The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union has released regional tournament pairings for girls basketball, with Fairfield, Davis County, Van Buren County, and Pekin all learning their first-round opponents and potential paths to state qualification.
Class 3A Region 5: Fairfield Faces Familiar Foe
Fairfield (4-13) @ Washington (10-8) – Saturday, February 14th
The Trojans will travel to face Southeast Conference rival Washington in a Highway 1 rivalry matchup. Washington has already defeated Fairfield twice this season, winning 53-29 on December 12th and 62-36 on January 29th. If Fairfield can pull off the upset, they would face the winner of #11 Tipton (16-2) and South Tama County (5-12) in the next round.
The top half of the bracket features #5 Williamsburg (14-5), Vinton-Shellsburg (0-18), Roland-Story (15-3), and Iowa Falls-Alden (10-8).
Class 3A Region 6: Davis County Hosts South Central Conference Battle
Davis County (14-4) hosting Centerville (13-6) – Saturday, February 14th
The Mustangs will host a crucial South Central Conference matchup against Centerville. Davis County defeated the Redettes 40-32 in their first meeting at Centerville on January 13th. The teams will face each other again in regular season play on Friday, February 6th, at Davis County before their regional rematch.
If Davis County advances, they would face either #9 Mediapolis (20-0) or Central Lee (10-10). The top half of the bracket features #6 PCM (18-1), Saydel (3-15), Creston (9-9), and Clarke Community (3-16).
Class 2A Region 8: Van Buren County Meets Columbus for Third Time
Van Buren County (14-7) hosting Columbus (10-10) – Saturday, February 14th
The Warriors will face Columbus for the third time this season, despite the teams being in opposite divisions of the Southeast Iowa Super Conference. Van Buren County defeated Columbus 47-41 at Columbus on January 19th in a regularly scheduled game, then beat them again 62-37 on Thursday, February 5th, in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference Shootout after both teams finished as four seeds in their respective divisions.
Van Buren County will play Columbus back-to-back, as they have no games scheduled between the February 5th Shootout game and the February 14th regional contest.
If the Warriors advance, they would travel north to face #10 Iowa City Regina (15-4). Also on their side of the bracket are conference opponents Danville (13-5) and West Burlington (11-9).
The top half of the bracket features #8 Grundy Center (17-2) playing the winner of South Hardin (8-10) and Union Community (5-12), along with Hudson (12-5) and Jesup (12-7).
Class 1A Region 6: Pekin Hosts WACO in Conference Rematch
Pekin (10-11) hosting WACO (7-13) – Thursday, February 12th
The Lady Panthers will host Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division rival WACO in first-round action. Pekin has defeated WACO twice this season, winning 53-47 on December 5th and 58-40 on January 13th.
If Pekin advances, they would face a challenging road trip to #6 Dunkerton (17-2). Their side of the bracket also features Highland (19-2) hosting Winfield-Mt. Union (2-18) and Keota (15-5) hosting Hillcrest Academy (6-14).
The bottom half of the bracket features #9 Turkey Valley (18-2), Calamus-Wheatland (8-13), Midland (6-14), Edgewood-Colesburg (13-8), West Central (0-19), East Buchanan (6-14), and Cedar Valley Christian (0-14).
All four area teams will look to use their regular season experience and home-court advantage (where applicable) to advance through the regional tournament and keep their seasons alive.
