CHILDREN S TAKES CARE OF KIDS SEE BACK PAGE APRIL 23-29, 2010 DEKALB S ATLANTA S HIGH SPORTS SCHOOL TALK SPORTS NEWSPAPER VOL 3 NO 28
02D I SCORE DEKALB Get In The Game! STARTING LINEUP THE HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg GENERAL MANAGER Bob Houghton MANAGING EDITOR: Stephen Black ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick SALES MANAGER Mark Mayo BEAT WRITERS Josh Bagriansky (Falcons), Stephen Black (UGA), Jason Boral (Thrashers), Dave Cohen (Georgia State), Ricky Dimon (Tech), Rajesh Gupta (Hawks) Fletcher Proctor (Braves) Brian Jones (Preps) STAFF WRITERS Joe Deighton, Foster Lander, Brian Jones, Krissy Wade, Jennifer Sugarman, Mahdi Nuru, Alex Ewalt CONTRIBUTORS Tad Arapoglou, Dean Zindler, Zander Lentz, Kevin Dankosky, Mitch Evans, Matt Judy, Tony Schiavone, Richard Diamond, Joe Haines, Brian Katrek, Chris Dimino, Mike Bell, Matt Stewart, Fred Kalil, Nick Cellini, Phillip Leopold, Dave Marshall, Greg Smith, Steak Shapiro, Mike Cather, Beau Bock, Hal Lamar, Chris Cotter, Roy Hickman, Dave Cohen, John Olah, Jeff Woolverton, Chris Voss, Bob Rathbun, Courtney Capps, Bill Hartman, Chuck Dowdle, Shannon Alderman, Dan Kamal, Dennis Scott, C.C., Hal Lanier, Jeff Batten, Micah Hart, Ben Wright, Alan Vasquez, Andrew Vedlitz, Brian Jones 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, N. Cobb, N. Cobb Christian, Pebblebrook, Pope, S. Cobb, Sprayberry, Walton, Wheeler DEKALB: 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, Lovett, Mays, Milton, 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 GORDON: Calhoun, Gordon Central, Sonoraville BRYAN CRONAN SPALDING HIGH The Jaguar senior recently won the United Healthcare Male High School Scholarship award. It is given to a senior who has represented his/her sport in both performance and leadership. Cronan received a $1000 scholarship award and also recently completed the boys Class 3A 5k run in 17:25.95 at Carrollton High. Cronan came in at No. 31 out of 223. MEGAN MAVITY MARIST HIGH Megan is a gifted cross-country and track runner who won the United Healthcare Female High School Scholarship award. Mavity has a personal best of 11:34.64 in the two-mile run and 18:25.04 in the 5000-meter run. The Marist War Eagle won the Track Coaches Award in 2009 and was the Track Distance MVP in 2008. Mavity was also named to the ESPN All-Metro Team in 2008-09.
