Friday night’s prep football preview capsules

Dogwood District
Appomattox at William Campbell
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Appomattox 4-1, 1-0 Dogwood; William Campbell 2-3, 0-1
w LAST WEEK: Appomattox beat Chatham 41-7; William Campbell lost to Dan River 25-18
w FACTS: The last time Appomattox beat William Campbell was in 1999, when it was the last team other than the Generals or Gretna to capture a Dogwood District title. The Raiders could be without middle linebacker M.J. Pennix (ankle sprain) while Campbell is still missing QB Brandon “BeBe” Adams (Achilles strain).

Dan River at Altavista
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RADIO: WKDE, 105.5-FM
w RECORDS:  Dan River 4-1, 1-0 Dogwood; Altavista 4-1, 0-1
w LAST WEEK: Dan River beat William Campbell 25-18; Altavista lost to Gretna 22-0
w FACTS: This is a showdown between two teams looking to join perennial powers Gretna and Campbell as well as Appomattox in what should be an extremely competitive Dogwood District race this season. The Wildcats’ only loss this year was a non-district bout with the Hawks, who they will play again for real in two weeks.

Gretna at Nelson County
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Gretna 4-1, 1-0 Dogwood; Nelson County 1-3, 0-0
w LAST WEEK: Gretna beat Altavista 22-0; Nelson County was idle after beating Central-Lunenburg last Tuesday 22-14
w FACTS: Gretna has won four straight since a season-opening loss at LCA, even with QB Nick Miller hobbled by an ankle sprain. Nelson has had 10 days off since notching its first win on the road in a game postponed four days by rain.

Seminole District
Liberty vs. E.C. Glass
w SITE: City Stadium
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RADIO: WBRG, 1050-AM
w RECORDS:  Liberty 5-1, 1-1 Seminole; E.C. Glass 1-5, 1-1
w LAST WEEK: Liberty beat Brookville 35-20; E.C. Glass beat Rustburg 24-14
w FACTS: The Minutemen bounced back from a 49-20 loss to Amherst with their first win in four tries over the Bees to move up to No. 3 in the VHSL Division 3 rankings. The Hilltoppers staged their first Seminole win since moving over from the Western Valley. 
Heritage at Brookville
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Heritage 1-4, 0-1 Seminole; Brookville 5-1, 1-1
w LAST WEEK: Heritage was idle; Brookville lost to Liberty 35-20
w FACTS: The Pioneers have shown steady improvement since losing their first three games, including a 35-0 opener at Magna Vista and a 41-6 home-opening blowout against Amherst. They beat Halifax and nearly knocked off Division 4 power Harrisonburg.  Brookville has won the last two meetings with Heritage, including a stunning 28-21 upset of the undefeated Pioneers in 2007, to take an 8-7 lead in the all-time series.

Rustburg at Jefferson Forest
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Rustburg 1-5, 0-2 Seminole; Jefferson Forest 3-2, 1-0
w LAST WEEK: Rustburg lost to E.C. Glass 24-14; Jefferson Forest lost to Turner Ashby 21-7
w FACTS: The Red Devils gave up 212 yards on the ground and managed just 69 yards on 44 rushing attempts against Glass last week as Tyler Morris was sacked five times. The Cavaliers’ gave up two fumbles and three touchdowns in the final eight minutes at Turner Ashby last week after striking first on Rashad Hall’s 63-yard first-quarter TD run.

Non-district
Amherst at Bassett
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Amherst 5-0, 2-0 Seminole; Bassett 1-4, 0-0 Piedmont
w LAST WEEK: Amherst beat Pulaski 33-10; Bassett was idle
w FACTS: Amherst has outscored opponents by a 230-48 margin. The Lancers last routed Bassett 61-21 in the 2006 Group AA, Division 4, state semifinal. Since opening the season with a 21-20 victory over Carroll County, the Bengals have been outscored 137-21 in four straight defeats.

LCA at St. Mary’s-Ryken (Md.)
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Liberty Christian Academy 5-1, 2-0 Virginia Independent Conference; St. Mary’s-Ryken 2-3, 1-0 Freelance
w LAST WEEK: LCA beat Riverdale Baptist (Md.) 58-6; St. Mary’s-Ryken beat Sidwell Friends (D.C.) 27-0
w FACTS: St. Mary’s-Ryken, located in rural southern Maryland, is coming off a 1-8 season in which it was shut out five times, lost to LCA 65-6 and was outscored by a 387-54 count.

Staunton River at Lord Botetourt
w KICKOFF: 7:30 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Staunton River 3-3, 0-0 Blue Ridge; Lord Botetourt 2-4, 0-0
w LAST WEEK: Staunton River beat Tunstall 13-0; Lord Botetourt lost to Blacksburg 35-6
w FACTS: Both teams chalked up wins over a couple of patsies in James River-Buchanan and Patrick County, which have a combined record of 2-9. Last week, the Golden Eagles, who ended a 28-game losing streak on Sept. 18, scored their first win over a legitimate contender, getting another big rushing game from Meech Coles (26 carries, 232 yards, including an 84-yard TD), who eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for the season.

VES at St. Anne’s-Belfield
w KICKOFF: 7 p.m.
w RECORDS:  Virginia Episcopal School 0-4, 0-1 Old Dominion Football Conference; STAB 1-3, 0-1 ODFC
w LAST WEEK: VES lost to Nansemond-Suffolk 38-14; STAB lost to St. Christopher’s 31-7
w FACTS: These two teams have played in some high-stakes contests in recent years, with the Saints winning the Virginia Independent Schools Division II title game in Lynchburg two years ago, 42-22, when VES QB Daniel Alexander made an auspicious debut in place of an injured Will White. Last year, the Bishops got blown out, 56-35, by the eventual state runner-up to Atlantic Shores, which beat VES in the state semifinal.