Central Oregonian

Clarifying the play-in situation

Volleyball is in, while football, boys and girls soccer may each need one more win

Lon Austin

With the advent of the new play-in format, which was phased in beginning with baseball last year, there has been some confusion about Crook County High School’s play-in position.

With this being the final regular week for fall athletics, the play-in and playoff picture are starting to come into focus, but there are still several unanswered questions.

The picture is most clear in volleyball.

The Cowgirls, who are looking for their sixth-consecutive state volleyball championship, are ranked No. 1 in the Class 4A OSAA Power Rankings. They will host Mazama at 6 p.m. on Saturday in a play-in match. Should the Cowgirls win as expected, they would then host a first-round game against the lowest-seeded team remaining in a first-round playoff game on Saturday, Nov. 5. Barring any major upsets in the play-in round, Baker would be the Cowgirls’ most likely opponent.

Boys and girls soccer are also beginning to come into focus. Both the Cowboys and Cowgirls are low enough in the power rankings that the only way they can earn a play-in game is by winning the Special District I league championship. Both teams earn play-in games if they defeat Roosevelt in games that are scheduled for CCHS on Saturday at noon. However, should the teams lose, they may still not be out of the play-in picture as both CCHS teams defeated Roosevelt in their first match-up earlier this season.

Should the boys soccer team win the league title, they will travel to Milton-Freewater to face McLoughlin High School, the Greater Oregon League champions, on Saturday, Nov. 5. The girls team is in exactly the same situation: win the district title and face Greater Oregon League champions, La Grande, on Nov. 5.

In football, the picture is much less clear.

The Cowboys are ranked 25th in the latest power rankings. If the play-in games were held today, Crook County would earn the No. 3 at-large berth. Roosevelt, who defeated the Cowboys earlier this year, currently holds the No. 1 at large-berth, which means that the two teams would face each other in a rematch on either Friday or Saturday, Nov. 4 or 5.

However, unlike soccer, the Cowboys appear to have a good chance of earning a play-in game regardless of whether they win or lose their game at Hood River Valley tonight. If Crook County wins, they earn a play-in game. If Cascade, who currently holds the second at-large berth loses, the Cowboys could move up to second. If the Cowboys fall to Hood River Valley, they could remain in third or fall all the way out of the play-in picture. The outcome of games involving Estacada, Taft, and McLoughlin, who are also still in the hunt for one of the five at-large berths, could decide where the Cowboys will wind up. If the Cowboys should happen to move up to second, they would host a play-in game next weekend. If they drop in the standings, they would either face a road game against the first-or second-place team from the Greater Oregon League, or could find themselves out of the play-in picture entirely.

The nice thing about the new format is that every Crook County team currently controls their own destiny. Win and they are in — regardless of what anyone else does.