Which Cincinnati schools made the cut to compete at the OHSWCA state duals?

After taking back the reins of the state duals tournament in 2022, the Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association will again host the boys and girls tournaments with the 2024 editions taking place in February.

Boys tournaments begin in the district rounds on Feb. 3 while the girls will begin in the regionals on the same day. State finals will take place at various locations on Feb. 10.

Before the tournaments begin, here are the places, teams and things to know for the OHSWCA state duals.

What is the tournament format?

The OHSWCA duals will go off across three divisions for the boys with one girls division. The four districts or regions will be split into two brackets with the winners of each bracket advancing to the state tournament. The final eight teams at the state finals will compete for placing and championships.

For the boys, the Division I state finals will be at Lakewood St. Edward, Division II will be held at New Lexington and Division III’s state meet will be at Versailles. The girls state championship rounds will be hosted at Marysville High School. All the finals will be on Saturday, Feb. 10.

Who represents Cincinnati in Division I?

Cincinnati’s high schools in the Division I Kettering Fairmont district will be split between hosts Moeller and Harrison at 10 a.m. on Feb. 3.

At Moeller, top-seeded La Salle will first meet the winner of No. 8 Colerain and No. 9 Sycamore. Elder, the fifth-ranked team, will see No. 4 Moeller in the first round. Over at Harrison, where the Wildcats hold the No. 2 ranking, No. 7 Miamisburg and No. 10 Fairmont will meet to advance to wrestle Harrison. Springboro with the No. 3 ranking and No. 6 Centerville round out the Division I bracket in the Southwest.

Last season, Springboro and La Salle were the top seeds and both advanced to the state tournament. Springboro finished in sixth place and La Salle a spot behind in seventh as Lakewood St. Edward won the state championship.

Slimmer pickings in Division II and III.

For the Division II Wilmington District and the Division III Troy District, just three Cincinnati schools made the cut for the divisions. Reading and Wilmington will compete in Division II while Norwood reached the Division III brackets.

Both No. 6 Wilmington and No. 7 Reading wrestle on the same side of the bracket taking place at Bishop Watterson at 1 p.m. on Feb. 3. Wilmington will go against No. 3 Jonathan Alder in the first round while Reading will see No. 2 Watterson. The top seed is Graham Local who will host Oakwood, Franklin and Butler.

Norwood has the final, No. 10, seed in the Division III Troy district. Norwood and No. 7 Indian Lake will compete to move on and see No. 2 Miami East. Miami East plays host for Norwood’s bracket at 10 a.m. on Feb. 3.

More: Cincinnati girls wresters who could crash the party at the OHSAA state tournament

Harrison and Lebanon girls lead the charge back to state

In last season’s state duals championship, Harrison and Lebanon reached the final day with Harrison eventually finishing in third and Lebanon just behind in fifth. This year, both are again top seeds and will host each side of their bracket in the Harrison Regional.

No. 1 Harrison will face No. 8 Carroll to begin its regional with No. 4 Clermont Northeastern and No. 5 Eaton also competing.

Lebanon, with the No. 2 seed, will face No. 7 Lakota West in the first round while also hosting No. 3 Centerville and No. 6 Taylor.

Harrison’s brackets will begin competing at 11 a.m. with a 10 a.m. start time for the matches at Lebanon.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What to know heading into the OHSWCA state duals tournaments.