February 7, 2010 Sectional Seeding Sunday

We will only look at the WIAA girls sectionals here.  Let’s take a look at each sectional and see what the seedings may look like come Monday afternoon (hopefully they are listed for viewing by then).  We will refer to each sectional as to where the championship game will be played (i.e.  Sectional One will be the Hayward Sectional as the championship game will be held there).  Please remember these are only my thoughts on how the seeding could take place.

Hayward Sectional (Sectional One)

Defending Champion – St. Croix Valley Fusion

1. St. Croix Valley Fusion - The Fusion have clinched the Big Rivers Conference title.  Currently, they sport a 17-3-1 overall record and have a 7-0-0 conference record.  Their three losses and tie have all come against Minnesota girls hockey teams.  The Fusion are 8-0-0 against opponents in their sectional.  They finish their conference season with a game at #5 Hudson Raiders on February 4^th.  They will travel to New Richmond on February 6^th for their final game prior to seeding meetings on Sunday.  On Saturday, February 13^th, they have a rematch against #2 Central Wisconsin Storm in Wausau at Greenheck Fieldhouse.
2. Hudson Raiders – Hudson has on overall record of 12-2-4 and a 5-1-1 conference record.  The Raiders are 6-1-2 against teams from sectional one.  They play #1 St. Croix Valley Fusion in Hudson on February 4^th.  On Saturday, February 6^th, they host the Marshfield Tigers.  They will finish the regular season with a home game against the New Richmond Tigers on February 9^th.
3. Hayward/Spooner Hurricanes – This was a tough decision on my part as to whether the Hurricanes or Blizzard should receive the #3 seed.  I went with the Hurricanes partially based on their head-to-head victory over the Blizzard and then on their opponents winning percentage.  Hayward/Spooner has an overall record of 10-7-1 and are 3-2-1 against opponents in the sectional.  The Hurricanes play the #8 ECA Stars on Saturday, February 6^th.  On February 9^th they host Chippewa Falls Cardinals and will finish their season on February 11^th at the WSFLG Blizzard.
4. WSFLG Blizzard – The Blizzard are 12-8-1 overall and 4-4-1 against sectional opponents.  They will play the Superior Spartans on February 4^th.  On February 6^th, they will host the Northern Edge and complete the season by hosting Hayward/Spooner.
5. Chippewa Falls Cardinals – The Cardinals are 8-9-1 overall and 1-5-1 in the Big Rivers Conference.  Currently, they are 3-4-1 against opponents from sectional one.  They are at Menomonie on February 4^th and host the Fondy-Waupun Warbirds on February 6^th.  They will finish the season with two road games.  They travel to play the Hayward/Spooner Hurricanes on February 9^th and then, on February 13^th, they take on the #4 Bay Area Ice Bears.
6. Menomonie Indians – The Indians have put together a 7-10-1 overall record under first year head coach Kurt Rudiger.  They have won 5 of their last 6 games, including victories over Marshfield, the ECA Stars and New Richmond Tigers.  They host the Chippewa Falls Cardinals on February 4^th.  An impressive win here could move them up to the #5 seed.  They will finish the regular season with a home game against the Medford Raiders.
7. New Richmond Tigers – The Tigers picked up their first win of the season on December 10^th by defeating the Superior Spartans in overtime.  New Richmond has a pair of road games with two home games in the middle to finish the season.  They travel to #5 Hudson on February 9^th.  On February 11^th, they will host #1 St. Croix Valley Fusion.  The Superior Spartans will travel to New Richmond for a game on February 13^th.  February 16^th will find New Richmond on the road to take on the ECA Stars.
8. Superior Spartans – The Spartans are 3-16-0 overall and 1-6-0 against sectional opponents.  They finish the regular season by hosting the WSFLG Blizzard on February 4^th and traveling to New Richmond on February 13^th.

Medford Sectional (Sectional Two)

Defending Champion – Central Wisconsin Storm

1. Central Wisconsin Storm – The Storm have one of the more impressive records in the state.  They have put together an overall record of 19-1-0 and have clinched the inaugural season of the Great Northern Conference.  Currently, they are 11-0-0 in the Great Northern Conference and 9-0-0 against opponents from sectional two.  They brought home a Sertoma Shootout Championship from their holiday tournament in Rochester, MN.  Their only loss came to #1 St. Croix Valley Fusion on December 19^th.  They travel to #4 Bay Area Ice Bears on February 6^th.  They will finish the regular season with two home games.  On February 8th,  the Lakeland Thunderbirds will travel to Mosinee.  Their will be a rematch against #1 St. Croix Valley Fusion on February 13^th at the Greenheck Fieldhouse.
2. Northland Pines Eagles – Northland Pines will finish in second place in the Great Northern Conference.  They won their home tournament, the Northland Pines Classic, by posting wins over Viroqua and Hayward/Spooner.
3. ECA Stars – The Stars have struggled losing 4 of their last 5 games.  However, three of those games have come against teams ranked in the top five (two versus #1 St. Croix Valley Fusion and one against #5 Hudson Raiders).
4. Marshfield Tigers – Marshfield have compiled an 8-6-1 overall record and are 4-5-0 in the Great Northern Conference.  The Tigers have lost four of their last five with two of those losses coming against teams ranked in the top ten (#2 Central Wisconsin Storm and #9 Northland Pines Eagles).
5. Northern Edge – The Northern Edge is the Rhinelander/Antigo co-op.  The Edge have compiled a 8-12-0 record this season.
6. Medford Raiders – This is Medford’s first season as a WIAA girls’ high school hockey team.  Medford has gone 3-15-0 in their first year.
7. Tomahawk Hatchets – The Hatchets are 1-17-0 this year.  Their lone has come against the Lakeland Thunderbirds.
8. Lakeland Thunderbirds – The Thunderbirds are still looking for their first win and are 0-15-0.

