Sports

High school boys basketball: Eight area teams drop to lower divisions for 2026-27 season

By Will Cunningham, The Morning Journal, Lorain, Ohio The Tribune Content Agency

July 1, 2026 5:21 PM

It has been a summer of transition for Elyria, and that continued on June 30 as the OHSAA announced the division assignments for the 2026-27 season, with the Pioneers moving from Division I to Division II.

This latest change comes after the Pioneers graduated eight seniors from the team that in 2026 advanced to the regional finals for the first time since 1977, then lost assistant coach Dan Gundert, who took the head coaching job at Columbia.

Finally, longtime head coach Brett Larrick stepped down on June 17, leading to Elyria not participating in the Midwest Live tournament as they have the past few offseasons.

Elyria will join Southwestern Conference foes Amherst, Avon, and North Ridgeville in Division II. There is other movement in the SWC as well, with Avon Lake and Olmsted Falls joining Midview in Division III.

This continues a trend for Avon Lake, which is also dropping from Division II to Division III in boys soccer.

Two teams that those two will not meet in Division III, however, are Rocky River and Elyria Catholic, both of which are dropping to Division IV.

Moving from Division IV down to Division V are Vermilion and Clearview, while Wellington is moving from Division V to Division VI, where it will join Lorain County League rivals Black River, Columbia, and Oberlin.

One other potentially significant change comes in Division V, where Keystone has its sights set on a deep playoff run and will no longer have to go through powerhouse Lutheran East, which is opting to move up to Division I after winning four straight state titles and five in the last six years.