MIAC Predictions For 2018-19 Season

Am a little late with getting this out.  Blame it on me being back to work at CP Rail again.  Blame it on my LA Rams having a stellar season.  Blame it on this being UCLA vs USC week.  Anyway, time to roll out the old crystal ball; shine it up and see what it says.  :)


The Title Contenders:

1.  UST
2.  GAC
3.  Bethel

It's hard to go against the Tommies for what has become routine for them - rolling to yet another MIAC title and I just don't see anything - at least right now anyway - that would stop this happening again save for nuclear holocaust.  You've got All-American senior post Hannah Spaulding back to rule down low where she's virtually unstoppable along with an experienced senior duo in the backcourt of Lucia Renikoff and Kaylie Brazil and junior guard Sarah Krynski is pretty solid as well.  Throw in the emergence of lanky sophomore Madi Radtke and fellow sophomore Macy Hatlestad and a host of others and you have to like what you see.  To be sure, they have a demanding early-season schedule which puts them out in the Pacific Northwest this next weekend to take on highly-regarded George Fox on Friday night and then Lewis & Clark the next day just for starters.  But UST seems to thrive on these big challenges and they certainly don't shy away from them.

FINALLY, finally, GAC did this last season what I had been waiting so long for by making a deep run into the NCAA Tournament and what a ride it was.  So I can no longer harp on the Gusties not being able to win the Big One - well, save for UST anyway.  I think the main thing here - the big positive going forward for GAC now is that the bar has been set high (as it should be for them); that simply having a good season is no longer just enough.  That said, they lost two big pieces of what happened for them the last couple of years to graduation - Mikayla Miller and Miranda Rice - to graduation.  But they still have a pretty solid core of players coming back along with the emergence of some newer, younger faces.  You've still got the senior trio of Brooke Lemke, Justine Lee and Kendall Thompson but now you've also got 6'0" sophomore Paige Richert beginning to make a name for herself as well.  I would expect also that the sophomore Wagner duo of Maddie/Marnie starts to make its presence felt as well.  Is it enough to derail the Tommie Express?  Probably not this time around but there's no reason that they shouldn't at least be in the mix. 

If there's one team that SHOULD be playing with a chip on its shoulder this season, it's the Bethel Royals.  Just an incredible disappointment for the Royals on how things ended this last season with them getting knocked out in the opening round of the MIAC Playoffs at home.  To be sure, they lost some significant pieces of last year's team which does leave some question marks but you've also got some important pieces coming back - chiefly with senior post Hannah Johnson who's no slouch down low and can hang with the best of them.  Junior forward Taite Anderson bolsters the front line and junior guard Haylee Barker is slowly carving a niche for herself in the backcourt.  The early part of their schedule does contain two WIAC opponents - at home against UW-River Falls and at UW-Eau Claire - so coming away with a split in that scenario wouldn't be a terrible proposition to go into the meat of the MIAC schedule with.


Solid MIAC Playoff Contenders:

4.  Augsburg
5.  CSB

The one team I'm rolling the dice on making a significant improvement over last year is the Auggies.  They''ve got the goods to do it with Tamira McLemore, Camryn Speese, Arianna Jones, Aiza Wilson and K'aezha Wubben all being juniors along with a decent supporting cast.  Their all-around athleticism and speed simply makes them the most difficult team in the conference to match-up with.  The big thing from Augsburg that I'm looking for - and we haven't seen yet - is some degree of consistency.  They faltered down the stretch last season which kept them out of the MIAC Playoffs and their early-season schedule which includes three WIAC opponents - UW-Superior, UW-Platteville and UW-La Crosse - may tell a lot about this team before the MIAC schedule even begins.

Just so, so many questions when it comes to CSB.  I could (and probably should) put them higher than what I have them at.  I could make a case for putting them lower.  When you lose a talented trio in Chelsey Guetter, Niki Fokken and Kate Banovetz that helped lead this squad to an appearance in the NCAA Tournament this last season, that alone is reason to be uncertain about this group.  At the same time, you do have some very good talent coming back in senior Breanna Gates, junior point guard Sidney Schiffler and junior post Alex Johnson plus improving sophomore Megan Thompson.  So the cupboard's certainly not bare up in St. Joe.  I just, I just have to see more of this team and see if/when they make an impact to be a true believer in them. 


