La Plata High School | Archive | November, 2008

**Check back for more previews throughout the week**

 Click HERE to watch Thomas Stone’s Kendall Smith play DigitalSports Prince George’s County Content Manager James McCray III

By Andy States
Content Manager, SMAC

They were so close they could taste it. But an 11-point lead entering the fourth quarter — and 18 near the end of three — wasn’t enough for the Thomas Stone Cougars to bring home the 4A state championship last March, as Springbrook came back to take a four-point triumph for the title.

Now, with that taste leftover, the Cougars ready to make another run. Except, the team isn’t the same. Departed are Rodney Clark, Brandon Carroll and Malcolm White — seniors from last year’s squad who all were named to either first- or second-team All-SMAC. Much of the team that will take to the court when this season opens this coming Friday enjoyed the experience of last year’s playoff run, but did not necessarily experience a good chunk of it on the court. This year, the team will begin to write its own history.

“Previous years when guys graduated I was able to say, ‘We’re just reloading,'” Stone coach Dale Lamberth said, admitting that this year’s team may be more of a work in progress. “We’ve got some guys coming up from JV that are really getting used to the varsity game, the speed of the game. Some of the returners weren’t really on the floor a lot last year based on what we had. There’s a good learning curve for them right now.”

Stone brings back a group of five seniors, as well as a strong core group of juniors in Dytanya Johnson, Stephon Battle and Kendall Smith that figure to be integral cogs in the team’s growth from here. Leon Ouzts figures to slide into the primary ballhandling role filled so capably by Clark and Nate Sherrod a season ago.

“Our goal is to take every game one game at a time,” Smith said. 

Stone lost just twice within conference competition last season, both at the hands of defending SMAC-champion Lackey. The Cougars will look to even that score this year in a conference that has a wide-open look in the days before it opens. If nothing else, the experience Stone took from last season’s postseason run left a motivating factor in the players that return.

“They’re hungry,” Lamberth said. “They’re telling guys a little bit of what they experienced and what they felt last year. Hopefully by the second half of the year they can get that feeling, too, and say, ‘Hey, let’s try to make a run at it.’ But it’s going to be game by game.”

Around the conference

On the heels of a 15-1 season in-conference and a near-miss on a state championship of its own, Lackey will look to replace four starters in its quest to continue its success of recent years. The Chargers lost in the narrowest of fashions in the 3A South final to eventual 3A champ Largo, which was never again challenged after stealing the regional win from the jaws of defeat.

Lackey has won two of the past three SMAC championships, but will need to replace a group headlined by 2007-08 SMAC Player of the Year Devin Posey, as well as Jamaur Jackson and Derek Smoot. A group of four seniors — Wayne Henry, Antonio Waugh, Rashad Beam and Brian Dixon — figure to keep the Chargers in the conference’s upper tier.

Huntingtown emerged as one of the SMAC’s top teams last year, with a 19-5 overall mark. The Hurricanes went 13-3 in conference action, good for a third-place finish behind Lackey and Stone. All-SMAC first-teamer Marquis Moore and Matt Cirillo have graduated, but Huntingtown brings back second-team All-SMAC performer Tobias Jenifer. Deltran Holland, Adam McNally and Robbie Deyermond look to help keep the team contending at the top of the conference.

McDonough and Great Mills, the respective fourth- and fifth-place finishes in SMAC last year, return with two of the younger teams in the conference. McDonough, which graduated the likes of all-conference performer Troy Cummings, among others, has just one returning player with varsity experience in guard Tyler Croson, and will put five sophomores and a freshman on the floor. Great Mills, which had an All-SMAC graduate in John Dickerson, returns no one with a full year of varsity experience. Both teams figure to be works-in-progress throughout the season.

From the middle of last year’s heap, Chopticon will look to Derrell Armstrong, who averaged close to 17 points per game a year ago en route to a second team All-SMAC selection, to lead the way back towards the top. Glenn Thompson, Devon Yates and Joel Pease will help the Braves, who finished 7-9 in-conference for eighth place. Leonardtown, which tied for ninth in the conference at 6-10, will be led by a group of returning seniors — Jeff Wettengel, Moe Stone and Gerrell Shingles. The Raiders lost size and scoring to graduation in Drew Plath and Eric Chase, but look to be more athletic and hopefully, a higher-scoring team. The Raiders also have a solid young group that had a strong JV campaign a year ago that figures to aid the cause once they make the transition to varsity.

