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Across The State
June 16,2021
®lft Aiuianre
Section B
Loran
Smith
Randy
Watkins
When Randy Watkins was coming
along in the mid-Seventies, Cedar
Shoals High School in Athens fielded
some outstanding teams and for good
reason—there
was a coterie of
talented players
who would dis
tinguish them
selves at the next
level.
In short, they
could compete
with the best,
but they were
also imbued with
compelling lead
ership skills: Jeff
Pyburn, Homer Jordan, Danny Rogers,
Amp Arnold, and Jimmy Payne among
others. All would experience a cham
pionship at some point in their college
careers. “It was,” Randy says, “a terrific
experience to play with those guys. We
loved to compete, and we loved to chal
lenge one another. Those were really
good times.”
While the aforementioned athletes
were winning conference and/or na
tional championship rings in college
competition, Randy gave the highest
regard to earning a degree in physical
education at Georgia, with an eye on a
possible coaching career. He never ven
tured far from the sports arena, how
ever. He became a football official and
a baseball umpire. He would remain
close to the game.
As it turned out, he followed the
path of many officials and umpires. He
became gainfully employed, co-owning
his own business, which allowed time
for him to referee football and basket
ball games and umpire baseball games.
His company, More than Blinds, shows
his expertise in the window covering
business.
Customers are always eager to talk
sports with Watkins. They want to
know what it is like to call a game on
the LSU campus at night in the spring.
Or at Arkansas, Oxford, or Tuscaloosa.
Which coach is the biggest pain? Where
are the fans the most difficult? What
are the benefits of traveling around the
league?
After completing degree require
ments at UGA, he began officiating
high school games, learning the nuanc
es under the sage eye of a former UGA
P.E. teacher, Earl Fales. Today, Watkins
still calls high school games but also
works Georgia home football games—
he is the official in the red hat—and
umpires baseball games for the South
eastern and Atlantic Coast conferences.
Those in his line of work, when it
comes to officiating and calling games,
generally follow the dictum that was
handed down to children generation
after generation that they should “be
seen and not heard.” There are excep
tions, however. Those sitting closest to
the action are often privy to conversa
tions that take place when a coach be
comes upset with calls with which he
disagrees. Likewise, any fan who wants
to harass an umpire usually finds his
way down to seats that are nearest the
field. Some are very clever. They use
their iPhones to google an umpire’s
biography, history, and anything they
can use to distract him, hoping to prick
a sensitive nerve that allows them to
rattle the ump.
Watkins is one who is difficult to
rattle. He has such an even-keeled tem-
Please see Loran page 2B
By Loran Smith
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Photo by Mike Branch
(L to R, Front): Bell Jones, Tori Polke, Ivy Berry, Laina Williams, Kinsley Kennedy, Malie Carey; (Back): Coach RJ Williams, Madalyn
Poole, Myra Mead, Elizabeth Sowell, Grade Williamson, Jada Bates, Skylar Fountain, and Coach Amanda Roose.
VRD 12U Girls Take Title
By Mike Branch
Sports Editor
sports 7 advance@gmail.com
The GRPA District 1 Tournament
was held at Partin Park last week with
Vidalia coming out on top and taking
home the title for the 12U girls soft-
ball team.
In the first game of the tourna
ment rivals Vidalia and Lyons faced
off. Vidalia jumped out to a 10-2 lead
after the second inning, and were up
15-2 after the third. At the end of the
fourth, the score was 16-5 with Vidalia
well out in front.
The final score of the game was
16-9 in five innings as Vidalia won the
game by the run rule.
Lyons dropped into the losers’
bracket and won their next game over
Dublin. They were up 5-1 after the
first inning and led the game 9-1 after
the second. They went on to win the
game 16-1 to keep their tournament
alive.
Lyons, though, fell in the next
game to Swainsboro by the score of
23-9 to end their run.
Vidalia had defeated Swainsboro
10-8 in the semifinals, which had sent
them to the losers’ bracket to play
against Lyons. With the win over Ly
ons, Swainsboro moved into the
Championship Game for a rematch
with the girls from Vidalia.
Vidalia pulled out to a 4-2 lead af
ter the first inning of the title game,
and by the end of the third inning were
on top 6-3. They pushed that lead to
8-3 after the fourth inning and went
on to win the game, 10-3 over Swains
boro.
That moves Vidalia into the State
Tournament, which will be held next
week in Madison County. Vidalia will
have a bye in the first round and will
play their first game on Wednesday at
10:00 a.m.
Photo by Mike Branch
(L to R, Front): Koen Fountain, Jacob Collins, Peyton Williamson, Austin Quintero, Cayden Marshall, Remington Braddock; (Mid
dle): Cameron Brown, Carmelo Ricks, Brody Hutcheson, Carlos Diaz, RJ Phillips, Jackson Gooden, Kase Sikes; (Back): Coaches
Jesus Quintero, Clint Sikes, and Matt Wiggins.
Lyons Wins 10U Boys
By Mike Branch
Sports Editor
sports 7 advance@gmail. com
The Lyons 10U boys baseball
team won the District 1 Champion
ship last week at Partin Park. Lyons
rolled to the title as they outscored
their opponents 53-9 over their four
games.
In Lyons' first game of the tourna
ment they blew out Twin City by the
score of 15-3 to get things going.
Vidalia dropped their first game
of the tournament to Statesboro, los
ing 15-8, sending them into the los
ers' bracket. Vidalia then fell to Twin
City. VRD was on top 5-1 after the
third and were up 8-4 heading to the
bottom of the final inning. But Twin
City battled back and took the win,
9-8, to end the tournament for Vida
lia.
Lyons won their next game 11-2
over Statesboro to keep advancing in
the winners' bracket. Up next was
Swainsboro, and Lyons blanked them,
15-0 in three innings. That win moved
LRD into the Championship Game.
Swainsboro came back through
the losers' bracket for a rematch, but
Lyons again ran away with the win.
Lyons led 3-1 after the first inning,
and were on top 5-3 after the second.
LRD pulled out to an 8-3 lead in the
third inning, and went on to take the
win, 12-4.
That moves Lyons into the State
Tournament, which will be held next
week beginning Tuesday in Sumter
County.