State Series Format
While the earlier years of the IHSA saw a hodgepodge of systems for organizing each event's state playoff series, there exists today a more uniform system. The IHSA attempts to organize state championship events geographically, so that different regions of the state or represented in state finals competition. Though not every competition uses it, the Regional (R) tournament is generally the lowest level of competition, and is open to every team which is eligible to enter. This is followed by Sectional (S) competition, and is followed by the State (F) level. In some sports, there is a single game Super-Sectional (SS) which follows the Sectional, and determines the state qualifier. In some regions where teams are further from one another, the sectionals are divided into sub-sectionals for seeding purposes. The following is an overview of the state series. Unless noted, boys and girls sports use identical systems. In all cases, seeding is either conducted by a conclave of coaches, or is made by criterion of best scores or times (as in track & field).
| Sport | # of Classes | Format | Seeding information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Badminton (girls only) | 1 | S-F | individuals seeded at sectional level; no team seeding |
| Baseball | 4 | R-S-SS-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Basketball | 4 | R-S-SS-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Bowling | 1 | S-F | no seeding |
| Cheerleading | 32 | S-F | no seeding |
| Cross-Country | 3 | R-S-F | no seeding |
| Football | 8 | 6 | 6 |
| Golf (boys) | 3 | R-S-F | no seeding |
| Golf (girls) | 2 | R-S-F | no seeding |
| Gymnastics (boys) | 1 | S-F | individual seeding at sectional level |
| Gymnastics (girls) | 1 | R-S-F | individual seeding at regional level |
| Soccer | 3 | R-S-SS-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Softball | 4 | R-S-SS-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Swimming & Diving | 1 | S-F | individuals seeded at sectional level |
| Tennis | 1 | S-F | individuals seeded at sectional level |
| Track & Field | 3 | S-F | individuals seeded at sectional level |
| Volleyball (boys) | 1 | R-S-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Volleyball (girls) | 4 | R-S-SS-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Water Polo | 1 | S-F | teams seeded at sectional level |
| Wrestling | 3 | R-S-F | individuals seeded at regional level7 |
None of the competitive activities to date have a super-sectional level of competition, but otherwise follow similar formats for their state competitions. Music is a noted exception.
| Activity | # of Classes | Format | Seeding information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bass Fishing | 1 | S-F | none |
| Chess | 1 | F | Top 56 teams are determined by a pairing committee; Swiss pairing afterwards |
| Debate | 1 | F | none |
| Drama & Group Interpretation | 1 | S-F | none |
| Journalism | 4 | S-F | none |
| Music | 5 | 8 | none |
| Scholastic Bowl | 2 | R-S-F | teams seeded at sectional or sub-sectional level |
| Speech Individual Events | 1 | R-S-F | none |
Read more about this topic: Illinois High School Association
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