Vance County Friday Night Football is on the air Friday night at 6:45 pregame and 7 p.m. kickoff. Live on 1450 AM and on wizs.com! Listen for all the live play by play. Northern Vance is off this week. Please see full schedule below the scouting report.
Southern Vance is now 4-4 overall and 3-2 in the Northern Carolina Conference ! The Raiders are tied with Warren County for 4th place in the NCC, which sets up a fascinating match up between Southern and Warren next week that may detemine the playoff fortunes for both teams.
To Recap the Raiders’ season so far: After a very impressive 2-1 start to their conference schedule, followed by a very physical (almost brutal) 51-6 beating from undefeated South Granville 2 weeks ago, Southern had the difficult task of preparing to meet the other unbeaten team, Roanoke Rapids, last week. Raiders’ Coach Darry Ragland certainly did something right during the week running up to the home game with the Yellow Jackets, because his team, which left Creedmoor the preceding Friday night severely battered, pulled off a stunning 44-27 win over RR to knock the Jackets out of the unbeaten ranks and into 2nd place in the league. That win can be rightly called an upset, given the disparity in the records of the two teams, but it did not look much like an upset while it was happening. Raider QB Elijah Stewart, who was knocked out of the South Granville game at halftime with a foot or ankle injury, never passed better, and his receivers were never more sure-handed, than they were against the Jackets last week; and the defense, which had not been a consistent strong point for Southern this season, kept the Roanoke Rapids running backs bottled up for most of the game.
Southern Vance has gotten back on the wining track at a good time, and their home game against Louisburg this Friday night gives the Raiders every opportunity to improve to a winning record of 5-4 going into the Warren showdown. Southern has already bested the other 1A member of the conference with their 50-19 victory over Granville Central, and should be able to knock off Louisburg. Although the Warriors won their season opener 41-0, that was against KIPP Pride, which has been shut out or clobbered by most of the area 1A and 2A teams, (e.g., Granville Central beat the Pride 33-8), and Louisburg has been struggling mightily ever since. They were the victims of Northern Vance’s first win of the season two weeks ago, and they come back to Vance County this week dragging their 1-6 record behind them like Marley’s chain. They have had a week off to recover, but the Warriors do not seem to have what it takes this year to compete with a team which, like Southern Vance, has tasted the blood of victory and is on its way up.
Louisburg has been shut out three times this season and has a 13 point-per-game scoring average. They have a freshman quarterback who might be quite good in a year or two, but who only passes for about 25 yards per game. The Warriors rely on a running game centered around Sr. RB Amonte Moses who has averaged 66 yards rushing per game, along with another 20 yards per outing in receiving yards. Moses has 2 of his team’s 9 TDs this season, and Soph Elijah Mitchell has 2 rushing scores. Five other players have rushed for TDs, which suggests that Louisburg does have some depth in the backfield, and can look forward to a better season next year.
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Second Generation Drivers With South Boston Speedway Ties Gunning For CARS Tour Championships Saturday Night
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. (October 10, 2017) – Two second generation drivers with deep roots at South Boston Speedway will be gunning for championships when the CARS Tour makes its first visit to the historic Virginia track Saturday night.
Layne Riggs comes into the AutosbyNelson.com CARS Tour 250 with a four-point lead over Josh Berry in the CARS Late Model division while Brandon Setzer trails Cole Rouse by eight points in the CARS Super Late Model division. It is the final race of the season for both divisions.
Riggs is the son Scott Riggs while Setzer is the son of Dennis Setzer. Scott Riggs campaigned for more than a decade in NASCAR’s top three touring division, while Setzer spent almost 20 years in the top three series.
The older Setzer has both an Xfinity Series and a Camping World Truck Series win at South Boston, while Riggs scored a Late Model Stock win at South Boston and competed in the trucks series here, finishing third in the 2001 truck race.
Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. Saturday with Late Model qualifying at 5 and Super Late Model qualifying at 5:30. An on-track fan fest is scheduled for 6 p.m. with the 125-lap Late Model race starting at 7 p.m. followed by the 125-lap Super Late Model race.
Riggs has two wins, five top-five finishes and 10 top 10s in 12 starts in 2017 to lead Berry, who drives for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Late Model team, by four points headed into Saturday’s season finale.
“Whoever finishes in front of the other one is going to win the championship,” the 15-year-old Riggs said of his battle with Berry.
While his father had many starts at South Boston, Layne Riggs has just one: the most recent Late Model race held September 16. He finished second to Philip Morris in the 100-lapper. That appearance wasn’t a coincidence.
“We ran the last race at South Boston. That was part of the strategy, to go and test and get some laps on a track we hadn’t raced on,” said Riggs. “We’ve definitely been testing more and we’ve gone over the car with a pretty fine-tooth comb to make sure it is perfect.”
Setzer faces a more difficult task than Riggs. Rouse’s eight-point lead isn’t insurmountable, but it is formidable.
“We’re still in the game,” said Setzer, who has two wins and three poles this season. “It’s gonna be tough, but we can catch him. We have to have a really good weekend and him not so good.”
