North Dakota Preps

How is it that Valley City wins ONE game the whole season and makes it to the state tourney? Valley is going in as the 4 seed in the east.

I think it's a disgrace.  You go 0-40 or whatever it was during the season, and then pull off one win in the tourney and then get to go to state, thats not right.

I dont think it is a disgrace, congrats to Valley City for not just laying down after losing all of those games, that team is made up of a bunch of 16 yr olds, i believe they have 1 or 2 18 year olds, they rest are 16 and under, with no experience, i wouldnt call a a bunch a kkids working hard through a tough season a disgrace.

[user=587]sports-38[/user] wrote:

I dont think it is a disgrace, congrats to Valley City for not just laying down after losing all of those games, that team is made up of a bunch of 16 yr olds, i believe they have 1 or 2 18 year olds, they rest are 16 and under, with no experience, i wouldnt call a a bunch a kkids working hard through a tough season a disgrace.

Who did they beat to go to state? and what four teams are going to state from the east? Congrats to VC.

They beat Wahpeton 5-4.

1. Fargo

2. Grand Forks

3. Jamestown

4. Valley City

Preston Jensen threw for Valley City who is the only kid on their team that gives them a chance to win.

Anyone know the seedings from the west. 

1. Bismarck

2. Minot

3. Williston

4. Mandan

baseball4 wrote:I think it's a disgrace.  You go 0-40 or whatever it was during the season, and then pull off one win in the tourney and then get to go to state, thats not right.

I think it just proves that other teams were taking them lightly and they came a showed up to play, CONGRATS

There was a huge flaw in the way the bracket was set up because if you won your first game, then you had to win another to go to state..if you lost your first game, then you only had to win one game to go to state, in which valley did.

Preston Jensen threw all 9 innings, and that was the only reason Valley City even stayed in that game. 

Yes, I was a little out of line, you are right, it was a great job of sticking through it and believing in themselves.  But all im saying is that its a flaw in the system that that can happen.  But thats the way the tourney is run and VC played their cards right by saving their ace for that qualifying game.

I just dont see how a team can go 0-40 in legion baseball.  Why didnt valley city schedule some games against some area class b teams who they could possibly beat.  Either way, 40 games and they can't even get lucky and have a great day while the other team is having a bad one.  That just says how poorly wahpeton must have played.  If anyone is disgraceful, its them.

Ditka14 wrote:

baseball4 wrote:I think it's a disgrace.  You go 0-40 or whatever it was during the season, and then pull off one win in the tourney and then get to go to state, thats not right.

I think it just proves that other teams were taking them lightly and they came a showed up to play, CONGRATS

i think it proves why a lot of people can't stand class a sports in north dakota.

rep wrote:

Ditka14 wrote:

baseball4 wrote:I think it's a disgrace.  You go 0-40 or whatever it was during the season, and then pull off one win in the tourney and then get to go to state, thats not right.

I think it just proves that other teams were taking them lightly and they came a showed up to play, CONGRATS

i think it proves why a lot of people can't stand class a sports in north dakota.

I totally agree. To get to class B state you have to WIN your sectional tournament. If you go through the winners bracket that means during the course of one year you have to win at minimum 4 games. Losers bracket would be about 6 or 7. That is with NO wins in the regular season and possibly pulling off the biggest upset in class B history over the one seed in your section. So basically a Killdeer (having no wins in their program ever(no disrespect to them)) beating Beulah, Washburn, Dickinson and then Washburn again.  But in class A if you lose every game... lose your first game of WDA, then win the next, your in. If you play Class B and take second in your section tournament... having a fantastic year, that could possibly make you sick.

But on the other hand.. I gotta say congrats to Valley City for sticking it out.. and mostly congratulations to Preston Jensen for pitching the game of his life out there and showing how much heart he has.

