Hilliard Bradley’s Jeb Bischoff tries to block Upper Arlington’s Owen Gawel in a tightly-contested OCC battle that tilted to Bradley on the strength of Cade Norris” career night (PressPros Feature Photo by John Hulkenberg)

Gahanna used its size inside, including 6-7 Javan Simmons (24), and a stellar effort from Marquette signee Sean Jones to pull away from Pickerington North (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg).

Upper Arlington’s Nick Heath leveled this blocked shot at Coffman’s Ryan Kirkby, but the ‘Rocks took over late with their defense and Ajay Sheldon’s 38 points (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg).

Westerville South’s Isaiah Johnson (15) found himself in Hilliard Davidson’s defensive vice here, but he and his teammates’ pressure wound up turning the tables and triggering South’s ascent to 8-0. (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg)

Not known as a basketball power, Hilliard Davidson and point guard Cole Carter (1) delivered a statement OCC Central win by using a blend of height, defense and chemistry to defeat Dublin Coffman (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg).

Defense was the name of the game, and the key to the game, as it often is when Westerville South and Westerville North battle, as South’s Andy Badu (23) and North’s Caleb Iheukwu (4) do here in South’s 45-43 win (PressPros Feature Photo by John Hulkenberg).

An unbeaten season that ends shy of a state championship never ends painlessly, and such was the case with Upper Arlington after its 16-10 loss to Lakewood St. Edward, with Henry Rappolt (67) consoling Jake Badgeley (66) when the Golden Bears ran out of time.

The heartbreak of falling just short in triple overtime is evident in the pain of Pickerington Central’s Kobe Asamoah after Upper Arlington gained a 21-14 victory in the Division I Region 3 finals (PressPros Feature Photo by Brian Bayless).

Te’Sean Smoot passed for 363 yards and two TDs and also ran for two scores as Springfield rolled to its third consecutive Division I regional title. Springfield’s Anthony Brown (7) hauls in a reception while Marysville’s Cameron Jones (4) pursues. (pictured). Steve Blackledge writes for Saturday Press Pros.

Despite some great moments, like this one Abbey Queen and Gabby Moulton (33) celebrated, Olentangy Liberty came up short of winning its first state championship with a four-set loss in the Division I girls state volleyball title match (PressPros Feature Photos by Sonny Fulks).

New Albany had a plan to stop Upper Arlington’s Carson Gresock (33), but the Eagles didn’t count on QB Simon Monnin (14) torching their defense for five touchdown passes (PressPros Feature Photos by Keith Harney).

You can’t go wrong living in either Upper Arlington or New Albany, but only one will survive their regional semifinal matchup of unbeatens as Week Three of the Playoffs distills the field from 16 in each Division down to eight.

New Albany is set for a regional semifinal showdowm with Upper Arlington thanks to the dominance of its running game, led by QB Brock Kidwell (7) and fullback Jadyn Garnes (PressPros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless).

Asher Hamilton and the Upper Arlington defense pointed the way to the regionals, where the Golden Bears will face unbeaten New Albany after eliminating Reynoldsburg. (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg).

There were many lopsided mismatches that the masses feared in Week One of the state football playoffs, but a noteworthy number of upsets mitigated the ugliness and set some teams up for future success.

In a season marred by near misses, Reynoldsburg developed a healthy case of revenge for someone and made Hilliard Davidson the first, and maybe not the last, to pay for past frustrations.

Dublin Jerome used some big plays in the passing game, including this one to David Adolph, and elusive tailback Preston Everhart to oust Olentangy Liberty (PressPros Feature Photo by John Hulkenberg).

Mismatches abound, or appear to, as the state playoffs begin with some pairings that suggest competition may not be as robust as the size of the pack chasing a title in each region (PressPros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless).