OHSAA softball tournament draw: No. 1 Strasburg poised for historic run

As expected, defending Division IV state softball champion Strasburg has received a No. 1 sectional tournament seed and is poised for what could be a historic postseason run.

The Tigers were one of many area teams involved in sectional-district softball tournament drawings held recently but their quest is unique, to say the least.

“It was good,” said Strasburg head coach Tom Spidell of the Tigers’ draw. “It’s one of those things that being the No. 1 seed we go on the line, and we’ll play whoever wants to come play us, and that’s fine.”

The No. 1-seeded Tigers (20-3) will host No. 16 seed Berlin Hiland (0-10) in an opening-round sectional tournament game on Tuesday, May 7 at 5 p.m. at Franklin Park. The winner of that game will face the winner of No. 11 Beallsville (2-11) vs. No. 10 Bridgeport (8-13) for a sectional crown on Thursday, May 8 at 5 p.m. at a site to be determined.

Strasburg, which has nine state titles to its credit, is currently tied with Warren Champion and Akron Springfield for the most state softball championships in OHSAA history. The Tigers would love to defend their crown by winning a 10th title and become Ohio’s all-time leader (in terms of state crowns) in the sport.

They welcome the challenge and possible historic possibilities that await on the long and unpredictable tournament trail which leads to Akron’s Firestone Stadium, site of the state tournament in early June.

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“At the end of the day you’ve got to beat good teams to get there, so we’re just going to take them one game at a time,” Spidell said. “We’re just looking forward to the tournament and to get going and see if we can make another run.”

Another Division IV area power to watch in the tourney is Conotton Valley, which received the No. 2 seed. The Rockets (17-3) will host the No. 14-seeded Malvern Hornets (3-14) in a D4 sectional opener on Tuesday, May 7 at 5 p.m. in Bowerston. The winner moves on to a sectional title date vs. the winner of the No. 6 Shadyside (12-8) vs. No. 13 Bishop Rosecrans (2-11) game on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at a site to be announced.

Also in Division IV, Tuscarawas Central Catholic (4-15) drew the No. 12 seed and will play at No. 4 seed Frontier (8-1) on Tuesday, May 7 at 5 p.m. The victor of that matchup will face the winner of the No. 7 River (8-3) vs. No. 8 Woodsfield Monroe-Central (7-7) game for a sectional title on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at a site to be determined.

Newcomerstown is the No. 5 seed in the small-school tourney. The Trojans (11-3) will host the No. 9-seeded Toronto Red Knights (8-9) in a first-round sectional game on Tuesday, May 7 at 5 p.m. The winner moves on to face the winner of the No. 3 Caldwell (16-3) vs. No. 15 Shenandoah (0-20-1) game for a sectional crown on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at a site to be announced.

DIVISION II SECTIONAL-DISTRICT

Dover, which is one of the top D2 teams in the state, received the No. 1 seed in the Division II sectional-district. The Crimson Tornadoes (20-3) will play the winner of the No. 14 Beaver Local (13-6-1) vs. No. 15 Minerva (8-10) game in a sectional tourney contest on Wednesday, May 8 at Dover City Park at 5 p.m. The victor of that game advances to a sectional title contest against the winner of the No. 6 Indian Valley (11-5) vs. No. 16 Carrollton (5-13) game for a sectional championship on Friday, May 10 at 5 p.m. at a site to be determined.

The No. 7-seeded New Philadelphia Quakers (12-8) will host the No. 19 East Liverpool Potters (1-15-1) in an opening-round sectional game on Wednesday, May 8 at Tuscora Park at 5 p.m. The winner moves on to a sectional final date on Friday, May 10 at 5 p.m. at a site to be announced against the team that advances from No. 2 seed John Glenn (15-6) vs. the winner of the No. 11 Cambridge (11-8-1) vs. No. 17 River View (1-12) game.

West Holmes gained the No. 4 seed. The Knights (15-4) will play the winner of No. 9 West Muskingum (14-5) vs. No. 18 Maysville (1-11) game in a sectional tourney contest on Wednesday, May 8 at 5 p.m. The winner of that battle will play for a sectional crown on Friday, May 10 at 5 p.m. at a site to be announced against the victor of No. 5 Steubenville (14-6) vs. No. 20 Zanesville (0-8).

DIVISION III SECTIONAL-DISTRICT

In the Division III tournament drawings, the Sandy Valley Cardinals earned the No. 4 seed. The Cardinals (12-8) will host the No. 11-seeded Bellaire Big Reds (7-14) in a sectional tournament opener on Monday, May 6 at 5 p.m. The winner of that game advances to a sectional title game date on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at a site to be announced against the winner of the No. 8 Garaway (7-10) vs. No. 5 Fort Frye. Fort Frye will host Garaway in a sectional opener on Monday, May 6 at 5 p.m.

The Claymont Mustangs were accorded the No. 10 seed. The Mustangs (6-3) are penciled in to play No. 13 seed Buckeye Trail (5-14) in Uhrichsville on Monday, May 6 at 5 p.m. The winner of that game plays for a sectional championship on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at No. 1 seed Edison Local (15-2).

The Tusky Valley Trojans (5-10) earned the No. 12 seed and will play the No. 3-seeded Barnesville Shamrocks (12-3) in an opening-round sectional tourney game on Monday, May 6 at 5 p.m. in Barnesville. The winner advances to the sectional championship on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m. at a site to be determined against the winner of No. 7 Ridgewood (11-10) vs. No. 9 Buckeye Local (6-5). Ridgewood will host Buckeye Local in a sectional opener on Monday, May 6 at 5 p.m.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: OHSAA softball tournament draw: No. 1 Strasburg poised for historic run