Class AAAAAAA
1. McEachern (0-0)
2. Collins Hill (1-0)
3. Woodstock (1-0)
4. West Forsyth (2-0)
5. Archer (2-0)
6. Cherokee (2-0)
7. Grayson (1-0)
8. Campbell (1-0)
9. Norcross (0-1)
10. North Paulding (0-1)
Class AAAAAA
1. Westlake (1-0)
2. Buford (1-0)
3. Carrollton (1-0)
4. Langston Hughes (1-0)
5. Kell (1-0)
6. Sprayberry (0-0)
7. Lovejoy (1-1)
8. Grovetown (1-0)
9. Sequoyah (0-0)
10. Rockdale County (1-0)
Class AAAAA
1. Forest Park (1-0)
2. Woodward Academy (1-0)
3. Southwest DeKalb (0-0)
4. Cass (1-0)
5. Maynard Jackson (0-1)
6. Griffin (1-1)
7. Loganville (0-1)
8. Tri-Cities (1-0)
9. Hiram (1-0)
10. New Manchester (2-0)
Class AAAA
1. Troup County (0-0)
2. Jefferson (1-0)
3. Carver-Columbus (0-1)
4. Luella (2-0)
5. McDonough (1-0)
6. Spalding (1-0)
7. Arabia Mountain (0-0)
8. Druid Hills (0-0)
9. Marist (1-0)
10. Madison County (0-0)
Class AAA
1. GAC (0-0)
2. Johnson-Savannah (1-0)
3. Beach (0-0)
4. Cross Creek (0-0)
5. Rockmart (0-0)
6. Stephens County (1-0)
7. Cedar Grove (0-0)
8. Sonoraville (0-0)
9. Westminster (0-0)
10. Coahulla Creek (1-0)
Class AA
1. Early County (1-0)
2. Washington County (0-0)
3. Rabun County (0-0)
4. Josey (1-0)
5. Vidalia (1-0)
6. Laney (0-0)
7. Northeast-Macon (0-0)
8. Fannin County (1-0)
9. Chattooga (0-0)
10. Elbert County (0-0)
Class A-Private
1. Hebron Christian (1-0)
2. St. Francis (1-0)
3. Mt. Paran (0-1)
4. Holy Innocents’ (0-1)
5. Galloway (2-0)
6. Wesleyan (0-0)
7. Greenforest (0-1)
8. ELCA (0-0)
9. Trinity Christian (0-1)
10. Calvary Day (0-0)
Class A-Public
1. Calhoun County (0-0)
2. Greenville (0-0)
3. Clinch County (0-0)
4. Turner County (1-0)
5. Wilcox County (0-0)
6. Central-Talbotton (0-0)
7. GMC (0-0)
8. Lake Oconee Academy (0-0)
9. ECI (0-0)
10. Mitchell County (0-0)
Opening weekend of the GHSA season saw less than half of the top 80 teams ranked across eight classifications tip-off, but there were still a handful of key matchups already, afforded to us primarily by a ridiculously loaded field at the Parkview Tip-Off Classic which only gets even better as the week goes on.