North Point came in with a 5-11 conference record a year ago — it’s first as a varsity program — but played well late in winning a pair of playoff games. With its first class of seniors, including a group in Dalante Thompson, Erick Satchell, Jaris Alleyne and Delante Hester that have been with the program since its inception, the Eagles hope to follow the example set by the school’s football team this fall when it claimed a piece of the SMAC championship. Easier said than done, though, as North Point lacks size, but hopes to be aggressive on defense to try to overcome any deficiencies. 

Northern lost Colin Brown and Aaron Gwynn to graduation, but will look to improve on last year’s 6-10 SMAC mark with Terrell Long, Dustin Jones, Andre Creek and Marcus Martin leading the way. Calvert, which just five years ago stood atop the conference pack, will look to bounce back from a 2-14 conference campaign with junior Ravell Jones and senior transfer Tyler Francis at the forefront.

Patuxent finished without a win last year, but has the luxury of having everybody back this year. Along with the experience, the Panthers are quick, and hope aggressive play will help offset the team’s lack of size. Seniors Marcus Bullock, Justin Ford and C.J. Shorter will lead the Panthers’ effort to climb back up the SMAC standings.

Email: astates@digitalsports.com

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Andy States
Content Manager, SMAC

Expectations may not be the highest for the North Point wrestling team heading into the season. Well, at least the expectations outside the Eagles’ room. Inside the room it’s a different story.

A year ago the Eagles were a middle-of-the-pack SMAC team, finishing seventh in both the conference tournament and regular-season standings. In Tyler Schirf and Danny Dempsey, North Point had its first two SMAC runners-up, at 130 and 145 pounds, respectively, while Dempsey and Anthony Zoscak (189) each qualified for the state tournament. But while the Eagles’ season resume paled in comparison to teams like La Plata, which continued its stranglehold on SMAC and won its second state tournament title in three years, North Point has one advantage nobody else has — it has everybody back.

“We have all our guys coming back,” said North Point coach Rich Pauole of the reason for optimism in the team’s camp with the season’s start still over a week away. “A lot of guys went to camp. We put a lot of guys in summer wrestling this year. We had a lot of competition. We’ve had tons of wrestleoffs already and we still have more to go. I think that’s our biggest demon right now, getting through our wrestleoffs.

“I think we’re going to be strong from top to bottom with a quality kid.”

The next demon will come when the season starts and the team attempts to start the process of ascending towards the top of the SMAC ranks. At the top, La Plata, which has locked down the conference over the past half-decade. In addition to claiming their second state tournament title in the last three years last March, the Warriors won back-to-back state dual crowns the previous two years and have produced four individual state champions in the past three seasons.

But La Plata does not appear on the schedule until late in the season, and before the Eagles can worry about them there’s the task of working through the formidable pack of teams that finished above them last season. That group includes teams like Calvert, Huntingtown and Leonardtown — teams that have consistently put solid lineups on the mat in recent years and figure to do the same this year.

“We’re the underdogs here,” Schirf said. “We’ve got to pull off a couple big wins and surprise some people.”

Added Phillip Meadows: “I think our team is going to do pretty well this year. We’re picking up the pace in practice, wrestling harder. We got a couple freshmen and some veterans coming back. I think we should do good this year.”

But while the team has big goals, it needs to start locally. The Eagles were seventh in the conference last year, and third amongst the Charles County teams behind La Plata and Westlake.

“If you want to get out of the conference and if you even want to go to states, you have to get out of the county first,” Pauole said. “If you get out of the county then the sky’s the limit as far as what can happen in the postseason.

“We have more team-oriented goals. Last year we were right in the middle of the pack. This year we definitely want to be in the top three of the conference, in the upper echelon.”

Around the conference

Jake Shilling and Tanner Shaffer, both now graduated, stood at the top of the podium — the only SMAC state champs last year — in College Park to lead La Plata to last year’s tournament crown. But La Plata still returns five state qualifiers from a season ago, including three state placers in Daniel Brannon (third), Brent Mowry (fourth) and Alex Ingagliato (fifth). La Plata’s dominance was obvious on the conference level, as well, with five SMAC champions and 11 placers at last year’s SMAC tournament.

