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PAGE 2B
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS —Friday, Juna 5, ISM
BALL from IB
surrounding counties may also
want to compete.
One team from the North
Forsyth area will be coached by
the coach of the North Forsyth
Raiders, Byron Orr. Orr coached
the Raiders to the Class A state
Championship this spring, but the
school will compete in Class AA
next season and the competition
will be tough.
This team, called the Grays,
iriciudes many of the players
who won the championship, but
it will include other young play
ers, too.
The Grays will play 26 games
Between June 5 and July 15. The
schedule includes four double
headers at home, two double
headers on the road, and three
tournaments.
Some of the players on the
team will be playing baseball
somewhere else this summer too.
Bo and Kyle Counts
will be playing with a traveling
tbam in East Cobb County.
Bo graduated, so he won’t be
playing with the Raiders next
spring, but Kyle will and he
wants to be ready. Bo will be
facing college pitchers when he
steps into the batter’s box next
spring for the Kennesaw State
University Owls.
Mike Pruitt, who coaches at
Forsyth Central, will be coach
ing several of the players from
the Diamond Dogs.
Last season, Pruitt had a young
team with only five seniors, but
he will have to replace them next
spring.
It will stay a young team with
only six seniors returning next
spring, so he will have to spend
CO U NTS frbm 1B
During his three-career at
North, Counts played first base,
shortstop, third base and in the
outfield.
The hard-hitting senior had a
high school caieer record of 120
hits in 274 trips to the plate for a
.438 batting average. The hits
included 16 doubles, 4 triples,
14 home runs, an on-base aver
age of .644 and a .683 slugging
percentage. Counts also scored
100 runs and drove in 98. He
drew 65 walks during the three
years.
Counts did not know his num-
808 from IB
also wishes to not sacrifice any
thing as a husband and a father.
“I really thought I had to give
up something,” he said. “It’s a
family thing, a work thing ... but
I feel like I’m leaving the pro
gram in good hands."
Indeed, Carnaroli’s two assis
tant coaches - both of whom
were invaluable to North’s suc
cess last fall - are reported to be
stepping in to guide the team for
the ‘9B season. John Seppala
will be the boys’ coach and
Mike Tinney will be the girls’
coach.
Carnaroli took the program
when the school opened in *94
and turned it into a juggernaut -
both in terms of participation
and competitive success. By his
second year, the Raiders were
the best team in the county and
advanced from the region meet
to the Class AA state finals,
where they finished seventh
(girls) and eighth (boys) respec
tively.
In *96, both teams won the
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most of the summer teaching
youngsters the finer parts of the
game.
“This is an opportunity for the
kids to develop,” said Pruitt.
“There won’t be a lot of pressure
on the players to win, but we do
hope they show improvement. It
will also give the young pitchers
a chance to throw and work on
fielding their position.”
This past season, most of the
pitching duties for the Diamond
Dogs were from sophomores and
freshmen.
Good pitching is essential for
any team to compete successful
ly in region and state tourna
ments.
These youngsters did a good
job helping the Diamond Dogs
place second in the region, but
playing this summer will help
them improve even more.
Working in the hot sun
South Forsyth Coach Mike
Strickland will also be coaching
a team that includes all of the
junior varsity players, plus Matt
King and Dusty Tate from the
varsity team at South last season.
Strickland’s team will play 28
games, plus at least two tourna
ments and maybe three.
On a hot, late May afternoon,
the new War Eagle coach was
hitting grounders to a couple of
youngsters. Their tanned bodies
looked as if they had played all
summer.
When one of the infielders
missed a grounder or overthrew
a baseman, everyone was offer
ing encouragement or advice on
how to be better. Sweat was
ber was going to be retired until
the ceremony Friday morning.
“When I saw the covered pic
ture coming in, I thought it
might be something like that,”
the Kennesaw State signee said.
“I was very appreciative to the
school and my teammates. It
was a great season. More than I
expected.’’ b
“When the season started, I
didn’t know how good we were,
but this year we played as a
team,” he added. “To have my
number retired was just the icing
on the cake after winning the
Bob Carnaroli
county and were region runner
ups again. This time in the Class
A state meet, the teams
improved to fourth and fifth.
Finally in ‘97, the squads each
claimed Region 8-A titles and
had best-ever finishes of third at
the finals. With the only two
schools ahead of them in each
pouring off everyone, but
Strickland was enjoying the
practice and the heat.
“These games will give the
players a chance to play together
and get to know each other,” said
Strickland. “Baseball is a game
that requires teamwork and play
ing together in the hot sun. We
have to teach kids that working
and playing together is an every
day thing, not something just to
be done in the spring when the
weather is mild.”
Traveling and Legion
teams
Most of the other players on
the varsity team last season are
playing on traveling teams or on
the American Legion team in
Alpharetta.
Playing on a traveling team
coached by Mark Payne, from
the War Eagles team last season,
will be Ryan Shirley, Jason
Payne, Steven Robinson and
Scott Smith.
Playing on another coached by
Brent Platt are Justin Rhodes,
Braydon Platt and Scott
Hudgins.
Several players from Forsyth
are playing for American Legion
Post 201 in Alpharetta this sum
mer including Jon Payne, Cory
Evans and Daniel Rogers from
Central; Matt Shelter and Cliff
Young from North; and Derek
Drew, David Brooks and Jason
Payne from South.
For reports on these teams
throughout the summer, check
with upcoming editions of the
Forsyth County News.
state championship and playing
with the people on the team at
North Forsyth.”
The Raider boys tennis team
was also recognized in the cere
mony for having the highest
scholastic average, as was the
high school quartet, which won
the state literary meel ilrftieit
division.
For more on the tennis team’s
accomplishments, see upcoming
issues of the Forsyth County
News.
race being private institutions,
the rallying cry “Public School
Champs!” came into being.
Whether or not either team can
someday win a state title, as the
school now moves into Class
AA, remains to be seen. But it
was clear that under Carnaroli
the school would always have
one of the best programs.
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Subdivision Pemberton Way
Little Mill Landing Autry Mill Road
Subdivision Dahlonega Hwy.
A.C. Smith Road Oak Grove Circle
Jewell Bennett Road Burrussßoad
Biecks Mill Road Hamby Circle
Gib Evans Road Hillside Drive
Jot Em Down Road Barron Drive
Hopewell Road Thomas Lane
Freeman Drive Forsyth Drive ‘
Conner Road Blue Ridge Avenue
Ashwood Court Silver Drive
Woodbury Walk Stonewall Ln.
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War Eagle aces
South Forsyth golf award winners from Monday’s banquet included (L-R) Katie Vaughan, Jennifer
Thompson, Ken Dixon and Rocky Hunt.
SOUTH from IB
Thompson, Katie Vaughan,
Brittany Schmeelk and C.C.
Rettke - took turns being No. 1
during the season.
With her performance in the
final two meets, though,
Thompson had top honors among
the special award winners. She
was the individual region champ,
then took sixth in the state after a
round of 96 - which included a
spectacular 42 on the back nine in
very windy conditions.
Vaughan also received a plaque
after taking second in the 7-AA
tournament and ninth in the state.
Schmeelk gave South a 1-2-3 fin
ish at region with her third-place
score there and Rettke was sixth,
despite not being an official scor
er.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the
girls,” said Coach Vaughan.
Boys
South’s boys said
*goodbsho two seniors who have
had great careers at South- Ken
Dixon and Matt Sanders. The duo
have been to each of the three
aforementioned state tournaments
in their years with the War Eagles.
For the fourth straight year,
Numbers-wise, the results were
incredible, too, as the Raider
coach’s enthusiasm and motiva
tional skills inspired huge
turnouts of as many as 50 stu
dent-athletes in the latter years.
Cross-county became an “in”
thing to do at North.
Carnaroli said however, even
well back into last season, that
Dixon was the low-medalist for
the team, based on the best aver
age score for the year. “Ken ran
away with it this year,” said Enns.
“That’s the first time it has not
come down to the last match.”
Os course the senior also won
the individual region title this
spring in a dramatic sudden-death
playoff that included teammate
Matt Swilling, a Pickens golfer
and a hailstorm.
With that, the War Eagles took
their first 7-AA crown. “That’s
the happiest I’ve been at South in
golf,” said Enns.
Dixon went on to shoot 79 at
state to finish in the unofficial
individual top ten for the third
time.
Sanders also fired a 79 at state
for his best performance in his
trips there. He has led the team
frequently in his career and a big
highlight was the 74 he shot in the
*97 7-AA tourney. That gave him
third in the tough region as South
shot a school-record 307 at home,
finishing a stroke behind Pickens
County and earning the trip to
state after a one-year hiatus.
Os course, the War Eagles got
second in the AA finals last year,
certainly a career highlight for
John Seppala and Tinney had
made strdng contributions to the
program. Under their tutelage,
Bboys premier
SOCCER TRYOUTS IN
FORSYTH COUNTY
The Forsyth Rowdies Soccer Club will be conducting
Premier (boys) tryouts for the 1998-1999 season at Bennett
Park football field, rain or shine, from 6:30 PM - 8:00PM on
the dates listed below:
Agc-Group Date Age-Group Date
Under-10 Monday, June 8 Under-15 Wednesday, June 10
Under-11 Monday, June 8 Under-16 Thursday. Juim! 11
Under-12 Tuesday, June 9 Under-17 Thursday, June 11
Under-13 Tuesday, June 9 Underl9 Friday, June 12
Under-14 Wednesday, June 10
Please plan on being available for a second night of tryouts
if needed the week of June Bth.
Players should arrive 30 minutes prior to the scheduled time
with a soccer ball, water, shin guards, and a light and dark
color shirt. Players should bring a copy of the birth certifi
cate for proof of age, and $75.00 for registration fee. The
player’s age on July 31,1998, will determine the age-group.
For example, a player with a birthday of 7/30/85 will be
playing Under-14 since he will be 13 on July 31, 1998. A
player with a birthday of 8/1/85 will be playing under-13 ;
since he will be 12 on July 31, 1998.
All eligible soccer players are encouraged to try-out and help
develop their soccer skills and the competitive soccer pro
grams at the Forsyth Rowdies Soccer Club.
j
t
For more information, call:
George Jung gt 770/886-1799
Forsyth Rowdies Voice Mail at 770/384-6093
both. “Matt and Ken will be hard
to replace,” said Enns. “They are
why we’ve been so good for four
years.”
Swilling, who led the team at
region and state in ‘97, hopes to
do the same as a senior in *99. He
will return along with sopho
mores-to-be Derek Schmeelk and
Rocky Hunt, whose battle for the
No. 4 spot all year was a key in
boosting team fortunes.
Hunt received another of the
awards doled out, the Coaches
Award. “He was the most depend
able and improved the most dur
ing the year,” said Enns. “We had
some real good freshmen this
year.”
The coach is counting on them
to improve - the JV team had a 6-
2 record this year, beating Fbrsyth
Central’s and North Forsyth’s var
sities and never losing to a JV
team - as well as getting some
more talent from the program
Keith Harrison has developed at
South Middle. If that can happen,
the War Eagle tradition will con
tinue.
Sanders provided the final touch
on the evening when he got up
and formally thanked Enns and
Vaughan for their coaching.
and with the tradition built, the
program could very well stay as
strong as ever.