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Fortyth County News - Wetaaday, June I<K 1998
Quinn helps
lead Coker
to Div. II
nationals
Special to the Forsyth County
News
No one can ever accuse 1996
South Forsyth grad Becky Quinn
of not being a quick study.
In her sophomore year for the
Coker College (S.C.) Cobras,
Quinn was the team’s Most-
Improved Player and a key reason
while the team went to the NCAA
Division II national tournament in
Pensacola (Fla.) May 14-18 and
finished fifth.
After hitting less than .200 last
year, Quinn improved her average
to .322 this spring, starting all 57
games for Coker. Her team com
piled an incredible 54-3 record,
setting a NCAA II mark for win
ning percentage (.947), eclipsing
their own mark set in *96.
Still, with the South not consid
ered a softball hotbed yet, the
Cobras weren’t touted very high
in the national rankings. But they
won the South Atlantic Regional
May 8-9 with three wins - and
Quinn hitting .375.
At nationals, they beat No. 10
Cal State Bakersfield 1-0 in the
first round, then lost to eventual
champion California (Pa.) just 2-
1 in the second round. Merrimack
then eliminated them in the
losers’ bracket, 9-1, but Quinn
singled and scored to give the
Cobras their only run.
The former Lady Eagle’s season
stats also included six doubles, a
triple and three homers. She led
the team in stolen bases with 11
and her first home run in college
came in the form of a 3-run blast
that helped Coker to a win in the
Francis Marion Tournament.
Quinn made the all-toumey team
in that event with a .385 average
and seven RBI.
She also had 13 multi-hit games
in *9B, two in the CVA confer
ence tournament as the Cobras
won their sixth straight title.
Quinn has also been a member
of the women’s soccer team, with
two goals and an assist last fall.
In her freshman year, she scored
the game-winning goal in double
overtime to give her team a win
in their season finale.
Quinn helped lead South
Forsyth to three state tournament
appearances, including the Class
AA title in ‘94. She also helped
start the Lady Eagle soccer pro
gram.
A math major at Coker, Quinn
still has two more seasons.
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- „ Photo/Stephen Underwood
Big fling
Central’s Brandon Westbrook didn’t make the state meet, but
he ruled the discus and shot put at the county meet.
Denton Ashway .
salutes Bobby Cox
FCN All-County Boys Track and Field Team
Stars at the next level
Former South Forsyth softball
standouts-turned-college-stars
gathered together (top photo)
to see their old coaches, catch
up on each others accomplish
ments and talk about the
game. They included (from
left) Tina Harrison of Dekalb
College, Kassie Jones and
Shea Smith of Emmanuel
College, Becky Quinn of Coker
College and Carey Thompson
of Dekalb. Quinn (bottom
photo) still has two more years
at Coker.
Photos/Stephen Underwood/
submitted.
By Stephen Underwood
Sports Editor
As with the girls, prep track and
field boys from Forsyth County
continued to make a bigger
impact on the region and state
level in 1998.
Thus, the third annual Forsyth
County News All-County Boys
Track and Field Team is deeper
than ever - despite the fact that
requirements to make it remained
the same.
The standards to be included
start with winning an individual
county title or qualifying for the
state meet - in the latter, you’re in
even if you are a relay member
that would not make it individual
ly. Beyond that, placing in the top
three in an individual event in the
county AND the top six in your
region also merited selection.
Twelve boys made it to state
meets this year, up from 11, with
the biggest group coming from
South Forsyth. The Region 7-AA
runner-up War Eagles qualified
five, while North Forsyth added
four and Fbrsyth Central three.
A total of nine from South are
on the team, joining six each from
Central and North. Seven others
have honorable mention status.
On all accounts, the leader of
this team has to be War Eagle
Thomas Setser. The senior’s
career peaked at the right time as
he raced to third place in the
1600-meter run in the Class A A
finals, with a four-minute, 37.56-
second clocking.
