JUNE 3-9, 2011 CHECK US OUT AT SCOREATL.COM VOL 7 NO 22

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1 JUNE 3-9, 2011 CHECK US OUT AT SCOREATL.COM VOL 7 NO 22

2 2 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game!

3 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 3 STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg GENERAL MANAGER Bob Houghton MANAGING EDITOR Stephen Black ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick SALES Rubin Reisler DESIGN INTERN Julian Strayhorn II BEAT WRITERS Josh Bagriansky (Hawks), Stephen Black (UGA), Dave Cohen (Georgia State), Joe Deighton (Thrashers), Ricky Dimon (Falcons), Fletcher Proctor (Braves), Thomas Watson (Tech), Brian Jones (Preps) STAFF WRITERS Jay Thomason, Sean Conway CONTRIBUTORS C.C., Brian Katrek, Alex Ewalt, Tad Arapoglou, Dean Zindler, Zander Lentz, Kevin Dankosky, Mitch Evans, Chris Dimino, Matt Stewart, Fred Kalil, Nick Cellini, Dave Marshall, Greg Smith, Steak Shapiro, Beau Bock, Roy Hickman, Dave Cohen, Bob Rathbun, Courtney Capps, Bill Hartman, Chuck Dowdle, Dan Kamal, Dennis Scott, Jeff Batten, Jeff Measor SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS Mitch Albom, Dave Kindred, Barry Bloom SCHOOL LISTING CHEROKEE/FORSYTH: Cherokee, Creekview, Etowah, Forsyth Central, North Forsyth, Sequoyah, South Forsyth, West Forsyth, Woodstock COBB: Allatoona, Campbell, Harrison, Kell, Kennesaw Mountain, Lassiter, Marietta, McEachern, Mt. Paran Christian N. Cobb, N. Cobb Christian, Pebblebrook, Pope, S. Cobb, Sprayberry, Walker, Walton, Wheeler, Whitefield Academy DEKALB: Arabia Mountain, Chamblee, Columbia, Decatur, Druid Hills, Dunwoody, Lakeside, Marist, Miller Grove, M.L. King, Paideia, Redan, St. Pius X, Southwest DeKalb, Stephenson, Stone Mountain, Tucker FULTON: Alpharetta, Blessed Trinity, Centennial, Chattahoochee, Douglass, Grady, John s Creek, Lovett, Mays, Milton, Mt. Pisgah, North Springs, Northview, Riverwood, Roswell, Tri-Cities, Westminster, Woodward Academy GWINNETT: Berkmar, Brookwood, Buford, C. Gwinnett, Collins Hill, Dacula, Grayson, Greater Atlanta Christian, Meadowcreek, Mill Creek, Norcross, North Gwinnett, Parkview, Peachtree Ridge, South Gwinnett, Wesleyan FAYETTE: Whitewater, Sandy Creek, Starr s Mill NEWTON: Eastside SHOT OF THE WEEK... COACH RYNO: Hall of Famer and former Chicago Cub Ryne Sandberg was in Gwinnett this week as manager of the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. Ryno, as he was known in his playing days, led the Pigs against the G-Braves at Coolray Field. Sandberg is looking forward to his first Major League managing position after climbing the Minor League ladder. Photo courtesy Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. CAN T MISS The Fletch tells of Memorial Day weekend radio substitutes and points out the craftiness of Jim Tressel s resignation. The Thrashers are gone! See beat writer Joe Deighton s final story on the team. In our cover story, reporter Ricky Dimon reviews the 2011 Regions Directors Cup winners, as presented by the GADA. On Wednesday night, GPB hosted the Regions Directors Cup Winners Reception. Stephen Black gives a rundown of the event on this week s prep cover. TEAM SCOOP AND VOICES COVER DESIGN BY DJ GALBIATI COVER PHOTOS COURTESY OF CHERYL ALFORD 4 THE FLETCH 6 SCORE MORE 16 GSU 17 CALENDAR 18 TECH - UGA THIS WEEK ON THE INSIDE AT SCORE HAWKS JEFF TEAGUE Score Atlanta is looking for new sales associates as well as writing and graphic design interns. For sales positions, Bob Houghton at bhoughton@scoreatl.com. For writing internships, Stephen Black at sblack@ scoreatl.com. For graphic design internships, DJ Galbiati at djgalbiati@scoreatl.com. Feel free to call to speak with someone about any of these positions.

4 4 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game! Tressel s resignation comes as subs take over radio waves on Memorial Day Central XL as well as on the pregame broadcasts for the GPB.org game of the week. CAN YOU BELIEVE......HE SAID THAT? Memorial Day was last week and that means two things: summer is here and subs are filling in on local sports radio stations. While I am psyched summer is here (though it has been 90 degrees for about a month now), I felt mixed emotions about the subs filling in on 680 The Fan as well as 790 The Zone. While it is certainly nice hearing sports being talked about during the 6-10 a.m. slot on 680 The Fan (instead of discussing Avril Lavigne like the Rude Awakening crowd was doing its first day back from vacation), I do miss the local flavor of Atlanta/Athens/Georgia being discussed instead of simply a national show. I thought Dari Nowkhah and Jalen Rose were good when they filled in for Mike & Mike on ESPN Radio, which filled in for The Rude Awakening, especially discussing the Jim Tressel resignation announcement. I just miss some of the local spin to talk about how the Braves were doing with the series against Cincinnati. Oh well. WISE MOVE Also, shrewd move on Tressel s part to wait until Memorial Day when all of the major players (except for Colin Cowherd) were taking the day off, to announce hisresignation. This way he could simply take a beating from the understudies instead of the major players, and the news was quasi-lost in the holiday news cycle. Ohio State and Tressel made a wise move deciding to announce it then. FINAL WEBCAST In case you missed it, Sports Central XL held its final webcast of the GHSA sports season last Wednesday and helped give away some of the Regions Bank Directors Cup awards to top programs across the GHSA for this past year. If you want to go back and watch the special episode, check out the replay on gpb.org/sports/xl or hit the link through gaprepnews.com. It was a wild first year for the web program and I can simply say that I was thrilled to be a part of the show along with Alex Ewalt and Mark Harmon. Look for the show to kick back up this August when football gets hot and heavy once again. Georgia Public Broadcasting is expanding its Georgia high school football coverage with two games every Friday this year, one on GPB-TV and one on the website. The schedules are still being nailed down, but be sure and check gpb.org/sports and scoreatl.com for the complete schedules. GPB won t be the only place to catch Georgia high school football this year. WSB and PlayON! Sports recently announced that the two will partner up to broadcast 12 live games on Thursday nights this year. WSB s Zach Klein and the AJC s Michael Carvell will call the games after Klein teamed with Chip Towers last year. The games will air Thursday nights at 7:30 on Channel 2.2, a WSB digital channel, then will re-air Friday night/saturday morning at 1:06 a.m. MORE 44 After a wildly successful first year, the Score 44 is coming back for another run for the upcoming football season. The first 11 debuted two weeks ago on The Official Visit on Sports Radio 790 The Zone and the second 11 were revealed last week. You can hear the third batch this Monday on 790 The Zone from 8-10 p.m., and you can also view the list after it is announced on scoreatl.com. As a reminder, this list is constantly changing as senior players can play their way on or off the list with their performances on Thursday, Friday and/or Saturday nights. The changes are announced during The Official Visit, Sports UNDER THE RADAR While it doesn t get the publicity that the NFL or even the NBA Draft gets, the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft will be broadcast on the MLB Network this Monday. After not having a first-round pick last year, the Atlanta Braves will be selecting late in the first round at No. 28. This will be the third straight year that the MLB Network will air Day One of its draft and the network, which has a growing collection of former players and standout commentators, will also air a draft preview show from 6-7 p.m. Sadly, the MLB Draft will not offer the drama that the NFL and NBA sometimes offer with wild draft-day trades as teams cannot trade picks, but sometimes you will see big-name players drop because they might be represented by a super-agent such as Scott Boras and teams might be scared to draft said players over signability issues. I will certainly be watching this year s draft simply because I am a fan of the MLB Network personalities moreso than the NFL Network s personalities. They seem like laid-back guys who are happy to still be around the game more than some of the former players on the NFL Network who feel they are deserving of a job simply because they used to play. CHEMISTRY EXPERIMENT Finally, I have said it before in this space but it still holds true: as much as I enjoy the opposites attract theme of 790 s Pollack & Bell in the afternoon, whenever Arch fills in for Pollack, his chemistry with Bell is simply a home run. Arch and Bell seem to be cut from the same cloth, and the inside jokes and obscure movie references go over so well While you mourn the loss of a franchise, they re waving goodbye with one middle finger. The AJC s Jeff Schultz was certainly not happy about losing a hockey franchise but Atlanta is simply TOO big of a market NOT to have a hockey team. Eventually a team like Phoenix, or probably one of the Canadian hockey teams (Edmonton?) will be short on cash and Atlanta will come up as a potential destination. So we don t have hockey for a few years. Relax. Hockey WILL return but hopefully Don Waddell and the ASG stays away. with the listener that it is truly enjoyable to listen to the two of them together. It sounds like the fun is real, unlike sometimes when it sounds as though Bell has to oversell the fun because Pollack doesn t get in on the joke. I hope 790 really does plan to use Arch more now that The Zone is the home of the Falcons. And speaking of fill-ins, I would, in an ideal world, love to hear when 680 s John Kincade is out on vacation as he was last week, to have the King of College Football Chuck Oliver stand in with Buck for four solid hours of college football talk. A guy can dream, can t he? Proctor can be reached at fproctor@scoreatl.com.

