MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Week 5 wasn’t good for area teams, but this week’s rankings aren’t as bad as expected.
Tied for No. 20 last week with Brooke, Ripley, Preston and Buckhannon-Upshur, Morgantown (1-4) dropped two spots after a stifling 44-17 loss at Linsly. The No. 22 Mohigans have the toughest slate of all area teams this week with a road game in Inwood taking on No. 4 Musselman (4-1).
Preston (1-4) also dropped to No. 22 after a blowout loss to Class AA Lewis County. The Knights have been on the decline since the opening-week win over Hampshire, getting outscored 133-53 through the last four weeks. Preston has a week off to recover before taking on another AA foe, No. 6 Bridgeport (4-1).
University (2-3) had the worst week for local AAA teams, falling to AA’s No. 1 Fairmont Senior 52-6, knocking them down three spots from No. 12 to No. 15. The Hawks have totaled 12 points in the last two weeks against opponents after going 2-1 through the first three weeks. UHS will look to snap back from its two-week skid against Albert Gallatin (3-1) on Friday.
The banged up Cee-Bees (2-2) found a rough 28-7 loss in Mill Creek against Tygarts Valley on Friday, knocking them down six spots to No. 20. Ryan Wilson and his team will look to rebound Friday with a home game against a weaker opponent, No. 35 Calhoun (1-4).
Marcus Law’s Warriors (2-2) had a week off after a forfeit loss to Maryland School for the Deaf on Sept. 20, and will host Madonna Friday at 7 p.m. Trinity enters Week 6 in the No. 22 spot, while Madonna is 11 spots higher at No. 11.
Class AAA top 10
TEAM (RECORD), POINTS (BONUS)
No. 1 Cabell Midland (5-0), 60 (+9): Previous rank, No. 1.
Cabell Midland remains in the top spot with a five-point win over then No. 4 Capital (3-2).
No. 2 Martinsburg (5-0), 57 (+7): Previous rank, No. 2.
The reigning 2018 champion Bulldogs picked up a stifling 67-6 win over regional opponent Hedgesville Friday, extending the school’s record breaking win-streak to 47.
No. 3 Parkersburg South (5-0), 57 (+6): Previous rank, No. 3.
The Patriots downed John Marshall 56-14 to remain No. 3. South is just one point behind Martinsburg in bonus points.
No. 4 Musselman (4-1), 48 (+7): Previous rank, No. 4.
Going into Friday’s game tied with Capital, the Applemen crushed Woodgrove (Va.) 48-28 on Friday to claim the fourth spot. No. 22 Morgantown will travel to Inwood this Friday to test its meddle against the yearly powerhouse.
No. 5 Wheeling Park (4-1), 45 (+7): Previous rank, No. 6.
The second Patriots team to find its way into the top 10 is Region I’s Wheeling Park. The Patriots barely survived last week with a one-point win over the then-undefeated Zanesville (Ohio) squad.
No. 6 Huntington (3-1), 36 (+5): Previous rank, No. 8.
Huntington moved up two spots after surviving an upset by South Charleston on Friday. Both teams combined for 102 points, with Huntington taking the win 52-50.
No. 7 Spring Valley (4-1), 45 (+4): Previous rank, No. 10.
Spring Valley jumped three spots after a huge 41-6 win over George Washington. That will be tested on Friday with a home game against Capital.
No. 8 Riverside (3-1), 36 (+3): Previous rank, No. 9.
Riverside moved up one spot following a 38-point win over St. Albans. The Warriors next face No. 1 Cabell Midland.
No. 9 Capital (3-2), 36 (+4): Previous rank, No. 4.
The loss to Cabell Midland (see No. 1) dropped Capital five spots. An upset over Spring Valley Friday would possibly account for a 1-2 spot jump should Riverside also lose.
No. 10 Spring Mills (3-2), 36 (+3): Previous rank, No. 6.
The Cardinals are Region II’s third team to find itself in the top 10, even though Spring Mills was blown out 38-0 by South Hagerstown (Md.), accumulating just 98 yards of total offense. The Cardinals have a bye this week to fix major issues before taking on mammoth Martinsburg in Week 7.
Notable jumps and drops:
Jefferson (1-4) found itself in the top 20 at No 20 after a 26-14 win over Heritage (Va.). The win marks the Cougars’ second win in two seasons. Corbin Pierson and the Cougars could easily find another win this week against Dominion (Va.).
Washington (2-2) picked up its second win of the year after a two-game skid following an opening-week win over Hedgesville. The victory pushed WHS up two spots to No. 13 ahead of No. 14 George Washington and No. 15 Hurricane.
Buckhannon-Upshur (1-3) dropped five spots to No. 25 after a 49-19 loss to Greenbrier East (3-2). The win put the Spartans up two spots to No. 12.
Class A top 10
TEAM (RECORD), POINTS (BONUS)
No. 1 Pendleton County (4-0), 30 (+5): Previous rank, No. 2.
Pendleton remained undefeated with an easy 42-7 win over Southern Garrett (Md.), moving up one spot and claiming No. 1 from Ritchie County (3-1). The team should remain atop Class A after this week as well, taking on winless Tucker County (0-4).
No.2 Doddridge County (4-0), 24 (+8): Previous rank, No. 3.
The Bulldogs defeated rival Ritchie County 27-18 on Thursday to move up one spot from No. 3. Doddridge should stay in the No. 2 spot after an easy game against Wirt County (2-3).
No. 3 Tolsia (4-1), 33 (+5): Previous rank, No. 6.
Tolsia moved up three spots with a close 44-38 win over Tug Valley. The Rebels next face out-of-state opponent East Carter, Ky.
No. 4 Tygarts Valley (4-0), 24 (+6): Previous rank, No. 5.
Tygarts Valley dismantled Clay-Battelle 28-7 to move up one spot from No. 5. The Bulldogs have a similar game this week against Richwood.
No. 5 Midland Trail (4-1), 30 (+7); Wheeling Central (4-1), 24 (+13): Previous ranks, No. 4 (MTHS), No. 7 (WCC):
Fighting for the No. 5 spot is Midland Trail and Wheeling Central who both found easy wins on Friday. Midland Trail downs Summers County 35-0, and Central dropped the hammer on Western Reserve (Ohio) 48-7. The Maroon Knights take on another Ohio opponent in Fort Frye, while MTHS has a bye week to prepare for Class AA’s Liberty-Raleigh.
No. 7 Williamstown (4-1), 27 (+8): Previous rank, No. 9.
The Yellow Jackets moved to a 4-1 record with a 30-point win over Buffalo, who was also 3-1 heading into the contest.
No. 8 St. Marys (3-1), 24 (+3): Previous rank, No. 8.
The Blue Devils remained in the No. 8 spot with a 35-20 win over Wirt County. This week will be a close battle with Little Kanawha Conference foe Williamstown to move up the ladder.
No. 9 Ritchie County (3-1), 18 (+8): Previous rank, No. 1.
The Rebels loss to Doddridge plummeted the group eight spots, nearly knocking Ritchie out of the top 10. A win over No. 22 Ravenswood on Friday should preserve the Rebels status and possibly move the group up.
No. 10 Greenbrier West (3-1), 18 (+7): Previous rank, No. 10.
A bye week had no effect on Greenbrier West’s ranking as the group remains No. 10. The Cavaliers next host No. 16 Meadow Bridge.
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