St. Xavier, McNicholas draw top seeds in OHSAA boys volleyball regional tournament

Alex Harrison, Cincinnati Enquirer

The Ohio High School Athletic Association has reached the postseason in boys volleyball, usually the beginning of a run to a state championship for a Greater Cincinnati team.

Moeller will go for another title, but top-seeded St. Xavier looks to stand in the way and advance out of the regional in Division I. In Division II, one of the Greater Catholic League-Coed teams will try to fend off Roger Bacon to reach the state semifinals again.

After early play-in rounds, Division II teams kick off the playoffs on Tuesday, May 7, while Division I begins the next day. Regional champions will move to the OHSAA state tournament at Wittenberg University on May 25 and 26.

Division I, Region 3

While most of the action will be in Region 4, Edgewood and Middletown appear in Region 3 along with Dayton and Columbus-area teams.

Edgewood, drawing the No. 8 seed, plays No. 12 Kettering Fairmont in a play-in game to advance to meet No. 5 Beavercreek. No. 14 Middletown plays No. 13 Columbus Briggs for a trip to No. 2 Hilliard Darby.

Middletown started the season 4-2 but has fallen to 9-13 since with five-straight losses entering the postseason. Edgewood began the campaign 3-4, but has since improved to 16-6 for the season and has won 10 of its last 11 matches.

Division I, Region 4

Division I boys volleyball in Cincinnati is full of potentially great stories. Does Moeller find another way to rocket through the postseason and win its fourth championship in a row? Does St. Xavier avoid the regional tournament fall and reach the state tournament for the first time since winning in 2019? Do Lakota East or Walnut Hills finally break through, sending a Cincinnati public school to the state tournament?

Moeller won the inaugural OHSAA Division I boys volleyball state championship in 2023. The Crusaders enter the postseason looking to win their fourth-straight title overall.
Moeller won the inaugural OHSAA Division I boys volleyball state championship in 2023. The Crusaders enter the postseason looking to win their fourth-straight title overall.

Since winning the state championship in 2019, top-seeded St. Xavier has fallen in five sets in the regional final each season. The Bombers are 21-1 and swept the Greater Catholic League-South for the first time since 2014. St. Xavier's only loss came in the finals of the Centerville Elite to Olentangy Liberty, which St. Xavier swept earlier in the season. Liberty, a team Moeller reverse-swept in last year's state final, has the No. 1 seed in Region 1.

The Bombers open the bracket with No. 17 Hamilton, with that winner seeing either No. 11 Milford or No. 13 Lakota West. Walnut Hills, Elder, Fairfield and Mason also sit on St. Xavier's side of the bracket.

Moeller, the second-seeded team, is 16-4 with three losses coming to the Bombers. On the hunt for a four-peat, Moeller opens with No. 14 Princeton and will then meet the winner of No. 9 Sycamore and No. 10 Loveland.

Also on the Moeller side sits Lakota East, La Salle, Lebanon and the winner of West Clermont and Oak Hills.

Lakota East players Grant Simer (12) and Matteo Puddu (5) block a kill attempt during their volleyball game against Oak Hills Thursday, April 4.
Lakota East players Grant Simer (12) and Matteo Puddu (5) block a kill attempt during their volleyball game against Oak Hills Thursday, April 4.

History says Moeller or St. Xavier should advance to the state tournament, but Lakota East and Walnut Hills want to bring more public school representation to the next round.

More: 'Everybody on the team is just a solid player': Lakota East starts run to retake GMC title

Lakota East wrapped up the regular season at 19-3, falling to Fenwick, Moeller and La Salle and beating Badin, Roger Bacon, McNicholas and Elder. The Thunderhawks also won the meeting with Walnut Hills. Along with the loss to Lakota East, the 18-3 Eagles fell to Badin and La Salle while beating Elder and Roger Bacon.

Division II, Region 8

Like the GCL-South reign in Division I, the GCL-Coed has dominated Division II, Region 8. Three of the top four seeds belong to teams in the conference, including No. 1 seed and defending regional champion McNicholas.

The Rockets went 17-5 overall, including a 10-0 run through the conference. McNicholas twice beat conference foes, No. 2 Fenwick and No. 4 Badin, with a non-conference victory against No. 3 Roger Bacon.

McNicholas will try to not just return to the boys state final in 2024, but advance to the state finals after a semifinal defeat last year.
McNicholas will try to not just return to the boys state final in 2024, but advance to the state finals after a semifinal defeat last year.

Fenwick, Roger Bacon and Badin sit on the same side of the bracket, keeping their distance from McNicholas. Roger Bacon and Badin would meet in the second round on May 9 barring major upsets from Dunbar or Meadowdale. The winner of that match would most likely see Fenwick in the regional semifinals on May 14.

For the No. 1 Rockets, they open with No. 10 Mount Healthy. The next-highest possible seeded opponent on their side of the regional bracket would be No. 5 Taylor.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: St. Xavier, McNicholas take No. 1 seeds in OHSAA boys volleyball meet

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