Thoughts on Top Half of 2A East Bracket?

Franklinton @ John A Holmes....Aces have to be the favorite coming off huge road win over First Flight and winning the 2A portion of their conference (third overall behind Currituck & Hertford), Franklinton has a couple of big wins this year, including taking down a very good Roanoke Rapids team once

Roanoke Rapids @ Northwood....Chargers always a threat with their pitching staff and some of their hitters are flat out scary...they're definitely the favorites on paper; of course I would have said the same thing last year and the Jackets pulled the upset on the road; they're never an opponent to be taken lightly, especially on 6 days rest

Northeastern @ Bunn...I can't figure out the Eagles...their overall record does not look impressive but if you look up and down their schedule, 9 of the 12 losses were by three runs or less to quality competition. The Wildcats are playing at home, where they have been tough to beat this year (9-2, 5 game home win streak), and pulled out the top seed from a very competitive top half of their conference.

Louisburg @ Graham...The Warriors have suffered heartbreaking 2-1 losses in the first round each of the last two years, and would love to erase those memories, and this is a different team, a young one that took a lot of losses early in the season but rebounded to finish tied for third in their conference. The Red Devils are a solid bunch...they played an absolutely brutal non-conference schedule, but took a couple of unexpected losses in conference play and finished second to a team they've now beaten three times.

Jordan Matthews @ South Granville...The Jets have been in some battles this year with lots of other teams in the bracket. They don't have the wins to show for it, but other than the first two weeks of non-conference games, they have gotten used to playing in close games. The Vikings are coming off a huge win on Monday to seal the #1 seed from their conference, hoping to take care of business at home.

Cedar Ridge @ First Flight...The Red Wolves will make one of the longest trips of anyone in the first round, probably about 5 hours by activity bus to the beach. They have a gritty lineup with few easy outs, and a pitching staff that may not be overpowering, but are crafty enough to keep even the best of lineups off balance. I don't know a whole lot about the Nighthawks. A couple of weeks ago, they seemed poised to lock up the #1 spot from the 2A portion of their conference, but a three game losing streak has dropped them to 4th overall and #2 among the 2A clubs. They are at home, and will be on 6 days rest, maybe with a chip on their shoulder after struggling down the stretch.

Carrboro @ Providence Grove...On paper, this looks like a mismatch; in reality, it COULD turn into a mismatch, but with mixed results from what you might expect...Carrboro as a #4 seed is dangerous. They've finished 4th in their conference for the third straight year, but ask North Johnston in 2010 and Fairmont in 2011 (both #1 seeds) if Carrboro has the talent to spring an upset. They're an experienced group that has been here before. The Patriots finished first in a very competitive conference. They should be fired up to redeem themselves after a poor showing Tuesday against Graham.

Bartlett Yancey @ North Johnston...The Buccaneers are another one of those teams that you cannot figure out by looking at their schedule; some big wins, yet some losses in games where it seemed they would have been heavy favorites. They also played some tough non-conference games. Facing the Panthers can be intimidating, especially on the road. Both of these teams are coming off of losses from games they would like to forget; it may come down to which team can put Monday behind them and simply execute at the plate and in the field.

 

East or West???

I noticed that last year Randleman was in the 2A East Bracket and this year they are in the 2A West. How are regions determined? Also, are seeding priorities drawn randomly or how are they determined year to year?

 

That's a good question....I believe (but am not sure) that the seeding priorities kind of rotate up and down every year but don't know how they determine it...those Central NC conferences that go East/West can swing each year based on numbers i guess, or maybe if there are an odd number of 2A conferences counting split conferences (there may be, i haven't counted), the PAC 6 may rotate so that the entire 2A bracket doesn't look exactly the same every year in terms of wild card spots available in each region or the same seeds from the same conferences playing each other. Maybe someone else will reply that knows exactly.