DII Districts: Louisville / North Ridgeville / Stow

Yappi

Go Buckeyes
There are 32 teams that play in the superdistrict that feeds into Louisville, North Ridgeville, and Stow.
Code:
W%    RPI   Team      (Record)            W%       RPI
1      2    Holy Name    (13-0)          1.000    0.8728
2      1    Lutheran West    (12-1)      0.923    0.8966
3      4    Akron East    (12-2)         0.857    0.8237
4      5    Revere    (11-2)             0.846    0.8209
5      6    Elyria Catholic    (10-2)    0.833    0.8198
6      7    Cuyahoga Valley CA (11-4)    0.733    0.8061
7      3    Buchtel    (10-4)            0.714    0.8294
8      8    Brookside    (9-4)           0.692    0.7729
9      9    Rocky River    (8-5)         0.615    0.7608
10    10    Glenville    (8-5)           0.615    0.7421
11    14    Cleveland East Tech (9-6)    0.600    0.7220
12    12    Keystone    (8-6)            0.571    0.7236
13    11    Tallmadge    (6-5)           0.545    0.7416
14    17    Norton    (7-6)              0.538    0.7038
15    19    Lincoln West    (7-6)        0.538    0.6740
16    13    Cle. Central Catholic (6-7)  0.462    0.7233
17    20    Fairless    (7-9)            0.438    0.6694
18    16    Woodridge    (6-8)           0.429    0.7104
19    22    Coventry    (6-9)            0.400    0.6641
20    15    Cleveland VASJ    (5-8)      0.385    0.7126
21    25    Canal Fulton Northwest (5-9) 0.357    0.6576
22    27    Cloverleaf    (4-8)          0.333    0.6380
23    18    Bedford    (4-9)             0.308    0.6854
24    26    Firelands    (4-9)           0.308    0.6530
25    30    Akron Springfield    (4-9)   0.308    0.5999
26    21    Benedictine    (4-10)        0.286    0.6663
27    23    Warrensville Heights (3-8)   0.273    0.6606
28    24    Padua Franciscan    (3-10)   0.231    0.6592
29    29    Shaw    (1-10)               0.091    0.6212
30    31    Medina Buckeye    (1-10)     0.091    0.5882
31    28    Bay    (1-11)                0.083    0.6363
32    32    Collinwood    (0-9)          0.000    0.5483
 
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I heard something to the effect that when you select your bracket, you dont know what district you will play in until you win a sectional final and move on to districts?

At that point, it will be determined where those 4 teams will play based on travel.

Is this an attempt to increase ticket sales? Sincerely hoping I heard that wrong because it takes a ton of strategy out of it I would think?

Anyone with more knowledge?
 
I heard something to the effect that when you select your bracket, you dont know what district you will play in until you win a sectional final and move on to districts?

At that point, it will be determined where those 4 teams will play based on travel.

Is this an attempt to increase ticket sales? Sincerely hoping I heard that wrong because it takes a ton of strategy out of it I would think?

Anyone with more knowledge?
This is not correct. Coaches pick their spot in the brackets from top seed down. These three locations are known at that time.
 
Since they've gone to this superdistrict in several sports, they have always chosen their district. Seems to work out for the most part with the exception of some lower seeds that have to travel long distances because it was the only spot they could choose. Also, the top seeds sometimes have to go a little further if two of the best teams are close to each other.
 
This is not correct. Coaches pick their spot in the brackets from top seed down. These three locations are known at that time.
Coaches are still seeding, correct?

There is nothing to do about it at this point, but having Louisville as a host makes zero sense. It is within 25 miles of just two of the 32 schools (Springfield at 20 miles; Fairless at 23 miles). And 22 of the 32 schools are 50-plus miles away.

What I think you are going to see happen is the top 4 seeds at each site will play out how kind of like they should since they all will get a bye or a home game until the semifinals. But I expect the North Ridgeville district to be loaded in the middle since so many of the schools are close by. ... By my count, it's the closest for like 20 of the 32 (and mostly by a large margin, especially compared to Louisville). So, I expect the middle tier to take their chances in that bracket and get games closer to home.

