Tigers, Raiders host playoff openers

Two area teams earned playoff spots after finishing regular-season play with victories Friday night.

in 8-Player first-round pairings, district champion and top-ranked Lenox (8-0) has a home game at 7 p.m. Friday against at-large selection Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton (3-5), which placed in fourth in District 10. Fremont-Mills (7-1) was the district champion.

In Class A, District 6 runner-up Mount Ayr (6-2) hosts District 7 third-place finisher Earlham (6-2).

Lenox wrapped up its perfect regular season Friday with a 60-28 victory at Lamoni. Exira-EHK earned the at-large bid to face Lenox with a 60-30 victory over Griswold Friday.

District runner-up Bedford travels to another district runner-up, Belle Plaine, in a first-round game. The Bulldogs ended the season defeating Southeast Warren, 63-8, in the battle for second place in the district behind Lenox.

District 10 runner-up CAM (6-2) travels to 7-1 GTRA (Greattinger).

Other 8-Player matchups are Tripoli at Bishop Garrigan (Algona), East Mills at Audubon, Springville at Gilbertville Don Bosco, BGM (Brooklyn) at Edgewoood-Colesburg, Ar-We-Va at Fremont-Mills, Lansing Kee at Gladbrook-Reinbeck, Southeast Warren at Iowa Valley, Winfield-Mount Union at Montezuma, West Bend-Mallard at St. Mary’s (Remsen), Clarksville at Riceville, Collins-Maxwell at Woodbine, WACO at Central City and Fort Dodge St. Edmond at Janesville.

Class A pairings

Mount Ayr ended the regular season with a 54-14 victory over Martensdale-St. Marys, to finish second in District 6 at 5-1. Earlham defeated playoff qualifier South Central Calhoun, 21-19.

District 6 champion Madrid (6-2) will host district fourth-place finisher North Tama. District 7 champion ACGC (8-0) will play at home against Wayne (5-3) after defeating Southwest Valley Friday night, 40-7. Other southwest Iowa pairings include Council Bluffs St. Albert at Akron-Westfield, South Central Calhoun at Tri-Center, Logan-Magnolia at MMCRU (Marcus) and Lynnville-Sully at 6-2 Riverside. Coached by Darrell Frain, former Creston assistant football and head wrestling coach, Riverside ended the regular season with a 44-6 victory over Panorama.

The remainder of the Class A first round includes Starmont at Lisbon, North Tama at Madrid, Columbus Community at Maquoketa Valley, South Central Calhoun at Tri-Center, Lake Mills at Wapsie Valley, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn at West Hancock, Danville at Bellevue, Mason City Newman Catholic at Nashua-Plainfield, North Linn at Pekin, South Winneshiek at Saint Ansgar and Sibley-Ocheyedan at Woodbury Central.

Among area teams not making the playoffs, Murray defeated Mormon Trail 65-14, East Union fell to Collins-Maxwell 56-26 and Nodaway Valley was defeated by Odgen, 44-14.