The three Seminole District teams competing in this weekend’s Region III playoff semifinals — Amherst, Brookville and Liberty — are postseason regulars with something to prove.

As the Region B playoffs finally get under way this weekend, Gretna and Appomattox find themselves in familiar positions. The Raiders are in the playoffs for the third consecutive season and the Hawks have won four state titles in the past six seasons.

The ninth consecutive trip to the postseason for Gretna comes without perennial Dogwood power William Campbell. Taking its place in the Division 1 field is Altavista (9-1), which hosts Madison County tonight at 7.

High school athletes of the week for Nov. 9 to 13

The playoffs are in full swing and the top teams are producing some outstanding individual efforts. This last week seems to have been all about running backs.

In volleyball, where games often stay in the balance to the end, learning how to finish well is critical, as E.C. Glass showed Tuesday night before a raucous home crowd in its cozy auxiliary gym.

Making their first state tournament appearance, in their first season competing at the Group AA level, the Seminole District and Region III tournament champion Hilltoppers (26-2) swept their fifth straight opponent, beating Region IV runner-up Hidden Valley, 25-21, 28-26, 25-23 to stretch their string of games won to 16.

Gretna’s football team finished tied with Clarke County with 24.2 points in the final VHSL power ratings for Region B, Division 2, after Monday’s rain-delayed makeup games. But the Eagles (10-0) received the No. 1 seed by virtue of their perfect record, bumping the two-time defending Group A champion Hawks (8-2) to No. 2.

Instead of entertaining fourth-seeded Appomattox in Saturday’s Region B, Division 2, semifinals, as was reported on Tuesday, Gretna will host third-seeded Buckingham (10-0) at 1 p.m. Appomattox (8-2), meanwhile, must travel to Clarke County (10-0) near Winchester for its 1:30 p.m. semifinal.

The Region B football playoff pairings were finalized on Monday, with Dogwood District co-champions Altavista and Gretna receiving the No. 2 seed in Division 1 and 2, respectively and Appomattox, which also earned a share of the district title, seeded fourth in Division 2.

The two-time defending Group A, Division 2, state champion Hawks (8-2) will host third-seeded Buckingham (10-0) in one Region B, Division 2, semifinal on Saturday at 1 p.m. before Appomattox (8-2) travels to top-seeded Clarke County (10-0) in the other.

ALTAVISTA — The Strasburg volleyball fans who made the three-hour trip to Altavista for the Region B championship match barely had time to settle into their seats before heading back home with the championship hardware.

Seniors Jenna Smoot and Jaclyn Ayers combined for 26 kills and 15 blocks in the Rams’ 25-17, 25-18 25-21 sweep of the Colonels on Saturday.

ROANOKE — Playing in its seventh consecutive Virginia Independent Schools Division I state championship match, Liberty Christian Academy’s volleyball team wasn’t intimidated by facing defending state champion Flint Hill’s giant front line.

The Bulldogs (22-10) gave the Huskies (31-2) a spirited battle before falling in four games, Saturday at North Cross, 25-14, 25-16, 20-25, 25-18.

MONETA — As it did in the Seminole District tournament final, beating Jefferson Forest in four games, E.C. Glass’s vol-leyball team had a little extra motivation going into Saturday night’s Region III championship match at Staunton River.

The Hilltoppers (25-2) avenged the second of their two regular-season losses with a 25-21, 25-16, 25-14 sweep of Lord Bo-tetourt, which had beaten them in two games in the final match of an early season tournament it hosted.

Prep scoreboard for Saturday’s games

NARUNA — For years, the William Campbell-Gretna game has been a high-stakes affair.

Though that was not the case this year for the Generals, the Hawks still had plenty on the line in their regular-season finale, including a share of the Dogwood District title and a No.1-seed in the Region B, Division 2, playoffs.

Playing on Saturday instead of Friday because of the weather, which wreaked havoc on area football fields, the Hawks, led by senior running back Andre Dickerson’s 169 rushing yards, steamrolled the Generals 69-30.

GRETNA — As Kevin Saunders was being introduced as the new coach of Gretna’s football team back in May, a game that was being highlighted on the upcoming schedule was the season finale for the Hawks — at William Campbell.

With the two teams combining to win the past nine Dogwood District titles, many felt that this game — the first time the two teams have played in the regular season finale since 2002 — would decide the champion of the Dogwood.

Either someone forgot to tell the Potomac Panthers that they were playing in the state semifinals or the Liberty Flames, not the LCA Bulldogs, were on the field Friday night in LU’s Williams Stadium.

One way or the other, the Panthers were outmatched and overwhelmed against the Bulldogs. Up 56-0 at halftime, LCA mercifully called off the dogs in the second half and went on to win 63-0.

The wait is over for Altavista’s football team, which last won a Dogwood District title 38 years ago in 1971 when Richard Nixon was in his first term as president.

The Colonels earned a share of the district crown Friday night when they defeated visiting Nelson County 43-13. If Gretna beats William Campbell today, the Colonels, Hawks and Appomattox will all have a piece of the title.

