The question of the easiness of the road to a state tournament getting easier only depends on the school and program.
�At Geneseo, we will be 3A and still have a tough road to ever get to state,� said Storm. �But, it is true that some of the normal big school obstacles will not be there. And, should we be fortunate enough and work hard enough to be good enough to get there, we would be excited and proud."
For a school like Maple Park Kaneland, the regional and sectional brackets are filled with bigger suburban Chicago schools in cities such as Aurora, Naperville, Wheaton and St. Charles. Kaneland made it to the Super-Sectionals in softball three years ago only to lose to Roselle Lake Park. They also made it to the sectional finals in girls basketball last year, only to lose to Naperville Central. Last year in the softball sectional, they lost to West Aurora.
"It comes three years too late for us. The new class system will benefit us a great deal. It will keep us away from the real big schools in the post-season,� said Kaneland girls basketball and softball coach Dennis Hansen. �It puts us on amore even level with the four classes."
It also helps Dakota�s softball team.
"At first glance, I didn't mind the change,� said Cline. �Even though we will go from a middle of the pack 1A team to a small 2A school, we are not being asked to play anyone any larger than we are now. In fact, the ceiling was lowered from around 750 to 714, eliminating some pretty good 700+ schools from our path. Couple that with the multiplier bumping all the Privates in the 435+ range up, and we are in better shape than we were before."
Cline also adds that in softball, most of the best teams would be moved up to 2A under the new system and even 3A.
"Speaking strictly from a softball point of view, I am not happy,� he added. �Of the Top 25 teams in Class A softball this year as ranked by the Illinois Coaches Association pre-season poll, 24 will be Class 2A teams. Furthermore, of the other 17 teams receiving consideration, 12 will be 2A. This means, of the top 42 softball teams in Class A this year, 36 will be 2A teams in 07-08. What makes it worse is that we will now be fighting for only 4 State Tourney spots? How has this made things better? Of the remaining six teams mentioned in this year's pre-season softball poll, two will be 3A schools, leaving only four of this year's top 42 teams playing 1A softball in 07-08. What kind of a tourney is that?" |
