This year, the volleyball state tournament will be held from November 3rd-5th at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Last season, the one seeds in Division 1 and Division 2 took home the crown while the two seeds did so in Division 3 and 4. Will history repeat itself?
Division 1
Last year’s runner up, Appleton North once again draws a one seed. Appleton North is joined by Chippewa Falls in Sectional 1/2 of the bracket. The defending state champ, Oconomowoc, remains a one seed in Sectional 4. Waunakee finds themselves on the other side as the top seed in Sectional 3. While divisions 2-4 only have four sectionals, Division 1 has eight.
Kettle Moraine made it all the way to the final four last season before they fell to Oconomowoc. This year they find themselves as the one seed in Sectional 6, joined by the Divine Savior Holy Angels in Sectional 5. The top seeds are rounded out with Burlington as the top dog in Sectional 7, followed by Wauwatosa East in Sectional 8.
It should be noted that not every two seed draws a bye in the first round. Out of the two seeds, Mukwonago, Middleton, Kimberly, and River Falls are the only ones who aren’t forced to play on October 20th.
Division 2
Unlike Division 1, Division 2 opens play on October 18th. Those teams will have to go through a gauntlet as they play on the 18th, 20th, and 22nd before finally getting a five-day rest before the sectionals. Speaking of, Baldwin-Woodville is the one seed in the first sectional. Keep in mind, these sectionals are much larger and have multiple number one seeds. On the lower half of the bracket, Dodgeville holds the one seed. Moving to Sectional 2, Xavier and Tomahawk are the top seeds.
Sauk Prairie and Edgewood find themselves at a one seed in Sectional 3. To their right, Saint Thomas More and Kettle Moraine Lutheran hold the number one seed.
The two seeds in Division 2 that are lucky enough to have a bye are New Berlin West, Pewaukee, Kewaskum, Oconto Falls, and River Valley.
Last year’s state champion, Luxemberg-Casco, is a two seed in Sectional 2. They are forced to play right away, October 18th, as they host Green Bay West.
Division 3
Things get interesting in Division 3 as not even the #1 seeds have a bye to start tournament play. Westby is the only one seed from Sectional 1 or 2 that will be forced to play on Tuesday night. Other top seeds in those two sectionals include: St. Croix Falls, Edgar, and Wittenberg-Birnamwood.
Sectional 4 is going to be a good one. Last year’s state championship game saw Howards Grove defeat Lake Country Lutheran in three sets. Now, we could potentially see a rematch. Both teams are one seeds in that sectional with each of them trying to punch their ticket to the state tournament again. Over in Sectional 3, Brodhead is the one seed who doesn’t have to play until the 20th. Randolph is the final one seed in the division as they open against Lomira.
Keep in mind, no two seed is safe. There are no byes for the two seeds.
Division 4
Division 4 is the lowest there is for girls’ volleyball. The bracket is quite different than the others due to the number of teams involved. For instance, there are three number one seeds in sectional two. That is the only sectional built that way.
To open with Sectional 1, the reigning state champions find themselves in the bottom half of the bracket. McDonell Central won both of their state tournament games 3-0 last season, and they haven’t slowed down this year. In the top half of the bracket, Mercer is the other one seed.
Now, things get interesting with Sectional 2. Colombus-Catholic, Suring, and Wabeno/Laona are all one seeds. Wabeno/Laona was the state runner up last season, but they have a real tough road to make it back to the state championship game. Interestingly enough, two seed Athens has a bye in Sectional 2. They are the only two seed with a bye throughout Division 4.
Plum City/Elmwood and Seneca are the #1 seeds in Sectional 3. The joint squad of Green Bay NEW Lutheran/Providence Academy is the lone one seed in Sectional 4 that doesn’t have to play until Thursday. Sadly, for Monticello, they are the only #1 seed in Division 4 that is forced to play on Tuesday. They’ll be hosting Chesterton Academy of Milwaukee.
The Tournament Begins
For Divisions 2 through 4, the first slate of games is scheduled to take place at 7PM on Tuesday, October 18th. The next games will be on Thursday, October 20th. Thursday is a big one as Division 1 joins the fray and there will be plenty of volleyball to go around come Thursday night.
Just one week later, Thursday, October 27th is when Sectionals will begin. Again, all roads lead to the Resch Center which begins on November 3rd!
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