Practices haven’t even started for the high school’s fall 2006 season, but that hasn’t stopped the Arizona Interscholastic Association from planning ahead for a few of its state championship tournaments.

The state events for girls volleyball and swimming are already available on the AIA’s Web site at www.aiaonline.org.

Volleyball’s format has changed from last year, while the 5A and 4A swimming meets will each be held at Arizona State University.

Unlike last year’s Volleyball Festival format that saw all classifications staging their tournaments simultaneously at Glendale Arena, the 5A and 4A conferences will be holding this year’s state tournaments nearly two weeks apart.

The 5A‑Division II tournament, which could feature Boulder Creek or Sandra Day O’Connor, will begin Oct. 24 with first‑round matches at the site of the higher seeds. The second round is set for two days later–once again at the site of the higher seed. The 5A‑II semifinals and finals will be played on the same day (Oct. 28) at a site still to be determined.

On the 4A‑II level, Cactus Shadows hopes to defend its state championship, starting Nov. 7 in the first round at the higher seeds. The quarterfinals are slated for Nov. 9 at school sites, while the semifinals and finals will all be played two days later at a site to be determined.

The AIA also set its dates for the swimming championships. The 5A‑Division II meet will be held Nov. 3‑4 at ASU’s Mona Plummer Aquatic Complex. Finals will be held the second day.

ASU will also hold the 4A meet a week earlier. The Sun Devils’ pool will host the 4A preliminaries Oct. 27 and the finals a day later.

Are you ready for some ... ?

It’s July, it’s triple digit weather and it’s, er, football season?

Even though the air smells nothing like football, varsity players from Boulder Creek, Sandra Day O’Connor and Cactus Shadows will be officially hitting the practice field July 31 to get ready for the 2006 season.

Cactus Shadows is actually getting an even earlier start as it begins fall practices July 26 with a four‑day mini‑camp starting at 6 p.m. The mini‑camp is voluntary, but the team will report officially to start practices July 31.

All three schools have early games this year, making them eligible to start a week early under AIA bylaws. The first official games are Aug. 25 for the three schools with Boulder Creek and O’Connor facing each other in the opener. It will be Boulder Creek’s first‑ever varsity game. Cactus Shadows opens against Kellis.

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