They have 8 classifications whereas we have 6.
NC
1A
1AA
2A
2AA
3A
3AA
4A
4AA
VA
1A
2A
3A
4A
5A
6A
In NC the 3A level ball comparable to our 4a and 5a ball. I don't believe that many of our teams in VA are deep enough to take down the Northern Guilford's (who has had a few down years since their last state championship in 2015), Charlotte Catholic's, Dudley's, Havelock's, Shelby Crest's, or the Mount Tabor's. Maybe Dinwiddie, Highland Springs and Herm could compete ? But just don’t think they could win the state championship in N.C. Can't be too one dimension and you have to match these teams’ physicality and speed. These teams also usually have 75+ players on the team and a lot of them have kids riding the bench that could go to another program and be a starter. Salem's a good model to compare these schools with. They take their ball seriously, they are well-coached, they reload, and have good feeder systems. Our top 4a teams from this year (Salem, Louisa, Dinwiddie) would not have come close to beating a Havelock or Charlotte Catholic. 4A ball in NC is much tougher to win in. Most teams have 80-90 players to a team. Mallard Creek, Page, Butler, Scotland, Richmond, Wake Forest, New Hanover, AC Reynolds, Garner, Middle Creek, and a lot more make it very tough. Westfield and Smith are probably the only teams deep and skilled enough to take those teams down but I doubt they could win the N.C. state championship.