The defending state champs find themselves in an unfamiliar position.

Winner, the defending Class 11B state champs, enter Thursday’s first-round of playoffs as the No. 11 seed and will travel to No. 6  Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central after a 5-4 season. This is the Warriors first time losing at least four games in a season since 2005.

At the top of the standings, Elk Point-Jefferson earned the No. 1 seed with an undefeated record and will host No. 16 Flandreau at 7 p.m. Thursday in Elk Point. The Huskies have made it to two of the last three state championships in 11B, including a state championship in 2022.

St. Thomas More (8-0) earned the No. 2 seed on the other side of the bracket and will host Hot Springs at 6 p.m., MT.

Most intriguing first-round matchup

A team on the rise takes on a team looking to get back on track in the opening round.

No. 7 Mount Vernon-Plankinton (4-4) hosts No. 10 Mobridge-Pollock (6-2) after its biggest win of the season over previously No. 3 ranked Woonsocket-Wessington Springs-Sanborn Central, 30-6, to close out the regular season. The Titans are winners of four straight, including Winner and Miller-Highmore-Harrold before taking down the Bucks last week.

On the other hand, the Tigers are looking for some confidence after dropping its last two games of the season to Class 11B No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake (44-6) and Class 11B No. 5 Deuel (40-35). The Tigers had won six straight to start the year and sat as high as No. 3 in the high school prep media poll before losing two in a row.

Rematches aplenty in first round

Familiarity is the name of the game in Class 11B.

Of the eight first-round matchups, five of them are rematches of games from the regular season. 

No. 1 seed Elk Point-Jefferson plays No. 16 Flandreau, a rematch of the Huskies’ 43-6 win on Oct. 10. No. 5 Wagner plays No. 12 Chamberlain for the second time this season, with the Red Raiders recording a 45-12 win on Aug. 22. 

No. 2 St. Thomas More topped No. 15 Hot Springs, 27-0, on Oct. 10 and they will play in the first round. No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake plays No. 14 Groton Area for the second time this season, with the Cyclones winning 20-7 on Sept. 26. 

No. 6 Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central will host No. 11 Winner for the second time, with the Bucks topping the Warriors 20-6 on Sept. 19.  

Class 11B First-Round Pairings

No. 16 Flandreau at No. 1 Elk Point-Jefferson, 7 p.m., CT, Elk Point

No. 9 Parker at No. 8 Sioux Valley, 7 p.m., CT, Volga

No. 13 McCook Central/Montrose at No. 4 Deuel, 7 p.m., CT, Clear Lake

No. 12 Chamberlain at No. 5 Wagner, 7 p.m., CT, Wagner

No. 15 Hot Springs at No. 2 St. Thomas More, 6 p.m., MT, Rapid City

No. 10 Mobridge-Pollock at No. 7 Mount Vernon/Plankinton, 6 p.m., CT, Mount Vernon

No. 14 Groton Area at No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake, 7 p.m., CT, Clark

No. 11 Winner at No. 6 Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central, 6 p.m., CT, Wessington Springs