Houston times-journal. (Perry, Ga.) 1994-1999, February 23, 1994, Page page 1B, Image 9
Sports
«By Phii l
Clark I
Sports
Could This Be
The Year Of
The Panther?
State championships in boys
basketball are not uncommon at
Perry High School. Former coach
Eric Staples won half a dozen.
But it's been a long dry spell for
this basketball hotbed. This could
be the year the drought is broken.
Without putting undue pressure
on Carl Thomas' team, it sure
looks like the team to beat, despite
the fact that there are a couple of
teams ranked ahead of it in the
Associated Press poll.
You have to wonder about the
caliber of competition these two
teams have faced. Perry has played
and beaten fifth-ranked Peach
County twice. The Panthers lost to
Region 1-AAA East runner-up
Monroe in the Albany KFC
Classic.
The Panthers' only other loss
was to Class AAAA number eight
Central Macon.
If the AP poll in any indication,
the strength of Class AAA lies in
the south, where seven of the top
teams are located. However, at least
two of them will be eliminated in
region tournaments this week, since
three of the ten are in Region 4-
AAA. Number four Richmond
Academy, number eight Westside,
number nine Thomson and only
two teams will survive the region
tournament.
In Region 1-AAA, number six
Westover lost in their sub-region
tournament to Dougherty and must
play number seven Albany in the
opening round of the 1-AAA
tournament. Only one of them will
qualify for the state tournament
In the first round of the state
playoffs, region 2-AAA (Perry's
region), will be paired against
Region 1-AAA (the Albany
region), while 3-AAA favorite
Peach County will be matched with
Region 4-AAA, which will be the
Augusta-Thomson region.
Beating Peach County twice
over the final six days of the regular
season should certainly give Perry
the momentum going into the
region tournament this week at the
Perry gym.
Perry, the top seed, will not play
until Friday night at 8:30, when it
meets the winner of the Ware
County-Jones County game. The
one week layoff should not be a
factor.
Perry’s last two runs at the state
championship came in 1980-81 and
1984-85. The 80-81 team,
consisting of Darryl Albritton,
Carlton Clarrington, Chuck
Langston, Lonnie Boone and Steve
Stokeling, finished as the number
three team in the final AP poll
despite losing in the state
quarterfinals. Perry beat eventual
state champion West Laurens by 23
points in the region tournament
The ’B4-’BS team consisted of
Jeff Williams, Rico Durham, Stan
Lynn, Eric Rios and Tim Boone.
After beating one of the top teams
in the state and one of the pre
tournament favorites, Gainesville,
in the semifinals in overtime, the
Panthers came out flat against Lee
County the next night and could
never get untracked against Butch
Watts' underdog Trojans.
Lee County went on to win the
state title.
By the way, Patrick Hamilton
was on that Gainesville team.
Hamilton went on to a fine college
career at Georgia, and Chris
Carpenter, who played baseball,
was the punter on the Georgia
football team. Both the 'BO-81 and
the 'B4-85 Gainesville teams were
coached by Melvin Sweat, now at
Central Gwinnett.
If Perry survives the region
tournament, and it should, it will
play Thursday, March 3 at the
Albany Civic Center. If the
Panthers advance as the number one
team (2-AAA tournament
champions), they would play at
5:30 p.m. As the number two team
(tournament runner-up), they would
begin play at 4 p.m. The Class
AAA state finals will be played at
Alexander Coliseum on the Georgia
Tech campus in Atlanta beginning
March 10.
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Angela Leggett will pace Perry Into Its quarterfinal game of
the Region 2-AAA tournament tonight against Jones County.
Hornets Open
Playoff Action
By BILL OVERTON
Sports Editor
Despite the bitter
disappointment of a 21-point
loss Friday night, the Westfield
boys basketball team will get
another chance Thursday
afternoon.
The Hornets had their six
game winning streak broken
after Athens Christian rolled to
an 80-59 win in the GISA
Region 2-AAA championship
game.
The quest for a region
championship was lost but not
the season. The Hornets had
already qualified for state
tournament play with a second
place regular season and now
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Westfield senior Jeff Dortch has been a big part of the
Hornets' success during the 1993-94 season.
have new life.
Westfield, with a second seed
in its sub-region, will play third
seeded Brookwood Thursday
afternoon at 4 p.m. in Macon. It
is a chance for the Hornets to
return to their winning ways,
just in time.
But first-year coach Jim
Massey knows that another loss
will not be so kind to the
Hornets. A defeat would signal
the end for good.
However, Massey is taking
stock in a home-court advantage.
No, Westfield will not be
playing in the comfortable
confines of its own gymnasium.
But the Hornets will be making
Please see HORNETS, page 2B
Houston Times-Journal
1994 GHSA 2-AAA Tournament
Perry, GA
Girls Bracket
Today Friday Saturday
(3) Ware County
5:00 p.m.
(6) Appling County
4 p.m.
