svsu – Page 3

The War V Recap

We expected a weekend full of quality dodgeball as Akron hosted their 5th annual iteration of The War. What we witnessed, however, was frankly a lot of lopsided matches. Certain teams we anticipated to have great performances came in as advertised. Others left a lot to be desired, and will hope to bounce back strong if they play again before Nationals, or else they will be chewing on those hard truths about the way their team played for the next 5 weeks.

With that being said, there is a lot to unwrap, and a lot to be said about what we saw from each team, whether they performed well, poorly, or somewhere in between. Let’s go team by team and evaluate what we saw.

The Michigan Dodgeball Cup

2022 Michigan Dodgeball Cup Preview

2015 Michigan Dodgeball Cup Preview – NCDA

This Saturday, Michigan State University will host three other schools in the annual Michigan Dodgeball Cup. In attendance will be Grand Valley State (8-1), Michigan State (5-3), Saginaw Valley State (2-7), and Western Michigan (0-3). Missing from the MDC for the first time since 2007 (prior to their club’s existence) is Central Michigan University.

While eyes will be on the CMU club to see if they can rebuild their program and get back to competition, let’s shift our attention back to the four teams in attendance. To start, here is the schedule for the 2022 MDC, which will be livestreamed on the NCDA’s social channels this Saturday, starting at 10:00 AM.

Grand Valley Gauntlet VIII

This Saturday we kick off the second half of our 2021-2022 season in Allendale, Michigan, with the Grand Valley Gauntlet VIII. The teams in attendance are: the Grand Valley State University (GVSU), Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU), and Michigan State University (MSU). It is exciting to get back on the courts again and I can’t wait to see the results. Let’s take a look at the schedule for tomorrow’s event below.

Cardinal Invitational Recap

Way back on November 20th, the Cardinal Invitational took place. With everyone very busy with the holiday weekend and preparing for finals, it took a little while to compile each team’s lasting thoughts for the tournament. We take a look at what leaders from (almost) every team had to say.

Saginaw Valley State Perspective:

Cardinal Invitational

2nd Annual John Betters’ Bobcat Bonanza Tournament Review

The second annual John Betters’ Bobcat Bonanza showed us where a lot of teams stand at this point in the season. With most teams having played a match throughout the league as of the conclusion of this weekend, I think we are finally starting to get a good picture for how each team compares to one another. While there are still a lot of lingering questions (IE – how does the majority of the East Coast stand up to the rest of the league? What does Michigan State look like? Is Towson still truly a top team in the NCDA? Are Grand Valley and Cincinnati actually that good?), we did get some real answers this weekend. Yes, Grand Valley is still a force to be reckoned with. Yes, Cincinnati is a legitimate title contender despite the loss to the aforementioned Lakers. Yes, the league is in overall good health with impressively large rookie classes for a lot of teams who hadn’t played prior to this weekend such as Ohio and Saginaw Valley.

What hasn’t been answered, however, is what each team thought about their own individual performances on the weekend. The participating Captains and Presidents minced no words when it comes to how they felt about their teams’ performances this past weekend. Here’s what they had to say:

John Betters Bobcat Bonanza (2nd Annual)

2nd Annual John Betters’ Bobcat Bonanza Preview

With the return of dodgeball comes the return of what I can only assume will become a time honored tradition for Ohio University, and that is hosting the annual John Betters’ Bobcat Bonanza in the fall semester. Not only will this year’s iteration feature eight talented dodgeball teams, but we will also witness the retirement of the great John Betters’ jersey as well as the ceremonial first throw – a welcomed new addition to the tournament.

Silliness aside, Ohio University will be host to some of the hardest hitting, most impactful matchups the NCDA has to offer since before the pandemic started in March of 2020. The teams in attendance will be Bowling Green State University, the University of Cincinnati, Grand Valley State University, James Madison University, Miami University, hosts Ohio University, [the] Ohio State University, and Saginaw Valley State University.

There are a lot of intriguing storylines to consider and questions that need answers as we head into Saturday’s tournament. To shine some light on some of those, we’ve asked the leaders of each team to provide some insight into who some players to look out for are, what they think about their respective matchups, and what they need to do to have a successful day Saturday. Without further adieu, here is what each team had to say:

2020 All-Michigan Team

Listed below is the 2020 All-Region Team for Michigan. This list was voted on by captains within the Michigan Region.

1. Ben Smart – Grand Valley State

Landing at #1 on the All-Michigan list in Grand Valley State star Ben Smart. Known for his great instincts, clutch catching, and devastatingly accurate throws, Ben Smart is the definition of an all-around player. At times this year it seemed like he could eliminate opponents at will. The lefty for the Lakers has such phenomenal movement and placement on his throw, and great timing in transition, that he can pick off opponents at a very efficient rate. Smart helped the Lakers to an undefeated record prior to the season being suspended, and while he would’ve loved to finish out the year with a National Title, he will be back next fall to help lead GVSU in their pursuit of a championship.

The Viking Cup Recap

At the Viking Cup, several teams went head to head for some quality matches to prepare for nationals. Several of the games were close and tested teams’ ability to fight and go for the win. Below are the scores for the day and captain’s thoughts on the teams in attendance.

Match	Score	Winner
SVSU vs UWP	2-1	SVSU
WMU vs BSU	5-3	WMU
CSU vs SVSU	3-2	CSU
CSU vs UWP	4-3	CSU
UWP vs BSU	7-1	UWP
SVSU vs UK	5-2	SVSU
WMU vs UK	5-2	WMU
UK vs BSU	6-4	UK
CSU vs WMU	Forfeit	CSU

The Viking Cup

On February 22, 2020, we have a great mix of teams attending the Viking Cup that should make for some fun matches. There are two teams from the Michigan and Midway regions, and one each from the South and Ohio regions. The teams in attendance will be: Cleveland State University (CSU), Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU), Western Michigan University (WMU), Ball State University (BSU), University of Kentucky (UK), and the University of Wisconsin Platteville (UWP). Let’s take a look at the schedule (games will be played at the CSU Rec Center).

All-Michigan 2019

Next on our release of top regional performers is the the All-Michigan team for the 2018-19 season. This year’s eligible teams under consideration were Grand Valley State, Saginaw Valley State, Central Michigan, Michigan State, and first year member Western Michigan. This list consists of the top performers within the Michigan region, as selected by their peers.

Michigan Dodgeball Cup Preview

The 2019 Michigan Dodgeball Cup is right around the corner, taking place this Saturday in East Lansing, Michigan on the campus of Michigan State University. As has been the case for over a decade, the MDC will play host to each school in the state of Michigan for a regular season tournament that will have national title implications. Below is a preview of this Saturday’s tournament: Continue reading “Michigan Dodgeball Cup 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”