There is some movement in Class 7A as No. 6 Cherokee climbs four spots after dissecting both Alexander (79-41) and South Gwinnett (60-27). The Warriors opened at the bottom of the poll after graduating six seniors from last year’s Final Four team. It hasn’t taken long for Coach Matt Cates’ junior class to step up and fill their role. Karoline Karl hit 4 threes off the bench to finish with 16 points while Lilly Griffith added 12 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists in their season opening win over Alexander. The Warriors hit 10 threes around 6-foot-3 Furman-signee Kate Johnson who dominated inside with 17 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 blocks. Cherokee jumps a handful of good teams that have secured nice wins themselves. If history tells us anything, it’s that the Warriors will likely continue to climb up the poll throughout the season. Two teams that Cherokee jumped are No. 7 Grayson and No. 8 Campbell. The Rams blasted Mountain View 63-17 behind South Alabama-signee Nadia Howard’s 16 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists – her first varsity game since missing all of last season due to a knee injury. South Gwinnett transfer Kourtney Rittenberry added 11 points and 9 rebounds while Tylia Kemp scored 10 points. Campbell edged Class 5A No. 5 Maynard Jackson 44-42 at Carrollton’s Girls Night Out. North Florida-commit Sarah Taub (13) and Laila Battle (11) balanced the Spartans. At the top of the poll, No. 2 Collins Hill defeated Class A-Private No. 7 Greenforest 68-52 at the Parkview Tip-Off Classic. Purdue-signee Sacha Washington had 16 points, 14 rebounds and 2 blocks. Today, we have a potential state championship preview as No. 2 Collins Hill battles No. 1 McEachern. No. 3 Woodstock pulled away from No. 10 North Paulding 52-36 behind Bridget Utberg’s 19 points and Sara Grace Bertolini and Karson Martin’s 11 apiece. No. 4 West Forsyth holds onto their spot after a 54-42 win over Blessed Trinity and a 68-54 victory against preseason Class 4A No. 9 Flowery Branch 68-54. Cayla Cowart has come out of the gates hot, averaging 26.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3 steals. She scored 22 points and went 9-13 from the foul line in their win over Blessed Trinity before dumping in 31 points against Flowery Branch. The Wolverines still await the return of last year’s leading scorer Calie Thrower, who has been injured since the summer but should be back in a few weeks. No. 5 Archer has looked good, beating Mill Creek 61-23 before stomping preseason Class 5A No. 4 Loganville 51-25. Taniya McGowan netted 17 points in the win. No. 9 Norcross holds onto their position following a 55-53 overtime loss to Class 4A No. 4 Luella at the Dacula Tip-Off Classic.
There is no change in Class 6A. No. 1 Westlake defeated Parkview 74-57 behind Virginia Tech-signee Brianna Turnage’s 16 points and 12 rebounds. No. 2 Buford defeated Alpharetta 50-35 at the Tabo’s Tip-Off Classic. No. 3 Carrollton handled Central, AL 62-33 at Girls Night Out while No. 4 Langston Hughes held off Class 4A No. 3 Carver-Columbus 66-65. No. 5 Kell beat Shiloh 64-28 as Jamiah Gregory returned to the floor. Gregory’s career was announced to be over due to Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, but she saw restricted minutes in the Longhorns’ season opener. No. 7 Lovejoy was down 23-7 after one against rival Class 5A No. 1 Forest Park before storming back and outscoring the Panthers 25-13 in the final frame, but ultimately falling short 57-52. The Wildcats rebounded with a 64-47 win over Marietta at Girls Night Out. No. 8 Grovetown put away a pesky Greenbrier 61-47 behind Jada Porter’s 17 points. No. 10 Rockdale County crushed Lithia Springs 66-25.
Class 5A No.1 Forest Park hung on against Class 6A No. 7 Lovejoy 57-52, South Carolina-signee Sania Feagin posting 17 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 steals and 6 blocks, but turning the ball over 11 times. Olympia Chaney’s move from Westlake paid immediate dividends as she netted 16 points. No. 2 Woodward Academy defeated Class A-Private No. 3 Mt. Paran 79-66 at the Parkview TOC. Sydney Bowles had 26 points followed by Sara Lewis’ 16 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals. No. 7 Loganville is down three spots after a 26-point loss to Class 7A No. 5 Archer. No. 4 Cass climbs two positions with a 74-41 win over Walnut Grove. No. 5 Maynard Jackson holds steady after a tough 44-42 loss to Class 7A No. 8 Campbell at Girls Night Out. No. 6 Griffin is up one after a 1-1 start saw the Bears beat Union Grove 53-43 before losing 39-28 to Class 4A No. 6 Spalding. No. 8 New Manchester beat Douglas County in overtime 60-54 and handled Morrow 66-19. The Jaguars are up two places following a Jones County (0-1) loss to Russell County, AL 46-43. No. 9 Tri-Cities picked up a 66-39 win over Hapeville Charter but drop a spot after losing Jayla Thompson to transfer. Into the poll is No. 10 Hiram. The Hornets stung Paulding County 70-25 behind Imani Smith’s 17 points, 3 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 steals and 1 block. Her and Erial Owens have formed a dynamic one-two punch that can score inside and out.
