WHEELING – The battle for a conference championship is set to begin today.

Five local softball teams earned a spot in the annual OVAC Tournament. The top four teams in each of the five classes earn spots in the conference tournament. The final standings and tournament pairings were officially announced Saturday night.

Four semifinals are scheduled to be played today with four more set for Tuesday and the final two set for Wednesday with the tournament finals set for Friday and Saturday. All tournament games are set to be played down at the I-470 Complex.

Madonna (16-3) is the only local team in Class 1A. The Blue Dons are the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Madonna is followed in the standings by No. 2 Conotton Valley, No. 3 Trinity Christian and No. 4 Frontier.

“This is our first time as the No. 1 seed,” Madonna head coach Jason Backel said. “Conotton Valley is the No. 2 seed, and they have won the last five Single-A titles. You can call them the favorites. They’re record is not reflective of the type team they are. They play a lot of big schools. They played two close games with Big Red.

“We’re confident. We can play with anybody. We played Martins Ferry, and it was a very-close game. We’re mentally tough. We practice like we are playing a game. We are ready.

“We played four games last week, and we went 4-0. We played Brooke, and obviously, they are a rival. We played Toronto, and they made the tournament in Double-A. Then, we played a regional foe (Cameron), and we went down there and won. We played minus a couple of our starters. Mentally, we are in a good place.”

The tournament is set to get underway at 5 p.m. down on Field 4. The Warriors are scheduled to take on the Rockets at 5, while the Cougars are slated to take on the Blue Dons at 7 p.m.

“We’re playing Frontier, and we played them a couple of years ago,” Backel said. “It was a tight ballgame, and they pulled away late. The game was three years ago. Kendal (Ryan) was a freshman.

“Frontier is a good team. They have had winning records since I have been the coach. We’re not looking ahead. We just want to get past this first game.”

Madonna is not scheduled to play Frontier or Conotton Valley during the regular season, however, the Blue Dons and Warriors were scheduled to play twice this season. Madonna defeated Trinity Christian, 14-3, April 10 on the road in what was supposed to be the second meeting of the season between the two schools, however, the team’s meeting scheduled for March 31 down at Starvaggi Park was canceled.

Frontier and Conotton Valley are not scheduled to play during the regular season, and neither school is slated to play Trinity Christian outside of the conference tournament.

All four teams in the field this season also made it last season with Conotton Valley coming away with the tournament title. The Rockets have won five-straight OVAC championships. The Rockets defeated the Cougars, 14-0, in the final last season. Frontier defeated Trinity Christian, 13-3, in the semifinals, while the Rockets defeated the Blue Dons, 14-0.

“We’re ready to play,” Backel said. “We are going down to win an OVAC championship. In year’s past, we have been happy just to make the tournament. It is a little different this year. We have a little bit of an attitude. We have a chip on our shoulders from the past OVAC tournaments. We lost to Conotton Valley last year. We are a little more prepared this season. We’re mentally tough. We want to get past this first one.”

Toronto (10-8) is the lone local representative in Class 2A. The Red Knights make their return to the tournament as the No. 3 seed this season. Toronto trails No. 1 seed Cladwell and No. 2 seed River in the standings, while No. 4 seed Shadyside rounds out the field.

“This is huge for our kids,” first-year Toronto head coach Shannon Bahen said. “We’re really young. It is important for the kids to get a taste of playing in a meaningful tournament like this. They are excited. I brought them in today, and we had a good practice. We’re ready. We’re up for the challenge.”

The tournament is set to begin at 5 p.m. today down at Field 3. The Red Knights are scheduled to take on the Pilots at 5 p.m. with the Redskins taking on the Tigers at 7 p.m.

The Red Knights and Pilots have already met once this season with River coming out on top, 7-2, March 24 at home. The two teams are scheduled to meet again May 4 up at Michael Simpson Park.

“River has a phenomenal pitcher,” Bahen said. “We played a full seven-inning game against them, and their pitcher only threw 16 balls the whole game. The strikes are there. I am looking for us to be more aggressive at the plate. Good things happen when you put the ball in play. I am looking for better approaches at the plate this time around.”

Toronto is not slated to play Caldwell or Shadyside during the regular season. Caldwell has defeated River twice this season, while River has defeated Shadyside. The Redskins defeated the Tigers in their first matchup this season, and the two teams are scheduled to meet again May 7 at Caldwell.

