high school football on demand see back page
Transcription
high school football on demand see back page
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL ON DEMAND SEE BACK PAGE 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. FOR FOR REAL-TIME REAL-TIME HIGH HIGH SCHOOL SCHOOL FOOTBALL FOOTBALL SCORES SCORES GO GO TO TO SCOREATL.COM W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M 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. W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M 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 [email protected]. 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 W W W . S C O R 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 E A T L . C O M 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 [email protected]. 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 T 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 [email protected] W W W . S C O R 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 E A T L . C O M 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 [email protected]. 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.). T 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. Y 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. T 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. A 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. W W W . S C O R 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 T LOVETT LIONS T MAYS RAIDERS I E A T L . C O M 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. A 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. T T W T 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 T WESTMINSTER WILDCATS A WOODWARD ACADEMY WAR EAGLES T • 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 W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M