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Chilhowie’s Jayden Schwartz attempts to tag Patrick Henry runner Waylon Daniels on his way to second base Monday evening.
The Hogoheegee District will be well-represented in the semifinals of the Region 1D baseball tournament today at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise, but then again what else is new?
This marks the third straight season the league has made up 75 percent of the regional semifinalists.
While defending Hogoheegee District, Region 1D and Class 1 state champion Lebanon left the league after being bumped up to the Class 2 Southwest District due to the latest round of VHSL realignment, the Hogo is still making a strong go of it in the postseason.
League foes Rural Retreat (14-8) and Patrick Henry (12-10) meet at 4:30 p.m. today in the first semifinal, while district regular-season and tournament champion Chilhowie (19-3) faces the Rye Cove Eagles of the Cumberland District in the nightcap.
District play certainly helped those three Hogoheegee teams reach this point.
“Iron sharpens iron,” said first-year Patrick Henry coach Eric Rutherford. “So, I think playing some tough regular-season district games prepares you for playoffs.”
Patrick Henry went on the road and pounded out 17 hits in a 14-5 first-round victory over Cumberland District champ Eastside on Friday as the Rebels avenged two regular-season losses to the Spartans.
Rural Retreat rocked winless Twin Valley, 27-0, in the first round as Trever Shelton, Justin Walker and Hunter Rollyson combined to pitch a no-hitter with 12 strikeouts.
PH can clinch the fourth state tourney berth in program history today, while Rural Retreat is trying to qualify for the very first time.
Rural Retreat has posted 7-3 and 7-4 wins over Patrick Henry, while dropping a 7-2 decision to the Rebels as well.
“All three games had similar scores,” Rutherford said. “The last two meetings each had a four-run inning by the winning team. Momentum – as always – will be a big factor here. Rural Retreat is well-coached and has four seniors with a lot of big-game experience, and they tend to rise up when called upon. We’ll need to match their intensity and play solid baseball.”
While his team holds a 2-1 edge in the season series, Rural Retreat boss Van Harris knows this is the matchup that really counts.
“They are very good on the bump with multiple arms,” Harris said. “They throw the ball over the plate, mix pitches well and make you earn every baserunner. Defensively, they are very solid, hold runners effectively, are very good behind the plate, and make the plays they should when you are able to put the ball in play. Offensively, they swing the bats very well. A lot of tough outs in their lineup. I think 17 hits in the quarterfinal round speaks for itself. They have a lot of pop in the lineup also. Coach Rutherford has done a fantastic job in his first season.”
Meanwhile, Chilhowie has impressively answered every challenge this season as the Warriors have yet to lose to a Class 1 opponent.
Dawson Tuell pitched a shutout in a 3-0 first-round win over Castlewood on Friday.
The Warriors lead the Hogoheegee arms race, but they weren’t the only ones to boast a full arsenal.
“A lot of the time in small division high school baseball, a team is lucky to have one pitcher that is pretty good,” said veteran Warriors coach Jeff Robinson. “The thing that separates the Hogoheegee District from other districts in the region – this year especially – is the fact that the top four teams had two or more arms that could beat you on any given day.”
How competitive is the league?
Well, Patrick Henry had to rally for two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for a 4-3 win over Holston in the third-place game of the Hogoheegee tournament just to clinch a spot in the regional tourney.
“The Hogo is super competitive,” Harris said. “You have to go out and play very well every day just to give yourself a chance to win.”
It’s a trend in most male sports.
Since the VHSL returned to a four-region system in 2017 after going with a two-region setup for a few years, six of the seven Region 1D football champions have come from the Hogoheegee.
Meanwhile, three of the four teams in the semifinals of the Region 1D boys basketball tournament this year were Hogoheegee members. Honaker beat fellow league member Chilhowie in the title game.
SOFTBALL
While the Region 1D baseball tournament is largely a Hogoheegee happening, the softball tourney is mostly a Cumberland District get-together with Eastside, Rye Cove and Twin Springs still in it.
The following is a brief look at those matchups and the soccer tournaments that begin today.
Eastside (23-1) vs. Honaker (13-9), at UVa-Wise, 5 p.m.: Braelyn Hall and Emma Sartin combined to pitch a four-hitter as Eastside hammered out an 8-2 win over Honaker in last year’s regional semifinals.
Rye Cove (20-3) vs. Twin Springs (10-12), at UVa-Wise, 7 p.m.: Twin Springs has played Rye Cove tough three times this season, but the Eagles still prevailed 3-0, 5-1 and 1-0 in this previous 2024 meetings.
BOYS SOCCER
Region 1D
Holston (4-9) at Patrick Henry (6-9)
Monday, 1 p.m.