APRIL 23-29, 2010 SCORE DEKALB I 03D SCOGA honors metro scholar athletes for excellence on the field and off On April 15, Sports Champions of Greater Atlanta honored a dozen local high school athletes for their work in the classroom, the community and on the fields of play. The event was held at the Cobb Galleria Centre and was MC ed by Bill Hartman. Former Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel spoke at the banquet. SCOGA was founded by George Wright in 2001 to recognize high school athletes for not only their athletic prowess, but their work in the classroom and community as well. The organization receives corporate support from the Coca-Cola Company, Cox Enterprises, the Georgia Power Company, BellSouth, WSB, the Marietta Daily Journal, as well as other individuals and foundations. The students selected are limited to high school seniors and coaches. The criteria for the student-athletes is athletic ability, scholastic, achievement and good character while the coaches selected are chosen based their record and the development of good character in their players and students. The areas included in the greater Atlanta area include Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett. The banquet was the seventh for the organization, which had its inaugural event in 2004. HIGHLIGHTING THE WINNERS Among this year s winners was Jamel Dobbs from Cedar Grove High School. The four-year football letterman has achieved the highest GPA on the football team all four years and currently sports a 4.175 GPA. After making the all-state and all-county teams for his exploits on the football field, Jamel will attend the U.S. Naval Academy next fall. Trace Browne of Blessed Trinity and William Freeman of GAC are each accomplished swimmers and will both attend UGA next fall. William was named Georgia male swimmer of the Year while Trace was region champion in two events. Both swimmers are members of the National Honor Society. Westminster s Andrew Bridges will attend Vanderbilt University on a full scholarship next year. Andrew played football and basketball for the Wildcats as well as competing in track and field. The future Commodore earned eight varsity letters in his career. A track and field star, Lauren Hutchinson of North Cobb was the 2009 state champion pole vaulter for Class 5A. Lauren also competes in cross country for the Lady Warriors while sporting a 4.229 GPA. The future Kennesaw State Owl has taken several trips to Thailand and Malaysia to help rebuild schools. A nine-time All American, Caroline Kenney has led North Gwinnett both on the swim team and in the classroom as a six-time state champion and winner of the school Scholar Athlete award. Caroline is a six-time state champion and currently holds eight school records. The Lady Bulldog will swim at the University of Virginia next year. A member of the swimming and track and field teams, Eric Madden will also attend the Naval Academy. Eric is a state champion in the 100 butterfly and holds eight school records in addition to being an Academic All American. Kenzie Thrasher from Landmark Christian participates in cross country and track for her school and is a two-time state champion. The Lady War Eagle standout has a 4.17 GPA and is a member of the National Art Society. While serving as student body president, Forrest Parks of Whitefield Academy is a leader in his school as well as being an exceptional athlete. Forrest plays football, wrestles and runs track for the Wolfpack while also carrying a 4.0 GPA. Chaney Means is a three-sport standout at GAC and will take advantage of a full athletic scholarship to play basketball at Western Kentucky University. For the Lady Spartans, Chaney plays softball in addition to hoops and is a state champion. The future Hilltopper is a member of the National Honor Society and the National Beta Club. With the Alpharetta Lady Raiders, Cameron Robertson has participated in cheerleading, diving, gymnastics and track and field. Cameron is a state champion in gymnastics and will attend Georgia Southern in the fall. The four-sport star was selected by peers as Miss Alpharetta High School this year. While sporting a 4.0 GPA, Elizabeth Sims has played varsity tennis for Blessed Trinity all four years and is a member of the Nation Honor Society. On the courts, Elizabeth has been ranked in the top 10 in the South as an individual. The Governor s Honors program nominee will play tennis at the University of Richmond next year on a full scholarship. Cover photos courtesy of Steve Head. Black can be reached at sblack@scoreatl.com. SCOGA SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS Andrew Bridges - Westminster Trace Browne - Blessed Trinity Jamel Dobbs - Cedar Grove William Freeman - GAC Lauren Hutchinson - North Cobb Carolina Kenney - North Gwinnett Eric Madden - North Gwinnett Chaney Means - GAC Forrest Parks - Whitefield Academy Cameron Robertson - Alpharetta Elizabeth Sims - Blessed Trinity Kenzie Thrasher - Landmark Christian School YOUTH LEADERS: Head coaches who were recognized included (photos are clockwise starting at top left) James Haskins of Pope, Richard Francis of Lovejoy, Jess Simpson of Buford, James Friday Richards of Marietta and Mark Karen of North Gwinnett. Photo courtesy of Steve Head.
