Payback party for Batavia and exciting runs for STC schools?

Geneva coach Tim Pease has been following the IHSA state tournament pairings for the last 15 years as Vikings coach, and for many years before that as a player at Geneva.

He has never seen something like this year, and not just because for the first time we have the ridiculous four classes to deal with.

When the IHSA posted the pairings Friday afternoon, the 12th slated Vikings were opposite No. 6 Neuqua Valley.

Two hours later, the 4A pairings showed Geneva playing an extra game, against West Chicago, and if it wins that they would play No. 5 Naperville Central.

"From about 3 to 4:30 I was looking up the Neuqua Valley schedule and from 4:30 on I was watching West Chicago," Pease said. "I have never been a part of a schedule change like that."

Pease said Geneva athletic director Jim Kafer made a call to the IHSA to find out what happened. But Pease didn't seem too bothered by the mix-up. He seemed eager to see if his team could make a little noise in two weeks when the tourney begins.

In that same positive vein, here's a look ahead to what will be a historic 2008 boys basketball state tournament with an optimistic outlook for our local teams.

Start with Batavia.

Anyone who saw East Aurora run up and down the court dunking on St. Joseph at Night of Hoops knows the Tomcats are a team nobody wants to see come March. Yet there's East Aurora, somehow all the way down as the No. 10 seed, in the same Bartlett regional with Batavia.

A win for Batavia and a win for East Aurora would set up a rematch of last year's Batavia regional championship game.

But stick with that glass-half-full philosophy for a minute. Maybe instead of being a scary draw, East Aurora could be the start of a Revenge Tour of sorts for the Bulldogs on their way to a sectional championship.

In one week's time, in a not too far-fetched scenario, Batavia could get payback for each of its season-ending losses during its last three seasons.

First comes East Aurora, who beat Batavia 60-52 in last year's regional title game at Batavia, snapping the Bulldogs' string of five straight regional championships. The Bulldogs could send the Tomcats packing in the regional finals.

Then in the East Aurora sectional semifinals, the Bulldogs could meet No. 5 Naperville Central, who won the battle of Cinderellas in the 2005 East Aurora sectional championship. The No. 10 Redhawks defeated the No. 11 Bulldogs 84-73 in one of the most unusual championship games you'll ever see between two double-digit seeds.

Finally, in the sectional championship, Batavia could pay back West Aurora for ending its dream 2006 season. The Blackhawks and Bulldogs both entered that sectional championship 27-1, but West Aurora dominated the glass that night while only trailing once to win 63-57 in front of 4,400 fans.

Of course, Bulldog fans couldn't care less who Batavia beats so long as it keeps advancing.

See, this optimistic approach isn't so bad, right?

It also works for the two St. Charles schools, who both have a golden opportunity to continue their strong stretch runs with a regional championship.

St. Charles North is seeded first in the Larkin regional, one spot ahead of St. Charles East. Their toughest competition, besides each other, should come from Elgin, a team the North Stars and Saints both already have defeated.

With its No. 12 seed, Geneva wouldn't mind seeing a tournament like 2005 when a double-digit seed comes out of nowhere.

After struggling a year ago, West Aurora has rebounded impressively, and as the No. 3 seed the Blackhawks might have to go through the Valleys -- No. 6 Neuqua and No. 2 Waubonsie -- to get to a very familiar place for Gordie Kerkman's crew, the sectional championship game.

Down a class in 3A, it's a shame for Aurora Central it's no longer a 2-class tournament. The Chargers would be a handful for anyone in the old Class A tournament.

But with a 2-0 record against DuPage Valley Conference schools this year, the Chargers obviously aren't scared of bigger teams. If they can win their own regional, that's likely just what they would see -- the ultimate Hoosiers-type matchup against Marshall in the sectional semifinals.

It would take the most optimistic fan to predict a win in that game. But with the seeds voted on, the pairings now set -- in Geneva's case on the second try -- the best time on the sports calendar is just a couple weeks away, and there's nothing wrong with dreaming big.