Stow will probably see a lot of the Akron-area middle (and some of the Cleveland area go there). I have a feeling the Louisville one will easily be the most open for whatever top seed(s) goes there. That one may be filled out with the bottom six or so teams simply because everybody else chose North Ridgeville or Stow.

It'll be interesting to see if both Lutheran West and Holy Name remain in the top 4, where they will go. I actually think they could be No. 1 and No. 2 and both still opt to go to North Ridgeville on opposite sides.

So much can change, but right now the top 7 I would guess would be some order of: Lutheran West, Holy Name, Buchtel, CVCA, East, Revere, Elyria Catholic. I can see three at North Ridgeville (LW, HN, EC); two at Stow (two of CVCA, Buchtel, East, Revere); and two at Louisville (the other two of whoever doesn't end up at Stow). After that is where I see North Ridgeville start getting loaded up with teams looking to stay closer to home.
 
Yes, they know which bracket (and which location) they are going in.
While travel factors in, most will look to choose the path of least resistance.
I agree path will play a factor, but there is no St. Vincent-St. Mary in the field this year where teams will be going out of their way to avoid. Last year, it was obvious that the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds (Buchtel/CVCA) were going to go the North Ridgeville route in order to stay out of the same regional as St. V; then the Nos. 4-5-6-7 all opted to Canton ... No. 6 Padua and No. 7 Tallmadge passed up a higher seed (the No. 2 in Stow) to be the No. 3 and No. 4 in the further away Canton district.

There are some very good teams at the top this year, and while I have been touting Lutheran West for a while and still believe they are the best team in this group, Lutheran West is a notch below what St. Vincent-St. Mary was last year.

While I think "least resistance" is going to play a factor, "least resistance" will be less be about "who can we avoid" and more about "what venue do we have the best chance of winning at." Since the top teams are more evenly distributed from a talent perspective, I see travel distances being a much bigger factor this year than it was a year ago when the primary goal for pretty much everybody was to avoid St. Vincent-St. Mary as long as possible.
 
Heard again earlier today that this year’s District tournament will look a little different with all games through the Sectional final being played at the home of the better seeded team, but the site of the individual District semis and district final for each bracket will not be revealed until after the drawing meeting.

Evidently it was done to help with traveling issues??

The District semis and final will take place at either Stow, Louisville or North Ridgeville High Schools.

Interesting to say the least.
 
For anyone wondering why Louisville is a district tournament site for D2, that is because it is the replacement site for the bracket that was traditionally contested at the Canton Memorial Fieldhouse. In digging through the NEDAB minutes from last May, I saw that the Fieldhouse asked the NEDAB for more money to continue to serve as a district site. The NEDAB either must've declined that request or made the Fieldhouse a lowball offer.


Tournament Committee - Jeff Cassella
  • Spring tournament draws in softball and baseball completed.
  • Softball and boys tennis tournaments beginning this week.
  • Discussion around the use of Canton Fieldhouse for basketball and their request for more money to run the tournament. Board will discuss after receiving participation reports for next year and the number of districts needed.

Found this in the NEDAB minutes from August:


Tournament committee: Jeff Cassella

New sport coordinators
Volleyball - Tim Ertle Motion by Heather Beck, second by John Carter to approve Tim Ertle. Motion carried 8-0
Golf - Paul Barlow Motion by Shyla Urban, second by Bill Nye to approve Paul Barlow.
Motion carried 8-0

Girls tennis at Elyria will potentially need a new site due to construction at Elyria.

Winter sport liaisons and sport coordinators start verifying winter sites
Basketball committee of Beck, Urban and Cassella to explore potential basketball district final sites for one location per division.
Discussion and Board update in regards to the Martin RPI rating system that was presented. Trial in the NW district this winter for basketball.

Manager meetings will be virtual.
August 29 6pm cross country, tennis, and golf



As of the September meeting, they were still exploring the idea of one district final site per division. No board minutes have been posted beyond September.
 
Heard again earlier today that this year’s District tournament will look a little different with all games through the Sectional final being played at the home of the better seeded team, but the site of the individual District semis and district final for each bracket will not be revealed until after the drawing meeting.

