May 19, 2009

NEW FORMAT ACCOMPANIES 2009 BASEBALL TOURNEY PAIRINGS

Pairings for the 43rd Annual IHSAA Baseball State Tournament Series, with 389 teams included, were drawn this morning at the IHSAA Office in Indianapolis.

The 2009 tournament, which begins nine days from now, includes a new format from previous years affecting the sectional, regional and semi-state rounds.

Competition begins Thursday, May 28, with the 64 sectionals following a Thursday-Friday-Monday format and ends when tournaments of previous years were beginning.

Each of the sectional champions will advance to a four-team regional on Saturday, June 6. Two semifinal games will be played early that day at each site with the two winners returning for a championship game that evening. The 16 regional winners will be assigned to four semi-state sites and play a single game on Saturday, June 13, with a berth in the state championship game at stake. Previously, the regional was a two-team affair played on a Tuesday followed by a four-team semi-state that Saturday.

This year’s four state championship games, scheduled for Friday, June 19, and Saturday, June 20, will be played at Victory Field in Indianapolis.

Among the top-ranked teams in this week’s poll from the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association, 4A No. 1 Lake Central begins its tournament run against home-standing Munster in Sectional 1. In Class 3A, defending state champion and top-ranked Crawfordsville drew Southmont in the Sectional 25 opener at Danville; Class 2A’s top-ranked Elwood will meet Wapahani in Sectional 41 at Lapel and; Class A No. 1 Frontier drew a bye and will face the Tri-Central/Clinton Prairie winner in Sectional 53 at Lafayette Central Catholic.

Pairings for the other three defending state champions include: Decatur Central (Class 4A) drew a bye into the semifinals and will host the Ben Davis/Pike winner in Sectional 12; Fort Wayne Bishop Luers (Class 2A) will host Adams Central in the Sectional 38 opener and; Shakamak (Class A) will host Union (Dugger) in Sectional 57.

Daily schedules for each tournament site will be listed on the IHSAA website as they become available from the host schools. Because of possible weather postponements and other conflicts, it is advised to check with the host school for precise day and time schedules.

State Tournament Pairings | State Coaches Poll

Notables

Defending Sectional Champions

4A: Bloomington North, Carroll (Fort Wayne), Crown Point, Decatur Central, Evansville Harrison, Goshen, Homestead, Indianapolis Cathedral, Jeffersonville, Lake Central, McCutcheon, Pendleton Heights, Penn, Southport, Terre Haute South, Westfield.

3A: Andrean, Angola, Bellmont, Benton Central, Brebeuf Jesuit, Crawfordsville, Gibson Southern, Greensburg, Hammond Clark, Jasper, Lakeland, Mishawaka Marian, New Palestine, North Harrison, West Vigo, Yorktown.

2A: Austin, Boone Grove, Cass, Centerville, Churubusco, Covenant Christian (Indianapolis), Delphi, Eastern Greene, Elwood, Evansville Mater Dei, Fort Wayne Bishop Luers, Heritage Christian, South Ripley, Tipton, Westview, Wheeler.

A: Bethesda Christian, Cowan, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian, Frontier, Henryville, Jac-Cen-Del, Monroe Central, Morristown, North White, Northeast Dubois, Rockville, Shakamak, Tecumseh, Triton, Vincennes Rivet, Whiting.

Most Consecutive Sectional Championships

21 by Logansport, 1973-1993.

Active Sectional Championship Streaks (Three or more years)

8: Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian, Penn.

7: Andrean, Shakamak.

4: Crown Point, Indianapolis Cathedral.

3: Churubusco, Crawfordsville, Jac-Cen-Del, South Ripley, Tecumseh.

Most Sectional Championships Last 10 Years

9: Penn, Shakamak.

8: Andrean, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian, Tecumseh.

7: Indianapolis Cathedral, Jasper.

6: Boone Grove, Henryville, LaPorte, Madison, Plymouth, Wapahani, West Vigo.

5: Center Grove, Churubusco, Crown Point, Daleville, Evansville Mater Dei, Griffith, Lafayette Central Catholic, Lake Central, Norwell, Providence, Riverton Parke, Terre Haute South, Zionsville.

Top 10 All-Time Sectional Championships

34: LaPorte.

31: Jasper.

28: Logansport, Richmond.

24: Benton Central, Evansville Memorial.

23: Plymouth.

21: Jeffersonville, Madison.

20: Marion.

IHSAA 08-09/35