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DawsonNewscom
Wednesday, December 25, 2019
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Lady Tigers unwrap Lumpkin County
By Bob Christian
bchristian@dawsonnews.com
On the strength of an aggres
sive man-to-man press defense
“that has finally come togeth
er,” according to Head Coach
Steve Sweat, the Lady Tigers
picked up a pair of wins last
week before heading into the
Christmas break.
Opening the week on the
road, Dawson County traveled
to Dahlonega on Dec. 17 to
take on their regional rivals, the
Lumpkin County Indians, in a
critical 7-AAA match up.
A high scoring first period
set the tone for the evening as
senior Sophia D’Oliveira led
the Dawson County offense on
a 19-point burst in the opening
minutes of play while Lumpkin
County countered with 15
points to keep pace with the
Lady Tigers.
Continuing to run the floor in
the second period, the Lady
Indians outscored Dawson
County 16-13 to narrow the
lead to a meager one point as
the teams headed into the lock
er rooms for halftime.
A resurgent Dawson defense
took the court in the third peri
od as senior Marlie Townley
and junior Mariah Benson shut
down the Lumpkin County
offense with a strong presence
under the net on both ends of
the court.
Junior Maddie Anglin found
the sweet spot on the outside,
dropping a trio of three-point
ers and the Lady Tigers extend
ed the lead to nine points head
ing into the final quarter of
play.
“We turned up the defensive
pressure in the second half, and
we were able to come away
with some quick baskets”
Sweat said. “The press started
working, and as the season
goes on that’s what we are real
ly hoping to do, it’s what I like
to do anyway.”
The fourth period mirrored
the first, as D’Oliveira once
again led Dawson County on a
19-point tear, holding off a des
perate comeback attempt from
the Lady Indians, and securing
the win for the Lady Tigers by
a final score of 64-51.
“It always feels good to beat
Lumpkin County,” Sweat said.
“Especially in their gym.”
D’Oliveira led the Lady
Tigers with 22 points and 12
assists. Townley picked up 17
points while leading the
Dawson defense with 9
rebounds and 4 blocks.
With the win, Dawson
County kept pace with the
GAC Spartans, who won over
the Cherokee Bluff bears on
See Girls basketball 12B
Bob Christian Dawson County News
Senior Jasper Gibson shoots for three in the Ford Phillips Arena on Dec. 20 against the Camp Jewell House
Panthers.
Tigers take top spot in region
7-AAA with win over rivals
By Bob Christian
bchristian@dawsonnews.com
Working through the schedule at a
frenetic pace, the Dawson County
Tigers boys’ varsity basketball team
tipped-off against three opponents in
five days before heading into a short
break for the Christmas holiday.
The Tigers took control of region
7-AAA with a win over their area
rivals, the Lumpkin County Indians on
Dec. 17, saw a nine-game winning
streak come to an end with a tough
loss to the Camp Jewell House
Panthers on Dec. 20, and re-estab
lished their momentum with a blow
out victory over the Tallulah Falls
Indians on Saturday, Dec. 21.
“We’re heading into Christmas at
11-2 overall and 4-0 in the region,”
Head Coach Eric Herrick said. “I’m
proud of what we have been able to
accomplish, but we’re not done yet.”
Played in Dahlonega, the match-up
between the Tigers and the Indians on
Dec. 17 was critical to both teams’
standings in the region. For Lumpkin
County, who was at the tail end of a
grueling five game stretch of regional
opponents, a win would keep them in
the upper bracket of 7-AAA. A win for
the Tigers would break them free of a
three-way tie at the top to set them
apart as the lone leader of the pack.
Despite a series of three-pointers to
open the game, one each from seniors
Eli Burrus, Campbell Reed and Jasper
Gibson, the Tigers came out flat in the
first half scoring a total of 28 points to
find themselves locked in a tighter-
than-expected battle at the halfway
mark.
After some halftime adjustments,
Dawson County returned to form in
the third period, nearly doubling their
total score, adding 22 points in eight
minutes. Gibson dropped another pair
of threes, bringing his total to five,
while Reed and Burrus pressured the
Indians in the lane with six points
apiece.
