"Give me an 80-minute game," McSwords said. "I ask nothing else. Give me all 80 minutes with no mistakes, no letdowns and no resting periods. Give me everything you have."

In Marysville's regular-season finale against Dublin Scioto last Tuesday, the teams played to a scoreless tie. More importantly, McSwords finally got what he asked.

"We were sprinting down the field and everything was clicking in place," McSwords said. "Most of the play was a battle between the 18-yard lines. We controlled the game. It was fun having everyone on the same page."

Marysville finished the regular season at 7-5-4 overall, but since Sept. 22, the Monarchs have only two wins. In the OCC-Cardinal Division, Marysville finished sixth at 1-4-1, behind champion Olentangy Liberty (6-0-1), Westerville North (5-2), Westerville Central (4-1-2), Dublin Jerome (4-2-1) and Scioto (1-3-3) and ahead of Olentangy (1-5) and Westerville South (0-7).

On Tuesday, Marysville begins the Division I district tournament at home against Mount Vernon for the second consecutive season. Last year, Marysville beat Mount Vernon 4-1 before losing to Westerville North 4-0 in the second round.

Marysville received the 16th seed out of 41 Central District teams. McSwords had an opportunity to take a first-round bye but declined. After his team's performance last Tuesday, he was glad his team returns to the field sooner rather than later.

"We're usually in the mid-20s. I think 16th is the highest seed I can remember," McSwords said. "Knowing your peers voted you in, that's nice to have."

Mount Vernon finished its season with games last Thursday against Marion Harding and last Saturday against Mansfield Christian School. Through 11 games, the Yellow Jackets were 0-10-1.

Yet, McSwords cautioned his team against taking Mount Vernon lightly. Last Tuesday, New Albany blew a 3-0 lead and tied Mount Vernon at 3. New Albany received the 14th seed in the district tournament.

"We can't look past anybody," McSwords said.

The winner of Tuesday's games advances to play at Thomas Worthington in the second round. The Cardinals enter the postseason 5-7-4 after tying Worthington Kilbourne at 1 last Tuesday.

On Sept. 17, Marysville beat Thomas 1-0 on a goal by Sam Fisher.

Fisher leads the Monarchs with 25 goals and 11 assists, followed by Allison Rogers (14 goals, 4 assists), Kylee Tuchfarber (14, 4), Taylor Spears (13, 5) and Morgan Westbrook (12, 6). Through 16 games, Marysville's offense is averaging 2.13 goals and allowing 1.25 goals, thanks in part to 67 saves from Hannah Zacharias.

•The boys team also earned the 16th seed in the Division I district tournament. Marysville opens Wednesday at home against Teays Valley. On Aug. 27, Marysville beat Teays Valley 1-0.

The Vikings were 6-8 after defeating Fairfield Union 1-0 last Thursday.

"I believe the seed was high for us considering where we're at right now," coach Marc Kirsch said. "I think some people showed us some respect for our great run last year. I think that came into play a little bit."

Last season, Marysville reached its first district final in program history before losing to Worthington Kilbourne 3-1.

"We only have four guys back from that group," Kirsch said. "We're young, but we have a great group of guys and they're stepping up."

Marysville forwards Cody Sabins and Zach Zeune bolstered the Monarchs attack. The team averaged 1.93 goals a game before last Thursday.

"They are talented and they have a lot of pace," Kirsch said. "Even against some top-ranked teams we are able to possess the ball. Now our focus is putting some goals away."

Marysville, which was 6-8-1 before last Thursday, was held to four goals in its eight losses.

"We're getting opportunities," Kirsch said. "We're not putting them away."

The winner of Wednesday's game advances to the second round to play Saturday at Pickerington Central. The Tigers tied Reynoldsburg at 1 last Tuesday as they were 6-6-3 before last Thursday's regular-season finale against Whetstone.

Central opted for the first-round bye in the district tournament.

"I think we did as well as we could have," said Central coach Brad Monhollen, whose team defeated Teays Valley 6-1 on Sept. 10, but has not played Marysville. "I like that the team we play will have already played a first-round game to get to us. That way we will have more time to prepare."