Two #1's to meet - Hogo softball gets interesting

On May 1st, in the quiet college community of Emory, VA, just on the edge of Glade Spring, a clash of the titans will take place. The 6-0 Northwood Panthers will visit the highly revered home-standing Patrick Henry Rebels (5-0) to decide the top spot in the district standings. They'll probably have to play a game of softball to actually figure it out.

Holston: Other than the fact that retrieving scores from Holston games remains difficult - it is clear that in almost every game this season that has been reported to HogoOnline, the buzzword is "almost". They have almost or at least, had a chance, to notch a win in every game - but have failed to do so. But whatever. Head Coach Lisa Blackburn and company aren't backing down just yet - they have six district games remaining and have a shot at beating - not upsetting - every team they play. Solid play of Megan Wilson, Hannah DeArmond, and Autumn Lyon have contributed to the spark this season and it would not be an upset for them to post a win over George Wythe, Chilhowie, or anyone left on their schedule. Holston is a solid team that has played solid teams - their record is no indicator of their skill.

Chilhowie: The Warriors, led by senior Nikki Sage, have stormed their way to a hard earned third place spot just behind Northwood and Patrick Henry, the district's leaders. Chilhowie has shown they can play with the big-dogs, having held PH to 4 runs in a defeat and nearly topping NW twice this year. The Warriors are improving game by game and should they remain in third come tourney time, they have a strong shot at making a run to regionals should they pull off an upset. We will have to see.

George Wythe: There was a time this season (April 10-April 21) when the 'Roons were unable to score runs. They only managed 5 runs in a five game stint that only notched one win and included three district losses. The Maroons hoped to get back on track last Wednesday against home-standing Bland County and did so with a 16-11 track-meet victory over the Bears. George Wythe has four district games left, all against teams they have struggled with already - should the Maroons lose all four, they could possibly plummet into the dreaded 5th place spot.

Northwood: You may have heard of Kendra Nutter. She is a multi-sport, multi-talented athlete who led the Northwood girls basketball team to a regional appearance this past winter. Oh yeah, she's also on the Panther's softball team who appears to be in route to a regional appearance as well. Northwood has won nine consecutive games, is 6-0 in the district, and can't wait to face off against rival PH on May 1st. Softball in the Hogo hasn't been this hyped since aliens landed a spacecraft in left-center of Rural Retreat's field seven years ago - and that never even happened.

Patrick Henry: The Rebels haven't won eight straight and they are only 5-0 but good luck scoring on them. In their twelve reported games of thirteen played this season, the Rebels have managed five shutouts and have only allowed 16 runs total. That is less than two runs per game (1.23 runs per game to be exact). Coach Tami Counts has led her Lady-Rebels to being revered as one of the top teams in the region and we shall see soon - very soon, actually. Thursday, May 1st, the Rebels play host to their district-leading counterpart, Northwood. Have I said that already?

Rural Retreat: This team appears to be rebuilding their program and unfortuantely not many scores from Rural Retreat have been reported this season making it difficult to determine whether improvements throughout the season are actually being made. They have 5 games remaining including four district games and one game against county rival Fort Chiswell.