high school football on demand see back page

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OCTOBER 1-7, 2008
ATLANTA’S
SPORTS
NEWSPAPER
FULTON’S
HIGH
SCHOOLTALK
SPORTS
NEWSPAPER
VOL 4 NO 5
02F I SCORE FULTON
Get In The Game!
™
STARTING
LINEUP
PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg • MANAGING EDITOR Tad Arapoglou • DIRECTOR OF SALES/MARKETING
John Duke • ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR David Gaudio • GRAPHIC DESIGNER D.J. Galbiati • WEBMASTER Alex Ewalt
VIDEO MANAGER/PREP EDITOR Scott Janovitz • BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick
• SALES Zander Lentz, Brian Pruett • OFFICE MANAGER Nakia Washington
BEAT WRITERS Josh Bagriansky (Dream), Stephen Black (Silverbacks), Jason Boral (Thrashers), James
Butler (UGA), Dave Cohen (Georgia State), Johnny Crosskey (Tech), Alex Ewalt (Preps), Erik Horne
(Falcons), Scott Janovitz (Hawks/Recruiting), Fletcher Proctor (Braves)
STAFF WRITERS Cranston Collier, Joe Deighton, Ricky Dimon, Rajesh Gupta, Brian Jones, Zander Lentz,
Andrew McCarron, Corey Mitchell, Jessica Parker, Derek Wiley
CONTRIBUTORS Dean Zindler, 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, Chuck Oliver, Hal Lamar, Chris Cotter, Matt Chernoff, 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
THE HIGH SCHOOL
SCHOOL LISTING
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
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
SAM MCNEARNY/KYLE FARMER
MARIST
The War Eagles’ quarterback tandem
led Marist to a 38-0 home upset of
then-No. 1 Tucker last Friday. Farmer, a
senior, completed four of five passes
for 83 yards and ran for 86 yards and
a touchdown on 21 carries. McNearny,
a junior, scored a rushing touchdown
of his own in the first half to put Marist
up 17-0 at halftime. The duo also
helped lead Marist to a 14-13 upset of
then-No. 3 Chamblee in Week 3.
MORGAN BULLOCK
MILL CREEK
The senior pitcher won perhaps the
most important game of her career
last week, as she only allowed one hit
and one earned run against North
Gwinnett to clinch Region 7-AAAAA’s
No. 1 seed. In 24 regular-season
games, Bullock was 18-2 with a 0.48
ERA and 143 strikeouts. At the plate,
she is hitting .590 with 32 stolen
bases, 31 runs and 46 hits. Bullock is
committed to Florida State.
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OCTOBER 1-7, 2008
SCORE FULTON I 03F
Out with the old, in with the new: The emergence of the spread offense
ers have the maturity to run the spread
nents that they were not able to in the past.”
hese days you hear it everywhere. If you
At this rate, the spread offense is surely
offense and that their programs are better for
With a 4-1 record (the lone loss coming
T
watch football on Saturday or Sunday,
going to start appearing at more high school
having incorporated it. For instance, at
to Byrnes of South Carolina, one of the top
announcers and analysts can’t stop talking
programs. Due to the increased use at the
about the number of teams that have adopted
some form of the spread offense. This attacking style of play grew out of the ideas of Glenn
Ellison (of Middleton High School in Ohio),
and is transforming the game at every level.
Though the spread was first run some
45 years ago, it has gained the most notoriety
within the past decade. Due to the overwhelming success of many teams running
the offense, there has been a rapid diffusion
of the spread down to the high school level.
In Georgia, some of the best examples of
spread-offense
teams
are
Lassiter,
Chattahoochee and North Gwinnett.
A NEW ERA …
There are several reasons why high
schools are incorporating the spread offense
into their schemes. One thing is for sure: it has
been a major contributing factor to the success of many programs and has created new
interest in the game. Chip Lindsey of Lassiter,
Terry Crowder (pictured) of Chattahoochee
and Bob Sphire of North Gwinnett each rely
on different forms of the spread, and each
coach broke down the positives and negatives
of these offensive systems.
Overall, there seems to be an immediate
spike in offensive production for teams that
implement spread offenses. If the spread is
run correctly, it will score a lot of points. In
five games this year, the North Gwinnett
Bulldogs are averaging 29.2 points per game.
