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 Gary, Perry At State
Track And Field Meet
Commerce's McFadden Takes 5th, 6th In
Albany
Commerce High School's two representatives
to the Class A boys' track meet will be in action Friday in the
29th Georgia Olympics in Jefferson.
CHS junior Casey Gary will compete in the shot put, while Adam
Perry will compete in the pole vault in the Class A division
of the state chamionships.
All four classes will hold their state track meets at Jefferson's
Byran-Keen Track at Memorial Stadium.
The girls' state track meet was held last weekend in Albany.
Commerce's Stephanie McFadden competed in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter
runs. McFadden took fifth place in the 1,600 with a time of 5:38.56.
She was sixth in the 3,200 with a time of 12:39.83.
AREA COMPETITORS
Jefferson's Heather Green took third place in the high jump.
Green equaled the best height of 5-2, but took third place based
on the number of misses.
Annie Goza was seventh in the discus with a throw of 102-3. The
winning throw was 121-1 by Lacresha Scott of Calhoun.
Jackson County Compre-hensive High School's Carly Parr took third
place in the Class AAA 1,600 and sixth place in the 3,200 runs
in Albany.
Parr ran the 1,600 in 5:19.78. She turned in a time of 11:46.34
in the 3,200.
Banks County's Taffy Carruth competed in the shot put, but did
not reach the finals.
BOYS' STATE MEET
The top two competitors in each event move on to state, but Commerce's
representatives did not need a second-place finish.
Gary won the Region 8-A shot put event to qualify for state with
a throw of 49 feet, nine and three quarter inches.
Gary will compete in the state event at 1 p.m. Friday.
Perry, the CHS pole vault record holder with a mark of 12 feet,
seven inches, also claimed first in the region meet. Perry and
the other Class A pole vaulters will be among the first competitors
to see action at 10 a.m.
Admission to the state meet will be $7 per person.
Collins Named
All-Tourney At AAU Event In Charlottesville, Va.
Michael Collins's Tennessee Travelers
AAU basketball team had a pretty good showing, but the Commerce
High School junior stood out even more at the Southern Invitational
Tournament at the University of Virginia in Charllottesville
this weekend.
While the Travelers won their pool and advanced to the bracket
tournament, Collins was named to the all-tournament team for
the event, which was sponsored by Bob Givens All-Star and Hoop
Group.
The event featured teams from up and down the eastern seaboard,
according to CHS coach Rex Gregg.
"There were teams from Virigina, North Carolina South Carolina,
Pennsylvania, and New Jersey," Gregg said. "There were
about 240 kids playing.
"Mikey probably had 15 points per game, which is good in
the games they play. Each team is playing 10 people in a game."
Collins will play in several events with the Travelers in the
spring and summer.
The Travelers will play July 15-20 at an event in Augusta.
 Ivey set to jump into
state meet
Banks County High School's representative
to the Class A boys' track meet will be in action Friday in the
29th Georgia Olympics in Jefferson.
BCHS junior Chris Ivey will compete in the high jump of Class
A's division in the state chamionships.
All four classes will hold their state track meets at Jefferson's
Byran-Keen Track at Memorial Stadium.
The girls' state track meet was held last weekend in Albany.
Banks County's Taffy Carruth competed in the shot put, but did
not reach the finals.
The winning throw came from Jennifer Oliver of Wheeler County
for a mark of 36-3.
AREA COMPETITORS
Jefferson's Heather Green took third place in the high jump.
Green equaled the best height of 5-2, but took third place based
on the number of misses.
Annie Goza was seventh in the discus with a throw of 102-3. The
winning throw was 121-1 by Lacresha Scott of Calhoun.
Jackson County Comprehen-sive High School's Carly Parr took third
place in the Class AAA 1,600 and sixth place in the 3,200 runs
in Albany.
Parr ran the 1,600 in 5:19.78. She turned in a time of 11:46.34
in the 3,200.
Commerce's Stephanie McFadden competed in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter
runs. McFadden took fifth place in the 1,600 with a time of 5:38.56.
She was sixth in the 3,200 with a time of 12:39.83.
BOYS' STATE MEET
Ivey took second at the Region 8-A meet, clearing 6-2. He will
be the first boys' state high jump participant for Banks County
since Orlando Wiley set the Class A record in the high jump in
1998.
Commerce's Casey Gary and Adam Perry will compete in the state
event.
Gary won the Region 8-A shot put event to qualify for state with
a throw of 49 feet, nine and three quarter inches. Gary will
compete in the state event at 1 p.m. Friday.
