A Sea Of Red

It's difficult to keep, or even obtain, a reasonable expectation level when a team has had an upward trajectory in the recent past. Couple that with being emotionally involved with the success of LU on the national scene and I'm not sure I can claim to stand on objective ground. So when I evaluate the "success" of this year's team, I am trying to navigate these waters. The start of the season was rough as it seemed clear we were not ready for the big stage. Then we tore through the ASUN schedule and picked up a few impressive wins outside the conference. Our performance in the conference tourney was impressive and I had high hopes entering the regionals. The nice win over Georgia was followed by disappointing losses to Duke and Georgia. It was the way we lost that was disconcerting. Nonetheless, when I think back to the year 2000, my first experience with LU athletics, we have come so far! Perhaps this is the healthiest perspective we should have as we assess the 2022 season.

Dalegarz1 wrote: ↑May 22nd, 2022, 4:30 pm It's difficult to keep, or even obtain, a reasonable expectation level when a team has had an upward trajectory in the recent past. Couple that with being emotionally involved with the success of LU on the national scene and I'm not sure I can claim to stand on objective ground. So when I evaluate the "success" of this year's team, I am trying to navigate these waters. The start of the season was rough as it seemed clear we were not ready for the big stage. Then we tore through the ASUN schedule and picked up a few impressive wins outside the conference. Our performance in the conference tourney was impressive and I had high hopes entering the regionals. The nice win over Georgia was followed by disappointing losses to Duke and Georgia. It was the way we lost that was disconcerting. Nonetheless, when I think back to the year 2000, my first experience with LU athletics, we have come so far! Perhaps this is the healthiest perspective we should have as we assess the 2022 season.

Yes, that is a very healthy perspective. The NCAA selection committee did us a favor by not sending us to Blacksburg or Knoxville, but we also ended up in the toughest regional based on the winning percentage of all four teams (highest of all the regionals) as well as being the only regional with 3 40+ win teams. The result isn't what we wanted, but the team did well.

As long as we are in the asun all we can reasonably expect in any sport is to finish near the top of the conference and hopefully make the playoffs. By my count we went 9-14 against P5 teams this season. That a very respectable record for an asun school but to expect any more than what we just witnessed is just wishful thinking.