CHAPEL HILL — Another draft, another round of unhappiness for Bladen County high school leaders.

The N.C. High School Athletic Association’s realignment committee released its second draft on Thursday. East Bladen and West Bladen went from a seven-school league that also included 1-As Lakewood and Union from Sampson County to a 10-school league that is all 2-A and stretches from Fairmont to East Duplin.

If approved, the Eagles and Knights would play with Robeson County’s Fairmont, Red Springs and St. Pauls, plus more northern neighbors Clinton, East Duplin, James Kenan, Midway and Wallace-Rose Hill. Appeals — and they are expected by schools in Bladen and Robeson counties — by any school throughout the state are due Thursday by 4 p.m.

Patty Evers, East Bladen’s athletics director, said she wasn’t happy with the proposal. She cited the school’s borderline status of being 1-A and 10 teams in a league. The large conference schedule would likely eliminate opportunities to play nearby schools, namely Columbus County, closer in student population size.

Travis Pait, West Bladen’s athletics director, said he has no feelings on combination leagues but wants to be with Columbus County schools for financial reasons.

Columbus County is home to 2-As Whiteville and South Columbus, and 1-As East Columbus and West Columbus.

In both draft proposals, the foursome from Columbus join 2-A Trask and 1-A Pender.

In the first draft, the five schools now proposed to be with the Bladen and Robeson schools — Clinton, East Duplin, James Kenan, Midway, Wallace-Rose Hill — were in a split league with 1-As Lakewood and Union. Those two 1-As are now with Hobbton and North Duplin from the Bladen and Robeson schools’ initial draft league, along with Neuse Charter and Rosewood.

The regions have had some conglomeration of mostly the same schools for years, including those more to the east of the Bladen schools; those in adjacent counties to Bladen; those in the Wilson-Goldsboro corridor; and those in the I-40 corridor of Sampson and Duplin counties.

Robeson County school leaders have also expressed displeasure. The trip from Fairmont to East Duplin, in Beaulaville, can be made by about three different routes but all check in at roughly two hours driving time one way. Bladen schools would be about as centrally located as any of the 10, but aside from playing each other, would always travel about 30-plus minutes.

In the first draft, the NCHSAA created 60 conferences. The number without combination leagues, by classification, were six in 1-A, one in 2-A, eight in 3-A and 11 in 4-A. Thursday’s proposal, also 60 leagues, had 11 combo leagues in 1-A, seven in 2-A, eight in 3-A and 11 in 4-A.

The 2-A East leagues dropped from 13 to 10, and still have some schools playing with 1-As, others with 3-As. There were no 2-A only leagues in the East in the Dec. 10 draft; there are three in the new version, including the one with Bladen schools.

The other were hubbed to the north. Near Greenville are Ayden-Grifton, Farmville Central, Greene Central, North Pitt, SouthWest Edgecombe, Washington and West Craven. Near Wilson and Goldsboro are Beddingfield, Eastern Wayne, Goldsboro, North Johnston, North Lenoir, Princeton, South Lenoir and Spring Creek.

Alan Wooten can be reached at 910-247-9132 or awooten@bladenjournal.com. Twitter: @alanwooten19.