5 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 5 SCORE LIST BY BRIAN JONES DONE DEAL: The Thrashers announced Tuesday that the team had been bought by True North Sports and Entertainment and will relocate to Winnipeg. With the move, Atlanta becomes the only city in the NHL s modern era to lose two teams, as the Flames moved to Calgary in I think there s a good chance that NHL hockey won t be coming to Atlanta anytime soon. NEW CHAMPS CROWNED: The GHSA baseball finals took place over Memorial Day weekend and metro Atlanta teams once again showed their stuff. Parkview won the Class 5A title, Marist took home the Class 4A crown, Buford won Class 2A and Hebron Christian was the top team in Class A. In Class 3A, Columbus took home the title, the only non-metro team to win one. Congrats to all five teams! TOP FALCONS PLAYERS: Currently, the NFL Network is releasing its Top 100 NFL players of 2011, and there are few Falcons players who have made the list. Matt Ryan has been voted as the 52nd best player in the NFL while John Abraham came in at No. 69. In all, five Falcons players will make the list. Our guess is Roddy White and Michael Turner will be on there, too. COLLEGE BASEBALL FEVER: It s playoff time for college baseball and three teams from Georgia will start their run for a NCAA title on Friday. Georgia Tech will face Austin Peay, Georgia will face Creighton and Georgia Southern will take on South Carolina. Out of the three teams, I think Tech has the best chance of winning the title. But in college baseball, you never know. FORCE UPDATE: What s going on with the Georgia Force? Well, after losing three consecutive games which dropped their record to 5-5, they got a big win last Saturday by defeating the San Jose Sabercats. Now they look to make it two wins in a row when they face the Tampa Bay Storm on Saturday at the Gwinnett Arena. If you are missing football, come to Duluth and check out the Force. TRIVIA QUESTION Atlanta is the No. 8 media market in the United States. What is the only other top eight market to not have a team in each of the four major sports leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL)? Answer on Page 19 CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS BY RICKY DIMON Extra-inning games the Braves played in the month of May Consecutive one-run games played by the Braves from Saturday to Tuesday Hits by Dan Uggla in his last 14 games as of Wednesday Consecutive outings for Jonny Venters without giving up a run (15 innings) Categories in which Venters is No. 1 among Braves relievers (including 0.53 ERA) Career NBA Finals wins for LeBron James after Miami s Game 1 victory Previous head coaching trips to the finals for Rick Carlisle and Erik Spoelstra Home wins, in nine games, for the Miami Heat during the playoffs as of Wednesday Consecutive games in which Miami has outscored opponents in the fourth quarter Times in 16 playoff games that Miami has held opponents to fewer than 100 points THUMBS UP TO GREAT SPORTS TOWNS Atlanta As the Thrashers head to Winnipeg, carpetbaggers and the guy with the distressed Red Sox hat from Target are having a field day, but Atlanta is still a great sports town. If a franchise isn t sustainable, the fans are smart to spend their spare time playing golf, running in the Peachtree or coaching their own future Brian McCanns. Jair Jurrjens Jurrjens made his first start this season in Gwinnett s Coolray Field because of injury. Since that rehab start, he s gone 7-1 with a 1.51 ERA with the Braves, averaging seven-plus innings per start. Jurrjens is now a leading candidate to be the National League s starting pitcher in the All-Star game. Memorial Day tradition Major League Baseball makes a concerted effort to honor the selfless service men and women who have willingly sacrificed to protect the freedom we sometimes take for granted. If hearing God Bless America during a Memorial Day ballgame doesn t raise the hairs on your arms, get to a doctor. MY TWO CENTS Atlanta is still an elite sports town. That s right - elite. What other city has the mix of pro, college and high school sports that we do? Metro Atlanta features some of the best high school sports programs and fanbases anywhere. From football to basketball to baseball, Atlanta s high schools possess some of the best programs in the country both on the field and in the stands. Also, with Tech on the city s west side and UGA right outside of the metro area, Atlanta also boasts two major college sports programs. Both Jackets and Bulldogs fans pack the stadiums for all three major sports, especially football. There is also Georgia State and Kennesaw State at the Division 1 level. Add Chick-fila s bowl game and kickoff game, the SEC football championship game, and the SEC, ACC and NCAA basketball tournaments, Atlanta is a major destination for all college sports fans. As deeply hurt as we all are with the Thrashers leaving, this town still has three major pro sports franchises - and all of them are winning right now. Add in the college and high school elements to the mix and Atlanta is one of the best sports towns anywhere. Black can be reached at sblack@scoreatl.com. THUMBS DOWN TO MOVING VANS Thrashers Exodus The Zambonis were leaving downtown sooner or later, because Atlanta consumers were tired of supporting an inferior product. The business model of a bunch of guys from Atlanta, D.C. and Boston simply owning a franchise(s) and an arena doesn t work. Fortunately, the Hawks arena lease tethers them to Philips Arena. Braves Clutch Hitting The Braves improved their record in May thanks to great pitching, starters and relievers. The month would have been even better with better late-inning bats. Of the 11 losses in May, six were by only one run, (another loss only got out of hand after two extra innings). Cotton Eyed Joe Cotton Eyed Joe is just a miserable sports song. Only four-year-olds suspiciously close to overdosing on Dippin Dots and cotton candy get out of their seats for this ballpark staple. Meanwhile, sane adults wish they were in the concourse buying an icy-cold, overpriced beverage when it comes through the loudspeakers SANITY AT LAST This is what we call a quality of life issue, but we re still viewed as a major league professional city. So when you look at companies making decisions to locate their headquarters here, it s not going to be on the their check list or criteria list. - Told to the AJC by Jonathan Sangster, senior managing director at CBRE Consulting in Atlanta, which advises companies on relocation

