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Written by Alex Goff
Sunday, 02 October 2011 18:55 |
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Details Emerging on Pan-Am 7s |
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International -
Olympics
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Details on the Rugby 7s competition at the Pan-Am Games are becoming apparent.
The USA men’s national 7s team is competing in the Pan-Am Games October 29-30 in Guadalajara, Mexico. RUGBYMag.com will be on-site to report on the entire tournament. The team will reside in the Athletes Village, and will participate in the Closing Ceremonies October 30 at Omnilife Stadium.
The Rugby 7s competition will be held at Tlaquepaque Stadium, which is in Tlaquepaque, a suburb of Guadalajara. The stadium is the first specially-built rugby stadium in Mexico.
Eight teams will play in two pools of four. The eight teams are: USA, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay, Chile, and Guyana. All except Brazil have played in at least one IRB World Series tournament.
Most of the teams are currently on their way to warmup matches in New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa. The USA had listed a trip to the Central Coast 7s in Australia as a warmup, but the program does not have the budget for the trip.
The teams will play three pool games on October 29. That will seed the teams 1 through 4 in each pool, and all eight teams will play in the knockout stages, starting with the quarterfinals, on Sunday, October 30.
It is not confirmed what the pools are, but reports are that the USA will be in a pool with Guyana, Uruguay and Mexico, while Canada, Argentina, Chile and Brazil occupy Pool B.
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Written by Alex Goff
Sunday, 02 October 2011 15:35 |
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Upset Leaves NY in First |
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Clubs -
Men's DI Clubs
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New York is alone on top of the MetNY DI men’s club league after Monmouth was shocked by White Plains 22-17 Saturday.
Led by a Man of the Match performance by flanker Patrick Holman, New York defeated Morris 17-0 to move to 3-0. No. 8 Trevor Cassidy, prop John O'Brien, and wing Maurice Diong all scored for NYRC, and flyhalf Badger Denehy added one conversion. New York tried to get the fourth try for the bonus point but Morris defended doggedly and held them off.
Meanwhile, White Plains beat a previously undefeated Monmouth club that was favored.
“I don't know how we lost it,” said Monmouth Head Coach pat Moroney. “We dad all the possession and territory for the first 15 and did not score.”
Monmouth was a little anxious and snatched at passes, Moroney said, and while the pack was strong in the scrum, White Plains handled it well enough to still get the ball out to their backs.
“Our focus was poor after the break and we let in a couple of soft tries, including one where we let their full back run a 22 dropout back down the touchline,” added Moroney. “Following that try we struggled to play at the tempo required and unlike last week we were conceding the contact area to the opposition. It was not until the last 15 that we really found a rhythm and stretched White Plains.”
Penalties hit both teams and White Plains got two yellow cards, and then a red, and finished the game off with only 12 players on the park at the end of the game.
New York now leads the league with a 3-0 record, but they are only a point ahead of Monmouth as the New Yorkers have not recorded a bonus point yet, and Monmouth has three. White Plains improved to 2-1, with Old Blue, who won’t advance to the playoffs, at 2-0.
Four weeks remain in the league schedule, and October 15’s clash between Monmouth and New York is looking like the game of the fall in MetNY
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Men Met NY DI Clubs
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W
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L
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T
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Pf
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Pa
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Pd
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BT
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BL
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Pts
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New York
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3
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0
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0
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48
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15
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33
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0
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0
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12
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Monmouth
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2
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1
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0
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87
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51
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36
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2
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1
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11
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White Plains
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2
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1
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0
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64
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37
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27
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1
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1
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10
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Old Blue
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2
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0
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0
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64
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31
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33
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2
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0
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10
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Long Island
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0
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3
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0
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48
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89
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-41
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0
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0
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0
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Village Lions
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0
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2
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0
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19
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61
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-42
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0
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0
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0
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Morris
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0
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2
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0
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5
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51
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-46
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0
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0
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0
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Written by Jackie Finlan
Sunday, 02 October 2011 18:26 |
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NOVA Wins Big in NYC |
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Clubs -
Women's Clubs
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NOVA women traveled to New York City yesterday to play the Village Lions in the teams’ fourth DI club match. It was well worth the trip, as the visitors returned to Virginia with a 48-5 win, bonus point and 3-1 record.
NOVA exposed some mismatches in the first minute, when wing Erica Cavanaugh streaked down the sideline for her first of two tries. Snapping to attention, the Village Lions responded with better defense, and took advantage of any unforced error.
“They had an excellent offensive structure and caused a lot of problems for us in the first half,” NOVA coach Brian Walker said. “When we surrendered possession, we found ourselves playing defense for extended periods. Once we were able to regain possession, our forwards did a good job of getting around the field, and we played well as a team today.”
