The Georgia High School Association football playoffs begin this week, with several local teams poised to make the playoffs.
The Savannah Country Day boys team is ranked No. 1 among Class 3A teams in the state by Score Atlanta, and the Hornet girls team will advance to the playoffs in third place. The Richmond Hill girls team advances to the Class 7A playoffs with a 15-0 record. 2.
Introducing the first round matchups against teams from the Greater Savannah region.
Richmond Hill girls ready for playoffsHow the dominant Richmond Hill women's soccer team aims to make the playoffs
Islanders boys move towards title winHow a young Islands soccer team clinched regional honors with a win over Benedictine
SCD boys soccer team makes great progressHow the Savannah Country Day boys soccer team aims to advance to the playoffs with a strong team effort
boy
class 7A
South Gwinnett (8-10) vs. Richmond Hill (9-7-2) Wednesday, 7 p.m.
The Wildcats won their first round home game as the second-place team in Region 1-7A and are 4-2-1 in their last seven games.
Class 6A
Friday at Forest Park (9-5) at South Effingham (14-2-1).
South Effingham is one of the top teams in the Coastal Empire, and the Mustangs earned the No. 2 seed in the tough Region 2-6A. Both of the Mustangs' losses were against Glynn Academy. Senior Edson Escobar leads the team with 14 goals and 14 assists, while Desmond Prince (10 goals and 8 assists), Cole Hoffman (10 goals and 6 assists) and JP Alonso (9 goals and 4 assists) lead the team offensively. It has become an important gear. Because of its depth.
Class 5A
Wednesday, Bradwell (12-5-1) vs. Cross Keys (11-2-1)
Junior Jadai Prince had 22 goals and five assists for a Bradwell team that earned the No. 3 seed from Region 1-5A. The Tigers are looking to slow down sophomore Jefferson Diaz, who leads the Cross Keys with 20 goals.
class 4A
Spalding (8-6) Islanders (11-5-1), Thursday 7pm
The Islanders defeated Benedictine 3-1 last week to win the Region 3-4A title. Evan Narvaez (16 goals, 16 assists) and Ryan Winters (15 goals, three assists) lead the Sharks' attack, while sophomore Julian Rome anchors the defense.
Griffin (11-7) Benedictine (9-6-2), Friday 6 p.m.
The Cadets, who reached the Class 4A Final Four last season, have a number of standout players, including Parker Lewis. Asher Herrin and Mills Hollis. Griffin will advance to the playoffs with three straight wins.
class 3A
Upson-Lee (11-6) at Savannah Country Day (13-0-1), Tuesday 6:30 p.m.
SCD is ranked No. 1 among Class 3A teams in the state by Score Atlanta and will advance to the playoffs. Captain Wesley Hooker, Madden Gerlach, and Asson Herron are the leaders of a disciplined and unselfish Hornets team aiming for a high spot in the playoffs.
Savannah Christian (11-4), Pike County (16-3), Wednesday 5 p.m.
Junior Reid Hampton (16 goals, five assists) and classmate Brody Williams (16 goals, five assists) provided dynamic scoring for the Raiders, who are the No. 4 seed in Region 3-3A.
Wednesday, Groves (5-4-2) vs. Mary Parsons (11-4-2)
The Rebels earned the No. 3 seed from Region 3-3A and advance to play Mary Parsons.
Class A Division I
Dublin (4-9-1) vs. Woodville Tompkins (9-4-1), Wednesday, Savannah High, 5 p.m.
Woodville Tompkins repeated as Region 3A Division I champions last season under coach Karen Pinckney and advanced to the state quarterfinals. The Wolverines enter the playoffs in seventh place in the state, led by senior captain Luis Lopez, who had 21 goals and four assists. Standout freshman Chris Varner had 14 goals and four assists.
Bryan County (2-14) vs. East Lawrence (11-4-1), Tuesday, 7 p.m.
girl
class 7A
South Gwinnett (11-6) vs. Richmond Hill (15-0-2), Wednesday 5 p.m.
The Wildcats won the region championship for the third year in a row and advanced to the state quarterfinals for the third year in a row. This young team is dominating in every aspect of the game and is poised to make another playoff run.
class 4A
Baldwin (11-5-1), Islanders (8-6-1), Thursday 5 p.m.
The Sharks won the Region 3-4A title and were led by senior Olivia Gentner (nine goals and seven assists) and sophomore Holly Kachmar (eight goals and two assists).
New Hampstead (3-11-1) vs. Perry (17-0-1), Thursday
Phoenix is the No. 4 seed in Region 3-4A and will face an undefeated Perry team.
class 3A
Upson-Lee (9-9) at Savannah Country Day (13-2), Tuesday 4:30 p.m.
SCD defeated St. Vincent's 1-0 last week to win the Region 3-3A title and advance to the playoffs, where the Hornets are ranked No. 3 in the state in Class 3A by Score Atlanta. The Hornets have scoring options in Sophia Okumu (16 goals, 6 assists), Harris Stone (13 goals, 10 assists), Rhys Bailey (13 goals, 9 assists) and AC Davis (12 goals, 10 assists). It's in abundance.
Jackson (3-10) vs. St. Vincents (9-5-1), Tuesday, April 16, Memorial Stadium, 5 p.m.
The Saints went 1-0 by Savannah Country Day and clinched the region title, but are always a threat come playoff time. SVA reached the Class 3A state semifinals last year and made the playoffs ranked No. 7 among Class 3A teams in the state by Score Atlanta.
Calvary Day (8-5), Mary Parsons (9-5-1), Tuesday 5pm
The Cavs earned the No. 3 seed in Region 3-3A and will play the first round on the road. The Cavs have one of the state's top goal scorers in junior Abby Walsh, who has 31 goals and 13 assists on the year. She reached her 100th career goal in last week's win over Beach.
class 2A
Central Macon (7-6-1), Savannah Arts (14-4), Thursday, Duffin Park, 5 p.m.
The Panthers earned the No. 2 seed out of Region 3-2A and are being tested against a tough non-region schedule. Sophomore Amelia Leci had 43 goals and seven assists on the year. Freshman Jordan Gunn had 23 assists and 16 goals, and Eva Thomas had 13 goals and eight assists. The Panthers rank him fifth among Class 2A teams in the state.
Class A Division I
Tuesday, Swainsboro (5-12) vs. Bryan County (9-6-2) 6 pm
Bryan County earned the No. 2 seed from Region 3A Division I and will host the first round.
Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact us at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN
