Breaking down the top teams in top four classes

It could be a little early to select boys soccer state-championship favorites in the top four classes, but one thing is certain: The top teams from Class 7A-Class 4A are winning big and winning often.

Here’s why they are at the top of their classifications:

• Harrison (14-0-1, 6-0-1) is loaded with players who can score. The Hoyas, coming off a 1-1 tie at unranked Walton on Friday, are led by senior Lee Archer, who has scored 13 goals. Seniors A.J. Daniels (nine goals), Tyler Vitelli (seven goals), Nicholas Perla (five goals, 13 assists) and Yousef Ibrahim (five goals) provide most of Harrison’s offensive production.
• Two-time defending champion Dalton (10-1-3, 5-0) is again atop Class 6A. The Catamounts won the 2019 and 2021 6A titles and likely would have won the 2020 state title, but the season was canceled because of COVID. Dalton’s only loss this season was to Class 5A No. 1 Johnson-Gainesville 5-4 on March 11. Senior Yahir Paez has scored 10 goals, and senior Fabian Rodriguez has nine. Junior Ezekiel Ortiz (eight goals) and seniors Fernando Guerrero and Pablo Castillo (six goals) have been scoring threats.
• Top-ranked 5A program Johnson-Gainesville (13-0-1) already has a victory against No. 1-ranked Dalton (6A) and is coming off a 3-1 victory against Loganville. The Knights will travel to Eastside on Thursday.
• Columbus, 10-0-1 overall and 3-0 in region play, leads the way in 4A. The Blue Devils’ tie (1-1) came against Class 5A No. 6 St. Pius on Feb. 25, Since then, Columbus has beaten Northside-Columbus (11-1), A Private No. 2 St. Anne Pacell (3-1), Shaw (10-0), Starr’s Mill (3-1), Troup County (5-0) and Calhoun (2-0).

We’ll look at the lower classification’s top teams in Thursday’s post.

[Note: There will be two posts per week on boys soccer leading up to and through the region and state tournaments. The first round of the state championships begin April 14, and the state championships will be held May 3-5 at McEachern in Powder Springs and Mercer in Macon.]

Boys soccer rankings

Class 7A

1. Harrison

2. Campbell

3. Peachtree Ridge

4. Pebblebrook

5. Lambert

6. Collins Hill

7. South Gwinnett

8. Dunwoody

9. Forsyth Central

10. Milton

Class 6A

1. Dalton

2. Central Gwinnett

3. Riverwood

4. Lakeside-DeKalb

5. Rome

6. Johns Creek

7. Lassiter

8. River Ridge

9. Sprayberry

10. Centennial

Class 5A

1. Johnson-Gainesville

2. Clarke Central

3. Woodward

4. McIntosh

5. Whitewater

6. St. Pius X

7. Veterans

8. Union Grove

9. Loganville

10. Stockbridge

Class 4A

1. Columbus

2. Southeast Whitfield

3. LaGrange

4. Flowery Branch

5. Pickens

6. Jefferson

7. Perry

8. Marist

9. West Laurens

10. North Oconee

Class 3A

1. Pike County

2. GAC

3. Tattnall County

4. Oconee County

5. West Hall

6. Westminster

7. Jackson

8. Morgan County

9. Gilmer

10. Hart County

Class 2A