Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

— www.MainStreetSports.com — September 25, 2008 The Banks County News Chris Bridges, Sports Editor 706-367-2745, direct line 706-367-9355, FAX chris@mainstreetnews.com Leopards claw their way back into contention I f you had any doubts as to what this year's Banks County High School football team is made of, you shouldn’t worry any more. After starting the season 0-2, the Leopards have climbed their way back to .500 overall and more importantly sit at 2-1 in Region 8-AA. Back-to-back region wins against Dawson County and Rabun County have BCHS looking at a very impor tant home game against North Oconee this Friday. This will be as important a regular sea son game as a Leopard football team has played in some time. You can't help but admire the grit and determination of this team. BCHS ventured to Rabun County last week and recorded a 35-6 victory at a place where it is never easy to win. However, this team was not going to be denied. The Leopards had their usual group of players leading the way in standouts like Justin Beasley and Demetric Dempson. There was Lyn Hester causing havoc on both sides of the football. However, several more BCHS players are rapidly emerging as stars and leaders this fall. How can one not admire the effort shown by Kane Duncan and Bill Redmon, both of whom suffered injuries in a preseason automobile accident. It’s great to just see both of them back on the football field in any capacity, let alone mak ing standout plays. Duncan has emerged as one of the top receiv ers and defensive backs in the region and Redmon’s interception return for a touchdown sealed the deal last week at Rabun County. Senior quarterback Chris Porter has looked cool, calm and col lected behind center this season taking over for Dustin Worley, who is now competing at the next level. At times Porter looks as if he is a four-year starter standing in the pocket looking over his receiver options. Enough also can't be said about the offensive line — the men in the trenches — for coach Blair Armstrong, coach Chuck Hudson and the offensive staff. Hester, Zach Dale, Justin Bowen, Tyler Husley, Jeff Smith and Nathan Mathis have all been key contrib utors to the big yardage gained by Beasley and the offense. Mathis is only a sophomore this season but has shown courage under fire playing up front. North Oconee will be a chal lenge for the Leopards this week. The game is Homecoming and the BCHS players will have to keep their minds on the busi ness at hand. The game is also the second annual Shawn Smith Bowl, and is played in honor of the former Leopard standout who died in an automobile accident. This also adds another emotional element to the contest. A three-game winning streak would be huge for the BCHS football program, which is look ing to post its first winning season since 1997. So much has already been accomplished this season but there is still plenty of miles to be run before this race is over. A big obstacle between the Leopards and their goals awaits them this Friday. A noisy, sup portive home crowd would make a huge difference. chris bridges First & Ten Chris Bridges is sports editor of The Banks County News. E-mail comments about this column to chris @ mainstreetnews. com. HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL BCHS hosts BY CHRIS BRIDGES While the Banks County High School football team has posted back-to-back region wins, this Friday’s game against North Oconee County High School is just as important, if not more so, than the previous two Region 8-AA contests. The Leopards, who dispatched Rabun County 35-6 last Friday, will host the North Oconee Titans this Friday in a game which could go a long way in determining a state playoff berth for one of the two teams, if not both. Both schools enter the game 2-1 in region play and a win would help the playoff causes of both. “North Oconee is a solid team,” BCHS coach Blair Armstrong said. “They are very similar to last year. They are a bigger school than us. They have a very good coaching staff. We expect it to be a close game.” The Leopards jumped out to a 14-0 lead North Oconee in 8-AA contest in last season's contest at North Oconee before the Titans rallied for a win. This Friday’s game is homecoming for BCHS and the contest will also mark the second annual Shawn Smith Bowl, a new tradition between the schools. Smith was a graduate of BCHS and coached at his alma mater for one season before moving on to NOHS. Smith died in an automobile accident while attending a basketball camp in Alabama with members of his team. On the football field, Armstrong said the Titans lost their front line quarterback