come in as the top-seed, a ranking that is by no means indicative of how they will perform. The Skrewts just haven't played much top-level competition. They've split a pair of close games this year with the Lost Boys, and they split with Berkeley this season (the loss was early in the year, and the win, which was much more recent, was resounding). These few encounters comprise the entirety of Skrewts' matches against World Cup-level competition. While the Skrewts may not be as battle-tested as others, they do possess the skills needed for a run at the World Cup. In particular, their beater play is very strong, and it has helped them defensively in their matches against the Lost Boys.

Speedy chaser Michael Parada will lead a Penn State offense that has exhibited a bit of a tendency to disappear against stronger teams. Unlike their two rivals for the top spot, who have taken advantage of warm southern and western weather, Penn State has played just three official matches this spring. These matches are not particularly telling, as Penn State fell 80-50* to Hofstra University (Hempstead, NY), while beating New York University (New York, NY) 50*-0 and the New York Badassilisks (New York, NY) 100*-10. What these matches do show is that Penn State is a strong defensive team.

Florida has had a rough season thus far, but given their past success, there is no doubting the talent they possess. Dre Clements took the quidditch world by storm at the last World Cup, and if he can replicate his performance there, Florida may be the team to beat despite being the second-lowest ranked team in this pool.

RIT and Loyola will both likely be overmatched in this pool, and are not threats to advance. They may challenge one of the three other teams, but I don't think either squad is capable of beating the Skrewts, Penn State, or Florida.

Prediction

Silicon Valley Skrewts 3-1 (Eliminated in Sweet 16)

Florida 3-1 (Eliminated in Round of 32)

Penn State 3-1 (Eliminated in Round of 32)

RIT 1-3 (Eliminated in Group)

Loyola 0-4 (Eliminated in Group)

Best Games

Silicon Valley Skrewts def. Florida 120*-70

Florida def. Penn State 150-90*

Penn State def. Skrewts 60*-20