USSF Division 2 Playoff Race: Early September

We are nearing the end of the season and Rochester still maintains it's tenuous grip on first place, with a two point lead over Austin, but the Aztex still have three games on hand, and have a good chance to regain the top spot.   Once again, Montreal has made a late season push (and the bad teams are doing what they do best, losing) and moved up into seventh place.  Could they snatch another cup from the bottom of the playoff seeding?   Tie-breaker rules have also come into play, with Minnesota edging out Tampa Bay in head-to-head matches.  These two face each other for the last game of the season- it could be a big match.

How the race currently stands:
#1 Rochester (1st in USL, 48 points, 1.85 ppg)
#2 Vancouver (1st in NASL, 40 points, 1.60 ppg)
#3 Austin (46 points, 2.00 ppg)
#4 Portland (38 points, 1.52 ppg)
#5 Carolina (34 points, 1.42 ppg)
#6 Puerto Rico (32 points, 1.39 ppg)
#7 Montreal (31 points, 1.24 ppg)
#8 Minnesota (28 points, 1.12 ppg) by head-to-head tiebreaker

No team has been eliminated from contention, so here is the rest of the field:
#9 Tampa Bay (28 points, 1.12 ppg)
#10 Baltimore (24 points, 0.96 ppg)
#11 St. Louis (23 points, 0.96 ppg)
#12 Miami (20 points, 0.83 ppg)

Where the Timbers Stand
With a ten point lead over ninth seeded Tampa Bay, barring total collapse, the Timbers are all but assured of a playoff spot.  Portland still has four matches against winning teams, including a home and away series against sixth seeded Puerto Rico.  The away game against the Railhawks could also have important seeding implications.  It is unlikely that Portland can catch Austin or Rochester, so a fourth seed is probably the highest they can get.   Portland is 4-4-3 in away matches this year.

Portland's Remaining Games
Puerto Rico (8-7-8)
@Carolina (9-8-7)
@Puerto Rico (8-7-8)
@Baltimore (6-13-6)
@Vancouver (9-3-13)
(W-L-T in parentheses)

Know Your Tiebreakers

1. Head-to-head points (if 3-way tie, points per game versus other 2 teams)
2. Overall Goal Difference
3. Overall Goals For
4. Repeat rules 1-3 but only count road games
5. Repeat rules 1-3 but only count home games
6. Coin toss

USSF Division 2 Playoff Race: Second half of August

Rochester has a tenuous hold on first place, after taking control of the USL conference with 42 points.  The Aztex are just a point behind and have three games in hand, so don't expect this positioning to hold.  Puerto Rico has moved from ninth into a three-way tie with Minnesota and Carolina after picking up eight points in a four game home stretch.  As the season progresses, it is looking like the USL is a stronger conference with all six teams currently qualifying for the eight playoff spots.

How the race currently stands:
#1 Rochester (1st in USL, 42 points, 1.83 ppg)
#2 Vancouver (1st in NASL, 38 points, 1.65 ppg)
#3 Austin (41 points, 2.05 ppg)
#4 Portland (31 points, 1.41 ppg)
#5 (tie) Carolina (28 points, 1.40 ppg)
#5 (tie) Puerto Rico (28 points, 1.33 ppg)
#5 (tie) Minnesota (28 points, 1.17 ppg)
#8 Tampa Bay (26 points, 1.18 ppg)

No team has been eliminated from contention, so here is the rest of the field:
#9 Montreal (25 points, 1.09 ppg)
#10 Baltimore (24 points, 1.09 ppg)
#11 St. Louis (21 points, 0.95 ppg)
#12 Miami (20 points, 0.91 ppg)

Where the Timbers Stand
The Timbers still have one tough road stretch left in their schedule, and just three more games in PGE.  They moved up on Minnesota into sole possession of 4th, and it is becoming more likely that they won't miss the playoffs this season.  They are 10 points behind Austin, their toughest competition for winning the USL, and Austin has two games in hand.  If they can get a win in PGE on the 26th, it could go a long way towards catching the Aztex who have 7 out of 10 remaining matches on the road.

