Lady Gryphons Come To Play

There are those times in sports when you practice to play a certain way and when you go out on the field of play and all the pieces fall in place and you wind up looking like the greatest team ever.  It  happened tonight for Rocky Mount.  I heard comments like "this is the best that we have played all year". 

The Lady GryphonS started this season when they were 6-0 in conference play they forgot what made them 6-0.  They played flat footed and Hunt sent them to their first loss.  Spinning having lost a 26 game conference win streak Fike took the Lady Gryphons to the wood shed two days later.  Last Thursday at Northern playing for the conference regular season crown they played better but were beaten by a better team.  Tuesday's semi final game against Hunt that old Gryphon team showed up but if it wasn't for that old team showing up they never would have outlasted Hunt to make it back to Northern.

Playing with speed and aggression the Lady Gryphons take out Northern Nash 25-19,25-19, 25-22 to win 3-0 and win the Tournament title.  They now open the 3-A State Playoffs Thursday at Rocky Mount against either White Oak or Jacksonville.

The score was not the only thing to sting the Lady Knights as Deja Lewis fell in the middle of the third game and had to be taken to the hospital.  Her ability to play in the opening round is highly questionable for the Lady Knights Now.  The good news for Northern other than having to lose to their hated rival they still sit as the #1 seed and will play a home game next week.

Got to the JV football game tonight and when Rocky Mount came on the field it was half empty on their side of the fifty yard line.  Several JV players have been called to duty on the varsity as in the last three weeks the football has lost four players to injuries and are out for the year.  Several more will not play at Fike Friday due to injuries keeping them on the sidelines.  Seems as if "Hawkeye" Pierce and the 4077th Mash Unit is getting a workout on the Gryphon football team.

Fike beat the Little Gryphons 21-12.

There is not a bad game to be played anywhere in the Big East Friday night.  Rocky Mount is at Fike.  Nash Central at Northern Nash and Southern Nash travels to Hunt.  I think at least one of the unbeatens falls Friday.

It's Rocky Mount -Northern

Tonight neither team can improve their standing position in the state playoffs which begin on October 22nd.  Rocky Mount travels to Northern to play another championship game as the top two teams in the Big East collide for the Conference tournament Championship.   Northern hopes the results are the same as last week and they can take both the regular season and tournament titles.

Regardless of the outcome Northern will host the #3 team from the Coastal conference and by reputation alone the Coastal is the best conference in Volleyball east of I-95.  Second place has Rocky Mount hosting the #4 seed from the Eastern Carolina conference an since Rocky Mount has been ousted the last two years by lower seeds from the Coastal  last year the first round and in  the second round the year before they seem to have gotten a break in the opening round.

Friday night high school football begins to get  serious now as all three games Friday have playoff implications.  Rocky Mount having  already gotten Nash Central and Hunt off their schedule a month ago was thinking they had a chance for a win at Fike but lo and behold  Fike has proven they are getting better every week having knocked off one of the big boys in Southern Nash  and scared the heck out of Nash Central.  They are 1-1 and Rocky Mount has now loss three in a row even though those losses were Rose, Nash Central and Hunt.

Though they have lost only once Nash Central's two victories have come again Rocky Mount and Fike and both were tagged as second division when the coaches voted in preseason.  They walk over to Northern Nash  and face a team that has not found out that both sides of the ball are required in winning.  Their defense is the best in the league and their offense is the worst.  Despite all of that don't count Northern out Friday night for if they catch Nash Central looking to the Hunt game next week there may be an upset brewing.

Now for the biggie of the week Hunt hosting Southern Nash.  This game could easily be 35-34.  Southern has proven all year that they like to put the ball on the ground and you can bet Hunt will gladly take a couple of turnovers deep in Southern territory.  The key to this game is keeping the hold of the ball.  If Southern holds on to the ball they can win this one but if they don't Hunt would love to get a lead and pound- pound -pound in the second half.  My guess on this one will be who has the most turnovers will be the loser.

There is not a cupcake to be found this Friday night as the Big East hits the halfway point and will there be any team that still hasn't won a conference game after Friday?