COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio High School Athletic Association Board of Directors met Thursday and received a number of updates from the OHSAA staff, including winter and spring state tournament venues, and had an initial discussion regarding charging school membership dues beginning with the 2021-22 school year. Details and discussion meetings regarding membership dues will be communicated with member schools in March.
Sites for the upcoming regional basketball tournaments have been set and are listed below. Of note, since most universities in Ohio are not currently allowing fans or outside groups to use their facilities due to COVID-19 campus protocols, most of the boys basketball regional tournaments will take place at member school gymnasiums. Ticketing details have been sent to member schools to comply with Ohio Department of Health regulations.
“As we have seen throughout this pandemic, our member schools will do whatever it takes to provide participation opportunities for student-athletes,” said OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute. “We thank our schools that have stepped up to host the regional basketball tournaments and all of our winter sports tournaments.”
As previously announced, the upcoming winter state tournament locations and dates include:
Swimming and Diving – C..T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, February 24-27
Bowling – Wayne Webb’s Columbus Bowl, February 26-27 and March 5-6
Gymnastics – Hilliard Bradley High School, March 5-6.
Ice Hockey – OhioHealth Ice Haus, Columbus, March 13-14
Wrestling – Hilliard Darby (Division I), Marengo Highland (Division II) and Marion Harding (Division III), March 13-14.
SPRING SPORTS UPDATE
The spring sports season remains on schedule, with official practices for lacrosse, baseball, softball and track & field set to begin Monday, February 22. Boys tennis practice then begins March 8. The OHSAA Board of Directors has approved the tournament regulations in softball, baseball, track & field and boys tennis, with those state tournament venues to be:
Baseball: Canal Park, Akron, June 10-12
Softball: Firestone Stadium, Akron, June 3-5
Boys Tennis: Lindner Family Tennis Center, Mason, May 28-29
Track & Field: Division I at Hilliard Darby High School; Division II at Pickerington North High School; Division III at Westerville North High School
Lacrosse: TBA
REGIONAL BASKETBALL SITES:
Girls Basketball Regional Tournament Sites:
Division I: Medina, Sandusky, Cincinnati Princeton and TBD (Columbus)
Division II: Barberton, Mansfield Senior, Zanesville and Springfield
Division III: Cuyahoga Falls, Lexington, Chillicothe Southeastern and Springfield
Division IV: Massillon Perry, Elida, Pickerington North and Vandalia-Butler
Boys Basketball Regional Tournament Sites:
Division I: Norwalk, Twinsburg, Cincinnati Princeton and TBD (Columbus)
Division II: Barberton, Elida, Chillicothe Southeastern and Vandalia-Butler
Division III: Twinsburg, Elida, Chillicothe Southeastern and Vandalia-Butler
Division IV: Akron Firestone, Van Wert, Chillicothe Southeastern and Vandalia-Butler
Girls Statewide Brackets: https://www.ohsaa.org/Sports-Tournaments/Basketball-Girls/Girls-Basketball-2020-21/2021-Girls-Basketball-State-Tournament
Boys Statewide Brackets: https://www.ohsaa.org/Sports-Tournaments/Basketball-Boys/Boys-Basketball-2020-21/2021-Boys-Basketball-State-Tournament
MEDIA ACCESS AT TOURNAMENTS
As in the past, the OHSAA will determine media access for all state tournaments. Each site determines media access for district and regional tournaments. See below for additional details. Credential applications for the state tournaments are posted at: https://www.ohsaa.org/news/credentials
Ticketing information will be sent to member schools as the tournament move forward. The Ohio Department of Health and Governor Mike DeWine ask that only family members attend athletic events at this time, with indoor facility capacity limits set at 15 percent of the capacity or 300 people, whichever is smaller, unless the venue has received a variance to accommodate more spectators.
Winter Sports Tournament Broadcast Media Coverage Details:
https://ohsaaweb.blob.core.windows.net/files/News/Media/TournamentBroadcastRates.pdf
– Wrestling: the district tournaments can have live or delayed video coverage by schools (no fee), the host sites (no fee) and media (fees apply). Live video of the state tournament will be available on the NFHS Network. Tape-delayed video is available for media (fees apply).
– Bowling: the district and state tournaments can have live or delayed video coverage by schools (no fee), the host sites (no fee) and media (fees apply).
– Gymnastics: the district tournaments can have live or delayed video coverage by schools (no fee), the host sites (no fee) and media (fees apply). Live video of the state tournament will be available on the NFHS Network. Tape-delayed video is available for media (fees apply).
– Ice Hockey: the district tournaments can have live or delayed video coverage by schools (no fee), the host sites (no fee) and media (fees apply). Live video of the state tournament will be available on the NFHS Network. Tape-delayed video is available for media (fees apply).
– Basketball: some sectional, district and regional games will have live video by the NFHS Network if the facility has NFHS equipment in their gym. Otherwise, live or delayed video is permitted by schools (no fee), the host sites (no fee) and media (fees apply). The state tournaments are exclusive to Spectrum.