Hosting a regional game

[mg66]

I know the VHSL has their way but it is jacked up. No disrespect to Maggie Walker . But how can they host having 11 losses as their opponent Strasburg has one. The incentive to win during the regular season means nothing if they rotate the host every year. They need to seed the region and have it at highest seed or a neutral sight. Strasburg has earned the right to not have to travel at 21-1. What a joke

 

[rhsgrad]

No different than Riverheads traveling at 21-1 to play strasburg after going 20-0 during the regular season. I am not a big fan of how it is set up either.

 

[white&blue]

Strasburg was 20-1 at the time so why should they have to travel to Riverheads, especially since Strasburg won their conference and Riverheads did not? Had Riverheads won their conference they would have hosted. This may not be a perfect system, but Riverheads has no grounds for a complaint in this incident, IMHO.

Madison gets to travel 3+ hours to Nandua today for a semi-final game and is very happy to do so because they are still playing!

 

[piz hokies]

It will be more like 4+ from Madison to Onley by car. That will probably be a 5 hour trip with a few stops along the way for the guys to eat, restroom, and so forth by bus. And hopefully not hit any traffic in the Hampton Roads area.

Good luck.

They are a good team. SS (#2) is probably the best player on the team, plus he is tough on the mound too. C (#15) is headed to South Carolina (if not drafted) and he is legit. Will be tough to steal on him, plus he keeps everything in front of him. #3 CF is a tough out at the plate as well and is probably their Ace on the mound. #2, #3, and #5 are all tough pitchers.

Top 5 hitters are tough.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

At a certain point in post season, no team should host. All games should be played on neutral field.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

I still see playoff games on fields without lights.

 

[riversportsfan]

No lights at Nandua. Regional championship was hosted there in 2012. Essex had a two run lead when it started storming. When everyone thought the game would be over giving Essex the victory, they restarted the game with barely any light left. Nandua tied the game in the next inning, then called the game due to light. It poured all night, Essex had to stay the night and restarted the game the next day around 2 pm. Nandua hit a walk off in the first inning.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

VHSL should have a firm rule, no lights=no tournament games on the field.

 

[rhsgrad]

I am NOT complaining about RHS traveling to Strasburg I am complaing about the fact that 20-0 in the regular season meant absolutely nothing. You had to make it to the conf finals to qualify for the 2A playoffs. If Riverheads or Strasburg had gotten upset in there conference semifinals then sorry guys, nice season but no playoffs for you is what I was saying.

In football everybody that plays seems to make the playoffs.

 

[mg66]

Agreed that is crazy you had a 21-1 RHS playing a 20-1 SHS in the first round of a tournament that is crazy

 

[white&blue]

Absolutely not CRAZY...If Riverheads had WON against East Rock, they would have hosted. They had their chance to play someone else. I suppose you would penalize the teams who did WIN their first round games?

The Strasburg/Riverheads game wasn't the first round of the p[layoffs...the conference play started the playoffs, not the Region games.

 

[white&blue]

Conference play is the playoffs. 20-0 got Riverheads the #1 seed in the first round of the playoffs (conference play). Losing to East Rock got you a trip to Strasburg.

 

[longtimerhsfan]

Now I wouldn't mind seeing Strasburg roll all over everyone else they play so that we RHS fans could claim that our game Monday was the "real" championship game and that we had them on the ropes.

That actually happens often in playoffs in the different sports (an earlier game being closer than a final.) Take Wilson last year in baseball. They had that classic 1-0 game with King William two or three games before they won their title.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

One would like to think the VHSL could use more common sense come playoff time. There is too much travel involved. They need to use neutral, centrally located sites. Get away from the higher seed host crap.

 

[white&blue]

If you want to watch the REAL Region Championship, come over to Madison Friday at 7:00 p.m. Plenty of good seating in the bleachers, the outfield bleachers or bring a lawn chair and sit on the hill.

 

[rhsgrad]

What I am saying is the regular season still means nothing if you dont make it to the finals of your conference tournament. Losing to East Rock got us a trip to Strasburg and we beat East Rock twice during the regular season which means nothing.

 

[piz hokies]

Conference play is the playoffs. Basically everyone makes the playoffs. Top 2 teams from each Conference move on. Regular season play sets the seeding for Conference play. Win your conference and host first round of the Region. Second and third rounds are all ready preset. In the past the top 2 from the district tourney moved on as well. Nothing much has changed, other than the district champ did not have the auto bid to the region. Now everyone has a shot to make it to the regional. Look at Madison who was the #7 seed in their conference, they are playing in the state tourney next week.

 

[longtimerhsfan]

That is unfortunately the nature of playoffs in any sport. It all comes down to who gets that one break or plays well for that one stretch or who (such as Madison) just gets hot at the right time. Riverheads sort of did it last year. I honestly don't remember if they won the Shenandoah regular season, but they lost in the semi-finals of the district tournament to East Rock. Yet they still qualified for the regionals and went all the way to the state title, getting their revenge on East Rock in the process and also losing to William Campbell but then beating them in the state final when it counted.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

Rings are won in post season.

 

[rhsgrad]

It is what it is. The regular season is just for practice is what it amounts to. The difference is last year was the regional format and to get 8 teams in for Div 1 in Region B they had that criteria list with reg season champ and district champ was a 1 seed then dist champ then tour champ then #2 reg season runner up and tourney runner up and then 3rd place teams then 4th place teams until you reached 8 in the regional field. So a lot has changed.

 

[piz hokies]

I was referring to the years of just the District tourney champ and runner up making the regional. (That was the way it was done for years). That format changed about 2-4 years ago to the format of getting 8 in when they broke Single A down and went to D1 and D2. Then the regions had to use more teams just so they could fill the 8 spots. When it was just Single A they only took the top 2 from each tourney. Taking the top 2 for each conference is the way to go. Plus this format helps baseball (pitching rules) for the state tourney, no quarter final games. Just a semi and final game for the state.

 

[Hampton Roads 6]

Sounds as if Madison has a good set-up for watching games. Some school's facilities are so bad, they should not be allowed to host any tournament games. I hate paying $ 8.00 for a ticket then cannot see the game. I know of one school where you cannot see the batter, 1B or 3B.

VHSL should pass a rule that dugouts be in the ground, not 8 foot above.

 

[white&blue]

And Riverheads was a #1 seed this year when the playoffs started (Conference play). They hosted a first round game did they not? I am not sure you are getting it that conference play is the start of the playoffs just like the old Region tourney used to be. If you did not make the finals of the old Region tourney, you were done, just like not making the finals of the conference tourney now.

Bottom line, after playoffs start, no matter which format, you have to make the finals of each level to advance to State. The regular season only places you to start the playoffs, up to you to advance. That has not changed.