Class A athletes will forever say how much better class A is. Facts are, class A usually has the better athletes and the more complete teams...but it is stuff like this which make class A so....unspecial?  State tournament time is here and you have 7 of the best Class A teams in the state and a Class A team which couldnt beat 80% of class B teams and they are there because they won a game over a lousy whapeton team which could maybe beat 50% of class B teams.....I think its great for a team to go 0-40 and make it to state after winning one game.....not! The worst part is knowing that this team has no shot at state.....this team will be overlooked by their opening round opponent and still get 10 runned....this definately wont be a cinderella story by any means....Sorry but if you go to state i can almost guaruntee this will be one of those games where all the Valley City fans will be so supportive and then 5 minutes later there will be crickets as Valley City will be lucky to not lose by 20....im sorry class A but i myself am embarrassed to be playing in a tourney that is supposed to feature the best teams in the state(assuming class A teams who advance to state are better than any class B team)and having scouts there to see the fiasco that will happen in game one...Class B to me sounds a lot more interesting from surferdan's post and to hear the story on Valley City and how a Class A bracket could possibly help you if you lost your first game i would be discouraged on all the class A hype...

nevertheless good luck valley city....i hope u can manage to play 9 full innings 

power-aid14 wrote:Class A athletes will forever say how much better class A is. Facts are, class A usually has the better athletes and the more complete teams...but it is stuff like this which make class A so....unspecial?  State tournament time is here and you have 7 of the best Class A teams in the state and a Class A team which couldnt beat 80% of class B teams and they are there because they won a game over a lousy whapeton team which could maybe beat 50% of class B teams.....I think its great for a team to go 0-40 and make it to state after winning one game.....not! The worst part is knowing that this team has no shot at state.....this team will be overlooked by their opening round opponent and still get 10 runned....this definately wont be a cinderella story by any means....Sorry but if you go to state i can almost guaruntee this will be one of those games where all the Valley City fans will be so supportive and then 5 minutes later there will be crickets as Valley City will be lucky to not lose by 20....im sorry class A but i myself am embarrassed to be playing in a tourney that is supposed to feature the best teams in the state(assuming class A teams who advance to state are better than any class B team)and having scouts there to see the fiasco that will happen in game one...Class B to me sounds a lot more interesting from surferdan's post and to hear the story on Valley City and how a Class A bracket could possibly help you if you lost your first game i would be discouraged on all the class A hype...

nevertheless good luck valley city....i hope u can manage to play 9 full innings 

Theres only six teams in the division anyways. 

I do not think that it is a disgrace.  They got the job done.  0-48 or w/e and the only win they get all season is the one that gets them to state.  Well atleast they came up big and didnt quit.  That lone win was the most important game of the season.

Does the state tournament need to go back to the old format of having the final 2 Class B teams enter the state A tournament to avoid something like this. I remember back in the early 90's a salty Munich team came close to winning it all behind the arms of Justin Fletchock and Marty McDonald. They knocked a heavily favored Fargo team into the loser bracket on day one and I think stayed unbeaten until the final day losing twice.

Just throwing it out for discussion.

The East Region tournament is an absolute joke. Valley City has made it 3 years in a row because the 2 years before this year they had 1 stud , jason bielke, that was good enough to single-handedly win the 1 game they needed to go to state. They would throw their worst pitcher in the opening round because if they lost that then they only needed to win 1 game to get to state, which they would win by pitching bielke.  It needs to be changed, the 3rd and 4th seeded teams get hosed, because they win their first round game, lose the second round game to the 1 and 2 seeds who had byes and throw their aces, then come back to face the 1 stud pitcher that the well-rested 5 and 6 teams have in a play-in game.

The rule is changed...this year if the team that is in 5th place has not played the 4th place team there would be a challenge game...ie last year WF was 5th place and did not play VC they would then have played one game with the winner getting the 4th seed.

whoever makes excuses about losing to VC or wahp is just a flat out disgrace to baseball. Valley city went defeated in the regular season, which means they had 0 studs that they were "saving" for the next rounds. If a team that plays all summer cant muster out 7 innings against Wahp and VC in a loser-out game, then they have no excuse. The fact that the rule had to be changed to protect teams like WF and Jamestown is a bigger joke to me than a VC win. good riddance

Jamestown made it to state last year... so im not making excuses. WF didnt play well at all in that tournament and im by no means making excuses for why we did not make it in my mind there is no reason we should have made it.  All im doing is stating that there was a rule that has been made about the weird Regional Tourney set-up which in no way should a team be able to win one game and go to State..that is just  wrong ..so i am just stating that  there is a new rule in effect... in no way was i making any excuses.