Boys soccer state tournament outlooks

2011-2012 Boys Soccer State Tournaments

Division I

Tuesday's first round schedule

5 p.m.: No. 16 Millennium at No. 1 Chaparral; No. 9 Alhambra vs. No. 8 Chandler (at Hamilton H.S.); No. 12 Carl Hayden vs. No. 5 Ironwood (at Maryvale H.S.); No. 11 San Luis vs. No. 6 Brophy (at Chaparral H.S.).

6 p.m.: No. 14 Desert Vista at No. 3 Gilbert.

7 p.m.: No. 13 Westview at No. 4 Hamilton; No. 10 Tolleson at No. 7 Tucson; No. 15 Mountain View (Mesa) at No. 2 Maryvale.

Quarterfinals: Saturday at 2 p.m. at Nos. 1, 2, 3, or 4 seed or TBD

Semifinals: Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 5 p.m and 7 p.m. at Campo Verde H.S.

Championship: Saturday, Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. at Campo Verde H.S.

Favorite: Despite a less-than-rigorous power point schedule (though the Broncos played tough competition in the AZ Soccer Showcase and national competition in Florida), it's hard to go against No. 6 Brophy. The Broncos lost to No. 1-seed Chaparral in early December, but won another tense battle against the Firebirds in mid-January. The defending champions again have plenty of talent, led by Riggs Lennon, but possibly not quite as much as in 2011.

Contenders: No. 1 Chaparral, No. 2 Phoenix Maryvale, No. 3 Gilbert, No. 4 Hamilton

Sleepers: No. 8 Chandler, No. 12 Carl Hayden, No. 14 Desert Vista

Outlook: Maryvale has unwittingly been a poster-child of confusion after being the No. 2 seed despite a 10-4 record, as playing more matches than anyone else helped its cause. But they're also good, as are about five other schools in Div. I. In this case, seeding appears to offer some indication of a team's true strength shown through the PP season, but it's not something to count on. Nobody thinks Brophy isn't a top caliber team, nobody is quite sure whether undefeated Gilbert - which routinely makes nice playoff runs - is a No. 3 seed because it hasn't had a real difficult schedule, and the Tigers have to beat D.V. and then Brophy in the second round. Nobody thinks Hamilton can't go back to the championship match for a third consecutive season. This tournament is uber-competitive and pretty wide open.

Division II

Tuesday's first round schedule

5 p.m.: No. 16 Flagstaff at No. 1 Apollo; No. 9 Glendale vs. No. 8 Nogales (at Salpointe Catholic H.S.); No. 11 Independence at No. 6 Catalina Foothills (at Tucson H.S.); No. 10 Mohave vs. No. 7 Notre Dame (at Marcos de Niza H.S.).

6 p.m.: No. 13 Prescott at No. 4 Greenway; No. 15 Queen Creek at No. 2 Verrado.

7 p.m.: No. 12 South Mountain at No. 5 Salpointe Catholic; No. 14 Washington at No. 3 Marcos de Niza.

Quarterfinals: Saturday at 2 p.m. at Nos. 1, 2, 3 or 4 seed or TBD

Semifinals: Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. at Paradise Valley H.S.

Championship: Saturday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m. at Campo Verde H.S.

Favorite: No. 6 Catalina Foothills

Contenders: No. 5 Salpointe, No. 7 Notre Dame

Sleepers: No. 3 Marcos de Niza, No. 15 Queen Creek

Outlook: The Tucson schools could rule the roost this year, as both Catalina Foothills and Salpointe Catholic are no strangers to these tournaments. Among the E.V. contingent (which isn't many), Marcos de Niza has been the best story this year, as the Padres were a perfect 12-0 in power point matches under second-year coach Daryl Chavez, won eight of those by one-goal margins and haven't had a winning record since 2007. The schedule, however, was most kind to the Padres, and this will be a different world of competition. Notre Dame is the defending champion (4A-II) with the best shot at making another deep run. The issue for the Saints is they only played two schools (Barry Goldwater and Div. III-Fountain Hills) with winning records in the power points schedule, and the Saints lost to Goldwater. The Saints beat Verrado, 4-1, in last year's title match, and it's perfectly plausible the schools could meet again.

Division III

Tuesday's first round schedule

3 p.m.: No. 10 Cactus vs. No. 7 Douglas (Tucson H.S.)

5 p.m.: No. 9 Fountain Hills vs. No. 8 Phoenix Christian (at Seton Catholic H.S.); No. 12 Coolidge vs. No. 5 Cortez (at Coronado H.S.); No. 11 Gilbert Christian vs. No. 6 Mingus (at NW Christian H.S.)

6 p.m.: No. 13 Palo Verde at No. 4 Williams Field

7 p.m.: No. 16 Scottsdale Christian at No. 1 Seton Catholic; No. 14 Catalina at No. 3 Coronado; No. 15 Horizon Honrs at No. 2 NW Christian.

Quarterfinals: Saturday at 2 p.m. at Nos. 1, 2, 3 or 4 seed or TBD

Semifinals: Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. at Arcadia H.S.

Championship: Friday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. at Campo Verde H.S.

Favorite: No. 2 NW Christian

Contenders: No. 1 Seton Catholic, No. 3 Coronado, No. 4 Williams Field, No. 5 Cortez

Sleepers: No. 11 Gilbert Christian, No. 10 Cactus, No. 9 Fountain Hills

Outlook: The Div. III seeding feels a bit more true to form than the bigger divisions. Seton has benefited greatly from a strong schedule (based on opponents win-loss records) and decent tournament competition. The question will be whether the Sentinels can keep up with a NW Christian or Cortez, as those two schools played each other twice (split) during the PP season. The bracket alignments will make it tough on the E.V. contingent, as No. 4 Williams Field faces a mystery in Palo Verde and then would likely have to deal with Cortez in the quarterfinals. Coronado could clash with NW Christian in the semifinals and No. 11 Gilbert Christian would face No. 3 Coronado in the quarterfinals. A lot of unknowns highlight this bracket, as a majority of schools haven't played one another due to geography.