Area soccer teams battle for playoff spots

It’s down to the nitty-gritty for boys soccer teams Dothan, Northview and Houston Academy.

The three are remaining Wiregrass boys teams still battling to earn a state playoff berth in the final week of section play.

They hope to join three area boys teams and four girls teams who have clinched a state playoff spot.

One other girls team also has a chance to reach the postseason, though the odds are long.

The playoffs begin next week with the expanded Class 6A tournaments, both girls and boys, opening on April 30. The Class 1A-4A and Class 5A tourneys start May 2.

Area boys teams already in the playoffs are Enterprise in Class 6A and Eufaula and Carroll in Class 5A. Girls teams who are postseason bound are Enterprise and Northview in 6A, Carroll in 5A and Providence Christian in Class 1A-4A.

Area boys teams still jockeying for a postseason berth include city rivals Dothan and Northview, who meet tonight at 7 p.m. at the Westgate Soccer Complex. The winner clinches a spot in Class 6A, Section 5.

Class 6A expanded its playoff format this year, allowing the top four teams in each section to advance instead of two of recent years.

Enterprise (8-0 with two games left with Central-Phenix City) has already clinched first and Smiths Station (finished at 7-3) second place.

Opelika, 5-4 after a 5-1 win last night over Central-Phenix City, is third. Dothan (3-5) and Northview (3-6) are in the next two spots. Central (0-8) is out of contention.

If Dothan beats Northview tonight, it secures no worse than fourth and knocks Northview out. If the Tigers also beat Opelika by two or more goals on Thursday, they will finish third based off head-to-head tiebreaker of goal differential. The Bulldogs beat Dothan earlier this year 2-1.

If Dothan beats Opelika by just one goal, the first tie-breaker is even, forcing the tie to go to the next tie-breaker of goal differential in all section matches. The best Dothan can do in this tie-breaker is tie. However, Opelika wins the following tie-breaker based off its win over Smiths Station.

If Northview beats Dothan, the Cougars are No. 4 as they will finish at least a game behind third-place Opelika. Dothan would be eliminated.

Houston Academy boys, meanwhile, are hoping for help and a favorable tiebreaker. The Raiders sit in third place at 6-3 in Class 1A-4A, Section 1 behind UMS-Wright (8-1) and Bayside (7-2). The top two teams make the playoffs.

However, UMS-Wright and Bayside play Thursday and an UMS-Wright victory combined with an HA win over Daleville Monday would push the Raiders in a tie with Bayside.

For HA to make the playoffs, three things have to happen – UMS-Wright must win by three goals over Bayside, the Raiders must win by three over Daleville and also not allow the Warhawks two or more goals.

If UMS-Wright and HA both win their matches, Bayside and Houston Academy will finish tied with 7-3 records. The two teams split their matches with each winning by a goal, wiping out the first two tiebreakers.

The next tiebreaker is goal differential in all section matches. Currently, Bayside has a plus 14 differential and HA plus eight.

If Bayside loses to UMS-Wright by only one or two goals, it will finish ahead of the Raiders even if HA beats Daleville by the maximum three goals allowed for tie-breakers.

However, if UMS wins by three over Bayside and HA beats Daleville by three, the two teams will both have an 11 goal differential, putting the tie-breaker in a draw and forcing the next tie-breaker to be used.

However, that tie-breaker – least number of goals given up in the two regular-season matches between the teams -- is also tied as both allowed one against each.

The next tie-breaker is least number of goals given up in all section matches. Bayside would have given up a minimum of nine goals depending on how many goals it allows to UMS-Wright. HA currently has allowed seven goals, so it would need to give up just one goal or earn a shutout against Daleville to win the tiebreaker.

Should that tie-breaker somehow finish tied, the next tie-breaker of goal differential against the top team UMS-Wright would go to Bayside since it would lose to the Bulldogs by five goals and HA by six goals.

On the girls side, Dothan still has a chance to make the playoffs as the No. 4 team in Class 6A, Section 5. However, the Tigers must beat second-seed Northview tonight and have Central-Phenix lose both of its matches Thursday to Enterprise or lose by only one goal to Northview and have Central lose both its matches by three or more.

Enterprise won the section and Northview finished second. Smiths Station is No. 3.

The Carroll and Providence Christian girls also made the playoffs from the Wiregrass. Carroll won Class 5A, Section 2 and Providence finished second in Class 1A-4A, Section 1 behind UMS-Wright. The Houston Academy girls, the other area team, finished fourth in 1A-4A.

On the boys side, Eufaula (6-0) and Carroll (6-1) will represent the Wiregrass in Class 5A. The two will determine first and second during a match Thursday at Eufaula.