Snitch: World Cup VI Recap Part VIII
Welcome back! In case you missed it, or if you need a refresher, check out part 1 here, part 2 here, part 3 here, part 4 here, part 5 here, part 6 here, or part 7 here. We continue where we left off with our final part.
University of South Florida (Tampa, FL): Achieved. The margins weren't pretty, but USF took care of business well enough to finish 2-2 in Pool 4 and to qualify for the bracket. To advance to the bracket, USF took down the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN) 120*-90, and Roadrunner Quidditch (San Antonio, TX) 130*-120.In the bracket, USF was seeded 36th, the worst possible seed, and fell to Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY) 160*-80 in their first bracket match. USF's two pool play losses were to the University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA) 90*-10, and to Emerson College (Boston, MA) 80*-40.
University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA): Overachieved. USC arrived at the World Cup after a disappointing semifinal loss at Western Cup IV. With their squad in shambles, the expectations for Southern California were low; however, a 4-0 record in Pool 4 and a trip to the Sweet Sixteen silenced all critics. USC went undefeated in one of the toughest groups, including come-from-behind victories over Emerson College (Boston, MA) 100*-90 and the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN) 70*-50. Those wins earned USC the 11th seed in the bracket, where they made quick work of Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant, MI) 120*-30 before falling to the Lost Boys (Lomita, CA) 130*-20. With how they looked entering the tournament, for USC to go undefeated in their group and make the Sweet Sixteen was a major accomplishment, even with the team's pedigree and experience in the fall.
University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, MS): Achieved. As expected, USM went 0-4 in Pool 10. Although they lost all of their matches, Southern Miss played well against a good University of Richmond (Richmond, VA) squad, holding the game even until the snitch grab. USM was overmatched entering play, and did well just to qualify for the World Cup.
University of Texas Austin (Austin, TX): Overachieved. Say what you will about UT being the favorite entering the tournament and leaving with a title, their dominance was above what anybody could have expected. In pool play they outscored their opponents 580-100, which was just a warmup for bracket play. Texas beat Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond, VA) 190*-20 and similarly dominated regional rival Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA) 140*-20. UT's superiority continued in the Elite Eight with a 200*-40 victory over rival Texas A&M University (College Station, TX). In the Final Four, Texas disposed of Bowling Green State University (Bowling Green, OH) 140-50*. UT took home the title with a 190*-80 win over the University of California Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA). Texas A&M and UCLA were two of the favorites entering the tournament, yet UT handled them easily. Overall, Texas was one of the favorites to win and did just that, but in a truly dominant fashion.
University of Toronto (Toronto, ON): Achieved. Toronto was completely overmatched at the World Cup, managing just 20 points in their four games. Meanwhile, they surrendered 840 points at the tournament. Of course, none of this was truly unexpected as Toronto simply wasn't as good as their opponents.
Villanova University (Villanova, PA): Underachieved. The Mid-Atlantic regional champions were touted as underrated entering the tournament. Afterwards, perhaps underwhelming is a more appropriate word. Villanova went 2-2 in Pool 8, falling 60*-50 to Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant, MI) and 110*-60 to Boston University (Boston, MA). To advance to the bracket, Nova needed a win over Austin Quidditch (Austin, TX), which they got 70*-50. Villanova was eliminated by Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ) 90*-30 in the play-in game. Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond, VA): Achieved. VCU went 2-2 in pool play, without a single game coming down to a snitch grab. VCU's two losses to Baylor University (Waco, TX) and the University of Kansas (Lawrence, KS) were expected, as were their victories. VCU did well to beat Tufts University (Medford, MA) in overtime in the play-in games before being eliminated unceremoniously by eventual champions University of Texas Austin (Austin, TX) 190*-20.