Portland's Remaining Games
@Minnesota (7-10-7)
Austin (12-3-5)
Baltimore (6-10-6)
Puerto Rico (7-7-7)
@Carolina (7-6-7)
@Puerto Rico (7-7-7)
@Baltimore (6-10-6)
@Vancouver (9-3-11)
(W-L-T in parentheses)

Also, check out Soccer By Ives Power Rankings from August 12th.

USSF Division 2 Playoff Race - Early August

The playoff picture has not changed much since July, with the only major changes being Portland and Montreal moving up into ties.

How the race currently stands:
#1 Austin (1st in USL, 38 points, 2.11 ppg)
#2 Vancouver (1st in NASL, 34 points, 1.62 ppg)
#3 Rochester (33 points, 1.65 ppg)
#4 (tie) Minnesota (27 points, 1.23 ppg)
#4 (tie) Portland (27 points, 1.42 ppg)
#6 Carolina (25 points, 1.47 ppg)
#7 (tie) Tampa Bay (24 points, 1.26 ppg)
#7 (tie) Montreal (24 points, 1.20 ppg)

No team has been eliminated from contention, so here is the rest of the field:
#9 Puerto Rico (23 points, 1.28 ppg)
#10 Baltimore (20 points, 1.05 ppg)
#11 St. Louis (20 points, 1.00 ppg)
#12 Miami (15 points, 0.79 ppg)

Where the Timbers Stand
The Timbers are still in a fairly comfortable position, but they have 7 road matches remaining and only four more at PGE Park.    Portland still has several tough road matchups, including Vancouver, Rochester, Minnesota and AC St. Louis, whom they have struggled with. Currently the Timbers are 2-3-3 in away matches.

Portland's Remaing Games
@Rochester (9-5-6)
Minnesota (7-9-6)
@St. Louis (5-10-5)
@Minnesota (7-9-6)
Austin (11-2-5)
Baltimore (5-9-5)
Puerto Rico (6-7-5)
@Carolina (6-4-7)
@Puerto Rico (6-7-5)
@Baltimore (5-9-5)
@Vancouver (8-3-10)
(W-T-L in parentheses)

USSF Division 2 Playoff Race - July

The USSF Division 2 playoff structure is very generous, with 8 of the 12 teams being selected for the playoffs.  The top two teams from each conference are automatically selected, and the remaining six are selected based on total points.

All three rounds of the playoffs feature two game series, with a home and away game for each team.  Just like last season, aggregate goals decide who wins the series, so it's a good thing American soccer fans are good at math. 


How the race currently stands:
#1 Austin (1st in USL, 32 points, 2.00 ppg)
#2 Vancouver (1st in NASL, 29 points, 1.71 ppg)
#3 Rochester (27 points, 1.69 ppg)
#4 Minnesota (24 points, 1.26 ppg)

#5 Portland (23 points, 1.44 ppg)

#6 Carolina (21 points, 1.50 ppg)
#7 Tampa Bay (20 points, 1.25 ppg)
#8 Montreal (20 points, 1.25 ppg)

No team has been mathematically eliminated, so here is the rest of the field:
#9 Puerto Rico (18 points, 1.20 ppg)
#10 Baltimore (16 points, 1.00 ppg)
#11 Miami (14 points, 0.88 ppg)
#12 St. Louis (13 points, 0.87 ppg)

Where the Timbers Stand
The Timbers sit fairly comfortably in the middle of the playoff contenders, but they still have 10 road matches remaining and only four more at PGE Park.    If they can perform on the road, Portland is still within striking distance of catching the Aztex for the conference lead.  Currently the Timbers are 1-2-2 in away matches.

Portland's Remaing Games
@Vancouver (7-2-8)
@St. Louis (3-8-4)
@Tampa Bay (5-6-5)
@Rochester (7-3-6)
Minnesota (7-9-3)
@St. Louis (3-8-4)
@Minnesota (7-9-3)
Austin (9-2-5)
Baltimore (4-8-4)
Puerto Rico (5-7-3)
@Carolina (5-3-6)
@Puerto Rico (5-7-3)
@Baltimore (4-8-4)
@Vancouver (7-2-8)
(W-T-L in parentheses)