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BASEBALL ROUNDUP
Forsyth readies for region
South, Central
back home
from road trips
By Travis M. Chaffin
Sports Editor
With the Region 6-AAAA base
ball schedule less than a week away
from cranking up. Forsyth County’s
teams have been busy on the basepa
ths. While North Forsyth was idle
this past weekend. Forsyth Central
and South Forsyth loaded their
respective busses for a pair of long,
nonregion road trips. The Bulldogs
slammed Elbert County 12-4 on
Friday night, while the War Eagles
bested Hardaway 7-4 in LaGrange
Friday night before falling to the
hometown Grangers, 8-1. on
Saturday.
War Eagles split
in LaGrange
Coming off a 5-2 loss to Class
sA’s Brookwood last Tuesday. South
Forsyth split a pair of games this past
weekend in LaGrange.
In the War Eagles’ 7-4 victory
against Hardaway Friday night. Zach
Boling earned the win. allowing
three runs on six hits while walking
three and striking out three in 4 1/3
innings pitched.
David Collings picked up the
save, allowing one run while striking
out one in 2 2/3 innings pitched
Offensively. Josh Tate was 2-for-4
with two runs, an RBI and a home
run. Evan Nissley was 2-for-4 with a
home run and an RBI, Jamie
Benjamin was l-for-3 with 3 RBls
and a home run, and Jonathan Wages
was l-for-3 with a run.
"1 thought that, all the way
through our lineup, we had more pro
ductive at-bats than what we’ve been
having." said South Forsyth head
coach Mike Strickland.
"When you’re struggling to score
runs, it's important that you do those
little things and hopefully put [your
guys in] position to [score]. We had
enough baserunners to have an
opportunity to be a little more
aggressive than the past three or four
games, where we've really been lim
ited."
On Saturday. South Forsyth s
Ryan Johnson allowed seven runs on
six hits with two walks and two hit
batters in I 1/3 innings pitched as the
War Eagles fell 8-1. Offensively.
Boling was l-for-2. while Nissley.
Stuart Barton and Derek Langley
were each l-for-3.
Langley scored the War Eagles’
only run of the night coming
home on a seventh-inning sacrifice
fly by Benjamin to pull South to
within 8-1.
“It’s one of those situations where
we had five or six hits, but we could
n't put them together in order to be
able to push a run across." said
Strickland.
With a pair of home games
against Harrison on Wednesday and
McEachern on Thursday remain
ing before South Forsyth opens
region play against defending state
champion Marist on Monday.
Lady Rams soccer blasts
American Heritage in win
From staff reports
The Covenant Christian Academy Lady
Rams (1-1-1) soccer team played American
Heritage at Sawnee Mountain Park this past
Friday.
Playing their second game in four days,
Covenant stormed to an 8-0 victory over the
Heritage, as Covenant goalkeeper Courtney
Prattes posted her second shutout of the
week.
“The defense has been extremely strong
all year,” Covenant head coach Johnathan
Arnold stated.
Fielding their first-ever team last season,
the Lady Rams posted a a 2-6-0 record but
have already shown significant improvement
so far this season.
“The 2004 team is more experienced,”
noted Arnold. “The biggest difference is the
girl’s understanding of formations.”
Sports
diil > H&
ei.— —.______________!
Strickland hopes his War Eagles can
make the improvements that will be
necessary to compete in such a well
stocked region.
"It's going to be a tough road for
us." Strickland said. "We've played
nine games now. I think that we're
starting to make some strides for
ward. but we still have a long way to
go. We're going to have to take
advantage of these next five or six
days prior to opening [region play] to
make sure that ... we're ready to go."
Dawgs dominant
in Elbert County
After trailing most of the game.
Forsyth Central mounted a fifth
inning comeback to overtake Elbert
County 12-4 Friday night in the road.
Brent Majors got the win. allow
ing four runs on eight hits while
walking two and striking out six in
six innings pitched.
"He got stronger as the game
went on." said Forsyth Central head
See ROAD, Page 2B
The Lady Rams began Friday's game in a
5-3-2 (five defenders, three midfielders, two
forwards) formation and switched to a 3-5-2
formation (three defenders, five midfielders,
two forwards) one minute into the game.
“The change made an immediate impact,"
Arnold continued.
