Everybody Into the Pool

D3Playbook FEBRUARY 12, 2020 | written by STEVE ULRICH your must-read briefing on what's driving the day in NCAA Division III Our goal is to keep you - the influencers in DIII athletics - apprised of what's happening around Division III - the games, polls, news, happenings, awards, calendar of events, and much more. We hope you enjoy D3Playbook and that you'll share this with your friends, colleagues and co-workers. >> Welcome to Wednesday. Four best words in sports - pitchers and catchers report. >> Thanks for reading D3Playbook. Please recommend us to a friend or co-worker. >> Today's Word Count: 903. An easy morning read. Less than four minutes. Subscribe to d3Playbook 1. Everybody Into The Pool  Conference championship season shifts into high gear as seven conference meets get underway today. Eight more begin on Thursday, while three more start on Friday. Follow your favorite conference here. What We're Watching (M) The NCAC meet pits the top two men's teams - Kenyon and Denison - in DIII. The UAA meet has six teams ranked in the top 20 - Carnegie Mellon (5), Washington U. (6), Emory (7), Chicago (9), NYU (14) and Case (20). The Eagles go for their 22nd straight crown. The Mary Washington men go for their 20th consecutive CAC title, while UW-Stevens Point goes for No. 21 in a row in the WIAC. The UAA 500 free will showcase the men with the top two times this season - Emory's Patrick Pema (4:23.08) and WashU's Mason Kelber (4:25.89). What We're Watching (W) The UAA championship finds No. 2 Emory in the hunt for its 22nd straight title. Hunting the Eagles are Chicago (7), WashU (9), NYU (10), Carnegie Mellon (11) and Case (20). The NESCAC meet has five teams in the top 20 - Williams (4), Tufts (8), Amherst (12), Bates (16) and Bowdoin (18). Mary Washington looks to run its CAC streak to 30 years, while Trinity (Texas) goes for No. 17 in a row in the SCAC. UW-La Crosse shoots for its ninth consecutive WIAC title, while Susquehanna (Landmark) and Messiah (MAC) are in the hunt for their ninth and seventh crowns, respectively. Grinnell is the favorite to win its eighth straight Midwest championship. 2.  Regional Ranking Day  The first NCAA Division III regional rankings will be released in basketball later today. Here is your refresher course in what exactly that means. >> The Big Picture: In-region competition is defined as competition within an institution's defined region; within a 500-mile radius from one institution to another; within an institution's NCAA geographical region; and all conference games. >> Primary Criteria: W-L percentage vs. DIII opponents; strength of schedule; head-to-head competition; results vs. common opponents; results vs. ranked DIII teams; W-L percentage during last 25% of season. >> Secondary Criteria: results vs. non-DIII opponents; non-DIII W-L percentage; results vs. common non-DIII opponents; non-conference strength of schedule. >> The Key Stat: The committee ranks the top 15-21% of eligible teams in each region (or a minimum of four, whichever is greater). >> Be Smart: After conferences determine their champion (automatic qualifiers or AQ) and the independents are selected, remaining teams are considered according to their regional ranking. Example: In Region X, team A is considered before teams B and C. Until A is selected as an at-large, B is not under discussion. B has to be selected before C is under consideration. Basketball (M/W) - 64 teams selected to NCAA field 43 conference champions; 1 independents; 20 at-large 3.  Big Wednesday It's a huge night around Division III basketball as five games involve a pair of Top-25 teams, while a number of others pit teams fighting for first place in their conference. Women #11 Bethel (20-1) at #19 St. Thomas (17-4) - watch #21 John Carroll (19-2) at #12 Baldwin Wallace (19-2) - watch Albright (19-2) at Widener (17-4) - watch Eastern Connecticut (18-3) at Rhode Island College (18-4) - watch Trine (17-4) at Albion (18-4) - watch Men #1 Swarthmore (21-0) at #7 Johns Hopkins (19-2) - watch #11 Mount Union (18-3) at #15 Marietta (18-3) - watch #14 North Central (17-4) at #25 Augustana (16-6) - watch #17 Elmhurst (18-4) at Illinois Wesleyan (14-7) - watch WPI (17-4) at #19 Babson (18-3) - watch Stevens (17-4) at DeSales (15-6) - watch Bethany Lutheran (16-5) at Northwestern (16-6) - watch SPONSORED MESSAGE D3Playbook is looking for sponsors. NCAA Division III has a desirable demographic that can help your company thrive. Reach more than 700 influencers in NCAA Division III today. Contact d3playbook@gmail.com to get your company in front of decision-makers in small-college athletics. 4.  About Last Night    Kelly O'Donnell (pictured) scored a career-best 40 points as St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) tied a program record for points in a game, defeating Yeshiva, 111-74. It is the 22nd time this season that a DIII player has tallied 40+ points in a game.   Cameron Collins scored 34 points as Salve Regina (9-13) knocked off CCC leading Endicott (16-7), 98-89. He made 14 of 17 shots from the floor as the team shot 66.7 percent.   Kaleigh D'Arcy scored 26 points and collected nine rebounds as Merchant Marine (19-3) took over sole possession of first place in the Skyline with a 60-43 win over Manhattanville (19-3). 5.   Rankings >> Welcome: Rutgers-Newark, Dominican, St. John Fisher. >> Movers and Shakers: MSOE (+5) 6.  Comings and Goings Tim Wilkinson announced plans to step down as assistant athletic director and head women's golf coach at Central at the end of the year. Craig Davidson named head men's tennis coach at University of Saint Joseph. Lauren Parsons stepped down as head women's volleyball coach at Salve Regina. Jessica Franklin named head field hockey coach at Medaille. 7.  1 Stressful Thing  Illustration: Sarah Grillo / Axios There were over 646,000 shows available in the U.S. across linear and streaming services last year, according to Nielsen's latest Total Audience report, a 10% increase from all of 2018. >> Why it matters: As more streaming platforms emerge to compete for consumers' attention and budgets, the burden is falling on consumers to navigate an overwhelming number of content choices. Subscribe to d3Playbook