BG Invitational Preview

Written by Adam Hynes

Sunday 27th, 2015 at the Perry Fieldhouse in beautiful Bowling Green, Ohio, the Bowling Green Falcons will play host to the neighboring Ohio schools to kick off the 2015-2016 season for Ohio altogether.  The teams in attendance will be Kent State, The Ohio State University, Akron, Baldwin Wallace, Bowling Green and new comer Ohio University.  This seems to be somewhat of a preview for the ODC to come in the spring and a great chance to see what is to come of the Ohio region early in the season.  As always with any tournament there are storylines to follow such as: who will be the top team coming out of the Ohio region this year, how will both Ohio State and Kent State start this season after both being bounced in the first round of Nationals last year, will Bowling Green be able to prove they are still ODC champion material or how will the younger teams perform to start the season?  Only time will tell and questions soon to be answered at the Bowling Green Invitational. 

Schedule (with Gonzalez Ratings for comparison of current strength)

Time Team 1 Team 2 Gonzalez Rating Gonzalez Rating Predicted Exchange Upset Exchange
11:00 Kent Akron 42.548 36.242 0.369 1.631
11:00 OSU BW 43.882 37.337 0.345 1.655
12:15 Kent BGSU 42.548 40.245 0.770 1.230
12:15 Ohio BW 40.000* 37.337 0.734 1.266
1:30 OSU BGSU 43.882 40.245 0.636 1.364
2:45 BGSU Akron 40.245 36.242 0.600 1.400
2:45 OSU Ohio 43.882 40.000* 0.612 1.388
4:00 Ohio Akron 40.000* 36.242 0.624 1.376
4:00 Kent BW 42.548 37.337 0.479 1.521

*new Member Teams enter with a default Gonzalez rating of 40

Ohio State

Marshall Winterbotham headlines the many experienced players this year at OSU
Marshall Winterbotham headlines the many experienced players this year at OSU.

Ohio State looks to be coming into the season as the top ranked team and the best team in Ohio from what most think around the NCDA.  Granted it would make sense for that they have had the higher ranking in the league and have beaten the other top teams in Ohio as well.  As the league knows Ohio State will be led by Josh Conner and Jeff Starr.  Ohio State performs so well due to the play of these two individuals with Conner, in my opinion, having more of an all-around style of play with his high level of catching and Starr having a very strong arm that most of the league knows about.  Ohio State will be playing BGSU, Baldwin Wallace and the Ohio Bobcats.  Looking at the schedule Ohio State will have an easy schedule for the most part due to playing two of the youngest teams and then have a test against BGSU for the first time this season.  Going based off of last year tournaments and looking at the teams they will play I believe OSU can go undefeated on Sunday.

Kent State

Kent looks to show that they are a top team this season
Kent looks to show that they are a top team this season.

Kent State also comes into the Tournament looking to claim the top spot in the Ohio region as well.  Kent State can still compete with any of the best teams in the country in my opinion and is still the best catching team in Ohio.  Last year looking at nationals they played against Michigan State extremely well and almost came away with a win only losing by a point in that game.  At ODC last year even without a full roster or their captain Albert, Kent State still competed very well against BGSU and beat Akron and Baldwin Wallace without much trouble at all.  So with a full roster and captain, look for Kent State to come out swinging early and fast against their opponents.  Kent State will be playing Akron, BGSU, and Baldwin Wallace.  Rematch games from the 2014 ODC tournament.  Going based off of last year teams, I believe Kent State will easily handle Baldwin Wallace but Akron and BGSU should be good games to watch.  I give Kent State the edge versus Akron but it is hard to call for the BGSU game.  I predict overtime for the BGSU game.

Bowling Green State

BG looks to build on their success from last year and prove that it was not a fluke that they won the ODC last year
BG looks to build on their success from last year and prove that it was not a fluke that they won the ODC last year.

The 2014 ODC champions come into the tournament playing host and looking to get out of the shadows of Ohio State and Kent State.  BGSU did not play well at nationals last year so the falcons should be using that as motivation as well as wanting to be the best team in the Ohio region.  Bowling Green comes into the season once again boasting a talented freshman class to go along with their talented captains and the team.  Top freshman include Max Kowalski, Owen Sill and Jack Linklater.  All three have big time arms already for freshman.  Tyrell has compared Jack to have an arm like Wes Hopkins from Kentucky so having arm strength will be huge for the falcons coming into the brand new season.  BGSU will be playing the top teams from Ohio; OSU, Kent State, and Akron.  Bowling Green has the most interesting/exciting schedule at this tournament for that all of the games could come down to the wire.  Bowling Green having talented players and a great freshman class should be quite the team this year.

Akron Zips

Akron hopes to start the season with strong teamwork and communication on the court
Akron hopes to start the season with strong teamwork and communication on the court.

