Northwood University, the Collegiate Rocket League defending champions, have played well but not great this season. Seemingly saving their best for last, the team dominated the fourth and final qualifying tournament vaulting them to the top of the points standings and securing the first seed spot in the championship bracket.
Northwood Searches for a Win
The Northwood University Timberwolves, playing out of Midland, Michigan, have been on the hunt for a win all season. They came close, finishing second in both the first and third qualifiers. In the first tournament, they lost to Maryville University who ended up third overall in the point standings. In the third tournament, a scrappy team from the University of Akron beat them in two out of three matches.
The second qualifier was a disappointment for the Northwood team. After a strong showing on day one, the University of West Virginia stopped the team cold. The best-of-five series between the teams went the distance, but ultimately, West Virginia knocked Northwood out of the tournament and handed them a sixth-place finish.
Time to Shine
Coming into the final qualifier, Northwood trailed Concord 31-28 in league points, leaving the top seed for the championship tantalizingly close. Concord had won the second qualifier but had played unevenly in the other tournaments. Both Northwood and Concord had already earned enough points to secure a spot in the championship tournament, but the final seeding was anyone’s guess.
Northwood made short work of their opponents on day one of the tournament. Starting in the upper bracket the Timberwolves blanked Southern Mississippi 2-0 in best of three match. Moving on to the upper bracket final, they never gave Davenport University a chance, sending them to the lower bracket with a 3-0 defeat.
Finishing with Authority
Day two of the final qualifier saw Northwood in the upper bracket with a chance to redeem themselves against the Akron team that had defeated them in the finals the tournament before. They did so in a tough best-of-five match that went all the way to 3-2. This advanced the Timberwolves to the upper bracket final where they faced off against Concord, pitting the top two points leaders against each other. Northwood came out on top in a lopsided 3-1 victory.
In the lower bracket final Concord had a chance to get to the final and face Northwood again, but that chance evaporated when Maryville defeated them 3-1.
Maryville proved just how hungry they were in the grand finale and shocked Northwood with a 4-0. Due to the double-loss format, the score was reset and the teams faced off for a second best-of-seven match. This time Northwood was ready, however, and returned the favor on Maryville taking the set 4-0.
Final Bracket Set
With the final points tallied, the bracket is now set for the championship tournament. All the games will be played on November 16 with the first match set to begin at 11 a.m. Eastern time. All the matches will be in a best-of-seven format.
The first quarterfinal match will feature Northwood University against Ball State University. The winner of that match will face the winner of the match between Akron and West Virginia. Match three will see Concord against St. Clair University. The winner there will take on the winner of the match between Maryville and Davenport.
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