The fall sports season has reached the halfway point in many sports and is nearing so in others, which means it will soon be time to start seriously talking about the postseason.
The state playoffs will operate a bit differently this year in the wake of changes approved by both the North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors and its member schools. The key things to know:
- In most team sports, 48 schools will qualify for the playoffs. Qualification will be determined solely by the MaxPreps RPI rating used by the NCHSAA.
- Once the 48 qualifiers are known, they’ll be divided into 24 schools each in the East and West brackets. Where a school falls will not be predetermined as in recent years – the 24 westernmost schools based on longitude will be in the West, with the rest in the East.
- Once the 24 schools are in each bracket, they’ll be ranked 1-24 and that will determine byes and pairings. The top eight schools in each bracket will receive a first-round bye.
It’s a much simpler system than in recent years – a glance at the RPI can tell a school whether it’s in the postseason or not.
Get PolkSports delivered to your inbox
Sign up for our free newsletter →
Here is a look at the current placement for each Polk County team as of midday on Sept. 17. For sports such as football and girls tennis, there may still be large swings in ratings given the small number of games played to date. Volleyball and boys soccer will also be subject to fluctuations with at least half the season still to be played.
FOOTBALL: Polk County currently sits 27th in 3A RPI, sandwiched between Shelby (26) and Chase (28).
Based on current numbers, Polk County would be the 13th seed in the 3A West bracket. The top eight seeds receive a first-round bye, so Polk wouldn’t get a bye, but would get a first-round home game. The Wolverines would open the playoffs against 20th-seeded Bessemer City, then would face a potential second-round game at West Davidson.
Louisburg is the top-ranked 3A team at present and would have the top seed in the 3A East field, with second-ranked North Stanly owning the top seed in the 3A West field.
BOYS SOCCER: Polk County currently sits as the top-ranked team in the state with its 6-0-2 record.
That would get the Wolverines the top seed in the 3A West field, obviously, and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
At present, Polk County would host a second-round game against the winner of the East Surry-Shelby match.
GIRLS TENNIS: Polk County won’t have to worry about qualifying for the state dual team playoffs. The field includes 48 teams, and there are only 46 schools listed at present in the latest RPI rankings.
Polk County sits 32nd at present in the state ratings. While we don’t know how the NCHSAA will handle the field with fewer than 48 teams, we’ve opted to split the teams into two 23-team brackets. That puts Polk County at 15th in the 3A West field, which would mean a first-round home match against Lincolnton.
A win would mean a second-round trip to Mount Airy, who would be the the second seed in the 3A West field.
Greene Central currently holds the top spot in the 3A state rankings.
VOLLEYBALL: Two-time defending state champion Polk County sits eighth at present in the 3A rankings.
That would earn the Wolverines the third seed in the 3A West bracket. Polk County would get a first-round bye and would host a second-round match with the winner of North Stanly and Madison.
Pine Lake Prep and Owen hold the top two spots in the 3A West bracket at present.
