Breaking down the H.S. soccer district tournaments
Now that all of the district volleyball champions have been crowned, district soccer tournaments take over West Tennessee this week.
The three West Tennessee district tournaments will have champions crowned on Thursday, while the Division II-A region will have its semifinals on Tuesday.
Only the top two teams in the district move on to the region tournament, so matches throughout the week have a lot of meaning.
Here are the breakdowns of the four tournaments going on this week:
District 13 A-AA
Dates, Location: Monday at higher seed; Tuesday and Thursday at Westview
Matchups: No. 3 South Gibson vs. No. 6 Crockett County; No. 4 McKenzie vs. No. 5 Obion County. No. 1 Westview, No. 2 Dyersburg received byes.
Favorite: Westview: The Lady Chargers pulled out an undefeated district record with a win in penalty kicks over Dyersburg.
Dark horse: Dyersburg. The Lady Trojans have won the last two district championships.
What to know: This is the second year of this re-establishment of this district, and Dyersburg has won both titles. The previous four years there was no other district, so there was just one big region tournament. Westview did win the district title from 2006-08. South Gibson is trying to reach its first-ever district title match.
District 14 A-AA
Dates, location: Monday at higher seed; Tuesday and Thursday at Lexington
Matchups: No. 1 Trenton Peabody vs. No. 4 Fayette-Ware; No. 1 Lexington vs. No. 4 Gibson County; No. 2 Chester County vs. No. 3 South Fulton; No. 2 South Side vs. No. 3 McNairy Central.
Favorite: Lexington. The Lady Tigers finished in the tough South Division undefeated, and they get to play the semifinals and final at home.
Dark horse: Chester County. The Eaglettes have won the last two district titles, and they are have chance to repeat.
What to know: This is another district tournament that was not being played three years ago. There are three teams in this district that have won district titles – Chester County (2013, ‘14), Trenton Peabody (2002) and South Side (1997, ’98 and ’99). Though one of the top programs in West Tennessee, Lexington has one tournament title in its history, and that is the 2014 region championship.
District 15 A-AA
Dates, location: Monday at higher seed; Tuesday and Thursday at Madison
Matchups: No. 1 Jackson Christian vs. No. 4 North Side; No. 1 Madison vs. No. 4 Millington; No. 2 TCA vs. No. 3 Adamsville; No. 2 Liberty vs. No. 3 Covington.
Favorite: Jackson Christian. The Lady Eagles have not allowed a goal against district competition all season.
Dark horse: TCA. The Lady Lions have lost one match all season, and that was to Jackson Christian early.
What to know: Jackson Christian has not given up a goal to Class A-AA competition all season. The Lady Eagles return a majority of last year’s team that reached the Class A-AA state semifinals. TCA and Madison are the favorites to meet in one district semifinal, and the Lady Lions won 3-2. Jackson Christian is looking to win its fifth district tile in program history, while Liberty (2005 and ’08) and Adamsville (1997 and ’98) are the only other two teams in this district with a district title.
D2-A West Region
Dates, location: Monday and Tuesday at higher seed; Thursday and Tuesday, Oct. 20 at St. George’s
Matchups: No. 1 USJ vs. Harding-TRA winner; No. 2 St. Mary’s vs. No. 3 Sacred Heart; No. 2 St. George’s vs. No. 3 FACS; No. 1 ECS vs. TBA
Favorite: ECS. The Lady Eagles have been dominant all season with a dominant player in Molly Martin.
Dark horse: USJ. The Lady Bruins won their fifth straight district title, and they have improved as the season has progressed.
What to know: USJ is the four-time region champion, but after losing over half of last year’s team to graduation, there were questions entering this season. Addison Dunn scored in the final minute of regulation to beat St. George’s and give the Lady Bruins the No. 1 seed. USJ and St. George’s represented the West region last year at the state tournament, but both lost in the state semifinals.
Michael Odom, 425-9754