6 6 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game! SCORE MORE Hawks weighing point guard situation et s just say that Jeff Teague s surpris- performance in the Eastern Ling Conference Semifinals turned many heads. After playing sporadically during the regular season, and hardly at all in the first round win over Orlando, Teague moved into the starting lineup due to an injury to veteran Kirk Hinrich, and was one of Atlanta s top performers over the six-game series with Chicago, dropping close to 15 points and five dimes per game. The emergence of Teague gives Atlanta another option in the backcourt for the upcoming season, and also gives fans hope in that they may have witnessed the blossoming of a fine young player last month. Head coach Larry Drew, who had previously lauded the former Wake Forest man s potential but hadn t rewarded him with consistent minutes, was especially surprised with his ability to avoid mistakes, as he turned the ball over just 1.2 times per matchup all series. Drew admitted after the series that Teague s solid play running the point was a pleasant surprise. At times he has a tendency to play at one speed and it results in turnovers, Drew said. Now it seems he s doing a good job of regulating his speeds. So has Teague arrived or was his performance against Chicago merely a flash in the pan? That s one of many questions Hawks fans will have to wait for next season to answer. SUND OPTIMISTIC The Hawks made a clear commitment to their current core in past seasons, re-signing the likes of Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and others. But questions arose whether the solid group of current players could morph into a great one. General manager Rick Sund doesn t think his team is too far away from that. I thought we were pretty close this year, he said. Last year they were disappointed by the embarrassment. This year they were disappointed that the opportunity was there, they were close, and they didn t get there. There s a big difference. MINING FOR GOLD Atlanta traded its first-round draft pick in the Hinrich trade. But it does have one selection in the second round. Striking gold in the NBA Draft is difficult as it is, but finding it at No. 48 overall is even more difficult. But it s not unthinkable, as the likes of Monta Ellis and Manu Ginobli have blossomed into stars despite waiting for round number two to roll around. Bagriansky can be reached at jbagriansky@scoreatl.com. Lockout threatens Dome s financial well-being he Georgia Dome will lose money in Tfiscal year 2012 if the NFL labor dispute continues and the upcoming season is completely wiped out, this according to the Georgia World Congress Center s board of governors. A Tuesday report issued by the GWCC outlined two approved Georgia Dome budgets; one under the assumption that the Atlanta Falcons will be playing and another under the assumption that there will be no NFL in The GWCC assesses that the dome will lose $1.5 million without the Falcons but would profit $4.6 million if the lockout ends and a full season takes place as scheduled. Fiscal year 2011 ends on June 30 and projections are showing the Georgia Dome with a profit of $5.3 million. RYAN, ABRAHAM IN TOP 100 The NFL Network has been counting down its list of Top 100 players in the league, and so far a pair of Falcons has graced the chart. Ryan comes in at No. 52 and defensive end John Abraham is 69th. New installments hit the airwaves on the NFL Network every Sunday at 8:00 p.m. He s very close to the guy playing in Indianapolis (Peyton Manning), former Atlanta head coach Jerry Glanville said of Ryan in a video segment for the network s website. He has a pulse rate that doesn t change. He s gonna take it down there and he s gonna make the plays. He s not a normal person. The very first game that he played as a Falcon at Carolina he totally dominated every aspect, teammate Tyson Clabo said of Abraham. They tried every possible protection that I know of and there was just nothing that anybody could do. When he s on when he s healthy and fresh it s tough to find a better one. When you re facing a guy like that you better come prepared. In other off-the-field player news (the only kind of news being generated right now), defensive end Kroy Biermann and Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kim Zolciak welcomed a baby boy on Tuesday. Zolciak announced the news on her Twitter page and reported that Kroy Jagger Biermann is in good health. Dimon can be reached at rdimon@scoreatl.com. Medlen eyeing August return; draft arrives he Atlanta Braves have been involved Tin a series of one-run games recently, getting an extra innings walk-off win against the Cincinnati Reds last Saturday thanks to a Chipper Jones single, followed by a series-clinching, one-run win Sunday on a Martin Prado home run. The one-run streak would continue on Memorial Day, but not in a good way as the Braves fell in 3-2 extra innings to the San Diego Padres. Monday s game against the Padres was the Braves eighth game to go extra frames in their last 18 games. In Tuesday s game the Braves scored two late runs but it was in vain as the Pad Squad defeated Atlanta 5-4. SMOOTH REHAB Injured pitcher Kris Medlen is still rehabbing his throwing shoulder following Tommy John surgery and before last Friday s game against Cincinnati, Medlen was feeling good following a bullpen session. So far, smoothly, Medlen said of his rehab. I just got back from Orlando for a week during this last road trip. I had some quality bullpens. I ve been throwing curveballs again. Medlen threw 80 pitches in a bullpen session before the game against Cincinnati. Four sets of 20, not a simulated game but 20 pitches, a five-minute break, 20 more. Kind of a simulated game. Medlen believes he can make it back to the team by August, though he says he hasn t really been approached about what role he will enter into upon his return. I m just trying to get through these bullpen stages and then start throwing to hitters and get through the process. FIRST GO-ROUND Finally, the Braves will have their normal first-round pick this year in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft this Monday. After surrendering their first-round pick last year in the Billy Wagner deal, the Braves will be selecting at No. 28 this year in the first round. Since the team does not have any compensatory picks, it will next pick again at No. 85 overall (second round), then No. 115 and No Last year, the Braves selected shortstop Matt Lipka with the No. 35 pick, a compensatory pick sandwiched between the first and second rounds. The next player the team selected was centerfielder Todd Cunningham with the No. 53 overall pick (second round). The team has a well-stocked farm system in terms of pitching and middle infielders. Proctor can be reached at fproctor@scoreatl.com. Team officially leaving for Winnipeg he Thrashers are gone. On Tuesday, Tit was announced that the franchise had been sold to True North Sports and Entertainment and that it would move to Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Thrashers spent 11 seasons in Atlanta and it is extremely disappointing to see another hockey team leave this city. The Flames left Atlanta for Calgary in It s doubtful that the NHL will ever return to Georgia. In the time spent in Atlanta, the Thrashers won the division and made the playoffs just once, coming in The New York Rangers swept them in the first round. The Thrash leave town with three winning seasons and zero playoff wins, a sad end to a sad story. HOCKEY IN ATLANTA Hockey was never a big hit in Atlanta. It always seemed like fans at Thrashers games treated the game like a novelty and not a sport. There was always a smattering of folks that knew what was going on, but for the most part a lot of people were attending their first and last hockey game on any given night. Nobody got it because the owners and management never connected the team with the city. They marketed Philips Arena as Blueland, but really, what is Blueland? Does that get you pumped up? The owners and management should have done more to connect the team to the city of Atlanta. PLAYER REACTION The players reacted in different ways about having to move to the much colder Winnipeg. They were disappointed and sad for the fans. In my short time, I got to meet some very passionate fans, Andrew Ladd told the AJC. I m sorry we weren t able to make it work, and I feel bad for them. Forward Tim Stapleton focused on the positives. I know it s cold, he said. I m going to miss Atlanta. Atlanta was a great city, but you ve got to move on and look at the positives. (Winnipeg) is a great city to play hockey in. Evander Kane tweeted, I want to thank all the Thrashers fans that supported us in Atlanta for my two years there. Very unfortunate there will be no NHL hockey. I will miss the great people and the city of Atlanta. Deighton can be reached at jdeighton@scoreatl.com. SCORE MORE