Fighting For That Sixth Spot:

6.  SMU
7.  St. Kate's

There's a big part of me that says I know I should have the Cards up a lot higher than this.  When you have a roster that includes the likes of senior forward Brandi Blattner and fellow senior guard Kirsten Keefe and sophomore phenom guard Shayley Vesel, that alone should put them up higher than this.  Yet SMU has a new captain guiding the ship in Head Coach David Foley so while the Cardinals have all the goods to be very solid team, I just have to see how they adapt to a new system.  Meanwhile, St. Kate's has an incredibly young team led by senior guard Audra Clark who has a wealth of experience in the backcourt and she'll get a lot of help from dynamic junior guard Danica Cambrice and fellow junior guard Jackie Radford who can wreak havoc on both ends of the floor.  Head Coach Don Mulhern is a wizard when it comes to coaching and if he can keep his group healthy, this is a team that will get better and better as the season progresses and definitely a group that you'll want to keep your eye on. 


The Not Quite Ready For Prime Time Group:

8.  Concordia
9.  Carleton

Like St. Kates, the Cobbers have an incredibly young group led by only two seniors - guard Grace Wolhowe and post Kirstin Simmons.  Beyond that, there's just so many young new faces to get to know that it's really difficult to form an opinion on how good this Concordia team can be.  However, there's little question when it comes to the head coaching spot as Jessica Rahman is certainly one of the best and she's certainly had her share of great teams up in Moorhead.  The big question is how long will it take to develop the younger players into a consistent force - especially when you see how incredibly competitive the MIAC has become.  I mean, it wasn't that long ago when the Cobbers were always in the upper echelon of the conference so we'll just have to see how long it takes for them to get back up there. 

Ditto on the east side of Northfield where the Carleton Knights have senior forward Cece Leone back along with a host of fresh, new and unproven young faces.  Junior post Samantha Cooke is always a force down low but the Knights have yet to show that consistency that is so desperately needed along with keeping their main parts healthy for an entire season. 


The Cellar Dwellers:

10.  Hamline
11.  St. Olaf
12.  Macalester

The thing that pains me perhaps more than anything right now is that, had I done this a week earlier, it's very likely that I may have had Hamline up a notch higher than what I have them at right now.  But the fact that the Pipers have already lost senior Alaina Quaranta to a situation that I'm simply not at liberty to discuss right now, that really throws a monkey wrench to any hopes that Hamline may have had to possibly making a significant move upward this season.  To be sure, Head Coach Alex Focke still has some exciting young players to watch in junior forward Reilly Geistfeld and fellow junior guard Kaeli Stayer who I felt made great strides this off season.  But there's just too many question marks right now surrounding this group that would make me think that they can have a big impact.  Maybe they can but they'll have to show me first.

There haven't been many celebrations on the west side of Northfield in the last few years and while I don't expect that trend to change anytime soon, there's still a nice group coming back.  Senior forward Makenna Ash is certainly a force down low as is fellow junior Britta Koenen.  I just haven't seen the consistency from this squad yet.  The early part of their schedule is interesting as the Oles face two WIAC teams - UW-River Falls and UW-Stout along with a trip out to the Front Range over the Thanksgiving holiday where they'll play both Colorado College and Johnson & Wales. 

Macalester has a new Head Coach in Pamela Findlay who comes from Lewis & Clark to take the reigns of the Scots program left vacant by Kelly Roysland's return to her alma mater, Minnesota.  While Macalester has a lot of young, unproven faces on the roster, they do have two players you should keep your eye on - juniors Tyana Loiselle and Holly Hull who are both electric in the backcourt. 


So there you have it.  Let's see how this thing goes.  Feel free to fire away with thoughts.