The brackets for the WIAA football playoffs were released Saturday, Oct. 14, as second-seeded Amherst and fourth-seeded Almond-Bancroft will be at home, and fifth-seeded Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) will play on the road for Level 1 of the playoffs.

SPASH received the fifth-seed in its eight-team group and will travel to play at fourth-seeded and 10th-ranked Hudson (7-2) at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, in a WIAA Division 1 Level 1 Playoff Game.

SPASH won 23-21 at Hudson in the second week of the regular season Aug. 25. The other first-round matchups in the group have top-seeded and third-ranked Bay Port (9-0) hosting eighth-seeded Eau Claire Memorial (6-3), second-seeded and ninth-ranked Appleton North (6-2) hosting seventh-seeded Green Bay Preble (6-3), and third-seeded Neenah (6-3) hosting Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln (6-3).

Top-ranked and back-to-back defending WIAA Division 5 State Champion Amherst (8-1) received the second seed in its eight-team group, with second-ranked Stanley-Boyd (9-0) given the top seed.

Amherst will host seventh-seeded Colby (6-3) in a WIAA Division 5 Level 1 Playoff Game at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20. The other first round matchups in the group include sixth-seeded Oconto (7-2) at third-seeded and fifth-ranked Spencer/Marshfield Columbus (8-1), fifth-seeded Stratford (6-2) at fourth-seeded and eighth-ranked Bonduel (8-1), and eighth-seeded Wittenberg-Birnamwood (6-3) at top-seeded Stanley-Boyd.

Almond-Bancroft (6-3) received the fourth seed in its Division 7 Playoff group, and will host fifth-seeded Hilbert/Stockbridge (5-4) at 7 p.m. Friday. Fourth-ranked Wild Rose (9-0) received the top seed and will host eighth-seeded Cambria-Friesland (3-6), with seventh-seeded Tri-County (4-5) at second-seeded and ninth-ranked Fall River (8-1), and sixth-seeded Deerfield (4-5) at third-seeded Oshkosh Lourdes (6-3).

Complete coverage will appear in the Oct. 20 issue of the Gazette.