Excitement abounds, but…
The diamonds are being assembled for the crown jewel.
For the next three weeks, the signature event of the high school athletic season is here.
It is a time line like no other.
This promises to be a playoff season unlike any other as well.
Over the objections of a vast majority of state coaches, the IHSA has doubled the class format to four, only fueling the unknown versus the known: unpredictability underscored by a commonality for the ultimate business trip to Peoria.
East Aurora High School traces its lineage to the apex of Reconstruction, and its fabled gymnasium is once again a preliminary destination for the inaugural Class 4A state tournament.
"The sectional at East Aurora is magical," East Aurora coach and 1982 alum Wendell Jeffries said. "There is nowhere else that matches its atmosphere. When you have over 4,000 fans in here, it is an electric feeling."
For the three area squads -- Batavia, Geneva and West Aurora -- in the 21-team complex, navigating the minefields is a tall task indeed.
"(The East Aurora sectional) has always been very competitive, and I think it is going to very competitive again this year," West Aurora coach Gordie Kerkman said. "There are a lot of teams in the middle of the pack who are capable of beating some of the higher seeds."
"Out of the 21 schools, we have 15 teams with winning records," Jeffries said. "That is probably unprecedented."
How deep is the field?
"I have never seen a (No.) 13-seed like Glenbard West," Wheaton North coach Jim Nazos said. "They may have the best player (Northwestern-bound center John Shurna) in the area, and they are the defending champion. I think it's the toughest sectional in the state."
"There were probably 10, 12 coaches walking out of (the seeding meeting) thinking, 'Hey, we've got as good a chance of winning this as anyone else,'" Batavia coach Jim Roberts said.
The potent mix of thoroughbreds has even caught the attention of coaches competing in other sectional complexes.
"I don't envy those teams down there," St. Charles North coach Tom Poulin said. "Batavia, Waubonsie Valley, Neuqua Valley, East Aurora, West Aurora -- and Wheaton North is there, too. That's nuts. If you get through that, you deserve to go downstate."
Regional action kicks off Monday night at the four feed-in sites to the sectional: Waubonsie Valley, Naperville North, Bartlett and Willowbrook.
Batavia earned the top seed, and the Bulldogs are concentrating on an extended run as a symbolic tribute to four-year varsity standout Nick Fruendt.
The Bulldogs were upset last year against East Aurora on their home court in the regional final after consecutive sectional-finals appearances the previous two years.
"The No. 1 seed is a nice compliment, but we have to put that on the shelf and play each game as if it's our last," Roberts said. "We've talked all along about trying to get better (for the playoffs)."
Batavia (20-5) opens play Tuesday night in Bartlett against either Benet or Lake Park.
The Bulldogs could very well have a regional-final rematch if East Aurora prevails against league foe Bartlett Wednesday night.
Upstate Eight runner-up Waubonsie Valley (20-6), which features four of its five starters in double figures, is the No. 2 seed.
The sectional includes the entire eight-team contingent of the DuPage Valley Conference, and league rivals West Aurora and Wheaton North, coming off a scintillating three-overtime game last week that the Falcons won at the buzzer, are the third and fourth seeds.
West Aurora (17-7) lost five of its last seven conference games to finish behind co-champions Wheaton North (20-6) and Naperville Central (19-7), the fifth seed.
"We lost some of our focus," Kerkman said. "I just don't think we were playing at the same level the second half of the season as, say, we were at Thanksgiving time."
The Blackhawks face either Wheaton Warrenville South or Addison Trail on Tuesday at Willowbrook, and their unrivaled downstate history retains its mystique despite the recent losing trend.
If the Blackhawks win their first game, they likely would play red-hot Upstate Eight Conference champ Neuqua Valley (21-7), the No. 6 seed.
"Never count out the Blackhawks," Geneva coach Tim Pease said. "Any team that is coached by Gordie this time of the year (is dangerous)."
Geneva (16-11) and its high-octane offense tangle with West Chicago Monday night in the play-in game at Naperville North, with the winner drawing Naperville Central in semifinal action.
"I don't care what seed you are, you have to come ready to play," Pease said of his No. 12 Vikings. "I really think (the sectional) is up for grabs."
The East Aurora sectional champion advances to meet the victor from Richards at the Chicago State supersectional for a berth in the Final Four at Peoria.
The prospect for unmatched action at East Aurora has one coach ambivalent about his obligations.
"If we're still alive, I'm probably going to be battling myself to watch some of those games or scouting opponents on my off-night," Poulin said.
Larkin regional:ŒThe two St. Charles high schools are the top-two seeds at the all-Upstate Eight Larkin regional, part of the Jacobs sectional complex.
North, the top seed, faces Streamwood or Larkin Tuesday, and the No. 2 Saints meet the winner between Elgin and Larkin on Wednesday.
"I don't know if I like all conference teams (at the regional)," Poulin said. "We beat everybody in that regional (during the regular season), but they were all close games. Nobody wants to see Elgin right now."
St. Charles East defeated the Maroons last year at its place to claim the sole local regional title last season.
The Maroons are a prohibitive favorite to defeat 1-win Larkin in their cross-town play-in game on Monday.
The Saints turned back Elgin 85-77 in double overtime during the league season.
"It was an unbelievable high school game," St. Charles East coach Brian Clodi said. "Neither team could stop the other."
The Larkin champion advances to Jacobs sectional, where the finest teams from the Rockford area converge.
"If we get out there, we will feel fortunate," Poulin said.
The host Eagles are the class of the fourth regional.
"You're going to have to handle Jacobs (to advance to the NIU supersectional)," Poulin said. "It's no easy task."
Class 3A:ŒAurora Central, in Class A last year, and erstwhile Class AA members Marmion and Kaneland are in the Class 3A alignment this season.
Aurora Central, which co-shared the Suburban Catholic Conference crown, hosts its own regional.
Marmion is in the field at Aurora Central, taking on Glenbard South on Wednesday night, and the Cadets are hoping for a fourth shot at their city and league rivals on Friday.
The Chargers, the fourth seed of the Riverside-Brookfield sectional, figure to meet Chicago Orr (No. 13) on Tuesday.
The top-three seeds in the sectional are state goliaths Marshall, St. Joseph and Crane.
"I just pray that we get a shot at (Marshall)," Aurora Central coach Nate Drye said. "If we're fortunate enough to get there, we'll deal with that mountain (Marshall) when we get there. I would be the happiest man in the state of Illinois if we had to game plan against St. Joseph (whom the Chargers could face only in the sectional final)."
Kaneland coach Dennis Hansen was one of the few coaches in the area who liked class expansion, and the Knights have a date with Sandwich Monday night at the Sycamore regional.
"We're not up against the 3,000-plus schools," Hansen said. "It really put us at a disadvantage."
Sycamore, where Burlington Central is the top seed, feeds into the Freeport sectional.