COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Board of Directors has unanimously approved a proposal to expand the number of divisions for postseason tournaments in various high school sports. The amendment to OHSAA General Sports Regulation 17 will result in significant changes across several sports, including soccer, girls volleyball, basketball, baseball, and softball.
Under the approved proposal, girls and boys soccer will now have five divisions, while girls volleyball, girls and boys basketball, softball, and baseball will each have seven divisions. Notably, Division I and Division II in these sports will include only 64 schools each.
The implementation of these changes is set to take effect in the fall of 2024. OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute hailed the decision as a crucial step towards leveling the playing field for student-athletes across Ohio.
“It’s the right thing to do for the student-athletes who have been competing at this disadvantage,” said Ute. “For too long, the largest schools in our divisions have been so much larger than the smaller schools in the same division, which has resulted in many schools accepting that they realistically have little chance at making a run in the tournament.”
Ute emphasized that the proposal aims to provide more opportunities for student-athletes to excel in postseason competition, without diminishing the significance of winning a state title.
The approved proposal utilizes a scale to guide the board’s decision on the number of divisions based on the number of participating teams in each sport. Additionally, the proposal outlines the number of divisions to be used for individual sports based on team enrollment.
While the decision has been made by the Board of Directors, the OHSAA will provide further details on structural and date changes for future state tournaments at a later date.