There was more bad news before the season started in Class 4A for No. 2 Jefferson as Natalia Bolden, who missed all of last year with an ACL tear, tore her achilles in the preseason. Undeterred and playing for their fallen comrade, the Dragons ripped up Morgan County 81-30 in their season opener at the Tabo’s TOC. North Georgia-signee Livi Blackstock scored 16 points while Ellie Kinlaw (14), Courtney Kidd (11) and Deshona Gaither (10) all cracked double digits. No. 5 McDonough is down a spot after surviving in overtime against Stockbridge 63-55. No. 3 Carver-Columbus hangs onto their position after losing 66-65 to Class 6A No. 4 Langston Hughes at Girls Night Out. Up two spots to No. 4 is Luella. The Lions beat Kendrick 54-36 before holding off Class 7A No. 9 Norcross 55-53 at the Dacula TOC. No. 6 Spalding is on the move up two spots after Coach Montay West locked up his first win on the job, beating Class 5A No. 6 Griffin 39-28, Nuriyah Slaton totaling 18 points, 10 rebounds and 7 steals. Flowery Branch (0-2) is this week’s hard luck out. The Falcons challenged themselves against Forsyth Central and Class 7A No. 4 West Forsyth. The Falcons were outscored 15-5 in the fourth quarter against Forsyth Central, dropping 51-44 as Jillian Bretz torched them for 28 points as UMass-signee Aisha Dabo watched from the sideline with a season-ending torn meniscus. In the loss, Mercer-signee Ashlee Locke scored her 1,000th point and finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks while Shaina Kriews contributed 15 points and 5 rebounds. Replacing Flowery Branch is No. 9 Marist, who knocked off Class A-Private No. 9 Trinity Christian 40-38.
No movement occurred in Class 3A. No. 2 Johnson-Savannah blew out New Hampstead 80-34 while No. 6 Stephens County saw Ranajah Verdell score 14 points in a 52-25 win over Butler. No. 10 Coahulla Creek hung on against Heritage-Catoosa 46-40.
There wasn’t any shifting in Class 2A, but Florida State-signee Makayla Timpson put the rest of the state on notice in No. 1 Early County’s 72-45 win over Seminole County. The 6-foot-3 post kicked off her senior season with a bang, scoring a career-high 44 points to go with 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. No. 4 Josey had a strong night from Ky’Shonna Brown in a 73-37 win over Hephzibah, the highly sought-after guard tallying 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks. No. 5 Vidalia defeated Jenkins County 55-34 while No. 8 Fannin County beat Pickens 65-56 at the ETC Tip-Off Classic at Gilmer, setting up a matchup with the host school today.
Class A-Private wasted no time challenging each other. No. 1 Hebron Christian rolled at the Parkview TOC with a 73-54 win over Harrison getting 22 points, 7 rebounds and 10 steals from Malia Fisher while Samford-signees Nicole Azar (17 points and 7 assists) and Carly Heidger (11 points) did damage as well. No. 2 St. Francis moves up two spots after securing a 70-61 win over No. 4 Holy Innocents’ who slides two places. Sandwiched in between is No. 3 Mt. Paran who suffered a 79-66 loss to Class 5A No. 2 Woodward Academy, Kara Dunn scoring 31. No. 5 Galloway earned wins over Paideia (58-34) and Pinecrest Academy (67-18). No. 7 Greenforest hangs onto their spot after a 68-52 loss to Class 7A No. 2 Collins Hill at the Parkview TOC. L’or Mputu and Ineza Sifa scored 14 apiece. No. 9 Trinity Christian is down one position after losing 40-38 to Class 4A No. 9 Marist.
Only No. 4 Turner County played in Class A-Public, beating Echols County 86-23.