2008 MHSAA Team State Preview - Division 2
There should be alot of good matchups in the D2 tournament right away with a couple interesting district matchups and some marquee regional matchups that will knock out some of the top contenders before Battle Creek.
Notable District Matchups:
--- #5 Stevensville Lakeshore vs Niles @ St. Joseph District ---
#5 Lakeshore will have to really earn a regional berth as they will have to get through their league rival Niles. Both of these teams are pretty solid from top to bottom and have earned some impressive wins throughout the year. Lakeshore handed it to Niles during the regular season, however, Niles proved they are a tough team with their win over D2 power Allegan (who beat Lakshore). Districts time means do or die so Niles may have some tricks up their sleeve in terms of matchups to try and even the gap from last time.
--- #1 Mason vs Fowlerville @ Fowlerville District ---
Top ranked Mason has as much firepower as anyone in the state with big guns like Burge, Helbig, Eifert, and Rozebom, however, Fowlerville is a dangerous team that should test the Bulldogs early on and make for a great district matchup. Fowlerville has a few question marks, especially state placer Patrick Roberts at 130 who has been out, but if they are back to full strength they could be up for a shocker in Fowlerville.
Regional Breakdown
Here is a breakdown of what teams will be battling out at each regional for a shot at advancing to the D2 Team State Finals in Battle Creek.
109-2 at Mt Pleasant
Top contenders: #7 Mt Pleasant, #10 Gaylord
Outlook: This should be a good matchup of two of the states top northern programs with Mt Pleasant and Gaylord if they both get through districts. Both of these teams have flown a little under the radar, however, they are both solid squads with a good amount of firepower. While Mt Pleasant is favored, don't count out Gaylord as they put tough strong kids on the mat at almost every weight and are a dangerous dual team.
Our Pick: Gaylord
110-2 at Owosso
Top Contenders: #6 Oxford, Linden, Owosso
Outlook: Oxford has quietly been picking up steam this year. They have alot of big wins over area teams like Romeo, Anchor Bay, and Richmond to name a few, and they are the favorites coming out of this regional. Owosso should not be overlooked, however, as they are a strong, scrappy team that has put up some points on many top teams. Linden could conted as well.
Our Pick: Oxford
111-2 at Sparta
Top Contenders: #3 Greenville, #8 Lowell, Spring Lake
Outlook: This is one of the potential big time regional matchups in Division 2. Lowell entered
the season as a favorite in D2, however, they took some lumps early on losing to both Greenville
and Spring Lake. Greenville handily beat the Red Arrows in the first month of the season and it
will take alot for Lowell to close the gap. Last year Lowell sent Greenville packing, knocking
them off at regionals, and this year Greenville will likely be looking to even the score. What
makes this even better is that these two programs don't seem to like each other very much and
are one of the better rivalries in the state.
Our Pick: Greenville
112-2 at Middleville Thornapple Kellogg
Top Contenders: #4 Allegan, Middleville TK, Plainwell
Outlook: Allegan lost a lot from their state title team last year, however, like most top programs they reloaded and are still one of the top teams in D2. While it easy to write them in as the winners from this region, don't forget about Plainwell and Middleville. Both teams have alot of depth and are capable of pulling off an upset.
Our Pick: Allegan
113-2 at Mattawan
Top Contenders: #5 Stevensville Lakeshore, Niles, Coldwater
Outlook: The winner of this regional will likely be decided at Districts when Lakeshore and Niles will meet. The winner of that district will enter this regional the heavy favorite. The only team that holds a chance at knocking off Lakeshore/Niles is probably Coldwater. Coldwater has flown under the radar a little this year, however, they always have pretty solid squads and this year is no different.
Our Pick: Stevensville Lakeshore
114-2 at Dewitt
Top Contenders: #1 Mason, #2 Eaton Rapids
Outlook: This is by far the most anticipated regional matchup in Division 2, possibly
in the entire state as rivals Mason (#1) and Eaton Rapids (#2) will square off in a
rematch of their early season dual that Mason won at Mason. A lot has changed
since that dual as ER was without the services of their top guns Josh Dormer and
Devin Milheim, as well as their 103lber (which caused them to void). Eaton Rapids
has been hot all year and could be considered by many as the favorites this time
around. The winner of this regional will be the favorite for winning it all in Battle Creek.
Our Pick: Eaton Rapids
115-2 at St Clair Shores Lakeview
Top contenders:#9 Highland Park, Warren Woods Tower
Outlook: This could the year for coaches Washington and Whitfield at Highland Park to send their squad to Battle Creek. Even with the graduation of Trice/Jones and the departure of Dubose, HP has a solid team that will be the favorite in this weaker region. Don't count out Warren Woods Tower as Brumley, Lowry, and company lead a pretty solid squad.
Our Pick: Highland Park
116-2 at Gibralter Carlson
Top Contenders: Tecumseh, New Boston Huron
Outlook: Tecumseh appears to be the clear favorites out of this regional. They are not currently ranked in D2, however, Coach Connors' team has very few holes and will tough to beat for any of the teams in their regional. New Boston Huron may have the best chance at knocking Tecumseh off. This is a regional that makes teams like ER/Mason/Greenville/Lowell wish their was seeding in the team pairings.
