The new Timesland top 15 is out and plenty of changes were made after four major meets were held over the weekend.

Among the highlights:

*Blacksburg put four runners under two minutes in the boys 800 meters at the MileStat Elite Classic in Richmond.

*Nick Link of Blacksburg ran 4:16.05 in the 1,600, while Noah Combs clocked 9:22.88 in the 3,200. Blacksburg’s Emily Beaty ran 5:06.22 in the girls 1,600.

*William Byrd’s Marcellus Fletcher went 46 feet in the triple jump at the Joe Curcio Invitational in Lynchburg where Alexis Brown of James River tossed the shot 38-10 and Liberty’s Nicole Smith threw the discus 121-8.

2013 TIMESLAND TRACK AND FIELD CHECKLIST

NOTE: Rankings are based on major invitationals and postseason meets. Meets include are Knights Invitational, Raleigh Relays, Big Red Invitational, Vince Bradford Relays, Mike Brown Invitational, Falcons Track Classic, Colonel Classic, Judy Thomas Invitational, Frank Carver Invitational, All-American Relays, Amherst Invitational, Tri-Cities Track Classic, Buffalo Invitational, MileStat Elite Classic, Joe Curcio Invitational and Bearcat Invitational.

BOYS
100 meters
1. Khalil Bonds, William Fleming (Colonel), 11.03
2. Andrew Storms, George Wythe (All-American), 11.10
3. Brandon Carter, Martinsville (Colonel), 11.18
4. Ryan Layman, George Wythe (All-American), 11.40
5. Arius McConnell, Salem (All-American), 11.41
6. Tanner Reed, Christiansburg (Colonel), 11.43
7. Riley Blevins, Marion (Thomas), 11.48
8. Joey Augustin, Christiansburg (Curcio), 11.53
9. Jamaal Preston, Liberty (Big Red), 11.55
…..Travis Hedgepeth, George Wythe (All-American), 11.55
11. Ryan Sims, Blacksburg (Knights), 11.57
12  Josh Pearson, Bassett (Buffalo), 11.58
13. Patrick Shulz, James River (All-American), 11.64
14. Ryan Kelly, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.65
15. Davonta Womack, Salem (Curcio), 11.67 Read more »

Northside’s Tierra Saunders took over the 2013 Timesland lead in the girls 400-meter run with an impressive clocking of 57.66 seconds last week in winning the event at the Amherst Invitational in Amherst.

William Byrd’s Marcellus Fletcher is the new Timesland leader in the boys triple jump at 44 feet, 11 inches.

Those were among the top performaces over the weekend in Timesland.

The updated Timesland track checklist is below.

NOTE: Rankings are based on major invitationals and postseason meets. Meets include are Knights Invitational, Raleigh Relays, Big Red Invitational, Vince Bradford Relays, Mike Brown Invitational, Falcons Track Classic, Colonel Classic, Judy Thomas Invitational, Frank Carver Invitational, All-American Relays, Amherst Invitational and Tri-Cities Track Classic.

BOYS
100 meters
1. Khalil Bonds, William Fleming (Colonel), 11.03 2. Andrew Storms, George Wythe (All-American), 11.10 3. Brandon Carter, Martinsville (Colonel), 11.18 4. Ryan Layman, George Wythe (All-American), 11.40 5. Arius McConnell, Salem (All-American), 11.41 6. Tanner Reed, Christiansburg (Colonel), 11.43 7. Riley Blevins, Marion (Thomas), 11.48 8. Jamaal Preston, Liberty (Big Red), 11.55    Travis Hedgepeth, George Wythe (All-American), 11.55 10. Ryan Sims, Blacksburg (Knights), 11.57 11 . Josh Pearson, Bassett (Colonel), 11.59 12. Patrick Shulz, James River (All-American), 11.64 13. Ryan Kelly, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.65 14. Elijah Onks, George Wythe (Thomas), 11.69 15. Fe’zahn Scott, Patrick Henry (Knights), 11.71    Dean Sayers, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.71 Read more »

I spent five days in Kentucky and returned to see that Lloyd Church is no longer the boys basketball coach at Franklin County High School.

