4A Preview
Here are some thoughts on the upcoming season, based on the final 2011 computer rankings and the 2012 district memberships.
District rankings:
(All): average strength of all teams in the district
Parity:
0 = perfect randomness: all district games are coin-flips
1 = perfect prediction: all district games will be blowouts
(top4): average of the top 4 teams in the district, a measure of how well the district will fare in the playoffs.
R Dist (All) Parity (top4) 1 4A-1 112.36 0.326 123.87 2 MVC 109.84 0.415 131.64 3 MAC 102.27 0.303 126.30 4 4A-4 102.04 0.365 112.00 5 4A-2 101.46 0.381 111.31 6 4A-3 95.15 0.224 107.21
Division/Conference previews:
4A-1: #1 WDM Valley (14-0), #11 Des Moines Lincoln (9-2), #17 Urbandale (6-5), #20 Sioux City East (5-6)
Valley headlines division 1, returning from an undefeated and championship 2011.
4A-2: #5 Ankeny (11-2), #21 Johnston (4-6), #26 Fort Dodge (3-7), #29 Sioux City North (4-7)
Ankeny headlines division 2, back from a semifinal appearance in 2011.
4A-3: #6 WDM Dowling (9-3), #13 Marshalltown (8-3), #36 Ottumwa (3-7), #37 Mason City (2-7)
Dowling leads division 3.
4A-4: #2 Southeast Polk (10-2), #16 Waukee (6-4), #32 CB Lincoln (5-5), #35 Des Moines East (4-6)
Southeast Polk starts 2012 atop division 4.
MAC: #3 Bettendorf (12-2), #10 Pleasant Valley (8-3), #12 Eldridge North Scott (9-2), #14 Davenport Assumption (7-3)
Bettendorf, 2011 finalist, leads the preseason rankings in the MAC.
MVC: #4 Marion Linn-Mar (10-1), #7 Iowa City High (8-3), #8 Cedar Falls (11-2), #9 Iowa City West (9-3)
A quartet of top 10 teams will battle for the 2012 MVC crown. MVC leads all groups in parity: a lot of competitive games will be played this fall.