Northumberland, Mathews win big in Volleyball East Region Round 1

[uvacavs1]

#6 seed Northumberland took the long trip to Altavista last night and won 3 games to 1 to advance in the East Region Volleyball tournament. The 18-5 Indians knocked off Altavista who were the #1 seed from Conference 44.

Powerhouse Mathews (24-3-1) defeated Conference 41 top seed Windsor 3-0.

I have not heard but assume Riverheads and Rappahannock County won or will easily win their sets. Rapp County I think remains undefeated (please post if known) and has an outstanding volleyball program for that little school.

Northumberland travels to Mathews this Thursday for the battle to make states! All of the Indian losses have come against Mathews and Rapp County (just like last season). It will be tough but it can be done!

The top 4 teams from the Con 43 were Rapp County, NHS, CB, and the Rappahannock Raiders. Northumberland went 12-0 in the NND.

I have become a fan of Volleyball in recent years. The sport has gotten big in the Northern Neck with nice crowds and participation. Very exciting, non-stop, nerve whacking action Volleyball provides...

 

[Hotstuff9]

Rappahannock plays Rivershead

 

[longtimerhsfan]

UvaCavs:

Thanks for this report. Northumberland's win over Altavista only proved a point that I had made in another thread, which is that they did not deserve the number 3 seed if they could not even win their own conference on their home court. As I understand it, a point system of some kind is used and that the points just continue no matter what happens in conference play.

As a result, Altavista was seeded number three for regional purposes, and Riverheads, which swept them 3-0 by the way, was only seeded number 5. By far the fairer thing to have done would have been to rank the four conference champs 1-4 (using that point system) and rank the four conference runners-up in the 5-8 spots. It was ludicrous for a team to be rewarded with a home regional game after just losing their conference title game and/or to punish a conference champion by sending them on the road.

Naturally upsets are going to happen, as we found out last night with your 6 over 3 road win and our 5 over 4 win at Cumberland. So with that in mind, please be kind enough to win one more on the road when you go to Mathews. That way, if my Lady Gladiators can win at number 1 Rapp Co. (and I have no idea what their chances might be), then we can have a 6 at 5 regional final, which OF COURSE was exactly what we all expected!

Changing subjects on you........as a UVa fan, I would like to ask your opinion on another matter that I have been debating with a couple of friends, one of whom is also a regular on here. I know by bringing it up on here, it will bring out all the UVa haters who will get completely off topic, but we can handle that.

My question is not about how bad their season has been, whether or not Bronco is a good fit, or any of that. It is a specific question about Saturday's game at Wake Forest. My two friends wanted to blame that loss on Benkert for throwing the two INTs in the fourth quarter.

But I have a different take. I blame the coaches and their play calling. When you have a three point lead on the road, early in the fourth quarter, and you get the ball back, as the Cavs did, why in the world would you come out passing the ball as if you just desperately HAD to score? Why didn't they play it conservatively, kill as much time as they could on each play, and then if they were forced to pass, do it safely instead of throwing it wildly down the field?

So my opinion is that the OC is to blame for his play-calling because he should not have put Benkert in that situation. Do I get any agreement from you on that point or do you also blame Benkert?

 

[NNDman]

Yes, a point system is used to rank the teams. It's based on all regular season games and does not include postseason play. Therefore, the conference tournament championship loss didn't hurt Altavista at all. It was strange that a Northumberland team that lost only 3 matches all season was seeded sixth but I'm pretty sure they only played two non-1A matches while Altavista, playing in the Dogwood, faced more 2A competition and won the majority of those encounters.

 

[longtimerhsfan]

Oh I understand it fine, I just don't agree with it. No such system exists in any other sport that I am aware of. Can you imagine the uproar if a number 1 seed lost a playoff football game to a 16, but then somebody said "Oh they were so good during the regular season that we will let them play again anyway?"

When you get to the playoffs in any sport, it should be survive and advance, not lose but advance anyway.

 

[uvacavs1]

longtimerhsfan -

as per your question about the UVA game - interesting I feel like I've thought about this once or twice during some high school games this season ha-

1) I really like 1st year UVA coach Bronco Mendenhall, his program strategy, style and tactics (I'm talking long range not just game day) - I have read many articles about his works and thoughts since he took over around last January or December I think- I don't agree with it all but like what he's trying to accomplish - Bronco took over a basically horrendous program with little talent needed to succeed at that level. It cannot be done in one or just two years. Even the great Nick Saban would have a major challenge.

The VT 1st year coaching situation is different - Tech had more talent and was not in complete shambles - had a smooth transition - with Foster staying, Beamer's blessing and such.

Back to your thoughts, instead of going way into and breaking down Benkert's great 3rd quarter and then collapse in the 4th - I can see both arguments - Both the coaching in the 4th and the interceptions (QB play in 4th, could have taken a sack instead of throwing etc.) are to blame as well as Wake making the plays.

However, If I had to choose one side to blame - I would AGREE with your debating position - you have the lead and the ball in the 4th during an away conference game - don't put your QB in a situation where he thinks has to take chances unless you need him to do exactly that. So yes, I would place more fault on the OC than QB in this case.

 

[longtimerhsfan]

longtimerhsfan -

as per your question about the UVA game - interesting I feel like I've thought about this once or twice during some high school games this season ha-

1) I really like 1st year UVA coach Bronco Mendenhall, his program strategy, style and tactics (I'm talking long range not just game day) - I have read many articles about his works and thoughts since he took over around last January or December I think- I don't agree with it all but like what he's trying to accomplish - Bronco took over a basically horrendous program with little talent needed to succeed at that level. It cannot be done in one or just two years. Even the great Nick Saban would have a major challenge.

The VT 1st year coaching situation is different - Tech had more talent and was not in complete shambles - had a smooth transition - with Foster staying, Beamer's blessing and such.

Back to your thoughts, instead of going way into and breaking down Benkert's great 3rd quarter and then collapse in the 4th - I can see both arguments - Both the coaching in the 4th and the interceptions (QB play in 4th, could have taken a sack instead of throwing etc.) are to blame as well as Wake making the plays.

However, If I had to choose one side to blame - I would AGREE with your debating position - you have the lead and the ball in the 4th during an away conference game - don't put your QB in a situation where he thinks has to take chances unless you need him to do exactly that. So yes, I would place more fault on the OC than QB in this case.

Thank you. I was hoping at least one other person on the planet could see my point!

 

[NNDman]

A points system is also used for basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer. Conference champions and runners-up are seeded in regional tournaments based on their regular season ratings.

 

[longtimerhsfan]

Since everything is changing again next year anyway and we are going back to the old regional format, maybe they will address this issue. It just does not make any sense for a team to be rewarded for losing a playoff game and put in a better position than the team that beat them. I would feel the same way if my team was the one benefiting.