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PAGE 4B THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2008 High School Tennis Leopards record key subregion victory BY CHRIS BRIDGES T he Banks County High School boys tennis team moved one step closer to the Region 8-AA tournament with a victory against East Jackson last week. Coach Mike Ruth’s team posted a 4-1 win which moved the Leopards to within one victory of the post season. “It was a big win for us,” Ruth said. “If we can beat Dawson County Thursday we will qualify for region.” Kyle Walker posted a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles with Trey Martin winning 6-2, 6-2. Jacob Westmoreland and Nathan Ward won 4-6, 6-4 and 7-6 at No. 1 doubles. The team won the third set in a tiebreaker after trailing 4-1 at one point. Chase Minish and Viet Pham also earned a win at No. 2 doubles 6-2, 6-3. The Leopards fell to Towns County in a non-region match last Monday 3-2. Walker (8-1) and Martin (8-5) earned the wins for BCHS. “We had our chances but didn’t take advantage of them,” Ruth said. “We were pretty evenly matched. STANDOUT PERFORMER Trey Martin has been a key player for the Banks County High School tennis team this spring. Photo by Randy Crump We didn’t play our best overall.” In recent action, Todd Parks, Clay Carroll, C.J. Pilcher and Alex Banks have posted wins in exhibition matches for BCHS. The Leopards fell to Rabun County 5-0 last Thursday. Despite the loss, Ruth said Walker played well before falling 4-6, 6-4, 4-6. Martin, who is a freshman, also drew his coach’s praise for his efforts before falling at No. 2 singles. Garret Hayes also played well at No. 3 singles against Rabun County falling 3-6, 6-4 and 6-7 (tiebreaker). “We are young this season so we are proud of what we have accom plished,” Ruth said. Lady Leopards avenge loss to Rabun Co. BY CHRIS BRIDGES The second time around was the charm for the Banks County High School girls tennis team. The Lady Leopards had fallen to Rabun County earlier in the season but managed a win against the Lady Wildcats in the rematch 3-2. “We really wanted to get this win under our belt so it was exciting for us,” said BCHS coach Lisa Hulsey. In singles play, the Lady Leopards got wins from Maria Enslen (6-2, 6-3) and Lezlee Bonnett (6-3, 6-1.) Megan Whitey and Michelle Crump won in three sets in doubles play (4-6, 7-5, 6-0) after Rabun County’s coach withdrew his team in the final game. The BCHS girls also defeated East Jackson 5-0 in recent action. Krista Dodd posted a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 1 singles. Hulsey said it was a tough match but noted Dodd dug deep and pulled out a win. Enslen won 6-2, 6-0 at No. 2 singles while Bonnett took a 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 3 singles. In doubles play, Whitey and Crump took a 6-2, 6-3 victory while Lauran Taylor and Taylor Seabolt posted a 6-3, 6-1 decision. BCHS fell to Towns County on March 24 by a 4-1 count. Enslen posted the lone win of the match for the Lady Leopards with an 8-4 vic tory at No. 2 singles. Hulsey’s team also blanked East Jackson 5-0 on March 20. The team swept singles play led by Enslen (6-4, 6-3), Dodd (6-0, 6-0) and Tiffany Bray (6-2, 6-4). Whitey and Crump posted a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 1 doubles with Taylor and Seabolt winning at No. 2 dou bles 6-1, 6-0. The Lady Leopards will travel to Commerce High School Wednesday for a make-up match and to Dawson County Thursday. The match with Dawson will be the final subregion match of the spring. “Regardless of the outcome, we are going to the region tournament, but a win would possibly move us up in the standings,” Hulsey said. High School Soccer Leopards preparing for postseason play BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County High School varsity boys soccer team knows it has qualified for the upcoming area playoffs. Before that begins, however, the Leopards are taking care of some final regular season business. Coach Chris Cooley’s squad defeated White County 3-2 last week although the BCHS team had to rally for the win. “We were missing a couple of starters, but we still played a good game,” Cooley said. Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Leopards regrouped and scored two goals in the first four minutes of the second half. Freshman Javier Padron added one goal while Jon Yang connected for the other from 25 yards out. White County evened the score on a penalty kick opportunity but BCHS took the winning game when Yang delivered a goal later in the second half. The Leopards are scheduled to host Union County for senior night Wednesday (today) with the boys beginning at 4 p.m. Cooley praised the efforts of Yang in recent matches. Padron is the team’s second leading scorer at this point in the season. Andre Aguilar and Oscar Aguilar have also con tributed to the team’s success, along with Marco Monreal, the coach said. Lady Leopards continue to show improvement BY CHRIS BRIDGES When the 2008 season began, first-year Banks County High School Lady Leopards soccer coach Michael Boomer was looking for improvement. The program had not enjoyed much success in recent seasons and Boomer literally wanted the team to simply post a win. That goal has clearly been accomplished as well as others even Boomer may not have thought possible at the outset. Going into this week’s action, the Lady Leopards were tied for third place in the area and was one win away from qualfying for the post- season. “I