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OHSAA State Volleyball Preview |
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2012 State Volleyball Tournament Preview COLUMBUS, Ohio � The 2012 OHSAA Volleyball State Tournament will be held this weekend at the Ervin J. Nutter Center at Wright State University in Dayton. Semifinal matchups in Divisions II and I will be held Thursday Nov. 8, while Division IV and III semifinals will take place Friday Nov. 9. Championship matches for all divisions will be played consecutively Saturday Nov. 10, beginning with the Division II final at 11 a.m., followed by Division I, IV and III. Matches will not begin before 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. Three new champions will be crowned this year as Casstown Miami East (Div. III) is the only returning champion to make it back to the state tournament. The tournament will also feature several new faces as only five schools have returned after their 2011 showing and three teams are making their first state appearance. The Division II semifinals include fourth-ranked Norwalk (26-2) taking on ninth-ranked Kettering Archbishop Alter (19-9). Norwalk is back in the state tournament for the third time, but first since 2002, after defeating top-ranked Parma Padua Franciscan in five sets in the regional finals. Alter, the 2011 state runner-up, also had an exciting regional final match where it knocked off second-ranked Cincinnati Archbishop McNicholas in five sets. The Knights are making their third-consecutive state tournament appearance and seventh overall. The second semifinal game has 2011 semifinalist and 17th-ranked Cleveland Heights Beaumont School (20-7) facing off against third-ranked Columbus St. Francis DeSales (26-2). Beaumont is back in the tournament for only the second time in school history whereas DeSales is making its fifth state tournament appearance, but first since 2004. Both teams defeated their unranked regional final opponents in straight sets to advance. The two Division I semifinals are markedly different, as match has a combined 21 state tournament appearances whereas the other only has three. The first semifinal pits sixth-ranked Cincinnati Ursuline Academy (21-6) against the 2011 state runner-up and second-ranked Toledo St. Ursula Academy (26-1). Ursuline is making its 12th state appearance, and fourth in the last five years, while St. Ursula Academy has made it back to the tournament for the third-consecutive year and ninth overall. Both teams defeated state-ranked opponents to advance out of their respective regionals. The second semifinal game has first time state qualifier and third-ranked Massillon Jackson (27-1) against second-ranked Chagrin Falls Kenston (20-7), which is making its second state tournament appearance (2012, 2003). Both schools won five set matches against state-ranked opponents to win their regional final contests. The first semifinal match of Division IV features 15th-ranked Kidron Central Christian (26-2) against seventh-ranked and undefeated Beaver Eastern (27-0), which is making its first state tournament appearance. The Comets of Central Christian have made the tournament three times (2012, 2003, 1992) but are still looking for their school�s first state volleyball title. In their respective regional final contests, Central Christian beat the 2011 runner-up, New Philadelphia Tuscarawas Central Catholic, 3-1, whereas Beaver Eastern defeated 13th-ranked Plain City Shekinah Christian, 3-1. The matchup on the other side of the bracket has top-ranked Maria Stein Marion Local (24-3) against sixth-ranked New Washington Buckeye Central (26-2). Marion Local has six state tournament appearances, with three state trophies, whereas Buckeye Central is making its 10th state appearance, but first since 2008. Central has previously won state titles in 1996 and 1993. Both teams defeated their state-ranked regional final opponents, 3-1, to advance to the state tournament. The Division III bracket has the least amount of familiarity with the tournament as all four teams only have a combined eight state tournament appearances, as opposed to 24 in Division I, 17 in Division II and 20 in Division IV. The first semifinal matchup pits the only defending state champion to return to the tournament, top-ranked Casstown Miami East (27-1), against fourth-ranked Carroll Bloom-Carroll (24-3), which is making its first state tournament appearance. The Vikings from Miami East, who are only making their second state tournament appearance (2012, 2011), defeated Anna in the regional finals, 3-0, whereas the Bloom-Carroll Bulldogs beat 17th-ranked Zanesville West Muskingum in straights sets. The second semifinal match has 15th-ranked Columbus Bishop Ready (19-8) against Orrville (21-7). This will be Ready�s second-consecutive state appearance whereas Orrville is making its third appearance (2012, 2004, 2003) after winning a title in 2003. Ready and Orrville both defeated unranked teams in the regional finals by scores of 3-1 and 3-0, respectively, to advance to the state tournament. By Kristin Daugherty, Administrative Liaison, [email protected]
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