Area teams are expected to have a major impact on the N.C. High School Athletic Association boys state cross country championships Saturday at Tanglewood Park in Clemmons.

Broughton and Enloe have been ranked Nos. 1 and 2 respectively in the coaches poll, but Green Hope beat both in regional competition.

Chapel Hill won the boys and girls 4-A team titles in 2006.

Among the individual defending champions are Taylor Gilland of Chapel Hill and Heather Beichner of 2-A Cardinal Gibbons.

KICKOFF TIMES: Kickoff times have been announced for the N.C. High School Athletic Association football championship games on Dec. 8.

* At N.C. State's Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh: 1-A game, 11 a.m.; 2-A, 3:30 p.m.; 2-AA, 7:30 p.m.

* University of North Carolina's Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill: 3-A, 11 a.m.; 3-AA, 3:30 p.m.; 1-AA, 7:30 p.m.

* Wake Forest University's BB&T Field, Winston-Salem: 4-A, 3 p.m.; 4-AA, 7:30 p.m.

REALIGNMENT PROCESS: The NCHSAA is working on conference alignments for member schools for 2009 through 2013.

The new plan is expected to be adopted by the board in May and take effect in fall 2009.

The first major step is getting the average daily membership for each of its member schools from the N.C. Department of Public Instruction.

The NCHSAA adjusts those numbers to take into account special cases, such as schools with separate enrollments playing as one school or federal schools.

The schools are arranged in order from largest enrollment to smallest after the adjustments. The schools are then divided into the NCHSAA's four classifications, which will be announced Nov. 15.

The NCHSAA staff will announce initial conference assignments Nov. 29.

The association's realignment committee will take the schools' feedback on the staff's proposal and begin polishing the alignment in January.

A realignment meeting for schools is scheduled for Jan. 22 in Greenville. The realignment committee will meet in February and March to consider changes.

"If this alignment is typical, most schools will get what they want. Some schools won't get what they want but are satisfied. And a few schools will hate the association for the next four years," NCHSAA executive director Charlie Adams said.

Few major changes are expected in the Triangle. Heritage High, near Rolesville, is scheduled to open in 2010 and will be placed in a conference.

Another new Wake County school near Wake Forest should open in 2011. A spot for it will be held in a league.

PROTESTING CELEBRATION: NCHSAA executive director Charlie Adams has joined his counterparts in the region in protesting to the Southeastern Conference the behavior of the University of Georgia football team after the Bulldogs' first touchdown in the Oct. 27 game against Florida. The entire team went to the end zone to celebrate.

"We understand that this celebration was planned and approved by the coaching staff," Adams said. "At a time when high schools are stressing sportsmanship and suspending and ejecting players for taunting and other unsportsmanlike acts, I felt it was important to make a statement that this type of celebration is not acceptable on the high school level."

If an NCHSAA team had a similar celebration, the players would be ejected. If six or more players participated and were ejected, the team would be ineligible for the playoffs.

REILLY GETS REVENGE: Cardinal Gibbons' Nancy Reilly, whose only two losses this season were to Greene Central's Puja Patel, finally beat Patel. Reilly had lost to Patel on the past two Saturdays, most recently in the individual state championship.

In Tuesday's opening round of the dual-team championships, though, Reilly won 3-6, 6-4, 10-1.

Greene Central still won the match 5-4, with the deciding point coming in the final doubles match -- when Patel and Ashley Grant upended Reilly and Casey Perriccio 11-9.

"We were the ones who blinked," said Cardinal Gibbons coach Barbara Gamblin.

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