MT. AIRY — It’s been almost two weeks since the start of the 2020 girls fastpitch softball season began. So far, so good as there have been virtually no stoppages due to the COVID-19 virus and teams are now beginning to break into their region schedules.
And no team has been hotter in the northeast Georgia area than Habersham Central. The Lady Raiders (8-1) lead all of Class 6A in wins and lead the early standings in Region 8-6A with a 2-0 record.
That surely will be tested this week as they play host to Winder-Barrow on Tuesday and travel to perennial state power Buford on Thursday in a pair of region showdowns. Habersham Central coach Bill Bradley said this will be a pivotal week.
“Obviously our next three games -- Winder, Buford and Dacula -- are big. That will tell us so much about ourselves as a team," Bradley said. “I think we have been complete in all three phases to this point. Having (slap) hitters helps turn our lineup over and just makes our opponents have to make all the plays."
Buford (4-2, 1-0) has played a very challenging schedule in the early going and the winner on Thursday will have the early inside-track for the top seed.
Region 8-4A, which houses powerhouses East Hall, Flowery Branch, and Jefferson also is looking strong and balanced as those three teams are battling with Madison County (8-0, 3-0) in the early going. The Lady Falcons (4-1, 2-0) already knocked off the Lady Dragons (2-2, 1-1) in a 1-0 thriller and will travel to Madison County on Tuesday for a huge showdown with the Lady Red Raiders.
East Hall (6-1, 1-1) also is still in the mix despite a tough 3-2 loss to Jefferson last week. The Lady Vikings have a week of non-region contests before jumping back into the region next week with a huge home game against Madison County on Sept. 1.
Region 7-3A is also under way and has an early log-jam with five teams within one-half game of each other after the opening week. Gilmer, Dawson County, and Cherokee Bluff all are 1-0 while Lumpkin County and Whte County sit 1-1 in region play.
Several key region matchups in Region 7-3A are on tap this week with West Hall traveling to Lumpkin and Gilmer heading to North Hall on Monday. On Tuesday, the Lady Trojans hit the road at West Hall and Gilmer plays host to White County.
Region 8-2A, which features defending Class 2A state champion Banks County, has yet to begin region play with just four teams.
Region 8-A Public got underway last week with Commerce (4-1, 2-0) sitting in a early first-place tie with Lincoln County. Those two teams will meet on Thursday in Lincolnton with the winner taking over sole possession of first place.
