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SECTION B
MEthSpofls
PREP
SOFTBALL
)
Central’s
Bump
named to
all-region
roster
From staff reports
Forsyth Central’s
Lexi Bump, a sopho
more outfielder, was
named to the All-
Region 7-AAAAA
team for the 2012
season.
Bump helped the
Bulldogs reach the
second round of the
Class SA state play
offs last season, bat
ting .392 with a .496
on-base percentage,
27 runs scored and
11 stolen bases. She
was also awarded
All-Forsyth County
honors by local
coaches.
Central’s Jessica
Dunn, Taylor Alton,
Rachel Karlan,
Caroline Thomas and
Carrlyn Kiser were
named all-region
honorable mention.
SPORTS
BRIEFS
Adult softhall
registration
Local athletes
interested in playing
spring adult softball
are invited to attend
an organizational
meeting hosted by
Forsyth County. Parks
and Recreation:at 7
p.m. onTuesday;, Jan.
15.
The meeting for
the Spring Adult
Softball League will
be held at the Central
Park Recreation
Center, located at
2300 Keith Bridge
Road in Cumming.
League registration
will be held from Jan.
16 through Feb. B.The
registration cost,
which includes game
balls, will be SSOO for
each team. Teams
may register at the
Central Park main
office, located at 2300
Keith Bridge Road,
Monday through
Friday from 8:30 a.m.
to 5 p.m.
Forsyth County
Parks and Recreation
is offering multiple
leagues including
men’s and women’s
Church, Coed, 35 and
over, and Men's
Open. A coaches
meeting will be held
at 7 p.m. onTuesday,
Feb. 26 at the Central
Park Recreation
Center. .
The 2013 season is
scheduled to begin
March 4 and will con
tinue through the end
of May.
The season will
culminate with a sin
gle elimination tour
nament.
For more informa
tion, contact Jamie
Martin at (770)
781.2215 or jnmar
tin@forsythco.com.
Have an item to
submit?
Send it to the
South Forsyth News
via e-mail at sports@
forsythnews.com or
call the sports depart
ment at (770) 205-
8982,
OUTDOORS
Fishing warms up with the weather
Water Conditions: Water tem
peratures have actually risen a lit
tle and are right around 50
degrees.
The lake level is holding steady
at 1,058.38 feet — 12.62 below a
full pool of 1,071. The main lake
water is clear and the creeks and
rivers are stained. The
Chattahoochee River below
Buford Dam is clear to stained.
Bass: Bass fishing has been
good and we have found a produc
tive bite both deep and shallow
this week. With the milder than
normal temperatures, I would
expect the shallow bite to continue
for a while.
Drop shot rigs, jigs and jerk
baits have been our main lures, We
have caught spotted bass in more
than 50 feet of water and have also
caught largemouth and spotted
bass in less than 10 feet deep.
Keep an open mind this week and
%ou should find some cooperative
sh,
Steep banks near deep channels
in the creeks that have rock are my
go-to areas in winter. This past
week I have been stepping a drop
shot or jig down these steeper
banks and most of the bites have
Sports Editor Jared Putnam can be reached at sports@forsythnews.com or (770) 887-3126 ext. 513
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Autumn Vetter Forsyth County News
Atlanta Braves pitching coach Roger McDowell, right, looks on as Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez speaks to the
Rotary Club of South Forsyth on Wednesday at the Forsyth Conference Center.
Braves coaches look
ahead to 2013 season
Gonzalez, McDowell speak to
Rotary Club of South Forsyth
By John McWilliams
jmecwilliams@forsythnews.com
Fredi Gonzalez and Roger
McDowell have moved past
the controversial wildcard
play-in game and are ramp
ing up for another season.
The Atlanta Braves man
ager and pitching coach
made a speaking appearance
at a weekly meeting for the
Rotary Club of South
Forsyth on Wednesday at
the Forsyth Conference
ERIC ALDRICH
Columnist
come from 40 feet or deeper. The
spotted bass that you catch fishing
this way will usually be good ones.
A lot of our bites have been com
ing below deep docks.
Even though the docks may be
40-50 feet above the fish, bass still
seem to relate to this overhead
cover. Work your soft plastics
down the sides and between the
empty docks slips.
I have been using a 4-inch Big
Bite Cane Stick in pumpkin with
some chartreuse JJs Magic die
added. A half-ounce Strike King
Pro Model Jig with a craw trailer
has also been working this week.
We have been catching some big
spotted bass on SPRO McStick or
Vision 110 jerk baits around these
same docks and some shallower
Center and discussed what
the 2013 season might have
in store for the team.
“You forget [about last
season],” Gonzalez said.
“The closer you get to
spring training you got to
forget and move forward.”
With the loss of Michael
Bourn to free agency, the
Braves signed center fielder
B.J. Upton to a five-year,
$75.25 million contract. The
28-year-old Upton previous
ly played for the Tampa Bay
Rays since 2004 and has a
.255 career batting average.
He also boasted 28 home
runs and 31 stolen bases last
season.
“This year, [general man
ager] Frank [Wren] and the
front office have gone out
and gotten us a good center
fielder in B.J. Upton,”
Gonzalez said. “I think
we’ll improve the club tre
mendously by having him.
We’ve gone out and gotten
better with [reliever Jordan
ones back in the pockets. On
sunny days the spotted bass will
suspend around the darker dock
floats and they are suckers for
these slender jerk baits that resem
ble blueback herring.
There have been both spotted
and largemouth bass back in the
creeks around docks in water less
than 20 feet deep.
We ca&fi( a few big large
mouths week and large
mouth bass have played a big
role in recent years for winning
tournaments.
Their population seems to be
very strong, which adds to the
great fishing we are blessed with
on Lake Lanier.
Stripers: There have been a lot
of reports of good numbers and
also big stripers being caught this
past week. :
I have seen a lot of schools of
stripers in the creeks and some of
them are massive.
Watch your Humminbird
Electronics and also the gulls and
loons to give away some of the
best locations.
There are also some pretty large
schools of striped bass that don’t
have any birds around them, so
Walden] from Anaheim,
too.”
Gonzalez said he was hav
ing such a long conversation
with Wren on the drive up to
the Forsyth Conference
Center that he pulled over to
let McDowell drive. The
manager hinted that the
Braves may be close to pull
ing off another offseason
acquisition.
“We're making deals, we're
making deals,” Gonzalez
said. “Keep your fingers
crossed that here in the next
day or so there may be some
thing in the newspaper com
ing out saying, ‘Hey, there’s
another deal out there to
make our club better.’”
See BRAVES | 2B
your electronics are key tools for
finding these fish.
Pulling live bait on flat lines and
planner boards and also trolling
umbrella rigs have been the pre
dominant patterns.
Using larger baits in winter
seems to help and trout, bluebacks
and even native gizzard shad are
all great choices.
Rigging a flat line is very easy
because it is just a hook and bait
on the end of your line.
You can let out 15 or 20 feet of
line, then attach a balloon to get
your baits way out behind the boat.
Adding planner boards will help
spread out your offerings and
cover a much wider path, but I
have caught plenty of stripers over
the year with just two flat lines
directly behind the boat.
Keep a rod rigged with a buck
tail or jerk bait to cast to any active
fish you see on the surface.
Crappie: I have not heard a lot
of reports but the ones I have heard
about are very good. Anglers are
catching these tasty pan fish
around deeper brush piles in the
creeks. Fifteen to 25 feet seems to
See ALDRICH | 2B