PIAA Brackets

[TarheelFan]

Just looked at the AA boys bracket, Central (D6-2) plays Beaver Falls (D7-3) at the Fieldhouse. That's a home game for Central, so Zonebreaker, your theory is wrong.

[costanza]

that is what seems crazy about the whole thing...

[WPIAL~Titan]

You D6ers may not like the PIAA policy for PIAA site selection, but it is what it is. here it is:
http://www.piaa.org/news/details.aspx?ID=2814

6-1 and 6-2 get 1st round games in their district, that's it.

2nd round games and beyond are at a neutral site, as equidistant as possible geographically from both competing schools. This also depends on site availability, suitability, etc.

This issue really reared its head when the PIAA went away from the traditional east-west brackets about a decade ago. For example, in AAAA and AAA, there are many more teams in the eastern part of the state, therefore a pod of 8 teams feeds into the "western" bracket. This creates a "western" final which is often a District 1 or 12 (Philly and burbs) team vs. a WPIAL team, and a game that is somewhere in the center of the state, like Chambersburg HS or Williamsport HS (where last year's AAAA western final between New Castle and Lower Merion was held.) It generates some 3 hour +/- bus rides for both teams on a Tuesday or Wednesday night on the PA turnpike to the middle of nowhere, central PA, and has hurt attendance at some games. With that said, it's only fair that eastern PA gets its share of PIAA bids because something like 75% of the AAAA teams are considered eastern teams.

A true east-west bracket is more possible in AA and A where there is more of a balance.

If a District 7 team would play say a District 3 team in a western final, chances are that the final would be played at a place like the AAHS Fieldhouse, like the Schenley-Harrisburg AAAA western final was several years ago (DuJuan Blair's sr year).

Two of the last 10 years or so, Erie Prep played Lower Merion in a AAAA boys western final. One game was played at Bald eagle Area HS and the other at State College Area HS.

If you drove from Erie Prep to Lower Merion, it would be a 6 to 6.5 hour drive.

Interesting topic.

[lhacbigfan]

The reason Central gets a game in D6 is because D6 AA boys get 4 teams in the state playoffs. In girls, D6 AA only gets 3 teams into states. There is no overall "top seed" in the Western part of the bracket so I'm not sure where you're getting that from.

[TarheelFan]

D7-1 is always the first team on the top of the bracket on the western side. Boys and girls, A through AAAA.

[lhacbigfan]

Doesn't mean they are the top seed. After the first round, placement on the bracket means nothing. If you look at the AAA and AAAA brackets D7 is not at the top of the western half.

[zonebreaker]

Just looked at the AA boys bracket, Central (D6-2) plays Beaver Falls (D7-3) at the Fieldhouse. That's a home game for Central, so Zonebreaker, your theory is wrong.

How I explained it before is how it was explained to me and when I looked it up years ago, there was a passage in the handbook explaining something like I wrote before but not in as much detail. It said how the home team is based on being a higher-ranking team when considering how many teams that district is coming from. (i.e. the 2nd best team from a district of 100 schools is a "higher seed" than the top team from a district of 5 schools...(you need 4 to have district tournament)).

Maybe they don't always use this system or not always follow it when it is really close. Or they used to and now only somewhat use it. idk. Most of the times when I've looked at brackets, this explanation holds and it makes sense. The exception you pointed out is close (closer than the girls game b/c d6 has 22 boys teams in AA and only 18 girls teams). Maybe the PIAA is trying to show some favoritism to a team that finishes 1st or 2nd. not for sure.

[Coach]

Central vs Hickory in football this year wasn't played where it should have been...

[voncap]

I also believe that the hosting district(top team in the bracket) has the say on the location of the first round games. They have no obligation to find a mid-point location for these games. So if you are the traveling team you are at the mercy of the hosting district where you have to go to play.