{"id":30935,"date":"2010-01-21T18:30:31","date_gmt":"2010-01-22T00:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2010\/01\/21\/this-week-in-miac-jan-21-2010\/"},"modified":"2010-08-17T19:57:51","modified_gmt":"2010-08-18T00:57:51","slug":"this-week-in-miac-jan-21-2010","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwwproxy.uscho.com\/2010\/01\/21\/this-week-in-miac-jan-21-2010\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week in MIAC: Jan. 21, 2010"},"content":{"rendered":"
Weekend Roundup<\/h4>\n
Coming off the last weekend of non-league games, every team in the MIAC was focused on one thing: conference matchups. With most non-conference action out of the way, the vast majority of games left on the schedule are league games, which will determine the five teams that have a shot to make some noise in the postseason. <\/p>\n
Some teams came in fighting to rise in the standings while others were struggling to keep their status as one of the league\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s top teams. Some were riding winning streaks while others were coming off bad losses. No matter what each team was coming into the weekend with, when it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for league games, you can throw most of it out the window. This is the real season for most teams in the MIAC, with non-conference games being a chance to test yourself, try new things, and get tuned up for the battle for the playoffs. <\/p>\n
The top of the league remains mostly unchanged, with Gustavus Adolphus sitting atop the conference standings. Right behind them though is Hamline, who has played two fewer games than the Gusties. In third place is a team that may be a surprise to some people after their ninth place finish last season: the Concordia Cobbers. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll catch up with them and coach Howe later on. <\/p>\n
Bethel fell from second place into a tie for fourth with surging St. Olaf. Sixth place is an unfamiliar spot for St. Thomas, as they currently sit outside the playoff picture. Following them in seventh is an Augsburg team that struggled this past weekend after running off a seven game winning streak. In a tie for the last two spots are St. John\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and St. Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. <\/p>\n
No team is separated by more than two points from the team ahead or behind it, so each weekend provides an opportunity for plenty of movement in the standings. These last five weeks of the regular season are guaranteed to be action packed as teams jostle for position and their playoff lives. <\/p>\n