At The Brickyard, North Hall romped to its first region championship since 2007 via a convincing 42-7 defeat of Banks County. The Trojans claimed their sixth straight region victory to clinch the title and set-up a regular season finale with No. 3 Buford -- which handled East Hall 49-6 in Rabbittown. Both teams have dominated 7-AAA throughout the campaign, and only the Wolves forfeiture of two contests due to fielding an ineligible player will keep the contest from being a region championship showdown.
The 2012 Region 8-AA title is also done and dusted after Jefferson's 35-7 defeat of Riverside Military Academy on Friday night in Jefferson. The Dragons cruised to their sixth region victory of the season and claimed their first region crown since 2009 in the process.
(For a look at video highlights from the Banks County at North Hall, Riverside Military at Jefferson and Monroe Area at Chestatee games, simply scroll down the page and click "play" on the highlight packages listed below the scoreline.)
Not everything went to plan for area teams on Friday, however, as Chestatee saw its chances for a first ever region title slip away in a 35-14 defeat to Monroe Area in Gainesville. The War Eagles gave up five turnovers in the defeat, their first 8-AAAA loss of the campaign. Chestatee will still finish second in the region, and host its first ever state playoff game, however, after Stephens County also defeated Eastside 23-7 on Friday -- which also secured a postseason spot for the Indians.
Jackson County also notched a postseason berth on Friday -- for the first time since a region playoff appearance in 1992 and their first ever in the state playoffs -- courtesy a 33-28 defeat of Elbert County in Jefferson.
Lakeview Academy also closed out its best-ever season on a high, slamming Towns County 34-0 to finish 2012 with a 6-2 record -- its first winning season.
Just a few miles away, there was another big result -- but for all the wrong reasons for the area representative, as fifth-ranked Gainesville dropped a 46-41 decision to Loganville -- a team that had won just two games prior to Friday. The Red Elephants committed four turnovers in the second half alone against the Red Devils and managed just 10 offensive plays over that span.
The outcome did nothing to change the import of next week's Gainesville at Flowery Branch battle, however. The Red Elephants will face the Falcons knowing that the winner will claim the Region 8-AAAAA title, with the loser falling into the No. 2 seed for the playoffs.
Elsewhere, Rabun County suffered a setback at Greene County, 27-14. The 8-AA loss does not dim the Wildcats' own postseason hopes, but they must defeat Oglethorpe County next week to keep themselves in the picture.
White County also continued to consolidate its playoff march, taking out West Hall 42-7 on the strength of its second half play, when the Warriors outscored the Spartans 28-0.
Dawson County also hammered Fannin County 54-12 in a key battle for the Tigers' race to state.
Be sure to check out our Sports and High School Sports pages for in-depth game stories from Friday night's action and simply scroll down the page for a list of area scores.
AREA FOOTBALL FINALS, Nov. 2
Buford 49, East Hall 6
Clarke Central 38, Winder-Barrow 7
Conyers, Heritage 42, Apalachee 0
Dawson County 54, Fannin County 12
Jackson County 33, Elbert County 28
Jefferson 35, Riverside Military Academy 7
Johns Creek 34, North Forsyth 7
Lakeview Academy 34, Towns County 0
Lanier 24, Lumpkin County 7
Loganville 46, Gainesville 41
Mill Creek 49, Habersham Central 0
Monroe Area 35, Chestatee 14
Morgan County 35, Hart County 8
North Gwinnett 49, Mountain View 7
North Hall 42, Banks County 7
Stephens County 23, Eastside 7
Union County 31, Social Circle 0
White County 42, West Hall 7
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS:
NORTH HALL 42, BANKS COUNTY 7
Highlights: North Hall vs Banks County from WDUN TV on Vimeo.
JEFFERSON 35, RIVERSIDE MILITARY 7
Highlights: Jefferson vs Riverside from WDUN TV on Vimeo.
Monroe Area 35, Chestatee 14