For the second straight year,
Setser was the Region 7-AA 800
champ (2:03.55) and 1600 runner
up. He also won his second coun
ty title at the longer distance and
made in four straight at 3200
(10:22). Add his duty on South’s
4 x 400 relay and you have the
SF alums advise
getting on fast
pitch fast-track
By Stephen Underwood
Sports Editor
It wasn’t exactly an official
homecoming, but there they were,
coming into the vacated class
room on what happened to be the
last day of school at South
i Forsyth for 1997-98.
They were Lady Eagles softball
stars from the graduating classes
of *94, ‘95 and ‘96. Three of them
had started on South’s *94 state
champs under coach Johnny
Tallant; the other two had helped
build the foundation the fall
before.
Shea Smith, Kassie Jones, Carey
Thompson, Tina Harrison and
Becky Quinn all expressed delight
in seeing each other again. Then
they talked about their careers and
what they might advise for other
players hoping to make the transi
tion into college ball.
Three words: Practice fast pitch.
Few colleges still play the slow
pitch style and four of the former
Lady Eagles were on their
school’s first-ever fast-pitch
teams. And Quinn had to adjust
right away, too.
“You have to have practice,” said
Thompson. “It’s good to get some
lessons.”
. “They need to start (as soon as
possible),” added Smith.
Smith and Jones really had a
challenge at Emmanuel College
as Tailant’s second and third play
ers to join the college ranks from
South (the first was Amy
Roebuck, who could not be at the
‘homecoming’). “We built the
9 Photo/submitted
Concentration
One of South Forsyth’s many leaders, Ryan Holverson still has
another year to win accolades in the long sprints and more after
winning the region 400 to make the Class AA state meet again.
complete package.
While Setser was a familiar face,
North’s Josh Rains exploded on
the scene as Forsyth’s best hur
dler. The junior won county titles
over the barriers at both the 300
and 110 meter distances, then was
first and second in those events at
the Region 8-A meet.
At Class A states, Rains closed
out a terrific campaign with plac
ings of fifth and seventh respec
tively, running personal bests
(PBs) of 40.40 and 15.78 in the
heats.
He wasn’t the only great hurdler
in the county. South’s Jonathan
Chaae made it to the AA finals in
both races for the second straight
ThisWfeekin Fishing
with Ken Sturdivant
PAGE 2B
program,” said Smith.
Smith also had the challenge of
playing infield for the first time,
and as pitcher yet, but learned the
craft well. Jones, meanwhile, was
a mainstay at the all-important
shortstop position.
Their program was aided when
both were juniors as Paula Dixon
became the new coach at the
NAIA school in Franklin Springs.
While they struggled at first, the
team is now a challenger.
Smith and Jones have been near
ly inseparable since they started
playing ball together in kinder
garten. They roomed together at
Emmanuel all four years. Both
plan to continue school, Jones at
North Georgia and Smith uncer
tain. Each is also engaged, with
plans to marry next year.
Thompson and Harrison have
really built up the program at
Dekalb College. Thompson joined
the team while it was still slow
pitch, then was able to still have
two years of eligibility when they
went to fast-pitch.
With Harrison signing on at that
point also, the team progressed to
the point that they took second in
the state this spring in just their
second season in the ‘new’ sport
under coach Bonnie Young.
“We were a lot better this year,”
said Thompson.
Both Harrison and Thompson
made the all-region team and all
tournament team, with the former
at shortstop and the latter at first
base.
See MSZ Page 2B
year. And when Central’s region
triple-jump runner-up Matt
Shugart had to scratch out with
an injury, Chase also got to com
plete in the triple jump (40’9” at
region), where he was also county
champ.
County runner-up in both hur-_
dies, Chase didn’t make it out of
the semis at state, but ran PBs of
42.48 in the 300 s and 16.15 in the
110 s.
The other county athlete to score
in the top eight individually was
North’s jack Snook. After win
ning county, and region in the 400
- as well as hitting blazing times
See TRACK Page 2B
B