Sphire ran the Wing-T and triple-option wishbone before he adopted the spread.
“In past years, the [North Gwinnett]
teams had been very competitive, winning
about eight out of 12 games,” Sphire says.
“However, with the spread, it has given the
team a chance to beat more talented oppo-
X’s AND O’s …
Lassiter, the high-powered style of offense
has sparked an interest amongst the student
body to join the team.
“There has been an increase in athletes
coming out to play, because [the spread] is
the offense [students] see on Saturday and
Sunday,” Lindsey says. As for the maturity
level of players, the coaches believe the athletes can handle the decision-making.
However, each coach stressed the importance
of the staff making sure that each player
knows his job on offense.
Within the spread formation, there are
many factors that make it difficult for
defenses to stop its offensive production at
the high school level.
“It allows you to get the ball to your
better athletes,” says Lindsey. In addition to
getting the ball to your best players, it is
very important to have strong play from the
offensive line.
Crowder speaks highly of his young
offensive line. The talent of the line is one of
the main reasons the team switched to the
spread, and there are high expectations for
them to handle the bulk of the defensive pressure in the future. Like Crowder, Sphire
believes that in many ways, “the greatest
challenge is to the offensive line, especially
on blocking schemes and misdirections.”
All three coaches stressed the importance of strong blocking up front and the
ability to get the ball into the hands of the
team’s best athletes.
There are many people who question
whether running the spread offense, which
requires players to do a lot of the decisionmaking, is reasonable to ask of high school
athletes. Crowder, Sphire and Lindsey unanimously believe that high school football play-
SPREADING THE FIELD: Chattahoochee head coach Terry Crowder switched to the more dynamic
spread offense from the Wing-T and triple-option wishbone, and says that the spread “keeps your
team in the ballgame” with its hurry-up style. Photo courtesy of Photographic Arts.
teams in the nation), the Bulldogs look
poised to continue baffling Region 7AAAAA foes with their efficient spread
offense. Similar to Sphire, Terry Crowder at
Chattahoochee switched to the spread from
the Wing-T. Crowder points out that by running the spread, “it keeps your team in the
ballgame.” This is especially true if a team
falls behind, because it is essentially in the
two-minute offense the entire game.
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college level, it certainly gives an advantage
to those players who will make the jump to
collegiate football in the years to come.
Most importantly, though, it challenges all
coaches and players to approach offensive
football with discipline, and it definitely
adds a lot of creativity and excitement to the
high school game.
The cover photos of North Gwinnett’s
Michael Tamburo and Lassiter’s Hutson
Mason are courtesy of Photographic Arts and
Ed Turlington/et images, respectively. Gupta
can be reached at rgupta@scoreatl.com.
04F I SCORE FULTON
Get In The Game!
Super sophomore Abdul-Saboor hopes to lead Alpharetta to new heights
a first-year varsity player as his starting
Abdul-Saboor leads the team statisticaln the fifth year of Alpharetta Raiders football,
went to Marist.
quarterback.
ly in most offensive categories and is the
the program seems to be infused with a new
Ienergy
“He was accepted and was ready to
“I get the kid for two more years,”
lynchpin of the Raiders’ spread attack.
and enthusiasm. Part of that can be
enroll and went down there to watch a
attributed to the 3-0 start the team got off to this
year. The rest of that buzz may be attributed to
a sophomore quarterback whose skill and talent may take the Raiders somewhere they have
never been – the state playoffs.
Mikal Abdul-Saboor is playing his first
year of varsity football and, following a foot
injury in 2006, his first football action in
two years. However, the budding star has
already asserted himself as the leader of
Alpharetta’s offense.
“He’s vital,” said head coach Bill
Waters. “The quarterback touches the ball
every play, and being a young kid with a lot
of poise like he has makes it a plus. He has
got some great athletic ability and is one of
the smarter kids in school. That helps.”
Through the team’s first five games, AbdulSaboor has rushed for 171 yards and two
touchdowns while passing for 918 yards and
eight scores. He averages 218 yards of total
offense per game. Not bad for a sophomore
who had not played competitive football in
two years before the start of the season.
Abdul-Saboor attributes his immediate
success to learning while on the bench.
