3A Second Round, Official Pairings...

[screwloose]

Carlisle @ Washington
Gilbert @ Dallas Center-Grimes
Newton @ Pella
Norwalk @ Creston
Sergeant Bluff-Luton @ Carroll
Solon @ West Delaware, Manchester
Waverly-Shell Rock @ Xavier, Cedar Rapids
Webster City @ Bishop Heelan Catholic, Sioux City

 

[KidSilverhair]

I guess this helps answer the question of whether the state was going to continue to use seeding in the later rounds. There were a lot of options in central Iowa - not to mention the 9-mile distance between Sergeant Bluff and Heelan - but the IAHSAA sent both the surviving #4 seeds to play at #1s, with Newton going to Pella and Webster City to Heelan.

I think that's good. The road should be tougher for a #4 seed, if they're able to win that first round. Heck, Pella-Newton is even a rematch from early October ... non-district, sure, but still a rematch. We'll see if Pella can repeat their 69-14 thrashing of the Cardinals.

 

[KidSilverhair]

And, if I may take a peek ahead towards next Friday:

Strong favorites to advance to the quarterfinals would be Pella, Heelan, Carroll and Xavier. I am less certain of the other four winners, although I have a good feeling about Creston and Solon. The Carlisle-Washington and Gilbert-Dallas Center Grimes games look like tossups to me.

If I'm right about those first four, surely Carroll at Heelan would be one quarterfinal (if I read the postseason manual correctly, home field for third-round games this year is determined by 1) district finish; 2) district record; 3) head to head; and 4) reverse alphabetical order). I think the winner of Solon/West Delaware would be at Xavier. After that, who knows? Somebody goes to Pella, probably Washington if they win. If Creston wins, they likely play Dallas Center Grimes, if they're a winner too. If it's Creston, Gilbert, and Washington that advance, then you could see Creston-Pella and Washington-Gilbert.

Just a lot of variables, still. If forced to make a Kreskin-esque prediction this morning, here's what I might project for next Friday (all of these are rematches, by the way, so head to head breaks any district finish/record ties):

Carroll at Heelan
Solon at Xavier
Creston at Dallas Center-Grimes
Carlisle at Pella

 

[fmclonefan]

Kinda surprised by these three matchup:

Gilbert @ Dallas Center-Grimes
Newton @ Pella
Norwalk @ Creston

Two of these are rematches. They could have done it so that none of them were rematches but it looks like they wanted #4 Newton to play a #1 seed which would have created a rematch somewhere, so they chose to do it this way. Geographic wise it does make the most sense though, but don't know how much that factored into it.

 

[Vroom_C14]

Washington
Dallas Center-Grimes
Pella
Norwalk
Sergeant Bluff-Luton
Solon
Xavier, Cedar Rapids
Bishop Heelan Catholic, Sioux City