The Village Lions had several opportunities inside NOVA’s 22, but the hosts couldn’t capitalize. To add to the frustration, the NOVA forwards turned over several scrums (one for a try) and were well coordinated in their driving mauls.
“It’s something that teams are starting to recognize about us,” Walker said of the forward dominance. “NOVA has historically had a reputation as a backs team, and we’re excited to still have a number of excellent backs in our line. But we worked extremely hard the last couple of years strengthening our forward pack.”
Walker credited Lance Connolly for his work the NOVA forwards and solidifying their scrumming technique. Outside of the set piece, tighthead prop Kaitlin Joerger, lock Rachel Warden, and flankers Meganne Atkins and Rachel Primo, who usually hooks, played exceptionally well. They helped put NOVA back on the right track, and the tries started to come more regularly later in the first half and onward.
The highlight of the backline was Lauren Hoeck at flyhalf. The 7s Eagle typically plays center, but Walker is still experimenting with the ideal backline. Hoeck had several long breakaways, three tries, and placed a crossfield kick right in the corner for Rebecca Keegan to simply touch down. Monique McQueen also scored a try.
NOVA still have Providence and Albany in the regular season, and both opponents are in the hunt for CR3’s second seed.
“We’re very aware that Providence and Albany are quality sides and we’re going to have to work really hard,” Walker said. “We’ll have a slight advantage playing at home. Considering the distance that needs to be covered for away matches, teams have struggled to have all of their depth on the road.”
Walker’s done his homework and is going to ramp up the team defense this week during training, with a particular focus on neutralizing fullback Dana Ayoub. If NOVA repeats with the CR 3's second seed, they'll face CR 2's #2 team, most likely Seattle, in the first round of national playoffs.
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Written by Alex Goff
Sunday, 02 October 2011 15:20 |
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Midwest Playoff Picture Clearing |
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Clubs -
Men's DI Clubs
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With four weekends left in the Midwest DI club season, the hierarchy is becoming clear.
Cincinnati won their latest match, against the Detroit Tradesmen, dropping Detroit to 3-2 and giving the Wolfhounds a three-point cushion over fellow 4-1 club Buffalo. Cincy looks good for at least two wins in their final three, and so does Buffalo. Both will have to travel to the Detroit Tradesmen this month, and those matches will prove critical.
The top three from each conference make the playoffs in the Midwest, but only the first-place teams can play for the #1 seed in the territory. Columbus is not out of playoff contention yet, but will have to pick it up to get there.
In the Midwest-West, Palmer is on command at 5-0, and face Metropolis, Chicago Lions and the Milwaukee Westside Harlequins in their closing weeks. Of those, the visit to a resurgent Lions outfit in Chicago will be the toughest, but next should week’s clash with Metropolis fall for Palmer, the Iowa club will have essentially sewn up 1st.
Second and third look set to be Metropolis and Chicago, or Chicago and Metropolis. The Minneapolis club is two points ahead of the Lions and has a game in hand. Those teams play October 22 in a game that will have all sorts of consequences.
So right now, the standings look like this:
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Midwest DI Men Club East
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W
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L
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T
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Pf
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Pa
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Pd
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BT
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BL
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Pts
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Cincinnati Wolfhounds
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4
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1
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0
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179
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88
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91
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4
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1
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21
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Buffalo
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4
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1
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0
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139
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125
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14
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2
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0
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18
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Detroit Tradesmen
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3
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2
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0
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167
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131
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36
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3
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0
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15
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Columbus
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1
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4
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0
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127
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213
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-86
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2
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1
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7
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Indianapolis Impalas
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0
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5
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0
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98
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153
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-55
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1
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1
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2
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Midwest DI Men Club West
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W
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L
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T
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PF
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PA
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Diff
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BT
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BL
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Pts
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Palmer
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5
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0
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0
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271
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69
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202
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5
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0
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25
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Metropolis
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3
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1
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0
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140
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111
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29
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4
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1
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17
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Chicago Lions
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3
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2
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0
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141
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115
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26
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2
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1
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15
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Chicago Blaze
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1
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4
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0
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101
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226
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-125
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1
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1
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6
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Milwaukee WS Harlequins
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0
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5
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0
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90
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263
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-173
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2
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2
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4
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If nothing changes, Palmer and Cincinnati will play November 5 for the #1 seed in the Midwest.
The loser of that match will then face off with the winner of Metropolis v. Buffalo for the #2 seed, with the loser of that game the #3 seed.
The loser of Metropolis v. Buffalo will face off with the winner of the Lions v. Detroit for the #4 seed, with the loser not advancing any further.
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