Church said Monday that he has resigned and is headed back to western North Carolina where he spent 22 mostly successful years at McDowell High in Marion, N.C.

Church went 9-13 and 15-8 in his two years at Franklin County.

We’ll see where the Eagles go from here.

Are the George Washington Eagles the favorite to win the Western Valley District boys basketball title?
We will find out Friday night.
The unbeaten team from Danville, ranked No. 2 in Group AAA by Virginiapreps.com, rolls into Roanoke to face three-time reigning Western Valley District champion Patrick Henry in a 7:30 p.m. game.
GW has steamrolled Franklin County and William Fleming in its first two WVD games. One of the officials who worked the GW-Franklin County game in Rocky Mount told me GW had “at least 20 dunks” in the game.
I’m certain that’s an exaggeration, but it indicates the kind of athleticism people might see at PH tonight. GW is 12-0. PH is 12-1 it could be a good one.

On Saturday, Patrick Henry hosts another Northwest Region power, Potomac. The game is at 4 p.m., followed by a prep school game between Massanutten Military Academy’s postgraduate team and Southern Tech Prep of Charlotte. Massanutten is ranked No. 1 nationally among postgrad teams.

Elsewhere, Franklin County’s girls visit William Fleming in a matchup of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the Timesland rankings. That could be the first of at least three games between the two rivals.
First place will be on the line in the River Ridge District boys race when Cave Spring visits Blacksburg. Both teams are 2-0. Cave Spring enters with three losses in its last five games, failing to reach the 30-point mark in any of the three.
First place in the Blue Ridge District girls race also is up for grabs as Staunton River visits Lord Botetourt. Both teams have losing records overall, but they are 2-0 in the league. Staunton River went 1-10 in the pre-district schedule, but the Golden Eagles stunned Northside on Tuesday.

Below is the schedule for Friday with the overall and district records prior to Thursday night in parentheses:

BOYS
WESTERN VALLEY DISTRICT
George Washington (12-0, 3-0) at Patrick Henry (12-1, 3-0)
William Fleming (10-4, 1-1) at Franklin County (12-3, 0-2)
BLUE RIDGE DISTRICT
Lord Botetourt (8-5, 1-1) at Staunton River (2-10, 0-2)
Rockbridge County (9-3, 2-0) at Alleghany (6-6, 0-2)
William Byrd (8-6, 1-1) at Northside (11-2, 2-0)
PIEDMONT DISTRICT
Magna Vista at Bassett
Tunstall (4-7, 1-1) at Martinsville (8-6, 1-0)
RIVER RIDGE DISTRICT
Cave Spring (7-7, 2-0) at Blacksburg (6-8, 2-0)
Christiansburg (2-10, 1-1) at Salem (4-8, 0-2)
Pulaski County (3-9, 0-2) at Hidden Valley (2-12, 1-1)
SOUTHWEST DISTRICT
Marion (7-2, 1-0)  at Tazewell (5-7, 0-1)
HOGOHEEGEE DISTRICT
George Wythe (3-6, 3-0) at PH-Glade Spring (4-10, 1-2)
Holston (3-10, 1-1) at Chilhowie (4-9, 1-1)
Rural Retreat (0-11, 0-2) at Northwood (4-7, 1-1)
MOUNTAIN EMPIRE DISTRICT
Fort Chiswell (5-5, 1-1) at Narrows (6-6, 0-2)
Galax (1-8, 0-2) at Grayson County (8-4, 2-0)
Graham (9-3, 2-0) at Bland County (9-4, 1-1)
PIONEER DISTRICT
Covington (1-9, 1-1) at Bath County (5-3, 1-1)
Craig County (0-12, 0-2) at Parry McCluer (9-5, 2-0)
Highland (2-4, 1-1) at James River (1-11, 1-1)
THREE RIVERS DISTRICT
Auburn (8-6, 1-2) at Floyd County (13-2, 3-0)
Giles (4-8, 0-3) at Eastern Montgomery (6-8, 0-3)
Radford (12-2, 3-0) at Glenvar (12-2, 2-1)
VACA SOUTHWEST
Faith Christian School at SWVa Home School
Parkway Christian at Roanoke Valley Christian (5-2, 2-1)

