With one week left in the regular season, there’s not much drama around in the state when it comes to who the No. 1 seeds are in each region. The exception is in Region 4, where there are five teams that have a chance to win the regular-season title.
Eagle’s Landing and Union Grove are both tied first place at 10-4, with Stockbridge (10-5) a half game back and Woodland and Dutchtown (both 9-5) a game out.
This will make for a very interesting final season.
Eagle’s Landing (15-6) hosts Woodland on Tuesday and plays at Locust Grove on Saturday. Union Grove (18-5) has won four straight and finishes the season against Ola on Tuesday and Woodland on Friday.
Stockbridge finishes its season on Tuesday against Hampton.
Woodland (12-8) has the toughest road with games at Eagle’s Landing and Union Grove. Dutchtown finishes against Locust Grove on Tuesday and at Ola on Friday.
Region 1: Boys – No. 4 Warner Robins (20-3) has won nine straight games and has clinched first place. Girls – No. 4 Warner Robins (21-1) has won six straight and clinched first place by virtue of two regular-season wins over Harris County.
Region 2: Boys – Statesboro (14-9) holds a one-game lead over No. 8-ranked New Hampstead in the standings. The two teams play for the second time on Friday; Statesboro won 46-45 the first time. Girls – Wayne County (16-3) has won eight straight games and has a half-game lead over Ware County (21-3). The two teams play on Friday; Wayne won the first meeting 26-25 on Jan. 17. Statesboro (15-7) also has a chance to get in the mix. The Blue Devils are 1 ½ games out of first, but play Ware County on Friday and finish with New Hampstead.
Region 3: Boys – Fayette County (17-5) has dominated the league. The Tigers are 10-1 in region play and finish the regular season with Whitewater on Tuesday and a non-conference game against Sandy Creek on Saturday. Girls – Griffin (20-1) has a two-game lead entering the final week and finished with three games – at McIntosh, Starr’s Mill and Riverdale. Fayette County (16-6) has won four straight but will need a little luck to catch the Bears.
Region 4: Girls – Eagle’s Landing (19-3) can clinch first place with a win over Woodland (15-7) on Tuesday night. The Eagles have a two-game lead and finish the season against Locust Grove (15-8).
Region 5: Boys – No. 3 Miller Grove (15-7) wrapped up first place last week with a win over Columbia. The Wolverines are unbeaten in the league but have a rematch with No. 6 Columbia on Wednesday night. Girls – No. 3 Southwest DeKalb (20-4) has won 10 straight games and clinched first place. Arabia Mountain (17-3) closes the season against the Panthers; Southwest won the first game 63-29. Columbia (11-8) has won six straight games and knocked off No. 1-ranked Griffin last weekend.
Region 6: Boys -- Riverwood has quietly gone about dominating the league. The Raiders (18-4) are 11-1 in the league and have clinched first place. Jackson, Lithia Springs and North Springs are contending for second place. Girls – Jackson (18-2) has a one-game lead over Decatur (15-7), but they meet again on Tuesday night in Decatur. The Bulldogs beat Jackson last week and would likely earn the regular-season title if they can make it two in a row.
Region 7: Boys – Three good teams are vying for the top spot. Carrollton (16-7) is 12-2 in the league and holds a half-game lead over Kell (17-5) and one-game lead over Cass (17-6). Carrollton and Cass meet twice this week (Tuesday and Thursday). Kell finishes against Hiram and two games against Paulding County. Carrollton is the hottest team in the league, having won ten straight games. Girls – No. 5 Carrollton (21-1) has won ten straight games and clinched first place. No. 8 Villa Rica (21-2) will be second if it wins out. Cass (18-4) has won seven straight and finishes with two games against Carrollton.
Region 8: Boys – No. 1 Buford (20-2) has clinched first place. The Wolves have a two-game lead over No.2-ranked ranked Cedar Shoals (20-3). Girls – No. 2 Buford (20-2) has also nailed down first place. The Wolves (10-0) have a two-game lead over No. 6 Flowery Branch and finish with Walnut Grove and Johnson, the two teams in the league with the worst records.
