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The Sylvania Times
Wednesday, April 3, 2024 - Page 3
LADY GAMECOCK NETTERS
TAKE 11TH REGION TITLE IN
12 YEARS
GAMECOCKS CRUISE TO
ANOTHER REGION TENNIS
TITLE
Surviving a few tense minutes in the
early going of their semifinal match with
Metter, the SCHS Lady Gamecock netters
of Kyle Reynolds claimed their fourth
consecutive region title and their 11th in the
past 12 completed seasons on the Claxton
courts on March 26. The finals victim was
Bryan County and the count was 3-0. With
their title safely in hand, the Red and White
have regular season matches left at Bulloch
Academy on April 9 and at Statesboro
High on April 10 before hosting the Region
2-A D1 fourth seed on or before April 18.
A March 28 match in Swainsboro was
canceled.
Early in their semifinal contest with
Metter, Lyla Johnson went down with
a twisted ankle at number one singles,
defaulting her match. At that moment third
singles Emma Rose Griner and the top
doubles team of Kerrigan Bogart/Ryland
Reynolds each trailed. While that doubles
team lost their set and were eventually
pulled, Griner rebounded for a 6-4, 6-2 win
over Alexis Driggers. Also winning were
second singles Caroline Boswell at 6-0,
6-0 over Jordan Verbel, and second doubles
Garyn Howard/Jayla Lovett 6-2, 6-0 over
Zacner Kemp/ Elle Carter. Maybe the
coaching staff did not need to worry.
In the championship match with the Lady
Redskins of Bryan County, wins came from
Johnson (6-2, 6-2), who returned from
the morning’s injury, over Shae Coursey,
Boswell (6-0, 6-0) with her second shutout
win of the day, this one over Clara Howard,
and the doubles team of Howard/Lovett (6-
3, 6-2) over Kayla Kilmer/Sarah Conner.
At third singles Griner led comfortably 6-1,
4-2 when pulled while the team of Bogart/
Reynolds lost their opening set 6-4 for the
second consecutive match on the day and
were eventually pulled during their second
set. The tournament consolation saw
Claxton defeat Metter for third place.
Losing only two games in their six
individual wins, the SCHS Gamecock
netters easily claimed their fourth
consecutive region title with a 3-0 win
over Metter. They will head to the state
playoffs for the 13th consecutive season,
not counting the 2020 shutdown. Semifinal
and final matches were at the SCHS courts
on March 25. The Roosters will host the
Region 2-A D1 fourth seed in a match that
must be completed by April 18. The final
regular season matches are trips to Bulloch
Academy on April 9 and Statesboro High on
AprillO. A scheduled match in Swainsboro
on March 28 was canceled.
The opening semifinal match took little
more than 30 minutes for the Gamecocks.
With a forfeit at second doubles already in
hand, third singles Noah Boykin got things
started with a 25 minute 6-0, 6-0 win over
Aubrey Hendrix. What followed was a
race between second singles JD Hall and
one doubles Josh Patel/Whit Morgan to
get the third win and not be pulled. When
Boykin finished both were up 6-0, 5-0. The
doubles team finished their 6-0, 6-0 win
over Ramsey Hendrix/Jess Aponte first.
Hall was pulled up 6-0, 5-0 and first singles
John Boswell was pulled up 6-0, 3-0.
Following their overly easy win over
fourth seeded Claxton in the semifinals,
the Gamecocks cruised to their three
championship wins over runner-up Metter.
The victories came from Hall (6-0, 6-0)
over Cameron Oglesby and the teams of
Patel/Morgan 6-0, 6-0 over Victor Bolanos/
Gage Odom and senior Bo Doss/ junior
Tucker Thomas 6-1, 6-1 over Hunter
Cason/Rusch Goswick. Boswell was pulled
for the second time on the day up 6-0, 4-3
and Boykin was pulled up 6-4, 5-0.
Freshman Caroline Boswell is currently 13-3 at number two singles (photo by Bo Doss)
SU j.Si'll if A^ifvA7 A } w v.
Senior Lyla Johnson prepares for a return on the Claxton courts (photo by Bo Doss)
Freshman three singles Noah Boykin makes a hard return to Jack Riggs in his region title
match (photo by Dana Doss)
Senior one singles John Boswell comes to the net for a return in the region title match
against Tanner Snipes (photo by Dana Doss)
GAMECOCKS SWEEP CLAXTON IN FINAL REGION SERIES
Evening their region record at 4-4, the SCHS baseball
Gamecocks of Josh Sheley swept their three game series from
Claxton’s Tigers last week to claim third place in the final
region standings. The Roosters will still play a huge role in
detemiining the region championship when they go to Metter
on April 9 for a makeup contest. An SCHS win and Bryan
County (7-2 in region) wins the region while an SCHS loss
gives Metter (6-2 in region) the region title. The teams split on
March 12. The Red and White are scheduled to host Johnson
County this evening and 5:30 and will next be in action on
April 8 when Swainsboro, a possible state playoff opponent,
comes to town.
