Friday night football storylines: Christian Heritage School seeks to maintain winning streak, Coahulla Creek battles North Murray

Published 7:00 am Friday, October 25, 2024

Christian Heritage School looks to keep winning streak intact

When Christian Heritage School players step onto the field Friday night, they’ll do so with a seven-game winning streak … and against a tough opponent.

The Lions (7-1, 5-0 Region 7-A DI) battle Fannin County (8-0, 5-0 Region 7-A DI) at home at 7:30.

Christian Heritage began the season with a 42-17 loss to Ringgold’s Heritage, but that game has proven to be the exception for a Lions team that has since dominated on both sides of the ball.

Christian Heritage has won against Cherokee Christian and Pepperell, and has region wins against Dade County, Gordon Lee, Coosa, Gordon Central and Chattooga. It had a bye last week.

During the battle against Chattooga on Oct. 11, Christian Heritage had a quick 21-0 lead in the first quarter on the way to a 49-14 victory.

Lions quarterback Carter Triplett passed for 183 yards and four touchdowns to Charlie Idom, Dontae Crowder, Benji Michmerhuizen and Bronx Stallion. Thailan Christopher rushed for 130 yards and a touchdown.

Fannin County remains the only undefeated team in Region 7-A DI, meaning Christian Heritage will have to keep the momentum rolling to ensure a potential playoff spot.

Friday’s game will be the inaugural skirmish between the teams that currently lead the region.

Northwest Whitfield battles Ridgeland in final region matchup

Following a decisive 38-14 victory against Adairsville in Tunnel Hill last week, Northwest Whitfield sets its sights on its final region matchup of the season.

The Bruins (7-2, 3-2 Region 7-3A) travel to Rossville to battle Ridgeland’s Panthers (1-7, 1-3 Region 7-3A) Friday at 7:30 p.m.

Northwest is third in the region standings. Ahead of the Bruins are Heritage and an undefeated Calhoun squad. They will battle Friday night.

If Northwest wins against Ridgeland and Heritage loses to Calhoun, the Bruins could potentially find themselves in contention for the region title.

First, the Bruins will have to get through Ridgeland, a team whose only win was against LaFayette.

Led by quarterback Gavin Nuckolls, Northwest scored five touchdowns and got a field goal by kicker Nery Martinez against Adairsville. Nuckolls had two rushing touchdowns while Will Wade, Caden Ramsey and Lucas Amos each had a touchdown.

Coahulla Creek and North Murray meet in region showdown

Two area teams coming off of a road loss last week will take to the field Friday night in Chatsworth.

North Murray (5-3, 4-2 Region 7-2A) hosts Coahulla Creek (1-7, 1-5 Region 7-2A) at 7:30.

The Colts’ lone win was against Murray County. They suffered a 35-20 loss against Union County in Blairsville last Friday, but got several big plays from quarterback Waelyn Baliles and wide receiver Andrew Russell.

Baliles, who had 48 rushing yards, hit Russell twice in the end zone for touchdowns and had a rushing touchdown against Union County.

Russell’s touchdowns covered 101 yards; the Colts had 275 yards of total offense.

Following wins over Dalton, Murray County, Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe, Sonoraville and Ringgold, North Murray lost 34-13 to Kennesaw’s North Cobb Christian last week.

Scoring for the Mountaineers were quarterback Hudson Hulett and running back Layten Myers. Hulett finished 7-for-11 with 49 passing yards while Myers had 97 rushing yards and three passing yards against the Eagles.

A win Friday could generate some momentum for the winning team as they brace for one final region game on Nov. 1.

Coahulla Creek will travel to Ringgold to take on the Tigers while North Murray will host Rockmart.

Southeast Whitfield seeks first win against Towns County

Southeast (0-8, 0-1 Region 7-4A) takes on Towns County (5-3) in Hiawassee at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Towns County, a team with no region competition, began the season with a 42-14 victory over Murray County.

Last week, the Raiders lost 43-3 to Woodland at home in Southeast’s only region game of the year.

Following Friday night’s game, the Raiders will travel to take on Chattanooga’s Grace Baptist Academy on Nov. 1.

Murray County hosts Rockmart

Following a bye last week, Murray County returns to region competition at home Friday night.

The Indians (1-7, 0-6 Region 7-2A) host Rockmart (6-2, 6-0 Region 7-2A) at 7:30.

The Indians played Coahulla Creek on Oct. 11, losing 36-0.

Rockmart’s losses came early against Cedartown and Cartersville. Since then, the Yellowjackets have a six-game winning streak, including a 35-7 victory over Coahulla Creek and an overtime win against Ringgold.

Dalton idle ahead of final region showdown

Dalton (0-9, 0-5 Region 7-4A) will return to Harmon Field for its last scheduled region game on Nov. 1, hosting Cartersville’s Woodland Wildcats.