Michigan State made a miraculous run in the NCDA Tournament, reaching the National Championship game before losing 3-0 to Grand Valley State.

The Spartans were in Pool B, playing Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Penn State. In the first game they squared off against BGSU, and they were able to win 6-0 behind some good catching and even better teamwork. They then went on to face Kentucky, a team who beat them 4-0 earlier in the season. Despite being heavily outgunned, the Spartans were very competitive in the first half. However, after dropping a quick point in the second half to trail 3-0, the Spartans rallied and cut the lead to 3-2 with 3:40 left to go in the game. MSU went all out on offense, and unfortunately was cut to pieces, but it was still a great effort and a good result, proving that an undermanned roster could have a chance in this tournament. Next MSU played Big Ten foe Penn State, a team playing their first tournament ever. On Friday night captain Sam Hiller and Mike Van Ermen helped coach the Nittany Lions against Kentucky, and you could really see PSU’s growth in three games. MSU would go on to win 6-0, but each point was really close.

On Sunday the Spartans drew Wisconsin-Platteville in the first round. UWP showed tremendous growth from the previous Nationals Tournaments, and they had nearly as many arms as UK did. Sitting on the Spartans’ neutral zone line, they kept throwing and throwing against MSU while MSU couldn’t do anything offensively. State was able to get some timely catches and transition kills, while playing some great defense and holding off the Pioneers 2-1. Next MSU faced rival Saginaw Valley for a chance to go to the Final Four. The Cardinals knocked out MSU in the quarterfinals last year, so State wanted to get some revenge. SVSU took the first point in a close battle in around 10 minutes, but MSU was able to strike back with some good strategy and great play to take the next point. Some timely catches and limiting the big players for SVSU was key in the next point taken for MSU, giving them a 2-1 lead, and MSU didn’t hold back in the point after that, as they were able to get some huge catches and big hits to take a 3-1 final score. Arguably the biggest win in program history at that point, they took down the defending champs to get their sixth Final Four appearance in 9 seasons. However, MSU had never won a game in the Final Four, meaning a win over Kent State would be an even bigger win. It was a win they would get, in an anti-climatic game after the huge win over SVSU. More big catches and transition kills led to a win to earn a berth in the National Championship game where they’d play battle rival GVSU, a team they’d never beaten. The Spartans were outgunned in that game, and despite some good play by MSU, they were heavily outmatched. The Lakers would go on to win 3-0, ending the title dreams for MSU.

Michigan State had only 17 players, only a handful of power throwers, and around 5 players had to sit due to injuries at certain points in the tournament. Compared to the other teams in the quarterfinals, it was a miracle they could make the Championship Game. They persevered though, and they were able to have the weekend of a lifetime.

Sam Hiller (MSU #87-C) one of this year’s All Star Game Captains, leading the Monstars team along with Zigmas Maloni (DePaul #68). The other team are the Brave Little Toasters, led by Dan Shackelford (Kent #33-C) and Felix Perrone (WKU #76-AC).

The Spartans had four players named to the All Star Game, Mike Van Ermen (MSU #6), Kevin Miller (MSU #46-AC), Eric Paul (MSU #9), and Alex Acton (MSU #72). Paul chose to be replaced due to an ailing foot, which resulted in Zach Bauer (MSU #17-AC) taking his place.

Van Ermen was the first Spartan off the board in the draft, by the Monstars, at #11 overall. Acton was taken soon after at #16 by the Brave Little Toasters. Miller and Bauer had to wait a little longer for their names to be called, at #36 and #44 respectively, by the Monstars.

So with Acton on one team, and Van Ermen, Miller, Bauer, and Hiller on the other, either way their will be a Spartan victorious at the All Star Game.

Zach Bauer will be the fifth All Star for State, as he replaces Eric Paul (injury) in the All Star Game. This will be Bauer’s first All Star selection. Paul is likely to be able to play in the tournament however, he just doesn’t want to add on one more game for the tournament. The All Star draft is tomorrow at 9:15 pm, as captain Sam Hiller joins Kent State’s captain Dan Shackelford, DePaul’s Zigmas Maloni, and WKU’s Felix Perrone in dividing up the All Stars.

