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Class 1A has four undefeated teams remaining in the draw after the opening round.
None were tested in the first round, but that’s probably changing this week as the quality of games with the remaining 16 teams escalated in a hurry.
First-round predictions: 13-3
Second-round matchups
Lena-Winslow vs. ROWVA: Lena-Winslow hasn’t lost a postseason game to a team not named Forreston since 2015. The Panthers are 21-2 over that stretch with three state titles. As such, the Panthers are heavy favorites to reach the quarterfinals over against a program that has only reached the quarters once in program history.
Pick: Lena-Winslow
Fulton vs. Rockford Lutheran: Fulton dispatched a team that is unorthodox for the 1A field in Aurora Christian in Round 1 and now faces a Rockford Lutheran team that until last week hadn’t played a postseason game in the Class 1A field since 1988. Lutheran is going to be a tricky out after honing its skills against largely 3A and 4A opponents all year, but if there’s a team that won’t waver because of that it might be Fulton.
Pick: Fulton
Hope Academy vs. Forreston: Hope Academy is trying to be the first-ever Chicago based school to win a Class 1A school to win a state title (The city has never won a 2A or 3A title either) but in order to stay on the path to doing that they will have to dispatch one of the most difficult teams in 1A to eliminate. Ignore Forreston’s record at this point, the Cardinals always bring a much higher level of play in the postseason.
Pick: Hope Academy
Ottawa Marquette vs. Dakota: The north half of the bracket looks something like a Northwest Upstate Illini Conference postseason tournament as the conference has one team in each of the second round games in the north. Dakota already pulled one minor upset in taking out Iroquois West in Round 1, but they’ll have to crank it up a notch to do it again against the Crusaders who are holding opponents to less than 10 points a game.
Pick: Ottawa Marquette
Ridgeview vs. Salt Fork: Ridgeview was a surprise lower-seed that kept advancing in last year’s postseason. They aren’t a surprise anymore or at the very least a co-favorite in the South bracket. Salt Fork is going hunting for an upset that they can actually finish off with a win. They came within one point of knocking Bismarck-Henning from the ranks of the undefeated earlier this year.
Pick: Ridgeview
Tuscola vs. Jacksonville Routt: Tuscola had to scratch and claw to get past a plucky Brown County squad in Round 1. That could be an indicator of what to expect in Round 2 as Jacksonville Routt didn’t have nearly as much trouble with the Hornets during its regular season matchup with them. Routt does have to invade Tuscola’s turf to earn that quarterfinal berth though.
Pick: Tuscola
Camp Point Central vs. Sesser-Valier: Camp Point Central looks poised to make another deep run in the Class 1A bracket but the most logical denier of a its path to the semifinals might be right here. Sesser-Valier entered the postseason as a bit of a wildcard out of the closed Black Diamond Conference but the ease that it took apart Moweaqua Central A&M in the opening round could indicate a capable challenger here.
Pick: Camp Point Central
Greenfield vs. Cumberland: Greenfield rattled through the first eight games of the season without a loss but due to a scheduling quirk didn’t play a single team that ended up with more than five wins during that stretch. They finally played one in Week 9 (Jacksonville Routt), but lost that game. Cumberland lost its first two games to Shelbyville and Tuscola, but since then the Pirates have upped their game during an eight-game winning streak.
Pick: Cumberland