Issuu

Time to look great!

VOLUME 10 ISSUE 11

MARCH 21-27, 2014

YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

GOING AWAY Top hoops prospects continue to leave the state for college | Pg. 5

Braves Crippled | Pg. 4 Columnist Ricky Dimon assesses the Bravesâ€™ injury-riddled rotation.

Spring Sports | Pg. 8 We update you on the latest and greatest news in our preps section.

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Vol. 10 Iss. 11 | March 21-27, 2014

STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

COLUMNISTS

ON THE COVER

INSIDE THE PREPS

GENERAL MANAGER Melanie Snare

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock SENIOR MANAGING EDITOR Stephen Black

BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Marcus Nabors

BEAT WRITERS Ricky Dimon (Braves) Joe Deighton (Gladiators) Jay Underwood (Hawks) Brian Jones (KSU) Joe Deighton (UGA) Craig Sager II (Falcons) Stephen Black (Tech) Jay Underwood (GSU) STAFF WRITERS Ryan Caiafa Alex Ewalt

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06 12 13

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SAGER SAYS

DAWGS RETURN TO NEGATIVE SPOTLIGHT BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

week I painted a broad picture on footLlevel,ast ball’s troubled offseason. On the varsity I looked at the recent Grady High School

situation. The Knights had 14 players on last year’s roster that reported fraud residencies and among the individuals was one who was never enrolled in a single class. In the NFL, I mentioned the 27 arrests from the end of the Ravens’ Super Bowl victory to mid-June of 2013. Finally, on the collegiate scale, I looked at the SEC’s perpetual run-ins with the law each offseason. As predicted, more headlines and more self-inflicted wounds came and history once again repeated itself. Georgia and Missouri added six more arrests to the SEC’s growing total (not to mention the three Missouri basket-

ball players also arrested this week). Tennessee, Ole Miss, Georgia and Missouri have each seen two or more football players arrested in the last month. With this trend continuing to hurt these teams early in the season, I shift my focus specifically to the problem in Athens, Ga. DAWG-GONE IT … Type “UGA football players” into your search engine and “in the NFL” and “arrested” are the two most visited additions to your search. Since the start of the 2010 season, 19 players have been arrested. Out of the 19, just five arrests have come during the actual season. Among these players are starters and some of the most highly-ranked recruits of their respective classes.

DIMON CLUB

PANTHERS HURT BY CONFERENCE TOURNEY, BUT SO WHAT? BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

eorgia State went 17-1 in the Sun Belt Conference during the regular season. That’s G five games better than second-place Western

Kentucky and six games better than eventual tournament winner Louisiana-Lafayette. Davidson—my alma mater—went 15-1 in the Southern Conference during the regular season. That’s three games better than secondplace Chattanooga and four games better than eventual tournament winner Wofford. Each team is the undisputed best team in its league. Neither is dancing. That’s because Georgia State fell to Louisiana-Lafayette in an overtime championship game and Davidson was upset by Western Carolina in a semifinal showdown that also went into overtime. As someone who supports schools I attended and also Atlanta-based teams, you

could say these conference tournaments really dealt me the short end of the stick this time around. But you won’t hear me complaining. No, I am so tired of hearing that mid-major conference tournaments should be abolished and the regular-season champions should be the ones punching tickets to the NCAA Tournament. I also realize that conference tournaments are all about money and people are upset that money is apparently more important than letting the best team into the NCAA Tournament. But is the latter really that important? Could Georgia State have won a game in the NCAA Tournament? Yes. Could it have reached the Sweet 16? Yes. Could it have been this year’s Florida Gulf Coast (sans the nationcaptivating dunk-a-thon)? Yes. Could it have won the National Championship? No. And as