Perry, the CHS pole vault record holder with a mark of 12 feet,
seven inches, also claimed first in the region meet. Perry and
the other Class A pole vaulters will be among the first competitors
to see action at 10 a.m. along with Jefferson's Blake Gooch.
JHS' Steve Green will be in the triple jump. The Dragons' 1,600
relay team will also compete.
Chris and Chuck Kubiak will both compete at the Class AAA state
meet for Jackson County.
Chris will compete in the 300 hurldes. Chuck will throw the discus.
Admission to the state meet will be $7 per person.
Gridiron Leopards
enjoy smooth practice pace
Banks County Leopards began spring practice
this week with a familiarity that has coach Rance Gillespie welcome
the new season, which is less than four months away.
But as the Leopards look toward next season, the competition
is knows they are coming as well, Gillespie said.
"We're not going to sneak up on anybody next year,"
Gillespie said. "Everybody expects us to be better. We expect
us to be better and be in every ball game."
With 50 players out for spring practice this year, strong leadership
from the rising seniors has been important, Gillespie said.
"Our kids are giving a great effort," he said. "Our
pace has been super. I attribute that to the seniors. They're
doing a good jobof leading the team."
Gillespie said he would decide later if the team would have a
scrimmage at the end of the two-week practice session next Friday.
"We're headed in that direction," Gillespie said. "With
as many as we've got out, we might be able to have some team
scrimmage like that."
"We've got a good group of kids," Gillespie said. "Our
numbers are improving. We've gotten a lot of the (rising) 10th
graders who had played before back out.
"Pleased with the way the kids are progressing," Gillespie
said. "They're getting after it. If we can hold that pace
for 10 days, spring practice will definitely have been a success."
Banks County will open the 2000 football season at home against
Jackson County on Sept. 1.
The Leopards' first game in the new Region 8-AA will be Sept.
22 at Dawson County.
Banks County delayed the start of spring practice by one week
from the April 29 start date set by the GHSA.
 Georgia Olympics on
tap this week
Jefferson High School will host the 29th
Georgia Olympics beginning Friday at Bryan/Keen track at Memorial
Stadium.
Top athletes from around the state will vie for state championships
in all four classifications. Field events get under way at 10
a.m., with running preliminaries beginning at 3 p.m. Finals for
running events are slated to start at noon Saturday.
The Dragons qualified a pair of individuals for the meet, as
well as the 4X400 relay team of Roderick Young, Jacob Cole, David
Boring and Hunter Garner.
Blake Gooch will begin the competition for Jefferson at 10 a.m.
in the class A pole vault, and senior Steve Green follows at
1 p.m. in the triple jump. The 4X400 relay preliminaries are
set for 9 p.m. Friday, with finals closing the competition Saturday
at 4:30 p.m.
Three Jackson County track members will make the short trek from
Panther Stadium to Memorial Stadium.
Tim Birdette brings a region 8-AAA championship mark of 21 feet,
eight inches in the long jump, which begins Friday at 11:30 a.m.
Chuck Kubiak will enter the discus circle for Jackson County
shortly after 1 p.m., and brother Chris will run the 300-meter
intermediate hurdles at 8 p.m. Finals for that event are scheduled
for 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
 Parr, Green finish third
in Albany
Jackson County's Carly Parr and Lady Dragon
Heather Green led area girls at the state track meet last week
in Albany with a pair of third-place finishes.
Parr closed an incredible prep career with a personal best time
of 5:19.78 in the 1600-meter run Friday. Rome's Shiona Jackson
crossed the line first, seven seconds ahead of Parr. Region 8-AAA
freshman sensation Kathleen Turchin of North Gwinnett took second,
only 1.3 seconds off the pace.
Parr also claimed sixth in Thursday's 3200-meter run with a personal
best of 11:46.34. That mark was 0.26 seconds better than Parr's
state championship run of a year ago.
"Carly's been involved in eight state meets, including cross
country," said Jackson County head coach Steve Collins.
"She's placed no worse than sixth in any of them, and that's
not including softball and basketball. That's about as consistent
as anybody I've been around in my life. She may be the best long-term
athlete I've had the opportunity to coach, and she's most definitely
going to be missed."
Sara Freeland also represented the Lady Panthers in the 800-meter
preliminaries Thursday. Jackson County finished 18th in the meet,
behind only North Gwinnett from their home region.
"The quality of the running events was pretty darn good,"
Collins said. "It's good to see that girls' track is really
beginning to take off."
For the Lady Dragons, Green fell an inch short of her personal-best
Jefferson record with a high jump of five feet, two inches. The
mark equaled the champion and runner-up's efforts, but Green
settled for third place on attempts.
