About The Banks County news. (Homer, Banks County, Ga.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (April 23, 2008)
PAGE 4B THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2008 SOCCER STANDOUT Oscar Aguilar (10) was a key player for the Banks County High School soccer team and coach Chris Cooley this spring. Photo by Lyn Sengupta High School Soccer Leopards continue to build success BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County High School boys soccer team continued to take additional steps on the road to being a successful program in 2008. Coach Chris Cooley’s team had some ups and downs, but the coach will quickly point out the Leopards played a much tougher schedule this season. “The strength of the opponents we scheduled was way above what it’s been in previous years, which we did on purpose to get experience,” the coach said. “ We played a lot of AAAA schools, and also the stan dard within our area rose as a result of realignment.” The team had a disappointing loss against Athens Academy which cost it the chance at the state tourna ment but Cooley said be believes “our players got some really good experience and have been playing very well.” “The bright side for us is the next couple of years,” he said. “This year we lose three starting seniors — that’s much fewer starters than the six we lost last year. Next year we will have just one senior (Alex Vang) and a very strong crop of ris ing 11th graders and a large group of rising 10th graders.” The coach said it also looks as though the last couple of years’ work will pay off in the next two or three. “ Alex is going to be a great leader for the team, which I feel will be a more mature and focused team than we’ve ever had before,” he said. High School Tennis BCHS falls in opening round of region play BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County High School boys tennis team couldn’t quite get past Morgan County in the opening round of the Region 8-AA tourna ment week. The Leopards fell 3-1 and saw their season come to an end. BCHS needed to win the opening round of region, played at East Jackson High School, to advance to the state tour nament once again this spring. “It was a hard fought match,” said BCHS tennis coach Mike Ruth. “We played well.” Nathan Ward and Jacob Westmoreland earned a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles for the Leopards. However, BCHS couldn’t find any wins in the singles matches losing at No. 1 and No. 2 play. The No. 3 singles match was stopped once Morgan County had clinched the victory. The Leopards also fell at No. 2 doubles although that match was also a hard fought contest, Ruth said. The 2008 season marked the sixth consecutive year the BCHS boys qualified for the region tournament. “That is an accomplishment we are very proud of,” Ruth said. “That says something about the quality of the program from year to year.” The Leopards finished the regular season as the No. 3 seed from 8-AA North. The BCHS Lady Leopards just missed qualifying for the region tournament after falling in the final match of the regular season. “I am truly grateful to have been able to work with such a great group of girls and I am already looking forward to seeing all of the girls return,” second-year coach Lisa Hulsey said. “We will only be losing two players because they are seniors in Krista Dodd and Michelle Crump. Both of these girls have worked very hard and they will be missed tre mendously. I want to thank anyone that has helped with the tennis team this year, we couldn’t have done it without their continous help during the season.” Here's to all our satisfied customers for the treatment of incontinence. Incontinence can be an uncomfortable situation. It can be embarrassing. It can limit your activities. And when your activities are limited, so are the opportunities to spend time with loved ones. At The Urology Clinic we treat incontinence and all urological conditions with the latest advances in medicine paired with an approach to patient care second to none. With five doctors on staff, on-site diagnostics testing, an on-site surgery center, an on-site lab and commitment to our patient's comfort during their visit, we at The Urology Clinic treat you like more than your condition. We treat you well. 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There are always going to be detractors who are criti cal for various reasons, but as long as we know we are working hard, getting better and doing things the right way, that’s what matters.” This spring, winning 10 games in Region 8-AA North and tying for first has been a crowning achieve ment of sorts for the Diamond Leopards. While the coaches and players would have liked to have won the subregion title outright, they were in a good position to battle for first when the regular season came down to the end. “I said from the beginning that our subregion was very even and it defi nitely was,” Lord said. “Our region is just going to keep getting better in baseball. The teams are working hard and getting better and we have to keep at it so we keep getting bet ter as well.” Going back to the Region 8-AA tournament for the second year in a row is also an accomplishment Lord said his team can be proud of. “It’s even nicer to be able to host a series at our awesome facility,” he said. “We’ve gotten tons of compli ments on it during the season and we want it to be a place where we have a distinct home field advantage but also where the visiting teams and fans can appreciate the atmosphere we have to offer for a great high school baseball game.” Getting to the region tournament is not the ultimate goal for this year’s Leopards. Lord said he wants his team to find a way to win the opening-round series and qualify for state. “That would be another huge step for our program,” the coach said. “We’ll still take our regular season mantra into the postseason of ‘one game at a time.’ We want to go as far as we can. It’s been a fun season and we want to keep it going for a while.” •BCHS will host Oglethorpe County in the opening round of the Region 8-AA tournament Friday in best-of-three format at 3 p.m. A third game, if necessary, will be Saturday at 3 p.m. 2008 Feb. 28 Commerce W 4-0 Feb. 29 Elbert County W 7-3 March 5 Elbert County L 3-10 March 6 Commerce W 20-3 March 8 Franklin County L 7-12 March 10 Dawson County W 7-4 March 12 Fannin County L 0-10 March 18 Rabun County L 2-4 March 20 East Jacksom W 13-2 March 21 Lakeview L 6-8 March 24 Dawson County W 11-6 March 26 Fannin County W 11-0 March 28 Union County W 13-3 April 1 Rabun County W 4-0 April 3 East Jacksom W 5-1 April 7 Dawson County L 4-6 April 9 Fannin County L 6-11 April 11 Union County W 12-4 April 11 Union County W 11-3 April 15 Rabun County L 4-6 April 17 East Jacksom W 10-6 •Region 8-AA North contest Follow the BCHS Diamond Leopards during their postseason run each week in The Banks County News free HDtAlSS'Ot' HOMETOWN COMMUNITY BANK presents f^TFOOD & B£vfr AGes AVAILABLE Braselton Antique & Gardening Festival Green Before Green Became Cool! ’ April 26 & 27 N Downtown Braselton Park Saturday - 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. • Sunday - 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Take I-85 to Exit 129, turn east on Hwy. 53 and follow the signs. ^ We are asking people to bring any of the following: • Aluminum Cans For The West Jackson Fire Dept. • Rechargeable Batteries For Home Depot Pull Tabs For The Ronald McDonald House • Old Ink Cartridges For Jackson County Humane Society • Old Tennis Shoes For Home Town Nike' Please visit our sponsors while in town. • Antique Station • Braselton Antique Mall • Vintage Grace • A Flea An’tiques • Countryside Antiques • Ye Ole Station Hometown Community Bank 6700 Hwy. 53, Braselton, 706-654-3199 & Traditions Walk, 55 Freedom Pkwy., Ste. 101 For more information call 706-824-7204.
