It’s that time of year for winter sports. One sport has determined its champions, and by the end of this week, the same will be true for wrestling. The swimming regular season ends on Tuesday, which leaves basketball as the only sport that is playing regular-season games into next week.
Starting with wrestling, Saint Mark’s and Salesianum have earned spots in the dual-meet tournaments. The Spartans are the top seed in Division II as they seek to get back on top for the first time in 14 years. Saint Mark’s reached the semifinal round last season. The Sals won the Division I team title last year for the first time since 1984, and they begin defense of that crown at home on Wednesday. Tickets to all DIAA postseason events must be purchased online in advance at https://gofan.co/app/school/DIAA.
On the hardwood, there are some intriguing matchups in the final full week with some teams fighting to make the postseason and others playing for seedings. On the girls’ side, Ursuline and Sanford meet for a Thursday matinee in a possible postseason preview. The St. Elizabeth boys team closes out its Diamond State Athletic Conference slate at a good MOT Charter side before hosting Sanford the next night. And Salesianum welcomes state title contender Dover to Broom Street.
Don’t forget to confirm dates and times before making the trip. Schedules are always subject to change.
Boys
Wrestling
Wednesday, Feb. 14
No. 7 Milford (9-4) at No. 2 Salesianum (5-4), 7 p.m. The Sals open defense of their Division I championship at home against the Buccaneeers, who compete in the tough Henlopen Conference North. Frank Miller (215 lbs.) is among the state’s top wrestlers, along with Dominic Lucian (120) and Jacob Girard (132).
No. 8 A.I. DuPont (9-3) at No. 1 Saint Mark’s (6-4), 7 p.m. The Spartans are the top seed in Division II, and they’ll host A.I. DuPont in the quarterfinal round. Saint Mark’s is seeking its first state title since 2010; the program has won 12 dual championships. Among the Spartans to watch are Clif Bakhsh (106 lbs.), Chris Foster (132), Jacob Ebaugh (165) and Luke Spoor (175). A.I., who earned an automatic bid as the Blue Hen Conference Flight B champion,
Saturday, Feb. 17
State dual meet semifinals, 4 p.m., Smyrna High School. Should the Sals advance, they will take on either No. 6 Smyrna or No. 3 Cape Henlopen. Saint Mark’s meets No. 5 Caravel or No. 4 Laurel with a win in the opener.
State dual meet championships, 6 p.m., Smyrna High School
Basketball
Monday, Feb. 12
Ss. Peter and Paul at Delmarva Christian, 4 p.m.
Brandywine (8-9) at Archmere (7-9), 6:15 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 13
Ss. Peter and Paul at Park, 5:45 p.m.
St. Elizabeth (16-0) at Caravel (9-7), 7:15 p.m.
Dover (14-2) at Salesianum (10-7), 7:30 p.m. The Sals are warming up at the right time. They enter this one, their first of two home games this week, on a four-game winning streak. To beat the Senators, they’ll have to contend with high-scoring Dorell Little and slick point guard Denim Perkins. R.J. Johnson has been giving the Sals impressive minutes in the middle.
Thursday, Feb. 15
Ss. Peter and Paul at Jemicy, 4 p.m.
Archmere at Wilmington Charter (4-11), 5 p.m.
Saint Mark’s (14-4) at Wilmington Christian (5-9), 5:15 p.m.
St. Elizabeth at MOT Charter (14-3), 6 p.m.
Tower Hill (7-9) at Salesianum, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 16
Sanford (12-4) at St. Elizabeth, 7:15 p.m. Perennial power Sanford visits the St. E Center for what could be a postseason preview. Jayden Taylor and Jordan Spencer give the Warriors a big presence inside, while Aiden Tobiason plays both in the paint and on the perimeter for the Vikings and has plenty of support on the talented roster.
Saturday, Feb. 17
Archmere vs. Odyssey Charter (7-9), 11:15 a.m. at the Grail Sports Complex, Elsmere
Swimming (co-ed except where noted)
Tuesday, Feb. 13
St. Elizabeth (2-2 boys, 0-4 girls) vs. Mount Pleasant (9-2 boys, 9-2 girls), 3:30 p.m. at P.S. DuPont Middle School.
Girls
Basketball
Monday, Feb. 12
Ss. Peter and Paul at Worcester Prep, 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 13
Saint Mark’s (10-7) at Polytech (5-12), 5 p.m.
Archmere (11-7) at Padua (13-4), 6:45 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 14
Gunston at Ss. Peter and Paul, 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 15
Ursuline (12-4) at Sanford (10-5), 4 p.m. The Raiders travel to Hockessin for a rematch of last spring’s state championship game, which was won by Sanford. All of the Warriors’ losses came to non-Delaware opponents; they are on a six-game winning streak. Ursuline is wrapping up the regular season with a stretch of games against tournament contenders.
Padua at Tower Hill (5-12), 5:30 p.m.
MOT Charter (4-11) at St. Elizabeth (15-3), 6 p.m.
Wilmington Charter (9-7) at Archmere, 6:15 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 17
Saint Mark’s at Ursuline, 1 p.m.
Track
Friday, Feb. 16
Padua at North Shore HS Pre-National Invitational