La Plata has not lost a regular-season dual to a SMAC opponent since the 2003-04 season, and have won two 4A/3A state dual titles and a pair of 4A/3A state tournament crowns over the past three seasons. The Warriors will again enter this year as the decided conference favorite, as well as a leading contender beyond.

Last year’s SMAC runner-up, Westlake, will have to find a way to replace three graduated conference champs in Derek Taylor, Josh Brown and Josh Mommers. Calvert, third a year ago, returns SMAC runners-up in Lucas Hornick and Patrick Berry. Huntingtown could be formidable, as well, with returning state placer Markus Jarboe back in the mix.

Leonardtown has a solid group of veterans back, led by seniors Brian Samuels and Billy Duncanson, as well as juniors B.J. Frederick and Mark Bohanon. The Raiders also have a group including Alan Payne, Jeff Sherman, Eric Bose, Mike Molina and Mark Julian that could help the team continue its push towards the conference’s upper reaches.

Led by Jeff Williams, Quentin Leadbeter and Eric Stubblefield, the Northern Patriots would like to move back into the conference’s upper half. Williams finished second in the state at 140 last year, while Leadbeter placed third at 112. Both were SMAC champs, while Stubblefield qualified for the state tournament. The team mixes that experience with an influx of young wrestlers.

Patuxent, at 3-9 tied for 10th in the conference a year ago, could be poised to make one of the bigger jumps. The Panthers return Andrew Lloyd, state runner-up at 189 in the 2A/1A last year, as well as state qualifiers in Josh Barrett and Randy Farrell. Barrett, who figures to wrestle at 112 this year, was also a runner-up in SMAC at 103 last year. Productive offseason work could lead to impressive seasons for 103-pounder Zach Pilkington and 119-pound Zach Kane, while newcomer Mason Mills, a state placewinner in West Virginia last year, will bolster the Panthers’ effort towards the top at 215.

astates@digitalsports.com

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 Click HERE to see video highlights from each of the SMAC playoff teams

3A South
No. 4 Lackey (7-3) at No. 1 Huntingtown (9-1), Friday at 7 p.m.
A year ago, Lackey lost its opening two games and then won eight straight on the field to go into the postseason with momentum. Subsequent game forfeitures dropped the Chargers’ seed and ended the opportunity to host any playoff games, but the Chargers remained hot and ripped through the region on the road. A similar task awaits Lackey this year, as the Chargers go in the region’s lowest seed.

Top-seeded Huntingtown, which tied for the SMAC championship to earn the first conference banner in program history, is making its second consecutive playoff appearance after opening in 2004. The Hurricanes scored 302 points on the season, good for the third-highest total in the conference. Peter Athens quarterbacks the offense, which has been as balanced as they come. Athens has thrown for 1,376 yards and 14 touchdowns thus far, against just five interceptions. Greg Goodwin paces the ground attack, with 1,017 yards rushing on the regular season.

Remaining balanced will be a challenge for the Hurricanes, as Lackey’s secondary, which features Penn State commits Darrell Givens and Malcolm Willis, makes passing difficult for anybody.

No. 3 Westlake (8-2) at No. 2 Friendly (8-2), Friday at 7 p.m.
These two teams have danced around potential playoff matchups for years, but will meet in the first round this Friday. Westlake will bring the top-scoring offense in SMAC, averaging 35.9 points a game, while Friendly’s defense has surrendered 11 points per contest.

Devon Smith paces the Wolverines’ offense, having rushed for over 1,300 yards and scored a conference-leading 22 touchdowns. The Penn State commit averaged over 13 yards per carry and is also a weapon through the air and in the return game. Evan Harris offers a bruising complement on the ground, and added 660 yards on the ground through the regular season.

Friendly has not shown itself to be the explosive offensive team of the past few years, but did average 21.5 points per contest this season. The Patriots could look to attack Westlake through the air, with quarterback Sherrod Baltimore leading the way. Baltimore was one of the leading passers in the Prince George’s 3A/2A/1A with 732 yards on the year. His favorite target was Alex Blake, who hauled in 36 balls for 510 yards and five touchdowns.

2A South
No. 3 Douglass (8-2) at No. 2 North Point (8-2), Friday at 7 p.m.
These two teams look quite similar on the surface. Both physical up front and strong on defense.

