Gladiators, Bison Win To Set Up Rivalry Showdown For the 1B Title

It will be an All-Augusta County affair next week in Greenville for the Region 1B football championship after both Riverheads and Buffalo Gap posted big road victories on Friday.

RIVERHEADS 29, SUSSEX CENTRAL 12
SUSSEX – Riverheads is back in a regional football championship. So what else is new?

The Gladiators rode their punishing ground assault to a convincing 29-12 victory over the second-seeded Sussex Central Tigers on Friday night in the Region 1B semifinals.

The victory continued Riverheads' dominance over the Tigers as the Gladiators are 5-0 all-time, all in elimination playoff games. In those five contests, Riverheads has outscored the Tigers 195-52. The game was the first time the Gladiators made the long road trip to Sussex Central since the 2006 state semifinals. They met in the 2016 state championship in Salem and played twice in Greenville in 2019 and 2022.

Now we have a doozy of a Region 1B championship game set up next Friday in Greenville where an all-Augusta County battle breaks out between fifth-seeded Buffalo Gap and the third-seeded Gladiators for a berth in the Class 1 state semifinals.

The Tigers scored on the first play of the game, using a double pass for a 60-yard touchdown.

But the Gladiators responded on their first possession, getting a 4-yard run by Jackson Fitzgerald, who later added a 17-yard romp for a 14-6 lead after one quarter.

After a scoreless second quarter, Riverheads (8-4) extended its advantage to 22-6 after three quarters following Rylan Payne's 6-yard run and Fitzgerald's two-point conversion run.

Mason Flint's 1-yard plunge in the fourth quarter upped the margin to 29-6.

Sussex Central ran only one offensive play from the third quarter until late in the game thanks to a 17-play drive by the Gladiators.

Fitzgerald finished with 166 yards rushing on 19 carries, while the Gladiators collected 315 yards on the ground and 329 yards of total offense.

Riverheads' defense limited the Tigers to 125 yards.

BUFFALO GAP 52, ALTAVISTA 29
ALTAVISTA - Buffalo Gap gashed Altavista's defense for seven rushing touchdowns Friday night as the Bison gained sweet revenge by crushing the top-seeded Colonels 52-29 in the Region 1B football semifinals.

The fifth-seeded Bison lost to Altavista 32-20 in last year's regional championship, but they weren't in any mood to have a repeat trip in 2025.

Jayden Humphrey scored four touchdowns, while Isaac Goff, Cooper Reed and Grayson McCall each found the end zone once. Goff also ran in a quartet of two-point conversions.

Gap (6-6) plays in the regional championship for a second-straight year next Friday where none other than arch-rival Riverheads is waiting in Greenville. The Gladiators secured their title game clash by also going on the road and routing second-seeded Sussex Central 29-12.

The Bison spotted Altavista a 3-0 lead after giving up a field goal on the opening drive, but that would be all the points the Colonels could muster in the first 24 minutes.

Gap took the lead just over three minutes into the second quarter when Humphrey ripped off a 59-yard score. Maddox Roach's PAT put the Bison up 7-3 at the 8:52 mark.

Goff scored with 50 seconds remaining in the first half and added the two points for a 15-3 lead.

Brandon Argenbright's interception with two seconds left thwarted a potential Altavista score.

The Bison needed just one snap to reach the end zone to begin the second half following the kickoff when Humphrey raced 72 yards as the margin ballooned to 23-3.

But Altavista sophomore Jhy'Keis Berger took the ensuing kickoff to the house, giving the Colonels new life at 23-10.

Gap pounded the ball back downfield only to have a pass intercepted in the end zone, and the Colonels took advantage of the mistake when Berger went 60 yards, which suddenly chopped the deficit to 23-16 at the 7:38 mark.

Goff's 50-yard kickoff return put the Bison in excellent field position at Altavista's 44. Goff later kept the drive alive with a 4-yard gain on fourth-and-2. Cooper Reed finished it with a 16-yard run up the middle.

Berger's 13-yard run made it a one-score game again at 31-23 with 22 seconds left in the third quarter, but the Colonels never got any closer over the final 12 minutes.

The Bison had to start at their 5 after mishandling the kickoff, but Reed got them out of trouble by breaking off a 67-yard run. Humphrey's 15-yard score pushed the lead to 39-23 with 10:45 left in the game.

Gap closed out by rout on Humphrey's 7-yard TD and Grayson McCall's 1-yard plunge with 1:59 left.