The region schedules for Dixie, Pine View and Snow Canyon will not change next season, but the playoffs will be unique for all Region 9 schools.

The UHSAA moved Dixie, Pine View and Snow Canyon into the 4A classification, but to reduce travel costs and time out of school, officials voted to allow those three schools to play in Region 9 as it's been the last two years. That means the three larger schools will compete in league play against Canyon View, Cedar, Hurricane, all schools that will remain in 3A.

For playoff purposes, however, the top two teams from Region 9 will advance to playoff games in both 4A and 3A tournaments.

In football for example, that means Region 9's top 4A team will play Region 6's fifth-seeded team. Region 9's second-place 4A team will play Region 6's third-place team in the first round.

In 3A football brackets, Region 9's No. 1 3A team will play Region 8's No. 4 team, while Region 9's second-place team will play Region 8's No. 3 team.

The change essentially eliminates the sixth-place team from Region 6 in 4A and the last-place team from either Region 10 or Region 11, depending on which one has a better winning percentage.

In sports like golf and track, the top two teams from each classification in Region 9 will also advance to the playoffs.

UHSAA staff said there will likely be some tweaking as this is the first year officials have tried to allow teams to play regional league games but qualify for a state tournament in another classification.

All of the new brackets and qualifying criteria will be in the UHSAA's Yearbook due out in about a month. The yearbook is also available on the Web site at www.uhsaa.org.

PREPS COMMIT TO GRIFFINS: Westminster women's basketball coach JD Gustin announced three more Utah prep stars signed with the Griffins last week. Lexi Phillips, a 5-foot-6 guard, graduated from Juan Diego High after averaging 12 points, eight assists and three steals per game. Nicole Lynch, a 5-2 point guard, graduated from Hillcrest and was a two-year captain, as well as, second-team all-region. She is also a Sterling Scholar and Academic All-State. Lauren Hally, a 6-2 post, graduated from Woods Cross and averaged eight points and eight rebounds per game. The Griffins needed some size and hope her defense provides them an edge next winter.

---

E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com