The Siuslaw Vikings volleyball team's long-shot hopes for a trip to Forest Grove just got tougher and longer.

The Lady Vikings will open the Oregon School Activities Association Class 4A playoffs with a play-in match at Cowapa League heavyweight Astoria.

First serve is 5:15 p.m. Tuesday.

The Lady Vikings (10-11) finished No. 18 in the final OSAA rankings, the Fighting Fishermen (16-6) No. 5.

Siuslaw would have been opening at No. 10 Philomath, based on the final rankings, but the OSAA moved Siuslaw down a rung to avoid a matchup of two Cowapa League teams, traditional rivals Astoria and No. 19 Seaside.

Siuslaw is one of four Sky-Em League schools qualifying for the postseason, along with Junction City, Marshfield and Cottage Grove.

League-champion Junction City and runner-up Marshfield have automatically qualified for the OSAA's 16-team 4A bracket.

No. 15 Cottage Grove, the Sky-Em's No. 3 seed, has a play-in match with No. 13 Stayton. Cottage Grove tied Marshfield for second in league, but lost a playoff to the Pirates on Wednesday at Siuslaw for the second seed.

The Lady Vikings haven't played Astoria this season, but they have been on the same court.

Astoria won last weekend's Marshfield Invitational in Coos Bay, sweeping North Bend, Marshfield and Junction City by 2-0 scores for the title. Siuslaw lost to Marshfield in the first round of championship play, 2-0.

Astoria finished third in league at 4-4, losing twice to top-ranked Valley Catholic and twice to No. 7-ranked Banks.

Once play-in games are complete, the 16-team first round will feature eight matches at school sites.

First-round winners will advance to Forest Grove High School for the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship.

The quarterfinals and semifinals are Friday, Nov. 8, and the championship match Saturday, Nov. 9.

The Lady Vikings will need a pair of road wins to earn a trip to Forest Grove.

And that road just got tougher and longer, thanks to the vagaries of the OSAA computers.

NOTES

All five Cowapa League schools qualified for postseason, including Astoria. …

The six-school Sky-Em finished with five schools ranked in the top 20, including No. 4 Junction City, No. 14 Marshfield, No. 15 Cottage Grove, No. 18 Siuslaw and No. 20 Marist Catholic. …

This will be Siuslaw's third postseason match in four seasons under Vikings coach Jonathan Hornung. ... Siuslaw lost a first-round match to Tillamook in 2016, Hornung's first season, and a play-in at Cascade in 2017, both by 3-0 sweeps. ...

OSAA CLASS 4A PLAYOFF PICTURE
Play-in pairings (on or before Tuesday, Oct. 29)
No. 18 Siuslaw (10-11) at No. 5 Astoria (16-6), 5:15 p.m. Tuesday
No. 19 Seaside (8-14) at No. 10 Philomath (13-10), 6 p.m. Tuesday
No. 17 Molalla (10-9) at No. 11 Tillamook (9-9), 6 p.m. Tuesday
No. 15 Cottage Grove (10-11) at No. 13 Stayton (10-7), 6:30 p.m. Tuesday
Automatic qualifiers (top 2 from each league)
SKY-EM — No. 4 Junction City (18-4), No. 14 Marshfield (15-9)
COWAPA — No. 1 Valley Catholic (22-2), No. 7 Banks (16-7)
TRI-VALLEY – No. 8 Corbett (17-4), No. 11 North Marion (17-6)
OREGON WEST — No. 2 Sisters (23-2), No. 3 Sweet Home (18-2)
SKYLINE —No. 6 Hidden Valley (17-3), No. 23 North Valley (8-10)
GREATER OREGON — No. 9 La Grande (19-5), No. 16 Baker (8-11)