Thanks to a late-season decision to hold an eight-team volleyball 4A Division playoff, Sweet Home’s players will get to test themselves against the top teams in the state this week.
The Huskies are seeded No. 1 in the tournament, which starts for them Tuesday evening at home with a 6 p.m. match against Cottage Grove, which is the second-place team in the Sky-Em League at 8-3 overall, behind Junction City (9-1), which is the No. 2-seeded team.
The tournament, called the Elite 8 Volleyball Showcase, will run through Saturday, April 10. Other teams are: Corbett, seeded third at 10-2; Henley, seeded fourth at 9-1; La Grande, seeded fifth at 8-4; Sisters, seeded sixth at 10-2; Tillamook, seeded seventh at 4-2; and Cottage Grove in the eighth seed.
Defending state champion Valley Catholic, which is undefeated at 9-0 overall, has opted out of all post-season competition, Sweet Home Athletic Director Nate Tyler said.
Junction City and Tillamook will face off in the first round, Corbett will host Sisters; and Henley will host La Grande at Madras High School.
Second-round matches will be Thursday, with consolation and championship finals on Saturday.
Tyler said locations for those contests will be decided once the teams have been identified.
“If we win, we play Thursday and Saturday,” he said. “We will host on Thursday unless we can find a neutral site. Finding a neutral site during this time would be difficult.”
The OSAA Executive Board has decided to allow championship events for both this season and Season 3, which will include all normal spring sports, starting next week.
It has left the organization to the schools and will not be official OSAA events.
The top four ranked football teams in the state are set to hold a playoff, and a 4A cross-country meet will be hosted this Saturday by Marist after being originally scheduled to be held at Tillamook, which had to bow out as host due to rising COVID rates in Tillamook County that threaten to raise its risk level to “high” or “extreme.”
Similar to volleyball, boys and girls soccer are also holding playoff tournaments.
“The board believes that providing local discretion for culminating week events allows schools to make the best decisions for their school and community,” the OSAA said in a statement.
“OSAA-sponsored state championship events would require travel across the state for many schools and potentially include overnight stays depending on the sport, thus creating the type of large-scale public events that the OHA and governor continue to advise against at this time.
Also, the OSAA announced, participation limitations for Season 3 (spring) sports have been increased to allow for additional contests in each activity through the culminating weeks.
Baseball and softball will receive four additional games, track and field will receive two additional meets and golf will receive four additional nine-hole rounds.
The board also confirmed their support for virtual events for cheerleading, dance/drill, solo music, band, orchestra, choir, and speech.
It also discussed culminating week events for Season 4, which starts May 17 and runs through June 27, but no decisions have been made.
“The board plans to continue reviewing potential options as that season draws near,” the OSAA said.