Boys Soccer

North Cup: Wichita East, vs. Liberal, Oct. 15

Wichita East is 8-4 through a difficult schedule that doesn't appear to get any easier. The Aces take on 11-1 Liberal in the North Cup at Wichita North High School. Liberal might be the best team in Western Kansas. The Redskins are ranked No. 4 in 5A and No. 3 in 5A's Southwest Region. Wichita East is No.4 in the Class 6A Southwest Region. Wichita East should benefit by playing close to home, but the slight edge goes to Liberal.

The Pick: Liberal 4, Wichita East 3

Wichita Southeast at Hutchinson, Oct. 15

Wichita Southeast is 8-3 and ranked No. 2 in Class 6A's Southwest Region. Hutchinson is No.2 in 5A and No.1 in 5A's Southwest Region. The Salthawks have used a stout defense to get to 9-2-1 on the season. The Buffaloes should push Hutchinson until the final whistle, but the advantage goes to the Salthawks at home.

The Pick: Hutchinson 3, Wichita Southeast 2

Volleyball

Goddard Tournament, Oct. 17

The host Goddard Lions, Valley Center and Cheney headline one of the last big tournaments before sub-state action begins Oct. 24. Cheney and Valley Center are ranked fourth and fifth respectively in class 4A, while Goddard is in the "others" category of 6A. The rest of the field includes McPherson, Garden Plain, Andover, Augusta and Campus, decent teams who are capable of pulling upsets.

The Pick: Goddard will get through their home tournament unblemished, followed by Cheney and Valley Center with one or two losses apiece.

Heart of America League Tournament, Oct. 17

At the beginning of the season, Moundridge was the favorite to win the Heart of America League Championship and contend for a 2A state title. The Wildcats finished runner-up in 2A last season and returned most of their starters in 2009. Moundridge is having a good year and will be in the 2A mix, but league foe Inman has stolen some of the Wildcats' thunder. Inman is currently ranked No. 3 in 2A. The tournament's intrigue is in the potential battle between Moundridge and Inman, but the Heart of America also features dangerous challengers in Sedgwick, Remington and Goessel.

The Pick: Moundridge gets a huge boost heading into Sub-state by winning the HOA championship.

Girls Tennis

State tournaments Oct. 16-17

By the end of this weekend, girls tennis state champions will be crowned in every class. Each class has plenty of talented players, but class 5A is probably the deepest class in the state. Besides 5A, the most intriguing battle from a team standpoint is in 3-2-1A where Wichita Collegiate is set for a potential barn burner with neighborhood rival, Wichita Independent. In classes 6A and 5A it will be interesting to see how well top tier players in the Wichita metro area stack up against opponents from the Kansas City metro. Class 6A and 5A state tournaments will be played in the Wichita area, with 6A at Maize South and 5A at Wichita's Ralph Wulz Riverside Tennis Center. Class 4A is set for Topeka at the Kossover Tennis Center, while 3-2-1A heads west to Fort Hays State University.

The Picks: 6A team state champions-Blue Valley North, 5A champs-St. Thomas Aquinas, 4A champs-Hesston, 3-2-1A champs-Wichita Collegiate

Girls Golf

State tournaments Oct. 19

The end of the girls golf season is in sight as we move closer to crowning individual and team champions for class 6A, 5A, 4A and 3-2-1A. Class 6A state qualifiers are headed west for the state tournament at the Dodge City Country Club. Class 5A heads east for the Brookridge Country Club in Overland Park. Class 4A will compete in the central part of the state at Hutchinson's Highlands Country Club, while 3-2-1A is scheduled to tee off at the Lake Barton Golf Course in Great Bend.

The Picks: 6A champions-Topeka Washburn Rural, 5A champs-St. Thomas Aquinas, 4A champs-Topeka Hayden, 3-2-1A champs, Larned

Cross Country

Greater Wichita Athletic League (City League) meet, Oct. 17

The City League has produced some of the best times in the state this season. We're expecting more of the same Saturday at Wichita's Cessna Activities Center.  On the boys' side, the team title is likely to come down to Bishop Carroll and Wichita East. Individually, the boys' race is likely to come down to Wichita East's Aaron Heil and Wichita Northwest's Robby Martinez-Garcia. Bishop Carroll's David Thor and Cliff Kissling, Wichita North's Daniel Herbert and Wichita Southeast's Skylar Gutierrez could also be in the mix.

On the girls' side, Bishop Carroll is expected to take the team championship. The individual title should come down to the two best runners in class 5A, Kapaun Mount Carmel junior Mackenzie Maki and Bishop Carroll freshman, Kaelyn Balch. Balch has the fastest 4-kilometer time in 5A at 14:01, but Maki out-kicked Balch by one second at last weekend's El Dorado Invitational.  Maki is the defending champion in 5A.

The Picks: Wichita East wins the boys team title, while Bishop Carroll lives up to expectations to win the girls team crown. Individually, Martinez-Garcia will win for the boys, while Balch outpaces Maki on the girls side.

 Week 7 Football matchups (District openers)

Olathe East at Blue Valley Northwest, Oct. 15

District play in the Kansas City Metro area gets underway with a battle of top 10 teams in Class 6A. No. 7 Olathe East fought through a tough regular season with a 4-2 record. Blue Valley Northwest is 5-1 and ranked No.4 in 6A. Both teams have been impressive defensively this season, which bodes well for making a run in the postseason. We expect both the Hawks and Huskies to be in the state playoffs with a possible rematch down the road. For now, the edge goes to BV Northwest.

The Pick: Blue Valley Northwest 24, Olathe East 20

Hutchinson at McPherson, Oct. 16

Hutchinson cruised through the regular season in dominating fashion. So did McPherson. Hutchinson is No.1 in 5A, while McPherson is No. 2. The two teams played twice last season, with Hutchinson taking both contests. The Salthawks destroyed the Bullpups 68-7 at this point last season. A few weeks later in the 5A state semifinals, the Bullpups had a better showing, but fell 42-21 to the Salthawks. It won't be a shock to see these two meet again in the state playoffs in 2009. We think Hutchinson is better than McPherson, but this one could be interesting, especially if the Bullpups' defensive line can step up to frustrate Hutchinson's run-heavy offense.

The Pick: Hutchinson 38, McPherson 17

Buhler at Andale, Oct. 16

Buhler is No. 1 in 4A, while Andale is No. 2. According to most other polls in the state, Andale is No. 1. What's great about this contest is that the polls really don't matter. Someone's going to win Friday night and be everybody's top dog in 4A. Both teams should make a deep run in the state playoffs. Friday's game is going to come down to whether or not Andale's defense is up to the challenge of slowing down Buhler running back Jorden Oden. Buhler has weapons besides Oden, but the senior running back is the engine that makes the Crusaders go. We don't think Oden will be able to run over Andale like he has most other opponents this season, but Buhler has the slight edge up front, which should allow Oden to find enough space to keep the chains moving.

The Pick: Buhler 34, Andale 24

Garden Plain at Conway Springs, Oct. 16

The long-time Class 3A rivals meet in a contest that should have the feel of a state championship. Garden Plain is No. 1 in our 3A rankings, while Conway Springs is No. 3. Both teams rolled through the regular season without really being challenged. Something has to give Friday night, This could be the best game in the state in a week full of intriguing district openers.

The Pick: Garden Plain 28, Conway Springs 27