“Basically, sitting on the sidelines last
year and watching all of the freshman games,
I was able to see the field better and see
things that I would be able to do out there,”
Abdul-Saboor explained. “Although I did
miss playing, I was able to watch games and
become smarter (as a player).”
His coach doesn’t seem to mind having
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Waters said with a laugh. “That’s a good
thing. He’s doing some really great things,
but he’s still got a long ways to go and he’s
only going to get better.”
LEARNING CURVE …
Although Abdul-Saboor has made a relatively smooth transition to the starting role,
he has run into some challenges typical of a
rookie quarterback.
“Being new on board and trying to gain
the respect of the upperclassmen has been the
biggest difficulty,” said the sophomore quarterback. “And getting them to trust me in a game.”
The fact that Abdul-Saboor ended up
playing at Alpharetta is a story within
itself: the 5-foot-11, 195-pounder almost
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game,” explained his father, Mikal Sr. “But
they only threw the ball three times. He saw
that and decided Marist wasn’t for him.”
The talented young sophomore may get
some of his ability from his bloodlines. His
father was an All-American offensive lineman for Morgan State in the late 1970s and
then played for the Pittsburgh Steelers during the 80s.
Although the Raiders have dropped
their last two games to Milton and Walton,
Alpharetta still has a chance to have a special season. And if anyone can engineer a
playoff run, it is the prodigy they have
playing quarterback.
Black
can
be
reached
at
sblack@scoreatl.com.
OCTOBER 1-7, 2008
SCORE FULTON I 05F
Douglas Co. programs clash in region tilt ‘Noles meet Trojans in Class 4A showdown
nent had to replace 10 starters on defense
his week’s 790 The Zone Game of the
o. 1-ranked Westside-Macon has found
want to keep doing what they have been
its new region, 1-AAAA, quite welcomN
doing so far this season: winning.
after last year.
Week features two teams in need of a
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ing. The Seminoles finished 7-3 last season in
The Seminoles are led by their defense,
Both teams are solid at quarterback with
win. Each squad is 1-4 and 0-2 in Region 5AAAA. Lithia Springs lost handily last week
to county rival Alexander, while Douglas
County has been outscored 87-27 in their
two region losses.
But those numbers are only on paper,
and the Lions of Lithia Springs are looking
to shred a lot of paper this week. On paper, it
says they haven’t beaten the Tigers in their
last nine tries and that they have lost to
Douglas County by scores of 38-7 and 31-0
over the last two seasons. That paper also
says the Lions haven’t experienced a winning
season since 1999.
The Lions, led by head coach Steve
Horton, have the experience to end the ninegame skid with eight of 11 defensive starters
returning from last season, while their oppo-
experienced starters Kelton Hill for the Lions
and Anthony Caldwell for the Tigers. Tight
end Kevin Steed is a big target for the Lions at
6-foot-5, 205 pounds, while Caldwell and the
Tigers have Derrick Woodford at 6-1, 185.
Lithia Springs could have trouble running the ball, as its inexperienced offensive
line will have to deal with 340-pound defensive lineman DuVawn Wallace.
The Lions have their own stud on the
defensive line in Bryan Davis, a Division I
college prospect. Douglas County isn’t used
to losing (8-3 last season), especially
recently with six trips to the playoffs in the
last seven seasons.
Wiley
can
be
reached
at
dwiley@scoreatl.com
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Region 4-AAAA, just missing the playoffs.
This week’s opponent, Lee County, finished
2-9 in 2007 but made the playoffs as the No.
3 seed in a Region 1-AAAA that consisted of
only four teams.
But that was last season, and that was
the old Region 1-AAAA. This season’s
Region 1-AAAA features nine teams, and
GPB’s Game of the Week features its top
performer (Westside at 5-0) and its lastplace team (Lee County at 0-5).
Head coach David Johnson and the
Trojans are trying to rediscover the same
winning state of mind that led to their 10-2
season in 2005.
The Seminoles, led by the second-winningest football coach in Georgia high
school history, Robert Davis (348 wins), just
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with the team’s all-time leading tackler in
Julian Burnett at linebacker. Burnett has
offers from Mississippi, Wake Forest, Purdue
and South Carolina. The offense is led by
quarterback Orrin McFadden, running back
Marcus Wilson and receiver Danny Madison.
