Buckle up. We’ll have DII men’s and women’s basketball conference champions all crowned by Sunday. Oh, and don’t forget, spring sports are still in full force.
While it isn’t necessarily a game or a match, something important to watch will be the DII wrestling brackets will be unveiled on Friday, March 6. You can see the selections and follow the upcoming tournament HERE.
What Wayne’s watching: March 6-8
DII basketball conference championships
We have four conference champions in the books, and that means the DII men’s and women’s basketball championship brackets already have two teams each Sharpied into the tournament. Below is the list of when the other conference final games will be.
| Conference | Men’s final | Women’s final |
|---|---|---|
| CACC | March 8 | March 8 |
| CCAA | March 7 | March 7 |
| CIAA | Fayetteville State | Winston-Salem State |
| Conference Carolinas | March 8 | March 8 |
| ECC | March 8 | March 8 |
| GAC | March 8 | March 8 |
| G-MAC | March 7 | March 7 |
| GLIAC | March 8 | March 8 |
| GLVC | March 8 | March 8 |
| GNAC | March 7 | March 7 |
| GSC | March 8 | March 8 |
| LSC | March 8 | March 8 |
| MEC | March 8 | March 8 |
| MIAA | March 8 | March 8 |
| NE10 | March 7 | March 8 |
| NSIC | Minnesota Duluth | Concordia-St. Paul |
| PacWest | March 7 | March 7 |
| PBC | March 8 | March 8 |
| PSAC | March 8 | March 8 |
| RMAC | March 7 | March 7 |
| SAC | March 7 | March 7 |
| SIAC | March 7 | March 7 |
| SSC | March 8 | March 8 |
DII men’s lacrosse
Tampa at Anderson (SC), March 7. This is the first of two top-5 matchups this weekend. Tampa, the reigning national runner-up, is off to a smoking hot start, already 7-0 with wins over nationally ranked Lenoir-Rhyne, Flagler and Maryville. Tommy Ortega and goalkeeper Westin Schmidt were each named to the national team of the week for their performances against Maryville in a big top-5 win last week. The Trojans also have a perfect start, sitting at 5-0 with wins over four teams in the national rankings conversation. They are a scoring machine, averaging more than 20 goals per game with a trio of scorers Tampa will have to shut down. Ryan Bitterman has 17 goals and Brodie Deutsch and Cooper Laughlin have 14 apiece.
Saint Anselm at Molloy, March 7. This top-15 matchup pits two North Region powers against each other. The Hawks went undefeated in the regular season a year ago, which included handing Adelphi its only loss last year. They are rolling again, off to a 2-0 start with a big win over No. 10 Bentley on Wednesday. After a surprising opening night loss to Southern New Hampshire, Molloy has rolled off three wins in a row, including an overtime thriller against Pace. This isn’t a must-win for the Lions, but they also don’t want to fall to a two-loss team this early in the season.
Adelphi at Seton Hill, March 8. This is the second top-5 showdown of the weekend, so we will likely see some movement in next week’s USILA rankings. The Panthers have won the last two DII men’s lacrosse titles and are off to a sizzling hot 3-0 start with 59 goals in those three wins. Michael Durnin (13 goals) and Noah Gibson (11) lead the scoring attack. The Griffins are also perfect thus far, sitting at 4-0. Dexter Hannigan (11 goals) leads an attack that has outscored its opponents 49-25.
DII women’s lacrosse
Grand Valley State’s top 5 weekend: at UIndy, March 6 and at Maryville (MO), March 8. The Lakers had a rough opening weekend, going 0-2 on a Pennsylvania road trip against a pair of nationally ranked teams in Seton Hill and Slippery Rock. This weekend isn’t any easier, as the Lakers travel to No. 3 UIndy and No. 4 Maryville. UIndy is 3-1 with a big opening day win against Tampa, and Maryville is 4-0 with two nationally ranked wins under its belt already. The Lakers desperately need a split to stay in the national rankings and postseason conversation.
DII baseball
Pittsburg State at Emporia State, March 6-8. Both of these teams are off to surprisingly hot starts, and both are facing their biggest test to date. We knew Pittsburg State was good, but 17-0 good with a new coaching staff? The Gorillas are powered by arguably the best player in the division right now in Dagen Brewer (.567 average, 1.821 OPS, eight home runs and 41 RBI) and have a pair of weekend studs on the mound in Zach Voss and Preston Giltner. Emporia State is 13-3 after finishing 23-25 a year ago. The Hornets are coming off their first weekend series loss of the season, so they are looking to show their 12-1 start was no fluke. Colby Deaver looks to set the tone on the mound and improve on his hot start, going 5-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 0.48 WHIP and 41 strikeouts in 31 innings pitched.
The RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, March 5-10. Also known as the “Spring Break Trip,” there have been matchups aplenty in Florida already which continue into next week. Minnesota State has four big games against teams that are projected to contend for a bracket spot in Seton Hill, Wilmington (DE), Cal (PA) and Wayne State (MI). Saginaw Valley State, a sleeper in the Midwest Region, has both Wilmington and Ashland in a Friday doubleheader. Barry, Point Park and St. Cloud State are a few more of the teams to watch from Florida this weekend.
Also keep an eye on: Florida Southern and Northwood are both projected bracket teams but are both off to slower starts. This is a must-win series for both. Mount Olive heads to North Greenville, while UNC Pembroke heads to Belmont Abbey in a pair of showdowns with major Conference Carolinas postseason implications. Carson-Newman entered the season as a sleeper but has struggled a bit out of the gates. Taking a series from top-5 Catawba this weekend would help. UT Tyler is coming off its first weekend loss of the season and traveling to West Texas A&M is no easy follow up. The Buffs, now 12-6, are looking to send a big message to the LSC with a win over the Patriots. Augustana (SD) and Drury meet. Drury is off to a hot start and Augustana is reeling after a four-game sweep to top-10 Colorado Mesa. Both teams are looking to show they are for real in this weekend series. West Chester and Frostburg State battle in what looks like a showdown of two Atlantic Region teams. Frostburg State looks like the early favorite to win the MEC, while West Chester looks like it could win the whole region.
DII softball
UT Tyler at Angelo State, doubleheader, Fri. March 6. The Patriots, the two-time defending national champions, are not in the NFCA top 25. That is mainly due to a 3-4 start as a very new-look team felt its way through the opening of the season. They are 12-1 since and sit at 15-5 and in a very good position to make a statement against their LSC rival Rambelles. Angelo State is 19-4 and ranked No. 7 in DII. Freshman sensation Zoey Sifuentes has come out on a tear, leading the team in average (.493), OPS (1.490), doubles (11), home runs (five) and RBI (31). The Rambelles have posted a 2.41 combined ERA in the circle, so this is a balanced team and the Patriots will have their hands full.
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