7 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 7 Brookwood wins parity-filled 5A competition; traditional powers dominate in other classes he 12th annual Regions Bank Directors TCup competition may have produced winners that almost anyone could have guessed, but it once again provided for great excitement throughout the Georgia high school sports year. From the first glimpse of spring football practice to the last crack of the baseball bat more than 12 months later, schools as a whole and not merely the individual teams vie for overall glory with the cup hon- oring the best programs over the course of an entire athletic year. It has been that away ever since the Georgia Athletic Directors Association established the Directors Cup in With more and more enthusiasm being generated every season, what has become a revered GHSA tradition is not going away anytime soon. GADA president Bob Stinchcomb, also the athletic director at Darlington, stressed the importance of and passion for the Regions Directors Cup. The number of hits this year on the GADA website has been outrageous, Stinchcomb noted, with parents and kids keeping track of the cup standings. I think that in itself shows just how meaningful the competition is. It s been wonderful, he continued. It s good for schools and individual players. Everybody strives for a common goal, whether that goal is to win the overall cup or for schools that know they are a long-shot to win for the entire state to win individual regions. Recognizing the champions is so important. MARIST AGAIN For Marist, championships are nothing new; neither is the Regions Directors Cup crown. In fact, the War Eagles have come out on top of the overall standings every single year since the cup s inception. They won it in as a member of Class 3A and they have now captured it 11 times in a row in Class 4A. This time, though, Marist dealt with plenty of competition. The school finished with points in the overall competition, fewer than 100 points clear of Pope (1066.5), while Chattahoochee was not far behind with The standings looked the exact same on the boys side, as Marist edged Pope and Chattahoochee. In fact, the War Eagles and Greyhounds finished in an absolute deadlock with points. Marist, however, took top honors over an impressive Pope haul by collecting one third-place golf finish to none by the Greyhounds. Not surprisingly, such a hotly-contested contest came down to the final week on the athletic calendar. On the baseball diamond, the Greyhounds had succumbed to Whitewater during quarterfinal action. Two rounds later, they needed Whitewater to take out Marist in the championship series in order to preserve their lead atop the boys cup standings. But it was not to be, as the War Eagles prevailed 11-5 and 8-1 for a two-game sweep. DYNASTIES REIGN Some of it stays fairly consistent, Stinchcomb said of the year-to-year standings. You have the traditional winners, but people try to close that gap. Pope did a great job even though Marist won, and Lovett always has fun battles with Westminster. Lagging behind only Marist in overall cups won, Westminster prevailed for the 11th time in 12 years. As Stinchcomb noted, Lovett and Greater Atlanta Christian kept pace in the standings before the Wildcats pulled away with a late spring flurry. Westminster earned points, Lovett tallied , and GAC was not far behind with Westminster chalked up six state titles during the campaign, including four in the spring. The boys triumphed in golf, soccer and tennis while the girls brought home the lacrosse championship. A runner-up finish for the girls tennis team and semifinal showings in boys lacrosse and girls soccer added to the Wildcats overwhelming final stretch. Having already raced to fall titles in both boys and girls cross country, Westminster had enough to hold off the Lions and Spartans. While no school comes close to Marist and Westminster in historical Regions Directors Cup dominance, three-peats were the story in both Class A and Class 3A. Wesleyan won its fourth straight cup (third consecutive in Class A) and fifth in school history. The Wolves got another state championship from the girls basketball team, a perennial powerhouse, but also came up big in other departments. First-ever titles were delivered by the boys tennis and swimming squads while the boys cross country team successfully defended its 2009 trophy. We had a pretty good year and I ve very proud of our teams that won state championships that haven t won it before, athletic director Marc Khedouri told the Gwinnett Daily Post. It s confirmation we are doing a lot of things correctly. Class 3A featured the most intense headto-head showdown from start to finish, with Region 5 rivals St. Pius X and Woodward going toe-to-toe the entire way. They simply dominated all three categories. On the boys side, the War Eagles finished first and the Golden Lions took second. Roles were reversed in the girls competition, as Pius came out on top ahead of second-place Woodward. Overall, Pius just barely battled its way to a third consecutive cup with points to Woodward s BUCKING BRONCOS Parity has been the name of the game among the biggest schools in Georgia, as six different Class 5A schools have won the Regions Directors Cup since the GHSA expanded to five classifications in This time the title went to Brookwood, which triumphed for the second time in its history and first since The Broncos got off to a strong start by winning fall championships in football and boys cross country while the girls cross country team ran to second place. After the girls swam to a runner-up state finish in the winter, the boys tennis team led the way in the spring by capturing the school s third state championship of the year. And Stinchcomb was not kidding when he emphasized how much a Regions Directors Cup means to victorious schools and the enjoyment that it brings. It s great and fun to watch where you are in the rankings, Brookwood athletic director Mark Kimbro told the GDP. It s huge for the school. Brookwood has been in the running forever. We ve been second or third every year for a while. It s hard to win the thing. It s a great tribute to our coaches and our kids. Photos courtesy of Brian Morgan, Tami McQueen, Brookwood HS and Toni James Photography. Dimon can be reached at rdimon@scoreatl.com.

8 For the first time in its 11-year history, the Regions Directors Cup was presented to winning programs at the same time. The occasion was the Regions Directors Cup Winners Reception, hosted by Georgia Public Broadcasting at their headquarters in Midtown Atlanta. All seven cup winners were represented and accepted awards at the banquet. Athletic directors from each school were there to accept the awards and make a short speech. Each and every one made a reference to how much they appreciated the contest and the sponsors of the event, including Regions Bank, the Georgia Athletic Directors Association and Score Atlanta. The Directors Cup is a team sports competition in which programs accumulate points for each varsity sport played based on playoff finishes. Standings are kept for each classification, gender, sport and region. Awards are given to the overall winners for each classification, winners for each gender in each classification, and region winners. During the banquet, overall and gender winners from each classification were recognized. A representative from each winning program was present to accept the award. GPB Director of Sports and Score Atlanta President I.J. Rosenberg emceed the event. Among the honored guests there to show their support were Bob Stinchcomb, current president of the GADA; Alan Sharp of the GHSA; Dave Hunter, former football coach at Brookwood; David Smith, executive vice president of Regions Bank; and former GADA president Jeff Beggs. Marilyn Stansbury, Director of Education at GPB, let her feelings known about high school sports. We love high school sports, said Stansbury. We ve been covering sports for 19 years with Prep Sports Plus, which is now Sports Central. In fact, GPB loves high school sports so much that they extended their commitment to showing high school games through Their viewership and readership has grown quite a bit since deciding to cover high school sports. Football webcasts averaged between 1,500 and 8,000 viewers this past season, while the GPB sports website (GPB. org/sports) saw 400,000 page views (100,00 unique) and had viewers from all 50 states and 25 different countries. A fellow GPB employee once asked Stansbury, Did you ever think streaming a football game would open an entire division? It is amazing to think about, but that is what began the current wide expanse of high school sports coverage GPB provides. BY STEPHEN BLACK Stansbury relayed a heart-felt example of the type of connections GPB fosters in their sports coverage. She told of a soldier stationed overseas who was able to see his younger brother play football on a GPB webcast. She also mentioned how much high school sports affect the local communities. We know that, for each athlete, there are band members, cheerleaders, families and friends who are participating and engaged due to that one person. Dave Smith represented Regions Bank at the event, and told of his loyalty to supporting high school athletics. We are proud to be a sponsor and we hope to be for years to come. And, to be sure, high school athletics reciprocates those sentiments. Black can be reached at sblack@scoreatl.com.

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12 12 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game!

