Div. III’s Tri-Valley vs. SVSM Quite Notable
The state semifinal in Div. III between Dresden Tri-Valley and Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary is notable for several reasons. The teams represent two of the three teams that are still alive in the playoffs that won on the road in the first round of the playoffs. (Tri-Valley was a No. 5 seed and SVSM was a No. 6 seed, joining New Concord John Glenn in Div. IV, which was a No. 5 seed.) It marks the only state semifinal game in which neither of the teams was ranked in the final Associated Press state poll. And it also marks the only state semifinal game that is a rematch of a regular-season game. (SVSM handed Tri-Valley its only loss of the season, 21-13, in Week 1.)
Proving the Pollsters
Twenty-one of the 70 teams that appeared in the final Associated Press poll are still alive in the playoffs. Six of the seven teams that won poll championships are still playing, including Avon (Div. II), Trotwood-Madison (Div. III), Steubenville (Div. IV), Pemberville Eastwood (Div. V), Maria Stein Marion Local (Div. VI) and Norwalk St. Paul (Div. VII). Cle. St. Ignatius (Div. I) was the lone No. 1-ranked team to lose. The final AP polls appear on page 8 of this packet.
State semifinalists not ranked in the final AP poll include Powell Olentangy Liberty (Div. I), Massillon Washington (Div. II), Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (Div. III), Dresden Tri-Valley (Div. III), New Concord John Glenn (Div. IV), Middletown Madison (Div. V) and Minster (Div. VII). The Division III state semifinal between Akron SVSM and Dresden Tri-Valley is the only state semifinal game in any division between two teams not ranked in the final AP poll.
Top AP Poll Matchups in the State Semifinals
Div. V – AP #1 Pemberville Eastwood (13-0) vs.. AP #2 Canfield South Range (13-0)
Div. VI – AP #2 Kirtland (13-0) vs. AP #3 Nelsonville-York (13-0)
Div. II – AP #1 Avon (13-0) vs. AP #5 Akr. Archbishop Hoban (12-1)
Div. IV – AP #1 Steubenville (13-0) vs. AP #5 Shelby (13-0)
Div. VI – AP #1 Maria Stein Marion Local (13-0) vs. AP #5 Findlay Liberty-Benton (12-1)
Div. VII – AP #3 Danville (12-1) vs. AP #5 Cuyahoga Heights (11-1)
All 70 teams that appeared in the final AP poll earned a playoff berth. Those 70 teams went 59-11 in the first round of the playoffs. Of those 59 wins, 57 were home games for the ranked team, while two ranked teams won on the road in the first round – Girard (Division IV) and West Jefferson (Division V).
Last year, the only team to be ranked No. 1 in the final poll and go on to win a state championship was Maria Stein Marion Local (Division VI).
Info provided by OHSAA offices.
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