People have pushed blame to head coach Mark Richt on not being tough enough or not having any control over his players. The way I see it, Richt is not brunt of the problem. A lack of leadership within the team is. Tray Matthews, Jonathan Taylor, James DeLoach and Uriah LeMay were all arrested on St. Patrick’s Day this past Monday. No, it was not for being underage or for drinking too much green beer. Spring break was over as well and the first day of spring practice was the next day. Instead, these four were booked for trying to doubledip checks. Instead of watching game film maybe the coaching staff needs to show each new Georgia recruit Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can and teach them about Frank Abagnale’s run-ins with the law. Or maybe these kids just need to start thinking for themselves. Four players all making the same dumb decision proves they are not. A typical college student is thrown into a world of freedom with plenty of peer pressure and decision-making involved. A college athlete is not. Showing up minutes late to a workout or a class requires punishment and nearly every day is spent watching the clock constantly. The majority of football players have a tutor for each specific class to push them and keep them on track. In between class

or a study session is barely enough time to eat. Then you have to be dressed, taped up and ready for hours of film, practice or workouts. During team activities, every player is on the clock and whistle. “Run this play, line up like this, move your feet, etc.” There is a constant voice telling you what to do. Coaches are not roommates and coaches are not going to be your classmates/ peers. Off the practice field, there is a need for teammates to act as the positive role models and UGA currently lacks this key ingredient. Who is the leader of this year’s team? Richt needs guys to step up to the plate as men and competitors. While I was playing at UGA, I had one of the best mentors to look up to in Mohammed Massaquoi. For much of that 2008 season, Richt placed a complete ban from downtown for anyone on the football team. No one was allowed to set foot past North Campus. After the spring game the ban was removed and we finally had our freedom back. That first night, Massaquoi called and texted every receiver from starters down to the brand-new walkons like myself to make sure we were all back safely and out of trouble. This is your answer to this annual headache, Bulldog fans: leadership. Photo courtesy of Sonny Kennedy.

much as we love the non-stop hoopla of the early rounds, the NCAA Tournament is not comprised of 67 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowls or 67 Famous Idaho Potato Bowls. The 67 NCAA Tournament games are in the business of producing a worthy National Champion. Georgia State in the dance would have been fun. Georgia State—instead of, say, Louisiana-Lafayette—in the dance would not have affected the ultimate outcome. Get over it.

Brandon Beachy, a Cy Young candidate midway through the 2012 season, is likely headed to the same destination as Medlen for a second Tommy John surgery. Mike Minor’s status may not be as dire, but Monday signaled only the first time this spring the southpaw has thrown batting practice. The Braves are still good enough, especially offensively, to make the playoffs. They may not dominate the division with Medlen and Beachy on the shelf and they may not even win it, but anything can happen if they just sneak into the wild-card game. A three-man rotation is enough to win in the postseason and Atlanta could have a formidable one for an October run if Minor, Santana and Julio Teheran are healthy. “I told them to stay positive,” reliever Jonny Venters, recovering from a Tommy John surgery of his own, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution of Medlen and Beachy. “(There is) nothing else you can really do. Whatever happens, you just go at it as hard as you can. Whether it’s rehabbing, if you get the surgery, stay positive and work as hard as you can and see what happens.” That is what Braves fans must do, as well. There are still reasons to stay positive; not only for the long-term future but also for the upcoming season. There just aren’t quite as many. Photo courtesy of Georgia State Athletics.

KRIS CROSSED OUT OF ROTATION … What may take a while to get over is the cruel fate on which the Atlanta Braves have suddenly stumbled. Everything was so perfect in February. General manager Frank Wren was handing out contracts like chocolates on Valentine’s Day. He has given another one in March, but the latest deal was signed under far more discouraging circumstances. Whereas the previous transactions had been those of luxury, this was a transaction rich with desperation. Monday’s news confirmed what we already knew when starting pitcher Ervin Santana signed a one-year, $14.1 million deal last Wednesday: fellow right-hander Kris Medlen is out for the year. Medlen walked off the mound on March 9 with discomfort in his pitching elbow and he underwent surgery (performed by—who else?—Dr. James Andrews) on Tuesday to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament.

Vol. 10 Iss. 11 | March 21-27, 2014

ON THE COVER

PEACH STATE EXODUS

LOCAL HOOPS COACHES COMMENT ON RECRUITS LEAVING GEORGIA BY STEPHEN BLACK | SBLACK@SCOREATL.COM

he Georgia Bulldogs had a successful basketball season compared to most years in recent history. They won 12 games in the SEC, one of the highest conference win totals in program history, and made a postseason tournament for just the fifth time since 2002, albeit the lightly-regarded NIT. However, in games against the SEC’s three NCAA Tournament teams - Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee - the Dawgs were 0-4 and dropped each game by double-digits. What is Georgia missing that championship contenders have? The likely answer is talent and recruiting, two sources of frustration for Bulldogs fans who look around the Peach State and see some of the top prospects in the nation leaving for out-of-state college programs every year. Like the Bulldogs, Georgia Tech, Georgia State and Kennesaw State weren’t invited to the NCAA Tournament while, in an AJC.com article by Todd Holcomb, more than 20 players from Georgia high schools will be playing in the Big Dance. While some of them play for Macon’s Mercer University, most will suit up for out-of-state programs.

