High school softball: Buckeye gets fourth seed in Division III draw

The Buckeye softball team is the favorite to reach the district finals for a third consecutive season after the OHSAA released the tournament draws for Divisions III-VII. The Bucks (15-5 entering Monday) earned the fourth seed after finishing behind Archbishop Hoban (16-4), Gilmour (10-4) and Uniontown Lake (12-6) in the RPI rankings. The fourth seed was the best among Medina County's five teams in those divisions, ahead of Cloverleaf in D-IV and Black River in D-VI, who each came in at No. 17. The draws for Medina and Brunswick in D-I and Wadsworth in D-II are Sunday. Buckeye earned a bye in the Northeast 5 District quarterfinals and will host the winner of No 26 Padua Franciscan (8-9) and No. 34 Bedford (4-6) on May 19. A win there would likely mean a matchup with eighth-seeded Youngstown Ursuline at Leavittsburg LeBrae two days later. The Bucks won their first district title on the way to the regional finals two years ago before being upset by West Geauga in last year's district finals. The county's other D-III team, Highland, earned the 28th seed out of 46 teams. The Hornets (6-14) have won three out of their last five games entering Monday's game at Barberton. Highland travels to No. 15 Westlake (11-5) for a Northeast 2 District quarterfinal on May 14. The winner will likely face ninth-seeded Youngstown Boardman (10-7) in the semifinals. Fifth-seeded Midview (16-5) is the top team in the district and sits in the top half of the bracket. North Royalton is the district final host. The Colts host No. 28 Villa Angela-St. Joseph (3-9) in a D-IV, Northeast 1 District quarterfinal on May 14. The winner takes on either seventh-seeded Marlington (13-5) or No. 31 Ravenna (2-13) in the semifinals. Top-seeded Elyria Catholic (16-3) sits on the top half of the bracket and is the likely opponent in a district final at Dalton. The Pirates (3-11) host No. 20 Lake Center Christian (6-9) in a D-VI, Northeast 3 District quarterfinal May 13. The winner takes on either Independence (9-3), which earned the fourth seed out of 31 teams, or No. 30 Fairport Harbor Harding (0-11) in the semifinals. No. 10 Mogadore (7-6) is the best seed on the bottom half of the bracket. Perry hosts this district final. Medina Christian (1-7) is the 31st seed in D-VI and will travel to second-seeded Hillsdale (14-2) in the quarterfinals. The Falcons are the top seed in the Northeast 1 District, with sixth-seeded Mineral Ridge (14-5) the best team on the bottom of the bracket. The district final will be hosted by Triway. Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com. Tournament schedule (All games at 5 p.m. unless otherwise noted.) DIVISION III, NORTHEAST 5 May 14 — Bedford at Padua Franciscan; Gates Mills Hawken at St. Vincent-St. Mary; Louisville at Youngstown Ursuline. May 19 — Padua-Bedford winner at Buckeye; St. Vincent-St. Mary/Hawken winner at Ursuline/Louisville winner. May 21 — District final at Leavittsburg LeBrae. DIVISION III, NORTHEAST 2 May 14 — Revere at Chardon Notre Dame Cathedral Latin; Barberton at Midview; Highland at Westlake; Youngstown East at Boardman. May 19 — Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin/Revere winner vs Midview/Barberton winner; Highland/Westlake winner vs East/Boardman winner. May 21 — District final at North Royalton. DIVISION IV, NORTHEAST 1 May 14 — Rocky River Lutheran West at Niles McKinley; Ravenna at Alliance Marlington; Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph at Cloverleaf. May 19 — McKinley/Lutheran West winner at Elyria Catholic; Villa Angela-St. Joseph/Cloverleaf winner vs Marlington/Ravenna winner. May 21 — District final at Dalton. DIVISION VI, NORTHEAST 1 May 13 — Medina Christian at Jeromesville Hillsdale; Campbell Memorial at Newton Falls; Apple Creek Waynedale at Hanoverton United; Warren John F. Kennedy at Mineral Ridge. May 18 — Newton Falls/Campbell Memorial winner vs Hillsdale/Medina Christian winner; United/Waynedale winner vs Mineral Ridge/John F. Kennedy winner. May 20 — District final at Wooster Triway. DIVISION VI, NORTHEAST 3 May 13 — Fairport Harbor Harding at Independence; Hartville Lake Center Christian at Black River; Loudonville at Columbiana Crestview; East Canton at Mogadore. May 18 — Lake Center Christian/Black River winner vs Independence/Fairport Harding winner; Crestview/Loudonville winner vs Mogadore/East Canton winner. May 20 — District final at Perry.