The Chicago Dodgeball Open Preview

Other than the Super Bowl, there will be one other exciting sports competition taking place and that is the Chicago Dodgeball Open. Teams attending this round-robin are Depaul (1-3), UWP (2-0), Central Michigan (18-6), and GVSU (22-0) respectively. While CMU and GVSU played each other 3 times last semester, there are new matchups taking place thanks to UWP, who is coming off of an impressive 2-0 record against Nebraska and North Texas. Both GVSU and UWP have yet to lose a game yet, whether one of them comes out of this weekend still undefeated is a story in itself.

Most Anticipated Matchups:

Which Michigan team will be victorious?

Many individuals have been voicing their own opinions as to who will be victorious in this heated matchup. Predictions ranging from a 5-0 victory for GVSU all the way to a 2-1 victory for CMU are some of the predictions that have been voiced by various members of the league. What a lot of individuals are not aware of is that GVSU is missing their head captain Kevin Bailey, who slightly tore his labrum in his throwing shoulder. Kevin is the reigning MVP from last season and an integral part of Grand Valley’s team. From what I heard, they seemed to play well without him against MSU, where they won their first game 5-0 and their second game 2-1. Another factor to take into consider is that although Kevin will not be playing, he will be coaching his team from the sideline. Grand Valley arguably has the most depth in the league, their top 10 players are exceptional and whoever they have subbing in would most likely start on any other team in the league. Now for CMU, they have one of their star players by the name of Mike Riley making his return back for the Chippewas. They also are implementing something new this semester and that is a coach. That’s right, the Chips very own Jon Milliman is making the transition from player to coach to add a stronger presence on the sidelines.

UWP vs. Depaul

UWP is coming off 2 very convincing victories against North Texas and Nebraska. However, many are not convinced that this team is capable of beating better competition. As stated before, many individuals have stated their opinions as to who they think will win this game and just about everyone is in agreement that this is going to be a very close game. I originally predicted that UWP would win soundly, however Depaul has a tendency to take their matchups more seriously than normal at home, most likely due to friends and family watching them play, which I believe will be enough for them to win. This matchup will be a big indicator of where UWP is at skill wise in comparison to other teams in the league, as will their game against both Michigan schools.

CMU vs. UWP

Many individuals who have given their predictions believe that this matchup is going to be a close game and there are also many that do not think it will be close at all. The last time these two teams played was at Depaul last season. The match was tight throughout the entire game, with CMU winning the last point with less than 20 seconds left to win 2-1. A highlight of this game was when Alex Higbee from UWP hit me in the face from a few feet away. I ended up with a huge black eye. Props to him and UWP, I’ve had nightmares about it ever since. Since this is the first game of the semester for each team, I am sure many teams from around the league are interested to hear how this game goes. Due to the potential snow fall that is supposed to arrive in the Chicago area on Sunday morning, there is a potential chance that UWP will not make the trip down and take a forfeit. Let’s hope this does not happen so we can all see if this team is the real deal.

Predictions:

Chief of Content: Kevin Bailey

GVSU def DePaul 7-0

CMU def UWP 5-0

DePaul def UWP 3-2

GVSU def CMU 3-1

CMU def DePaul 6-0

GVSU def UWP 5-0

Content Writer: Jacob Leski

GVSU def Depaul 7-0

CMU def UWP 5-0

Depaul def UWP 2-1

CMU def GVSU 2-1

GVSU def UWP 6-0

CMU def Depaul 7-0

President of the NCDA: Zigmas Maloni

GVSU def DePaul 5-0

CMU def UWP 2-1

DePaul def UWP 3-2

GVSU def CMU 5-0

CMU def DePaul 2-0

GVSU def UWP 4-1

Content Writer: Sean Smith

GVSU def Depaul 6-0

CMU def UWP 5-0

UWP def Depaul 3-2(OT)

GVSU def CMU 2-1(OT)

CMU def Depaul 6-0

GVSU def UWP 6-0

Regardless of the outcome, this tournament will be full of exciting games and is sure to give the league a good idea of where these teams are at after their winter breaks.

While writing this I was informed that UWP will not be attending due to the weather.