Hit by a rash of injuries, North Lincoln decided to opt out of postseason
By CHRIS HOBBS
HobbsDailyReport.com
CHAPEL HILL – Thirteen football teams from the Greater Hickory area are advancing to the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) football playoffs.
The brackets were pulled back for review during the day on Saturday and then finalized later that afternoon.
A first review and re-post of the preliminary brackets did not change seeds or opponents for the 13 area schools.
One area school — North Lincoln from the Western Foothills 3A — opted out of the state 3A playoffs, which the NCHSAA allows if a school turns in an “Opt out” form prior to the bracketing.
Based on the seeding process, the main factor is a school’s RPI, where North Lincoln had a slightly higher RPI than St. Stephens (33rd to 34th), finished a game ahead of the Indians in the Western Foothills 3A regular season and beat the Indians head-to-head.
The NCHSAA moved St. Stephens into the No. 32 seed — and a first-round game on Friday at top-seeded Kings Mountain — but did not note with the brackets that North Lincoln (and/or any other schools) had chosen to opt out.
North Lincoln athletic director Dennis Frye e-mailed HobbsDailyReport.com over the weekend to indicate the Knights had a rash of injuries throughout the season and three more on Friday night in a loss at East Lincoln.
After looking at options with head coach Nick Bazzle and administrators, Frye said the school decided not to continue playing because of concerns about the number of varsity players available and the health and safety of Knights student-athletes.
“It was a difficult decision to make, but one we feel like is in the best interest of our student-athletes,” Frye said.
This is the first year of a return to single-classification state championships – 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A – rather than an A and AA winner within each classifications.
First-round games are scheduled Friday at 7:30 p.m. For more specifics about admission, etc., contact the athletic department of the host school.
STATE PLAYOFF SCORES (area schools only)
West 1A
Friday’s second round results
No. 6 DRAUGHN 35, No. 11 Mitchell County 10
Next Friday’s third round games
No. 6 DRAUGHN (11-1) at No. 3 Thomasville (11-1), 7:30 p.m.
First round results
No. 6 DRAUGHN 66, No. 27 Union Academy 14
West 2A
Friday’s second round results
No. 5 MAIDEN 46, No. 21 Mount Pleasant 13
Thursday’s second round results
No. 13 BUNKER HILL 41, No. 4 Community School of Davidson 40
No. 7 Monroe 55, No. 23 LINCOLNTON 7
Next Friday’s third round games
No. 13 BUNKER HILL (11-1) at No. 5 MAIDEN (11-1), 7:30 p.m.
First round results
No. 5 MAIDEN 68, No. 28 Polk County 33
No. 13 BUNKER HILL 41, No. 20 E. Davidson 9
No. 23 LINCOLNTON 37, No. 10 Randleman 36, OT
No. 15 Hendersonville 36, No. 18 W. LINCOLN 29
West 3A
Friday’s second round results
No. 8 W. Charlotte 56, No. 9 HIBRITEN 7
Thursday’s second round results
No. 4 E. LINCOLN 35, No. 13 Waynesville Tuscola 7
Next Friday’s third round games
No. 12 Ledford (11-1) at No. 4 E. LINCOLN (12-0), 7:30 p.m.
First round results
No. 1 Kings Mountain 42, No. 32 ST. STEPHENS 6
No. 9 HIBRITEN 32, No. 24 Southern Guilford 27
No. 12 Ledford 41, No. 21 FREEDOM 0
No. 4 E. LINCOLN 51, No. 29 ASHE COUNTY 6
No. 14 Crest 33, No. 19 STATESVILLE 7
No. 11 South Point 48, No. 22 HICKORY 13
West 4A
Friday’s second round gamews
No. 14 NW Guilford (9-2) at No. 3 WATAUGA (10-1), ppd., Sat., 6 p.m.
Saturday’s second round games
No. 14 NW Guilford 33, No. 3 WATAUGA 27
First round results
No. 3 WATAUGA 42, No. 30 S. Iredell 13
COMPLETE BRACKETING: https://www.nchsaa.org/sports/football
