Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
The Braselton News
Page 3B
JCCHS Wrestling
A Powerful purpose
Father-son coaching
tandem continue to
build program
BY ALLEN LUTON
The 2007-08 Jackson County
wrestling squad will look to pick
up where last year’s Panthers left
off. But this time around there
will be a new man heading up that
effort.
After serving as an assistant coach
under his father, first-year JCCHS
head coach Jason Powers takes
over the squad this season. During
his wrestling years, Powers was
one of the most decorated grapplers
in school history, winning three
state tides during his career before
graduating in 2003. He remains the
only JCCHS wrestler to ever have
his singlet retired.
His father, Roger, remains with
the program as an assistant coach
this season, as the father-son tan
dem continues to build a program
that has made some real strides in
recent years.
“We really just swapped roles,”
Jason said. “Nothing’s really
changed though, I just pick up a
little bit more paper work. I always
dreamed of becoming a head coach,
I never realized it would happen
this soon, but it happened and I’m
loving it. It’s a great experience.”
Jackson County will
take part in its first
tournament of the sea
son this weekend when
some 24 teams come to
JCCHS for the Panther
Invitational. Action is
set to begin Friday eve
ning, with the event’s
finals set for Saturday night.
Last year’s JCCHS squad turned
in the program’s best season in
five years and in many ways it was
a breakthrough campaign for the
Panthers.
Jackson County finished seventh
in the state in Class AAAA in 2006
and had the school’s most state
qualifiers (eight) in five years.
But, with opening of East
Jackson, and the resulting “split”
of JCCHS, the squad only returns
five starters from a season ago. But
those five should make up a solid
core for the ‘07-08 squad as it looks
to continue the program’s recent
improvement.
Ben Lesniak (125 pounds),
Andrew Blackwell (145), Kevin
Spicer (152), Ryan Howe (189),
and Jose Carrillo-Garcia (285) all
return for the Panthers this season
after impressive 2006 campaigns.
In addition Justin Best (130), who
missed last season due to injury,
returns this year.
Despite the losses from a sea
son ago, Powers thinks this year’s
squad is capable of duplicating last
Llorens Leaded Art
Glass & Mirror, Inc.
JCCHS Girls Hoops
Youthful Lady Panthers full of potential
Coming up:
WHAT: Panther
Invitational
WHERE: The Pit
at JCCHS
WHEN: Fri., 4:46 p.m.;
Sat., 9 a.m.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
Former three-time state champion Jason Powers, right, has taken
over the head coaching duties at Jackson County. His father
Roger, left, is now an assistant with the Panthers after serving as
head coach for the past several years. Photos by Allen Luton
season s success.
“We have a really good nucle
us,” Powers said. “We’re really
strong in about six or seven weight
classes. It’s really up to those guys.
What kind of leaders they want to
be will determine where this team
actually goes this year. I think we
have a great chance of
doing well again.”
Navigating a diffi
cult schedule full of big
tournaments and tough
match-ups won’t be
easy however. Powers
said the 2007-08 slate
is heavy on tournaments
early on before matches in dual
competition pick up later in the
schedule. The idea is to challenge
the squad early and develop as the
season progresses, Powers said.
Carrillo-Garcia was the team’s
Heavyweight Jose Carrillo-
Garcia is one of five returning
starters for the Panthers this
season. JCCHS will host the
24-team Panther Invitational
this weekend at The Pit.
best finisher in the state tournament
last year. He was third in the state
in Class AAAA in his weight class.
Lesniak, Blackwell, and Howe all
also went deep into the state tour
nament brackets.
BY ALLEN LUTON
After a three-win season last year
and with very limited experience
back on this season’s squad, you
might think that Jackson County
girls basketball coach
Chad Pittman wouldn’t Coming lip:
be too optimistic about What: JCCHS at
his team’s chances in Apalachee
2007-08. When: Fri., 7 p.m.
Well, you’d be
wrong.