Freshman Annie Goza, nursing a rotator cuff injury, took seventh
in the discus throw with a toss of 102'3". Goza is not expected
to need surgery to correct the problem, but will undergo physical
therapy during the summer.
Audrey Johnson ran for Jefferson in the 300-meter hurdles preliminaries,
setting a new school record of 50.62 seconds in a highly competitive
event.
"The 300 hurdles was a pretty tough event this year,"
Jefferson girls' coach Sandi Flint said. "There was a lot
of good competition."
Flint also expressed her pleasure with the team's performance
during the season.
"We had a good season," she said. "In the region
alone, we had 13 personal bests." All three state participants
should return for the Lady Dragons next season, in addition to
a number of other team members.
Commerce's Stephanie McFadden took fifth in the 1600-meter run
and sixth in the 3200. Athens Academy running icon Kristen Austin
claimed the state championship in both events, giving her a total
of nine gold medals in two sports during her high school career.
 Hybl finishes third in
state
Madison County's Ryan Hybl wrapped up a stellar high school golf
career with a two-over par 74 in the Class AAA state championship,
good enough for a third place finish in the individual tournament
at Goshen Plantation in Augusta Monday.
Hybl won last year's Class AAA crown with a 69. He placed second
in the event his sophomore year with a 69.
Madison County golf coach Mark Turner said Hybl's high school
golf career was outstanding.
"It will be a while before I coach another like that,"
said Turner. "We were fortunate to have him in our program.
He helped kids to see what it takes to get to that level."
Turner noted that with all of Hybl's junior golf accomplishments,
which included an appearance in a PGA tour event, the senior
may have had some motivation troubles this year in high school
golf, but he added that the Georgia signee was impressive nonetheless.
"He had accomplished so much; he had nothing left to prove
this year," said Turner. "All he could do was go down.
But for him to play like he did this season was a credit to him....I
look forward to him blossoming at Georgia. And I wouldn't be
surprised if he's the best player on that team."
With this year's Region 8-AAA individual title under his belt,
Hybl qualified for the state tournament, though his squad narrowly
missed a berth to the state competition.
Winning the individual crown on Monday was Pete Askew of Marist.
Askew fired a 71 and defeated Wren Fowler of Thompson in a playoff.
Marist captured the Class AAA title with a 298.
Ben Jeffers KO's
18 in Ranger win
Fireballer Ben Jeffers of Zeb's Rangers
struck out 18 batters in his team's 4-3 win over the Modern Body
Mets in Madison County Major League action Saturday.
Jeffers allowed three runs, six hits and three walks in six innings.
Jason Wynn, who had a single and a double, pitched an inning
in relief, giving up no runs on two hits and a walk. Michael
Manley also had a single and a double, scoring the Rangers' winning
run.
Brad Osborne pitched for the Mets, fanning 10 in six innings,
while allowing six hits, three runs and one walk. Clint Lowe
pitched one inning in relief, giving up one run on one hit and
one walk, while striking out one. Lowe, Matt Hix, Josh Hix and
Osborne led the Mets at the plate.
MARINERS 16 EXPOS 6
The Utility Pipeline Services Mariners defeated the Jackson EMC
Expos 16-6 Saturday.
Kirk Patterson picked up the win for the Mariners, striking out
seven and walking six, while allowing four hits in four innings.
Patterson, Chris Gunnells and Tyler Hill led the Mariners at
the plate.
Chad Boswell and Jamey Rice pitched for the Expos. Boswell led
the Expos with two singles and Rice had a double.
PHILLIES 10 INDIANS 7
The Strick Non-Woven Phillies downed the Twin "W" Grading
and Hauling Indians 10-7 Saturday. Timothy Childers was the winning
pitcher, giving up seven runs and nine hits, while sriking out
five in five innings. Josh Strickland, Timothy Childers and Adam
Crowe led the Phillies at the plate.
Blake Jones pitched for the Indians. Mitchell Lee, Justin Pursley,
Matthew Smith and Chris Jenkins were the Indians' leading hitters.
ASTROS 10 BRAVES 3
Ben McCain entered the game and struck out the side in the sixth
to hold on to the Bank of Danielsville Astros' first win of the
season, a 10-3 win over the American Pest Control Braves. Leading
the Astros were Bobby Parker, Taylor Kellogg, McCain, Josh Deaton
and Zach McCain.
Leading the Braves at the plate were Joshua NeSmith, Kevin Dean
and Mitch Pike.
A'S 9 PIRATES 1
The TyCobb Healthcare A's downed the Bread Basket Pirates 9-1
Saturday. Caleb Williams went the distance for the A's, striking
out 12 in six innings, allowing one run on three hits and a walk.
