Sectional brackets are like a box of chocolates — you never know what you’re going to get, and most of the time you wish you got something else.
True to form, Johnson County’s soccer teams got a mixed bag thrown at them when the pairings for next week’s sectionals were released by the IHSAA on Sunday night.
The biggest beneficiary in the short term was Center Grove, which received byes into the semifinals in both the boys and girls tournaments. The Trojan boys, ranked fourth in Class 3A, will face host Terre Haute South on Oct. 4, while the girls will also play a host team, No. 12 Bloomington South, the following evening.
In the Class 3A girls sectional at Whiteland, Greenwood plays Franklin Central in a first-round match next Tuesday, with the winner to meet Columbus East. On the bottom half of the draw, Franklin will face Roncalli on Oct. 4 and the host Warriors take on Columbus North.
The 3A boys open next Monday at Columbus North with Whiteland facing Franklin Central; the next night, Franklin plays Columbus East while Greenwood gets the host Bull Dogs, ranked sixth in the state.
Indian Creek begins Class 2A sectional play next Tuesday. The girls take on Edgewood, with the winner likely seeing host Monrovia, a top-10 team, in the semifinal round. In the boys sectional at Northview, the Braves meet 18th-ranked Greencastle.
Greenwood Christian’s boys, the state runner-up in Class A last season, open with a semifinal against sectional host White River Valley on Oct. 5. The Cougars are ranked sixth. GCA’s girls face the most daunting path of any county team despite getting a first-round bye; the Cougars play No. 3 Heritage Christian in an Oct. 5 semifinal and would almost certainly see fourth-ranked Park Tudor in the championship match should they advance.
All of the sectional finals will be played on Oct. 7, with boys games kicking off at 2 p.m. and the girls at 7 p.m.
