Richmond Hill High School will find out soon which classification its sports teams will play in starting next school year.

One thing’s for sure, though -- thanks to the latest round of region alignment at the Georgia High School Association, the Wildcats and Lady Wildcats will no longer compete in 3AAA, their region home for the last eight years.

Now, determining what is in the best interest of RHHS has school officials trying to figure out the right move --- AAAA or AAAAA?

"We have a lot of decisions to make, complicated decisions," Assistant Principal Wade Wright told Bryan County School Board members at Thursday night’s meeting, which was held at RHHS.

Coaches will meet Monday to decide at what classification they want to compete. That decision will go to the Georgia High School Association Tuesday. The GHSA has the final say.

The reason for the need to make a choice is simple math and student population.

The high school’s estimated student body for the 2010-2011 school year is 1,485 students -- which means RHHS has outgrown Class AAA and is now a true Class AAAA school in the eyes of the GHSA.

The number is based on RHHS’ enrollment in the 2009 spring and fall semesters, but it isn’t a mandate that RHHS compete in AAAA.

The Wildcats can also play up a classification and go to a AAAAA region such as the one occupied primarily by Savannah-Chatham public schools.

In Georgia, GHSA schools are placed into one of five classifications based on student population for competitive purposes ranging from football to literary competitions.

The smallest schools compete in Class A, the largest in Class AAAAA. Schools are further subdivided by geography into eight regions per classification, though some coastal schools such as RHHS have lately found themselves members of regions where they’re outnumbered by Augusta-area schools.

-Read more in the Bryan County News.