Unlike Riggs, Setzer has South Boston experience. He’s competed in three Pro All-Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model races on the 4/10ths-mile oval including one earlier this season. His best finish is third.
Riggs will be racing against more drivers than usual with a home-track advantage. At least five South Boston Speedway regulars … Bobby McCarty, Philip Morris, Brandon Pierce, Timothy Peters and Mike Jones … have entered the 125-lap CARS Tour Late Model event.
“There are definitely going to be more regulars than ever at South Boston. Normally only two or three show up and sometimes none,” said Riggs. “And normally the CARS guys run up front, but I expect them (South Boston drivers) to be running up front. The South Boston competition is the best I’ve ever seen. When they go to big races, they are the ones running strong.”
Advance adult general admission tickets to the AutosbyNelson.com 250 are on sale in advance for $10 each. Adult general admission tickets on race day will be $15. Youth ages 7-12 will be admitted for $5 with children six and under admitted free.
Advance tickets can be purchased daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. by calling 877.440.1540.
(South Boston Speedway is an advertising client of WIZS.)
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Vance County Friday Night Football returns to WIZS 1450 AM and wizs.com Friday night at 6:45 p.m. for airtime and 7 p.m. for kickoff. Double coverage of Southern Vance hosting Roanoke Rapids and Northern Vance at Bunn. Tune in for Live Play by Play and score updates of both local teams.
The Yellow Jackets of Roanoke Rapids are unbeaten this season, which places them alongside South Granville at the top of the Northern Carolina Conference. With no open date so far this season, Roanoke Rapids is 7-0 while South Granville is 6-0. So when those Jackets come swarming into Southern Vance’s Raider stadium this Friday night, it will be the second week in a row for the Raiders facing off with a high-powered conference opponent. Southern Vance took a 52-6 beating from South Granville last week, losing starting QB Elijah Stewart to a foot injury in the first half, and his status is unclear for this week’s game. Stewart’s backup was also knocked out of last week’s game, so Coach Darry Ragland might be improvising against the Jackets.
Roanoke Rapids might be looking at this game as a chance to stay loose going into their own home game with South Granville next week – a matchup that should decide the conference championship, although both of the top dogs must still tangle with Bunn, which, although not in top form, is still a formidable team and the 2-time defending league champion from 2015 and 2016. Although not as dominating on paper as South Granville, which has 3 shutouts this season and has broken 50 points in 3 games, Roanoke Rapids has a right to feel confident this week. The Jackets are averaging scoring 39 points per game, and they allow their opponents under 10 points per week. That’s a bit better than South Granville on offense, but a looser defense than South, which has allowed under 4 points per game. The Yellow Jackets have no 50-point games (but 3 games in the 40s) and their only shutout was a 46-0 pasting of 1A Granville Central. Northern Vance has played both teams, and while the Vikings were shut out by South Granville 54-0, they scored 10 points on Roanoke Rapids before falling 35-10.
Southern Vance started the conference season with a tough 34-30 loss to Bunn, which gave them the confidence and momentum they needed to rack up their two road wins before colliding with South Granville. The Raiders came into their South Granville game last week with a satisfying 3-3 overall record and back-to-back conference wins over Webb and Granville Central. Along the way they improved on their stats: the Raiders averaged scoring 31 points per game, and allowed 26, BC (Before Creedmoor). This is not a formula for a brilliant championship season, but it can certainly get a team to over .500. They are now 3-4 and 2-1 in the league and are firmly established in the middle of the conference standings just below Warren County, which has not yet played either of the top two.
AC(After Creedmoor), however, the Raiders’ scoring average dropped to 28, and the points against rose to 30 points per game. If last Friday’s massacre were just a bad loss, Southern would be in a better position to bounce back against Roanoke Rapids, but the loss of some key players, especially Stewart, my be too much to overcome. At least this game is at home for the Raiders, because playing in Roanoke Rapids is always a disadvantage.
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The Bunn Wildcats host Northern Vance this Friday, planning to bring the Vikings back down to earth after Northern collected its first win of the season last week against 1A conference opponent Louisburg. It was a happy Homecoming last Friday at Northern Vance, but the narrow 17-14 victory over the Warriors may not provide enough momentum for the Vikings to match up well with Bunn. The Wildcats, with their first new coach in almost 30 years, have been struggling a bit this season, at least by “Bunn standards.” The two-time defending conference champions, who fell a couple of touchdowns short of the state 2A championship in 2015, were 1-2 going into conference play, and have not blown conference opponents off the field with their running game as they have in past seasons. They are 3-0 in the conference, placing them in third place behind the two unbeaten heavyweights, South Granville and Roanoke Rapids, but they just barely got by Southern Vance 34-30 in the conference opener and gave up 128 penalty yards in last week’s 56-35 win over Warren County. They were tied 29-29 with Warren at half time, and then shut the Eagles down until late in the 4th period.