Jennifer Bower moved from defense to
midfield and Covenant jumped on the score
board as Bowen scored in the second minute
of play to give the Lady Rams a I -0 lead.
Finally ahead, Covenant never looked
back, attacking American Heritage’s goal
throughout the entire game.
Jennifer Bower, Ali Willis and Whitney
Stinebaugh each struck once for the Lady
Rams. However, it was Jessica Gandy who
set a school record hauling in four goals in
the romp.
Covenant’s next game is Monday, March
29, 2004 at Mount Pisgah Christian.
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Photo/David McGregor
Covenant Christian’s Jessica Gandy scored a
record four goals in the Lady Rams’ 8-0 win.
Photo/Submitted
When lightning began striking dan
gerously close to the track, organ
izers called the races to a close.
Weather
can’t stop
all racing at
Dragway
By Tim Glover
For the Forsyth County News
COMMERCE Although lightning
and then heavy rain “won” some of the
categories contested during the week
end’s Summit ET Series race at Atlanta
Dragway in Commerce, three winners
emerged just before the plug was pulled.
The Atlanta Dragway crew ran the
race as long as possible, but when light
ning started striking dangerously close
to the track, they cut short the event,
telling racers to put their cars up for the
night.
Points were awarded for rounds won,
and the purse was split among the
remaining racers in the Sportsman and
Super Pro class. Joshua Sisson and
Cody Martin have been in all three of
the Junior Dragster finals contested in
2004, winning two each.
Sisson won the first race in 8- to 12-
year-old Junior Dragster with his Fresh
Frozen Foods entry. Martin made it two
in a row in the 13- to 17-year-old class.
Some of the day’s earlier winners
won classes in the Run for the Money
round. Sportsman (no electronics) racer
Tom Truluck's named proved accurate,
winning the Run for the Money for the
second week in a row with the Dickey
Forrester owned ’6B Camaro he is cur
rently driving. Truluck went 13.145 on a
13.14 dial.
Billy Kittle won the Super Pro (elec
tronics allowed) edition with his drag
ster. Whitney Samples, driving the
Valvoline car owned by Bill Gillen,
went 8.375 on an 8.37 to win the Junior
Dragster portion of the Run for the
Money purse. The fastest car on the
grounds was Quain Stott's “Mohengan
Sun" Pro Mod Corvette, a low six-sec
ond. 200-plus-mph machine, which was
making practice laps.
Ten-year-old Joshua Sisson from
Gainesville has been on a roll in 8- to
12-year-old Junior Dragster. Sisson
jumped to an early lead in the points by
winning the first 2(X)4 race, and has put
his Fresh Frozen Foods race car in all
three finals contested so far this year.
For the second week in a row, 10-
year-old Valerie Clements from Central,
S.C., has been in the final, but this time
she had to settle for the runner up spot
with her Zorn General Contracting
machine. Sisson took the early advan
tage in the final with a .544 react (to
Clement’s .565). He then crossed the
finish line .007 seconds ahead of
Clements, carding a 9.294, 69.68 mph
effort (9.10 dial). Clement’s car was also
off, with a 9.22, 71.00 mph (9.04 dial).
Scott Digby (12. Walhalla. S.C.) was the
lone semifinalist.
Three of the final four 13- to 17-
year-old Junior Dragster contestants
came from Buford. The torque converter
on 15-year-old Cody Martin's Buford
based race car locked up and then disin
tegrated during the first round of 13-17
Junior Dragster action, making the car
slide to a stop after the finish line and
scattering numerous parts, (including
the carburetor and dial in board).
Thanks to quick help from many of
the Junior Dragster racing family, his
car was back together in time for round
two. where he ran a dead-on 8.69 pass.
Martin continued the streak with several
more dead-on or close passes en route to
the winner's circle.
Martin may want to keep some of
those borrowed parts after he met with
PTI Transport racer Lauren 'Rimer (13
years old. Pendergrass) in the final, and
See DRAGWAY, Page 2B
South
Forsyth
pitcher Zach
Boling,
above,
picked up a
win Friday
against
Hardaway,
while Jamie
Benjamin,
left, blasted
a home run
to help the
War Eagles
defeat
Hardaway,
7-4.
Photos/David
McGregor
B