With the MIAC playoffs looming in a couple of days, I thought this A.M. might be a very good time to bang out the last power rankings for this season.
1. Concordia
2. (tie) SMU & UST
3. CSB
4. Hamline
5. GAC
6. St. Olaf
7. Augsburg
8. Bethel
9. Carleton
10. Macalester
11. St. Kate's
Congrats to the Corn on winning the MIAC regular season title and locking up the #1 seed in the MIAC playoffs this week. They survived the brutal MIAC regular season with the fewest nicks. Both SMU and UST are right up there as well and I think you have to give UST a lot of credit for turning things around when they went through a rough stretch not so long ago. CSB has leveled off a little bit but this is a young team with a bright future ahead of it. Hamline has a knack for living dangerously - and they survived two huge challenges this last week. GAC had to work hard to hold off Carleton at home and then, somewhat predictably fell to the Corn up in Moorhead yesterday.
Without question the most confounding team this year was St. Olaf which had so much hope, potential and promise at the beginning of the year only to have injuries and other misfortunes doom this talented group. Yesterday's loss at CSB in which they blew an 18-point halftime lead really was the season in a nutshell for this program and I can't help but feel badly for seniors Mackenzie Wolter, Erin Haglund, (C'mon) Eileen O'Donoghue, and Ashley Menzel who had set lofty goals at the beginning of this year. Augsburg never was consistent enough to put together a stretch run despite the talent it has. Bethel will be a team to keep your eye on in the next couple of years as this young group gains experience as the Royals have a bevy of talent. Carleton, Macalester and St. Kate's are all going through a lot of growing pains right now and can only go up.
Tuesday A.M. I'll handicap the MIAC playoffs and see if I can shed some light on who might emerge from the battles to claim the MIAC Championship game - and the automatic bid to the Big Dance.
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