The DI Pacific Mountain conference playoffs are nearly set, with only the West pool’s 4th seed in question. Six teams will convene at Stanford University on March 25-26, setting up a unique seeding system.
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The top two seeds out of the conference will go to UC Davis (8-0) and Stanford (6-2), and they’ll play a single game on Sunday, March 26 to determine place. However, both teams are also hosting a spring Round of 16 site on April 22-23 and will therefore play at their home pitches. That Sunday match will be the third time that UC Davis and Stanford have played each other this spring. The Aggies have won both matches 46-0 and 55-5 last Saturday.
The North pool’s top-two teams – Washington State (6-0) and Oregon (4-2) – will play against the West’s #3 and #4 teams on Saturday, and the winners will play for the third and fourth berths to regionals on Sunday. Chico State is West #3, and #4 comes down to Cal or Humboldt. The Lumberjacks’ eighth league game against Chico State was canceled due to weather last weekend, so the final seed hinges on a rescheduled match. At present, Cal and Humboldt have won one game apiece – against each other – and are tied in standings points (they don’t reflect last weekend’s results yet).
Pacific Mountain Playoffs
Saturday, March 25#1 1 p.m.: Washington St. (North 1) v West 4 (Cal/Humboldt)#2 3 p.m.: Oregon (North 2) v Chico State (West 3)Sunday, March 26#3 11 a.m. Consolation: Loser #1 v Loser #2#4 1 p.m. 3rd Place: Winner #1 v Winner #2
#5 3 p.m. Final: UC Davis (West 1) v Stanford (West 2)
Remember that regional playoffs are different this year. With the reintegration of the DI Elite teams into the DI spring competition, the Round of 16 and quarterfinals act as a hybrid. But after the quarterfinal round, the playoffs re-split. The quarterfinal winners advance to the DI Elite national championship semifinals, while the quarterfinal losers advance to the DI spring championship semifinals. Both competitions reconvene at Life University from May 5-7 for the final stage.