After a disastrous week with three lopsided losses to Bryan
County, the Gamecocks got well against Claxton on the Tigers’
home field. Sweeping CHS on March 26 by margins of 7-5 and
10-0, at that point the Roosters were back in the hunt for a home
playoff series. That changed when Metter took two of three
from Bryan County last week. Getting outstanding pitching
from a pair of freshmen starters in DeMarko Ward (1-0 2.40)
and Holland Zipperer (1-3 4.13) there were also some clutch
hits. Ward started the first game and allowed a pair of earned
runs on four hits through four innings while Zipperer hurled
a complete game no hitter, walking but three while striking
out eight. Senior Rylan Robbins (3-2 3.37) pitched the three
innings behind Ward for a save.
Offensively the Gamecocks got a five spot in the third to
put themselves up 5-2 and they never trailed the rest of the
night. The inning provided more mns than three games against
Bryan County. In the inning Robbins walked, Greyson Garvin
reached on an attempted sacrifice, Jeremiah White brought in
both with a single and later scored himself following a sacrifice
by Noah Brownlee. Up 3-2 Gatlin Scott walked and Worth
Brown doubled with both being brought in with a Brayton
Knight single. White ended the game with two of the SCHS six
hits. White, Scott, and Knight had two rbi each.
Game two saw the Roosters score in each of the last five
innings after failing in the first two. Brown had three hits
and four rbi to leaa the biggest SCHS offensive output since
February 27. White again had two hits as well as two walks.
The Gamecocks played errorless ball and were patient enough
to pick up eight walks, all in support of Zipperer’s impressive
no-hitter.
The series finale had the Gamecocks taking advantage of 11
walks, four errors, and only six hits to claim a 14-4 five-inning
win. Brown and Knight had two hits each while Knight and
Josh Oglesby had three rbi while White had two. Scott (3-2,
6.06) went the five allowing two earned runs on four hits with
eight Ks.
Gamecock freshman Holland Zipperer hurled a
complete game no-hitter last week in a win over region
foe Claxton (photo by Kaitlyn Snow Stossmeister)
AROUN^m
THEO&mZ
There was joy among SCHS baseball fans and players
last week with a three game region sweep. There was also
a little disappointment during the win on Friday night.
Coming into the game the situation for SCHS was rather
simple - defeat Claxton and have Bryan County defeat
homestanding Metter and the Roosters could earn a home
field state playoff series with a win over Metter in the
April 9 makeup contest. That did not work out. Bryan
scored twice in the top of the seventh to take a 2-1 lead but
Metter scored twice in their half of the seventh for the 3-2
win. Now the Gamecocks can play villain to Metter and
hero to Bryan County. Both MHS and BCHS have two
losses and will finish one and two. A Gamecock win on
April 9 gives Metter three losses and Bryan County the
region title. A Gamecock loss and Metter, using the head
to head tiebreaker, is region champion over Bryan. It has
worked out that our region champion will have two losses,
but we, not Claxton (who finished winless in region play)
can play the role of spoiler.
Last week Gamecock freshman Holland Zipperer hurled
a complete game no-hitter in a region game against Claxton.
Legitimate no-hitters have become very rare around here
of late. I say legit because of all the “no-hitters” thrown in
A GOOD WEEK FOR
BASEBALL, GOOD V.
EVIL, AND THE END
both baseball and softball while we played in the region
with the Augusta schools (all of them 2016-2020, some
of them 2005-07 and 2012-2014). Playing Glenn Hills,
Josey, Butler, and sometimes Laney the big deal was
whether or not they got a hit. In my mind the three and four
inning no-hitters meant nothing. They devalued the event.
Well we haven’t played in that type of region this decade.
No-hitters are back to being a meaningful event.
Totally shifting gears, prior to the March 30 women’s
Sweet 16 matchup last week Los Angeles Times writer Ben
Bolch penned a column on March 29 entitled “UCLA v.
LSU is America’s Sweethearts vs. Its Basketball Villians.”
The title of that story brings to my mind the ESPN 30
for 30 documentary “Catholics vs. Convicts” relative
to the gridiron contest between Notre Dame and The U
(Miami) back in 1988. There were t-shirts for that one. I
also thought of the 1990 and 1991 March Madness games
between Duke and UNLV to which the media attached
every possible nickname - lawyers v. outlaws, saints v.
satan, and the lighter, showpiece v. showboat. In those
cases The U and UNLV embraced their image as the “bad
guys.” However last week LSU Head Coach Kim Mulkey
did not embrace the label affixed to her team. Mulkey has,
Burton Kemp
Unless otherwise noted all
articles in Sports are written
by Burton Kemp, Sports Editor
however, done nothing to curtail that image, in fact she
seems to embrace the idea of “us v. everyone else.” Her
most well known player is definitively known for trash
talk and hair pulling. You think that the 1980s Canes don’t
love that? I will say that, in all earnestness, it does seem
different putting affixing the name “basketball villains” to
a team of young ladies. Sometimes you just have to put on
the shoe that fits you.
We are currently in a holding pattern in the SCHS athletic
department. Baseball played in Statesboro yesterday and is
at home against Johnson County tonight. That is all that is
going on this week. I reckon that there will be a lot less
copy in the sports page on April 10. The stretch run is
here. Tennis has two matches next week and then the state
playoffs. Soccer has two matches next week and then the
state playoffs. Baseball has two weeks of regular season
beginning next week and then the state playoffs. Track has
two more regular season meets and then the region meet
on April 22-23. The athletic year is absolutely winding
down.
