PHOENIX – The Ironwood Ridge and Mountain View football programs were placed in the state's highest classification under the new placement process used by the Arizona Interscholastic Association.
The two are the only teams from Southern Arizona in Division I and have the option to appeal down, said Brian Bolitho, AIA director of business media.
The AIA revealed complete division placements Tuesday afternoon.
To view division placements by school, click here.
To view division placements by sport, click here.
The new placement process puts teams in divisions based on enrollment in addition to their success within the last six years. Schools have until Jan. 30 at 2 p.m. to petition to a higher or lover division.
People are also reading…
Free and reduced lunch figures were originally going to be factored into the equation for initial placements but were not used after all because it would have created too big of a jump for certain schools, said Brian Bolitho, AIA director of business media. Instead, divisions were formed based on enrollment and then adjusted based on success over the past six years.
I-Ridge and Mountain View were originally in Division II based on enrollment, Bolitho said, but jumped to Division I because of their recent history. However, both are expected to appeal down to remain in Division II as they have since it was formed in 2011.
“I was excited to be in Division I with the caveat we’d have a Tucson region,” I-Ridge coach Matt Johnson said. “Without a Tucson region, that causes a lot of problems.”
While there were just two local football teams placed in Division I, that wasn’t the case for some other sports.
Six Southern Arizona baseball teams – Canyon del Oro, Catalina Foothills, Cienega, I-Ridge, Rincon/University and Sierra Vista Buena – were among 40 teams placed in the state’s top division. The same group – in addition to Marana, Mountain View, Sunnyside and Tucson High – also had their softball teams placed in Division I.
Meanwhile, I-Ridge’s girls basketball team was the lone Tucson-area team placed in the highest classification while eight local teams were among 72 in Division II.
Along with the new placement process is new rule guaranteeing that 30 percent of the teams in each division will qualify for the state tournament. Also, once divisions are set, the original schedules will only be for a one-year block in order to align Arizona with bordering states for future contests.
“The brilliance of this is the opportunity to appeal,” Schmidt said.
Div. II football teams are: BUE, CDO, CF, CIEN, DV, MAR, RIN, SAL, SS & TUC. Div. III: CHO, EMP, FW, NOG, SAB, SAH & SR. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Div. I boys basketball: BUE, CDO, CF, IR, MV & TUC. Div. II: CIEN, MAR, RIN, SAB, SAH, SAL, SS. Div. III: AMP, CHO, NOG. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Wow. The #IronwoodRidge girls basketball team is the only Southern Arizona program in Division I. Figure an appeal down is obvious. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Back to girls basketball, BUE, CDO, CF, CIEN, DV, MV, SAL, SS & TUC are in Div. II while FW, SAB, SAH are in Div. III. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Div. I baseball: BUE, CDO, CF, CIEN, IR & RIN. Div. II: EMP, MAR, MV, SAB, SAH, SAL, SS & TUC. Div. III: CHO, DOUG, FW, NOG, PR, SAHT #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Div. IV baseball has two-time defending state champ Desert Christian still in it along with Palo Verde, last year's Div. III champ. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Start the boys soccer debate: BUE, CF, CIEN, IR, MV, RIN, SS & TUC are in Div. I... CDO, DV, FW, NOG, SAB, SAH & SAL are in Div. II. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
To no surprise, #CatalinaFoothills is also in Div. I for girls soccer along w/ CDO, CIEN, IR, MV, RIN, RIN, SS & TUC. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015
Div. I softball: BUE, CDO, CF, CIEN, IR, MAR, MV, RIN, SS, TUC. Div. II: DV, EMP, FW, NOG, SAB, SAH, SAL & WG. #azhs
— Daniel Gaona (@DanielGaona13) January 20, 2015Check back on Tucson.com for updates.