Evidently it was done to help with traveling issues??

The District semis and final will take place at either Stow, Louisville or North Ridgeville High Schools.

Interesting to say the least.
I don't quite get that. If anything, keep districts as they are, but don't lock North Ridgeville into the NW regional. For example, lets say you have Buchtel coming out of North Ridgeville and Lutheran West opts for Louisville and wins there, I could see it making sense to then shift the Louisville district champ (Lutheran West) to the NW regional since Lutheran West is closer to Bowling Green than Buchtel ... and Buchtel (the North Ridgeville champ) would be closer to Canton than Lutheran West.
 
What happens if you get a Akron East and a Holy Name District championship game? Is that a North Ridgeville site or a Louisville site? Stow?
 
What's everybody's seeding thoughts? I'll take a stab at it:

1. Lutheran West: Only thing holding them back from this spot was an undefeated Holy Name; but Holy Name's loss to Strongsville should put them here (play Mentor today that could cement it). Even if they lose to Mentor, the wins over Maple Heights, St. Ignatius, Ottawa-Glandorft, Gilmour and Shaker Heights are hard to look past.

2. Holy Name: 15-1 and wins over Lutheran West and Lake Catholic are looking good. The lone loss to Strongsville shouldn't be a red-flag. though still have to play a sneaky good Cleveland Central Catholic team next week.

3. Buchtel: The five losses shouldn't matter, though it's tough to gauge how good their wins are since the schedule has pretty much been out-of-state or City Series. Still, I don't see anybody other than LW saying "we are better than those guys."

4. CVCA: They have the best player in the field, but play in a bad league (where they are killing everybody). They lack any notable wins (Chaney maybe the best?), but the four losses are all against top-notch teams.

5. Akron East: This one is tough, because have a bunch of top-tier wins, but also a loss to Akron Garfield. They also lost the "rematch" to Buchtel by 20-plus. But no way can they fall below five, and you can make a strong argument for them to be higher.

6. Glenville: I thought last week that Revere/Elyria Catholic had this spot locked up. But Glenville picked up Senate wins against Rhodes and East Tech in B2B games. The five losses are all to legit teams. It's hard to put them below this spot.

You can make an argument for Revere, but the Suburban American is not exactly looking strong. So I'll put them at No. 7.

8-12: Elyria Catholic, East Tech, Cleveland Central Catholic, Rocky River, Tallmadge.
 
If anyone hasn't seen. Lutheran West won 81-63 at Mentor on Saturday. After that, I may take back that there isn't a team in this field (Ala St. Vincent-St Mary last year) that teams are going to avoid.

I'm not sure if anybody wants to see those guys right now. 15-1 and now can add a road blowout against Mentor to the resume.

With them assuredly going to North Ridgeville and 95 percent of the other teams preferring Stow over Louisville in a perfect world, you may now see that Stow district being the loaded one (even if its hypothetical/assumed brackets going in).
 
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If anyone hasn't seen. Lutheran West won 81-63 at Mentor on Saturday. After that, I may take back that there isn't a team in this field (Ala St. Vincent-St Mary last year) that teams are going to avoid.

I'm not sure if anybody wants to see those guys right now. 15-1 and now can add a road blowout against Mentor to the resume.

With them assuredly going to North Ridgeville and 95 percent of the other teams preferring Stow over Louisville in a perfect world, you may now see that Stow district being the loaded one (even if its hypothetical/assumed brackets going in).
Can Holy Name, if they would be a #2 or #3 seed, place themselves in that bracket if they wanted?

Even if Lutheran West goes there if they were the #1 seed? After all, Lutheran West's only loss is to them. Or, do they go to the other two?

But you're right. The Mentor win probably raised some eyebrows if they werent raised already on this team.
 
Yes, they know which bracket (and which location) they are going in.
While travel factors in, most will look to choose the path of least resistance.
Looks like my info was incorrect. Assuming they operate the same way as the Girls Tournament, coaches do not know the location of their bracket when picking where they place their team on the bracket. This year they are waiting until after the draw to determine sites.
 
