Wheels Falling Off

One week ago the Lady Gryphon Volleyball team was riding a 26 game conference winning streak and had a two game lead in the Big East with four games to go.  This morning they are in a dead tie with Northern Nash who beat Nash Central while Rocky Mount was losing at Fike. This is the same Fike team that has beaten Hunt this year .

How many times  have you seen in life or sports  when people have streaks, when the streak finally stops that it takes a while to recover.  Timing plays its     part too.  The Lady Gryphons have a starter injured and another sick this week.  There's  nobody going to feel sorry for you.  Both should be back next week.   Fike beats the Lady Gryphons 3-1at Fike. Northern and RM are tied at the top with two losses and Hunt right behind with three losses.  The conference race is going down to the wire.

Gryphon Tennis beat Fike 8-1.  There is no doubt that Nash Central is the best around in this area but seems like just yesterday that Fike was always the team to beat.

High schools sports where recruiting is not possible teams in every sport have their highs and lows.  Rocky Mount football went through an incredible six year run.  Every year there are great athletes at every school.  When you go on those six year runs you get more than your share of great athletes.  Then all of a sudden you are back to a few good players.  It's not that you don't have good players just not enough of them.  You have to wait for the next cycle.  All the time while you go through you great cycle some other team  is in their down cycle.  You just hope the down doesn't last long.

I have Direct TV so I had a chance to catch all four of the baseball games for the playoffs for a while Wednesday night.  I had my clicker working going from game to game.  I finally gave up when the Braves let their game get tied in the ninth inning.  At that time the Red Sox were in rain delay and the Yankees were leading 7-6.  I called it a night when the Cardinals won their game.  I didn't miss anything did I?

Cross Country Wins Again

The Weekly Cross Country conference run was won by Rocky Mount as they beat Fike 54- 67.  Gryphon Junior Mason Holt was the Gryphon top runner finishing second with a time of 17.44 on the Red Oak Course.  Daniel Hannon and Zach Shea both were right together with times of 19 minutes and 19.01.  The girls finished second behind Fike as Nefertiti Thigpen-Conyers was the top Lady Gryphon runner.  She finished third over all.

The day after their conference winning streak was broken the Volleyball team lost for the second time this year to Southern Vance.  Northern won their match on Tuesday against Southern Nash so they are one game back with three to play.. Rocky Mount is at Fike today while Northern Plays at Nash Central. Nash Central beat Northern the first time this year so this is a biggie for the Lady Knights as they try to stay within a game of Rocky Mount.

Next week the Gryphons are home Tuesday to Southern Nash while the Lady Knights are home to Fike.  Then next Thursday is the showdown match at Northern.

Wednesday Southern Nash beat Rocky Mount in soccer 4-0.
Today is the Funeral for Nash Central football/baseball player John Stanley.

Friday night opens the conference football schedule.  I think the most intriguing game is Hunt at Northern Nash.  Northern defense has been excellent  however their offense hasn't produced.  Tarboro on Monday night had ten men in the box  most of the time and only one man in the secondary.  That one was Todd Gurley.  Northern needs to throw to get the defense to give them a little respect.

Southern Nash I suspect will have their way with Fike if they hold on to the ball.  Nash Central travels to Rocky Mount where all eyes will be looking to see the Bulldogs reaction to burying a teammate the day
b efore.

Volleyball Streak Is History

The Lady Gryphon unbeaten steak of not having lost a conference game during the regular season in Big East play ended tonight at the hands of the one team that has come the closes several times in the past three years of knocking them off.  Hunt has beaten the Lady Gryphons in the conference tournament but not in the regular season.

What would you expect when Hunt and Rocky Mount play volleyball but a five set match in which Hunt won the fifth set 15-11.The Lady Gryphons are still in first but their path to a regular season title just may end up facing Northern Nash with either winning out right or tying for the crown the last game of the season  next Thursday.  The streaks ends at 26 straight games.

Lost during the shuffle of the Tarboro- Northern Nash game was the fact that SouthWest Edgecombe won their first game of the season  Monday night 43-14 over Farmville Central.  That was the battle of the win less teams as Farmville  still is looking for their first win.  The win puts the Cougars in a tie for 3rd in the Eastern Plains and their hopes of making the playoffs are alive and well.

I told you this morning about the Rocky Mount -Fike tie in soccer.  Find out this morning that Nash Central and Northern Nash played to a two overtime tie also.  Hard to believe that playing twenty minutes extra that there would be a tie in any game and find out there are two the same night.  The Gryphon/Golden Demon match played two overtimes and did not score while Nash Central took the lead in their match only to see Northern tie the game by the end of the first overtime.

This Friday night Nash Central travels to Rocky Mount to open conference play in football.  The Bulldog football players will enter the stadium locking their arms together and they will follow the Bulldog cheerleaders who will be carrying John Stanley's number 12.  Should be a very emotional scene when they enter the stadium to start the game.  There is only two possible outcomes of this game.  Nash Central will play out of their minds and win by 50 or they will fumble and bumble and Rocky Mount wins 13-7.  which one do you think it will be?

I have been thinking all season that Nash Central was a third round playoff team this year.  Now with the death of a teammate this may unite them to play for all the marbles by mid December.