Captain: Sam Hiller, #87

Assistant Captain: Zach Bauer, #17

Assistant Captain: Kevin Miller, #46

Mike Van Ermen, #6

Charlie Wilshire, #16

Colin O’Brien, #18

Thomas Rex, #10

Alex Acton, #72

Jonathan Harrison, #14

Riley Robson, #5

Andy Lieblich, #20

John Luzenski, #12

Jake Billhorn, #88

Sam Clark, #11

Nicole Halbeisen, #2

James Schneider, #25

Eric Paul, #9

Ian Childs, #19

Ethan Ettema, #4

Tim Burkey, #7

The 2013 All Star Game will be played in Lexington, KY, as part of Nationals 2013. Each team gets four All Star players, and there are two captains on each team that will draft the players evenly. One team is the Brave Little Toasters, captained by Dan Shackelford (Kent #33-C) and Felix Perrone (WKU #76-A), the other team is the Monstars, captained by Zigmas Maloni (DePaul #68-A) and MSU’s own Sam Hiller (MSU #87-C). The four All Stars selected by their teammates for Michigan State are Alex Acton, Eric Paul, Kevin Miller, and Mike Van Ermen.

Alex Acton (MSU #72) is a three time All Star now, being one of the few players selected in every All Star Game. As a senior, he will likely be playing in his final Nationals, and he has shined in previous years. He has a deadly cross, is pinpoint accurate, and is a great catcher.

Eric Paul (MSU #9) is also a three time All Star, and is also a senior playing in his last Nationals. He has carried the Spartans at times with his power arm, great catching, and clutch play. As one of the top players in the league, Paul will shine as always in the ASG.

Kevin Miller (MSU #46-A) is a second time All Star, playing in the 2011 game as well. He’s grown from a catcher to a dangerous player in every facet of the game. He too is a senior, and is one of the captains for the Spartans.

Mike Van Ermen (MSU #6) is making his first appearance in an All Star game, but his play has been phenomenal all season. He’s one of the more dedicated players on the team, and has a great throw to go along with good catching and leadership. He is a junior, so watch for him to help lead the team next season.

The field for Nationals, specifically the opponents for State, are starting to be more clearer with Nationals only two months away. MSU’s stellar play so far this season has virtually assured them of at least a two seed in the pool play portion of Nationals, and could even get them a one seed. They are currently #3 in the Nation, despite only going 1-2-1 at the Michigan Dodgeball Cup in February. With the BEAST II yet to be played still however, they will likely be somewhere from 4th to 6th in the standings going into Nationals. The current projection is that there will be either five or six pools for Saturday, meaning MSU may be cutting it close on being that one seed.

It will likely come down to State or #6 Saginaw Valley for the last spot if there are only five pools. If State isn’t a one seed, they’ll have a tougher game first day than they’d originally expected. There are a clear cut top six teams in the league right now who are considered to be National title favorites, then there is a middle tier of teams that are considered dark horses. If there are only five pools, then one pool will have two of those top six teams in it, and that’s something MSU would prefer to avoid. Outside of their 4-0 loss to UK in the first game of the season, MSU is 3-4-2 against the other top teams in the country, with all 4 losses coming by one point. Against the rest of the competition they’re 7-0, giving up a total of three points.

If MSU does get a one seed, they will avoid playing the other top tier teams first day. While that doesn’t mean they’ll be able to sleep through Saturday of Nationals, it does mean that they’ll have an easier chance to go undefeated and have a top four seed for Sunday. If State gets the #6 overall seed, and thus ended up being a two seed, they will likely draw either UK, JMU, or Kent State on Saturday. While MSU has beaten Kent State twice this season already, they have improved greatly since they played last. JMU and Kentucky have both beaten MSU once this season. The Spartans had to go through that last year, when they played JMU on the first day and the loss to the Dukes threw them into the same half of the bracket as GVSU, CMU, and SVSU.

Potential two seeds that the Spartans could draw as a one seed include OSU, Maryland, WKU, and Towson. MSU defeated the Buckeyes 4-1 in Columbus earlier in the season and beat WKU at Nationals last year, but have never faced either Maryland or Towson. Central Michigan is also a potential two seed, but it would be unlikely that they would be placed in the same pool as MSU.

If the season were to end today, and there were no upsets in the pool play, then MSU would be looking at the #3 seed overall in the Sunday pool of the bracket. They would play the winner of RIT and one of the teams who hasn’t played a game this season, which would lead into a battle with likely SVSU in the National Quarterfinals. This year’s Nationals will be more hotly contested, and there is more parity, than the last few years. Whereas last year the case that the four best teams were in one half of the bracket could be made, this year there is no “clear cut” top four teams. There’ll be tough matchups for everyone starting in the Quarterfinals.