Baseball Postseason Draw Breakdown: Several teams face tough road in district tournaments
The baseball tournament draws were released over the weekend across the state. Let's breakdown what the matchups and potential paths for all nine Ashland County teams look like.
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Division I
Bowling Green/Gates Mill District
Ashland is the lone Division I school from Ashland, and they are the No. 7 seed in their sectional/district tournament. The Arrows will meet No. 12 seed Toledo St. Johns in their sectional final game next Wednesday at home. If they win that one, the Arrows will have a tough road to navigate as No. 1 seed Oregon Clay and No. 4 seed Perrysburg could be the likely opponents if they hope to win a district title.
Division III
Hamler District
Crestview holds the No. 5 seed and has a home game against No. 9 seed Colonel Crawford in next Wednesday's sectional semifinal. From there, a matchup with third-seeded Bucyrus in a sectional final could be next. With the No. 1 (Edison) and No. 2 (Oak Harbor) seeds in this district, the Cougars will have their work cut out for them.
Massillon District
Black River heads into the tournament as a No. 4 seed and will meet the winner of Tuslaw and Fairless next Wednesday in a sectional final. The district tournament is filled with quality teams, such as top-seeded Columbia, Triway and the two-time defending Division III champions in Waynedale. If the Pirates can win a district title, it will have been well-earned.
In the other draw in the Northeast District, Northwestern is the No. 12 seed and will be at home against No. 17 seed Beachwood in next Monday's sectional semifinal. From there, a date with No. 5 seed Manchester Akron could be in store. The Wayne County Athletic Conference champions and No. 2 seed Norwayne will be the favorites to come out of the district.
Division IV
Louisville District
Loudonville is the No. 13 seed and will face the winner of Leetonia and Windham in next Thursday's sectional final at home. A possible matchup with top-seeded with Hartville Lake Center Christian in the district semifinals could be a tall task for the Redbirds.
Staying in the Louisville District, Hillsdale (No. 3 seed) and Mapleton (No. 12 seed) find themselves in the same district and same side of the draw. If each wins their sectional final games, both teams will meet in the district semifinals. Hillsdale is the highest seeded team in this district, so they have a sound chance of getting through.
Lancaster District
As the No. 2 seed, South Central is in good position to get through its district. The Trojans will get the winner of Buckeye Central-Crestline next Thursday at home in a sectional final, then could go up against No. 4 seed Lucas in the district semifinal, who they lost to last Friday. A possible district final versus No. 1 seed Sycamore Mohawk could be a good one.
New London got the No. 9 seed and will play at home in a sectional semifinal against No. 10 seed Mansfield Christian next Tuesday. If the Wildcats win, they meet top-seeded Sycamore Mohawk in the district semifinal.
jsimpson@gannett.com
Twitter/X:@JamesSimpsonII
This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Baseball Postseason Draw: Several teams face tough roads in tourney