The Trojans must depend on offensive
lineman Tyler Knight, an Auburn commitment, to protect quarterback Matt Aldrich and
create running lanes for Tevin Jones.
Stats alone say this should be an easy win
for Westside, but lucky for Lee County, football games are won on the field and not in the
stat book. They will get the opportunity to turn
their season around this Friday at 7:30 p.m. at
the Bibb County Sports Complex.
Wiley
can
be
reached
at
dwiley@scoreatl.com.
ALPHARETTA RAIDERS
DOUGLASS ASTROS
06F I SCORE FULTON
T
Get In The Game!
he football team lost its second game in a row this season, by the score of 42-14 to
Walton. The Raiders are now 2-2 in region play and 3-2 overall, dropping them to sixth
place in the region. Head coach Bill Waters commented on the loss: “We didn’t do well, and
we regressed this week.” Waters also commented that the team needs to work on tackling
this week in practice. The Raiders have a tough schedule ahead of them, and they play
Lassiter (3-1 in region, 4-1 overall) Friday at home with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. … The softball team beat Roswell last Thursday 9-2. The Raiders concluded their regular season with
the Milton Invitational last Friday and Saturday. On Friday, they beat Centennial 13-0 and
Dawson County 9-4. The Raiders finished the season seventh in their region with a region
record of 4-5. … The volleyball team lost to Lovett 0-2 (25-15, 25-17) last Thursday. The
team travels to Sequoyah on Thursday for a match at 7 p.m., then will travel to Riverwood
on Tuesday to play Dacula and Riverwood (6 p.m. and 7 p.m.).
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ou would have to search pretty deep through the scores from last Friday to find a team
that started its region schedule more impressively then the Titans. On Friday, the offense
ran its way to a 62-13 victory over Avondale to open Region 6-AA play. Sam Burkhalter led
the way with 132 yards rushing, and Bruce Johnson added two rushing touchdowns of his
own. Through the air, Kohl Hegetschweiler led the way, completing nine of 11 passes, and
throwing for touchdowns of 33, 30 and 37 yards. Jake Skole was on the receiving end of
each, giving him three scores on just three catches overall. This Friday the Titans will host
Greater Atlanta Christian for the team’s first home region game of the season. ... The softball team finished the regular season region schedule with a win over GAC, 8-4 on Thursday
night. The win moves the Lady Titans to 5-1 in the region, and gives the team the No. 2 seed
going into the region tournament this week. Offensively, the team continues to be led by
Moira Sullivan, hitting .424 for the season.
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he Grey Knights (3-1) enjoyed the week off while preparing for a Friday night football
showdown at Riverwood (1-3). It will be the second region game for the Knights who started out region play with a 20-0 loss to Washington on Sept. 19. Grady has handled Riverwood
the past two seasons, winning 34-14 last year and 40-0 in 2006. … The softball squad lost to
Riverwood 13-0 on Thursday, which was Senior Night for the Grey Knights. The team finished
the season at 7-7. … The volleyball team was defeated by Forest Park and Carver-Atlanta on
Thursday. The team will face North Atlanta at home on Tuesday. … The cross country teams
competed at the Aubrae Gunderson Invitational on Saturday. The boys team finished sixth at
the meet and was paced by Elshaddai Hailegiorgia, who finished 22nd, and Holden Choi, who
finished 24th. The girls team finished third at the meet and was led by Kelsey Roth, who finished eighth, and Nally Kinnane, who finished ninth. Also placing in the top 20 were Leah
Butterfield, who finished 11th, and Alix Youngblood, who finished 17th.
he Knights can add their name to the list of football teams that have been unable to stop
Milton’s high-powered running game, fueled by the legs of Tennessee-bound running
back Toney Williams. Williams led the Eagles to a 41-20 victory on Friday night. The
Knights are still looking for their first region victory and their first win since the season
opener, although the 20 points scored were the most since their first game. Quarterback
Scott Laffler was able to run the ball early in the game, but couldn’t find the same holes in
the second half when the Eagles pulled away. The Knights will get a week to regroup before
hosting Kell on Oct. 10. … Although the volleyball team’s record wasn’t perfect last week,
there wasn’t a lack of excitement during the team’s victory over West Forsyth and loss to
Creekview on Thursday night. Lauren Wilsmann led the team over West Forsyth with six
kills, while Chelsea Foster had 12 assists. In the second match, Julie Gartner set a season
high with 12 kills in the three-game loss to Creekview.
