Back-to-back defending West Virginia Class AA state champion Frankfort tops the preseason Area Top 5.
The Falcons, winners of 28 straight, were unanimously voted the top team after beating Bluefield, 49-42, in last year’s state title game.
Frankfort, which returns a bevy of contributors on both sides of the ball, is four wins shy of tying the Area win streak record of 32 set by Fort Hill between Week 3 in 2015 and Week 8 in 2017. With a 3-0 start, the Falcons could tie the record at home against Northern on Sept. 25 and break it the following week at Mountain Ridge. Frankfort opens at home against Moorefield tonight.
Fort Hill was a unanimous selection at No. 2 in the preseason poll.
The Sentinels were denied a fifth consecutive Class 1A state championship at the hands of Patuxent, 35-28, last December.
Fort Hill, which finished 9-4 a year ago, opens the season at Northern next week.
Allegany was voted third after finishing third in the final poll last year.
The Campers, who finished 6-6 last season, reached state tournament play for the first time since 2009, when they fell to Patuxent. They travel to Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, next week.
Mountain Ridge was narrowly voted ahead of Keyser for the No. 4 spot with seven points to the Golden Tornado’s six.
The Miners, who lost at Keyser in their final regular-season contest, finished 5-6 last year and return 16 starters. Mountain Ridge hosts Southern next week.
Keyser rounds out the poll at No. 5 after going 7-4 last year and breaking a six-year playoff drought. The Golden Tornado travel to Berkeley Springs tonight.
East Hardy received one fifth-place vote.
The Area sportswriter poll was voted on by Jeff Landes and Kyle Bennett (Cumberland Times-News), Trevor King (Garrett County Republican) and Chapin Jewell (Mineral News Tribune) this week. The poll encompasses Allegany, Garrett, Mineral, Hampshire, Grant and Hardy counties.