Wisconsin Rapids Sectional (Sectional Three)

Defending Champion – Fondy-Waupun Warbirds

1. Fondy-Waupun Warbirds – The Warbirds have compiled a 16-3-0 record.  I believe they will get the top seed due to winning their only game against Bay Area Ice Bears on December 19^th.  Two of their three losses have come against teams within their own sectional (an overtime loss to Appleton United on January 16^th and a regulation loss to Point-Rapids Red Panthers on January 23rd).
2. Bay Area Ice Bears – The Bay Area Ice Bears have lost two games all season.  They lost to the Central Wisconsin Storm 3-0 on November 28^th.  They lost to Fondy-Waupun 3-1 on December 19^th.  Currently riding an 11 game winning streak, the Ice Bears have a 18-2-0 record and brought home the Sertoma Shootout Championship over the holidays.
3. Onalaska Hilltoppers – Onalaska has put together a 10-9-3 record and are 4-3-2 against opponents from their sectional.  I could see Onalaska trading places with Appleton due to a loss and tie to the United.
4. Appleton United – The United have won three of their last four, including an overtime victory against Fondy-Waupun.  They host the Badger Thunder on Saturday, Februrary 6^th.  A loss on Saturday could be the difference between hosting or traveling for their first round game of the sectionals.
5. Badger Thunder – The Badger Thunder have lost to two of the teams I have seeded above them.  They have lost twice to Fondy-Waupun and once to Onalaska.  They clinched at least a share of the Badger Conference title by sweeping their season series against the Sun Prairie Co-op Cougars.  If the Badger Thunder could pick up a win over Appleton United on February 6^th, they may be able to host a first round game in the WIAA sectionals.
6. Point-Rapids Red Panthers – Point-Rapids have only played two games against teams from their own sectional and are 1-1 in them.  The Red Panthers have three games remaining in the regular season and all of them are against sectional opponents.  Unfortunately, two of the three are after the seeding meetings.  They go on the road to play #4 Bay Area Ice Bears on Friday, February 5^th.  They complete the regular season with a two game homestand.  On February 12^th they will host the Badger Thunder and then on the 13^th of February will host Onalaska.
7. Viroqua Blackhawks – The Blackhawks should end up with the seventh seed by virtue of their 1-5-1 record against sectional opponents.  They split their regular season match-up against the South Central Freeze, but managed a tie against Onalaska.
8. South Central Freeze – The Reedsburg Area Co-op consisting of Mauston, Reedsburg and Wisconsin Dells have gone 1-6-0 against sectional opponents.  They won their last game against Viroqua to pick up their only sectional win.

University School of Milwaukee Sectional (Sectional Four)

Defending Champion – Beaver Dam/Randolph Golden Beavers

1. Sun Prairie Co-op Cougars – The Sun Prairie Co-op is looking for better luck in the playoffs this season.  Their season came to an abrupt end last year, when Beaver Dam/Randolph upset them in the second round 4-2.  They have compiled an overall record of 13-7-1 and have gone 5-0-1 against teams from sectional four.
2. USM Wildcats – The Wildcats have put together a 14-6-2 record and have gone 7-1-1 against sectional four opponents.  Their lone sectional loss came against Sun Prairie Co-op on January 9^th.
3. Beaver Dam/Randolph Golden Beavers – The Golden Beavers lost their opening game of the season to the Sun Prairie Co-op by a score of 2-1.  They tied their only game against the Wildcats of USM at three.  They have gone 1-0-1 against Rock County Fury and have compiled a 6-2-2 record against opponents from sectional four.
4. Rock County Fury – The Fury have put a season together that has gotten them noticed from other coaches within the state and ended up ranked as the #10 team in the state.  They have gone 10-6-3 this season and 6-3-2 against sectional opponents.  Despite having been ranked in the top ten, I have them as the #4 seed due to being 0-3-2 against the teams I have seeded above them (2 losses to USM, 1 win and tie versus Beaver Dam/Randolph and 1 tie to the Sun Prairie Co-op)
5. MSO Icebergs – The Icebergs have won 5 of their last 7 games.  Two of these wins have come against other sectional four teams.
6. Arrowhead Warhawks – The Warhawks have gone 5-5-0 against sectional four opponents.  Unfortunately, they have lost three of their last four games against sectional four opponents.  This includes a 4-1 loss to the MSO Icebergs.
7. Kettle Moraine Glaciers – The Glaciers are the third team experiencing their first year as a WIAA team (not counting the Northern Edge as Rhinelander has been a team).  Kettle Moraine has won two of their last three games in compiling a 2-15-2 overall record.
   
8. Middleton Co-op Lynx - The Middleton Co-op Lynx, formerly known as the Metro Lynx, have had a rough season this year.  They have put together a record of 0-18-1.  Their tie came on January 30th against the South Central Freeze.  They had lost to the Freeze on January 26th in overtime.