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14 14 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game! PAST DIRECTORS CUP WINNERS CLASS AAAAA CLASS AAAA CLASS AAA CLASS AA CLASS A Collins Hill Marist St. Pius X Westminster Wesleyan Walton Marist St. Pius X Blessed Trinity Wesleyan Walton Marist Westminster Wesleyan Brookstone Walton Marist Westminster Greater Atl. Chr Brookstone Collins Hill Marist Westminster Lovett Savannah Ctry Day Parkview Marist Westminster Greater Atl. Chr Athens Academy Brookwood Marist Westminster Blessed Trinity Landmark Christian Parkview Marist Westminster Greater Atl. Chr Athens Academy Walton Marist Westminster Cartersville Wesleyan Harrison Marist Westminster Cartersville Athens Academy Walton Marist Westminster Lovett DIRECTORS CUP REGION LEADERS CLASS AAAAA CLASS AAAA CLASS AAA CLASS AA CLASS A Region 1 Tift County Region 1 Northside-Columbus Region 1 Westover Region 1 Thomasville Region 1 Baconton Region 2 East Coweta Region 2 Greenbrier Region 2 West Laurens Region 2 Vidalia Region 2 Turner County Region 3 Camden Co. Region 3 McIntosh Region 3 Washington County Region 3 Bleckley County Region 3 Savannah Christian Region 4 Harrison Region 4 Lovejoy Region 4 Eastside Region 4 Morgan County Region 4 Brookstone Region 5 Walton Region 5 Pope Region 5 St. Pius X Region 5 Carver, Columbus Region 5 Wesleyan Region 6 Milton Region 6 Marist Region 6 Columbus Region 6 Westminster Region 6 Darlington Region 7 Mill Creek Region 7 Chattahoochee Region 7 Allatoona Region 7 Calhoun Region 7 Washington-Wilkes Region 8 Brookwood Region 8 Flowery Branch Region 8 North Hall Region 8 North Oconee Region 8 Athens Academy

15 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 15 Cherokee County names top baseball players lthough a team sport, baseball is ruled by Aindividual stats compiled and disected by players, coaches and fans batting average, runs batted in,and earned run average are a few of the more common stats that are compared when talking about teams and players. Cherokee County Player of the year, D. J. Smith, might be on his short list come draft day. The Sequoyah Chiefs senior centerfielder only hit.500 his senior season, a whopping increase from the mid-.300 he hit his junior year. Smith also showed a penchant for power as he belted nine home runs, 10 doubles and had an on-base percentage of.606. Success didn t come without a price, as Smith spent hours at the park honing his craft. He put a lot of time into it, Sequoyah coach Joseph Jones said to The Cherokee Tribune. He went to a lot of hitting camps and is always at our park hitting. Basically, for the last year, he s lived and breathed baseball and you can tell. To ice the cake, Smith added 18 stolen bases to his arsenal in 18 attempts. Coach Jones calls Smith the best baserunner to ever play in his program, saying he doesn t know another player who has been perfect on so many stolen base attempts. Smith plans to attend and play baseball at theuniversity of Georgia next year if some major league team doesn t draft. MAZZATENTA WINS AWARD Etowah junior Cody Mazzatenta started the year as the number three picther for the Eagles but as the year progressed, an injury to a fellow pitcher and Mazzatenta s performance he finished as the teams number one pitcher averaging one strikeout every inning. With a 2.64 era, Mazzatenta was unbeaten this season with a complete game shutout against North Gwinnett in the opening round of the playoffs. Creekview coach Mike Nayman is the Cherokee County Coach of the year, the coach since the inception of the team in 2007, Creekview won their first playoff series in school history this year against Alexander before falling to eventual state champion Marist. Thomason can be reached at Hillgrove falls short in baseball finals he Hillgrove Hawks gave it all they had Tin the state championship, but in the end Parkview was just too much. The Hawks lost the series two games to one. FALLING JUST SHORT Hillgrove played tough in the first game, but fell by a narrow 6-5 margin. They gave a valiant effort to stay alive in the second game. The Hawks trailed 8-2 in the third inning and things looked bleak, but that s when the bats came alive. They hit four home runs to tie the game at 10. Then, they tied the series in the 10th inning on senior Robert Stewart s threerun walk-off home run. After bunting foul on the first two pitches, Stewart knew he had to swing away on the third. He connected for a bomb that plated home Madison Skillings and Brooks Davis. The third game turned out to be a nightmare for the Hawks. Leading 10-8 in the top of the seventh inning, Hillgrove was on the verge of their first state title. That s when Parkview erupted for 13 runs to go on top You have to give Parkview all kinds of credit because they had an amazing inning right there, head coach Dave Richardson told the MDJ. They scored 13 runs on 11 hits. You just have to tip your cap to them. A tip of the cap should go to the Hawks as well. In their first season in 5A, they finished as state runners-up. SMELLS LIKE FOOTBALL With the spring sports season over with and summer on the horizon, one can only turn their attention to the 2011 GHSA football season. The schedules have already been drawn up and coaches are already focusing on their first opponents. Marietta finished with a disappointing 2-8 record, but they are looking to turn things around this year. Quarterback Anthony Jennings returns for his junior year after leading the Blue Devils with 2300 total yards and 21 touchdowns last year. Marietta will have as many as 16 of their 22 starters as underclassmen this year. We re going to be young in several areas, head coach Scott Burton told the MDJ. But it won t be a hindrance, because this year, we ll be young, but with experience. Deighton can be reached at jdeighton@scoreatl.com. War Eagles win back-to-back baseball titles he Marist baseball team is on top of the Tstate once again as they swept Whitewater in the Class 4A baseball finals over the weekend. However, it didn t come easy for the War Eagles as they were down three runs in the first game twice. But they were able to rally twice to come away with the 11-5 victory. Marist scored eight runs in the fifth inning, which included a two-run double by Blake Stevens and a two-run homer by Kevin Gale. I was down two strikes and I was just trying to get a good swing, Gale said to the AJC after the game. We ve really worked the hardest all year, and I think that s why we won. In Game 2, it was total domination by Marist. Chesny Young drove in the first run for Marist in the first inning which was followed by a Georges Durot grand slam in the second inning to give the War Eagles a 5-0 lead. Marist would go on to win 8-1 and clinch their 12th state title in school history. The one thing our kids really bought into was we weren t trying to defend anything, Marist head coach Mike Strickland said to the AJC. We were trying to go out and win another one. RECRUITING TRAIL With baseball season over, the focus now moves to the fall season, specifically football. Since the season won t officially start until the end of August, many fans will pay attention to recruiting to see where some of the rising seniors will play football in Over at Stephenson, tight end Joshua Parris committed to South Florida two weeks ago, but has recently back off his commitment. Parris said that he wants to play tight end in college, but South Florida recruited him to play fullback. Some of the other schools Parris is looking at are Ole Miss, Boston College and Vanderbilt. Stephenson usually has a ton of players move on to the next level and this year should be no different. Six players have already committed to Division 1 schools and its projected players will sign to D1 schools when it s all said and done. Two notable Stephenson players to commit are RB Mike Davis and DT Jafar Mann. Both players are committed to Florida. Jones can be reached at bjones@scoreatl.com. Three county baseball teams take titles hile the soccer championship haul was Wnot kind to Gwinnett County, baseball titles came in bunches to the county as three Gwinnett programs picked up the last GHSA titles to be decided in the school year. FOUR SCORE In the state s highest classification, Parkview snagged its first title since 2002 with a three-game series win over Hillgrove in the Class 5A championship. After the two teams split the first two games, Parkview responded to a six-run third inning from Hillgrove by throwing up 13 runs in the seventh inning to win and take the school s fourth title. Matt Olson plugged a three-run homer in the inning and Edwin Arias knocked two home runs in the deciding game, helping Jack Esmonde earn the win. WOLVES WIN In Class 2A, Buford dropped Game to Pike County before rallying for a 14-4 Game 2 win to force a rubber game for the title. In the third game, Adam Hampton provided a two-run home run and three RBIs in Buford s 5-1 win. Josh Heddinger was masterful, allowing just a second-inning solo home run while striking out 10 batters in a complete-game performance. The state title for Buford was the baseball program s first in 34 years and is the school s fourth state title in the sports year to go with football softball and girls basketball. LIONS ROAR In Class A, Hebron Christian swept Providence Christian 6-5 and 6-3 in Dacula. Hebron Christian s Mason Felt struck out 16 batters in the title-clinching game. For Providence Christian, Cristin Stewart hit his 26th home run of the season in the Game 2loss. In Game 1, the Lions scored twice in the bottom of the seventh to steal the win. CUP WINNERS In the final Regions Bank Directors Cup standings, Wesleyan claimed the overall, boys and girls titles in Class A. In Class 2A, GAC finished third overall with the girls finishing second. In Class 5A, the Brookwood Broncos won the overall title as well as the boys title while the girls finished third. Collins Hill s girls finished fourth and Mill Creek s girls came in fifth. Mill Creek and Peachtree Ridge finished second and third, respectively in the boys race. Mill Creek was third in the overall race. Proctor can be reached at fproctor@scoreatl.com.