am really proud of how the girls have turned this season around from recent years,” Boomer said. BCHS defeated Lakeview 2-1 recently which pushed the Lady Leopards into third place and helped give them a chance at the postsea son. While the team fell 1-0 to White County March 27 in a non-area match, Boomer said the team used that game as a final practice before facing Athens Academy. In the match against White County, three goals by Banks County were called back, an unusually high num- ber for one match, but Boomer said his players remained positive. “Our senior leadership has been strong this season,” he said. Baseball... continued from page 1B The homeruns were frequent for the Leopards against Union County last Friday. Gailey, Gibbs and Dale each got in the action going yard during the road contest. Dale’s was a grand slam as the junior finished the day with four FROM THIRD TO FiRST... Banks County High School's Chris Porter makes a successful put out on a grounder to third during a recent contest. Photo by Randy Crump/Rudeseal Photography RBI and two runs scored. Kasey Hudgins earned the win pitching in relief of starter Jeff Smith. Hudgins worked the final 3.1 innings recording four strikeouts. “It’s always tough to play in Blairsville and win,” Lord said. “I’m proud we battled and were able to pull it out. It was a close game through four innings.” The BCHS coach said Jeff Smith pitched well and despite not having his “best stuff,” kept the game close. Lord said Hudgins remains solid on the mound this spring as well. “I’m proud of how our pitchers are throwing to contact and our defense is doing a good job of backing them up,” the coach said. “That has been and will continue to be the key for us. We’ve been taking a lot of cuts and we’re swinging the bats alright right now. Hopefully, we’ll continue to have good at bats. Our philosophy is ‘one game at a time.’ That’s what we are focused on.” Kyle Smith was also 2-for-3 against Union County with a single and a double. Jeff Smith was 3-for-4 at the plate. Subregion ... continued from page 1B “We have to maintain patience at the plate,” Lord said. Several players have stood out for the Diamond Leopards to this point in 2008. Pitching-wise, Jeff Smith, Alex Gailey and Kasey Hudgins have been the workhorses in terms of innings pitched. Hudgins has made seven appear ances and recorded four wins. “Our pitching has shown signifi cant progress,” Lord said. “As long as we are locating strikes, which we’ve been doing a good job of lately, our defense can stay on their toes and make plays behind us. That will continue to be a key for us. It all starts with pitching and defense. “ 8-AA North Standings Dawson County 6-2 Fannin County 6-2 Banks County 5-2 Union County 3-4 Rabun County 2-6 East Jackson 1-7 Standings through 3-31-08 Offensively, Gailey has shined after moving into the leadoff role. Lord said the senior has been very patient and drawn several walks as well as connecting for home runs. Gailey is also a perfect 9-for-9 in the stolen base department. Zack Dale and Justin Gibbs are providing power from the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in the lineup with Jeff Smith also providing consistency. Tyler Hulsey has also been a key offensive weapon. “The bottom of our order has also been contributing a lot lately and that is huge,” Lord said of his team’s success. “It’s so important to be solid from top to bottom so the opposing team can’t relax when they are in the field. That way, you can’t count on a 1-2-3 inning because the bottom of the order is up. If we continue to establish consistency 1-9, that will allow our offense to continue to produce.” Track ... continued from page 1B Parks completed the 1,600-meter in 5:01 and ran an impressive 3,200-meter in 10:47, running away from the field. Lyn Hester was first in the shot put (41-70 and discus (125-3.75). The 4x100-meter relay team was also first in 45.8. Other top performers for the Leopards included: •Ivan Diaz, second, 3,200-meter (11:32), third, 1,600-meter. •Jorge Diaz, second, 1,600-meter and third, 3,200-meter. •An Pham, second, 800-meter run. •Nick Sosebee, third, 800-meter run. •Alex Shirley, third, 110-meter hurdles and fourth, 300-meter hur dles. •Vishal Patel, fourth, 110-meter hurdles, third, 300-meter hurdles. •Adam Garcia, 400-meter dash, fourth, 58.7, 110-meter hurdles, sec ond, 19.3. •Clint Caudell, third, 400-meter dash, 56.2. •Jeremy Greenway, fourth, 200-meter dash, 24.9. •Jared Gregory, 100-meter dash, 11.8. For the Lady Leopards, Dee Dee Cannon won the 100-meter dash in 13.6 and the 200-meter dash in 29.3. Jessica Newell was first in the 100-meter hurdles (18.7) and third in the 300-meter hurdles (57.3). Vanessa Hurtado was runner-up in the both the 1,600-meter run (6:46) and the 3,200-meter run (14:57). Dee Wiley was second in the shot put (25-7.5) while Charledra Jennings was second in the discus (75-8.5). Other top performances included: •Kim Pass, second, 400-meter run, 1:09. •Tiffany Sims, third, 800-meter run, 2:56. •Gabriele Foster, fourth, 100-meter dash, 14.2; third, 200-meter dash, 31,0 and third, long jump, 12-5.5. •Amber Garrison, third, discus, 59-5.5. The BCHS teams also compet ed at Franklin County last week along with Hart County. Moffett was impressed once again with how his teams competed against the larger schools. Beasley won a first place for the Leopards in the long jump (20-0) as did Parks in the 3,200-meter run (10:50). 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