Week number 10 of the Virginia High School football season is in the books. It is hard to believe, but we are down to one final Friday night of the regular season before the playoffs begin. This past week cleared up several district races, and set the table for a battle of the unbeatens this Friday. Let's take a closer look at the week that was in the Roanoke/Lynchburg area.
Game of the Week Recap:
Our game of the week took us to the Shenandoah Valley for the first time this season. The hosts, Robert E Lee were presented with a golden opportunity to grab a share of the Valley District title, and position itself for home field advantage for the first two rounds of the playoffs.
It was not always pretty, but in the end, the Leeman did not let the home fans down.
Robert E Lee saw its once-big lead disappear in the fourth quarter, but the Leeman made a huge defensive play late to escape with a 40-26 triumph over Harrisonburg.
The home team jumped out to a lead in the second half, but the Blue Steaks quickly stormed back to trim the deficit to just seven points. Harrisonburg would regain possession late in the fourth quarter with a chance to tie, but Lee senior Zachary Simmons would make one of the biggest plays of his high school career. The five-foot-seven senior picked off a Blue Streak pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown, to slam the door on the visitors.
Lee has jumped up to number four in the latest 2A East poll, and is a win over 0-9 Fort Defiance away from brining home a share of the Valley District title. Harrisonburg can win a share of the league crown with a win over Turner Ashby this week, but that is about it. The Blue Streaks are ranked 16th in the 4A West, and the region will only take 12 teams to the postseason this year.
Stage is Set:
For the past several weeks, fans in the River Ridge District have been counting down until the week 11 showdown between potential unbeatens Salem and Pulaski County. On Friday night, the Spartans and Cougars made the dream match a reality. Both teams took care of business in dominating fashion, with Salem blasting Cave Spring 40-0, while Pulaski took care of Hidden Valley 49-34.
The Salem defense has played well all season, but believe it or not, Friday's win over Cave Spring marked the Spartans' first shutout of the season.
Pulaski used a pair of big runs to pick up its ninth win of the season. The Cougars, behind 266 passing yards from Bryant Grubbs, raced out to a 28-7 lead, before the Titans clawed back to within seven. Instead of allowing Hidden Valley to tie it up however, Pulaski outscored the Titans 28-13 for the remainder of the contest to set up a big-time showdown this week.
Despite suffering humbling defats, both Hidden Valley and Cave Spring are in the mix for the final 3A West playoff bid. The Knights are currently the last team in, while Hidden Valley is ranked 18th, are is 0.11 power points behind Cave Spring. The two Ridge Ridge rivals will play this Friday night.
Winning the Close One:
Lord Botetourt has only been in one close game this season, and the Cavaliers lost it. Botetourt faced a resurgent William Byrd squad on Friday night, and found itself in a tight battle for just the second time this fall. This time around however, the Cavaliers emerged victorious.
Cavalier place kicker Grant Clemons missed his first field goal of the season earlier in the contest, but head coach Jamie Harless would trust his senior to carry his team to victory.
Clemons delivered, booting in a 32-yard kick with 2:34 remaining, to lift Lord Botetourt to a thrilling 17-14 triumph on the road.
Byrd's Larry Basham scored two touchdowns, but the Cavaliers held the explosive sophomore to below 100 yards. The Terriers ran just 33 plays on the night, thanks in large part to Botetourt's ability to grind out the clock on offense.
Moving on Up:
After suffering back-to-back losses to Salem and Pulaski, the Blacksburg Bruins responded with a huge 35-21 victory over Patrick Henry. With the win, Blacksburg moves up to number-nine in the latest 3A West poll, and is right on the cusp of hosting a home game for the first round of the playoffs. The Bruins are 5-4 this year, but their four losses have come against teams with a combined record of 34-2.
Patrick Henry is still in the playoffs, but the past month or so has been an absolute disaster for this once-promising season for the Patriots.
Back on Track:
One week after receiving a brutal reality check at the hands of Jefferson Forest, the Amherst Lancers responded in a big way at Rustburg. Leading by only a touchdown at the break, the Lancers exploded for a 21-point third quarter to cruise a 44-28 triumph over the Red Devils. Rustburg ran just five plays in the first 10 minutes of the second half, thanks to a botched kickoff recovery, and an interception on the first play of its second offensive drive.
Amherst was without leading rusher Jerry Page, but the Lancers still managed to grind out 465 yards of the ground. The win came at a good time for Amherst, who is now ranked 10th in the latest 4A West poll. The Lancers are finished with Seminole District play, and will take on undefeated Appomattox this week.
Rustburg on the other hand, has slipped all the way down to 10th place in the 3A West region. The Red Devils would be wise to take care of E.C Glass this week.