16 16 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game! Fulton teams a major factor in Directors Cups estminster won all three GADA Direc- Cup titles (overall, boys and Wtors girls) in Class 2A and the Woodward boys prevailed in Class 3A, but those were far from the only Fulton County schools to find athletic success during the campaign. The Wildcats received stiff competition from county foes and Region 6-2A rivals Blessed Trinity and Lovett. Top honors in the classification were up for grabs most of the way until Westminster collected four spring titles, with the Titans and Lions hot on the trail. Blessed Trinity s boys placed fifth and its girls finished third, good for an overall fourth-place performance. Lovett was runnerup in both the boys and overall competitions while the girls came in fourth. In Class 4A, Chattahoochee did not have quite enough to topple Marist which has won the Directors Cup all 12 years of the award s existence. Still, the Cougars put on quite a show in They finished third in both the boys and overall standings behind Marist and Pope, while the girls came in sixth. Chattahoochee got off to a strong start by winning the football state championship and it finished with a flourish by capturing the boys soccer title. Class 5A saw Milton finish in the Top 10 of all three categories seventh in girls, ninth in boys and seventh overall. LACROSSE HONORS Milton (in Class 5A) and Westminster (in Class 4A-A) boasted four players apiece on the First Team All-State girls lacrosse teams. For the Eagles in the highest classification, attackers Lydia Cassada and Annie Ruland earned first-team honors along with midfieder Amanda Lockwood and defender Helen Peterson. Cassada scored 73 goals this season for a powerhouse Milton squad that scored at least 22 goals in all four of its playoff games. The Eagles won those four games by a combined 73 goals and trounced Roswell 25-6 in the final. On the Class 4A-A first team, Westminster placed attackers Taylor Kaplan and Eve Knapp, defender Jojo Olsen and goalie Emma Wilson. Kaplan set single-season school records in both assists (55) and points (113) as the Wildcats captured the title by taking care of Holy Innocents Dimon can be reached at rdimon@scoreatl.com. Early exit at CAA Tournament for Panther baseball; Nugent qualifies for NCAA s It came down to the final game of the regular season to decide the Panthers fate with regards to the CAA baseball tournament and their 2-1 win over George Mason would send them on to Wilmington. Unfortunately the Panthers bats were mostly silent and before they knew it they were on the bus heading back to Atlanta. In the opener against James Madison, the nation s highest scoring team, it was more of a pitching and defensive showdown. JMU s Sean Tierney threw a fivehit shutout in beating the Panthers 4-0. That put the Panthers in a back-to-the-wall situation in their second game against Old Dominion with the loser being eliminated. In that game, pitcher Charley Olson allowed five runs on 10 hits as ODU went on to beat Georgia State 7-3, thus ending the Panthers season. As a coach, nobody likes to lose, head coach Greg Frady said. But you can live with it when the kids give you everything they ve got. The Panthers record-setting season likely comes to an end with an overall record of I have 15 seniors out there, some of them may have played their last baseball game, ever, Frady concluded. I m so appreciative of the effort, the energy, the contributions through the highs and the lows and the relationships. I really think that they ve not only continued the success of our program, but they ve elevated it. NEWS AND NOTES Meanwhile, former Panther pitcher David Buchanan, a seventh-round pick of the Phillies in last year s draft, is off to a good start in the minors. He s with the Single-A Lakewood Blue Claws this season and is currently 7-2 with an ERA of Buchanan is an alumnus of Fayette County High School in Peachtree City, Ga. In Bloomington, Ind., women s track and field standout Angelia Nugent produced another career record leap in the triple jump to place seventh at the NCAA East Regionals and advance to the NCAA National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, June Basketball coach Ron Hunter has announced that Manny Atkins, an all-state performer at Tucker High School and two-year back-up at Virginia Tech has transferred to Georgia State. Dave Cohen is in his 28th season as the Voice of Georgia State Athletics on WRAS- FM (88.5) and WCFO-AM, Newstalk 1160.