Akron will be coming into the tournament with the mindset of coming out strong against opponents and most importantly, playing together.  Speaking with their head captain Sam (who I believe is the best female dodgeball player in the country) had said that she is very excited to play against the new team Ohio University and is looking forward to the rematch with Kent State.  Akron has lost some of their key players from last year’s team but Akron has brought in a great freshman class to fill those spots.  Akron has also improved on their communication and strategy a great deal so that should only help them more.  With Sam leading the team and their new improved strategy, don’t be surprised if Akron pulled an upset or two.  This team in my opinion is a team that you can constantly keep hitting and knock them down but they get right back up and swing back just as hard.  They play each point as if it is their last so if Akron gets ahead in a game be careful of their “never back down” attitude.

Baldwin Wallace

TJ looks to lead his team to their first win ever in the NCDA
TJ looks to lead his team to their first win ever in the NCDA.

Baldwin Wallace will be looking for their first win in the NCDA and looking to gain valuable experience.  Last year at ODC they were able to take a point from every team including future champ BGSU and a talented Kent State team.  Baldwin Wallace will be playing Ohio University in a game that should be good to watch.  With the one year of experience in the NCDA I believe that they will get that win in the record books too.  Thomas Anthony is their best player on the team with a great talent when it comes to blocking the ball.  Hopefully Tj can get his team going in the right direction early as they play on Sunday.  Experience is just as important as having skillful players.

Ohio University

ohio u

Not much can be said about the Bobcats just yet since they are brand new to the league but what is known is who their captain is.  Caleb Arnold is the president for the Bobcats and a former BGSU team member.  Caleb has a great arm and was developing his ability to catch before leaving BGSU.  Caleb also has ODC and Nationals experience under his belt so this tournament more than anything may be a huge learning experience for his team for the future.  I do not believe Ohio may win any games but that doesn’t mean they won’t compete in any of the games either.  With Ohio having the element of surprise still with them, all teams should not take them lightly either; never know what to expect from a team that no one has ever seen before.

Predictions

Ohio State (3-0)

OSU def. OU 4-0
OSU def. BGSU 2-1
OSU def. BW 4-0

Kent State (2-1)

Kent def. Akron 3-1
Kent def. BW 4-0
BGSU def. Kent 2-1 OT

Bowling Green State (2-1)

BGSU def. Kent 2-1 OT
BGSU def. Akron 2-1
OSU def. BGSU 2-1

Akron Zips (1-2)

Akron def. OU 4-0
BGSU def. Akron 2-1
Kent def. Akron 3-1

Baldwin Wallace (1-2)

BW def. OU 3-1
Kent def. BW 4-0
OSU def. BW 4-0

Ohio Bobcats (0-3)

BW def. OU 3-1
Akron def. OU 4-0
OSU def. OU 4-0

Bold Predictions!

  • Ohio Bobcats beat Baldwin Wallace and takes a point from every team they play
  • Akron beats Kent State in overtime; 2-1
  • Bowling Green goes undefeated on the day

5 thoughts on “BG Invitational Preview”

  1. Of note on the Gonzalez ratings of the teams participating,

    There is a median Rating of 40.123, with a range of 7.64 rating points between the highest and lowest. This is very good indication that the matchups are not totally one-sided. The upset exchanges have a range between 1.655 and 1.230. Lower seeded teams would do well if they managed a technical upset here in this event.

    BGSU seems poised to continue their climb up the Gonzalez Standings.
    http://ncdadodgeball.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/bgsu-gonzalez-rating-2015.png

    The Kent/BGSU match should prove interesting. Their ratings are very close, with BG getting a boost while at home.

  2. My Predictions:

    Ohio State (3-0)

    OSU def. OU 6-0
    OSU def. BGSU 5-1
    OSU def. BW 4-0

    Kent State (3-0)

    Kent def. Akron 4-0
    Kent def. BW 3-1
    Kent def BGSU 2-1

    Bowling Green State (1-2)

    Kent def BGSU 2-1
    BGSU def. Akron 3-0
    OSU def. BGSU 5-1

    Akron Zips (1-2)

    Akron def. OU 3-2
    BGSU def. Akron 3-0
    Kent def. Akron 4-0

    Baldwin Wallace (1-2)

    BW def. OU 3-1
    Kent def. BW 3-1
    OSU def. BW 4-0

    Ohio Bobcats (0-3)

    BW def. OU 3-1
    Akron def. OU 3-2
    OSU def. OU 6-0

    1. Also I forgot to mention this, and this is very important in my opinion: I give MAD Props to BGSU dodgeball, their officers, and captains for choosing to play the 3 hardest teams in attendance at this tournament in OSU, Kent and Akron. Rather than schedule some of the newer and easier teams to go against to pick up the win, they choose to play the toughest competition. Playing better competition is the only way to get better as a club, and I think this decision says a lot about where this club wants to go this year.

      1. Jon I agree completely with you. I’m very impressed with my team playing the harder competition than going for the wins. Playing harder opponents does improve a team a great deal

        1. Indeed. Can’t underestimate the experience of playing a “tougher” team.

          Playing tougher opponents is also a “win” for BGSU in many different ranking systems. They could fair well because of the Strength of Schedule aspects.

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