Central Bucks South, the Suburban One League Continental Conference champion, was given the top spot. West Chester Henderson was selected the No. 2 seed, followed by Council Rock North and Wissahickon. All four received byes in the first round but were eliminated by the end of the quarterfinals. Three were gone after their first game.
Eleventh-seeded Unionville and 16th-seeded North Penn ended up in the final four, along with Owen J. Roberts and Mount St. Joseph, the seventh seed.
"We've discussed [a rating system], but it's been very difficult to come up with a good format," said Sheila Murphy, who serves as the district's rep to the PIAA for field hockey. She's a former field hockey coach and athletic director from Neshaminy.
Murphy said the current selection method has worked very well for the district. Comparing actual results with the seedings has shown a remarkable consistency.
"Was this year an anomaly? I don't know," she said.
District 3 uses a power-rating system to pick the top 20 teams for its playoffs. Lower Dauphin was the top-rated team in Class AAA, and it won the district championship over Penn Manor, the No. 2 seed.
There doesn't seem to be a strong feeling among the coaches for a power-rating system in District 1.
"I don't know enough about the systems," said coach Maurene Polley, whose Villa Maria Academy team won an unprecedented fifth straight District 1 Class AA title Saturday. "I'd like to know more about the rating systems that are out there."
Her fellow Athletic Association of Catholic Academies coach Lois Weber of Mount St. Joseph expressed similar sentiments.