17 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 17 BASKETBALL Club Sport, Where Atlanta Comes To Play! Registration Ongoing - Men s League plays on Sunday evenings at the Brookhaven Boys & Girls Club. For more info or to register visit Open Recreational Basketball. GSL Georgia Sports Leagues. Georgia s Best Sports Leagues. Registration ongoing. We offer Top Gun, B, C and Co-Ed styles of play around Atlanta. We play ALL year round. For more information please contact (678) or mark@georgiasportsleagues.org. Visit Roundtable Fundamental Basketball Camp Boys and Girls. Rising 6th-10th Graders (Current 5th-9th Graders) June am-2pm. St. Francis High School, Alpharetta. Contact Coach Huff stfrancisbball@yahoo.com. BASEBALL Braves. June 3 at New York Mets 7:10 PM. June 4 at New York Mets 7:10 PM. June 5 at New York Mets 8:05 PM. June 7 at Florida 7:10 PM. June 8 at Florida 7:10 PM. June 9 at Florida 7:10 PM. June 10 at Houston 8:05 PM. June 11 at Houston 7:05 PM. June 12 at Houston 2:05 PM. June 13 at Houston 8:05 PM. June 14 vs. New York Mets 7:10 PM. June 15 vs. New York Mets 7:10 PM. June 16 vs. New York Mets 7:10 PM. Gwinnett Braves. June 3 vs. Buffalo 7:05 PM. June 4 vs. Buffalo 7:05 PM. June 5 vs. Buffalo 2:05 PM. June 6 vs. Buffalo 7:05 PM. June 7 at Toledo 7 PM. June 8 at Toledo 7 PM. June 9 at Toledo 7 PM. June 10 at Toledo 7 PM. June 11 at Indianapolis 7:05 PM. June 12 at Indianapolis 2:05 PM. June 13 at Indianapolis 7:05 PM. June 14 at Indianapolis 7:05 PM. June 16 vs. Durham 7:05 PM. Prospect Watch. Ongoing - Buckhead. Baseball pitching and hitting lessons by a former college and minor league coach. For information call or visit Adult Baseball League Metro Atlanta. Ongoing. MSBL 18+, 28+, 38+, and 48+. Sunday League contact info is , info@atlantamsbl.com. MSBL 18+ Saturday League contact info is , AtlantaMABL@aol.com. MSBL 18+ Midweek Wood bat league contact info is , AtlantaMABL@aol. com. MSBL 18+Fall League contact info is , AtlantaMABL@aol.com. For more information about our Atlanta Adult Baseball League, please visit our website at TNT Sports. Ongoing. Baseball pitching and hitting lessons by Rob Blair, former college coach, Snellville. To set up a free pitching or hitting analysis call Jack City Baseball. Ongoing. Baseball pitching and hitting. Instruction with former pro Keith Whitner. 18-y looking for high school players. The new location is inside Velocity Sports in North Gwinnett. For more information call or visit jackcity.net. Jack City Sports Center. Indoor T-Ball League being offered at Jack City Sports Center. 10 game season with games on Sundays. $125 per player. Team rates available and questions can be directed to FOOTBALL Force. June 4 vs. Tampa Bay 7:35 PM. June 11 at Cleveland 7 PM. Collins Hill Athletic Association. Ongoing. Accepting applications for qualified coaches in all age groups. For informtion Craig Deneau at deneauc@charter.net Grayson Athletic Association. Ongoing. Football coaches needed for eighth grade and all age groups. For information call Duane Davis at or visit Flag Football. GSL Georgia Sports Leagues. Georgia s Largest Flag League. Registration ongoing. We offer 7-Man, 8-man, Youth and Co-Ed styles of play around Atlanta. We play ALL year round. For information please contact (678) or mark@georgiasportsleagues.org. Visit Arena Indoor Football. Ongoing. Youth and Adult Leagues. Youth 7 vs. 7; Adult 6 vs. 6. For information, call or info.indoor@atlantasilverbacks.com. Capitol City Officials Association. CCOA is accepting ongoing registration for the upcoming GHSA High School season in football. We hold weekly training meetings. For more information, contact Irvin Seabrook at or Irv_Seabrook@yahoo.com. HOCKEY Thrashers. April 8 vs. Carolina 7:30 PM. April 10 vs. Pittsburgh 3 PM. Peachtree Booster Club. Ongoing - Pickneyville Roller Hockey Rink. Fees: $95 for 12-game season, $30 out-of-county fee. For information visit SOCCER Challenged Soccer. Ongoing. For mentally and physically disabled youngsters. For information call Ken Higgins at Hall of Fame soccer clinics. Ongoing on Fridays Clarkston Community Center. For under-6 through under-12 players. Fees: Free. For information call or visit 5:30-7 PM. TENNIS Technique Clinics. Ongoing - Bitsy Grant Tennis Center. Tuesdays (serve/volley) and Saturdays (forehand/backhand). Fees: $18. For information call or jimhines01@yahoo.com. 2 PM on Saturdays, 6:30PM on Tuesdays. Tennis camps for kids. Ongoing weekly. Lost Mountain Tennis Center. For information call LACROSSE Lacrosse. Ongoing. Registration for 1st-8th grades. For information call , jasona@bagatawaylacrosse. com or visit Double Stixx Lacrosse. Ongoing - Leagues, Travel Teams and Tournaments for youth, high school and adult s boys and girls. More information about the best lacrosse programs in Georgia can be found at or by contacting Chris Smith at chris@doublestixxlacrosse.com or RUNNING Miles-4-Major 5K Race. Jun. 11. Kennesaw; th Annual Old Courthouse 5K. Jun. 11. Fayetteville, 8:30 AM Atlanta Children s Shelter 5K Run/Walk. Jun. 11. Atlanta, Piedmont Park, 9:00 AM NCHBA Heat of the Night 5K. Jun. 11. Covington, 7:00 PM th Annual Dallas Dash. Jun. 11. Dallas, 7:45 AM Lace Up in the Fight against Breast Cancer 5k Run/Walk and Fun Run. Jun. 11. Suwanee; Peace Place 5K. Jun. 11. Winder, 8:30 AM CAMPS Nike Basketball Camps. Camps located in Snellville, Roswell, Kennesaw, Oxford and Jonesboro. For more information or a free brochure, visit or visit Club Sport, Where Atlanta Comes To Play! Registration Ongoing for Sand & Indoor Leagues and Tournaments League games played every day and night at the Brookhaven Boys and Girls Club. For more info or to register visit Jack City Baseball. Ongoing. Atlanta Braves pitcher Vladimir Nunez is now conducting pitching lessons. To schedule a lesson, call VOLLEYBALL Gwinnett Sports Center. Registration ongoing. For information call Jerry Robison at or visit SWIMMING & DIVING Swimming lessons. Ongoing - Alpharetta City Pool - Alpharetta, Ga Old Milton Parkway. For information call Dynamo Swim School. DynaBabies, Preschool, Grade School, Adult Classes. Youth Swim Team. Call us (770) Ext 16 Gwinnett Aquatics. Ongoing Quinberry Drive and Bethany Church Road. For ages Swim team and lessons available. For information call Senior Water-Exercise class. Ongoing - Mountain Park pool - Lilburn, Ga. Fees: $1 per class. For information call :50 AM. SwimAtlanta Sugarloaf at Kid s Village. Ongoing. Swim team, lessons, lap swimming, master s program, water aerobics and scuba available. For information call YOUTH REGISTRATION Soccer-Soccer Alley. Ongoing Roswell Road- Atlanta. For information call or visit Tucker Youth Soccer. Ongoing Henderson Road Tucker, Ga. For information call or visit Track and Field - Peachtree City Flash Youth Track Team registration. Ongoing - Riley Field - Peachtree City, Ga. For ages For information call or ptcflash@ bellsouth.net. Gymnastics - Georgia Gymnastics Academy. Ongoing. For registration in Lawrenceville call ; in Suwanee call Gym Elite. Ongoing. Registration for ages 2 and older. Cheerleading for ages 6 and older. For information call Youth Soccer Training. Ongoing. Start age 3 and up. For information, call , info.indoor@atlantasilverbacks.com, or visit Corpus Christi Youth Basketball League Registration is now underway for our 29th season! Boys and girls ages 5 through 14, any skill level, are welcome. Cost: $90 per child/$85 for siblings. Fee includes uniforms, field trips, skills clinics, 9 games and maore! Register while space is still available Saturdays October 11 & 18, 2008, 10 AM to 12 PM. Location: Corpus Christi Church Sports Arena, 600 Mountain View Drive, Stone Mountain, GA For info, call , ccybl1@gmail.com or visit the league s website ( SOFTBALL AYSA Spring Season. Ongoing - North Park - Cogburn and Bethany - Alpharetta. Fees: If Alpharetta Residential Property Tax IS NOT PAID at the primary residence of the player, then the Non-City Resident Fee must be paid. After Jan. 13, $10 late fee is charged. GYMNASTICS Gymnastics Classes at Gymnastics AcademyofAtlanta. Ongoing Cobb Parkway Kennesaw, Ga. For information call or visit Gymnastics Classes at Gwinnett Gymnastics Center Ongoing Killian Hill Road Lilburn, Ga. For information call Atlanta School of Gymnastics in Lawrenceville. Ongoing. Classes for tots through teens. Cheerleading classes for ages 5 and older. For information call The Little Gym of Snellville. Ongoing. Noncompetitive gymnastics and motor-skills development classes and camps. For ages 10 months-12 years. For information call or visit RACING Friday Night Drags & Show-N-Shine Points Opener. June 3 at Atlanta Motor Speedway Y U Buggin June 4 at Atlanta Motor Speedway Fast Track High Performance Driving School. June 5 at Atlanta Motor Speedway Thursday Thunder. June 9 at Atlanta Motor Speedway Hall County Relay for Life. June 3 at Road Atlanta Friday Night Drags & Show-N-Shine. June 10 at Atlanta Motor Speedway Dale Jarrett Racing Adventure. June at Atlanta Motor Speedway Thursday Thunder. June 16 at Atlanta Motor Speedway OFFICIATING 9RCorp Sports Officials. Ongoing. Provider of sports officials for multiple sports including basketball, flag football, & softball. Looking for additional officials. For information call Dennis Reagan at or 9rcorp@150mail.com. Georgia Lacrosse Officials Association. Needs boys youth and High School officials for 2010 season. Games are played Spring, Summer, and Fall. Great way to earn extra money and get some fun aerobic exercise. For more information, please visit or recruit@galaxref.com. Atlanta Peachstate Football Officials Association. High School Football Officials needed. We are in need of people who want to officiate high school football in the Atlanta Metro area. No experience is necessary. We have weekly training sessions. For more information go on our web site or call ATLANTA SPORTS COUNCIL Chick-Fil-A Bowl. Dec. 31, Georgia Dome. For tickets, call To reach the Atlanta Sports Council call or visit MISC. Club Sport. Club Sport opens registration for summer leagues on May 1st with league play beginning in June. Club Sport is Atlanta s recreational sports and social group with over 10,000 participants each year on 1200 teams in 120 leagues. Each season Club Sport offers leagues in flag football, softball, soccer, sand and indoor volleyball, basketball and more. Club Sport is where Atlanta comes to play! For more information about Club Sport, upcoming events, photos or interviews with the owner, please contact Rich Alvarez at ext. 818 or visit GOkickball Atlanta s Premier Social Experience. Providing social, co-ed adult kickball leagues throughout metro-atlanta centered around having a good time, meeting new people, and playing recreational games of kickball at local parks. Registration is open now for summer season. Join the fun! For more information and to register, go to

