For the past several seasons, Easley and Wren have played the final game of the season simply for pride.
Usually both teams have been out of playoff contention, and a win or loss really has no effect on a team’s chances of earning a week of postseason play.
It’s a little different this year. Wren has clinched the Region 1-AAAA title, its first since joining the AAAA level six years ago. It was the Hurricane’s first conference title since winning the Western AAA title in 1980.
With a 8-2 record coming into Friday night’s showdown with Easley, the Hurricanes already have clinched their first winning season since the 1996 team was 6-5.
The 1993 team was 8-3, which was the last time Wren won eight games in a season. A win Friday would give Wren nine victories in a season for the first time since 1992, when the Hurricanes finished the year with an 11-3 season.
In fact, nine wins tops the total number of victories for Wren between 1997 and 2001 — eight wins over five seasons.
Wren also comes into Friday’s game against Easley as the team leading the all-time series for the first time since 1999. Wren’s 35-0 win over the Green Wave earlier this season — the fifth straight for the Hurricanes — gave them a 16-15 edge in the series. The series has been tied six different times over the years, and if Easley wins, it will be tied for a seventh time. But a Wren win would give the Hurricanes a 2-game lead over their arch rivals.
So certainly, there are plenty reasons for Wren to want a victory tonight. But all have more to do with pride, than anything else.
As Region 1-AAAA champions, Wren has clinched a spot in the playoffs. A win or loss Friday would likely only affect where the Hurricanes are seeded in the playoffs.
Easley, on the other hand, has absolutely nothing to gain from a win, outside of the pride defeating the region champs and their arch rivals.
Easley comes into Friday’s game with a 1-9 record, 0-4 in conference play. A loss isn’t going to knock Easley out of the playoffs. And it’s unlikely the city of Easley will have a parade for a team that finishes the season at 2-9.
Still, an Easley win would cut off the Hurricanes after winning five straight in the series. A sixth-straight win would set a record for most consecutive wins in the series, breaking the tie with the 5-game winning streak Wren had from 1991 until 1995.
Plus Easley is looking for something positive from this season. Coming off a winless campaign in 2008, the Green Wave would like to finish this season with a win, hoping the momentum will continue into the 2010 season.
An Easley win would also mark only the second time since the teams began playing twice a season in 2004 that one team did not sweep the yearly series. In 2005, Wren won the first match-up 31-7, but Easley topped the Hurricanes 14-13 in the season finale.
So in the end, it boils down to being about pride. But isn’t pride enough?
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