DARKE COUNTY — All three Darke County schools got past their first round opponent with ease. Now, they should face a tougher challenge in what will be each school’s last home game this season. The rest of the playoffs will be played in neutral sites.

The first round of the playoffs showed there are no easy weeks in the playoffs. Sure, most of the top seeds won. But Xenia and Troy would tell you there’s no gimmes around this time of year.

If the teams bring their A game, they should advance to the next round. Best way to cap off your home slate is with a playoff win. Here are the match ups for this week and some information on the visitors.

8 Catholic Central vs 1 Ansonia Division VII:

After defeating St. Bernard-Elmwood Place 33-0, Catholic Central is coming in with a 7-4 record and a 4-4 conference record while playing in the Ohio Heritage Football League. This was a team coming into postseason play on a four-game losing streak. They were outscored 119-16 during that stretch. They lost to some of the top teams in their league and to some at the bottom of their league. They seem to have put the streak behind them to get the shutout against Elmwood Place.

Ansonia is coming off a 67-0 win over Riverview East Academy. The running game clicked for the Tigers and they cruised through the game. Catholic Central will be feeling confident after their win. The Tigers’ run game will have to break that confidence to get the win. Senior Exzaviar Moody ran for 140 yards on 17 carries and got three touchdowns in the first round game. Like most of the season, he will be the key for Ansonia’s running game to get going.

6 Cincinnati Country Day vs 3 Tri-Village Division VI:

Cincinnati Country Day is coming off a close 27-20 victory over Eastern last week. They are 10-1 on the season with a 5-0 conference record playing in the Miami Valley Conference. The Nighthawks ran for 357 yards as a team. Runningback Parker Corbin, had 30 rushing attempts for 205 yards and three touchdowns. Runningback Lee Thomas had 16 carries for 136 yards and a touchdown.

Tri-Village defeated Deer Park, 33-6, last week. They did most of their damage on the ground. Junior Reed Wehr ran for 155 yards on 28 carries and three touchdowns. Junior quarterback Braden Keating had two touchdowns, but only threw the ball 12 times for 83 yards. Eastern scored two touchdowns through the air against the Nighthawks. The Patriots will have to make it a passing game to get the win. They can run the ball to compete with Country Day, but Keating has proven he can lead his team to victory with his arm. The Nighthawks haven’t found much success with their passing game.

12 Twin Valley South vs 4 Versailles Division VI:

It will be another WOAC opponent for Versailles. Twin Valley South pulled off the upset over the fourth seeded Williamsburg, 70-38. TVS rushed for 517 yards as a team. Cais Kingsley led with 254 yards on 19 carries and had four touchdowns. Brayden Koeller had 136 yards and two touchdowns while Cole Bishop had 108 yards and a touchdown. The Panthers scored 20+ in three of the four quarters last week. They will certainly continue to lean on their running game.

Versailles defeated National Trail, 47-0, last week. The Blazers lost to TVS, 9-3, a few weeks ago. Versailles does benefit from facing a rushing team in National Trail last week. The run defense will need to continue their efforts from last week to this week against another rushing team. It will also be a big day for the passing offense. TVS gave up 283 yards passing last week. The Tigers could go more pass heavy in this match-up.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]