TOP OF THE CROP
Boys basketball
1: (1) Avon 8-3
2: (2) Elyria 7-4
3: (4) North Ridgeville 6-5
4: (3) Avon Lake 5-6
5: (5) Lorain 5-7
6: (6) Fairview 8-2
7: (7) Rocky River 6-4
8: (NR) Elyria Catholic 4-5
9: (9) Brookside 8-4
10: (NR) Firelands 7-5
Dropped out: Amherst 5-6, Open Door 8-5
Watch list: Wellington 9-2, Keystone 5-6, Columbia 4-5
Crop comments: The top six teams are a leg above, ranking the rest is a difficult assignment. Avon stays at No. 1 following conference wins over Midview and Amherst. The Eagles look to win a third straight game in a rivalry matchup with Avon Lake on Jan. 19. … Elyria has four straight wins. The Pioneers went on a huge run to end the season last year, and they are positioning themselves to do it again. They extended the win streak with wins over Midview and Amherst. A big game against Berea-Midpark awaits. … North Ridgeville was on the flip side with a three-game losing streak, but the Rangers picked up a big win at Avon Lake. It was the first time in six years that they won at the Shoremen’s gym. Ridgeville is back in action hosting Amherst on Jan. 19. … Avon Lake turned a corner with a five-game win streak of its own, but has now dropped three in a row to Elyria, Olmsted Falls and North Ridgeville. The Shoremen could use a marquee win over Avon this week. … Lorain needed a win and got one over Westlake on Jan. 16. The schedule gets tougher, starting with a home game against Maple Heights on Jan. 19. The Titans have proved they can compete for a half with these talented LEL teams, but they’re looking for more. … Fairview is No. 6 once again after a dominant win over North Olmsted on Jan. 16. The Warriors are in the mix with North Ridgeville, Avon Lake and Lorain for the third spot. Those four teams feel interchangeable at this point. … Despite losing to Elyria Catholic, the Pirates of Rocky River stayed in the seventh spot. They have one game this week against Valley Forge. … Speaking of Elyria Catholic, the Panthers jump up to the eighth spot. EC has had its own ups and downs, but it’s a good home team and there’s more than one reason to believe it would beat the LC8 teams ranked behind them at this point. … Brookside lost its first LC8 game of the season to Firelands on Jan. 16, but stays in the ninth spot. Despite the loss, the Cardinals get the benefit of the doubt over their conference foes to remain in the lead. … Firelands has lost to both Wellington and Keystone, but is sitting in good shape following the Brookside win at 7-5. … Amherst drops out of the Crop, as it’s spiraling in the wrong direction. The Comets play North Ridgeville and Firelands this weekend, so they have opportunities to turn the season around. … Open Door has now won three games in a row, but dropped out of the rankings for now. The Patriots have some big games coming up where they can find themselves right back in the top 10. … Trying to rank the LC8 is a tough task. There’s a lot of parity. Wellington, Keystone and Columbia are on the outside looking in. All five of these teams including Brookside and Firelands have beaten each other, and will be fun to see how the conference race shakes out.
