Seattle area 18 & Over local playoffs this weekend - A quick preview

Local, state, and even sectional playoffs are taking place in several places around the country in June.  In my neck of the woods in Seattle, our 18 & Over local playoffs start this Wednesday and are played through the weekend.

Note that these playoffs are a bit smaller than past years as not every 2nd place team in each flight advanced, in some cases just one, so some good teams may not have even made these playoffs.

Here are some quick previews using my ratings' and the top averages for each team to seed them.

The 2.5 women have 5 teams so there is a "play in" game on Wednesday to get to the semis, and interestingly my #2 seed is playing in that match.  It could make the semi on Saturday very competitive.

The 3.0 men have 4 teams in the semis to both be played Saturday, and my #1 and #2 seeds play in one match, one being the wildcard, while #3 and #4 play in the other.

The women's 3.0 draw is the largest with 8 teams, so every team will have to win two matches to make the final and get a bid to Sectionals.  For the most part, my seeds match the draw so the top-teams have a good chance to win their quarter-final matches on Friday and make the semis and decide things there if things go by the numbers.

The men's 3.5 draw has 5 teams so another "play in" game also on Wednesday, my seeds also nearly a perfect match to the draw.  The top teams have a good chance to make the final, but the #2 seed has a lot tougher road than the #1 seed.

The 3.5 women is another 8 team draw and this one looks to have a lot of opportunity for upsets.  In two of the matches, my ratings have a pretty clear upset predicted, and the top-2 seeds could face each other in a semi-final.

The men's 4.0 draw has a "play in" game too, and does have my #2 seed playing on Friday.  And other than the top seed, the teams are grouped very close so there could be some competitive matches.

The 4.0 women has 6 teams so two quarter-finals on Saturday, and my top seed is playing in one, and my #4 seed has a bye into the semis.

The 4.5 men is a simple 4 teams in the semis, and the draw matches my seeds, although one semi has near equals playing what should be a close match.

The 4.5 women is also 4 teams, but here my clear top-2 seeds are playing in one semi, so a weaker on paper team is going to make the final and get a bid to Sectionals.

Last, the 5.0 men have 4 teams and my top-2 teams are on opposite sides of the draw so can make the final against each other.

For those teams wanting more details on their opponents, I can do flight reports or team reports on any and all teams.  Contact me if interested.