Area girls’ basketball tournament schedule
By Greg Seubert
The road to the WIAA State Girls’ Basketball Tournament begins Tuesday, Feb. 9.
Iola-Scandinavia, Weyauwega-Fremont, Manawa and New London will open postseason play that day, while Waupaca, Clintonville and Hortonville have a bye in the opening round and will not play until Friday, Feb. 12.
Here’s a rundown of where area teams will play and who they will face:
Division 1
Hortonville has a bye on Feb. 9 and will open tournament play with a home game on Friday, Feb. 12.
The Polar Bears are a No. 2 seed and will host third-seeded Stevens Point.
Division 2
Fourth-seeded New London host No.5 Little Chute Feb. 9 to take on the fourth-seeded Mustangs.
Meanwhile, third-seeded Waupaca will travel to Appleton Feb. 12 to face No. 2 Fox Valley Lutheran.
Division 3
Sixth-seeded Weyauwega-Fremont will head to Wautoma Feb. 9 to play the third-seeded Hornets.
Third-seeded Clintonville has a bye in the first round and will play at second-seeded Wittenberg-Birnamwood Feb. 12.
Division 4
Fourth-seeded Manawa will host No. 5 Reedsville Feb. 9.
Iola-Scandinavia also has a home game that day, as the third-seeded Thunderbirds will host No. 6 Pittsville.
Regional championships are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 13, with the highest seed hosting.
Sectional semifinal games will be played Thursday, Feb. 18, with sectional finals slated for Saturday, Feb. 20.
All games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
• The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association has named the La Crosse Center as one of the two host venues for the state girls’ and boys’ tournaments, scheduled for Feb. 25-27 and March 4-6, respectively.
“We are very excited about the opportunity to partner with the La Crosse Center to be a host site,” WIAA Assistant Director Kate Peterson Abiad said. “Art Fahey, on behalf of the La Crosse Center, has worked hard to provide us with a plan that will offer a tremendous experience for state-bound athletes in a safety-conscious environment. As always, the city of La Crosse has extended a warm welcome to the WIAA and our state tournament endeavors.”
Three of the five divisions – to be determined at a later date – will be held at the facility for both genders. Two semifinals and a championship game for each division scheduled on one of the three days.