Thanks to an influx of young
and talented players, Pittman is
very enthusiastic about the poten
tial of this year’s Lady Panthers.
Now in his seventh season at the
helm for JCCHS, the coach thinks
this year’s squad is capable of
accomplishing plenty this season.
Just how much is going to depend
on how the squad develops as the
season plays out. So far though,
Pittman likes what he sees.
Jackson County has just one
starter back from a year ago in
forward Alyssa Esco. Other than
that though, experience is hard
to come by. In all, the team has
four seniors on its roster, with the
rest of the players all underclass
men, including five freshman —
Alison Dias, Emily Elrod, Ashley
Skelton, Sierra Roncadori,
and Breanna Drew — that
Pittman is very high on.
“I’m really positive
about everything we’ve
got this year,” Pittman
said. “This is probably the best
group of freshman, as a whole,
I’ve gotten in. Collectively, in
terms of the impact they’ll have
right away, this is the best group
I’ve had come in.”
Like all the sports at JCCHS
this season, the loss of players to
the newly opened East Jackson
school has been something the
Lady Panther program has had to
deal with.
“I was going to have 15 or 16
players returning and I ended up
with six returning after the split
(with East Jackson),” Pittman said.
“I’m not upset about it though,” he
said. “It just is what it is.”
Jackson County is full of quick
ness and players that are capable
of playing in the open court this
season, according to Pittman. That
means the Lady Panthers will be
pressuring other teams to try and
get them into an up-tempo game.
“We’re going to turn up the
intensity level on defense,” he said.
“For the most part we’re going to
play up and down.”
As optimistic as the coach is
about this year’s squad, he said
because of the strength of Region
8-AAAA this year, the Lady
Panthers will have to be somewhat
realistic about what it can do this
campaign.
“Girls basketball in 8-AAAA
this year is going to be super
strong, top to bottom,” the coach
said. “As a whole our region is
going to be really, really tough,
But, this year I’m excited because
I really feel like we’re going to
improve every game. I can already
see it.”
JCCHS Bovs Hoops
Panthers hope to build a solid foundation
BY ALLEN LUTON
First-yearJackson County boys
basketball coach Britt Beaver has
his work cut out for him this
season as he tries to rebuild a
program that has aver
aged just two wins a
season over the last sev
eral years.
Actually, rebuild
might be too kind a
word to describe the task at hand
for Britt and the Panthers.
With hardly any returning play
ers with experience back this sea
son, and facing a very difficult
Class AAAA schedule, Britt’s
squad will look to — at the very
least — show signs of improve
ment each time it takes the floor,
managing a few winning results
would be icing on the cake.
Britt comes to JCCHS after
serving as an assistant coach at
North Oconee last season. He’s
been coaching basketball for 15
years. He’s glad to be at Jackson
County and hopeful that the
Panthers can get better,
Coming up: but he knows improve-
What: JCCHS at ment won’t come over
Apalachee night.
When: Fri., 8:30 p.m. “This program that
I’ve inherited brings new
meaning to the word rebuild,”
Britt said.
Working on the fundamentals
of the game will be the first step
in the rebuilding process and
it’s something the Panthers have
been working on rigorously each
day. On top of that the squad is
learning a new disciplined sys
tem.
“We have to make every pos
session count,” Britt said. “We’ve
got some quickness, but they’re
very, very young so it’s out-of-
control quickness.”
Marquice Gillespie and Joseph
Smith, along with J.B. Baxter
figure to be key players for the
Panthers this season, according
to Britt.
With the Panthers slated to
move to Class AAA next season,
Britt said he’s looking for his
players to gain as much expe
rience as possible this season
against a tough Class AAAA
schedule.
“You look at those kids that
play this schedule and in the next
couple years we’re going to have
a shot to be something to watch
(in Class AAA). These kids have
to learn how to win, it’s a men
tality. This year, really, is about
building a foundation.”
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