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he football team destroyed Cross Keys on Friday night after building a 37-0 lead in the
first quarter. Lovett went on to win 50-0. The team is now 3-2 on the season and 1-1 in
Region 6-AA play. Lovett has now hit the 50-point mark two games in a row. The Lions
dominated Cross Keys, rolling up 308 yards of offense and limiting the Indians to just 70.
Quarterback Jonathan Carkhuff only attempted three passes, completing two of them for
one touchdown. Zach Boden led the team with 65 rushing yards and scored two touchdowns, one on a 44-yard punt return. Daniel Candler added a 29-yard interception return.
Lovett will now prepare for a Friday night trip to archrival Westminster. Now that the two
teams are in the same region, the game takes on added significance. The Wildcats enter the
game sporting a 4-0 record. … After losing to Buford 6-0 on Monday, the softball team (168) came back to win its next two games over Avondale and Decatur. On Wednesday, the
team will begin play in the region tournament.
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f the Raiders were trying to stay under the radar for the first half of the football season,
they failed. A huge win over Douglas County put the rest of Class 4A on notice. The
Raiders defeated Douglas 37-13 on Friday night to improve their record to 5-0. The running
game fueled the Raiders’ offensive power as two different rushers scored on the ground for
Mays. Winston Broderick rushed for two touchdowns while Desmond Walker earned most
of the yards, plus one score. The win was the Raiders’ most lopsided of the season, and the
37 points tied the team’s season high. This week, Mays will host Tri-Cities. … The softball
team ended a four-game losing streak in dramatic fashion, defeating Banneker 13-2. In the
Lady Raiders’ last two victories the team has scored a total of 33 runs, while they only managed one during their four-game losing streak. Unfortunately, the team lost its next game,
falling to Villa Rica 9-2. This week, the team will end the regular season with a home
matchup against region foe Tri-Cities.
BLESSED TRINITY TITANS
CENTENNIAL KNIGHTS
CHATTAHOOCHEE COUGARS
fter a big region victory over South Forsyth, the football team was looking for its second win in a row against a desperate Norcross team on Friday night. While the Cougars
were coming off a big win, the Blue Devils were coming off a disappointing loss to the
defending state runner-up North Gwinnett. It was the Blue Devils who would respond, building a big early lead and cruising to a 38-7 win. The offense for the Cougars struggled all
night, only putting together 134 total yards. The team’s only points came via a turnover made
by the Blue Devils. Jon Bailey returned a fumble for a touchdown to give the Cougars their
seven points. On the bright side, the team was only penalized twice, a season low for the
Cougars. Chattahoochee has this week off, followed by a trip to North Gwinnett on Oct. 10.
… It was a tough senior night for the softball team as the girls lost 8-2 to Northview in the
final home game of the year. The team hung with the Titans throughout most of the game,
but Northview was able to pull away late.
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he football team returned to action Saturday night and dominated Greenbrier 47-14 to
improve its record to 2-2. The team has now won two straight games and is 1-0 in Region
2-AAAAA after the victory over the Wolfpack. The Astros will travel to M.L. King on Friday
night for another region matchup. The Lions are 3-1 and are coming off a resounding 28-7
victory over Luella on Friday night. Douglass dropped a 22-21 heartbreaker to M.L. King last
season. The Astros also lost to the Lions by a score of 35-7 in 2006. … The softball team lost
two games during the past week. The first was a 17-0 loss to Luella on Tuesday and the second was an 18-5 defeat at the hands of Carver-Atlanta on Thursday. … The boys cross country team competed at the Mill Run in Douglas County on Saturday. The team finished 15th
overall and was led by Jared Santifer, who finished 38th. Also running were Patrez Watts
(45th), Ronald Lowe (84th), Joshua White (115th), Deon Upkins (147th), Quantavis Taylor
(161), and Demetrius Williams (166).