WHY NOT US? … The mass exodus of blue-chip basketball recruits begs the question: why do they leave the state while the in-state programs suffer in mediocrity? “With Georgia being so phenomenal at football, a lot of kids don’t see Georgia being a ‘basketball school’,” explained Miller Grove coach Sharman White, whose program is fresh off winning a state-record sixth consecutive state title. “But I don’t think it’s just a football thing, I think it’s a recruiting thing. What do you have to offer the kids? From a standpoint of what the program can offer them, that’ll convince them that they need to be here in their home state instead of leaving. Recruiting is the bottom line.” Tech and Georgia have won at times throughout their lengthy major college histories, but neither has been able to sustain it and neither has ever won a national championship. While so-called football schools like Florida, Ohio State and Michigan have taken home national titles, Tech and Georgia have fallen

short. But it isn’t due to a lack of talent nearby. It is largely because local players choose far away programs over the in-state schools. “I just think that some of those players feel that they may have a better chance of maybe playing at the next level (the NBA) or getting a little more appreciation at some of the out-of-state schools,” said David Boyd, who coached Berkmar and Milton to two state championships each. “But I don’t agree with that. I believe that Georgia and Georgia Tech can be very good at basketball. If you look at Florida, which has been very successful traditionally at football, they’ve done a great job in basketball. So I do think it can be done.” LOSING BATTLES … While programs like Duke, Kentucky and North Carolina can generally pick and choose recruits from all over the country, other programs not known for their basketball pedigrees have come into the Peach State and taken players that were coveted by both Tech and Georgia. Virginia, which just won its first ACC Tournament championship since 1976, used metro Atlanta products Malcolm Brogdon (GAC) and Evan Nolte (Milton) to help snag a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance. The Cavaliers have also signed current GAC Spartan Isaiah Wilkins, who happens to be ex-Georgia Bulldog Dominique Wilkins’ stepson. Marquette, a good, but not great program located in cold and distant Milwaukee, signed Aquinas’ Ahmed Hill, arguably the top player in the Peach State’s 2014 class. Effingham County’s JaKeenan Gant signed with Missouri, a school hundreds of miles away that has never made a Final Four and which Georgia beat twice this past season. “When kids make that kind of move and they have 15-20 offers, it’s strictly a relationship thing,” said Walton coach Joe Goydish. “It’s a relationship and a ‘how quick can I play’ thing.” While relationships are important in recruiting, other factors also play a part in it. “I’d like to think it’s always an academic decision,” said Boyd. “Or what the major is going to be but, to be honest, I do think that most high school players are going to base their decisions on how they feel about the head coach, their relationship, style of play, facilities, those kinds of things are kind of at the top of the list and tradition is also up there.” Coach Markus Hood of Allatoona suggested a more questionable way certain colleges sign players, one that may violate NCAA rules.

