The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association soccer playoffs begin with McDonogh holding the No. 1 seed in the A Conference and a first-round bye. McDonogh enters the postseason with a 21-0-1 overall record and a 15-0-1 A Conference record after defeating Archbishop Curley, 5-1, and Calvert Hall, 5-0, in its final two regular-season games.
McDonogh also ranks No. 8 nationally in the latest United Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 rankings. It is the only Maryland team recognized in the poll.
McDonogh Awaits A Conference Opponent
Loyola Blakefield earned the No. 2 seed and the other first-round bye in the A Conference. Mount St. Joseph finished tied with Loyola Blakefield at 29 points, but Loyola Blakefield won the seeding tiebreaker with a 1-0-1 head-to-head record against Mount St. Joseph.
Archbishop Curley earned the No. 4 seed and was scheduled to host Gilman in an opening-round game Monday at 2:45 p.m. Calvert Hall earned the No. 6 seed and was scheduled to visit Mount St. Joseph at 2:15 p.m. Monday.
Gilman earned the No. 5 seed after defeating Loyola Blakefield, 1-0, on Andrew Herman’s goal with 20 seconds remaining in regulation. The Calvert Hall-Mount St. Joseph winner was scheduled to play Loyola Blakefield on Thursday, while the Archbishop Curley-Gilman winner was scheduled to play McDonogh.
Severn Leads B Conference Field
Severn earned the No. 1 seed in the B Conference after defeating Boys’ Latin in league play. Connor Merchant and Kiernan Davids scored for Severn, while Connor Gattie, TJ Flanagan, Trent Bray and Keller Schnabel helped limit Boys’ Latin to three shots against senior goalie Max Barney.
Boys’ Latin earned the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye despite the loss to Severn. Gerstell Academy, St. Paul’s, Annapolis Area Christian School and St. Mary’s followed Boys’ Latin in the B Conference seeding.
St. Mary’s was scheduled to visit Gerstell Academy, and Annapolis Area Christian School was scheduled to visit St. Paul’s in Monday’s opening round. The Gerstell Academy-St. Mary’s winner was scheduled to play Boys’ Latin in the semifinal round, while Severn was scheduled to host the Annapolis Area Christian School-St. Paul’s winner.
Gunston Earns Top C Conference Seed
Gunston earned the No. 1 seed in the C Conference with a 12-0 overall record and an 8-0 conference record. Key, Cristo Rey Jesuit, Beth Tfiloh, Glenelg Country School and St. John’s Catholic Prep followed Gunston in the seeding.
The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association scheduled all three conference championship games for Sunday, Nov. 15, at Stevenson University’s Mustang Stadium. The C Conference championship was scheduled for 1 p.m., the B Conference championship for 3:15 p.m. and the A Conference championship for 5:30 p.m.
Maryland Sports Blog Take
McDonogh enters the A Conference playoffs with the top seed, a first-round bye, a 21-0-1 overall record and a No. 8 national ranking. Its final two regular-season victories came against Archbishop Curley and Calvert Hall, both of which qualified for the A Conference playoffs.
The A Conference bracket was scheduled to take shape after Monday’s opening-round games, with McDonogh set to face the Archbishop Curley-Gilman winner on Thursday. Severn and Gunston also entered the postseason as conference top seeds, while all three MIAA championship games were scheduled for Mustang Stadium.
Source: Original report
