Pioneer and Maroons going for district championships in football

By JIM CUNNINGHAM/Staff

This Friday night marks the final regular season game for all three Wythe County varsity football teams.
The season will continue for at least two county teams, however. George Wythe and Fort Chiswell have locked up berths. Rural Retreat still has a chance, depending on the outcomes of games this Friday night.
George Wythe is the only county team at home Friday with a matchup against Northwood. Fort Chiswell travels to Grayson County, and Rural Retreat goes to Chilhowie. All the games are set to begin at 7:30 p.m.

Fort Chiswell at Grayson County
Although Fort Chiswell has secured a place in the regionals due to its excellent 8-1 overall record and a 3-0 mark inside the Mountain Empire District, the Pioneers need a win to be a higher seed in the regionals.
Earlier in the season, this matchup didn’t look to be a major problem for Fort Chiswell. But Grayson County (3-0 in the MED, 3-6 overall) has now made a tremendous resurgence on the scene with three consecutive district wins.
Both teams are now the last two undefeated teams in the district with the league championship going to the winner.
The Pioneers knocked off Grayson County 25-6 last year to end a long dry spell against the Blue Devils. Fort Chiswell would like nothing better to make it two in a row over its district rival and head into the regionals with a head of steam. Grayson County will be looking to reclaim the district title that it used to be in the habit of winning. This could be an excellent game.

Northwood at George Wythe
If George Wythe (4-0 in the Hogoheegee District, 6-3 overall) can close out its regular season with a win over Northwood (0-4 in the Hogo, 1-8 overall), the Maroons could end up as the number one seed and a first-round bye in the regionals.
Although it might be easy for GW to overlook this game, the fact that so much is riding on it, should be incentive enough for the Maroons.
And of course the district championship is at stake as well. A loss for GW would mean that the Maroons would likely share the title with Holston (who should end its season with a win over PH on Friday).

Rural Retreat at Chilhowie
Even though Rural Retreat (2-2 in the Hogo, 3-6 overall) and Chilhowie (2-2 in the Hogo, 6-3 overall) share identical district records, the Indians would have to be considered definite underdogs in this one.
The good news for Rural Retreat, however, is that it still might qualify for the Division 1, Region C regionals if the points system goes the right way after Friday’s games. The regionals will now include six teams from each division, so there’s definitely hope for the Indians to extend their season.
Of course a Rural Retreat upset over Chilhowie would make things a lot easier for the Indians, not to mention being a tremendous feat. No matter what happens, Rural Retreat would like to do well against this Smyth County rival.