State Tournament 2026 Top Teams-Division 5/Region 19

Chesapeake (20-3)- The Panthers have an exciting player and have been winning big all season. Maddox Kazee can score in volume and leads this group on both ends of the floor. The Achilles’ Heel for this group is the 2-seed Ironton. 2 of the 3 losses for Chesapeake came against the Tigers. Fortunately, the Panthers wouldn’t see Ironton until potentially the Regionals. 

St. Clairsville (16-7)- The Red Devils were the East District top team despite their 7 losses. Behind Griffin Straub, St. Clairsville has been competitive throughout the season. When your losses come to Delphos St. John’s or Steubenville it’s hard to judge. A District Final game with Martins Ferry could be intriguing. The Red Devils have beaten the Purple Raiders twice already this year.

West Muskingum (19-5)- This Tornadoes team might be one of the bigger dark horses in Division V. While they don’t have a ton of quality wins, they hung around with Maysville and John Glenn in losses. The recent Maysville loss has been the Tornadoes only defeat since the calendar switched to 2026. They’ve already defeated Fairless and Sandy Valley by double figures to set up a showdown with Harrison Central.

Wheelersburg (14-6)- The Pirates have been up-and-down this year after starting the year with 6 straight wins. Victories over Ironton and South Webster are impressive and reinforce this group can beat some of the better teams in their District. A recent victory over Minford gave the Pirates their first win in the tournament and a matchup with Fairland awaits. Then a potential District Final rematch with Ironton could be in the cards should both teams keep advancing.