18 18 SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game! College Campus Tours helps prospective students visit schools they are considering ompleting college without incurring sub- debt is a monumental task. Cstantial Obtaining grants and scholarships that cover tuition, room and fees will enable students to start off above 80 percent of Americans upon graduation. Each year colleges throughout America award over 32,000 scholarships to play football. This number includes Division 1, 1-AA and 2. College Campus Tours is a committed service company dedicated to helping students and parents simplify the college admission process, by providing visits to an array of colleges. The U.S. News and Princeton Review have noted that college tours and campus visits are an absolute necessity for college bound students. Therefore, College Campus Tours is dedicated to providing superior college tour services for student groups. To demonstrate this fact we have brought students to various locations throughout the United States. For example, in the West University of Colorado, Air Force Academy; in the Midwest Northwestern University, DePaul University; in the East---Hampton University, Georgetown University; in the South University of Houston, Florida State, Duke University, Southern University and Jackson State University; just to name a few. Discovering one s unique talents, interests and abilities is an important step in learning how to live a purposeful life devoted to civic service. A principal goal of the higher education institution should be to guide students to engage in self-discovery. It is very important that students visit a variety of college campuses in order to determine which type of higher education institution best fits them. Choosing a college without exploring all available options could be a costly mistake. The College Recruiting Tours Program was created to support student-athletes decision making skills during the college selection process. The College Recruiting Tours Program will: Promote the development of character, integrity and leadership skills. Encourage students ownership of their academic, athletic, career, personal and civic responsibilities. Assist student-athletes with NCAA Clearinghouse rules. Provide ACT / SAT tutoring. Commit to lifelong mentorship by Helping students to stay on a graduation track, not an eligibility track Developing a personal vision and mission statement for life Empowering students to overcome social landmines Encouraging students to attend graduate school Our company values trust and integrity. We provide our youth with knowledge and wisdom in order to create a fulfilling future. Shaun Lain of College Campus Tours can be reached at shaun@collegecampustours.net,

19 JUNE 3-9, 2011 SCORE ATLANTA 19 Bulldogs win three in SEC tourney; sent to Corvallis for regional o West, young men. G The Diamond Dawgs will do just that after winning three games in the double-elimination SEC tournament. Georgia (31-30) entered the tournament at exactly.500, but had to end the season over that mark to be eligible for an NCAA tournament bid. David Perno s squad will now be sent to the Corvallis, Ore. Regional with Oregon State, Creighton and Arkansas-Little Rock. The Bulldogs were given the No. 3 seed and will play second-seeded Creighton on Friday. The winner of that game will face the winner of OSU and UALR. In the SEC tournament, Georgia lost its first game 10-0 to Vandy, then battled back to take three consecutive games over Auburn, South Carolina and Florida. The Gators then eliminated Georgia in the second of two games on Saturday. The game that clinched a winning record for the Dawgs was a 4-3 win over Florida. Little-used pitcher Earl Daniels started the game for Georgia and gave up two runs in 2/3 of an inning. Chase Hawkins, Michael Palazzone, Bryan Benzor and Tyler Maloof then combined to give up zero earned runs over the final 8 1/3 of the game. Only one Florida run scored during that time. Meanwhile, Georgia s offense put four runs on the board in the first three innings. Left fielder Zach Cone drove in two runs while Brett Deloach also had an RBI. END OF AN ERA The Georgia softball team had its last season ended in a Super Regional against Baylor Sunday. The teams split the first two games of the series setting up a rubber game, which was won 9-2 by the visiting Bears. Baylor advanced to the Women s College World Series with the win while Georgia s season ended at The Bears won the first game of the series 5-1, but Georgia rallied to stave off elimination 14-2 in the second game. In the Game 3 loss, Kristyn Sandberg was 2-for-2 for Georgia with two RBIs, but starting pitcher Morgan Montemayor gave up five earned runs in 2/3 of an inning and was given the loss. The Georgia senior class will go home without a World Series berth in their UGA careers. The eight departing players will bow out with a combined four-year record of Black can be reached at sblack@scoreatl.com. Jackets to host baseball regional despite seeding snub t is time for the NCAA Regionals and, al- Tech failed to earn one of the Ithough top eight seeds despite having a top-eight RPI, the Jackets will host an NCAA regional. They will face Austin Peay. Southern Miss and Mississippi State will play on the other side of the Atlanta Regional. BULLED IN DURHAM The ACC tournament did not go quite as well as the Yellow Jackets would have liked. Going into the tournament, Georgia Tech was on the bubble for one of the eight national seeds, Winning just a single game in the tournament hurt its chances. Tech s first game against a lower-seeded Clemson team was a 9-0 defeat. However, the game was closer than the score indicated. CHECK OUT SCOREATL.COM! TRIVIA ANSWER Los Angeles, which does not have an NFL franchise. However, L.A. has six total major sports franchises. Neither team scored until Clemson put up three runs in the fourth. The Tigers added another five runs in the ninth to turn the game into a blowout. REACHING A MILESTONE In the losers bracket, it took Tech 15 innings to dispatch N.C. State. It was the longest game in Georgia Tech history at five hours and seven minutes. The victory was Tech s 40th of the season, which is the 22ndtime in school history that the team has won 40 games. The game was even more memorable for how it was won. Matt Skole stole home in the top of the 15th inning for the winning run. The memorable moments ran out as Tech faced Florida State, one of the other teams fighting for one of those eight national seeds TO ADVERTISE IN SCORE ATLANTA: that give you home field to the College World Series. After being delayed a day, the Seminoles beat Georgia Tech 4-2 with one good inning. In the third, Yellow Jacket starter Buck Farmer gave up three runs that proved to be the difference in Georgia Tech s elimination. Tech its their chances to take the game. In the sixth inning, the bases were loaded when freshman Daniel Palka grounded into a double play to end the inning. The Yellow Jackets had one more chance to beat Florida State in the ninth. There were runners on the corners with no outs and Georgia Tech failed to score as Seminoles closer Daniel Bennett recorded three quick outs. Watson can be reached at Copyright 2011 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Score Atlanta is published every week on Fridays. Views expressed in Score Atlanta are not necessarily the opinion of Score Atlanta, its staff or advertisers. Score Atlanta does not knowingly accept false or misleading editorial content or advertising nor is Score Atlanta responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. No content (articles, photographs, graphics) in Score Atlanta may be used for reproduction without written permission from the publisher.

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