At 4-2 overall the ‘Cats now average scoring just under 32 points per game. The problem is that they also allow opponents to score the same number of points – a rare scoring differential for the Wildcats, who scored 48 points per game last season and held rivals to 23. But Bunn would need to slip much further than they have to give the Vikings a chance this week. Northern has scored less than half as many points as Bunn this season, and has allowed a few more points per game. The Vikings actually have a competent defense, especially against the pass, but Bunn hardly ever passes the ball, so . . .
https://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/wizsresize_0000s_0009_572821.png-copy.png265504WIZS Staffhttps://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wizswebsitelogoimage.pngWIZS Staff2017-10-05 17:01:022017-10-05 14:47:29@RRSchools @SVHSRaiders and @NorthernVanceFB @bunn_athletics
Annual Chad Pergerson and Kevin Bowen Memorial Race
Twin 50-lap races for the Mike Bledsole Mechanical Heating and Air Late Model Stocks may have shaken up the points race for this year’s track championship a bit, as points leader, and 2016 track champ, Terry Dease ended up on his roof and the second-place driver in the points race, Chris Denny, was a no-show, a result of crashing his car in the previous race night. In race one, top qualifier Craig Moore, in his first OCS start of the year, allowed the other front row starter, Stacy Puryear, to slip by him at the green and hold on for the win, Puryear’s second win in three consecutive starts. The second twin resulted in those two drivers switching places with Moore taking the win and Puryear the runner-up. Dease finished a strong third in race one but settled for seventh in race two, a result of his jaw-dropping flip down the front stretch six laps in. Dease was uninjured in the accident. The cars of both Chuck Lawson and Daniel Moss showed their strength at times. Moss spent some laps banging fenders with Dease in the first twin, completing the race in fifth with Lawson sandwiched between those two for fourth. An inverted start in the second race gave Lawson the top starting spot at the green. Lawson kept the hard-charging machines of Puryear and Moore behind him with some remarkable car control until Puryear slipped by sixteen laps in. Lawson finished that race in third, ahead of the fourth-place car of Camden Gullie.
The Limited Sportsman racers labored through their own exciting, but brief, twin 20-lappers, with the top qualifier for the night, Daniel Moss, taking home the winning trophy in both races. Moss, a Late Model Stock regular, was making his first season appearance in this division. Gary Young, Jr, qualified second and finished there in both races. Barry Beggarly, Jr, the sixth-place starter, completed race one in third but mechanical issues left him at the back of the pack for the second one. The points leader coming into the event, Daryl Carver mustered a seventh-place finish in race one, after a lap-12 dust-up with the car of Brent Evans, Jr, but improved to third in the second event. Second in points behind Carver, Evans, Jr had worse luck, spinning out under caution as a result of a flat tire then brushing the side of Carver’s car, giving him the last spot in the 12-car field for the first twin. Evans, Jr salvaged an eighth-place finish in the second twin.
Race number eight in the Pure Stock division proved to be the charm for Bobby Clayton, Jr, as he picked up his first season win, and possibly the points lead, in the 25-lap race. Clayton, Jr entered the race second in points to five-time season winner and 2016 track champ Danny Winstead. Winstead appeared to turn a sixth-place start into a second-place finish, more than likely assuring him of a third consecutive track title. However, Winstead’s car was disqualified in post-race inspections, placing him last in the 12-car field. His misfortune moved Brandon Watson up one spot for a second-place finish. Chase Sandefur inherited third, followed by Trevor Winstead and Les Aliff, fourth and fifth respectively. Thomas Penny, not considered a front-runner to date, turned heads by outgunning everyone in qualifying, getting his first pole position. That turned out not to be the charm for Penny as he finished the race in tenth, six laps in arrears.
Hill’s Complete Carpet Care Super Mini-Trucks 20-lap race did little to change the tight points race for the top two drivers. Coming into the event, John Comstock held a four-point lead over five-time season winner Jeffrey Martin and padded that a little by getting his fourth victory of the year, with one race left. Martin’s truck finished in second. In a case of deja vu all over again, Comstock started on pole with the truck of Devin Parrot beside him. The trucks of Jeffrey and Scott Martin made up the second row with Dalton and Noah Martin behind those two. Two cautions flags flew, one for the spinning truck of Dalton on lap 8 and the other when Parrot looped his machine eight laps from the end. Parrot recovered for a third-place finish, followed by Scott, Dalton and Noah Martin, fourth through sixth respectively, all trucks on the lead lap.
In the Quality Collision Solutions of Graham Grand American Modifieds division, it was disqualifications that determined the outcome of this 25-lap race, more than the racing itself. Gary Young, Jr was the fastest qualifier prior to the event and appeared to pick up his fourth win of the season. It was not to be as his tires failed post-race inspections and he was placed at the back of the five-car field. A similar fate awaited points-leader Richard Thomas with his tires also not passing, relegating him to fourth. That left John Barilka with his first season win, followed by Michael Roney in second and Jonathan Cook third. Todd Massey qualified second but did not start the race.
A tight points battle for Smokey Dave’s BBQ Mod4’s narrowly missed a shake-up in the fight to be this year’s track champion. At the end of the 25-lap event, top qualifier Corey Purnell walked away with his second season win and points-leader Dennis Capps settled for second. Harold Summey rounded out the top three. Summey started beside Purnell but snatched the lead from Purnell at the drop of the green. Three laps in, the last-place car of Randy Ayers spun out at the start/finish line bringing out the caution. As Ayers righted his car and pulled off, he did so in front of the field, causing Summey to lock his brakes and Purnell to spin behind him. (Purnell sits 8 points behind Capps in the standings with Summey 10 points in arrears.) This miscommunication with his spotter prompted officials to park Ayer’s car for the night.