The Skinny: These Washington County rivals will meet with a spot in the regional finals and a state tournament bid on the line. … Patrick Henry owns 4-3 and 1-0 wins over Holston this season. Noah Reuleaux had three goals and Ben Hahn scored once for the Rebels in the first meeting. … Grant Buchanan and goalkeeper Nick Hudson are also among the leaders for PH. … Holston is in its fourth season fielding a team. Braedon Lee (six goals), Nick Taylor (five goals), Hayden Sinclair (five goals, eight assists) and goalkeeper Jacob Harris (104 saves) have been standouts for the Cavaliers. Ten of the 17 players on the team’s roster have scored goals. … “Patrick Henry is our perennial rival and also the team we have the best relationship with,” said Holston coach Steve Ahn. “Our players play pickup all year-around together. In the winter Holston players will come to PH to play indoor and PH players come to Holston to play indoor soccer. Both coaching staffs believe that our future lies in continuing to build the soccer culture in our area together. We team up on everything we can and when we go head-to-head we both get excited by the challenge. This year so far we have lost both games to PH and each game we lost by one goal. So on our end, we are ready to settle the score with our friends.”
Up Next: Either Honaker or Rural Retreat awaits in Wednesday’s 3:30 p.m. regional championship match at Emory & Henry College.
Rural Retreat (0-14) at Honaker (13-2-1)
Monday, 6:45 p.m.
The Skinny: As usual, Honaker has taken care of business on the soccer field and the Tigers rely on a balanced attack. How balanced? Honaker has received at least one goal from each member of its starting 11 and in total 14 different players have found the back of the net this spring for the Tigers. … Jaylon Hart, Thomas Ball and Jaxon Dye are the top goal-scorers and also have dished out their fair share of assists. … Eric Ball, John Sykes, Malachi Lowe, Landon Viers, Garrett Shortt and senior goalkeeper Austin Clayburne are other names to remember for the Tigers. “We were playing well at the end of the season,” said Honaker coach Wilburn Johnson. “I hope the long layoff [after playing its last match May 9] doesn’t affect the chemistry we had at the end of the regular season.” … The only losses for Honaker were to Region 2D tourney qualifiers Lebanon and Wise County Central. The Tigers also tied Lebanon and topped Central in the rematch. … Honaker owns 7-0 and 8-0 victories over Rural Retreat. “Honaker is a good team,” said Rural Retreat coach Jeremy Stepp. “Probably the best we’ve played all year. They always have a good team and put a lot of pressure on opposing defenses.” … Talan Hammack has four goals to lead Rural Retreat, while Micah Hamman is a top defender and Gunner Hagerman is the goalkeeper.
Up Next: The winner plays either Patrick Henry or Holston on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. in the regional finals at Emory & Henry College.
GIRLS SOCCER
Region 1C/1D
Bland County (4-11-1) at Honaker (8-6)
Monday, 5 p.m.
The Skinny: Since Honaker is the only Region 1D school to have a girls soccer team, Region 1C and Region 1D were combined into a Super Region. … Honaker has yet to play a Class 1 school this season as games against VHSL Class 2 and Class 3 squads as well as a matchup with Ashe County from North Carolina have been on the schedule. “I truly believe that the increased level of play that we’ve been forced to compete with in the regular season will give us the edge we need and advantage going into the playoffs,” said Honaker coach Alicia Musick. … Honaker hasn’t played since a 7-0 victory over Lee High on May 3. “We’ve been able to really practice intensely these past few weeks and watch film on our potential upcoming opponents, which hopefully will benefit us,” Musick said. “Our girls are dedicated, confident, and excited going into our first round of region.” … Senior defensive midfielder Kate Jessee, junior goalkeeper McKenzie Lowe, junior center midfielder Kiley Musick, junior forward Julia Barton and senior midfielder Kedryn Hess are the leaders for Honaker. … Bland County had a fifth-place finish in the Mountain Empire District tournament.
Up Next: The winner plays either George Wythe or Giles on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the regional semifinals at Christiansburg High School.
Giles (10-5-1) at George Wythe (9-6-1)
Monday, 6 p.m.
The Skinny: This will be the fourth meeting between these teams this season and this one has the highest stakes. … George Wythe has a 5-1 win over Giles, suffered a 2-1 overtime loss and battled to a 2-2 tie with the Spartans thus far. “It is very fitting we will meet again to settle the 1-1-1 record against one another,” said GW coach Nathan Cline. “Giles can play with anyone and can be a dangerous team if your team isn’t locked in.” … Sophomore Zoey Childers (10 goals), junior Ava Ferguson (10 goals), senior Joell Underwood (eight goals) and junior Hannah Repass (eight goals) have combined to score 36 of George Wythe’s 51 goals. Junior Riley Bailey leads the defense for the Maroons, the Mountain Empire District tournament runner-up. “I love this team’s bond they have with each other. They have really made each other feel welcome and have pushed to make everyone’s focus on the same goal,” Cline said. “The team’s strength is the willingness to be humble and try to correct the mistakes. The humble attitude to admit faults and work to correct those mistakes is huge.” … Junior Kerrigan Mitcham (32 goals, six assists), sophomore forward Ada Steele (11 assists, seven goals) and midfielder Anna Williams (seven assists, four goals) are the leaders for Giles.
Up Next: Honaker or Bland County gets the winner in Thursday’s 7:30 p.m. regional semifinal clash at Christiansburg High School.
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