AMHERST — Never before in Jeff Woody’s six seasons as Brookville’s coach had the Bees won a football game by scoring a touchdown to overcome a deficit in the final minute.

They nearly did it in last year’s Group AA, Division 3, championship game, but their last-ditch drive on Liberty University’s turf stalled and they fell to James Monroe in a 50-46 shootout.

Friday night, playing in the Region III, Division 3, quarterfinal on Amherst’s home turf since Stinger Stadium was left too wet by this week’s torrential rain, Brookville (9-2) delivered the knockout punch against Alleghany (6-5) on a fourth-down sweep by junior Deshon Foxx with 35 seconds left in regulation.

The rain has forced several date and location changes. Here are the games from this region that we’re reporting on. If you get news of a change or a final score that’s not shown here, please call us at 540-981-9126.

FISHERSVILLE — E.C. Glass proved to be a little too much for Fort Defiance on Thursday night in the Region III semifinals. The Hilltoppers swept the Indians in three games 25-16, 25-20, 25-14.

Preview capsules of tonight’s football games, including three playoff contests.

Brookville’s Region III, Division 3, quarterfinal football game against Alleghany has been moved to Amherst High School, the first in the area to install Pro-Grass field turf, due to the wet field conditions at Stinger Stadium caused by the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida.

Wet weather conditions have forced Liberty Christian Academy’s football team to practice inside the past three days, meaning the Bulldogs, who are coming off a bye week, could be a bit rusty going into tonight’s Virginia Independent Schools Division I state semifinal against Potomac School.

Fortunately, they will have the luxury of playing on the FieldTurf at Liberty University’s Williams Stadium.

Win or lose tonight, in its Region III, Division 4, quarterfinal at Spotswood, Staunton River’s football season has been an unqualified success.

“It’s been an unbelievable season,” second-year coach Rick Witt said. “It’s very exciting. Nobody in the world thought this team had a chance to go to the playoffs. Everything we do now is icing on the cake.”

MONETA — Jefferson Forest’s and Lord Botetourt’s volleyball teams came into Thursday night’s Region III tournament semifinal with identical 20-3 records.

The two sides, both nicknamed the Cavaliers, wore matching black uniforms with one subtle difference — JF’s had vertical white stripes under each arm while LB’s had one horizontal white stripe across the gut, resembling a lightning bolt.

That was symbolic of the advantage Botetourt had on Forest— a jolt of energy emanating from deep within.

“We just didn’t have a lot of fire in our bellies tonight,” JF coach Steve Mills said after his Cavaliers’ season came to an end with a 25-17, 25-22, 27-29, 25-19 defeat.

ALTAVISTA — They’d been there before. A fifth game to decide who advances to the Group A state tournament. One point away.

Last year, Altavista came up one point short. This year, it closed the deal, and now will face the team it lost to in that epic fifth game last year for the 2009 Region B championship as the Colonels came back from 2-1 down to win a five-game slugfest over Madison County, 3-2 (23-25, 25-20, 15-25, 25-22, 15-11).

If Holy Cross had any type of edge, it had to be experience.

In terms of talent, the Gaels likely could have swapped uniforms with Roanoke Catholic and no one would have noticed the difference. After all, both teams do wear green.

Experience, though, in the form of eight Holy Cross seniors, would be the ultimate decider in a No. 4 vs. No. 5 quarterfinal VISAA, Division 3, volleyball matchup. Led by their senior core, the fourth-seeded Gaels eked out a gutty 20-25, 25-18, 22-25, 27-25, 15-7 home victory over the visiting Celtics.

There’s a saying: “If you can’t run with the big dogs, stay on the porch.”

On Tuesday night, the third-seeded host Liberty Christian Academy Bulldogs’ volleyball team proved to be top dog as it knocked off the No. 6-seeded Norfolk Academy Bulldogs, 25-17, 21-25, 25-19, 25-21 in the Virginia Independent Schools Division I state quarterfinals.

Central-Lunenburg played a slow-down game, but Altavista, despite some early troubles, still managed to race through the Chargers and into the Region B volleyball tournament semifinals with a 25-16, 25-16, 25-14 sweep in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

The Colonels (16-7) will host the winner of the Madison County-Riverheads match at 7 p.m. on Thursday for a chance to play in Saturday’s championship match and receive an automatic bid to the Group A state tournament.

FOREST — Jefferson Forest senior Kelsey Stapleton didn’t limp on her injured left ankle for Tuedsay’s Region III quarterfinal match against Staunton River, a 25-10, 25-13, 25-17 Cavalier sweep.

Speed kills.

E.C. Glass proved that maxim to be true in the sport of volleyball Monday night in the Region III tournament opener against visiting Waynesboro.

The Hilltoppers ran their quick-strike attack nearly flawlessly in the first game of a 25-9, 25-17, 25-15 sweep of the Lady Giants, setting the tone for the match that lasted just over an hour.

After enduring a physical confrontation against Atlantic Shores Christian School with a 4-1 victory, Holy Cross’ boys soccer team is headed for its third Virginia Independent Schools Division II Final Four in six seasons at Sports Backer Stadium in Richmond.