A full field of classic cars in the Southern Ground Pounders event led to a wild show with several different divisions competing with each other throughout the race. There were big-block, high-horsepower racing machines from 1936 to 1972 models. It was Eddie Gilbert in a ‘65 Ford Falcon that prevailed for the win. Driving a ‘72 Pontiac Ventura, Chris Mincey took the next spot with Mack Tatum in his ‘65 Mustang rounding out the top three.
(Orange County Speedway is a paying advertising client of WIZS.)
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Vance County Friday Night Football is on 1450 AM WIZS live beginning at 6:45 p.m. Friday nights as well as live streamed on wizs.com. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Please see our full schedule following the scouting reports.
Southern Vance at South Granville
Southern Vance finishes up a 3-week road trip through Granville County tonight (Friday) in Creedmoor to meet the mighty Vikings of South Granville. The Raiders are riding pretty high after back-to-back victories over 1A conference member Granville Central (50-19) and Webb (28-7), but this week will be their toughest match up of the season. South Granville is 5-0, has shut out its first two conference opponents by over 50 points each (okay, they were Northern Vance and Louisburg), and is better on paper than the other unbeaten conference team, Roanoke Rapids.
South Granville, under veteran coach Mike Hobgood, has always relied on running for its offensive production, a strategy that has taken the Vikings to the state playoffs for six years straight. Last year’s offense was a bit more varied: with QB Tucker Brown passing for over 1200 yards and 11 TDs and leading the team in rushing with just under 800 yards, South finished 8-5, averaged scoring just under 30 points and allowed 20 per game. So far this season, the Vikes have scored an average of 35 points per game and have allowed just under 4 points (that’s right, four). Clearly headed toward one of their best seasons, they are doing it on the ground. QB Brown, now a senior, has only passed for 35 yards per game and 1 touchdown, but he has continued to contribute to the running game with 44 yards per outing and 3 TDs. The other 220 yards rushing per game has been spread around to a stable of backs, led by late-blooming Sr. RB Allajah Mitchell, a 6-1 220 lb Division I college prospect, with 115 yards per game and 11 touchdowns. Senior Antonio Lassiter has 2 rushing scores, and three other players have run for scores. Like most really successful teams these days, the Vikings have a reliable kicker in Jr. Robert Torrence, who is 22 of 26 on extra points, and 1 for 1 on field goals (a 26-yarder).
The South Granville defense, allowing 3.8 points per game (I had to say it again !), led by their linebackers, including Jr. MLB Justin Bullock, who has 10 stops per game, Sr. Sean Deuger who has 9 per game, and Mitchell, who starts at OLB and has 7 stops per game. Mitchell also leads the pass rush, with 6 sacks on the year.
SO…the 3-3 (2-1) Southern Vance Raiders will clearly have their hands full tonight, and they know that. With numerous penalties and turnovers in previous games, the Raiders have often been their own worst enemy, and there will be no room for those mistakes against the Vikings. With average scoring of 31 points per game (thanks to their 50 points against 1A Granville Central) Southern’s offense is clearly able to score 4 or 5 times per game, but their defense has also allowed an average of 26 points per game, and they have not played against an offense like South Granville this season. It is interesting though, that South Granville has also had a pretty easy schedule, at least in the conference, so they might be a bit soft coming into this game. These teams are also very familiar with each other, having played in the same conference for the previous four years and maintained a regional rivalry off and on before that. Southern Vance upset South Granville in 2013 and has not beaten them since, so a win for the Raiders this week would be a glorious upset, but stranger things have happened, and the Vikings usually slip up once every season.
Northern Vance hosting Louisburg
When 1A Louisburg comes to Viking stadium Friday night for a Northern Carolina Conference game, we will see two teams who are really easy to compare. In addition to statistics like won-loss record and average points per game for and against each team, we have the luxury of looking at two teams who have already played 4 common opponents this season.
Both Northern and Louisburg played the newly-3A Franklinton as a nonconference game early in this season: The Vikings lost to the Red Rams 12-0 in their season opener, while the Warriors met up with the Rams for the final nonconference game and got shut out 46-0.
The Vikings opened their conference schedule against South Granville, unbeaten then and now, and the Creedmoor Vikings demolished Northern 54-0. Louisburg clashed with South Granville just last week, also taking its lumps in a 52-0 shutout.
Both of tonight’s teams have also endured games with the other conference heavyweight, Roanoke Rapids: Louisburg took a 48-14 whipping, while Northern Vance lost 35-10 last week, in a game that actually showed some improvement for the Vikings.
Finally, both teams have played Warren County and the Eagles, traditional rivals of both the Vikings and the Warriors, have surprised some people this season, rolling up a 5-1 overall record to place them in 3rd place in the conference behind South Granville and Roanoke Rapids. However, Warren owes its perfect 3-0 conference mark to the fact that they have only played Northern, Louisburg and Granville Central so far. But to give them their due, they bested Northern 25-15 and Louisburg 27-14.