GIRLS
WESTERN VALLEY DISTRICT
Franklin County (10-3, 2-0) at William Fleming (10-4, 2-0)
Patrick Henry (6-8, 1-1) at George Washington (6-3, 1-2)
BLUE RIDGE DISTRICT
Alleghany (5-7, 1-1) at Rockbridge County (2-9, 0-2)
Northside (9-3, 1-1) at William Byrd (3-11, 0-2)
Staunton River (3-10, 2-0) at Lord Botetourt (5-8, 2-0)
PIEDMONT DISTRICT
Martinsville (4-8, 0-1) at Tunstall (0-10, 0-3)
RIVER RIDGE DISTRICT
Blacksburg (4-8, 0-2) at Cave Spring (4-9, 1-1)
Christiansburg (7-7, 0-2) at Salem (10-3, 2-0)
Hidden Valley (6-8, 2-0) at Pulaski County (2-11, 1-1)
SEMINOLE DISTRICT
Amherst County (7-2, 3-2) at Liberty (8-3, 2-3)
Rustburg (4-8, 1-4) at Jefferson Forest (8-3, 2-2)
SOUTHWEST DISTRICT
Marion (2-8, 0-1) at Tazewell (8-5, 1-0)
HOGOHEEGEE DISTRICT
Holston (0-10, 0-2) at Chilhowie (12-2, 2-0)
Northwood at Rural Retreat (6-6, 1-0)
PH-Glade Spring (8-5, 2-0) at George Wythe (4-8, 1-2)
MOUNTAIN EMPIRE DISTRICT
Fort Chiswell (7-5, 1-1) at Narrows (4-9, 1-0)
Galax (7-5, 2-0) at Grayson County (8-4, 1-1)
Graham (7-5, 1-1)  at Bland County (2-9, 0-2)
PIONEER DISTRICT
Highland (3-3, 0-2) at James River (10-3, 2-0)
VACA SOUTHWEST
Parkway Christian (8-3, 0-1) at Roanoke Valley Christian (2-4, 0-1)
BLUE RIDGE CONFERENCE
Carlisle (1-8, 0-0) at North Cross (1-10, 1-3)
NONDISTRICT
Halifax County (7-7) at Bassett (8-1)

Let’s cut to the chase. It’s time for Week 10 of the high school football season in Timesland. Here are five games Friday night that figure to have major regular-season or playoff implications:

The VHSL Rating Scale points heading into Friday’s games can be found here.

The standings heading into Friday’s games can be found here.

SALEM (8-0, 3-0) at HIDDEN VALLEY (5-3, 3-0)
Who was Hidden Valley’s head coach when the Titans began their football program in 2002? Surely you haven’t forgotten that it was Stephen Magenbauer, who moved over to Salem in 2004. Salem has won all nine games in the series, but the teams didn’t play in 2002 when Hidden Valley did not have a senior class. The only time Magenbauer stood on an opposite sideline from Salem was in 2003 when his Hidden Valley team lost 45-7 in Bogle Stadium. Salem can lock up the No. 1 seed in Region IV Division 4 with a win. Hidden Valley has already qualified along with Magna Vista, Christiansburg and Pulaski County, but the Titans have a shot at a No. 2 seed. All that can wait. First place in the River Ridge District is at stake. Read more »

Who were the biggest gainers and biggest losers after the smoke cleared Friday night in Week 9 of the high school football regular season?
With regard to how Friday night’s outcomes affected the playoff scenarios, here is the scorecard:
For the official rating scale points updated by the VHSL, click here.

TOUCHDOWNS
 1. Glenvar. The Highlanders’ 48-44 win over Radford moved them up to No. 16 in the Division 2 West Section. Glenvar now has a clear path to a playoff berth if the Highlanders can sweep Auburn and Eastern Montgomery in the last two weeks.
 2. Northside. The Vikings all but locked up a playoff berth in Region III Division 3 with their overtime victory at William Byrd. Now the Vikings have their eyes on a possible No. 2 seed even though they are No. 5 currently. Read more »