Softball Scoreboard Watching (Saturday 5/12)

[GoneGolfin]

Key games today ...

#27 Michigan (#24 BRPI) sweeps a doubleheader from #51 Purdue (#50 BRPI) 8-0 and 8-5.
#57 Northwestern (BRPI #67) sweeps the three-game series vs. #46 Illinois (BRPI #54) with a 10-2 win today.
#47 Boston (BRPI #43) defeats #91 Stony Brook 7-3.
#89 Ohio State defeats #100 Penn State today 4-1 to take 2/3 in the series.
#33 Tulsa (BRPI #31) defeats #60 Marshall to win the CUSA Tournament.
#14 Missouri defeats #34 Oklahoma State 5-3. Missouri takes first two games of series.
--
#31 Virginia Tech (BRPI #30) 1 #25 Georgia Tech 9 Final-5 innings (Georgia Tech wins ACC Tournament title).
#2 Arizona State 5 #1 California 0 Final (Cal wins series 2-1).
#23 Oregon State (BRPI #25) 1 #10 Arizona 3 Final (Arizona wins series 2-1).
#11 UCLA 2 #8 Oregon 8 Final (Oregon wins series 2-1).
#36 BYU 8 #63 Fresno State (BRPI #64) 3 Final

Note that I have provided GT links for the above "in progress" games ... below the dashed line.

Brian

[GoneGolfin]

Georgia Tech did their job today in 5 innings. The Cajuns may get an extra .0026 in RPI bonus points. Georgia Tech will also remain in the RPI Top 25 ... if Michigan can get there, then the Cajuns are 4-0 vs. the RPI Top 25.

Brian

[ulforlife]

Cajuns might have really missed out with Louisville down 3-0 to Notre Dame in the 3rd

[sportsfanatic21]

Brian, this may seem strange, and if USA was a lock to stay in the top 50 even if they had lost today, it's a moot point. But, could this win today have kept them in the top 50 in the RPI and a loss have knocked them out? If that is the case, how much difference will the 3 wins over them make in our RPI with them being a top 50 team compared to our just winning the game and them not being in the top 50? In other words, is it possible that a win or loss today really doesn't change our RPI much, if at all?

I know we are out of the running for a national seed, but I'm just wondering if it really mattered what happened today if we were not going to ba a national seed either way.

[J-Town Cajun]

Brian, this may seem strange, and if USA was a lock to stay in the top 50 even if they had lost today, it's a moot point. But, could this win today have kept them in the top 50 in the RPI and a loss have knocked them out? If that is the case, how much difference will the 3 wins over them make in our RPI with them being a top 50 team compared to our just winning the game and them not being in the top 50? In other words, is it possible that a win or loss today really doesn't change our RPI much, if at all?

I know we are out of the running for a national seed, but I'm just wondering if it really mattered what happened today if we were not going to ba a national seed either way.

Good point but I think USA was in top 50 even with a loss. But yes it was possible that a loss may have been better than a win.

[GoneGolfin]

Brian, this may seem strange, and if USA was a lock to stay in the top 50 even if they had lost today, it's a moot point. But, could this win today have kept them in the top 50 in the RPI and a loss have knocked them out?

I addressed this earlier, but no. With respect to the effect on our RPI, South Alabama came into the tournament with a Base RPI ranking of 44. Their RPI had risen a modest .0030 after their first three wins in the tournament. A loss today still would have resulted in a small .0006 rise in their RPI. They would have remained comfortably inside the Base RPI Top 50 (bonus purposes for Cajuns) with a loss to the Cajuns.

I am also confident they would have been in the Adjusted RPI Top 50, where they were #50 entering the week. That only comes into play with respect to the "Record vs. RPI Top 50" metric for the Cajuns.

If that is the case, how much difference will the 3 wins over them make in our RPI with them being a top 50 team compared to our just winning the game and them not being in the top 50? In other words, is it possible that a win or loss today really doesn't change our RPI much, if at all?

I know we are out of the running for a national seed, but I'm just wondering if it really mattered what happened today if we were not going to be a national seed either way.

Losing today (vs. winning) cost the Cajuns .0047 in Base RPI. The missed bonus would have added another .0013 ... for a total of .0060. Even if South Alabama had fallen out of the Base RPI Top 50 with a loss, the Cajuns would have been better off winning the game.

Brian

[cajundiehard]

So, with all the other "good" things happening around the Cajuns in the RPI (teams we are competing with losing and Cajun opponents winning), where do you see things shaking out for the Cajuns? Sticking around 12 or 13?

I understand and expect that they will host a regional. But do you think there is ANY small chance UL could still get a National Seed? Still a record of 49-4 is very impressive. USA just caught all the breaks today.

Assuming UL is not a national seed, then I would think UL would be in that 12-14 range, avoiding the scary good Cal team until at least the 2nd round of the CWS... I like the idea of getting paired with Texas in this scenario and maybe Texas would even get upset in their regional - allowing the Cajuns to host a Super Regional after they take care of their own business.

Your thoughts?

GEAUX LADIES!