There’s a strong chance Portage County is making the trip to Salem.
The top half of the Division III Salem bracket is loaded with Portage County teams, with No. 1 Waterloo and No. 4 Mogadore earning first-round byes and potentially in line to face each other in a March 4 district semifinal.
There could be a Portage Trail Conference County Division rematch beforehand.
No. 5 Rootstown is set to host No. 12 Crestview in a Feb. 26 first-round game. A win would send the Rovers back to Mogadore, where they fell 72-57 Friday night. The Rovers won the teams’ first meeting back in Rootstown.
It would be the latest in an epic rivalry as the Rovers and Wildcats have also squared off for the County Division football title two years running, with many of the same kids taking the hardwood as the gridiron.
The Bombers could also be headed for a rematch. Should No. 5 Windham get past No. 13 Bloomfield Feb. 26, it would play host to No. 5 Newbury in a March 1 sectional final. The Bombers lost their season opener to the Black Knights before beating them by six later in the season.
Back to the Portage Trail Conference, No. 6 Crestwood will play host to No. 11 Brooklyn Feb. 26, and would travel to No. 3 Elyria Catholic March 1 with a win. The Panthers are 10-7 and only got 11 more votes than the Red Devils in the seeding voting.
No. 7 Garfield will be favored against No. 10 Grand Valley, which struggled mightily against Crestwood and Windham teams that the G-Men beat this season, but would then be an underdog in a potential March 1 sectional final against second-seeded LaBrae. The Vikings eliminated the G-Men last year and took a 76-70 victory in Garrettsville earlier this season.
In the Metro Division, Streetsboro’s strong conference season hasn’t been ignored. The Rockets have challenged themselves with a tough non-conference schedule (leading to a 1-6 non-conference record), while compiling an 8-5 Metro mark. They were rewarded with a Division II Stow first-round game in Streetsboro Feb. 26, as the eighth-seeded Rockets play host to No. 9 Orange. The reward for winning? A March 1 date with Hunter Drenth and the Revere Minutemen.
Also in the Division II Stow district, No. 11 Ravenna makes the trip to No. 6 Chagrin Falls, and No. 13 Southeast, still seeking its first win of the season, has a cross-division first-round date with No. 4 Woodridge, this year’s Metro Division champion. The Bulldogs are balanced as can be — and on a serious tear, having won 10 straight games.
Woodridge’s Tuesday opponent, Aurora, earned the No. 7 seed and will host No. 10 Cleveland John F. Kennedy Feb. 26. The winner gets No. 2 Gilmour Academy.
The Falcons join Metro rivals Coventry, Norton and Springfield in the Division II Canton district, with No. 13 Field making a first-round trip to No. 4 Alliance.
From the Suburban American, No. 10 Roosevelt visits No. 7 Wadsworth Feb. 27 with the winner traveling to No. 2 Copley March 2. The Rough Riders haven’t played the Grizzlies this season. They fell to the Indians, 67-43, Jan. 11, and are set to travel to Copley for their final Suburban American battle Feb. 22.