5 sports storylines to watch this week

1. Pigskin bragging rights: Graduating high school seniors battle on the gridiron, some for the last time in their football careers, in the 30th annual Miami Valley Football Coaches Association All-Star Game. The White Allen Pigskin Classic, sponsored by Kettering Sports Medicine, kicks off 7 p.m. Friday at Welcome Stadium. The North scored a 27-7 win for its second straight victory in 2012 and leads the series 19-11. Vandalia's Mike Berry coaches the North and Mount Healthy's Arvie Crouch coaches the South.

2. Runnin' down a Dream: The richest late model dirt race roars into Eldora Speedway for the $100,000-to-win Dirt Late Model Dream. The event that draws 20,000-plus to the Darke County track runs three days — Thursday through Saturday — with time trials, heat races, twin features and finally the Dream on Saturday. Georgia's Shane Clanton attempts to defend his title against the top dirt racers in the country. Visit www.eldoraspeedway.com for more info.

3. Making a state-ment: Title towns will be decided in three high school sports this week: baseball, softball and track and field. Badin is the Miami Valley's lone representative in baseball, opening the Division III state semifinals Thursday in Columbus. Over in Akron for softball, Kenton Ridge (D-II) and Covington (D-IV) are state semifinalists. Covington plays Thursday and KR on Friday. All state finals are Saturday. Columbus also hosts the track and field championships Friday and Saturday. Keep an eye on the Dunbar and Versailles boys in D-II, Russia's girls and Minster's boys and girls in D-III.

4. Tee for two: Two spots in the U.S. Open are up for grabs Monday at the Springfield Country Club. The course hosts a sectional qualifier for the fourth straight year and the fifth time in six years. The U.S. Open hopefuls play 36 holes Monday for a spot in one of the PGA's majors on June 13-16 at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa. John Peterson qualified out of Springfield in 2012 and tied for fourth in the U.S. Open.

5. Happy campers: Martin Bayless and Will Allen return to their roots for the annual football camp at Welcome Stadium on Sunday. Session 1 for grades 4-7 runs from 8-9 a.m. Session 2 for grades 8-12 runs from 1-2 p.m. More than a dozen NFL pros have been invited to participate including locals Kurt Coleman (Northmont/Philadelphia Eagles), Nick Mangold (Alter/N.Y. Jets), Greg Orton (Wayne/Denver Broncos) and Jerel Worthy (Wayne/Green Bay Packers). Pre-registration is highly encouraged at www.baylessfoundation.org. Both sessions are limited to 300 campers. For more information call the camp hotline at 937-559-1304.

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