a couple of weeks ago which has caused them to rely more on a ground attack. Defensively, they use a base 50 look. See Preview on page 3B At A Glance: BCHS, 2-2 (2-1) hosts North Oconee, 3-1 (2-1), Friday, 7:30 p.m. LEADING RECEIVER Kane Duncan has been the top receiver for the Banks County High School football team this sea son. Duncan has been able to return from an injury to be a key player for the Leopards. Photo by Randy Crump/ Rudeseal BCHS defeats East Hall BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County High School fast-pitch softball team stepped out of region play Monday and recorded a 3-0 win against East Hall. Kim Thomas recorded the win going the distance with two strikeouts while allowing just three hits. “Kim threw a great game,” said Lady Leopard coach Josh Lord. “Our infield defense was also fantastic.” At the plate, Madison Franklin, Laura Rose Pickens and Catlyn Free paced the offense with two singles each. Ashley Denton drove in two runs while Hayley Baird, Denton and Kellany Merck all had one single each. The victory Monday came after two region setbacks last week. BCHS fell to a powerful North Oconee club last Thursday 4-1 despite playing well overall. “North Oconee is not 16-2 by mistake,” Lord said. “They have a game plan that involves utilizing their speed on offense to get a few runs and then let ting their ace take it from there. We had a nice start to the game with Hayley leading off with a triple and being driven in by Madison Franklin but we could not manage anything after that.” Thomas once again pitched well giving up two just earned runs in the contest. See Softball on page 3B PLAY ON The Banks County High School softball team continues what it hopes will be a march toward the postseason. (Top) Ashley O’Kelley makes a play in left field during a game against North Oconee High School last week while Madison Porter (left) keeps a run ner close at first base. Photos by Lyn Sengupta MIDDLE SCHOOL BCMS sees late lead slip away BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County Middle School football team was close to putting its first league victory in the record books last week only to see it get away. As a result the middle school Leopards are now 0-2 in league play following an 18-14 loss to South Habersham. Holding a 14-12 lead mid way through the final quarter, BCMS could not hold on as South Habersham rallied with a big play. “We had opportunities ear lier in the game to finish them off, but we did not capitalize on them,” said coach Vinxe Lehotsky. “Despite a much better performance on the field, we have put ourselves in a hole at 0-2 in the league.” BCMS will host White County Saturday at 7 p.m. CROSS COUNTRY Runners eager for next meet BY KRIS HELLMEISTER Special to the BCN In the final months of sum mer, Banks County High School cross country runners do what most teams do for punishment — they run. With the first meet of the season under their belts and a total of five runners from the men's team returning from placing eighth at the AA State meet last year, coach Kelly See Run on page 3B JUNIOR VARSITY FOOTBALL BCHS JV Leopards see promise in second outing BY CHRIS BRIDGES The Banks County High School junior varsity football team saw some good as well as some things that they need to work on in last week’s contest at Franklin County. The JV Leopards appeared to start the contest in good fashion by returning the game’s opening kick off 70 yards for the score. The play by Justin Blalock was called back, however, on a penalty. BCHS coaches noted the whole game went pretty much the same way as penalties constantly hurt many positive plays by the Leopards. Two penalties in a row and a high snap on a punt attempt led to the first score of the contest by Franklin. The BCHS coaches said the team’s offense and defense played well overall despite battling the fact Franklin County moved down several varsity players. (Franklin County’s varsity team did not play last week.) Dylan Lackey rushed for 15 yards on eight carries for the Leopards while Jordan Smith had 12 yards on five attempts. Alex Banks had two completions for 15 yards and rushed eight times for 109 yards, including a 65-yard touchdown. Blake Cotton and Nathan Krumnow played center in the contest with Isaac Mayfield and Trenton Davis at right guard. Brian Mathis and Joe Denton lined up at left guard with Parker Watson and Zach Sprayberry at right tackle. Eli Autry, Darrell Childress, Mitchell Reeves and Caleb McCoy all saw time at tight end. The Banks County High School junior varsity football team makes a defensive play against Franklin County last week. Photo by Randy Crump/Rudeseal Photo DEFENSIVE STAND