North Point, in just its second varsity season, makes its first playoff appearance. The Eagles’ defense ranked third in SMAC in points against, allowing 13 per game, though that figure was skewed by last week’s 34-22 loss to McDonough — the only time all season the Eagles surrendered more than 18 points in a game. Arlando Scott emerged as one of the SMAC’s top rushers, and has topped 200 yards in three of the last four weeks.

A perennial playoff participant, Douglass shut out six opponents this season and has not allowed more than 17 points in a game all year. On offense, Douglass has been known primarily as a running team but has shown an ability to throw the ball with quarterback Richard Barber, notably in last week’s 26-12 win over Gwynn Park.

Other game
No. 4 Gwynn Park (8-2) at No. 1 River Hill (10-0), Friday at 7 p.m.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 SMAC Football Top 5 — Week 10

1. Huntingtown (9-1, 7-1)
Previous ranking: 2
The Hurricanes got a scare in the season’s final week, but hung on to defeat Leonardtown 28-24. With the win, Huntingtown, which took a piece of the SMAC title for the first time in history, clinched the top seed in the 3A South and with it home field thoughout its second appearance in the regional playoffs.
Huntingtown’s offense was among the more prolific and balanced in SMAC. Quarterback Peter Athens was the conference’s fourth-leading passer through the regular season with 1,376 yards, while Greg Goodwin rushed for over 1,000. The Hurricanes’ sole defeat in the regular season was a 20-14 loss to North Point in Week 4. The team rebounded with a one-point win at Patuxent the following week, and proceeded to finish the regular season on a six-game winning streak. This week provides a huge test, as defending 3A South champ Lackey comes to Huntingtown intent on making the Hurricanes prove they are deserving of the top seed.
This week: 3A South playoffs vs. Lackey, Friday at 7 p.m.

2. Patuxent (8-2, 7-1)
Previous ranking: 3
You’d be hard-pressed to find a team playing better football than the Panthers over the final weeks of the regular season. Unfortunately, Patuxent, which claimed a piece of the SMAC championship after winning the conference in 2007, ended up on the outside of the 2A South playoff field after Douglass’ Week 10 win at Gwynn Park. Despite opening the season severely hampered by injuries, the Panthers were the conference’s No. 2 scoring offense and also allowed the second-fewest number of points on the other side of the ball. Patuxent’s two losses came by a combined total of eight points.
Season complete

3. North Point (8-2, 7-1)
Previous ranking: 1
Up until meeting McDonough last week, the Eagles were just churning along, the owners of an eight-game winnings streak. But McDonough woke the Eagles up in last Friday’s 34-22 decision. Arlando Scott led the conference in rushing with just shy of 1,400 yards through 10 games, as the Eagles tied with Huntingtown and Patuxent at the top of the SMAC standings. Up until last week, the Eagles had not allowed more than 18 points in a game. North Point hopes last week’s loss serves to be a motivating factor that refocuses the team as Douglass heads to town this Friday in the first round of the 2A South playoffs, in which North Point is the No. 2 seed.
This week: 2A South playoffs vs. Douglass, Friday at 7 p.m.

4. Lackey (7-3, 6-2)
Previous ranking: 4
On the heels of three straight wins, it looks like the Lackey Chargers are now playing as the team most thought they would be all season — which could spell trouble for the rest of the 3A South. Lackey, the defending regional champ, earned the No. 4 seed in the region, meaning it will be on the road throughout the region. It starts this Friday at Huntingtown, a team it has not played the past two seasons.
This week: 3A South playoffs at Huntingtown, Friday at 7 p.m.

5. Westlake (8-2, 6-2)
Previous ranking: 5
With arguably the most explosive player in the conference, Devon Smith, leading the way the Wolverines accumulated a SMAC-high 359 points during the regular season. Westlake rebounded from a Week 9 loss to Lackey with a 28-19 win over Thomas Stone in the finale, but probably not in the manner it would have liked. Westlake earned the third seed in the 3A South, and will need to get its offense churning again with a trip to second-seeded Friendly in the cards this week.
This week: 3A South playoffs at Friendly, Friday at 7 p.m.

    **DigitalSports’ SMAC Top 5 is selected by SMAC Content Manager Andy States. Please e-mail any questions or comments to astates@digitalsports.com.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 SMAC Football Preview — Week 10

Game of the Week
McDonough (5-4, 5-2) at North Point (9-1, 7-0)
Friday, 7 p.m.

