CINCINNATI — Seven Greater Cincinnati high school football teams are scheduled to participate in the Ohio High School Athletic Association regional finals Friday night.
The OHSAA announced locations Sunday afternoon for the statewide schedule Friday and Saturday. Five regional final games involve Cincinnati-area teams.
The OHSAA is expected to determine the state semifinal bracket pairings this week. That will show which regions play each other in the state semifinals at neutral locations Nov. 26-27.
The state finals are scheduled for Dec. 2-4 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton.
In Division I, Region 4, top-seeded Moeller (10-3) plays No. 3 seed Lakota West (11-1) at 7 p.m. Friday at Atrium Stadium in Mason.
Friday will be the first time Moeller and Lakota West have met in the postseason since 2004. It's the first overall meeting since August 2016.
Moeller is seeking its 17th trip to the state semifinals and the first regional title since 2014.
Lakota West is in the regional final for the third time, including its second straight appearance.
In Division II, Region 8, top-seeded Piqua (12-0) plays No. 7 seed Winton Woods (10-3) at Clayton Northmont's Premier Health Stadium.
Winton Woods, which was in the 2020 regional final, is seeking its fourth trip to the state semifinals as a program.
This is the sixth regional final appearance for Winton Woods, according to the school's athletic department.
In Division III, Region 11, No. 6 seed Western Brown (11-2) will make the program's first regional final appearance Friday night.
The Broncos play undefeated and No. 1 seed Granville at Ashville Teays Valley's Viking Stadium.
"Granville is a heck of a team," Western Brown coach Nick Osborne said. "A lot of seniors, very physical. Kind of like us, kind of in the middle of nowhere. People are like, 'Hey where's Granville, where's Western?' I know this is their first time in the regional finals as well. They got a great team and it's going to be another 48-minute dogfight."
In Division III, Region 12, No. 1 seed Badin (12-0) is the only remaining undefeated Greater Cincinnati team in the OHSAA regional finals.
The Rams, who are making their 12th regional final appearance, play No. 3 seed Bellbrook (11-2) at Trotwood-Madison's Miami Valley Hospital SportsPlex Friday night.
It is a rematch of a Week 2 game that Badin won 17-7 at Bellbrook.
"Watching film, I think that our message to the kids at least on Saturday was that they're obviously a lot better than they were Week 2 and we're obviously a little bit better, too," Badin coach Nick Yordy said.
"It's going to be a battle. I think at this level of the playoffs, in this round in a regional final, you're playing some pretty good teams. We got to prepare because they're playing at a pretty high level right now."
In Division IV, Region 16, No. 3 seed McNicholas (11-1) plays No. 4 Clinton-Massie (11-1) at Princeton High School's Jake Sweeney Automative Stadium.
Friday is the fourth regional final appearance for McNicholas and the first since 2010, according to McNicholas coach Mike Orlando.
Orlando said the Rockets have the utmost respect for the Falcons.
"They've been a premier program in Southwest Ohio and, quite frankly, in the state," Orlando said. "They've been winning 10-plus ballgames for 20-plus years. I know they are going to be a tough, hard-nosed team. You better bring your lunch pail – it's going to be one of those games."
Clinton-Massie is attempting to make its fifth state semifinal appearance and its first since 2017.
Division 1 – all games Friday, Nov. 19
Region 1
1 Lakewood St. Edward (11-1) vs. 2 Medina (13-0) at Parma Byers Field
Region 2
1 Marysville (12-0) vs. 2 Springfield (11-1) at Hilliard Darby Stadium
Region 3
1 Upper Arlington (13-0) vs. 2 Pickerington Central (12-1) at Westerville Central Warhawk Field
Region 4
1 Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller (10-3) vs 3 West Chester Lakota West (11-1) at Mason Atrium Stadium
Division 2 – all games Friday, Nov. 19
Region 5
3 Akron Archbishop Hoban (9-3) vs. 5 Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit (11-2) at Twinsburg Tiger Stadium
Region 6
2 Avon (11-2) vs. 4 Toledo Central Catholic (11-2) at Sandusky Strobel Field
Region 7
4 Massillon Washington (11-2) vs. 7 Uniontown Green (10-3) at Canal Fulton Northwest Jim Schalmo Field, Dr. Marin Smilek Stadium
Region 8
1 Piqua (12-0) vs. 7 Cincinnati Winton Woods (10-3) at Clayton Northmont Premier Health Stadium
Division III – all games Friday, Nov. 19
Region 9
1 Chardon (13-0) vs. 2 Dover (12-0) at Ravenna Portage Community Bank Stadium, Harry Gilchrist Field
Region 10
2 Millersburg West Holmes (13-0) vs. 8 Parma Heights Holy Name (7-5) at Mansfield Arlin Field
Region 11
1 Granville (12-0) vs. 6 Mount Orab Western Brown (11-2) at Ashville Teays Valley Viking Stadium
Region 12
1 Hamilton Badin (12-0) vs. 3 Bellbrook (11-2) at Trotwood-Madison Miami Valley Hospital SportsPlex
Division IV – all games Friday, Nov. 19
Region 13
1 Beloit West Branch (13-0) vs. 3 Youngstown Ursuline (9-3) at Canfield South Range Rominger Athletic Complex
Region 14
4 Port Clinton (12-1) vs. 3 Van Wert (12-1) at Findlay Donnell Stadium
Region 15
1 Carroll Bloom-Carroll (13-0) vs. 2 St. Clairsville (12-1) at Zanesville Sulsberger Stadium
Region 16
3 Cincinnati Archbishop McNicholas (11-1) vs. 4 Clarksville Clinton-Massie (11-1) at Princeton Jake Sweeney Automotive Stadium
Division V – all games Saturday, Nov. 20
Region 17
1 Kirtland (12-0) vs. 2 Canfield South Range (13-0) at Niles McKinley Bo Rein Stadium
Region 18
2 Elyria Catholic (11-2) vs. 5 Ottawa-Glandorf (10-3) at Clyde Joe and Sharon Wilson Field
Region 19
2 Canal Winchester Harvest Prep (9-2) vs. 5 Wheelersburg (10-3) at Waverly Raidiger Field
Region 20
3 Camden Preble Shawnee (13-0) vs. 5 Versailles (12-1) at Trotwood-Madison Miami Valley Hospital SportsPlex
Division VI – all games Saturday, Nov. 20
Region 21
3 New Middletown Springfield (12-1) vs. 4 Mogadore (10-3) at Salem Sebo Stadium
Region 22
3 Carey (12-1) vs. 5 Liberty Center (11-2) at Bowling Green High School Bobcat Stadium
Region 23
1 Beverly Fort Frye (10-1) vs. 3 West Jefferson (12-1) at Logan Chieftain Stadium
Region 24
2 Harrod Allen East (10-3) vs. 4 Coldwater (11-2) at Sidney Memorial Stadium
Division VII – all games Saturday, Nov. 20
Region 25
3 Warren John F Kennedy (9-2) vs. 4 Dalton (11-2) at Marlington Stadium
Region 26
1 Bascom Hopewell-Loudon (12-1) vs. 3 Lima Central Catholic (11-2) at Findlay Donnell Stadium
Region 27
1 Newark Catholic (12-1) vs. 3 Shadyside (11-1) at New Philadelphia Woody Hayes Quaker Stadium
Region 28
1 Maria Stein Marion Local (13-0) vs. 6 St. Henry (10-3) at Wapakoneta Mercy Health Ford Field