“It may be some kind of AAU connection that helps funnel kids to those places,” he said. “I don’t know if there’s anything financial or if there’s some type of AAU connection where maybe some AAU programs are getting kickbacks.” While in-state programs seem to be striking out on many top Georgia prospects, each coach acknowledged that it wasn’t for lack of trying. “I don’t think they’re not recruiting these kids,” said Goydish of the in-state programs’ recruiting efforts. “I’m sure they’d love to get (Wheeler’s) Jaylen Brown or one of those guys, but I just don’t know if those kids feel that connection.” Despite missing on some recent big-time recruits, all four local college programs are stacked with in-state kids. Metro Atlanta products like Charles Mann and Donte’ Williams play huge roles at Georgia while Tech was led by Daniel Miller of Loganville and Marques Georges-Hunt of College Park. OWLS AND PANTHERS … Georgia State and Kennesaw State each confront a different set of challenges than do the SEC and ACC representatives from the state. While the Panthers have made the NCAA Tournament and won a first-round game in 2001, Kennesaw State is relatively new to Division I athletics and has floundered in the Atlantic Sun. However, Goydish thinks each program could win if each approached recruiting with an emphasis on local players. “Georgia State’s going to be good,” Goydish said. “They’re going to succeed more so on the level they did this year with transfers. I think Kennesaw State can be a good basketball program with the talent here in Georgia with the secondary guys, the guys that were going to the mid-major programs.” Georgia State dominated its first season back in the Sun Belt Conference with a 17-1 conference record on the backs of transfers. Kennesaw State, however, suffered another atrocious season with a 6-25 record overall. While Mercer will be the lone in-state program to play in the men’s NCAA Tournament this season, college programs in the state of Georgia have bright futures – if they can secure the top players from the Peach State. Photos courtesy of Ty Freeman.

Mercer

Frank Wren

Atlanta Hawks

Mercer will not have to travel far for the first game of its first NCAA Tournament since 1985. The Bears, who topped Florida Gulf Coast for the automatic bid out of the Atlantic Sun Conference, are facing Duke in Raleigh, N.C. on Friday afternoon. Mercer has four players from North Carolina. It doesn’t get much bigger than this for Mercer.

The focus of the Braves’ general manager this offseason was on the future. When it became necessary, however. Wren adapted in a hurry. With Atlanta’s pitching staff severely depleted, Wren went out and signed Ervin Santana to a oneyear, $14.1 million contract last week. Santana compiled a 3.24 ERA in 211 innings with the Royals last season.

Where exactly did this come from? The Hawks had gone 1-14 in 15 games from Feb. 4 through March 8. Suddenly, they have now won five in a row. Atlanta held off Toronto 118-113 in overtime on Tuesday to give itself a 4.5 game cushion over New York for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference as of Wednesday afternoon.

SCORE LIST By Brian Jones

BIG DANCE

It’s that time of year where you can take in a ton of college basketball games all weekend. The NCAA Tournament began on Tuesday and the only Georgia team that made the dance was Mercer who will face Duke on Friday. It will be a longshot, but I hope the Bears can pull off the upset.

DAWG HOUSE

Once again, the Bulldogs have off-the-field issues as four players got arrested on the eve of spring practice. Tray Matthews, Uriah LeMay, Jonathan Taylor and James DeLoach were charged with theft by deception and were booked in Athens-Clarke County jail. Can we have a season where we don’t hear about the Bulldogs not getting arrested or suspended?

DEEP TROUBLE

Grady High School football will have to forfeit all its games from last season and can’t take part in the playoffs in 2014 because several players were fraudulently enrolled at the school. Grady is also fined $1,000 for lack of administrative oversight. Let’s hope the football team and the school can learn from this and be stronger in 2015.

TRYOUT TIME

Kennesaw State is still looking for players for the football team, so the coaches are holding tryouts for students on Saturday. Over 100 students are expected to be there and it starts at 8 a.m. I’ll be honest, if I was still a student at KSU, I would give it a go.

HESTER A FALCON?

That could be a possibility because Devin Hester was in Flowery Branch this week visiting with Falcons officials. The return specialist led the NFL in kickoff return average last season and has tallied 13 punts and five kick returns for touchdowns in his career. If the Falcons sign Hester, he would give the special teams a much-needed boost.

WHO’S NOT

By Ricky Dimon

WHO’S HOT

SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Georgia State

Injuries

Georgia Arrests

The Panthers went 17-1 in Sun Belt Conference play during the regular season but they went 0-2 in a brutal threeday stretch from Sunday to Tuesday. Georgia State’s NCAA Tournament hopes fell apart in an 82-81 overtime loss to Louisiana-Lafayette in the conference final and Ron Hunter’s squad lost at Clemson 78-66 in the first round of the NIT.

We’re still in spring training and the Braves are beat up. Kris Medlen underwent Tommy John surgery on Tuesday to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament and he will miss the entire 2014 season. It is the second such procedure of Medlen’s career. Fellow right-handed starter Brandon Beachy is seeking a second opinion before possibly enduring the exact same fate.

