16U Preseason Top Ten Poll

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For this week only, your votes for the preseason edition of the 16U Top Ten Poll can be cast as late as Wednesday, June 1st at 9:00 pm.

When you PM me your ordered list of the top tens, please identify your team affiliation, which must be as a coach or assistant coach. As per the Ringer's Rules, if you believe that you will bring some exceptional knowledge and judgement to the poll even though you have no coaching affiliation in the 16U category, let me know in a PM that includes your vote. (Mention if you have been a voter in the past).

Each week, I will also be posting a "Make the Case" Thread for anyone to post facts that he or she believes warrant consideration by the voters. It would probably be best if the "Make the Case" posts were focused on specific results obtained during the immediately preceding round of competition. (Of course for this week there are a relatively few handful of teams that played during the weekend, so there will probably be a bit more "general" discussion).

For all future polls, I plan to post the "Make the Case" Thread on Sunday nights, cut off votes for the weekly poll on Tuesday nights at 9:00 pm, and post the poll results either later that Tuesday night or by Wednesday morning.

Thanks.

 

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Well, no one voted in the Preseason Poll, probably for very understandable reasons (at 16U people aren't much concerned with the polls, few of the 16U teams have played together yet this season, etc. etc.).

I'll run the poll for a couple of more weeks and if no one votes, I'll probably just discontinue it.

 

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If my memory serves me, I think only one 15U team was listed in the top ten final poll last year and they would be ranked #1 till someone beats them. After Dayton the list will make sense, since some 14U teams last year moved up and are very good. We only got to play the Doom 95's last year in Indy and they will give teams now at 16U a battle, along with your team. The Ice Black also had a good team at 15U last year. I'm being told many teams at Dayton will not be at full strength due to high school playoffs, so not even sure Dayton will give us a good idea.

 

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If my memory serves me, I think only one 15U team was listed in the top ten final poll last year and they would be ranked #1 till someone beats them. After Dayton the list will make sense, since some 14U teams last year moved up and are very good. We only got to play the Doom 95's last year in Indy and they will give teams now at 16U a battle, along with your team. The Ice Black also had a good team at 15U last year. I'm being told many teams at Dayton will not be at full strength due to high school playoffs, so not even sure Dayton will give us a good idea.

15U teams that finished in the end of the year (10') poll that will be back @ 16U this summer:

Lasers Scarlet - 1st
Ohio Tidalwaves - 4th
Ohio Sapphires - 5th
HOO Explosion - 9th

I also added how they finished in 10' ASA States.
I know that isn't the only measure available but it is a pretty good indicator.

 

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Don't forget the Classics Purple. I do believe they were a 15U team.

1 Intensity (3) 91
2 Laser Gold (4) 89
3 Doom '95 (2) 82
4 Valley Extreme - Heaverly (1) 59
5 Laser Black 40
6 Ohio Ice 35
7 Buckeye Heat '95 30
8 Doom '96 28
9 Laser Silver 23
10 Championship Fastpitch 20

Then you got this new group coming up at 16U. We got to play a few of these 14U teams and many are good teams.

 

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Don't forget the Classics Purple. I do believe they were a 15U team.

agreed but it was a bit of a mix.

They had Fishel (Gahanna), Cordova (Pick), Hack (Pick),Romero (Michanics) move to 18U.

But agreed - they will be a force.

 

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They like many won't be at full force yet, pitcher and other players at Firestone this week.

 

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Just for information sakes, from that list of 14U teams at the end of last season, the following would not be considered for 16U ranking:

Intensity (disbanded)
Lasers Gold (still 14U)
Lasers Black (or maybe we should include them since they will be playing all ASA tournaments at 16U, just playing Premier at 14U)
Ohio Ice (not sure whether this was the black team, if so, it's at 16U this year)
Doom 96 (still 14U)

BTW, I heard that the Lasers Silver team has been helped by the addition of two players from the now-disbanded Intensity team. That's a scary thought given how good Silver was to begin with.

 

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It will be interesting to see how this age division shakes out. I am convinced it begins and ends with the Lasers - Scarlet, or Ohio Lady Lasers whatever they are called. They will be an excellent measuring stick for everyone in this age group.

My oldest daughter has moved up to 18U (Lasers White) this year but my middle daughter's team (Lasers Black) is playing a lot of 16U tournaments this year. So I am excited to see how things work themselves out, especially now that the Lasers White, Classics Black, Doom 93 and some of the other talented 16U teams have moved up.

Should be fun!

 

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This poll thread is way to boring! You guys need to complain & fight much more.. Come on get with it.

 

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@Ohioice221:

lol. We didn't even fight when these girls were in the 12U category. (I wasn't around for a 10U experience, though that is coming up when our Buckeye Heat 95 team is done; I hope I do better than some of the current 10U "enthusiasts"). Many of the coaches in the 14U and 16U category are friends with each other and more focused on getting their girls opportunities to play in college than anything else. It will be great to see several of those coaches this week at 14U and 16U in Dayton. No question that everyone will be coaching to win, but also no question that the games will be played with respect for the opposing bench and with a tip of the hat to the winner.

 

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Madness Black will be worth a drive to see. They have a nice schedule ahead. Valley Extreme,Sheer Madness,Laser Nation,ASA States,Wolfpack Best of Best,Stingrays Showcase,G.A.P.P.S,Decent into Madness,and Chattanooga TN Nationals. I hope people can make it to some of these to see them as they will be exciting.

 

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@fetch:

You gotta hand it to Madness for locking in that USA/ASA National bid by their win last year at 14U Eastern Nationals. Huge victory.

We look forward to seeing Gary and the crew at States, Stingrays, and GAPSS. And if we get to join them at USA/ASA in Chattanooga, we will consider ourselves extremely lucky. Otherwise we will just have to follow their lead and try our best at Eastern Nationals.

 

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So Carol,

Where are the Poll results?

 

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@Jeff:
See Post #2 in this thread. No one voted so there is no Preseason list.

 

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Just for information sakes, from that list of 14U teams at the end of last season, the following would not be considered for 16U ranking:

Intensity (disbanded)
Lasers Gold (still 14U)
Lasers Black (or maybe we should include them since they will be playing all ASA tournaments at 16U, just playing Premier at 14U)
Ohio Ice (not sure whether this was the black team, if so, it's at 16U this year)
Doom 96 (still 14U)

BTW, I heard that the Lasers Silver team has been helped by the addition of two players from the now-disbanded Intensity team. That's a scary thought given how good Silver was to begin with.

Hey CGS,

I could be wrong, but I believe THREE ex Intensity(1b, CF, and their #1 Pitcher- Rivera) moved over to Lasers Silver. And yes, if those are the three, then that Silver is going to be one solid team.

 

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Trip, man, you're killing me. Three? Well, we drew Silver as our first bracket round, so I am sure there will be much good-natured repartee with Messrs Minney and Rivera and that we will find out whether it is two or three players. We would have to play our A+ game to challenge them but win or lose we will be better for the experience.

 

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minney in a stingray this summer I believe.

 

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From the teams I saw this weekend in Dayton, Lasers Scarlet were incredible hitters and would get my vote for number one. Doom 95 number two, then Buckeye Heat 95 would be my top three.

 

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still a lot of good teams out there that were not in dayton this weekend