Girls Hoops Tourney Draw: Top-seeded Hiland, Loudonville lead host of local contenders

A pair of area teams took home top seeds as the OHSAA girls basketball postseason brackets were set up Sunday in draw meetings across the region.

This season, however, was a bit different as the seeds were decided by a formula, using MaxPreps data, factoring in win percentage, opponents' win percentage and their opponents' win percentage.

And while most admit the system will need some tweaking in the years ahead, Loudonville coach Tyler Bates was pleased with the results.

"I have been a proponent for years for seeding based off of computer points and super districts spanning larger geographic areas, so I am absolutely thrilled with the new system," Bates said. "I would hope that everyone understands that improvements can always be made, but I think we are on the right track."

Loudonville and Hiland both earned No. 1 seeds in their respective Division-IV super districts in the Northeast and East while West Holmes (5th East, D-II), Chippewa (5th Northeast, D-III), Waynedale (6th Northeast, D-III), Smithville (11th Northeast, D-III), Triway (12th Northeast, D-III) and Tuslaw (13th Northeast, D-III) all earned top-15 seeds.

Here's a quick look at the sectional/district draw:

DIVISION I

Wooster earned the 68th seed and took a first-round bye in the bracket that will play its district at Ravenna. The Generals will most likely face eighth-ranked Medina in their opener on Feb. 22, but have a favorable path to the final if they can get past the Bees.

Ravenna District: 1. Hoban, 8. Medina, 14. Madison, 20. Akron Ellet, 25. Riverside, 27. Avon, 39. Hudson, 61. Notre Dame Cathedral Latin, 68. Wooster, 70. Barberton, 72. Akron North, 74. Valley Force

DIVISION II

In the East, West Holmes will take on No. 15 Minerva in its sectional opener on Feb. 21, with No. 13 McConnelsville Morgan awaiting the winner. Dover (No. 6) is also on the Knights' side of the bracket, while top-ranked West Muskingum is expected to advance on the top half.

East District 1: 1. West Muskingum, 5. West Holmes, 8. Dover, 9. East Liverpool, 10. Philo, 11. Harrison Central, 13. McConnelsville Morgan, 15. Minerva, 17. Zanesville, 21. Coshocton

DIVISION III

Somewhat lost in the new seeding and bracketing system is those local rivals meeting up in the postseason with a regional berth on the line. Area fans might get their wish with the Chipps and Smithies both in the same Wooster District bracket. With just one other top 20 team in the field — Wickliffe (No. 20) — an all-Wayne County final could be on the horizon. Chippewa, one of the feel-good stories of the winter, opens against Manchester with Brooklyn as the second-round opponent, with that Wickliffe team battling Independence for the right to take on Smithville, which took a bye.

Both Waynedale and Triway choose the Struthers District and are on opposite sides of the bracket. The Golden Bears open with Beachwood and, with a win, will face Garrettsville Garfield while the Titans and Hillsdale square off in the first round with the victor taking on ninth-seeded Mineral Ridge for the right to advance to districts.

The Mustangs find themselves in an interesting district at Lakeview as the four top-10 seeds — Keystone (No. 2), Columbiana Crestview (No. 3), Rootstown (No. 4) and Columbia (No. 7) — all jumped in the same bracket. Tuslaw will battle Mentor Lake Catholic before squaring off with Columbia. Orrville, the 37th seed, also is Lakeview District, awaiting the winner of Rootstown and Lakeview.

The other D-III bracket — North Ridgeville — has a pair of local teams in Norwayne and Northwestern. The Bobcats have an intriguing first-round contest with No. 14 Leavittsburg LaBrae, while the Huskies will take on Mapleton in a battle of similarly-ranked squads. A win will pit Norwayne against Kirtland, while Northwestern would potentially see top-seeded Warrensville Heights.

Wooster District: 5. Chippewa, 11. Smithville, 18. United, 20. Wickliffe, 27. Fairless, 28. Southeast, 29. South Range, 30. Independence, 31. Villa Angela-St. Joseph, 36. Manchester, 43. Brooklyn

Struthers District: 6. Waynedale, 9. Mineral Ridge, 10. Columbiana, 12. Triway, 15. Grand Valley, 16. Champion, 17. Trinity, 25. Cardinal Mooney, 33. Brookfield, 39. Garfield, 40. Hillsdale, 42. Beachwood

Lakeview District: 2. Keystone, 3. Columbiana Crestview, 4. Rootstown, 7. Columbia, 13. Tuslaw, 35. Mentor Lake Catholic, 37. Orrville, 38. Cortland Lakeview, 41. Youngstown Liberty, 44. Andrews Osborne, 45. Campbell Memorial, 46. Lake Ridge Academy

North Ridgeville District: 1. Warrensville Heights, 8. Cuyahoga Heights, 14. LeBrae, 19. Wellington, 21. Pymatuning Valley, 22. Seminary, 23. Norwayne, 24. Kirtland, 26. Mapleton, 32. Black River, 34. Northwestern

DIVISION IV

The Northeast bracket at Norwayne has three area small schools — Loudonville, Central Christian and Dalton. The Redbirds will open their postseason journey with No. 37 Youngstown Valley Christian and No. 38 Warren Lordstown. Both the Comets and Bulldogs opted for first-round byes, Central waiting the winner of Medina Christian and ninth-ranked Mogadore, with the Bulldogs playing with Sebring McKinley or No. 6 Salineville Southern.

Hiland is once again the top team in the D-IV East bracket, playing Tuscarawas Central Catholic in its sectional opener. Four top 10 teams are featured in the top half of the bracket, with New Matamoras Frontier (No. 4), Strasburg-Franklin (No. 5), Steubenville Catholic Central (No. 8) and Shadyside (No. 10) all there but the Hawks are the clear team to beat.

Rittman (No. 33) plays in the Grand Valley District and opens with a sectional semifinal at No. 8 Berlin Center Western Reserve.

Norwayne District: 1. Loudonville, 6. Salineville Southern, 9. Mogadore, 15. Lowellville, 17. Bristol, 18. Central Christian, 19. Dalton, 20. McDonald, 32. Medina Christian, 34. Sebring McKinley, 37. Youngstown Valley Christian, 38. Lordstown

Grand Valley District: 3. Richmond Heights, 8. Berlin Center Western Reserve, 10. Maplewood, 11. Wellsville Senior, 12. Windham, 13. East Canton, 14. Canton Central Cathlic, 23. Newton Falls, 25. St. Thomas Aquinas, 28. David Anderson, 29. Mathews, 31. Cardinal, 33. Rittman

East District 2: 1. Hiland, 2. Hannibal River, 3. Monroe Central, 4. Frontier, 5. Strasburg-Franklin, 6. Caldwell, 7. Shenandoah, 8. Steubenville Catholic Central, 9. Conotton Valley, 10. Shadyside, 11. Garaway, 12. Bishop Rosecrans, 13. Toronto, 14. Beallsville, 15. Malvern, 16. Bridgeport, 17. Tuscarawas Central Catholic, 18. Newcomerstown

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Girls Hoops: breaking down the tourney draw for Wayne/Holmes teams