Georgia football players are no strangers to arrests and four more joined a growing historical list earlier this week. Starting safety Tray Matthews, wide receiver Uriah LeMay and defensive linemen Jonathan Taylor and James DeLoach were booked for theft by deception, a misdemeanor. They deposited checks then cashed the same checks at a convenience store.

NUMBERS

OUR TWO CENTS

By Craig Sager II

Our email newsletter is something we take a lot of pride in at Score. If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a high school sportsheavy publication that we produce each day to fill in our readers on the latest happenings in Georgia prep sports. We send it out Monday through Friday throughout the year and Monday through Saturday during the fall. Not only do we cover popular sports like football, basketball and baseball, we also cover every other varsity sport the GHSA fields. If you like Georgia high school sports at all, sign up for our email newsletter by visiting www.tinyurl.com/scorenewsletter and enter your email address(es) that you’d like added to the distribution list.

TRIVIA QUESTION

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME A TEAM FROM GEORGIA WON A MEN’S NCAA TOURNAMENT GAME? ANSWER ON PAGE 14

“

SANITY AT LAST

“I think it’s turned into more of being about Jimmy’s and Joe’s than anything.”

Miller Grove coach Sharman White on the importance of talent in college basketball.

Months exactly between Kris Medlen’s two Tommy John surgeries

25.3

Assists per game by the Atlanta Hawks (best in the NBA)

.273

Dan Uggla’s batting average this spring in his first 15 games

Consecutive wins for the Hawks after losing 14 of their previous 15 games

UGA football players arrested since the start of the 2010 season

Career receiving touchdowns by Roddy White

7 1,000/1

Weeks until the 2014 NFL Draft

Mercer’s odds to win the 2014 NCAA Tournament

came in second and fourth in the shot put, respectively, and the Blue Devils came in second place in the sprint medley relay, third place in the 4x100 meter relay and Tatiyana Rayford came in third place in the 100-meter run.

SPRING SPORTS

EAGLE’S LANDING SWEEPS, MARIETTA WINS IN ROSWELL BY STEPHEN BLACK, RICKY DIMON & BRIAN JONES

he Eagle’s Landing boys track and field team traveled to North Oconee High School Saturday to take part in the Oconee Barberitos Classic and returned to McDonough with a win. The Golden Eagles scored 109.5 points while Cedar Shoals came in second place with 99 points. Andy Constant led the Eagles by winning the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.01. Devin Dixon came in second in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:41 while Josh Riley came in second in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 43.45. The Eagles also won the 4x100 meter relay. Over in Roswell, the Union Grove boys won the Roswell Relays, scoring 59 points while second-place Norcross scored a 46. Chuck McConville and Trent Hill came in first and fourth place in the discus throw, respec-

tively. Caleb Roberts won the triple jump with a distance of 44-05. On the girls’ side, Eagle’s Landing also won the Oconee Barberitos Classic, scoring 135 points. Dacula came in second with 94 points. Detrich Lodge won the 100-meter hurdles and Dahlia Ward won the 400-meter dash for the victorious Golden Eagles. The Eagles also won the 4x100 meter relay and 4x400 meter relay. Betty Jackson won the 800-meter run with a time of 2:27 while Ariel Pryor came in second with a time of 2:34. In the Roswell Relays, the Marietta girls won with a score of 65 while Mill Creek came in second with 44. Elizabeth Hartley won the pole vault, which was the only first-place finish for the Blue Devils. She also came in third place in the high jump. Janai Burton and Nia Seldon

GUNS AND GOLF … Parkview gave 2012 riflery state champion Lumpkin County a stern test at the Area 6 championship last week. The Panthers’ 1131 points put them in second place behind Lumpkin County, which compiled a team score of 1152. North Forsyth, Gainesville, Riverside Military Academy and Buford rounded out the six squads who had previously qualified for the area shoot-off. Lumpkin County boasts the area’s top three state qualifiers in Heather Johnson, Morgan Tritt and Dakota Spivey. Buford’s Kim Gilmer has also booked her spot in the state meet. Woodward Academy, which captured three consecutive riflery state championships from 2002 to 2004, shot its way to a fifth-place performance at the Area 5 championship earlier this month. East Coweta, which is looking like a serious contender to capture its first state title since 2000, took home top honors in Area 5 ahead Luella, Stockbridge and Union Grove. The GAC boys and girls golf teams won

