Author: Kevin Bailey

Current NCDA Chief of Content. Former Captain for Grand Valley State University (#4).

WAR III All-Tournament Team

There were plenty of outstanding performers over the weekend at Akron’s WAR III tournament.  Many of the players that made noise at the tournament were little known players nationally prior to last weekend.  It is only fitting that after one of the best tourneys ever, we provide a list of the best performers at the event.  Listed below are the top 24 standouts from WAR III:

1st Team

Tom Morand (Miami) – MVP

Helped Miami force overtime against Towson thanks to an improbable comeback win in the final full point of regulation.  He nearly did the same thing in overtime. Tom made double-digit catches in the final 20-ish minutes of the game. Unreal performance.  WAR III vaulted him right into the thick of the 2019 NCDA MVP race.

Josh Lyons (Akron)

One of the most underrated players in the country, Josh Lyons had yet another strong performance this semester.  He was a big reason why Akron nearly pulled an upset over SVSU. He also made a wild 1 v 8 comeback against Ohio State! Continue reading “WAR III All-Tournament Team”

Many Storylines to Follow at Akron’s ‘WAR III’

No photo description available.This weekend, the University of Akron will host their 3rd annual WAR tournament.  The WAR, slated for Feb. 9-10, will be the biggest tournament to date this year, and the only two-day tournament of the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association’s regular season!

WAR III, much like the two previous years, will have plenty of intriguing storylines to follow.  With 15 NCDA teams heading to Northeast Ohio to take part in this event, it is basically a mini-Nationals.

Jake Bruce has emerged as a star for SVSU this year. He will need to perform well if the Cardinals expect to finish WAR with an undefeated record.

This weekend, the tournament will include teams from each of the league’s 3 toughest regions: Michigan, Ohio, and the East Coast.  As has historically been the case, WAR will provide a fantastic opportunity for teams from multiple regions to face off, providing the league with a better idea of where each team stands before Nationals.  With so many compelling games on the docket for this Saturday and Sunday, we have put together an in-depth tournament preview below. We will give a brief preview of each individual team, highlight the most intriguing games on this weekend’s schedule, and we may even give some bold predictions.  Make sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of this preview to find out the many ways you will be able to follow all the action online. For starters, here is the (MASSIVE) tournament schedule (also found here): Continue reading “Many Storylines to Follow at Akron’s ‘WAR III’”

Power Rankings: February 2019

Happy New Year College Dodgeballers!  After taking a month off the power rankings during the mid-season winter break, we are finally back for the second half of the season, with the February Power Rankings.  Not many matches have been played yet in 2019, but this is just the calm before the storm.  The month of February promises to be the most exciting month yet this season with huge tournament taking place each of the next three weekends:

Feb. 9-10: The WAR

Feb. 16: Michigan Dodgeball Cup

Feb. 23: BEAST / Ohio Dodgeball Cup

Below is the official February 2019 Power Rankings list produced by NCDA Executive Board members Jacob Leski (Director of Recruitment and Retention) and Kevin Bailey (Chief of Content).  Please keep in mind: these power rankings have no impact on the actual NCDA Standings.

Continue reading “Power Rankings: February 2019”

Magnus’ Rock Fest Tournament Preview

The following was written by Cleveland State’s Joseph Walsh:

Magnus’ Rock Fest will be held at Cleveland State University on Saturday, February 2, 2019.

University of Cincinnati

For me personally, I have never witnessed this team play and from what I know, the CSU tournament will be the second tournament for this team. I am hoping that Wesley Peters has brought together some great guys to make a strong team and hopeful future contenders in the NCDA. This team plays CSU, Akron, and Kent this weekend, which will be a good test for this team to see what they are working with. They have a tough weekend ahead of them and this will hopefully be a good showing for them going forward in the NCDA.

West Virginia University

This team last semester finished strong, especially with the comeback win over CSU which was extraordinary. Continue reading “Magnus’ Rock Fest Tournament Preview”

Battle of the Valleys Recap: GVSU Sweeps SVSU Despite Strong Showing from the Cardinals

The second half of the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association’s regular season kicked off on Sunday with a doubleheader between two of the top teams in the nation.  #1 Grand Valley State completed the sweep of host school #4 Saginaw Valley State in their annual Battle of the Valleys event.  The final scores from the two varsity matches are below, along with a brief recap:

Game 1: GVSU def SVSU 3-2

Game 1 began with Grand Valley looking very much like the #1 team in the country, as they picked apart the solid SVSU roster to claim a 2-0 lead at the half.  SVSU was able to make the second point a bit closer, but overall, GVSU used a controlled pace to pick off one Cardinal at a time in each point.  The big takeaway from the first half was how disciplined GVSU looked.  Very few mistakes were made from the Lakers, as their leadership and experience were on full display. Continue reading “Battle of the Valleys Recap: GVSU Sweeps SVSU Despite Strong Showing from the Cardinals”

