HILLIARD, Ohio -- The last two weeks have been statement weeks in Central Ohio with every top five team in Division I playing against a fellow top five opponent. Hilliard Bradley passed yet another huge test in taking down quite possibly Cleveland's best team in Lakewood St. Edward last Saturday.
For South, the Bulldogs slipped by Briggs on Friday before beating Johnstown by 20 after a slow start on Saturday.
Gahanna added its second top 7 win by knocking off Walnut Ridge at the buzzer on Saturday. The Lions are off to a 7-0 start and playing great team ball, as its signature win of the year last Friday came on the road at Pickerington North.
Speaking of Pickerington North, the Panthers bounced back from back-to-back losses last week by running past Pickerington Central on the road on Tuesday. Then four days later the Panthers picked up a signature win by racing past Cedarville on Saturday.
For Pickerington Central, the Tigers rebounded after losing to rival North by blowing past Reynoldsburg and Springfield in back-to-back days.
Outside of the top five, we saw a few upsets last week, none bigger than what went down in the OCC-Buckeye when unranked Westerville North raced by No. 5 Olentangy Liberty by 20, while unranked Westerville South handled No. 10 Olentangy Orange by 15.
If this season has taught us anything, it's that any team can be beaten on any day. Besides maybe Hilliard Bradley, who is 71-1 in the last three years when scoring at least 44 points, with its last loss in such scenario happening in the 2017 district finals against Upper Arlington.
Let's take a look at our latest Division I power rankings.
# | PRE | Team | Record | SOR | This Week |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Hilliard Bradley | 7-0 | 23 | vs. Teays Valley (1) |
2 | 2 | South | 8-0 | 17 | No games |
3 | 3 | Gahanna | 7-0 | 17 | vs. Zanesville (1) |
4 | 8 | Pickerington North | 5-3 | 14 | @ #10 St. Charles (4) |
5 | 4 | Pickerington Central | 5-2 | 13 | vs. Shaker Heights (3) |
6 | 7 | Thomas Worthington | 5-2 | 9 | vs. Conner (KY) (1), vs. Ponitz (1) |
7 | 6 | Walnut Ridge | 5-2 | 7 | No games |
8 | 9 | Newark | 6-1 | 8 | vs. TBD, vs. TBD |
9 | NR | New Albany | 6-1 | 9 | @ Olentangy Berlin |
10 | NR | St. Charles | 4-2 | 4 | vs. Bexley (1), vs. #4 Pickerington North (5) |
Trending Upward: Hilliard Bradley (-), Gahanna (-), Pickerington North (+4), New Albany (+2), St. Charles (+2), Marysville, Upper Arlington, Westerville Central, Westerville South
Trending Downward: Olentangy Liberty (-5), Olentangy Orange (-1), Dublin Coffman
Steady: South (-), Pickerington Central (-1), Thomas Worthington (+1), Walnut Ridge (-1), Newark (+1)
Remaining unbeaten teams: South (8-0), Hilliard Bradley (7-0), Gahanna (7-0), Teays Valley (3-0)
Strength of Record Leaders