Thursday, October 16, 2008

UNCERTAINTY REIGNS: CAPTAIN BRINN'S STATE VOLLEYBALL TOURNEY PREVIEW


Sectional matches are underway and in a few short weeks people will gather at The Nutter Center on the campus of Wright State University to see who will be crowned the 2008 State Volleyball Champions. It is an exciting time if you love high school volleyball, where some of the best girls' high school players year after year are featured, as Ohio consistently produces some of the top college recruits annually.
So, this begins Captain Brinn's State Volleyball Tournament Preview for 2008. We have been working on to extend our coverage and offer you something to talk about! One thing is for sure this season, while L.C.C. and Cincinnati Ursuline have pretty much dominated their respective divisions, they certainly aren't dominant and are vulnerable. Same goes for the state title hunts in Division 2 and Division 4, where any number of teams could walk away with the crown. Right now, all signs point to Tippecanoe in D2 and Jackson Center in D4, but there are plenty of spoilers in the mix to get in the way of the dreams of a state crown for these #1 teams. L.C.C. won't sneak up on anyone in D3 like they did last season. Certainly Albany Alexander has revenge on their mind after being beaten by the T-Birds in last year's D3 title match. In D1, Ursuline has state champion written all over them. And we have all come to expect a Cincinnati GGCL team winning the D1 title. After all, they have dominated this division year-after-year. But, for the first time in many years a non-private school has a fairly good shot at winning it all. Olmsted Falls has proven to be the real deal this season, and they should have a good chance at dethroning the GGCL's chokehold on the D1 title. D4's final four will likely look a lot like last year. We fully expect Newark Catholic, Norwalk St. Paul and Jackson Center to be there again, and the defending state champions Marion Local have an excellent chance at getting back, though New Bremen will have something to say about this. However, while Jackson Center is the favorite, the parity amongst all of these teams in the mix could make for an exciting time in D4.
Here is a look at some of what we are planning for our tournament coverage over the next few weeks beginning tonight!
  • Later tonight: Read our exclusive interview with Olmsted Falls Head Coach Dawn Moses
  • Later tonight: Check out our picks for the D1 and D2 Regional Tournaments
  • Tomorrow: Check out our picks for the D3 and D4 Regional Tournaments
  • Tomorrow: Read our exclusive interview with Tippecanoe Head Coach Pat Carus
  • This weekend: Analysis of various tourney matches
  • Next week: After regionals are set, check out our picks for the state final four and the state champions
  • Next week: Read our exclusive interview and an inside look at the state volleyball with Dr. Deborah Moore, assistant commissioner of the OHSAA
  • PLUS MORE THAT IS IN THE WORKS!
We invite you to join the social community at http://cbohiovarsity.ning.com and share your tourney pictures and videos. You can upload them straight to the community.
We also invite you to submit your regional tournament picks by emailing us at captainbrinn@gmail.com and we will post your picks!

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