Cross country season still hasn’t hit its peak, however there is a big local meet Tuesday that will draw several local teams to Chestatee High. Gainesville, Chestatee, North Hall, Johnson, Riverside Military, Lumpkin County and Lakeview Academy will all take part in the 5K race on the Chestatee Middle School course.
Last Saturday, North Hall’s Cody Barger ran to a time of 15:54 to win the Berry Invitational in Rome. The Trojans’ boys and girls teams both finished second overall.
North Hall’s Ansley Lawson placed third in the girls race with a time of 19:39 and Victoria Rogers ran a 20:17.
West Hall also finished with an impressive showing at Berry with a third place finish on the girls side and the boys finished fourth. Josh Pendley led the Spartans with a time of 16:08.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Some big football games are on the schedule for Friday night with region play underway, though subregion play is still a couple weeks off for most. Buford opens region play with Westminster on Friday, following a loss at Carver-Columbus last Friday at Memorial Stadium.
Meanwhile, North Hall plays host to St. Pius X at The Brickyard. This is a rematch of the Golden Lions’ 17-3 win over the Trojans in the second round of the playoffs last season in Chamblee. Last Friday, the Trojans held on late to defeat Jefferson, 24-21.
In Region 8-AAAA, Flowery Branch will put its streak of two shutout victories on the line against Apalachee, last season’s Region 8-AAAA winner, at Falcons Field. The Falcons have recorded shutout victories against Madison County and Winder-Barrow this season.
Undefeated Banks County plays host to East Jackson (0-2) in Homer, and 2-0 Jackson County goes on the road to visit Fannin County. West Hall puts its undefeated record on the line against White County in Oakwood, while Lumpkin County (2-0) and Gainesville (1-1) are off this week.
HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL: This weekend, many local schools will take to tournament play. North Hall is playing in the Shaw Invitational, White County is at the Cherokee Invitational, and Jackson County is at the Veteran’s Memorial Park tournament at Oconee County.
ATLANTA FALCONS: The final roster cuts have been made with the Falcons and the team is ready to open the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. During the preseason, Atlanta finished with a 2-2 record with wins against the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins. The Falcons are looking to extend their mark to three consecutive winning seasons.
The Steelers will play the season opener without starting quarterback Ben Roethliesberger, who is serving a four-game suspension handed down by the NFL.