Williams also smashed two singles and a double. Kevin Fields
had two singles and a triple. Carter Whiten had two singles.
Ben Morris blasted a double. Others with hits included Wes McGaha
and Bryce Whitley.
Clay Wilson pitched one scoreless inning for the Pirates. Keith
Kincaid pitched five innings, giving up nine runs, while striking
out 11. Garrett Hochstetler, Justin Neal and Wilson led the Pirates
at the plate.
LUMBERJACKS 7
DEVIL RAYS 3
Led by a 14-strikeout performance from Chaz Perry, the Armour
Plumbing and Well Lumberjacks defeated the Huddle House Devil
Rays 7-3 Saturday. Perry went the distance for the Lumberjacks,
giving up three runs on six hits and two walks in six innings.
Leading hitters for the Lumberjacks included Will Sartain, Jesse
Compton, Sam Tonge, Levi Hanson, Nick Ginn and Joshua Swaim.
Anthony Moody pitched for the Devil Rays, giving up seven runs,
while striking out nine. Michael Freeman, Adam Dees and Nick
Tarver led the Devil Rays at the plate.
BRAVES 9 A'S 7
The Braves out-slugged the A's 9-7 last Monday as Dustin Temple
drove home two runs while Mitch Pike and Kevin Dean each picked
up an RBI in the win.
Dean also worked five innings from the mound as he struck out
eight while allowing only three hits.
For the A's, Kevin Fields pitched five innings in the loss, allowing
only two hits but also walking 11 batters.
Shaun Gerrett and Kevin Fields led the way offensively as they
each picked up a double while Bryce Whitley added a single.
RANGERS 11 ASTROS 1
The Rangers' pitching duo of Jason Wynn and Chris Ford baffled
Astros batters last Monday as the two combined for 17 strikeouts
in the squad's 11-1 win.
The Rangers' starter Wynn worked the first three innings, surrendering
no hits and no runs while fanning eight batters and walking two.
Ford then picked up where Wynn left off as he worked the final
three innings, allowing a single run off three hits while striking
out nine and walking only two
Zeb Osley, Ford, Ben Jeffers, Michael Manley and Jeremy Elrod
all led the way offensively in the Ranger win.
For the Astros, Josh Deaton and Justin Cape each worked three
innings from the mound in the loss while Chad Griffin led the
way from the plate as he picked up an RBI double and also had
a single. Gabe Lewis also collected a single.
METS 8
PIRATES 0
The Mets' Matt Hix turned in a stellar performance from the mound
last Tuesday as he worked six scoreless innings, surrendering
only four hits while striking out four and walking only one.
Hix, along with Brad Osborne, Will Moon and Cy Strickland, also
lead his squad from the plate.
For the Pirates, Clay Wilson pitched five innings in his squad's
loss.
Leading the way offensively for the Pirates were Garrett Hochsteler,
Keith Kincaid and Sam Arnold.
DEVIL RAYS 11
INDIANS 0
The Devil Rays' Matthew Freeman worked a gem of a ball game last
Tuesday as he fired a one-hit shutout, working four innings,
striking out six, while only allowing a hit and a walk.
Anthony Moody and Nick Tarver accounted for the bulk of the Devil
Rays' offensive damage as Moody ripped a single and a triple
while Tarver picked up a double and a triple in the 11-0 rout.
For the Indians, Kenny Reynolds pitched three innings in the
loss while Steven Bellew picked up the squad's only hit.
LUMBERJACKS 6
EXPOS 3
Will Sartain led the way in the Lumberjacks win Thursday as he
worked six innings, surrendering three runs off six hits while
fanning six and walking five.
Keying the Lumberjack squad offensively were Chaz Perry, who
went three for three from the plate, driving in two runs, and
Jesse Compton, who picked up a single and three RBIs.
Kyle Cooper, who worked six innings on the mound and struck out
eight batters, led his team from the plate as he collected a
single and a double. Expos Jeremy Jordan and Alex Gaskin also
collected two hits in the loss.
MARINERS 9
PHILLIES 2
The Mariners' Kirk Patterson homered and picked up a single Thursday
in his squad's 9-2 victory over the Phillies. Also aiding the
Mariners offensively in the win were J.J. McCay and Chris Gunnells,
who each picked up base hits.
Dustin Chandler worked six innings for the Mariners in picking
up the win as he allowed only two runs and three walks while
striking out eight batters.
For the Phillies Josh Strickland fanned 11 batters in six innings
in the loss.
Leading the way from the plate were Timothy Childers, who picked
up three singles, and Andrew Brannon, who collected a single,
double and also picked up a run.
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