04D I SCORE DEKALB Get In The Game! GHSA waives membership dues for next year due to economy; Parkview baseball No. 1 There is no doubt that the economy has affected the entire nation, especially the high school sports scene. The Georgia High School Association made a big decision this week, waiving membership dues for the 2010-11 school year. The reason for this move was that schools were trying to figure out ways to cut back on their athletic programs. Some schools have considered dropping their junior varsity programs while others were considering not traveling for away games. Here s a breakdown of how much a school would have to pay to be a part of the GHSA. For a school in Class A, the dues were $225 while, for a school in Class 5A, the dues were around $300-$525. So, with over 430 schools whom are a part in the GHSA, the sum of the loss would be around $245,000 for the 2010-11 season. How can the GHSA afford to do this? The organization hopes to have increased revenue during playoff and championship games and they also hope to have new corporate sponsors contribute as well. The GHSA receives revenue from playoff tickets, membership dues, clinic fees, vendor sales and publication sales. PANTHERS ON THE PROWL However, before getting to the 2010-2011 season, the 2009-10 year has not come to a close and the baseball season is coming down to the wire. There is a new team on top of Class 5A and that team is Parkview, who is ranked No. 1 in the Prep Country Coaches Poll. The Panthers have won nine of their last 10 games, including wins over Class 3A powers Columbus and Cartersville. The Gwinnett County program has been an offensive juggernaut this year, led by players such as Austin Wheeler, Brandon Kregel, and Matt Olson. But, if Parkview wants to hold the state title trophy in early June, they will have some tough competition in their way, specifically Milton, who is No. 2 in the rankings. The Eagles have only two sophomores on the roster, so they are an experienced team with something to prove. With a balance of great pitching and even better hitting, they looked poised to take home the Region 6 crown and possibly the state title. LIONS ARE GOLDEN Before the soccer season started, it looked as if Collins Hill would be the favorite not only to win the Class 5A championship, but to be considered the best team in the state regardless of classification. The Eagles are still on pace to win the Class 5A crown, but St. Pius X is also on a roll, ranked No. 1 in the all-classes poll on eurosportscoreboard.com and is 14-0-1 at press time. The Lions got one of their biggest wins of the year when they took down Class 5A powerhouse Walton 1-0 on April 10. St. Pius X recently played against Grady in the Region 5 semifinal and won 4-2. They are the defending Class 3A champs and look to be on their way to another title. On the girls side, the Walton Lady Raiders still hold the top spot in the all classes poll. They got a big 3-2 win over No. 3 Whitewater and do not have one blemish on 1 Harrison 2 Lassiter 3 Milton 4 Northview 5 Walton 6 Newnan 7 Alpharetta 8 Pope 9 Peachtree Ridge 10 Etowah their record except for the tie against Walker on Feb. 26. Walton has a lot of momentum going into the state tournament, but with Parkview and Brookwood nipping at their heels, it should be a very interesting couple of weeks to see who comes out on top. NEW FOOTBALL COACHES As exciting as spring sports are here in Georgia, nothing gets the meter going like football and there are plenty of football-related stories to come out this week. In the Fountain City of Columbus, Carver High School will have a new player joining them in the fall. His name is Michael Davis. He played at Demopolis High School (Ala.) and made all-state honorable mention at the linebacker position last season. What is interesting about this story is the reason for his transfer. Davis will turn 19 on July 18 and, due to rules in Ala., he is ineligible to play high school sports. In Georgia, players can turn 19 as early as May 1. One of the most prestigious programs in the state, Dalton has a new leader at the helm. Dalton alum and community coach Matt Land will be the successor for Adam Winegarden and will try to keep the schools 1 Lambert 2 Westminster 3 St. Pius X 