03/29/2024
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It took a while Saturday, and there was some flow back and forth, but when the NCHSAA straightened out their bracket data for the high school football play-offs, East Bladen’s Eagles received the No. 2 seed in the Class 2A East.

Coach Robby Priest’s Eagles, 10-1 and Tri-Champions in the Three Rivers Conference, will host Warsaw Kenan (3-7) Friday night in the first round of the play-offs.

It will be the first meeting between the two schools since Kenan defeated the Eagles in the third round of the 2007 Class 1AA play-offs. The Tigers went on to win the state championship that year.

In the first iteration of Saturday’s preliminary brackets, the Eagles were listed as a No. 3 seed in the 2A West. But at about 2:30 p.m., the NCHSAA released a statement saying that out-of-date data from MaxPreps had been used for those preliminary brackets and that the seeding had to be redone.

With the updated information the Eagles became the No. 2 seed in the East. East Bladen was projected two weeks ago as a No. 5 in the East, but Whiteville’s victory over South Columbus forced a Friday night drawing that East Bladen won to become the No. 1 seed from the Three Rivers and thus improved their overall seeding.

Pairings of interest to local fans follow:

Class 2A East
No. 16 Bertie (4-7) at No. 1 Elizabeth City Northeastern (11-0)
No. 9 Clinton (5-5) at No. 8 Kitty Hawk First Flight (8-3)
No. 12 Ayden-Grifton (6-5) at No. 5 Wallace-Rose Hill (9-1)
No. 13 Farmville Central (5-6) at No. 4 Wilson Beddingfield (7-4)
No. 14 Goldsboro (6-5) at No. 3 Southwest Onslow (8-3)
No. 11 Hertford County (6-5) at No. 6 SouthWest Edgecombe (9-2)
No. 10 Greene Central (7-4) at No. 7 Kinston (9-2)
No. 15 Warsaw Kenan (3-7) at No. 2 East Bladen (10-1)

Class 2A West
No. 13 Trinity Wheatmore (9-2) at No. 4 South Columbus (10-1)
No. 11 Red Springs (8-3) at No. 6 Salisbury (7-3)
No. 10 North Wilkes (8-3) at No. 7 Whiteville (10-1)

Class 2AA East
No. 16 St. Pauls (5-6) at No. 1 East Duplin (11-0)

Class 1A East
No. 3 South Robeson (3-8) receives Bye
No. 1 North Duplin (11-0) receives Bye

Class 1AA East
No. 11 Pender (4-7) at No. 6 Lakewood (9-2)

Class 3A East
No. 13 Rocky Mount (4-6) at No. 4 Terry Sanford (10-1)
No. 14 Westover (4-7) at No. 3 Southern Nash (10-1)
No. 10 West Carteret (8-3) at No. 7 E. E. Smith (8-3)

Class 3AA East
No. 11 Cape Fear (8-3) at No. 6 Hillsborough Orange (8-2)
No. 15 West Brunswick (4-7) at No. 2 New Hanover (10-1)

Class 4A East
No. 1 Scotland (9-1) receives Bye
No. 9 Seventy First (8-3) at No. 8 Durham Jordan (6-5)
No. 12 Knightdale (6-5) at No. 5 Spring Lake Overhills (8-3)
No. 11 Purnell Swett (5-6) at No. 6 Wake Forest Heritage (10-1)
No. 10 South View (8-3) at No. 7 Jamestown Ragsdale (7-4)
No. 2 Wilmington Hoggard (11-0) receives Bye

Class 4AA East
No. 9 Raleigh Millbrook (5-6) at No. 8 Jack Britt (6-5)
No. 12 Wilmington Laney (7-4) at No. 5 Apex Middle Creek (8-3)
No. 11 Raleigh Athens Drive (7-4) at No. 6 Pinecrest (7-4)

Class 4AA West
No. 9 North Mecklenburg (8-3) at No. 8 Richmond County (7-4)

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