the East Lake Golf Invitational on Saturday at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. The boys teams shot 227 while the girls shot 185. The boys were led by Steffen Smith, who shot a 71 to tie for low medalist. Ben Shipp was right behind Smith, shooting a 76 and Regan Cink shot an 80. The girls were led by Elizabeth Mizell who shot an 85. The Walton boys, the defending Cobb County champions, are well on their way to another strong season as they won the Bentwater Invitational on Saturday at the Bentwater Golf Club in Acworth. The Raiders shot a 299 while runner-up Lambert shot a 315 and Harrison came in third place with a score of 318. The Raiders were led by Michael Sheahan, who placed second with an even-par 72. John Yi and Nick Orrell-Jones each shot 75. The Gainesville girls held their annual Chattahoochee Invitational on Saturday at the Chattahoochee Golf Club and finished second just behind Cambridge. Rachel Dai of Cambridge won the individual championship, shooting a 73. Ashleigh Bishop led the Red Elephants as she shot a 76, which was good enough for second place. Photos courtesy of Walter Pinion, Sonny Kennedy, and Creekview HS.

Score Atlanta/AJC Lacrosse Rankings BOYS

GIRLS

Class AAAAAA

Class AAAAA-A

1.......................Centennial 2.......................... Harrison 3................North Gwinnett 4.............................. Milton 5............................. Walton

1....................Westminster 2........................Northview 3...............................Lovett 4.........................St. Pius X 5................ Pace Academy

6..........................Hillgrove 7...........................Lambert 8.............................Etowah 9............................Roswell 10........... Peachtree Ridge

6................ Blessed Trinity 7........Whitefield Academy 8.......Fellowship Christian 9................................ Pope 10................................GAC

Class AAAAAA

Class AAAAA-A

1.............................. Milton 2........................... Lassiter 3................Chattahoochee 4............................. Walton 5.............................Etowah

1....................Westminster 2........................Northview 3.................................. Kell 4...................... Cambridge 5................ Blessed Trinity

6.......................Centennial 7................... John’s Creek 8................North Gwinnett 9............................Roswell 10.........................Lambert

6...............Holy Innocents’ 7......................... McIntosh 8................................ Pope 9.........................St. Pius X 10.......................Wesleyan

Vol. 10 Iss. 11 | March 21-27, 2014

Score Atlanta/AJC High School Baseball Rankings Class AAAAAA 1...................... Lambert 2.....................Parkview 3......................Harrison 4.........................Walton 5............Mountain View

Class AAA 6...................Tift County 7...............West Forsyth 8........................ Etowah 9...Kennesaw Mountain 10.................... Valdosta

Class AAAAA 1................. Whitewater 2.................. Gainesville 3.................. Greenbrier 4.......................... Evans 5.....................Allatoona

6........... Appling County 7.....................West Hall 8...................Chapel Hill 9............Oconee County 10..........Blessed Trinity

Class AA 6.....................McIntosh 7..................Sprayberry 8..............Harris County 9....................Hardaway 10..................Sequoyah

1.......................... Lovett 2............... Westminster 3.....................Jefferson 4.................... Jeff Davis 5.......................Calhoun

6..............................GAC 7............................Cook 8....................... Bremen 9.......... Screven County 10..................Fitzgerald

Class A

Class AAAA 1..........................Marist 2....................Columbus 3............... Crisp County 4..........................Redan 5......................Spalding

1......................... Buford 2.................Pike County 3...............White County 4............. Pierce County 5.......... Jackson County

6.....................Columbia 7....................Alexander 8.........South Effingham 9............. Mary Persons 10.............Locust Grove

1............................ELCA 2..........Charlton County 3...............................ECI 4................... Darlington 5............... Mount Paran

6..............Mount Pisgah 7............... Hawkinsville 8........ King’s Ridge Chr. 9............................ Trion 10....... Whitefield Acad.

