Gates County plays its final home game of the season when the Red Barons entertain Columbia this Friday night. Lawrence Academy is also home in Colonial Conference action. Fellow Colonial member Northeast Academy has an off-week, as does Hertford County in Northeastern Coastal Conference play following a six-game win streak. Meanwhile, Bertie and Northampton will be on the road.

COLUMBIA at GATES CO.

Last Friday Gates County lost to Manteo in the closing seconds, thus ending a four-game win streak for the Red Barons.

“We didn’t finish and put the game away,” said head coach Matt Biggy. “Manteo scored 24 points in the fourth quarter to come back and win.”

This Friday Gates County (4-4, 3-1, C-10) will host Columbia (5-3, 2-3, C-10) in a Coastal-10 conference game.

“Columbia is a good team and much improved from last year,” said Biggy. “They have a good quarterback who can run and pass and they run a lot of formations on offense with good size up front on defense.”

“For us to be successful on Friday we have to get better defensively and offensively we need to do what we do which is to finish drives and score points,” Biggy concluded. “We have to cut down on turnovers which hurt us at Manteo.”

BERTIE at CURRITUCK

Last Friday Bertie lost to First Flight for Homecoming on a night when they honored the 20th anniversary 1995 3A state championship team. It was their sixth straight loss.

“We just couldn’t score,” said Falcons coach Tyris Hill. “The defense played well and kept us in the game.”

This Friday Bertie (2-6, 0-3, NCC) travels to Currituck (1-7, 0-3, NCC) for a Northeastern Coastal Conference game. Both teams are seeking their first league win.

“”They’re a lot like First Flight in they run multiple offenses which we will have to be prepared for,” added Hill. “Their defense can be tough and they’ve lost some tough games just like us.”

“For us to be successful Friday night we have to tackle well on defense and on offense we need to make some plays and score some points. We’re expecting a tough game,” closed Hill.

NORTHAMPTON CO. at NO. EDGECOMBE

Last Friday Northampton County lost to South Creek.

“We have some key injuries,” said coach George Privott. “We fell behind early, then got within 10, but couldn’t catch up. We also had some turnovers which hurt us trying to come back.”

This Friday Northampton (4-4, 0-2, 2-Riv) travels to North Edgecombe (5-2, 1-1, 2-Riv) in Two-Rivers Conference action where they will be trying to win their first conference game.

“North Edgecombe runs the wishbone, and they have a good running back who ran all over us last year,” continued Privott. “Overall, they have good athletes.”

“We are hoping to get some injured players back,” concluded Privott. “We have to play better offensively and defensively, and a key for us will be to stop the run on defense, and we need to get our offense going again against a good team.”

CARY CHRISTIAN at LAWRENCE

Last Friday Lawrence Academy lost to Southampton Academy in Merry Hill for their Homecoming game.

“We played well at times but couldn’t sustain drives and we gave up too many big plays,” said Warriors coach Lee Hoffman. “Southampton is by far the best 1A team we have played so far this year.”

This Friday 1A Lawrence (3-5) will host Cary Christian (2-5), a 2A team in the Colonial 8-Man Conference, with both teams needing a win to boost their playoff chances.

“Cary Christian is a lot like us in team size and size overall,” Hoffman concluded. “We’re looking to have an advantage with our speed. Our defense needs to prevent big plays, and on offense we need to complete passes and sustain drives.”

NCC on TV

Time-Warner cable subscribers can watch the Northeastern Coastal Conference game between Northeastern and Pasquotank tonight (Thursday). The game will start at 7:30 p.m. on Channel 323.

Next Friday Hertford County puts its six-game win streak on the line at Northeastern in a battle for first place in the NCC.