One coach, captain, or designee from each USQ official team in the Great Lakes region was asked to rank the Top 10 teams in their region. Points were allocated in the following manner: 10 points for a first place vote, nine points for a second place vote, eight points for a third place vote, etc. The votes have been tabulated and listed below in order of total votes. The number in parentheses indicates how many first place votes a team received.
Great Lakes:
Rank
|
Team
|
Points
|
Change
|
T-1
|
Bowling Green State University (BGSU) (4)
|
88
| -
|
T-1
|
Michigan Quidditch Team (UM) (4)
|
88
|
+1
|
3
|
Ball State Cardinals (BSU) (1)
|
82
|
+1
|
4
|
Lake Effect Maelstrom (1)
|
66
|
-1
|
5
|
Ohio State Quidditch (OSU)
|
44
| -
|
6
|
Miami University
|
41
|
+1
|
7
|
Lake Effect Tempest
|
34
|
-1
|
T-8
|
Michigan State Quidditch (MSU)
|
31
|
-1
|
T-8
|
Central Michigan Quidditch Club (CMU)
|
31
|
+1
|
10
|
Ohio University Quidditch Club
|
24
| -
|
Others Receiving Votes: Falcon Warriors Quidditch Club (8), University of Southern Indiana Quidditch (4), Wooster Scottish Nationals (4), and Grand Valley Quidditch (2).
Voters: Michael Nalepka (Purdue Intercollegiate Quidditch Club), Chris Barnard (Maelstrom), Michael Bolock (Q.C. Pittsburgh), David Wier (Central Michigan), Anonymous (Wooster), Anonymous (Michigan), Pari Yost (BGSU), Korey Johnson (Falcon Warriors), Matthew Brown (Ball State), and Matt Mignery (Miami).
Representatives from other teams were contacted but did not respond by the deadline. If your team did not vote and would like to participate in subsequent polls, please contact the Quidditch Post at quidditchpost@gmail.com
Notes: 11 votes were cast. One was rejected for lack of impartiality.
Voters Explain Their Choices:
Anonymous Voter 1
Honestly, I think that Maelstrom, BGSU and UM are the top three teams and in a class of their own. Ball State is just a step down in my opinion. No offense to its players, but if you line them up, player-for-player, against any of the three teams mentioned above, the Cardinals would lose each matchup.
In the five to seven spots, I see it being a toss-up between a depleted OSU, Jacob Heppe-heavy MSU, and the veteran-heavy Tempests. I think a case could be made for any of these three programs to take the fifth place spot, and I think they all have a good shot to upset a higher seed; each team has one or two players with the potential to completely take over a game.
Having only seen the box score for the Waffle House tournament, I may be underrating Miami horribly, but as of right now, I see it as comparable to CMU: a decently athletic team that has a pretty good understanding of the sport. No real “star level” names, but good cohesion that can help it hang in with the stronger programs for the first 10 minutes of a game.
Honestly, although I may lack exposure to seeing some teams play, outside of these nine I see a huge drop off in talent. It may sound harsh, but I think that nine bids is a pretty fair allocation for the region to represent itself at World Cup.
Anonymous Voter 2
BGSU and Ball State to me seem like the outright favorites to win the Great Lakes Regional Championship. As the regular season has shown, they are very similar in skill, and it’s up for grabs as to who will win a specific matchup. UM is certainly the next best team, as it has embarrassed some of the mid-tier teams so far this season. The next four are all interchangeable. I’ve been impressed by Miami and Ohio University, while being disappointed by OSU and MSU.
Anonymous Voter 3
1. Michigan: It has both the talent and results to prove it is the best. Yeah, it lost to Bowling Green, and I think the top three are very close, but I'd still take Michigan six or seven times out of 10. The players are more imposing and can hang in a physical game longer than BGSU, and, compared to Maelstrom, the team has more chemistry.
2. Maelstrom: It has the big names: Gaffigan, Preuter, Chris Barnard, Brown, Ashley Calhoun, and the list could continue, but it hasn’t truly been tested yet. I think the team’s lack of chemistry will rob it of the Great Lakes Regional Championship, but it will still be a force there and at US Quidditch Cup 9.
3. BGSU: Honestly BGSU could be number two. It’s hard to judge because it played only one game against Michigan, and the only other team that should be able to compete with them that they’ve played is Ball State. If they ball out, they could win the Great Lakes Regional Championship. I’m confident we’ll see a Final Four appearance. But Michigan and Maelstrom just have a touch more talent that put them ahead of BGSU.
4. BSU: Pretty similar situation as BGSU. On a good day it could play an in-range game against Michigan and pull the snitch for the win. But I wouldn’t take it more than two or three times out of 10. It lacks a bit of physicality and brute force. That is, when you can shut down its behind-the-hoops play, its offense struggles.
5. OSU: OSU has been dealt a pretty bad hand. I don’t think it could reliably beat any team above it; I’d say Ohio State is the top second-tier team. With a bunch of new players or light rosters, its tournament play has looked pretty bad. And excuses shouldn’t be made, but after seeing Jeremy Boettner at beater, making room for other quaffle players to step into the spotlight, I think OSU still deserves some attention in the Great Lakes.
6. CMU: I think this team has surprised some people. With so many departing players, everyone expected it to be pretty bad. And while the losses can be felt, it has had some pretty key games. With wins over OSU and MSU, and in-range games against rag-tag Lake Effect teams, I think any doubts that CMU is still a very relevant second-tier team should have dissipated.
7. Tempest: Another solid second-tier Great Lakes team. A lot of experience here. It may not have the athletes of Maelstrom but it has the game knowledge. With a blowout loss to Michigan, however, I’m confident in saying they aren’t really a first-tier team.
8. MSU: In my opinion, the last tier two Great Lakes team. A dismal performance at Super Ball Brothers Brawl (SBBB) and average performances at other tournaments should have, in my opinion, dashed any beliefs that this is a true “Sweet 16” team, but I have no doubts it will get a bid. It was missing Jim Richert at SBBB, and seeing its play at Mid Michigan Melee 3 it’s clear they’re improving. I just don’t see a lot of breakout new talent, and so while other teams have made some gains I don’t see many on MSU.
9. I think everyone else descends into the third-tier or fourth-tier realm. The ninth bid will go to a team with lucky seeding; a safe bet would be Ohio or Miami.
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