Our Pick: Tecumseh
With all our picks from each regional, here is who we think you will be seeing in Battle Creek contending for a Division 2 State Title.
(listed up in order of Quarterfinal pairing formula)
Oxford vs Tecumseh
Gaylord vs Eaton Rapids
Greenville vs Highland Park
Allegan vs Stevensville Lakeshore
State Final Outlook
The road to the Division 2 state tournament is much harder to predict that the D1 race as many of the top teams take very tough roads to Battle Creek. #1 Mason will have to get through Fowlerville at districts and then #2 Eaton Rapids at regionals while #3 Greenville meets #8 Lowell at regionals as well. It appears that the favorites to win it all at Kellogg will be the winners of those two regionals.
The quarterfinal matchups will put Mason/ER and Lowell/Greenville apart from each other, which makes that the easy guess for the finals matchup. Tecumseh vs Oxford and Allegan vs Lakeshore should be closely contested quarterfinal matches and Greenville/Lowell could have their hands full with Allegan or Lakeshore in the semis, however, there are a ton of close D2 duals from districts all the way through to states, so alot could change from these picks. When the dust settles from regionals we will dive deeper into prediciting the D2 team state finals.
Full list of District/Regional pairings listed below:
DISTRICT/REGIONAL PAIRINGS
February 14, 2008
No. 133-2 Sault Ste Marie-Sault Area
Gaylord
Marquette
Petoskey
Sault Ste Marie-Sault Area
No. 134-2 Ludington
Ludington
Manistee
Mt Pleasant
No. 135-2 Bay City-John Glenn
Bay City-John Glenn
Clio
Mt Morris-EA Johnson
Ogemaw Heights
No. 136-2 North Branch
* Flint-Beecher (Flint-Hamady )
Flint-Kearsley
North Branch
No. 137-2 Linden
Flint Northern Academy
Linden
Owosso
Swartz Creek
No. 138-2 Oxford
Lapeer East
Lapeer West
Ortonville-Brandon
Oxford
No. 139-2 Farmington Hills-Harrison
Farmington
Farmington Hills-Harrison
Fenton
Orchard Lake-St Mary Preparatory
No. 140-2 Bloomfield Hills-Andover
Bloomfield Hills-Andover
Bloomfield Hills-Lahser
Pontiac Central
No. 141-2 Spring Lake
Coopersville
Fruitport
Muskegon-Reeths-Puffer
Spring Lake
No. 142-2 Grand Rapids-Northview
Grand Rapids-Creston
Grand Rapids-Kenowa Hills
Grand Rapids-Northview
Grand Rapids-Union
No. 143-2 Ada-Forest Hills Eastern
Ada-Forest Hills Eastern
Grand Rapids-Forest Hills Northern
Lowell
No. 144-2 Cedar Springs
Cedar Springs
Greenville
Sparta
No. 145-2 Plainwell
Allegan
Plainwell
Wayland Union
Zeeland East
No. 146-2 Wyoming Park
Byron Center
Grand Rapids-Central
Wyoming Park
Wyoming-Rogers
No. 147-2 Grand Rapids-Christian
East Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids-Christian
Grand Rapids-Forest Hills Central
Grand Rapids-Ottawa Hills
No. 148-2 Hastings
Caledonia
Hastings
Middleville-Thornapple Kellogg
No. 149-2 St Joseph
Benton Harbor
Niles
St Joseph
Stevensville-Lakeshore
No. 150-2 Portage Northern
Kalamazoo-Loy Norrix
Mattawan
Portage Northern
Vicksburg
No. 151-2 Three Rivers
Coldwater
Sturgis
Three Rivers
No. 152-2 Richland-Gull Lake
Battle Creek-Harper Creek
Battle Creek-Lakeview
Richland-Gull Lake
No. 153-2 Eaton Rapids
Eaton Rapids
Jackson-Northwest
Marshall
Parma-Western
No. 154-2 Fowlerville
Chelsea
Dexter
Fowlerville
Mason
No. 155-2 Charlotte
Charlotte
Haslett
Lansing Waverly
No. 156-2 St Johns
DeWitt
Ionia
St Johns
No. 157-2 St Clair Shores-Lakeview
Algonac
Marysville
St Clair Shores-Lake Shore
St Clair Shores-Lakeview
No. 158-2 Warren Lincoln
Center Line
Hamtramck
Warren Woods-Tower
Warren-Lincoln
No. 159-2 Warren-Fitzgerald
Ferndale
Hazel Park
Highland Park Community
Warren-Fitzgerald
No. 160-2 Berkley
Auburn Hills-Avondale
Berkley
Birmingham-Seaholm
No. 161-2 Dearborn Heights-Crestwood
Dearborn Heights-Annapolis
Dearborn Heights-Crestwood
Dearborn-Divine Child
Melvindale
No. 162-2 Milan
Adrian
Milan
Tecumseh
Ypsilanti
No. 163-2 Carleton-Airport
Carleton-Airport
Monroe-Jefferson
New Boston-Huron
No. 164-2 Allen Park
Allen Park
Gibraltar-OA Carlson
Riverview Community
Trenton
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