4 Wesleyan 5 Lovett 6 Blessed Trinity 7 McIntosh 8 Holy Innocents 9 Woodward 10 Starr s Mill winning-season streak going. The streak is now at 50, which is the longest active streak in the nation. Land will be the sixth Dalton head coach since 1946 and the coaches before him were all assistants at Dalton. He has been a community coach for 17 seasons. Another school to get a new head coach is McNair, who hired Tywanois Lockett last week. Lockett has been the linebackers coach for Cedar Shoals last season and held that same position at Elbert County in 2008. He will try to turn around a program that went 4-6 last season under head coach John April, who took the job days before their home opener after Roderick Moore was fired. McNair has made the playoffs in seven of the last eight years. Windsor Forest also has a new head coach, as they hired Jason Roundtree to replace Mike Martin. Roundtree was the defensive coordinator for Windsor Forest last year where they made the playoffs last season. In fact, Windsor Forest has made the playoffs for the last six seasons in Region 3, Class 5A, but has failed to make it past the first round. Jones can be reached at bjones@scoreatl.com. STATE LACROSSE RANKINGS Boys AAAAA Boys AAAA/AAA/AA/A Girls All Class 1 Milton 2 Westminster 3 Northview 4 Chattahoochee 5 Roswell 6 Lassiter 7 Walton 8 Alpharetta 9 West Forsyth 10 McIntosh
APRIL 23-29, 2010 SCORE DEKALB I 05D
06D I SCORE DEKALB Get In The Game! County track teams prepare for region meets; McNair hires new football coach Track season is headed into the stretch run and a multitude of DeKalb teams want to prove themselves as contenders. SW DeKalb competed against some great competition at the Carrollton Invitational where they came in fifth out of 20 teams. There was plenty to write home about as the boys 4x400 meter relay team rook home first place in a time of 3:19.84. Malcolm Brock also came in third in the high jump. Ed Austin came second in the 800-meter run. Tucker also attended, and enjoyed a second place finish from Sentavious Jones in the triple jump. The Tigers finished ninth, while Redan finished 12th. Keep an eye on SW DeKalb over the coming week as they will run in the Region 6, Class 4A Championships on April 29 at Lakeside. On the girls side, two DeKalb teams dominated as Tucker and Redan finished first and second respectively. Kim Miller took home one of six wins for the Tigers. Also victorious were Redan s Crystal Gray in the 400-meter dash. Off the track, Tucker s Kimberly Miller also announced she will continue her career in college. She signed with Boise State University on April 14. Class AAAAA 1. Parkview 2. Milton 3. East Coweta 4. South Forsyth 5. Mill Creek 6. Collins Hill 7. Camden County 8. Etowah 9. Pope 10. Roswell FROM THE SOCCER PITCH State playoff berths were also earned across the state last week. Druid Hills squeaked into their eighth straight tournament, needing penalties to defeat underdog Johns Creek. Dunwoody missed out on their chance to make the state tournament, losing 2-1 to Grady in a region quarterfinal. Chamblee s 4-0 loss to Lakeside last week knocked them out of the playoffs and allowed Tucker to get in. The Tigers will face Hillgrove this week. Marist s opening match is perhaps the best of the first round, as they meet Dalton to open up the tournament. Dalton has lost just once since late February and are one of the top programs in the state. The state playoffs begin in all classifications next week. FROM THE DIAMOND Marist baseball lost a tough game to Lakeside, as they were defeated 4-2 giving the Vikings a stranglehold on Region 6, Class 4A. Their lead now sits at one game and they also hold the tiebreaker after beating the War Eagles both times head-to-head. Marist has a great chance to get back on the winning track in a must-watch game against Cartersville on Saturday at noon. The matchup takes place at the Atlanta Braves home stadium, Turner Field. Cartersville is coming their first loss after an incredible 57- game winning streak over the weekend. Stephenson s baseball season has not gone according to plan, but they will be represented on the international level this summer. Senior pitcher Tre Randolph will pack his bags this summer and head to Spain to participate in