The Redskins are the defending tournament champion in the class as Caldwell defeated Bridgeport, 6-2, in the final last season giving Caldwell five tournament titles in the last six seasons. Caldwell defeated River, 4-3, in the semifinals, while Bridgeport defeated Shadyside, 10-0.

Catholic Central (1-18) did not qualify for the tournament.

“I think the kids will definitely be ready,” Bahen said. “It’s a long bus ride, and it will give them a chance to calm their nerves. We are looking to get off to a fast start. Many of our away games have been like an hour away. The kids are ready. They understand how big this is for the program and for the school.”

There are no local teams in Class 3A. Martins Ferry is the No. 1 seed in the tournament, and the Purple Riders are followed in the standings by No. 2 seed Monroe Central, No. 3 seed Wheeling Central and No. 4 seed Columbiana. The tournament is slated to being at 5 p.m. Tuesday down at Field 3. In the semifinals, the Seminoles are scheduled to take on the Maroon Knights at 5 p.m. with the Purple Riders taking on the Clippers at 7 p.m.

Martins Ferry captured the tournament title last season as the Purple Riders shut out the Maroon Knights, 1-0, in the final. Wheeling Central defeated Barnesville, 13-0, in the semifinals to advance to the final, while Martins Ferry defeated Union Local, 11-4.

A trio of local teams will be competing for the championship in Class 4A. Beaver Local is the No. 1 seed in the tournament with the Beavers being followed in the standings by Edison (14-7), Weir (16-7) and Oak Glen (14-8). The semifinals are scheduled to start at 5 p.m. Tuesday down at Field 4. The Golden Bears are slated to play the Beavers at 5 p.m. with the Red Riders taking on the Wildcats at 7 p.m.

The meeting between Oak Glen and Beaver Local will be the second one this season as the Golden Bears defeated the Beavers, 4-2, back on March 24 at home. Meanwhile, Tuesday’s nightcap will be the third meeting of the season between Weir and Edison. The two teams split their first two meetings with both schools winning at home. Weir won the first meeting, 16-1, in four innings April 9 up at the Roberta “Birdie” DeFrancis Softball Field, while the Wildcats took the second meeting, 10-6, April 16 out at the Edison Unified Sports Complex.

“The girls wanted to get this win back,” Edison head coach McKenzie Morrison said following her team’s win on the 16th. “We have played them twice, and I hope we see them again in the OVACs.”

They stakes will be higher when the two teams meet as a spot in the tournament final will be on the line.

The Red Riders and Golden Bears have also met twice this season with Weir winning 2-1 March 27 at home and 11-4 April 18 on the road. Oak Glen and Edison also spilt this season. The Wildcats defeated the Golden Bears, 5-2, April 2 at home before Oak Glen responded and defeated Edison, 11-1, in four-and-a-half innings April 6 at home. Beaver Local defeated Edison, 6-1, April 11 on the road and 12-1 this past Tuesday at home.

The Golden Bears are the defending champions as Oak Glen defeated Harrison Central, 6-3, in the final last season. The Golden Bears advanced to the final by defeating the Beavers, 7-2, in the semifinals, while the Huskies advanced by edging the Red Riders, 2-1, in the other one.

Weir defeated Edison, 6-1, to win the title back in 2024.

Harrison Central (14-8), Indian Creek (5-17) and Buckeye Local (9-7) did not qualify for the tournament this season.

Big Red (11-5) is the lone local team in the tournament in Class 5A. Big Red is the No. 3 seed behind No. 1 seed John Marshall and No. 2 seed University. Morgantown is the No. 4 seed. The semifinals are scheduled to start at 5 p.m. Wednesday with Big Red taking on the Hawks at 5 p.m. and the Monarchs playing the Mohigans at 7 p.m.

Big Red defeated University, 5-4, in eight innings April 6 at home up at the Crimson Complex, however, John Marshall swept the girls from Jefferson County by score of 3-2 and 13-5. Big Red is not scheduled to play Morgantown during the regular season. John Marshall also swept Morgantown, 2-1, 4-3, however, the Monarchs were defeated by the Hawks, 9-0, March 24 on the road. University and Morgantown have split this season with the Hawks winning, 5-1, and the Mohigans coming out on top, 3-1.

The Mohigans won the tournament title last season by defeating Parkersburg South, 3-1, in the final. Parkersburg South defeated University, 5-1, in the semifinals, while Morgantown defeated Big Red, 9-3.

Brooke (13-15) did not qualify for the tournament this season.