Looks like my info was incorrect. Assuming they operate the same way as the Girls Tournament, coaches do not know the location of their bracket when picking where they place their team on the bracket. This year they are waiting until after the draw to determine sites.
So, my post from 1/20 was correct? Lol. Done for travel considerations really!? Absolutely idiotic.
 
So, my post from 1/20 was correct? Lol. Done for travel considerations really!? Absolutely idiotic.
Agreed. A few years ago, when the NEDAB went to this format of combining teams to fill multiple brackets, they stated they were doing it in response to feedback from coaches in multiple sports who claimed that they were OK with increased travel in exchange for tournament brackets that would presumably be more balanced by allowing the best teams to spread out amongst the brackets.
 
tournament brackets that would presumably be more balanced by allowing the best teams to spread out amongst the brackets.
And sometimes, it does the opposite. Some teams are considered so dominant, they will not face a quality team until the district final.

IMO, allowing coaches to pick their district creates very strong districts and exceptionally weak districts with one super team. Basically, the problem it is solving is recreating the same problem.

Maybe the best way to do it would be to slot teams:
1-3 have to pick different districts
4-6 pick different districts
7-9 pick different districts
continue this all the way down to the last three teams.

That way, every district will have a similar level of talent.
 
And sometimes, it does the opposite. Some teams are considered so dominant, they will not face a quality team until the district final.

IMO, allowing coaches to pick their district creates very strong districts and exceptionally weak districts with one super team. Basically, the problem it is solving is recreating the same problem.

Maybe the best way to do it would be to slot teams:
1-3 have to pick different districts
4-6 pick different districts
7-9 pick different districts
continue this all the way down to the last three teams.

That way, every district will have a similar level of talent.
I agree.

What super-districting really accomplishes is that it allows the NEDAB to wash its hands of the situation. Before, the teams and coaches could blame the NEDAB for being assigned to St. V's district for example. Now, if a good team ends up in a stacked draw or doesn't go to the closest tournament site, it's on the coach for picking that bracket and that spot on the bracket.
 
Can Holy Name, if they would be a #2 or #3 seed, place themselves in that bracket if they wanted?

Even if Lutheran West goes there if they were the #1 seed? After all, Lutheran West's only loss is to them. Or, do they go to the other two?

But you're right. The Mentor win probably raised some eyebrows if they werent raised already on this team.
Holy Name could definitely do that, and a couple of weeks ago I thought that was the most likely scenario. But Lutheran West, outside of the Holy Name game (which was not one of the biggest upsets in the world, but yes, an upset), seems to be on a different level than any other DII in NE Ohio. Obviously, if Lutheran West is the No. 1, their "blind" bracket will end up being North Ridgeville as long as they advance to the finals.

I guess the question for Holy Name would be whether they would want to stay 15 minutes from home and if chalk holds take their chance at Lutheran West again; or would they rather travel 45 minutes (Stow) or 1 hour, 15 minutes (Louisville) where they would likely be running into a Buchtel/CVCA/Akron East. I don't think there is a wrong answer in deciding for either path, because neither will be easy.
 
I wonder if it would then be better to have the 3 or 4 seed in this new blind district process? Seems you would have more control of what District you wind-up in based on the teams already placed on that bracket. And if youre Lutheran West and are as good as everyone says you are, then there's no real difference between being a 1 and a 3 or 4 other than you have more control with the latter.
 
I wonder if it would then be better to have the 3 or 4 seed in this new blind district process? Seems you would have more control of what District you wind-up in based on the teams already placed on that bracket. And if youre Lutheran West and are as good as everyone says you are, then there's no real difference between being a 1 and a 3 or 4 other than you have more control with the latter.
From the info provided on the NEDAB website at:

"BRACKET PLACEMENT:

Once the seeds have been determined for each team in the tournament, teams will select their bracket based on the order of seed. Coaches from top two seeds will have the option to select a bracket, or pass, with subsequent placed team coaches choosing their bracket . The coach of the next ranked team will then be given their choice. After a team is placed in a bracket, the coach that passed will again be given the opportunity to select a line on a bracket. This will continue until each bracket is full.

