A side of Kraut

by

Casey K rautkramer Reporter

Competitive

Balance Plan will hurt Stratford

Stratford’s varsity football team is likely to move up a division in next season’s playoffs, based on it earning eight total points in the WIAA’s new Competitive Balance plan for winning back-to-back WIAA Division 6 state championships.

The WIAA’s Competitive Balance plan, which was approved by the WIAA’s membership schools at April’s annual meeting, goes into effect in next year’s 2024-25 sports seasons for both public and private schools. The Tournament Performance Factor (TPF) of the plan applies points to all teams in applicable sports to determine which teams have achieved the requisite six TPF points to move up a division.

Teams receive four TPF points for winning a state championship, three points for advancing to the championship game, two points for advancing to the state semifinal which is Level 4 in the football playoffs and one point for advancing to the state quarterfinal, sectional final or Level 3 in 11-player football.

TPF points are totaled from a sports team’s last three years in the same division. For example, Stratford’s football team earned no TPF points in the 2021 season because it lost to St. Croix Falls in Level 2 of the Division 6 playoffs. Stratford, however, earned four TPF points in each of the last two seasons by winning back-to-back Division 6 state championships. Therefore, Stratford is likely to move up from Division 6 to Division 5 in next season’s football playoffs. If a football team like Stratford moves up to Division 5 next season, that means a Division 5 team would move down and take its place in Division 6.

Schools can appeal the WIAA’s decision to move its sports team up a division in the playoffs based on its performance in the postseason during the last three years, but I doubt a school will win an appeal. The high school sports of swimming, track and field, girls hockey and wrestling, boys volleyball and eight-player football are single-division sports and thus are not part of the WIAA’s Competitive Balance Plan.

Edgar’s varsity football team will likely remain in the WIAA’s Division 7 playoffs next season, because it has only earned a total of five TPF points during the last three seasons. A sports team needs to obtain six TPF points during the last three seasons to move up a division in the playoffs. Edgar’s football team earned no TPF points in 2021 after losing to Hurley in Level 2 of the WIAA Division 7 playoffs, one TPF point in 2022 for losing to Eau Claire Regis in Level 3 of Division 7 playoffs and four points this season for winning the Division 7 state championship.