Random thoughts: NWC title races & more

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

After a slow start, the 2018 high school baseball and softball regular season is coming to an end, but the Northwest Conference titles remain up for grabs. I’ll go over the possible scenarios below, plus share thoughts on Van Wert tennis, Crestview track and field, OHSAA, Major League Baseball and LeBron James.

And the NWC baseball champ is…?

Friday is when the Northwest Conference baseball championship race will come to an end.

Delphos Jefferson currently sits atop the standings with a 7-0 NWC record. The Wildcats were the only team to defeat Lincolnview in conference play (7-5 on April 23).

Lincolnview finished 7-1 in the NWC, and the Lancers handed the Crestview Knights (6-1) their only conference loss (6-4 on April 26).

It all comes down to this – if Delphos Jefferson wins, the Wildcats will be outright conference champions, and conference baseball champs for the first time since 2003.

If defending conference champion Crestview wins, the Knights, Wildcats and Lancers will share the title. It would be Lincolnview’s first baseball title since 1990, when the Lancers shared it with Crestview, Columbus Grove and Paulding.

So in an odd twist, along with Crestview fans, Lincolnview will be rooting for the Knights on Friday.

A rematch?

It’s possible that Lincolnview and Delphos Jefferson could meet again this season. If the No. 7 seed Wildcats beat No. 6 seed Parkway in today’s Division IV sectional game at Parkway, they would advance to play the Lancers in Thursday’s sectional finals at Lincolnview High School. Lincolnview is the No. 2 seed in the tournament and has a first-round bye.

Three teams vying for the NWC softball title

The NWC softball title race is far from over, with Spencerville (6-1) leading the pack, followed by Paulding and Crestview (each 5-2).

If Spencerville wins Friday’s game at Columbus Grove, the Lady Bearcats will be outright champions. However, a loss wouldn’t necessarily mean no outright championship. If Crestview loses at Delphos Jefferson on Thursday, and if Paulding loses at Allen East on Monday, Spencerville would still be outright champs.

If Spencerville loses and Crestview and/or Paulding wins, there would be NWC co or tri-champs.

Slow start, strong finish

Mother nature really did a number on spring sports, but no one around the area may have been more affected than Van Wert’s boys’ tennis team.

The Cougars were able to play just 11 matches all season, with nine of those being Western Buckeye League matches that had to be completed. 11 matches represents roughly half of the schedule.

After a rocky 0-6 start, Van Wert finished strong by going 4-1 in the remaining five matches. Michael Etter and Michael Hellman played well at last week’s WBL tournament, with Etter finishing second at first singles, and Hellman finishing fourth at third singles.

OHSAA referendum

As you may know, member schools of the Ohio High School Athletic Association are voting on a proposal that could dramatically alter transfer students.

Current rules call for certain transfer students to sit out the first half of an athletic season, but that could change. The referendum would allow certain transfers to play the first half of the season, but would require them to sit out the second half and the entire postseason.

Along with the still new competitive balance rule, this could help level the playing field. Is it perfect? No, but it really could be another step in the right direction.

I still believe this will pass, but not by the wide margin that some expect. Ballots will be counted on May 16, and the results will be released that afternoon.

Crestview track and field

Speaking of strong finishes, how about Crestview’s boys’ track and field team?

The Knights hosted and won last week’s quad meet with Wayne Trace, Paulding and Delphos St. John’s, and the team has shown steady improvement throughout the season.

The same can be said about the Lady Knights, and overall the future seems to look good for both of Crestview’s track teams.

Major League Baseball

Just like high school baseball, April was no picnic for a number of MLB teams. It seems like we’re hearing more rumblings about how the Major League Baseball season should be shortened or somehow condensed.

Some people have suggested more doubleheaders, but the players union would never go for that. Another suggestion would be to go back to a 145 game season, which makes sense. However, less games mean less revenue for owners and players.
It would be better for the fans though. Let’s face it – who wants pay big money to freeze at a big league game in early April?

I’m all for trimming some games off the schedule and having teams play three or four planned doubleheaders throughout the season. I’m not holding my breath for any big changes though.

LeBron James

Switching gears completely, the question has come up more than once in recent days – is LeBron James the greatest NBA player ever?

It’s really tough to compare different players from different eras. Among the most commonly mentioned names – Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Kobe Bryant, and Wilt Chamberlin.

Is LeBron the best? I’m a Cleveland Cavaliers fan and I’d like to say yes, but all I can really say is his name certainly belongs with the rest of the all-time greats.

If you have thoughts on any of today’s random thoughts, feel free to share them with me at sports@thevwindependent.com.