Bloomsburg in a non-league vs. West Chester / Photo: Doreen Madalian
All of the fall-based Division II conferences (and one spring-based conference) will name their champions by Sunday, and the bracket will fill out once the at-large berths are confirmed (view the DI and DII brackets). Here’s what’s on the line this weekend:
ALLEGHENY
Championships: Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) vs. Youngstown State
IUP is the reigning champion and won the teams’ first meeting convincingly. The Penguins are competing in the their first competitive DII season.
GREAT LAKES
Final standings determine the playoff reps. Bowling Green’s final opponent forfeited, and thus the undefeated team from Ohio takes the top seed. Grand Valley State, having dropped a 22-15 contest to Bowling Green, should be taking the second seed.
GREAT WATERS
Championship: UW Eau Claire vs. UW Oshkosh
3rd: Marquette vs. UW La Crosse
Marquette lost a heart-breaking 17-15 semifinal to Oshkosh, and La Crosse lost to Eau Claire 45-7.
MID-ATLANTIC
Semifinals
#1 Bloomsburg vs. #4 TCNJ
#2 Kutztown vs. #3 Delaware
Final and 3rd place on Sunday; conference gets three seeds to playoffs
OHIO VALLEY
Reigning champion Cincinnati gets the bye into the final and awaits the winner of Miami vs. Ohio University. The conference gets two seeds to regionals.
RUGBY NORTHEAST
Like Great Lakes, final standings determine conference reps to playoffs, but the order is determined by record first and not standings points. Undefeated Bryant is guaranteed a berth, and Colby is favored to beat winless St. Anselm, and thus improving to 5-1. There’s a decent chance that a tiebreaker will be needed to determine the third seed, but St. Michael’s is looking like the strongest candidate at this point in the season.
Bryant (5-0) vs. Stonehill (3-2)
Colby (4-1) plays St. Anselm (0-5)
St. Michael’s (3-2) vs. Roger Williams (2-3)
TRI-STATE
Championship: Vassar College vs. Fairfield
3rd: Stony Brook vs. SUNY New Paltz
It’s a North vs. South final, but this league is guaranteed a third seed to regionals, making the 3rd-place match just as important. Stony Brook dropped a tough 21-19 semifinal to Fairfield last weekend, while New Paltz fell to Vassar 79-22.
UPSTATE NY
Championship: Cortland vs. Buffalo State
The conference receives a third spot to playoffs, and it’s gone to Syracuse, which had more standings points than Fredonia and also contested the entirety of its semifinal last weekend.
CAPITAL
DII Semifinals
William & Mary vs. George Washington
Salisbury vs. Mary Washington
NSCRO final: Catholic vs. Longwood
Capital will name its DII champion by Sunday, and at the very least, the finalists will secure berths to the spring playoffs. The NSCRO final will name the conference’s representative to the small-school Round of 16, which takes place in the fall.