This game isn’t about playoff berths. North Point is already safely in the 2A South field, while McDonough will not make it this year. But with a win, North Point will complete a perfect SMAC campaign and win the SMAC championship outright in its second year — first with a senior class — competing on the varsity level. The Eagles could also earn the No. 1 seed in the 2A South and thus ensure home-field advantage throughout the regional playoffs.

While North Point has not lost since its 18-13 setback to 2007 SMAC champ Patuxent in the season’s opening week, McDonough heads to Waldorf with a little momentum, itself. The Rams, after a 1-4 first half, have won four straight and figure to make the Eagles earn the conference championship. 

Other games to watch
La Plata (3-6, 2-5) at Lackey (6-3, 5-2), Friday at 7 p.m.
This game has as much on the line as any, as Lackey needs to win to reach the 3A South playoffs. Hanging on the brink of elimination, the Chargers saved their season with a 23-7 win at Westlake last week and now face a win-to-get-in scenario this week. If nothing else, one can be sure La Plata will make that task as difficult as possible for the Chargers.

Chopticon (6-3, 4-3) at Northern (3-6, 1-6), Friday at 7 p.m.
Chopticon needs to win to have a chance at earning its second consecutive 3A South berth, but will be left on the outside if Lackey defeats La Plata. Playing at Northern will not make the Braves’ task any easier, as the Patriots are primed and ready to play the spoiler role. Northern nearly derailed Huntingtown’s bid for the 3A South’s top seed last week in a 14-13 loss.

Westlake (7-2, 5-2) at Thomas Stone (1-8, 0-7), Friday at 7 p.m.
The Wolverines will look to get back on track after last week’s setback to Lackey. A win in this rivalry game will secure Westlake’s customary position in the 3A South playoff field, and likely would mean a first-round trip to Huntingtown. 

Great Mills (0-9, 0-7) at Patuxent (7-2, 6-1), Friday at 7 p.m.
Patuxent stands as the clear favorite in this one, but will not be assured of its playoff fate until Saturday afternoon. The Panthers need Gwynn Park to beat Douglass if they are to make a third straight 2A South appearance.

Huntingtown (8-1, 6-1) at Leonardtown (2-7, 2-5), Friday at 7 p.m.
After a scare against Northern last week, the Hurricanes need to navigate through the final week at Leonardtown unscathed. While Huntingtown’s second consecutive playoff appearance is safe, a win would translate into the 3A South’s top seed and home-field advantage through the region.

Other game
Mountain Ridge (7-2) at Calvert (2-7), Friday at 7 p.m.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Click HERE for video highlights and interviews from the game

By Andy States
Content Manager, SMAC

As the La Plata Warriors gathered at the half of Tuesday’s 3A South boys soccer final with a 2-0 lead over the host Northern Patriots, one did not have to struggle to hear the sentence echoing around the Warriors’ sideline — ‘the game is not over.’

La Plata knew that well, as the year before the Warriors held a two-goal lead over the Patriots on the same field in the regional playoffs with 15 minutes to play and were stunnded by a three-goal Northern barrage. With that experience in their collective memory, the fifth-seeded Warriors opened strong in the second half, adding to their lead on Ricky Jackson’s second goal of the game and went on to shut out the second-seeded Patriots 3-0. The win earned La Plata its first regional championship since 2000. The Warriors are scheduled to play Fallston in the 3A semifinals at noon on Saturday at North County High.

“We were waiting for this game since last year, 3-2, to tell you the truth,” said La Plata coach Dennis Burns, whose team lost to Northern 2-1 in the regular-season opener this year. “We had them the first game of the year, which is hard to see because it’s a brand-new team, you never know. But we were ready for today.”

“Last year we just had a tough match,” La Plata’s Steven Barock said. “We were looking forward to [the rematch] the whole year. We just came out here and played hard and worked for it.”

La Plata (11-6) withstood some early Northern (13-4) pressure, and then broke on to the scoreboard midway through the opening half courtesy of Kyle Tolson, who after not seeing much action through much of the season worked his way into the mix and has been a key contributer down the stretch, according to Burns. Then, with barely half a minute remaining in the half, Ricky Jackson headed in the Warriors’ second goal to give La Plata its second two-goal playoff lead at Northern in the last two years. But this time, the team was not about to let it slip away. 

