VHSL playoff schedules: Regional volleyball, cross country; state cheerleading this week
There are those who say Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, but high school sports fans know that title really belongs to the playoff season.
While we're still a week away from the football postseason, this week does mark the start of the regional playoffs for volleyball and cross country and the state tournament in competition cheer.
VOLLEYBALL
Fort Defiance and Riverheads will both host matches Tuesday in the Region 2B volleyball tournament. No. 2 Fort Defiance hosts No. 7 Madison County while No. 4 Riverheads is at home against No. 5 Buckingham. Both matches begin at 6:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, No. 8 Stuarts Draft will be at top-seed Central Woodstock at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in Region 2B. The fourth match in that region is No. 6 Luray at No. 3 Clarke County.
In Region 1B, No. 5 Buffalo Gap will travel to No. 4 Franklin for a 6 p.m. match Tuesday. The rest of the region is No. 1 Altavista hosting No. 8 Brunswick, No. 2 Rappahannock County hosting No. 7 William Campbell and No. 3 Appamattox Regional Governor's School at home against No. 6 Cumberland. All of those matches are Tuesday as well.
Staunton, Wilson Memorial and Waynesboro all missed the playoffs in Region 3C.
CROSS COUNTRY
The cross country regional championships will be held this week. Region 2B will be at Luray High School's course. The girls race is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. and the boys race at 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1. Fort Defiance's Abby Lane is the top seed in the girls race.
In both the girls and boys races, Fort Defiance and Riverheads qualified as teams to compete. In the boys race, Stuarts Draft's Tyler Austin, Micah Kelton and Nathaniel Pfister will run as individuals. On the girls side, Draft's Alexandra Barragan, Angela Hibshman and Isabel Misick all qualified.
The Region 3C race will be at Fluvanna High School in Palmyra with the girls race at 2 p.m. and the boys race at 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1. Waynesboro and Wilson Memorial qualified as teams for both the boys and girls races. On the boys side, Staunton had three individuals — Hunter Childress, Henry Farrell and Daniel Robinson — qualify. Staunton also had three girls qualify to run individually. Brook Loar, Ella Frye and Josalyn Matthews will represent the Storm.
In Region 1B, Buffalo Gap's boys team will be running Wednesday at Frazier Farm in Altavista at 3 p.m.
CHEERLEADING
Four Shenandoah District teams will be competing in the competition cheer state championships Saturday in Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University's Siegel Center. The first round starts at noon with the finals set for 4 p.m.
Fort Defiance, which won the Region 2B championship, and Stuarts Draft, the regional runner-up, will both be competing in the Class 2 championship. Wilson Memorial won the Region 3C championship and Waynesboro was second. Both will also be in Richmond Saturday. Wilson won the Shenandoah District championship Oct. 18.
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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: VHSL playoff schedules: Regional volleyball, cross country; state cheerleading
