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The Madison County Journal INSIDE THIS WEEK Week 11 predictions are in Check out the football picks for week 11 of The Madison County Journal Pigskin Picker 2B IB Thursday, November 12, 2009 www.MainstreetnewsSPORTS.com Ben Munro/ ben@mainstreetnews.com (706) 795-2567 Madison County catcher Katie Bolin was named the 8-AAAA co-Player of the Year. Softball Gibson, Bolin earn top honors Eight MCHS softball players tapped for all-region By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com Eight players off Madison County High School's 27-4 region championship softball team have earned all-region honors, led by Erin Gibson who was selected as 8-AAAA Pitcher of the Year, and Katie Bolin, who was named Co-Player of the Year. "Oh, yeah, that was great, and to have Erin Gibson and Katie Bolin as pitcher and player of the year ... MCHS coach Doug Kesler said. "All of them were deserving of those honors." Gibson (18-3, 1.31 ERA) set a school record for victories this sea- — See ‘Softball’ on page 2B With 18 wins, Madison County’s Erin Gibson was 8-AAAA’s Pitcher of the Year. Sports Notes Basketball scrimmages are this Friday Madison County High School’s annual intrasquad basketball scrimmages are this Friday start ing at 7 p.m. Following scrimmage games with Hart County on Nov. 17, Madison County opens its sea son at home against Southwest Atlanta Christian. MCMS hosts wrestling meet Madison County Middle School will host a home meet Nov. 17 to kickoff its 2009-2010 campaign. The Mustangs will host Stephens County and Oglethorope County. The team actually starts its sea son Saturday, however, on the road at the Oglethorpe County tournament. MCHS wrestling season starts next weekend The Madison County High School wrestling team opens its season next Friday, Nov. 20, at Cedar Shoals. The Raider grapplers will fol low that up with an appearance in the Hart County tournament the following Saturday. JV Football Jordan and Burton connect for TD, but Gainesville rolls Quarterback Alex Jordan threw a 35-yard touchdown to Trey Burton last Thursday, but it wasn’t enough in the Madison County junior varsity football team’s 22-7 sea son-ending loss to Gainesville. Madison County finished the season 3-3- 1. Two of those losses came by just one point. “The kids played hard every game,” coach Marty Tate said. “They won some big games during the season.” Tate also pointed to next sea son. “This group of kids needs to work hard in the weight room during the off-season,” he said. ‘A lot of this group should be playing next season on varsity.” BURTON Madison County’s Connor Boyette (no. 77) pressures Clarke Central quarterback Martay Mattox last week in Madison County’s 31-13 loss to the Gladiators in Athens. Ben Munro/staff No miracles Marquis Thomas scoops a fumble and returns it 65 yards for a touchdown in Madison County’s 31-13 loss to Clarke Central. Ben Munro/staff Madison Co.’s hopes of winning season, playoffs dashed by Clarke Central By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com ATHENS — Madison County needed to win and have Loganville lose Friday to parlay its a turnaround season into a state playoff season. Neither part of that equation worked out. As Loganville was beating Winder- Barrow 57-18 Friday, Clarke Central dashed Madison County's hopes of a win ning season and playoff berth with a 31-13 beating in Athens at “Death Valley.” The Gladiators’ Jeremy Hughes started the third quarter with a 65-yard kick off return for a touchdown, opening the floodgates for a 28-point second half from Clarke Central as the Gladiators raced past Madison County for their third-straight victory in the series. Red Raider coach Randell Owens said Clarke Central (8-2) adjusted well at the half and took advantage of Madison County’s overaggressive defensive tactics, which included bringing eight-and-nine- man blitzes at times. ‘As soon as they got in a position where they could talk about it and say, “here’s what we need to do,” that wasn’t really effective in the second half,” Owens said. For the second straight week, the Red Raiders (5-5) — who scored very early in their previous game against Apalachee with a 51-yard touchdown on a fake punt — jumped out to a quick lead with an unconventional score and then didn’t find the end zone again until the game was out of hand. This time, the big play came from Marquis Thomas, who scooped a fum ble midway through the first quarter and returned it 65 yards to give Madison — See ‘Football’ on page 2B Youth Football MC YA team records 11 straight shutouts The Madison County Junior White Raider football team produced some statistics that most SEC defensive coordinators would covet. Thirteen games, 25 points allowed. That included a streak of 11 straight shutouts as the team went 12-1 and fell just short of an area championship. Madison County went 10-0 in the regular season and then won its first two playoff games, 42-0 and 46-13, before falling to AYA 12-6 in the title contest. Through its first 11 games of the season, Madison County outscored its opposition 315- 0. Team members were Cameron Smith, C.J. Smith, Chan Pethel, Bradley Pass, Keeven Wilhite, Gholston Gillespie, Cortney Stevenson, Ethan South, Enrique Holt, Rusty Nelms, Logan Childers, Lydrakis Wilbon, J.R. Clements, Luke Mercardante Jr., Timothy Bates, J. Ben Turk, Dalton Stuchell, Prestin Alcorn and Mason Bennett. Coaches were Corey Stevenson (head coach), John Pethel (assistant coach), Will Smith (assistant coach), David South (assistant coach), Grayson Gillespie (assistant coach). Cija Mercardante was the team mom. The Madison County Junior White football team recorded 11 straight shutouts this year as it went 12-1. Submitted photo Tough way to end a promising 2009 season Despite a late slump, Madison County’s 5-5 sea son this fall certainly won’t be remembered as bad. Far from it. But it will be recalled with that dreaded refrain, “What might have been?” The Red Raiders’ season ended Friday with a 31-13 loss to talented Clarke Central as the team watched a 7-3 halftime lead decom pose in the third and fourth quarters in their fourth straight loss. Madison County won’t be going to the play offs, when just a month ago it appeared the Red Raiders were in prime position to do so after a 5-1 start. Friday's loss itself was an allegory for a season that started slow (season opening loss to Rockdale County), saw a big recovery (five straight wins) and then a lackluster finish (four straight losses). Friday’s slow start? A fumble on the opening kickoff. The big recovery? Marquis Thomas’s 65-yard fumble return for a touchdown to grab the lead. And the lackluster finish? Getting outscored 31-6 over the last three quarters. So ends another 5-5 season in Red Raider foot ball history, but Madison County’s improvement over last season shouldn’t be overlooked. It won three more games than the 2008 squad, and if not for a 57-yard run with 27 seconds left from Heritage's Garry Peters on Oct. 16, the Red Raiders would have finished no worse than 6-4.(Madison County lost the Heritage game 21-20). What’s more, Owens said this team overcame more obstacles than any football team he can remember, pointing out widespread illness throughout the year and gutsy wins over Winder- Barrow, Cedar Shoals and Salem. “A lot of guys sick and having to overcome a lot of adversity in practice and just dealing with things that I’ve just never had to really deal with in coaching, when a third of your team is ill and the next week another third of your team is ill,” he said. Still, this is a program that now expects to have winning seasons. This a program that shoots for the playoffs every year. With the exception of the 2008 team, all of Owens' Madison County squads have gone into the final game of the year with the postseason on the line. So there’s natural disap pointment when the helmets and pads have to be stowed away early. “One on hand. I’m disap pointed that we didn't do better, but it’s not disap pointment in the kids,” Owens said. “It’s just that disappointment in life that, ‘dang, what could I have done as coach to get over that little hump for them?’ Because I wanted it so bad for them.” It was so close. Again, “what might have been?” Ben Munro is a reporter for The Madison County Journal. Ben Munro From the sports desk