The road to the state championship begins for teams in Missouri and Illinois as postseason competition gets underway this weekend.
On the Missouri side, everyone will be participating in the district playoffs. The first-round games will be held this weekend with many of the top teams getting byes until next week.
The most intriguing playoff grouping will be in Class 6, District 2, which has a loaded field of teams. Heading the field are No. 1 seed CBC and No. 2 seed Lafayette, who both finished the regular season with 9-0 records. Also in the district are SLUH (7-2) and DeSmet, which won the state championship last season.
To get all of the first-round pairings and brackets of all six classes, you can visit the website, www.mshsaa.org.
On the Illinois side, all eyes will be on the East St. Louis Flyers, who are looking to bring home another IHSA Class 6A state championship. The Flyers (6-3) are the No. 8 seed in their bracket. They will host No. 9 seed Plainfield East in a first-round game at Jordan Stadium in East St. Louis. As of press time, the date and time is still TBD.
To get all of the pairings and brackets for the Illinois state playoffs, you can visit the website, www.ihsa.org.
The Undefeated
Congratulations to the teams that finished the regular season with undefeated records. In addition to CBC and Lafayette, the other undefeated teams were Gateway STEM and St. Dominic. All four teams finished the season with 9-0 records. Gateway STEM is the No. 1 seed in the Class 4, District 3 field. St. Dominic is the No. 1 seed in Class 6, District 4.
Standout Performers from Week 9
Travis Allen (University City): The sophomore running back rushed for 185 yards on 29 carries and two touchdowns in the Lions’ 38-6 victory over Jennings.
Trystan King (Parkway South): The junior running back rushed for 234 yards on 22 carries and four touchdowns in the Patriots’ 42-8 victory over Hazelwood West.
Terrance Little (Hazelwood East): The junior running back rushed for 169 yards on 24 carries and a touchdown in the Spartans’ 21-17 victory over Parkway West.
Nick McClellan (CBC): The senior quarterback amassed 315 yards of total offense and had three touchdowns in the Cadets’ 56-9 victory over St. Mary’s.
Jayden Burleson (Fort Zumwalt North): The junior running back rushed for 195 yards on seven carries and four touchdowns in the Panthers’ 49-14 victory over Timberland.
Manny Ellis (Cardinal Ritter): The senior running back scored four rushing touchdowns in the Lions’ 42-22 victory over Lutheran North.
Sullivan Thornton (Wentzville Liberty): The junior quarterback completed 17 of 23 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles’ 42-10 victory over Holt.
Isaac Hudson (Chaminade): The junior wide receiver caught five passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns in the Red Devils’ 37-27 victory over Hickman.
Terance Bills (Lafayette): The senior wide receiver caught six passes for 110 yards and a touchdown in the Lancers’ 43-15 victory over Marquette.
Cam Sharp (DeSmet): The junior running back rushed for 175 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown in the Spartans’ 30-15 victory over Edwardsville.
Ta’vren Williams (North Point): The junior quarterback completed seven of seven passes for 195 yards and five touchdowns in the Grizzlies’ 67-10 victory over St. Charles.
Kindall Young (Summit): The junior running back rushed for 244 yards on 36 carries and a touchdown in the Falcons’ 26-0 victory over Ritenour.