OHSAA Region 9 (NE D3) Playoff Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA tournament has just begun and we're breaking down each region to get you informed about what's happening all across the state. In this article we'll break down Division III Region 9 which is northeast Ohio's Division III region.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Northeast 1</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This district should be competitive with a couple teams capable of making deep runs. Perry is the favorite as the number 2 seed overall and they have an easy route to a district championship game appearance. They will likely meet either Beachwood, led by Nathan Lurie or Pymatuning Valley led by [player_tooltip player_id='1617863' first='Tyler' last='Britton']. Either player is capable of taking over a game individually and could give Perry a scare.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District title prediction: Perry over Beachwood</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Northeast 2</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This district features region favorite Lutheran East, who has made five consecutive trips to the final 4. Led by senior [player_tooltip player_id='867939' first='Cody' last='Head'], Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1222354' first='Jesse' last='McCulloch'] and Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1705953' first='Tj' last='Crumble'], the Falcons are loaded up for another deep tournament run. Brookfield and football state champs Canfield South Range are the top challengers to the Falcons, who should likely roll into the regional stage of the tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District title prediction: Lutheran East over Canfield South Range</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Northeast 3</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the more balanced districts in this region, three teams appear capable of advancing to the regionals. Lake Catholic is the favorite led by [player_tooltip player_id='976071' first='Aidan' last='Fitzgerald']. They'll be countered with by Cardinal Mooney and Chagrin Falls. [player_tooltip player_id='1477097' first='James' last='Kosmides'] could be a size mismatch for opposing teams in this district on the interior for Chagrin Falls.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District title prediction: Lake Catholic over Chagrin Falls</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Northeast 4</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This district should be competitive from top to bottom with no clear-cut favorite emerging from the rest. Cuyahoga Heights is the favorite as they spent a majority of their season unbeaten before taking a couple late season losses. They'll be met with a tricky district semifinal, likely against either Columbia or St Thomas Aquinas, Aquinas was a Division IV district champion last season. On the top side of the bracket there are also three competitive teams looking to battle it out between Smithville, Wooster Triway and Fairview. Smithville guard Carter Piatt is having a great senior season and looking to cap off his high school career with a district title. Triway and my alma mater Fairview could stand in the way of a district title game appearance, the Warriors played in a tough conference but seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1785477' first='Jacob' last='Rehor'] and Colin Meany are battle tested heading into the tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District title prediction: Smithville over Cuyahoga Heights</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->