By Eric Frantz for the Dayton Daily News

Alter girls soccer coach Jason Balogh knows the Division II Dayton 1 district is loaded with teams that could vie for the state title.

He's unsure, though, whether any of them will make it that far.

"Whoever comes out of our district is going to be really, really tired," Balogh said. "It would surprise me if the district winner made it to state because there are a lot of hard matches and not a lot of time to recuperate. That takes its toll mentally and physically."

The tests start Monday with 16 D-I and 19 D-II first-round district games.

At first glance, no D-II district in the state is tougher than the Dayton 1. Besides Alter, ranked second in the state, the Dayton I district includes fellow GGCL heavyweight Hamilton Badin, the state's top-ranked D-II team. The Knights beat Badin 1-0.

Also in the mix are a pair of Southwestern Buckeye League champions in Valley View (Southwest Division) and Middletown Madison (Buckeye Division). Mid-Miami League stalwarts Fenwick and Monroe grace the brackets as well.

Alter is first in the Miami Valley Coaches Association poll. Monroe and Valley View are third and fourth, respectively.

"We expect we'll run into Badin, but you never know," Balogh said. "There are four or five teams with a legitimate chance to come out of here."

In the D-II Dayton 2 district, top seed Northwestern is looking to make it back to the regional. The Warriors, ranked eighth in the state, have lost in the regional final two years in a row. Ohio Heritage Conference champion Greeneview and Waynesville could challenge Northwestern.

Greenon, looking for its first regional appearance since 2002, is the top seed in the D-II Dayton 3 district.

In D-I the brackets have been adjusted so that both Dayton district winners will face off in a regional semifinal Nov. 2 at Cedarville University. That means a repeat of last year, when two Greater Western Ohio Conference teams (Beavercreek and Wayne) advanced to a regional final, won't happen again.

Creek is the No. 1 seed in the Dayton super sectional while Xenia is No. 2.

The Beavers, who've advanced to the regional three times in four years, are in the Dayton 1 bracket along with potential opponents Centerville (fourth seed), Springboro (seventh) and Tippecanoe (eighth). Those four teams have a combined record of 44-6-6. Each has 11 wins.

The Buccaneers, trying to advance to the regional for the first time since 2003, have a potential Dayton 2 district semifinal match with fifth-seed Northmont. The T-Bolts are the only team to beat Xenia. Other seeded teams include Wayne (third) and Carroll (sixth). The Bucs, Bolts, Warriors and Patriots are 40-7-11.

View Article at DDN