Playoff picture becomes clearer

One week remains during the regular season in both football and volleyball, setting up critical games for several teams looking to move up the standings.

The Northern Section released the playoff points standings last week which will be used to determine the playoff seedings.

Though the playoff points system is the primary tool used for seeding in the playoffs, there are several factors the seeding committee will take into account including, in some extreme cases, travel distance. Nothing is set in stone until the regular season is over and the official brackets are released.

Football

The top two teams in Division II play each other in the final game of the regular season with the top seed on the line. Orland High will need to rebound from a surprising loss to No. 6 seed Yreka last Friday with a win against Sutter. The winner of that game would win the Butte View League and have the head-to-head advantage in the playoff seeding.

Corning is currently in the fourth spot with 20.92 points, just behind Lassen, which has 21.41 points. Corning hosts DII opponent Winters on Friday, while Lassen hosts DI Enterprise. Six teams make the DII playoffs, so a Corning win and a Lassen loss could mean a home playoff game for the Cardinals.

In Division III the top five teams are from the Sacramento Valley League. Durham sits atop the standings with 21.54 points followed by Live Oak (20.89), Pierce (20.69), Willows (17.17) and Trinity (12.44). Esparto High of the Mid-Valley League sits in the final playoff spot with 10.73 points, ahead of University Prep (9.34).

Because the top five teams are all from the SVL, the playoff points will take a back-seat to the league standings and head-to-head matchups. Section guidelines state that teams will not be seeded outside their league finishes.

Heading into the final week of the season three teams are tied atop the SVL standings with one loss each. Durham has already finished its league season and will claim a share of the league title. Pierce's one league loss came to the Trojans, but the Bears own a win against Live Oak and the Lions beat Durham. Willows could help sort out the mess with a win on the road against Live Oak on Friday.

There are no undefeated teams in Division III, but Hamilton sits in the top spot with 25.28 points. Eight teams make the playoffs in Division IV and the final week of the season will likely shake the current order up. Chester and Maxwell are in a tight battle for the No. 2 seed. The two teams split the regular season games but Chester (21.59) holds a slim lead over Maxwell (21.08). The Panthers have one game remaining against Biggs and the Volcanoes have no games remaining on their schedule.

Modoc is a fraction of a point behind Maxwell with 21.07, and Quincy could make some noise with 20.78 points. Portola, Fall River, and East Nicolaus fill out the remaining eight spots while Biggs would likely need to upset Maxwell to earn a shot at the playoffs.

Volleyball

To qualify for the Northern Section volleyball playoffs, teams must finish with a .500 record or better in either their overall record, league record or in-division record.

West Valley High sits in the top spot in Division IV with 4 points followed by playoff eligible teams, Sutter (8 points), Willows (10), Wheatland (11), Orland (15) and Yreka (15).

Though up to 16 teams can qualify for the playoffs, the only other teams with a chance at earning a spot are Anderson (16 points), which enters the final week of the regular season needing to win one of its two final regular season games to finish at .500 in league, and Gridley (19) which is currently 4-3 in the Butte View League with one game remaining.

In Division V, Hamilton High is the top seed with 5 points. University Prep (8), Pierce (11), Portola (13), Quincy (16), Los Molinos (18), Mt. Shasta (19), Modoc (22) and Tulelake (27) will all qualify for the playoffs.

Colusa would need to upset Pierce to be .500 within the division to qualify. Williams needs one win in its final two games against Esparto or Portola to finish .500 in league and earn a spot in the playoffs. Weed would need to win its final two games to become eligible and Esparto would need to split its final two games.

Champion Christian leads the Division VI points race with 5. Westwood High (8) is in second ahead of Mercy and Fall River, which are tied with 10 points. Redding Adventist (14) leads Princeton (15) in points, but Princeton will be ranked above the Lumberjacks due to finishing ahead in the Pioneer-Valley League standings.

Liberty Christian (18), Dunsmuir (18), Greenville (19) and Redding Christian (20) round out the rest of the teams which will likely qualify for playoffs. Chester would need to win its final two games to be .500 in league and earn a spot in the post-season.

CONTACT Kirk Barron at 458-2121 or kbarron@tcnpress.com.