And so, we have Louisburg Northern Vance, facing the Vikings this Friday night with very similar results against common opponents this season. The Warriors are 1-5, and they have averaged scoring just under 13 points per game – which includes their 41-0 shutout over Kipp Pride in their season opener – and they have allowed 31 points per game. Against three conference opponents, they have scored 28 points total (14 in each game) and been shut out once. Northern Vance is 0-6, has averaged scoring only 6 per game (the Vikings wee shut out in their first two nonconference games), and has allowed 30 per game. In the same three conference matchups, the Vikings have scored 25 total points, and also been shut out once. If there were ever two evenly matched teams, it is these two. Louisburg has had success against Northern Vance in the past. The most recent series ran for 4 seasons between 2009 and 2012. The Warriors won that series 3-1, and there were a couple of great games, like the one-point 37-36 Louisburg victory in 2010 and the 38-35 win for Northern Vance in 2011. These teams are natural geographic and historical rivals, and they have continued to face off in 7 on 7 drills and jamborees in the last few off-seasons.
After joining the Tar-Roanoke 1A conference in 2013, the Warriors had two winning seasons in a row, ending up 8-4 in 2013 with a perfect 5-0 conference run and a playoff appearance. The next year they were 8-5 (4-1), but everyone graduated and the Warriors finished 1-10 in 2015. Louisburg came back last year finished 6-4 in the regular season, and second in their league to Granville Central, with a 4-1 mark. Unfortunately, they were again relying on seniors in their exclusively run-oriented offense, and lost all of their top producers to graduation. Rebuilding again, coach Dontae Lassiter and his Warriors are still counting on their running game, although Freshman QB Jaheim Brown has passed more in the first 5 games of this season than last year’s senior starter passed in the whole season. This year’s leading rusher is one of the few seniors, Amonte Moses, with 77 carries so far for an average of 66 yards per game and has 2 touchdowns on the year. Sophomore Elijah Mitchell also has two scores, and Jr. Devon Ingraham, the 255 lb fullback, has one TD but contributes 42 yards per game. Altogether Louisburg averages 163 yards per game rushing and 23 passing. They have not scored through the air yet.
The strongest part of the Vikings’ game this year is pass defense, and they have interceptions in every game. The Vikings offense has been rendered inconsistent by penalties and turnovers, as well as opposing defenses. The offensive line is small and still developing, so the talent of the several running backs (195 lb Sr. Abraham Wright, also a defensive standout, Sr. Jameel Johnson, who also plays some QB) like to pass, now that they have settled on a Soph Samien Burell as starting QB, and Burell is beginning to zero in of recovers Mikel Brown, Phadol Jordan, Taquan Lyons and others. They have also discovered a reliable kicker in Sr Brian Lopez, who has been steady on PATs and short field goals the past few weeks. Louisburg seems to have all the same problems that Northern Vance does this year, and if Northern can keep their mistakes to a minimum, they have a good chance for their first win this week.
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Full Vance County Friday Night Football and Team Schedules are below.
— by Jeff Jenkins
SV at Webb Preview
After last Friday’s trip to Stem, to dish out a serious 50-19 beat-down on 1A conference-mate Granville Central, 2-3 Southern Vance continues its 3-week tour of Granville County tonight (Friday) with a short trip to J. F. Webb in Oxford. With a good chance to even up their season at 3-3, and to improve their conference record to 2-1, Raiders’ Head Coach Darry Ragland would love to see his team play tonight like they did against the Panthers last week. If they do, the Raiders should come away with a win. Although the 1-4 Warriors scored 40 points in their win over Carrboro 2 weeks ago, they were shut out by Beddingfield in their opener 39-0, lost to 1A Gates County 42-28, and then last week took their medicine from Bunn in a 41-9 thrashing. They are averaging scoring just under 20 points per game, and they are allowing 33.
Webb’s last winning season was 2008, when the Warriors finished 9-4 overall, 3-2 in the conference, but missed out on post season play. In 2007, they were true contenders for a state championship, finishing 11-4 after a 4-1 conference record, and a deep playoff run that ended with a narrow loss in the 4th round. In those days. Webb was coached by John Hammet, who became Granville Central’s first football coach and Athletic director in 2010. Since 2011, the Warriors have finished 3-8 four times and 2-9 twice, and 5th year coach Tony Midgette has found a winning formula yet. This history sounds a lot like the Raiders last three seasons, and Webb defeated Southern Vance in both of the past two meetings. The Warriors won convincingly in 2015 by 34-18, but had to come back from a wide deficit last year to win a crazy overtime shootout 50-48. Unfortunately for Webb, those games were nonconference, and tonight will really count.
