Thirty-two matches are in the books and eleven of them resulted in upsets as the first round of the National Park Playoff is complete! Only three parks expected to be in the Sweet Sixteen have been bounced: East #2 Lincoln Memorial, Pacific #4 Death Valley, and North #4 Mount Rushmore. Monuments have had a rough go overall, notching five losses, but two National Monuments remain: Statue of Liberty (#3 in the East) and Devils Tower (#10 in the North). All one- and three-seeds remain in it to win it, while at least one double-digit seed is guaranteed to make the Sweet Sixteen: #10 Everglades or #15 Virgin Islands.
Here’s a regional glance at the Second Round as it will unfold later this week, starting tomorrow at 9:00 AM EDT/6:00 AM PDT on Twitter:
PACIFIC
Wed: #1 Yosemite vs. #8 Haleakalā
Thu: #2 Olympic vs. #7 Hawaii Volcanoes
Fri: #3 Joshua Tree vs. #6 Sequoia
Sat: #5 Mount Rainier vs. #13 Redwood
SOUTHWEST
Wed: #1 Grand Canyon vs. #9 Petrified Forest
Thu: #2 Rocky Mountain vs. #7 Saguaro
Fri: #3 Zion vs. #11 Mesa Verde
Sat: #4 Bryce Canyon vs. #5 Arches
NORTH
Wed: #1 Yellowstone vs. #9 Denali
Thu: #2 Grand Teton vs. #10 Devils Tower
Fri: #3 Glacier vs. #11 Kenai Fjords
Sat: #5 Badlands vs. #13 Voyageurs
EAST
Wed: #1 Great Smoky Mountains vs. #9 Shenandoah
Thu: #10 Everglades vs. #15 Virgin Islands
Fri: #3 Statue of Liberty vs. #11 Mammoth Cave
Sat: #4 Acadia vs. #5 Cuyahoga Valley