Guest Blog: Scathingly Brilliant Predictions for D1 Club Playoffs This Weekend

The YSC Team is proud to welcome another member of the YSC Family, meet Sybil. She will be bringing a more light-hearted and frankly controversial point of view to our site. The Editors of the site are a bit nervous to have her speak her mind, as we have always tried to remain fair and impartial…but we understand the need for other opinions as well. And who doesn’t love a bit of drama?

To view the complete D1 Playoff Schedule, Seeds etc, go here.

Why hello everyone! For my first blog post I thought it would be incredibly inappropriate to give my predictions for the upcoming D1 Playoff matches this weekend in Austin. Instead of tip toeing around predictions like YSC does sometimes (mad respect!) I want to lay it out on the line. This weekend has the potential of a few major upsets….so lets get started.

Glendale vs Belmont
Looking at Belmont’s performances in the last 5 years they have consistently reached the Sweet 16, Round of 12 and/or Elite 8 three out of the five years. Their performance hasn’t gone past a loss on Saturday and a win on Sunday, but they have had a good showing. This year in league play they had a four wins and two losses. The loses were against the two higher seeds in CR1 Seattle (23-14 Seattle) and ORSU (10-6) and were pretty close matches. The claims that their match against the “carnivorous” Raptors (come on they are dinosaurs) will be a slaughter…I think not!

Now lets take a look at Glendale…they have managed to woo five WPL players to move to their program with promises of eternal glory and fame. The wooing (word of the day!) seems to be working and the new team chemistry with Lisa Rosen at the helm is a fresh take as well. Before they were dinosaurs, they were the Harelquin Olde Girls and they held quite a good record. Since 2001 the Olde Girls were present in the lower half of the sixteen teams. Starting in 2008, the Raptors moved up the ranks a bit with their best seeds of ninth and fifth in 2008-2009. This year they come in as the CR2 #1 seed at a comfortable #3 overall. However, Glendale has the formula for success but their scrum can struggle to win go forward ball at times and they haven’t truly been tested on defense. I think Belmont will be that test as they typically have a strong pack and are very physical at the ruck.

Prediction: Glendale over Belmont by 15 points. Belmont will challenge Glendale the entire match, but the second half will be the most important for both teams. Fitness, fundamentals and heart….

Atlanta vs Austin
Oh those Harlequins…in the last five years they have had Final Four performances (thanks Round of 12 BYE!) but have also struggled to break out in 2007 and 2008 with early loses in the Round of 16. Consistency seems to be their kryptonite! Their best performance in recent years was a second place finish against the San Diego Surfers last year (16-12 Surfers). Their match against Austin this weekend will be a true test of their consistency and strength. Austin brings an incredibly strong scrum (scrum push trys in almost every match) and has a back triangle that is quite speedy. Atlanta is typically known for their backs led by the ever quick Heather Hale so both teams will more than likely look to unleash their speed.

Austin first burst on to the D1 scene in 2005 and is in my opinion a gangly teenager that is still growing. Sometimes they perform with the precision of a professional team and sometimes they can’t seem to tie their own shoes. This year hasn’t been much different as they have had brilliant performances and then the next week they play like their shoes are tied together. However, it does seem that Austin might be peaking at the right time, they needed to beat Detroit and secure a bonus point in their last match to come out as the #2 seed in CR2 and they were able to do that. If they can put together a solid team performance on Saturday they may be able to topple Atlanta…but they will need to be firing on all cylinders.

Prediction: Atlanta over Austin by a mere 10 points. If both teams show up with their best, this matchup has the potential to be the match of the tournament and could be the first big upset of the weekend!

Seattle vs NOVA
Seattle has had a spot at USAR Playoffs for four years running with staggered appearances before that. They have struggled to reach the #1 seed in CR1 and many thought this would be the year…but enter ORSU to squash that fantasy run. In an impressive performance last year at Playoffs, Seattle leap frogged Glendale but eventually lost in a nail biter to NOVA 25-23. This year the matchup will occur again and Seattle will surely be ready to pull hair and bite if necessary.

NOVA sat on top of CR3 last year and looked to do so again this year. Unfortunately NOVA couldn’t get it done against Atlanta and so they come in as the #2 seed. This was critical as CR3 only received two seeds while the rest of the leagues received three. A loss to Providence or Albany could have tipped the scales and NOVA would have missed a chance at the ‘ship. But they prevailed and look to bring a strong team to Playoffs to face Seattle. I am calling this match the Mexican Wrestling match as both teams have something to prove!

Prediction: NOVA over Seattle by 14 points. Their speedy backs will be a struggle for Seattle.

ORSU vs Chicago NS
ORSU dropped down to D1 this year after a struggle in the WPL league since its inception.  This year they seem to have a renewed commitment as a team and easily defeated their opponents in CR1. They only allowed 21 points against them in six matches…impressive! Their closest league match was against Belmont Shore where they only won by four points, they held Belmont to penalty kicks. One would think that ORSU would stomp all over the D1 teams due to their competition in the WPL but I don’t agree. They face all the same challenges of the WPL but with a smaller travel schedule (not coast to coast) but funds, time etc affect all teams equally. ORSU has traveled to some of their matches light, but I would expect a full roster for Playoffs.

Chicago NS is typically a very strong team, but they didn’t have an ideal start to their league play in CR2 this year. They dropped two early matches to Chicago and Glendale…but then went on a crazy four game win streak to grab the #3 seed in Cr2. It looks like NS has gotten their ducks in a row and are really gelling as a team again. NS will look to use their strong locks (giants anyone!?) and strong back triangle to stretch ORSU…around the corner to score may be the theme of this game. But they face a very formidable opponent and it will test their resolve again.

Prediction: ORSU over Chicago NS in an all out brawl (might say fist fight…). If ORSU travels light again…the edge changes to Chicago NS.

Well that is it…thanks for reading! Remember, I am a member of the YSC Team but my opinion may or may not be shared by the YSC Editors. I am just a pawn in this game…self  commissioned to stir the pot and point out the obvious. We all hoped that Jeanie the Girls would come back…but alas a new hero has arrived! If you’d like to message me with your thoughts, feel free, I can be contacted at sybil@scrumhalfconnection.com.