Here they are, hot off the presses: my picks for the 2011 playoffs. Some would say that I cheated by waiting for four first-round games to take place Wednesday before I made my picks. I would argue that my column runs on Thursdays, so my hands were tied. So, without further ado, here we go.
Class AAA
Number of teams in district: 8
Teams in field: 4
Top seed: Jersey Shore
Lowest seed: Danville
2010 champion: Jersey Shore
Who goes to states: Only the champion
Predicted winner: Milton
Runner-up: Jersey Shore
Dark horse: Danville
Interesting stuff you should know: As far as AAA schools are concerned, this is a small district. Nevertheless, both Milton and Jersey Shore have appeared in state title games in recent years: Milton in 2008 and Jersey Shore last year. Both teams took silver. ... Shamokin is in the playoffs for the first time since 2006, when the Indians were in Class AA. ... Since District 4 started hosting its own Class AAA tournament in 2005, only three teams have won: Shikellamy (2005), Milton (2006 to 2009) and Jersey Shore (2010).
Class AA
Number of teams in district: 15
Teams in field: 12
Top seed: Central Columbia
Lowest seed: Hughesville
2010 champion: Troy
Who goes to states: The finalists
Predicted winner: Central Columbia
Runner-up: Warrior Run
Dark horse: Troy
Interesting stuff you should know: Central Columbia and fourth-seeded Mifflinburg could meet in the semifinals next week. The two teams split their regular-season meetings. ... Central Columbia, second-seeded Warrior Run, Mifflinburg and third-seeded Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech have the first-round byes; they won't play until Friday in the quarterfinals. ... Central has played in the final of this tournament in three of the past five years.
Class A
Number of teams in district: 18
Teams in field: 8
Top seed: Northeast Bradford
Lowest seed: East Juniata
2010 champion: Montgomery
Who goes to states: The finalists
Predicted winner: Southern Columbia
Runner-up: Montgomery
Dark horse: East Juniata
Interesting stuff you should know: Montgomery made it to the state final last year, falling to Chartiers-Houston. ... Since the PIAA increased the number of softball classes to four in 2005, five different teams have won this tournament: Canton (2005), East Juniata (2006-07), Northeast Bradford (2008), Muncy (2009) and Montgomery (2010). ... This field is very Tiger-centric, with no fewer than three schools (East Juniata, Southern Columbia and Galeton) having that nickname.
— Sports reporter Todd Stanford covers high school softball for The Daily Item. E-mail comments to tstanford@dailyitem.com.
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