Prep football playoff field, next year’s divisions set
October 21, 2023 - 2:12 pm
To create more competitive balance in Nevada high school football, Class 5A, the top classification, was split into three divisions and two more state championship games were added.
The goal to create more opportunities for teams to win state titles was achieved in most leagues as title races went down to the last two weeks of the season.
It worked so well in the 5A Division II Southern League that calculators were needed on the final week of the regular season to determine the league winner.
Basic emerged with the league title out of a three-way tie with Foothill and Faith Lutheran. The Wolves rolled to a 49-32 home win over Foothill on Friday to win the title on a tiebreaker of margin of victory in games between the three tied teams.
The playoff fields for 5A, 4A and 3A are set. All playoff games will be played at 6 p.m. Thursday due to the Nevada Day holiday on Friday.
While the playoff brackets are set, so are the divisions for next season. Another change with the new realignment format is the introduction of promotion and relegation.
Basic and Foothill, as the top two finishers in the 5A Division II Southern League standings, will move up to 5A Division I next season. Shadow Ridge and Silverado will drop from 5A Division I to 5A Division II.
Legacy and Palo Verde, the top two finishers in 5A Division III, will move up to 5A Division II. Durango and Las Vegas High drop from 5A Division II to 5A Division III.
4A league winners Centennial (Desert) and Sunrise Mountain (Mountain) will be promoted to 5A Division III. Cimarron-Memorial and Spring Valley will drop down to 4A from 5A Division III. There is no relegation or promotion between 4A and 3A since 3A includes enrollment-protected schools.
In other sports
Boys and girls soccer, and girls volleyball teams also are nearing the end of their regular seasons.
Girls volleyball: No one has been able to challenge Bishop Gorman, which has locked up the 5A Desert League title. Reigning state champion Coronado has a one-game lead over Centennial in the Mountain League.
In 4A, Rancho (Desert), Coral Academy (Mountain) and Tech (Sky) have all wrapped up their respective league titles. Durango and Legacy are tied atop the Lake League.
Girls soccer: The top three teams in the 5A Southern League are separated by four points. Bishop Gorman (41 points) has a one-point lead over Liberty (40 points) and Faith Lutheran is third (37 points). Gorman plays at Coronado, in fourth place, at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
The races in 4A are just as close. Foothill (39 points) has a four-point lead in the Desert League over second-place Doral Academy (35 points), and Sierra Vista is third (34 points). Foothill plays both Doral Academy and Sierra Vista on Monday and Wednesday, respectively. Centennial and Green Valley are tied with 42 points atop the Mountain League standings.
Boys soccer: Coronado has locked up the No. 1 seed in the 5A Southern League. The Cougars play Palo Verde, who is in second place, at 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Coronado won the first regular-season meeting 1-0 on Sept. 20 at Palo Verde.
Third-place Arbor View gave Coronado its lone defeat thus far in an 8-1 effort on Sept. 8. In 4A, Sierra Vista has clinched the Desert League’s No. 1 seed, and Faith Lutheran has a three-point advantage over Canyon Springs atop the Mountain League standings.
Up next
In 5A Division I, third-seeded Arbor View hosts No. 6 Shadow Ridge at 6 p.m. Thursday. Arbor View rolled to a 45-28 regular-season win over the Mustangs on Sept. 8 behind starting quarterback Thaddeus Thatcher, who is out the rest of the season with a broken collarbone.
No. 4 Desert Pines hosts No. 5 Coronado, and No. 7 Silverado plays at No. 2 Liberty in the other two 5A Division I state quarterfinals.
League winners Bishop Gorman (5A Division I), Basic, Legacy (5A Division III), Centennial (4A Desert), Sunrise Mountain (4A Mountain League) and SLAM Academy (3A) all have byes to their respective semifinals, as do second-place finishers Palo Verde (5A Division III) and Moapa Valley (3A).
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
Week 10 football scores
Arbor View 17, Silverado 6
Basic 49, Foothill 32
Beaver Dam 42, Laughlin 20
Bishop Gorman 49, Coronado 7
Bonanza 21, Del Sol 0
Boulder City 38, Pahrump Valley 24
Canyon Springs 42, Valley 0
Clark 21, Spring Valley 20
Centennial 40, Cheyenne 0
Desert Pines 33, Durango 6
Eldorado 40, Cadence 33
Faith Lutheran 49, Las Vegas 14
Green Valley 26, Sierra Vista 13
Lake Mead Academy 45, Needles 14
Legacy 32, Desert Oasis 24
Lincoln County 48, White Pine 6
Moapa Valley 38, Virgin Valley 27
Pahranagat Valley 42, Sandy Valley 0
Palo Verde 50, Cimarron-Memorial 13
Rancho 48, Western 6
Round Mountain 54, Indian Springs 30
SLAM Academy 50, Mater East 25
Somerset-Losee 42, Mojave 21
Sunrise Mountain 26, Chaparral 21
Southern Nevada school football playoff schedule
All games at 6 p.m. Thursday
5A Division I state quarterfinals
No. 5 Coronado at No. 4 Desert Pines
No. 6 Shadow Ridge at No. 3 Arbor View
No. 7 Silverado at No. 2 Liberty
No. 1 Bishop Gorman: Bye to semifinals
5A Division II Southern League quarterfinals
No. 5 Sierra Vista at No. 4 Green Valley
No. 6 Las Vegas at No. 3 Faith Lutheran
No. 7 Durango at No. 2 Foothill
No. 1 Basic: Bye to semifinals
5A Division III Southern League quarterfinals
No. 5 Cimarron-Memorial at No. 4 Clark
No. 6 Spring Valley at No. 3 Desert Oasis
No. 1 Legacy and No. 2 Palo Verde: Byes to semifinals
4A Desert League quarterfinals
No. 5 Cheyenne at No. 4 Bonanza
No. 7 Western at No. 2 Somerset-Losee
No. 6 Rancho at No. 3 Mojave
No. 1 Centennial: Bye to semifinals
4A Mountain League quarterfinals
No. 5 Cadence at No. 4 Eldorado
No. 7 Valley at No. 2 Canyon Springs
No. 6 Del Sol at No. 3 Chaparral
No. 1 Sunrise Mountain: Bye to semifinals
3A Southern League quarterfinals
No. 5 Democracy Prep at No. 4 Virgin Valley
No. 6 Mater East at No. 3 Boulder City
No. 1 SLAM Academy at No. 2 Moapa Valley: Byes to semifinals