GRADY GREY KNIGHTS
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LOVETT LIONS
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OCTOBER 1-7, 2008
MILTON EAGLES
ROSWELL HORNETS
SCORE FULTON I 07F
he football team triumphed over Centennial 41-20 on Friday night with an impressive
showing on the offensive side of the ball. Toney Williams rushed for 226 yards on 29 carries, reaching the end zone twice. Taj Harris and Joe Korac also added touchdowns.
Quarterback Will Perry was 7-of-8 passing with two touchdowns. Milton has the week off
before returning against Walton on Oct. 10. … On the diamond, the Eagles softball team had
an impressive week, going 3-0 by beating Alpharetta twice and Campbell once. Taylor Disch
had a great showing with five strikeouts and a 3-for-3 performance at the plate in the second
game against Alpharetta. Disch and Amanda Bunke both connected for home runs last week.
There were several outstanding performances at the plate turned in by Kelly Texter, Amanda
Marshall, Korinne Raby and Lillie Palmer. … On Tuesday, the volleyball team lost to
Alpharetta 2-1 and beat North Forsyth 2-0. On Thursday, the Lady Eagles beat Landmark
Christian 2-0 and lost to Westminster 2-0. On Friday and Saturday, they lost to Blessed Trinity
2-0 and beat both Starr’s Mill and North Forsyth 2-0.
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he football team lost 56-0 to Southwest DeKalb on Saturday night. Before the game, the
coaching staff said that it was hoping for the team to come out and play with more intensity against the Panthers. In the end, however, Southwest DeKalb proved too strong on both
sides of the ball. The Spartans drop to 2-3 on the year (1-3 in Region 6-AAAA) and have a
bye this week. The team will next play on Oct. 10 against Tucker at Adams Stadium. … The
softball team finished the week with a 1-1 record. On Tuesday, the Lady Spartans defeated
Lakeside-DeKalb 4-0. Junior Megan Light pitched a complete game, one-hit shutout, striking out 10 batters. Light also led the offense with three hits. Peyton Glass and Kali Gray
had two hits each. On Thursday, the Lady Spartans lost 9-0 against Marist. So far, the Lady
Spartans’ region record is 6-3 and their overall record is 9-6. … The volleyball team had a
great week. Last Saturday, the Spartans beat both Newnan and Temple, 2-0. On Thursday,
they knocked off Riverwood, 2-1.
he football team looked to establish its first two-game winning streak since Sept.
2006 last friday. Instead, the Bulldogs fell 38-20 to Banneker in a game that was a little closer than it probably should have been. The Bulldogs scored the first points of the
game, taking a 6-0 lead early in the first quarter on a Muhammad Saleen 32-yard touchdown run. Banneker would respond, pulling ahead 31-13 early in the second half.
However, the Trojans fumbled two snaps on punt attempts, setting up the Bulldogs in
prime real estate twice. Tri-Cities only scored on one of those possessions, as Banneker’s
defense held on for the victory. This week, the Bulldogs will have to travel to No. 2ranked Mays to play the Raiders at 8:15 p.m. … It was a tough second-to-last day for the
volleyball team, as losses came to both McIntosh and Whitewater last week. The Lady
Bulldogs dropped both matches in two sets, losing to McIntosh 25-7, 25-7 and to
Whitewater 25-9, 25-11.
hen a football team has lost the first five games of the season, the one thing it can’t
afford is turnovers. The Titans had to learn that the hard way on Friday night. Two
fumble returns led to two South Forsyth touchdowns as the War Eagles took advantage of
the short field given to them by the Titans. These two scores put the Titans in the hole,
and even though the offense outperformed its previous performances, the team lost 3517. While only managing 111 total yards, the Titans still put up the most points for the
team all year. This week, Northview will get a bye before the team looks for its first win
of the year against Norcross. … Senior Night was not just a celebratory night for the seniors on the softball team, but a night to remember for all the girls as they defeated
Chattahoochee 8-2 to move to 4-4 on the year in the region. Although the Cougars had
struggled recently, the team won two of its last three games but couldn’t do enough to win
against the Titans.
fter falling behind 14-3 in a raucous Spartan Stadium, the Wildcats clawed their way back
into the game and came out on top of Region 6-AA rival Greater Atlanta Christian, 17-14.