A tremendous defensive effort from
both teams turned the fourth period
into a low-scoring affair. With only
eight points, the Tigers did what was
needed to hold off the Indians by a
final score of 58-48 and lay claim to
the top spot in region 7-AAA.
Gibson led the team in scoring with
23 points, followed by Reed’s 16, but
it was the steady play of Burrus that
made the difference as he posted dou
ble-double numbers with 15 points and
11 rebounds to give Dawson County
the edge.
Originally not on the schedule, the
game between Dawson County and
Camp Jewell House was a last-minute
addition needed by both teams to fill
unexpected gaps. The Tigers lost a
game early in the season due to play
off football and the Panthers were
scrambling to make-up for the cancel
lation of their Christmas tournament.
The last-minute nature of the game
presented a unique challenge for Camp
Jewell House head coach Duwand
Jackson as he was only able to bring
five players to the game due to a com
bination of injury and holiday schedul
ing.
“A couple of our guys are hurt and a
bunch of them took off for the holidays
when our tournament was cancelled,”
College football
playoff preview
By Bob Christian
bchristian@dawsonnews.com
After a long season of football, all the
drama of the CFP polls and the crowning
of conference champions, the NCAA
playoffs have finally arrived. On Dec. 28
the top four teams in the country, LSU,
Ohio State, Clemson and Oklahoma are
set to take center stage in a pair of battles
that will determine who gets their shot at
the 2019 BCS National Championship.
This year’s teams feature four confer
ence champions sporting a combined
51- 1 record, the best combined record in
BCS Playoff history, and Heisman
Trophy winner Joe Burrows along with
every finalist for college football’s most
prestigious award.
The Peach Bowl:
With a 4 p.m. kick-off, the Peach Bowl
will start the fireworks with a match
between the top offensive teams in the
nation, the No. 1 LSU Tigers and the No.
See Football 12B
8 Tigers awarded
All-Region honors
By Bob Christian
bchristian@dawsonnews.com
Announced on Dec. 16, the 2019
7-AAA First Team and All-Region
Awards included a wide-range of talent
from Dawson County as eight Tigers
were honored on the list, including three
of the seven most prestigious awards.
For the second year in a row, junior
Caleb Bonesteel was recognized as the
Special Teams Player of the Year.
With 88 kicking points in 12 games,
Bonesteel led all kickers and finished sec
ond overall in points scored in region
7-AAA in 2019. He led the region in all
statistical categories related to field goals
and PATs during the season, connecting
on 13 of 17 field goals, with a long of
52- yards, a DCHS record and an astound
ing 49 of 50 extra points for a 98 percent
conversion ratio.
Epitomizing the Tigers’ flexibility this
season with contributions at every level of
the game, junior Dahkota Sonnichsen was
named the All-Region Athlete of the Year.
Sonnichsen handled the ball as a both a
punt returner and running back, scoring
two rushing touchdowns as the Tigers’
third leading rusher, but his biggest
impact for Dawson County came at wide
See Awards 14B
See Boys basketball 14B
Player of the Week!
Sophia D’Oliveira
In a critical game with the regional rival
Lumpkin County Indians, senior point guard
Sophia D’Oliveira found the hot hand when it
mattered most to lead the Lady Tigers to a hard
fought 64-51 victory. Finding success from all
over the court, sinking shots from beyond the
arc, under the net and from thefree-throw line,
D’Oliveira finished the game with a team high
22 points, along with 12 assists and 5 rebounds.
Her efforts pushed Dawson County to a 3-1
record in region 7-AAA and kept the Lady Tigers
locked in a first-place tie with the GAC Spartans.
706-216-0992
We’ve Gone Green!
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PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Ian Bliss
During the month of December, sophomore
Ian Bliss captured six medals in a pair
of break-out performances to lead the
Dawson County Tigers to back-to-back
top-g finishes, including the team’s first win
of the season. On Dec. 3 Bliss led the men’s
relay team to two gold medal finishes, while
also winning individual gold in the 100-
yardfreestyle and a silver in the 50-yard
freestyle. Two weeks later, against much
stiffer competition, Bliss picked up another
two silver medals in both individual events
to lead the Tigers in the medal count for the
second consecutive meet.
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