Battle of the Valleys Preview

Two College Dodgeball titans are set to clash in a doubleheader this weekend, which will kick off the second half of the NCDA season.  This Sunday, Saginaw Valley State will host Grand Valley State as the two Michigan schools will be competing in their annual Battle of the Valleys event.  The winner will gain bragging rights in this historic rivalry.  The schedule for this Sunday is below, along with a brief preview from Chief of Content Kevin Bailey and SVSU Captain Kenny Mize:

Hamilton Gym @ Saginaw Valley

Battle of the Valleys:
10:20am- #1 GV vs #4 SVSU
11:30am- #1 GV vs #4 SVSU
12:40am- OT 6 game tiebreaker (if needed)

Alumni Games:
12:40- GV alum vs SV alum
1:30- GV alum vs GV
2:30 SV alum vs SV

Continue reading “Battle of the Valleys Preview”

2019 New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year college dodgeballers!  It’s that time of year when the NCDA season really starts to ramp up.  We are only about 4 months away from Nationals 2019, and teams are preparing for the always crucial second half of the regular season.

As we break in the new year, and get set for another winter of dodgeball, it seems like a great time to take a look at what some teams should have as their ‘New Year’s Resolutions’.

Continue reading “2019 New Year’s Resolutions”

Power Rankings: December 2018

We have reached the half-way point in the 2018-19 National Collegiate Dodgeball Association season.  There have certainly been some unexpected results so far this season, along with many teams living up to their pre-season hype.  Overall, it was another exciting fall of collegiate dodgeball.  As we set for the winter semester, now is a great time to take a look at where each team stands through half the season with our December Power Rankings.  The College Dodgeball season always seems to heat up once the temperatures start to drop, so don’t be surprised if many of these rankings change in the coming months.

Below is the official December 2018 Power Rankings list produced by NCDA Executive Board members Jacob Leski (Director of Recruitment and Retention), Hunter Ford (Director), and Kevin Bailey (Chief of Content).  Please keep in mind: these power rankings have no impact on the actual NCDA Standings.

Continue reading “Power Rankings: December 2018”

Picking Against The Spread: December 1-2 Events

This weekend their will be two separate college dodgeball events taking place.  On Saturday, Ball State will host their December Dodgeball Dash, with teams coming from the Ohio, Michigan, and Midway Regions.  Then on Sunday, James Madison will play host to one of the most anticipated events of the fall: a JMU vs. Towson doubleheader.

Below are the picks against the spread for these events, with guest picker Kevin Frye (Ball State):

Midwest’s best teams set to clash at Spartan Invite

the following preview was co-authored by kevin bailey and tom morand.

This Saturday, Michigan State University will host one of the more intriguing tournaments of the fall.  The Spartan Invite will welcome in 9 teams for a long day of dodgeball that will tel us a lot about where teams stand as we head towards Thanksgiving weekend.

In attendance will be the usual four Michigan schools (GVSU, SVSU, CMU, MSU), along with one new member of the region: Western Michigan.  All eyes will be on this team, led by former Laker/Chippewa Peter Broe.

Outside of the Michigan schools, there are a few more teams making the trip to East Lansing.  The top two teams from Ohio will be in attendance (Kent State and Miami), each of which will be tested throughout the day with multiple games against Michigan squads.  Ohio State is an up and coming team that will also be at this event.  The experience they will gain in their games this weekend will pay dividends down the road.

One last team making the trip is Wisconsin Platteville.  UWP historically has not shied away from competing with the top teams from other regions, so their choice to come to MSU for this event is no surprise.

Schedule:

Continue reading “Midwest’s best teams set to clash at Spartan Invite”

Nationals 2019 Location

After much deliberation, the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association’s Executive Board has come to a decision on which school will have the privilege of hosting the 2019 NCDA National Championship Tournament:

The Dodgeball Club at Grand Valley State University will play host for Nationals 2019 in Allendale, Michigan on April 13-14, 2019.

The NCDA Executive Board would like to thank each of the schools that provided a Nationals bid for the time and effort they put in.  It was a tough decision, and we felt comfortable with everything brought forth by all member teams that were interested in hosting.  With that said, we are more than excited to bring Nationals back to GVSU on the 10-year anniversary of the last time the Lakers hosted the season’s final tournament back in 2009!

Grand Valley Gauntlet VI: Coach’s Reaction

Before getting into Coach Fettig’s recap, here are the results from the Grand Valley Gauntlet:

GVSU def SVSU 3-1
JMU def MSU 4-2
GVSU def JMU 5-0
CMU def BGSU 3-1
MSU def CMU 4-3
SVSU def BGSU 4-2
GVSU def MSU – 4-1
JMU def SVSU 4-2
GVSU def BGSU 5-2
JMU def CMU 4-1

the following recap was written by gvsu coach dylan fettig:

Continue reading “Grand Valley Gauntlet VI: Coach’s Reaction”

Summit Street Slugfest: Picks against the Spread

This weekend, Kent State will host the Summit Street Slugfest, with teams from four different regions making the trip for this intriguing tourney.  Below are the Content Team’s picks against the spread for this tournament.  A more extensive tournament preview will be published later this week!

Continue reading “Summit Street Slugfest: Picks against the Spread”