the 2010 Goodwill Games. The games take place in Barcelona from July 12-19. Meanwhile, the struggling Jaguars try to get their season back on track this week at region foe Union Grove. They host Mundy s Mill on Saturday before traveling for another Region 2, Class 5A game on Tuesday against Newton. McNair s football season took a tumble after they suddenly fired head coach Roderick Moore just days before the opener this past season. The Mustangs finished 4-6. The program finally found their replacement on April 19 in Cedar Shoals linebackers coach Tywanois Lockett, who held the same job at Elbert Co. in 2008. The inexperienced Lockett will try and lead the team back to the BASEBALL RANKINGS Class AAAA 1. Lakeside, Evans 2. Ola 3. Alcovy 4. Loganville Class AAA 1. Columbus 2. Gainesville 3. Carrollton 4. Cartersville Class AA 1. Cook 2. Toombs County 3. Calhoun 4. Appling County 5. Wayne County 5. Oconee County 5. North Oconee 6. Winder-Barrow 6. Thomson 6. Jefferson 7. Dalton 7. Ringgold 7. Lovett 8. Hillgrove 8. Dunwoody 8. Henry County 9. Marist 9. St. Pius X 9. Adairsville 10. Evans 10. Creekview / North Atlanta 10. Central, Macon Rankings were compiled on April 19 and are courtesy of GaPrepcountry.com. playoffs after they missed it for just the second time in nine years in 09. Antonio Porterfield Lockett s teammate during his playing days at Alabama State takes over as the offensive coordinator for the Mustangs. MARIST MAKES POSTSEASON Lacrosse has been one of the few teams to struggle at Marist in recent seasons. But the War Eagles might be turning that around after qualifying for the state playoffs for the first time in four seasons. While the War Eagles are just happy to take part in the postseason, their archrivals at St. Pius are ranked third by laxpower.com and hope to compete for a state title. But they must get back on track with the playoffs around the corner, having lost three of four games, including a difficult 9-7 loss to No. 2 Westminster. They finish the year with two road games. The first comes in Augusta against Lakeside-Evans. Then they close out the year on April 29 against Marist as the two fight it out for bragging rights in a rivalry the Golden Lions have dominated in recent years. Bagriansky can be reached at jbagriansky@scoreatl.com. Class A 1. Landmark Christian 2. Calvary Day 3. Hebron Christian Academy 4. Wesleyan 5. Schley County 6. Eagle s Landing Christian Acad. 7. Holy Innocents 8. Bremen 9. Walker 10. Savannah Christian
APRIL 23-29, 2010 SCORE DEKALB I 07D Class AAAAA 1. Northview 2. Lassiter 3. Collins Hill 4. Centennial 5. Greenbriar, Evans 6. Dacula 7. Milton 8. Walton 9. Alpharetta 10. Norcross Class AAAAA 1. Walton 2. Parkview 3. Brookwood 4. North Gwinnett 5. Harrison 6. Northview 7. Lassiter 8. Pope 9. Greenbrier, Evans 10. Collins Hill BOYS STATE SOCCER RANKINGS Class AAAA 1. McIntosh 2. Hillgrove 3. Starr s Mill 4. Lakeside-DeKalb 4. Marist 6. Habersham Central 7. Dalton 8. North Springs 9. Lakeside, Evans 10. Glynn Academy Class AAAA 1. Whitewater 2. Starr s Mill 3. Marist 4. Salem 5. Heritage-Conyers 6. McIntosh 7. Lee Co. 8. Glynn Academy 9. South Paulding 10. Lakeside Evans Class AAA 1. St. Pius X 2. Oconee Co. 3. Gainesville 4. Columbus 5. Woodward Acad. 6. Carrollton 7. Perry 8. SE Whitefield 8. Lambert 10. Johnson / Riverwood Class AAA 1. St. Pius X 2. Creekview 3. John s Creek 4. Woodward Acad. 5. Lambert 6. Oconee Co. 7. Columbus 8. Riverwood 9. Carrollton 10. Heritage, Catoosa Class AA/A 1. Blessed Trinity 2. Thomasville 3. Aquinas 4. Westminster 5. Walker 6. Wesleyan 7. Paideia 8. Savannah Country Day 9. Benedictine 10. Atlanta International GIRLS STATE SOCCER RANKINGS Class AA/A 1. Walker 2. GAC 3. Westminster 4. St. Vincent s 5. Paideia 6. Pike Co. 7. Blessed Trinity 8. Eagle s Landing Christian 9. Fellowship Christian 10. Brookstone All Classes 1. St. Pius X 2. Collins Hill 3. Northview 4. McIntosh 5. Lassiter 6. Oconee Co. 7. Hillgrove 8. Centennial 9. Blessed Trinity 10. Greenbrier, Evans All Classes 1. Walton 2. Parkview 3. Whitewater 4. Brookwood 5. GAC 6. North Gwinnett 7. Starr s Mill 8. Walker 9. Harrison 10. St. Pius X Rankings were compiled on April 19 and are courtesy of Eurosportscoreboard.com. (All Classes Rankings were updated on April 12)