Five Games to Watch This Week

The time off period is just about officially over for sports teams around St. Charles County.

The holiday season comes to a close on Monday with the observation of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. After that day—a day some teams actually aren't taking off—school is back in session and the conference races are really beginning to heat up. Non-conference games still dot the schedule, but the conference games bring the most drama.

While some good teams are starting to pull ahead of the pack, the GAC North and GAC South standings for both the boys and girls are still murky. The only way to clear things up? More conference plays, which is what we will get this week. 

Here are some games to watch this week around St. Charles County. 

• Who: (Wrestling) Howell North vs. CBC vs. Ritenour
• When/Where: 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 17, at the Warrenton Shootout
• Why the big deal?: Francis Howell North's wrestlers will return to school on Tuesday and get ready for a big match, or rather matches. The Knights will square off against both CBC and Ritenour in a triangular dual. 

• Who: (Girls basketball) Duchesne vs. St. Charles West
• When/Where: 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 17, at St. Charles West
• Why the big deal?: The Duchesne girls basketball team is 8-7 on the year, but 1-2 in conference play. The girls will get a chance to even that record in a GAC North match against St. Charles West (5-10, 0-0).

Orchard Farm

• Who: (Girls basketball) Orchard Farm vs. Wright City
• When/Where: 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 16, at home
• Why the big deal?: The Orchard Farm girls won't get Monday off. Instead, the Eagles will host Wright City in a Martin Luther King Jr. Day game.

• Who: (Girls basketball) St. Charles vs. Duchesne
• When/Where: Thursday, Jan. 19 at home
• Why the big deal?: The St. Charles girls basketball team is 10-5 and has a 2-0 record in conference play. The Lady Pirates will look to stay atop the GAC North with a conference tilt against Duchesne. 

• Who: (Boys basketball) St. Charles West vs. Washington
• When/Where: 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 20, at Washington
• Why the big deal?: The St. Charles West boys basketball team will kick off confernce play on Friday. The Warriors will head to Washington in search of GAC North win No. 1.