Furthermore, coaching changes and transfers have given Southern Vance a very consistent offense, with the potential for big plays, especially though the air. Thanks to last week’s production, the Raiders’ scoring average is up to 32 per game – at least a 7-year high; but even before last week, Southern was scoring 27 points per game, and they played Bunn much closer than Webb did, losing by only 4 points, 34-30. They also scored 30 in their opening day win over Bartlett-Yancey. The Raiders defense has struggled at times, allowing 33 points per game before holding Granville Central to 13 points last week until the Panthers slipped in a touchdown near the end.
The Raider defense should be effective against Webb however. The Warriors offense runs better than they pass, and they rely on one or two players for their ground game. The new starting QB, Soph Jordan Pugh is improving, but he has a 30% completion rate, for an average of 40 yds per game and 2 TDs on the season. Sr. WR Unique Heggie, a familiar name from last year’s game, has caught both TD passes, and has caught 6 passes total. On the ground, the Warriors rely on Sr. RB Tyrone Clark, Jr., who averages just under 110 yds per game and has scored four times on the gound. Clark finished with just under 1000 yards last season. Sr Jaquan Brandon only averages 30 yds per game, but he has 3 rushing TD’s. The 215 lb linebacker goes in on short yardage situations. Southern has had trouble against strong running teams, but those were teams like Red Springs and Bunn with stables of strong runners who could rotate in and out smoothly. Webb seems to have one small, fast back who can gain 100 yards a game, and one larger back for short yardage – and that might not be enough for a whole 4 quarters of football.
NV vs RR Preview
The Vikings of Northern Vance are happy to be home tonight (Friday), and they know they have to play Roanoke Rapids this season, and that the yellow jackets are in the same conference, but the Vikings would probably like to wait another few weeks to play them. Roanoke Rapids is undefeated at 5-0, and is destined to meet South Granville, the other 5-0 team in the league, on October 3 in what might be the conference championship game. The Vikings, with an 0-5 record, are coming off two exhausting losses: a not unexpected 46-0 drubbing from South Granville, and a disappointing 25-15 home loss to Warren County last week that could have gone the other way if the offense had been able to take advantage of a few of Warren’s numerous turnovers.
Roanoke Rapids got a new head coach in 2014, and immediately improved from 2-9 to 10-4, defeating Bunn for the Northern Carolina Conference crown, and losing to the #1 seed in the 3rd round of the playoffs. The Yellow Jackets lost to Bunn the past two years to finish second in the league, and they have not gotten past the 2nd round of the playoffs, but they have continued to dominate opponents during their regular season. They had a perfect season going last year until the lost to Bunn, but they still finished 11 and 2 overall, averaging 33 points scored per game, and allowing only 17 per game, both their best averages under coach McDaniel. So far this year, the Jackets have only had one close game – their opener against regional rival Northampton, which they won 30-22. Since then they have played four 1A schools, including back to back beat-downs of conference mates Granville Central and Louisburg. In those four games RR scored an average of 43.5 points per game and allowed only 7 – They shut out Granville Central 46-0, and allowed Louisburg 14 points.
The Yellow Jackets run up all those points with a pretty balanced attack. The Jackets have scored 18 times on the ground, with Sr RB Da’raj Watson scoring 8 of those while rushing for 529 yards in the 5 games. Jr. FB Ajalon Brown, at 5-9 and 231 lb, has 5 TDs in short yardage situations. Jr RB Cory Jenkins has crossed the goal line 3 times during his 200-yard season so far. The passing game is not just an afterthought, but clearly part of the game plan. Sr. QB Jack Neville has passed for 345 yards, with 7 TDs and 3 interceptions. Receiving is evenly divided among Sr. Montrell Govan, with 10 catches for 92 total yards, and 3 TDs; RB Jenkins; and FB Brown. The Jackets also has a reliable kicker in Sr Chase Johnson, who is 20 for 21 on extra points. The defense is obviously tough. Specifically, they have only allowed 10 points in 5 games, and they have 4 INTs and 9 fumble recoveries. They have blocked 2 kicks, and they are BIG, and experienced.
I hate to say it, but Northern Vance will do well to score on Roanoke Rapids. But the Viking Defense does have a knack for swarming the runners and has interceptions in every game. Their best strategy might be to work on keeping the Yellow Jackets to 40 points. Another intangible is that RR has only played 1A teams, and might be a little soft going into the game. A quick score like the Vikings had last week against Warren would be a real moral booster, and would no doubt keep the defense pumped.
https://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/wizsresize_0000s_0009_572821.png-copy.png265504John C. Rosehttps://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wizswebsitelogoimage.pngJohn C. Rose2017-09-21 18:33:452017-09-21 18:33:45SV at Webb and NV vs RR Previews
UPDATE – Please follow the link below for the updated schedule for VGCC women’s volleyball. A home match that originally was scheduled for Oct. 18 has been moved to Oct. 4.
The Vance-Granville Community College women’s volleyball team is scheduled to play 18 matches, including seven home matches, during the 2017 season. The Vanguards compete in Region X of National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division III, which includes a number of community colleges in North Carolina and Virginia.
The Vanguards will begin this year’s campaign on Tuesday, Aug. 29, at Guilford Technical Community College. VGCC’s first contest at home is set for Friday, Sept. 8, at 7 p.m., when the Vanguards host Walters State Community College (Tennessee) at Aycock Recreation Center in Henderson.
