COLUMN: A closer look at the state playoffs

Just when things were seemingly calming down [fall sports-wise anyway], we now enter the second season, aka the playoffs.

Area schools kick off the first round of their respective playoffs tonight at various stadiums across the area.

Let’s break them down, somewhat:

Sedan (2-6) at St. Mary’s Colgan
6 p.m. tonight at Hutchinson Field
What to know: This will be the fourth straight meeting between these two teams in the first round of the playoffs. Colgan has won all three past meetings. Even dating back to the mid-90s, Colgan has not lost to the Blue Devils in the playoffs.
The teams: Colgan will be without running back Austin Riggs because of a foot injury and Alex Evans could see a return at fullback. But the Smith brothers — Christian and Zach — have filled in nicely, picking up a combined 718 yards on the ground. Sedan running back Brady McCoy has picked up over 100 yards rushing in each of the last three games for the Blue Devils. Senior quarterback Justin Harter led the Sedan offense last week with 136 yards rushing in a 21-0 win over Howard-West Elk.

Riverton (7-2) at Cherryvale (9-0)
7 p.m. tonight at Cherryvale
What to know: Riverton appears to be clicking on all cylinders again after a late-season loss to Galena. The Chargers have seemingly rolled through their season, not facing much of a challenge, even in the playoffs.
The teams: For the Rams, it is much of the same: big and powerful. Cherryvale will try to line up and do the same things as Riverton and this will be a test as to who can do it better.

Erie (4-5) at Galena (9-0)
7 p.m. tonight at Galena
What to know: These two teams faced each other back on Sept. 25 with the Bulldogs taking a 47-13 win. In their nine wins this season, the Bulldogs have outscored their oppnents 362-95 for an average score of 40-10.
The teams: Erie has been somewhat of a surprise this season, winning four games including a dramatic 19-0 home win over Frontenac last week to earn their spot in the playoffs. However, in three of their losses they have been held scoreless.

Coffeyville (5-4) at Columbus (7-2)
7 p.m. tonight at Columbus
What to know: This will be the first time that Coffeyville and Columbus have met in the Class 4A state playoffs. Last season, both teams opened with playoff wins, only to lose the next week. Coffeyville won their Southeast Kansas League meeting this year, 41-40 on Sept. 25.

Cross-country
Over the course of the season, there has not been enough said about cross country and this year was a banner year for southeast Kansas runners.

Page Miller helped lead the Pittsburg High School to their eighth Southeast Kansas League title in nine years as well as helping their entire team to the Class 5A state championships in Lawrence.

Not to mention the fact that the St. Mary’s Colgan girl’s team also qualified as a team for the Class 2A state championships in Wamego.

The Dragons finished eighth at state — their highest placement as a team in school history and Miller finished fourth individually.

In addition, Austin Bogina continued his rise through the ranks with a second-place finish in the Class 3A state meet, also in Wamego.

Southeast also made big strides [no play on words intended] by sending Talon Thompson and Bridget McGuire to state. For Thompson, it was second appearance and McGuire earned a state berth in her first attempt and in her first year running cross country.

Kudos to those runners.

Matthew Clark can be reached at matthew.clark@morningsun.net or at 620-231-2600, Ext. 140. Follow Morning Sun sports at twitter.com/mssports.