Other Notable Scores:
Heritage 25, E.C. Glass 7
Jefferson Forest 63, Liberty 13
Christiansburg 44, Carroll County 7
William Fleming 19, Alleghany 3
Staunton River 44, Rockbridge County 7
Turner Ashby 28, Broadway 25
Waynesboro 45, Fort Defiance 0
Riverheads 56, Stonewall Jackson 7
Buffalo Gap 60, Page 14
Glenvar 20, Radford 14
Giles 63, Eastern Montgomery 14
Game of the Week Recap:
Our game of the week took us to the Shenandoah Valley for the first time this season. The hosts, Robert E Lee were presented with a golden opportunity to grab a share of the Valley District title, and position itself for home field advantage for the first two rounds of the playoffs.
It was not always pretty, but in the end, the Leeman did not let the home fans down.
Robert E Lee saw its once-big lead disappear in the fourth quarter, but the Leeman made a huge defensive play late to escape with a 40-26 triumph over Harrisonburg.
The home team jumped out to a lead in the second half, but the Blue Steaks quickly stormed back to trim the deficit to just seven points. Harrisonburg would regain possession late in the fourth quarter with a chance to tie, but Lee senior Zachary Simmons would make one of the biggest plays of his high school career. The five-foot-seven senior picked off a Blue Streak pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown, to slam the door on the visitors.
Lee has jumped up to number four in the latest 2A East poll, and is a win over 0-9 Fort Defiance away from brining home a share of the Valley District title. Harrisonburg can win a share of the league crown with a win over Turner Ashby this week, but that is about it. The Blue Streaks are ranked 16th in the 4A West, and the region will only take 12 teams to the postseason this year.
Stage is Set:
For the past several weeks, fans in the River Ridge District have been counting down until the week 11 showdown between potential unbeatens Salem and Pulaski County. On Friday night, the Spartans and Cougars made the dream match a reality. Both teams took care of business in dominating fashion, with Salem blasting Cave Spring 40-0, while Pulaski took care of Hidden Valley 49-34.
The Salem defense has played well all season, but believe it or not, Friday's win over Cave Spring marked the Spartans' first shutout of the season.
Pulaski used a pair of big runs to pick up its ninth win of the season. The Cougars, behind 266 passing yards from Bryant Grubbs, raced out to a 28-7 lead, before the Titans clawed back to within seven. Instead of allowing Hidden Valley to tie it up however, Pulaski outscored the Titans 28-13 for the remainder of the contest to set up a big-time showdown this week.
Despite suffering humbling defats, both Hidden Valley and Cave Spring are in the mix for the final 3A West playoff bid. The Knights are currently the last team in, while Hidden Valley is ranked 18th, are is 0.11 power points behind Cave Spring. The two Ridge Ridge rivals will play this Friday night.
Winning the Close One:
Lord Botetourt has only been in one close game this season, and the Cavaliers lost it. Botetourt faced a resurgent William Byrd squad on Friday night, and found itself in a tight battle for just the second time this fall. This time around however, the Cavaliers emerged victorious.
Cavalier place kicker Grant Clemons missed his first field goal of the season earlier in the contest, but head coach Jamie Harless would trust his senior to carry his team to victory.
Clemons delivered, booting in a 32-yard kick with 2:34 remaining, to lift Lord Botetourt to a thrilling 17-14 triumph on the road.
Byrd's Larry Basham scored two touchdowns, but the Cavaliers held the explosive sophomore to below 100 yards. The Terriers ran just 33 plays on the night, thanks in large part to Botetourt's ability to grind out the clock on offense.
Moving on Up:
After suffering back-to-back losses to Salem and Pulaski, the Blacksburg Bruins responded with a huge 35-21 victory over Patrick Henry. With the win, Blacksburg moves up to number-nine in the latest 3A West poll, and is right on the cusp of hosting a home game for the first round of the playoffs. The Bruins are 5-4 this year, but their four losses have come against teams with a combined record of 34-2.
Patrick Henry is still in the playoffs, but the past month or so has been an absolute disaster for this once-promising season for the Patriots.
Back on Track:
One week after receiving a brutal reality check at the hands of Jefferson Forest, the Amherst Lancers responded in a big way at Rustburg. Leading by only a touchdown at the break, the Lancers exploded for a 21-point third quarter to cruise a 44-28 triumph over the Red Devils. Rustburg ran just five plays in the first 10 minutes of the second half, thanks to a botched kickoff recovery, and an interception on the first play of its second offensive drive.
Amherst was without leading rusher Jerry Page, but the Lancers still managed to grind out 465 yards of the ground. The win came at a good time for Amherst, who is now ranked 10th in the latest 4A West poll. The Lancers are finished with Seminole District play, and will take on undefeated Appomattox this week.
Rustburg on the other hand, has slipped all the way down to 10th place in the 3A West region. The Red Devils would be wise to take care of E.C Glass this week.
Other Notable Scores:
Heritage 25, E.C. Glass 7
Jefferson Forest 63, Liberty 13
Christiansburg 44, Carroll County 7
William Fleming 19, Alleghany 3
Staunton River 44, Rockbridge County 7
Turner Ashby 28, Broadway 25
Waynesboro 45, Fort Defiance 0
Riverheads 56, Stonewall Jackson 7
Buffalo Gap 60, Page 14
Glenvar 20, Radford 14
Giles 63, Eastern Montgomery 14