For more information on VGCC athletics, contact Jermiel Hargrove at hargrovej@vgcc.edu or (252) 738-3246.
Southern Vance continues conference play on the road tonight, traveling to the wilds of Granville County to meet Granville Central, one of the Northern Carolina Conference’s two 1A members. These two teams have not played each other since 2011 and 2012, when Central was a very new school, and Southern Vance was riding pretty high. In 2011, the Raiders finished 9-3, while the fledgling Panthers ended up with 3-8 record. That year, Southern won the contest 45-6, and in 2012, when the Raiders had begun to slip, they still smothered the Panthers 58-6. Fortunes have reversed for both teams in the intervening years, with Granville Central enjoying 4 consecutive playoff appearances, and winning a Tar-Roanoke 1A conference championship in 2015. During those year’s Southern Vance slipped further into mediocrity, winning only 3 games in the previous 3 seasons.
This year, both teams have new head coaches, and both schools started off their season with games against Bartlett Yancey. Southern Vance won that game 30-22 in OT, while the Panthers defense led the way to a 7-6 victory. Central won its only other nonconference game 33-8 , against everyone’s favorite creampuff Kipp Pride; but got a rude introduction to its new conference last week with a painful 46-0 shut out at unbeaten Roanoke Rapids. After 4 games, The Raiders are 1-3, but have averaged scoring 27.5 point per game, almost double last season’s average. The defense has allowed 33 points per game, but Southern has not been beaten by more than 13 points. At 2-1, Granville Central has only averaged 13 points scoring and is allowing 20 (thanks to the 46 scored by Roanoke Rapids).
On offense, the Panthers keep the ball on the ground, dividing the work among Jr. Deandre Moore, averaging 66 yards per game and 3 total TDs, Jr. Mike Wood, (50 yards per game and 1 TD), and Soph Jed Evans (30 yds per game). Two soph QB’s, Kobe Jones and 5’2”, 120 lb Brady Smith, have played so far, but neither has passed much, and no TDs have been scored through the air. The Panther defense held Bartlett Yancey to 6 points – better than the Raiders, and Central has returned one fumble recovery for a score. Also, unlike Southern Vance, Granville Central has two players who have kicked extra points: Jacob Burnette is 1 for 1, and the diminutive Smith is 3 for 5.
If the Raiders play as they have for the past 4 weeks, they should come out on top. But they can not think of Granville Central as a 1A team, and they will have to be prepared for a defense that was quite effective until they ran into Roanoke Rapids. And so far, Southern Vance is no Roanoke Rapids.
Northern Vance
The Vikings of Northern Vance are happy to be home tonight hosting the Eagles of Warren County. They are happy to have made it out of Creedmoor alive last Friday, after the 54-0 drubbing they took from South Granville – all 54 points scored in the first half. and they should be happy to be playing against a team tonight that is not picked to win any championships. Warren is 3-1 on the season, with a win over 1A conference member Louisburg last week, and therefore have a right to be ranked third in the Northern Carolina behind unbeaten South Granville and Roanoke Rapids. But it must be pointed out that all of Warren’s wins have been against 1A competition, including longtime pushovers Northwest Halifax and Kipp Pride Charter school. They lost to Northampton County 22-17 – a good close game to be sure, but that looks like their only real test so far. But in spite of the weak schedule, Warren ahs shown that they can score points and play defense: they average scoring 31 points per game, and have only allowed 14 per game, and those numbers create a type of momentum that Northern Vance has not had a chance to create.
These two teams got together quite a bit during the offseason, matching up at a couple of 7 on 7 events in the summer and participating in a jamboree or two, so they know each other pretty well. Jr. QB Cornelius Davis, who had a tough time in the starter role last year, has settled in well this season, passing for over 150 yards per game for 5 TD’s and 4 interceptions. Davis can also run, gaining about 50 yards per game on the ground. Three of Davis’ TD passes have been caught by Sr. WR Cornell Hendrick, who has 19 grabs for 336 yards on the season, and Jr. WR Laquan Satterwhite has the other two scoring catches. The eagles 11 rushing touchdowns have been evenly divided among Jr. RB Dekarri Green who has 5, Hendrick with 3, and Davis with the other 3.
https://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/wizsresize_0000s_0009_572821.png-copy.png265504WIZS Staffhttps://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wizswebsitelogoimage.pngWIZS Staff2017-09-15 13:37:052017-09-15 13:39:16Week Five Vance County Friday Night Football Preview
Northern Vance and South Granville, – both sets of the Northern Carolina’s 2A Vikings – will kick off their conference schedule tonight (Friday) at Creedmoor, and these two teams could not be more different right now: Northern Vance is 0-3 after is three nonconference outings, and did not locate the goal line until last week at 28-12 home loss against a tough Beddingfield squad out of Wilson. Both of those touchdowns came from Sophomore quarterback Samien Burwell, who started his first game last week and passed for one, 64 yards to Phadol Jorden, and ran 30 yards for the other. The Northern defense, in spite of allowing an average of 23 points per game in the first quarter of the season, has shown some ability to defend the passing game with good pressure on the passer and close secondary work that has produced at least one interception per game. But they do not do well against a good solid running offense, and that will be a BIG problem tonight.
