Changes come again as of Monday. The area high school sports landscape is a bit different following the release of the Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) classifications for 2010-2011.
Football in the area had already undergone the changes a year ago. They are locked in for two years.
Volleyball, cross country, basketball and spring sports are affected by the new numbers. Classifications are determined every year (except for football districts) with enrollment figures as of Sept. 20 based on 10th, 11th and 12th grades only.
Iola High’s numbers are up in those three grades to 293 (281 in 2009). Class 4A enrollments are in the range of 194 to 530. Iola is on the lower side of the median.
The Fillies and Mustangs stay entrenched in Class 4A competition. The new numbers did little to the Southeast Kansas League; every school but Pittsburg remains in Class 4A. Columbus is the smallest at 240 students and Chanute takes the top spot at 470. Pittsburg has 548 students.
Iola’s volleyball team is at 4A substate in Louisburg. The cross country teams go to Garnett for 4A regional. The Iola girls’ tennis team is in the 4A regional at Parsons.
Volleyball changed in 2010 to seven classifications — 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, and two divisions of Class 1A, similar to 8-man football divisions.
The biggest change for area high school comes to Uniontown. The Eagle football team had already been thrown into Class 3A competition for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Now, all the Eagle athletic teams join the football team for 2010-2011 school year because Uniontown has 125 students.
The Eagle volleyball team went from ranked No. 1 in Class 2A to ranked fifth in Class 3A. They will travel to a 3A substate tournament hosted by Northeast-Arma joined by Southeast-Cherokee, Cherryvale, Erie, Frontenac, Galena and Riverton. The girls’ golf team is unaffected because it plays in the Class 3-2-1A golf tournament.
Yates Center, which dropped to 1A last year, moved back up to Class 2A by one student. Yates Center has 77 in the top three grades and the cutoff for 2A is 76. Marmaton Valley at 88 and Humboldt at 112 are also in 2A.
Crest with 57 students and Southern Coffey County with 60 students are in Class 1A.
The two area 1A schools are put in volleyball’s Class 1A, Division I. With the two divisions at the 1A level, the state has eliminated the regional volleyball playoffs. All volleyball teams go directly to substate action.
Crest and Southern Coffey County are in a 1A substate at St. Paul. Others in that tournament are Cedar Vale/Dexter, Chetopa and Pleasanton.
Yates Center will host its Class 2A substate tournament with Marmaton Valley and Humboldt joining. Also in the substate are West Elk, Madison, Jayhawk-Linn, Oswego, Pittsburg-Colgan and Sedan.
The Yates Center cross country runners are back in 2A running in a regional at Mound City along with Humboldt and Marmaton Valley. Crest cross country runners are in the 1A meet also being held at the Sugar Valley Golf Course in Mound City.
FOOTBALL DISTRICT play begins tonight for Humboldt in Class 2-1A and in the Eight-Man divisions.
Humboldt High’s Cubs are in the toughest Class 2-1A district in the state of Kansas. The top three ranked teams in the division — Pittsburg-Colgan, Oswego and Olpe plus Lyndon are all 4-0. Humboldt (0-4) hosts Oswego tonight. Colgan beat Jayhawk-Linn 59-0 Thursday.
Crest (3-1) hosts Chetopa (2-2) in Eight-Man I, District 2 play and Marmaton Valley (2-2) hosts Yates Center (1-3). St. Paul (2-2) and Pleasanton (1-3) play each other.
In Eight-Man I, District 3, Southern Coffey County has three undefeated teams — third-ranked Lebo, fifth-ranked Madison and Burlingame — to contend with along with White City. The Titans host Marais Des Cygnes Valley in district play tonight.
Iola in Class 4A and Uniontown in Class 3A will not open district play until Oct. 15. The Mustangs have Prairie View (3-1), Anderson County (3-1) and Fort Scott (2-2) in district 6 and opens with Fort Scott at home.
Uniontown and Central Heights are both 1-3 after four weeks while Wellsville is 3-1 and West Franklin is 2-2 in the 3A, district 4.