“That’s the good thing about having the experience from losing last year,” Burns said. “We had the experience and we had to remind them a couple times. We lost 3-2 last year, we were up 2-0, this game is not over. Give us 40 minutes of hard work and this game is ours.”

It took less than two minutes for the Warriors to gain an even stronger hold on the game. Jackson converted an early opportunity for his second goal of the night and a 3-0 Warriors’ lead, and thus, seemed to cinch the contest for the visitors.

“I think that broke their back a little,” Burns said. “That first goal of the second half was huge. It set the tone and right there and then we knew we had it as long as we gave 40 minutes of hard defense. They played the game of their lives tonight, and as good as our offense was at times, it was our defense that started most of the transition.”

“The past two years [Northern] ened our season,” Jackson said. “It’s about time we came out and beat them and it feels great.”

For Northern, which entered the year as the two-time defending region champion, the season was still successful. Looked upon by some as a team in rebuilding mode, the Patriots won the SMAC championship and came within a game of returning to the state semifinals for the third consecutive season.

“Coming in, eveyone told us it was going to be a rebuilding year, everybody in the know about soccer,” Northern coach John Rossi said. “We did graduate a lot, but for a rebuilding year — winning SMAC, beating Huntingtown, a big county rival, two out of three times, beating Leonardtown which we haven’t done since I’ve been here — great accomplishments. If that’s a rebuilding year I’d love to have a rebuilding year every year.”

The regional crown was the fifth overall for La Plata, which will now look to advance to the state final for the first time since 1997.

“It means a lot,” Burns said of the regional title. “These guys were ready. They were ready to accomplish the regional goal, but we’re not done yet.”

astates@digitalsports.com

 

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

SMAC Football Top 5 — Week 9

1. North Point (8-1, 7-0)
Previous ranking: 1
Arlando Scott rushed for over 200 yards and four touchdowns to pass the 1,000-yard plateau in North Point’s 35-7 win at Thomas Stone last week. This week the Eagles will look to cap a perfect conference campaign with a win over McDonough. A win would also assure North Point of at least a No. 2 seed in the 2A South postseason, meaning at least one home playoff game.
This week: vs. McDonough, Friday at 7 p.m.

2. Huntingtown (8-1, 6-1)
Previous ranking: 2
County-rival Northern provided a scare for the ‘Canes last week, but a blocked extra point allowed Huntingtown to take a 14-13 decision. With Westlake’s loss to Lackey and Gwynn Park’s win over Friendly, Huntingtown need only win at Leonardtown this week to secure the top seed in the 3A South and with that, home-field advantage for the duration of the team’s regional postseason stay.
This week: at Leonardtown, Friday at 7 p.m.

3. Patuxent (7-2, 6-1)
Previous ranking: 4
Through everything Patuxent went through with injuries and bad luck in the first half of the season, the Panthers are amongst the scariest teams around with the postseason right around the bend. Patuxent’s two losses came by a combined eight points, and since its Week 5 loss to Huntingtown Patuxent has outscored its opposition 181-45 in tallying four straight wins. Patuxent needs Gwynn Park to defeat Douglass this Saturday to earn a spot in the playoffs and a possible first-round trip to River Hill in what would be a rematch of last year’s 2A South final.
This week: vs. Great Mills, Friday at 7 p.m.

4. Lackey (6-3, 5-2)
Previous ranking: NR
Faced with elimination from playoff contention, Lackey produced its most complete game of the season in last Friday’s 23-7 win at Westlake. Amir Smith threw a touchdown pass to Jerrell Jordan to kickstart the offense, Malcolm Willis added a rushing touchdown and Gary Fortune returned an interception for six late in the game to get the Chargers back in the postseason mix. Lackey needs to beat La Plata this Friday to secure a spot, and likely a No. 3 seed, in the 3A South field.
This week: vs. La Plata, Friday at 7 p.m.

5. Westlake (7-2, 5-2)
Previous ranking: 3
Westlake’s Week 9 struggles continued in last week’s loss to Lackey. The Wolverines outgained the Chargers, but struggled to finish drives. This week the team will look to rev up the SMAC’s top-scoring offense at Thomas Stone. A win would secure the team’s berth in the 3A South dance.
This week: at Thomas Stone, Friday at 7 p.m.

    **DigitalSports’ SMAC Top 5 is selected by SMAC Content Manager Andy States. Please e-mail any questions or comments to astates@digitalsports.com.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)