South Granville, under veteran coach Mike Hobgood, has always relied on running for its offensive production, a strategy has taken those Vikings to the state playoffs for six years straight. Last year’s offense was abit more varied: with QB Tucker Brown passing for over 1200 yards and 11 TDs and leading the team in rushing with just under 800 yards, South finished 8-5, averaged scoring just under 30 points and allowed 20 per game. So far this season, QB Brown, now a senior, hasn’t even been called on the pass the ball much. At 3-0, the South Vikings squeaked by 4A Person County 7-0, easily handled 3A South Johnston 21-7, and then ran wild over independent Ravenscroft 41-12, all by rolling up an average of 273 yards per game on the ground (over 300 in the last two game), to only 9 yards passing. Brown has continued to run the ball, with 50 yards per game, but late-blooming Sr. RB Allajah Mitchell, a 6-1 220 lb D-I college prospect, is leading the team with just under 120 yards per game so far (he only had 21 yards rushing total last season). 5-7 170 lb Sophomore FB Bryson McCall, who had a good freshman year with just under 50 yards per game, rushed for 114 yards against South Johnston this year. The South Granville defense is led by their linebackers, including Mitchell, who starts at OLB and has 7 tackles per game, fellow Sr. Sean Deuger, who, at just 159 lb, has 10 per game, and Jr. Justin Bullock, the 198-lb middle Linebacker, who also has 10 stops per game.
https://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/northern-vance-vikings.jpg265504John C. Rosehttps://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wizswebsitelogoimage.pngJohn C. Rose2017-09-07 10:05:302017-09-07 10:05:30VCFNF: Northern Vance at South Granville
Southern Vance begins conference play at home tonight (Friday) against Bunn, a team that has been in the running for Northern Carolina conference champions every year since at least 2004, and is on a 12-game Northern Carolina 2-A win streak stretching back to Halloween, 2014. In 2015 the Wildcats were Eastern 2A champions and lost the state 2A Championship to unbeaten Monroe, ending the year with a 13-3 record, and a 48-point per game scoring average. Last year they were nearly as good, especially on defense, allowing only 17 points per game, including the playoffs, where they were upset in the 2nd round to end former Coach David Howle’s 34-year career at Bunn.
Everyone should expect some changes and challenges for the Wildcats this year under new head coach David Weathersby, a former assistant under Howle who is known for bringing Bartlett-Yancey from a can’t-win program to respectability and the playoffs in 2 short seasons. But the Bunn faithful were probably not prepared for the 1-2 start the Wildcats have had this season. While it is not uncommon for Bunn to lose a nonconference game – coach Howle always gave his team some tough tests to start each season – two unusual things have already happened. First, Bunn won its season opener to North Lenoir by only one point 31-30, and historically, Bunn rarely loses a close game. next, the Wildcats lost to Franklinton, their cross-county former conference rival 32-22, the first loss for Bunn in that rivalry since 2011. And finally, Bunn suffered a 55-7 pasting from 3A Southern Nash last Friday night. The Wildcats have always had trouble with Southern Nash, with almost no wins over the 3A program in the past decade, but the last time the Wildcats were beaten that badly was a 66-6 playoff defeat by Reidsville. in 2009.
Southern Vance and Bunn traded 1st and 2nd place finishes in the Northern Carolina 2A every year from 2004 to 2007, but the Raiders have not won a match-up with the Wildcats since 2007. But with Bunn’s struggles in nonconference match-ups this season, history could change tonight: Going into the conference opener against Southern Vance, the mighty Bunn Wildcats are 1-2, the same as the Raiders; they have averaged scoring just under 20 points per game (against the Raiders’ 26 per game), and have allowed over 38 points per game (to 28 allowed by SV). For the first time in recent memory, then, Southern Vance has an advantage over Bunn on paper going into tonight’s game. Furthermore, the two teams faced similar quality opponents in the past 3 weeks, and the Raiders can claim more momentum than the ‘Cats, since Southern scored 36 points in 14-point loss last week while Bunn score one TD in a 48-point thrashing.
Bunn is continuing its tradition as a run-oriented offices, but the team was decimated by graduation, Coach Weathersby does not have last year’s top three runners, two of whom scored 18 TDs apiece, or last year’s starting QB. Bunn is averaging 175 yards per game rushing so far, and only 43 yards passing, as Soph QB C. Collier settles into his role. The leading runner so far is Sr. D Moses, who only ran for 217 total yards last season, and has 54 yards per game this year. Moses is followed by fellow Sr. T Davis with 36 yards and Soph J Rogers with 37 per outing. Rogers, who rushed for 100 yards in his only varsity game last year, has scored 2 of the Cat’s 5 rushing TDs.
https://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/wizsfbresize_0001s_0115_svhs.png-copy.png265504John C. Rosehttps://wizs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wizswebsitelogoimage.pngJohn C. Rose2017-09-07 09:50:262017-09-07 09:50:26VCFNF: Southern Vance vs. Bunn (Sept 8)