Visiting Westminster overcame the deficit as well as a “blackout” by their region rivals to
improve to 4-0 on the season. Stephon Shelton preserved the dramatic victory by blocking a
GAC field goal attempt with only seconds remaining. Along with the blocked field goal,
Shelton scored on a 23-yard reception to cut the GAC lead to 14-9. Harry Steuer scored on a
1-yard touchdown run to give Westminster their first lead of the game with nine minutes
remaining. The Wildcats host archrival Lovett (3-2) on Friday night. … The No. 1-ranked volleyball squad (ranking according to GACA Coaches Poll) defeated Lovett, Mt. Paran,
Landmark Christian and Milton this past week. This Friday, the Lady Cats will travel to
Birmingham to compete at the Dig in the Park Tournament. … The softball team (13-9)
dropped games to Blessed Trinity and Buford this past week. The team will travel to Lovett on
Wednesday before competing in the region tournament on Thursday at GAC.
he football team dropped a tough game to neighborhood rival North Atlanta, losing 2220. Riverwood now falls to 0-1 in the Region 5-AAA and 1-3 overall. The team will now
take on the Grady Grey Knights, another region foe, at home on Friday night. The two teams
have battled the past two seasons, with Grady taking both games. … The cross country teams
competed in the Aubrae Gunderson Invitational on Saturday. The boys team finished 10th
while the girls team finished eighth. The teams will compete in the Fulton County Schools
Championship in Alpharetta on Saturday. … The softball squad (14-8) has now won six
games in a row, having defeated Therrell, Holy Innocents’, Grady, Camden County and
North Springs during the past week. The week was highlighted by a no-hitter thrown by Kim
Hudson against Grady. The team hosts Chamblee on Wednesday. … The volleyball team has
now won six of seven matches, after defeating Dunwoody on Thursday. The only loss during
that stretch was to North Springs, also on Thursday.
he football team dominated South Atlanta on Friday night for a 37-15 region victory. It
was the first region win for Woodward, which now stands at 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the
region. Next up for the War Eagles is Spalding, another region foe. The teams will kick off at
7:30 p.m. on Friday night. … The cross country teams each won their meets at Blessed Trinity
on Wednesday. The boys defeated Blessed Trinity, while the girls defeated Blessed Trinity as
well as Centennial. Haley Smith won the girls race while Nathan Vassey won the boys meet.
The teams will compete at the Asics/Alexander Invitational this Saturday. … The softball
team improved its record with a 12-2 victory over Jackson-Atlanta on Thursday. The Lady
War Eagles have the rest of the week off and will play in the region tournament at Jackson
beginning on Monday. … The No. 2-ranked volleyball squad (19-9) defeated Woodland and
Jackson-Atlanta on Tuesday before falling to Marist on Thursday. The Lady War Eagles will
host Wesleyan and Columbus on Thursday and Whitewater and McIntosh on Tuesday.
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NORTH SPRINGS SPARTANS
NORTHVIEW TITANS
RIVERWOOD RAIDERS
lthough the Hornets haven’t dominated Region 6-AAAAA under first-year head coach Leo
Barker, Roswell still continues to get its wins and hover around the top of the standings.
After five weeks, the team sits in a tie for second in the region after a 30-24 victory over
Campbell last Friday. Roswell’s third win of the season looked all but assured in the first half as
the Hornets took a 21-3 lead into halftime. However, Campbell would come back in the second
half, scoring on three of their four second-half possessions to tie the game at 24-24. With less
than a minute to go 60 yards, quarterback Brian Hickman led the Hornets down the field before
throwing a deep touchdown pass to Keegan Hughes to win the game. Roswell hosts Wheeler on
Oct. 10. … The softball team finished its regular-season schedule with a loss to Alpharetta on
Thursday evening. The loss was the team’s second in three games, with only one coming in
region play. With the loss to Alpharetta, the Hornets’ region record moved to 5-4, putting the
Hornets in a tie for fourth in the standings. The region tournament begins on Thursday.
TRI-CITIES BULLDOGS
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WESTMINSTER WILDCATS
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WOODWARD ACADEMY WAR EAGLES
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• Jason Boral – Blessed Trinity, Centennial, Chattahoochee, Mays, Northview, Roswell, Tri-Cities • Jessica Parker – Alpharetta • Stephen Black – Grady, Lovett, Riverwood, Douglass, Westminster, Woodward Academy • Rajesh Gupta – Milton, North Springs
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