By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

It felt all too familiar.

The LaGrange Grangers have managed just one win through the first eight games of the season, but the record doesn’t tell the story.

Outside of a blowout loss at Cartersville, LaGrange (1-7 overall, 0-5 in Region 5-AAAA) has been competitive in every one of its games this season.

That was the case once again last week, with LaGrange playing a down-to-the-wire game against Sandy Creek.

The Patriots’ lone points came on a field goal, but that was enough to lift them to a 3-2 victory at Callaway Stadium.

It was the fourth time this season LaGrange lost a game by seven or fewer points, and that has included three region losses by a combined seven points.

LaGrange has two games remaining, including today’s region showdown against Chapel Hill.

LaGrange finishes the season next week against Shaw, and that will be senior night and homecoming.

“At the end of the day, we’re not giving up,” LaGrange head coach Chuck Gibbs said. “We’re not giving teams anything. These games can go either way.”

Unfortunately for the Grangers, the outcomes haven’t been going their way.

LaGrange opened its region schedule with a 13-10 loss to Central-Carroll, and it followed that up with a 9-6 loss to Cedartown.

After losing to Cartersville 45-7, LaGrange hung tough with Troup and was within 14 points in the second half before losing 35-14.

A week ago, LaGrange’s defense held Sandy Creek to one field goal, but it was unable to score any points on offense.

LaGrange’s two points came on a safety late in the first half when the snap went over the Sandy Creek punter’s head and out of the end zone.

The Grangers had a chance to score on their opening drive when they drove deep into Patriots’ territory, but that possession ended with a missed field-goal attempt.

“The first drive was our best drive all season,” Gibbs said. “We commanded the offense, and went straight down the field. We ran 11 plays, and eight of our 11 plays were different plays. And then we just didn’t finish.”

In the fourth quarter, LaGrange had the ball near the Sandy Creek 30-yard line when a fourth-down play came up inches short of a first down.

“Your heart just breaks for the seniors,” Gibbs said. “They’ve had a rough go. They’ve never tasted or experienced consistent success since they’ve been here. They fight. We play with everybody.”

While the Grangers are headed for a disappointing season from a win-loss standpoint, progress has been made this year.

During a winless 2017 season, LaGrange was blown out in every game by at least 26 points.

“I told the kids, you never understand the why,” Gibbs said. “You only have to tell them that the seniors have set the standard for hard work. They’ve set the standard for grit.”

LAGRANGE VS.  CHAPEL HILL

WHEN: Today, 7:30 p.m.

WHERE: Callaway Stadium

RECORDS: LaGrange (1-7, 0-5 in Region 5-AAAA); Chapel Hill (5-3 overall, 1-3 in Region 5-AAAA)

LAST MEETING: Chapel Hill beat LaGrange 25-18 last year