Any team arriving after their seed has been called will be considered a “pass” (seed 1 or 2). Any team that is a “no show” at the draw meeting will be assigned last. If more than one team is a “no show” teams will be assigned in seeded order. Teams that have missed either of the two voting deadlines but attend the draw meeting will be seeded accordingly. Teams will have 3 minutes to make a selection.

Policy for Placing Teams on the Bracket when No School Representative is Present for the Tournament

Seed Meeting

a.) For teams in the top half of the seeded teams (e.g. one more than half if there is an odd number of teams), the school absent shall be placed on the bracket after the No. 1 seed is given the opportunity to place itself on the bracket. If the No. 1 seed selects a line, the absent school shall be placed on the furthest line, excluding a bye line, in the other half of the bracket that does not include the No. 1 seed. If the No. 1 seed passes, the absent school shall be placed on the first non-bye line.

b.) If more than one team is absent in the top half of the seeded teams, schools shall be placed, in order of seed, as far apart as possible after the No. 1 seed makes its choice."

c.) For teams in the bottom half of the seeded teams, the school absent shall be placed on the bracket after all other teams have selected their bracket placement.

d.) If more than one team is absent in the bottom half of the seeded teams, the schools shall be placed, in order of seed, after all other schools have selected their bracket placement.



I do wonder if the parameters are modified based on how many brackets are being filled. For example, if the teams are filling out 3 district brackets, would it then mean that the top 6 seeds have the option to "pass?" It seems like the bracket placement procedures mentioned above only make sense when filling 1 bracket.
 
So, my post from 1/20 was correct? Lol. Done for travel considerations really!? Absolutely idiotic.
I agree. It is.
-So, just to clarify, teams will know the teams they will play and all the brackets done for each district, they just won't know where the semis and final will be played.
-This only applies to schools designated in the 3 West districts (NR, Louisville and Stow) but excludes the East districts at Boardman & NDCL.
-A team that doesn't want to go to BG for the regional may still have to if they get assigned to the NR District.
-I do like the idea of having all district finals at one site per division. This would be a great chance to see a lot of games at one site. I remember the days when all NEO small school district finals were held at the Canton Fieldhouse. They only did this for a brief time but it was a great day of basketball. Looks like the NEO board hasn't acted on this proposal yet. Sometimes they move with the speed of a glacier.
-Thanks to everyone who posted on this thread. It has been intelligent and informative.
 
Here are the current rankings for these three districts. The number on the left is the statewide DII ranking for each school:

Code:
7 Lutheran West                (16-1) 0.8954
14 Holy Name                   (15-1) 0.8568
30 Buchtel                     (14-6) 0.8240
33 Akron East                  (15-3) 0.8185
34 Revere                      (13-3) 0.8180
39 Elyria Catholic             (12-4) 0.8110
43 Cuyahoga Valley CA          (13-4) 0.8061
54 Glenville                   (12-5) 0.7870
67 Rocky River                 (9-7)  0.7657
74 Tallmadge                   (9-6)  0.7544
81 Brookside                   (10-7) 0.7448
89 Cleveland East Tech         (11-8) 0.7330
103 Woodridge                  (8-9)  0.7160
106 Bay                        (6-11) 0.7137
107 Cleveland VASJ             (6-11) 0.7120
108 Cleveland Central Catholic (6-11) 0.7115
123 Norton                     (9-9)  0.6967
125 Keystone                   (9-9)  0.6956
137 Shaw                       (5-11) 0.6741
141 Benedictine                (5-13) 0.6726
144 Fairless                   (8-10) 0.6680
146 Coventry                   (7-10) 0.6666
148 Bedford                    (5-12) 0.6649
150 Lincoln West               (8-7)  0.6622
158 Cloverleaf                 (6-9)  0.6527
160 Medina Buckeye             (4-12) 0.6521
161 Firelands                  (6-11) 0.6518
163 Canal Fulton Northwest     (7-11) 0.6504
173 Padua Franciscan           (3-15) 0.6338
177 Warrensville Heights       (3-12) 0.6296
180 Akron Springfield          (6-12) 0.6229
191 Collinwood                 (4-12) 0.6045
 
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