(2) Dodge County
6:30 p.m.
(7) Fitzgerald 7 p . m .
Champion
(4) Perry
8:00 p.m.
(5) Jones County
7 p.m.
(1) Wayne County
Region Tournament Begins
By BILL GVERTON
Sport* Editor
The Perry High School girls
basketball team owes a lot to the
21-2 boys squad.
Thanks to the boys’ perfect 12-0
region record, both teams get to
host the Region 2-AAA
Tournament, which starts this
evening.
So the girls, despite their 10-14
overall record and 5-7 region mark,
know that they won’t have to get in
a bus and travel to some site that
could be up to three hours away.
Panther coach Max Vickers also
knows that the team will have the
added edge of having a bipartisan
Panthers
suffer in
opener
By BILL OVERTON
Sport* Editor
Perry's group of youth and
inexperience paid the price Tuesday
afternoon in Macon.
Playing in the Lem Clark
Invitational at Central High
School, Jackson pounded the young
Panthers 10-0 in a game that was
called for darkness after five
innings.
The humbling experience was
not due to the Red Devils' potent
lumber attack Jackson only had
three hits.
However, the Panthers helped
the Devils along by committing
five errors and Perry pitching
walked a total of 11 batters on the
day.
Then there was the Jackson
pitcher Randerik Moore, who no-hit
the Panthers. Perry was not even
able to get a ball to the outfield off
the strong pitching of Moore.
Jackson broke it open in the
third. Down 2-0, Perry pitcher
Dallas Waldrip walked batters to
first and second and after an error by
first baseman Tim Allen, there were
runners at first and third.
Jackson's Danny Smith got a
hold of a 3-1 pitch from Waldrip
and took it for a ride over the left
center field fence to give the Devils
Rodeo Comes to Agricenter
Stock Show Highlights 4-H and FFA Students
By BILL OVERTON
Sport* Editor
The fourth-annual Georgia
National Stock Show and Rodeo
begins today at the Agricenter,
promising something for all ages.
Thousands of spectators are
expected to come through the gates
to experience the event, which runs
through March S.
This week will highlight
outstanding 4-H and FFA (Future
Farmers of America) students.
There'will be several segments,
including showmanship of swine
and steer.
"Its the 'super bowl' of the 4-H
and FFA programs, if you will,"
said Dale Redeker, Agriculture and
Youth Director at the Agricenter.
Wednesday, February 23,1994 Houston Times Journal -
crowd. Vickers hopes that will lead
to an increased intensity level.
"If we play with high intensity
on defense and shoot the ball well,"
he said the Panthers could make a
run at the region title. "If we play
with a lot of intensity," he stressed.
The first step is an 8:30 p.m.
game with Jones County tonighL
Perry and Jones played the
home-and-home series during the
regular season, with each team
gaining a win. Jones won the first
contest in Gray 52-34 after building
a 23-point lead at one point. Perry
won the second contest by three
after leading by 15 early in the
fourth quarter, nearly allowing
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Perry coach Bob Jonaa tosses a pitch during some work
with his catcher In Monday's practice seaslon.
a comfortable 5-0 lead.
Jackson sewed five more runs in
the fourth inning on not a single
"It all comes to a year's fruition."
In addition to the several
contests and shows open to the 4-H
and FFA youngsters, there will be a
beef quiz bowl and a swine quiz
bowl, which will test a four-person
team's knowledge.
This year, a new feature will be
carnival rides, which include kiddie,
major and spectacular rides.
The rodeo will again be a large
part of the event. The Professional
Rodeo Cowboys Association
(PRCA) will again have a three
night performance beginning
Thursday night at 7:30 p.m.
Some of the top rodeo stock will
be on hand, including some bulls
and bucking horses which were used
in the national finals in Las Vegas.
page 1B
Jones a comeback win
If Perry is to knock off the fifth
seeded Greyhounds, it will likely
have to stop Jones' leading scorer
Heather Hauser. Hauser, obviously
a big fan of Michael Jordan, has
choked the Panthers for 23 points
in each contest
Perry will counter will leading
scorer Angela Leggett, who scored a
team-high 18 points in the win
over Jones.
Whichever team escapes from
the first round today, it is likely to
run into a huge roadblock Friday
night in the form of unbeaten
Wayne County, which crushed both
Please see REGION, page 2B
hit, as two Perry pitchers walked
five batters and hit one.
Please see BASEBALL, page 2B
There will be six events for
cowboys and cowgirls, including
saddle bronc riding, bareback riding,
bull riding, calf roping, steer
wrestling and women's barrell
racing.
Approximately IS-2S entrants
will be participating in each
category.
Each night's rodeo begins at
7:30 p.m. On Friday night and
Saturday night, a pair of country
music acts will double up with the
rodeo. Brother Phelps will play
Friday night, while Highway 101
will be on hand Saturday night.
Tickets are on sale at Reaves
Arena at the Georgia National
Fairgrounds.