Score Atlanta/AJC Soccer Rankings 1..................... Brookwood 2.............................Walton 3.......................... Lambert 4....................... Mill Creek 5............................. Duluth 6...................... Centennial 7.........................Parkview 8..........................Harrison 9.............Peachtree Ridge 10................. Johns Creek

AAAAA Boys

1.........................McIntosh 2................................Pope 3......................Gainesville 4........... Lakeside-DeKalb 5.............. Glynn Academy 6......................Greenbrier 7................ Clarke Central 8.........................Allatoona 9.............. Houston County 10.............. Northside-WR

AAAA Boys

1..............................Dalton 2........Southeast Whitfield 3.............................. Grady 4......Johnson-Gainesville 5........................Chestatee 6....................... Columbus 7...............................Perry 8....... Northwest Whitfield 9......................... Spalding 10......................LaGrange

AAA Boys

1........................ St. Pius X 2......Woodward Academy 3................Blessed Trinity 4..................North Murray 5............... Oconee County 6...............Coahulla Creek 7..........................East Hall 8........................North Hall 9...............Dawson County 10.......................West Hall

AA Boys

1................................. GAC 2................... Westminster 3...........................Calhoun 4........................ Wesleyan 5................Murray County 6.................... Benedictine 7...........................Bremen 8.................... Thomasville 9............. Atkinson County 10...........................Vidalia

A Boys

1.......Atlanta International 2.......... First Presbyterian 3............ Hebron Christian 4...... Fellowship Christian 5........Pinecrest Academy 6...................Mount Paran 7................Pace Academy 8............................Paideia 9.......................Darlington 10............ Holy Innocents’

AAAAAA Girls

1..........................Harrison 2.......................... Grayson 3.........................Parkview 4.............Peachtree Ridge 5..................... Brookwood 6...........................Lassiter 7.......................Collins Hill 8................. South Forsyth 9.............................Walton 10.................... Centennial

AAAAA Girls

1........................Northgate 2.........................McIntosh 3...................... Starr’s Mill 4................................Pope 5.......... Heritage-Conyers 6..............Flowery Branch 7......................Gainesville 8.......................Loganville 9....................... Northview 10......... Lakeside-DeKalb

AAAA Girls

1..............................Marist 2......................... Veterans 3....................... Alexander 4....................... Columbus 5...........Heritage-Catoosa 6.............................. Grady 7....................... Chamblee 8......................... Spalding 9............................... Cairo 10......................Carrollton

Kids’ Tickets $10!

AAA Girls

Good on All Performances

1........................ St. Pius X 2................Blessed Trinity 3......Woodward Academy 4...............Dawson County 5.................... Pike County 6............... Oconee County 7.............................Buford 8.....................Cartersville 9...........................Decatur 10.................... Chapel Hill

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APR. 26 & 27

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A Girls

1... First Presbyterian Day 2............ Hebron Christian 3..... Providence Christian 4...... Fellowship Christian 5............................Paideia 6.................... Calvary Day 7.............. Holy Innocents’ 8................Pace Academy 9........ Mt. Paran Christian 10.......................... Walker

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AA Girls

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defeated by Kentucky in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament at the Georgia Dome. The Bulldogs hung with the Wildcats in the first half, trailing 36-32 at halftime, but were unable to take the lead in the second half. Kenny Gaines had 13 points, all in the second half, while Charles Mann finished with 12 points. The loss put UGA on the outside-looking-in for the NCAA Tournament and into the National Invitation Tournament where they will face Vermont. Georgia is a second seed in the NIT, which is an advantage, as they will host the first round game in Athens.

NIT PLAY … The Men’s basketball team narrowly missed the NCAA Tournament after being

BACK-TO-BACK … The Lady Bulldogs swim and diving team is looking for a second consecutive NCAA title this week as 17 swimmers and one diver will compete at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships in Minnesota. UGA is competing for a sixth overall Women’s national championship. Melanie Margalis holds the nation’s top time in the 200 individual medley and she is second in the 400 individual medley and third in the 200 breaststroke. Brittany MacLean ranks first in the 1,650 freestyle, third in the 500 freestyle and sixth in the 200 freestyle. Olivia Smoliga is No. 1 in the 50 freestyle, No. 3 in the 100 backstroke and No. 5 in the 100 freestyle. Each gives UGA a tremendous opportunity to come out with the team title.

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

POSTSEASON BASKETBALL TIPS OFF BY JOE DEIGHTON | JDEIGHTON@SCOREATL.COM

fter finishing sixth in the SEC, the UGA Women’s basketball team was selected as the eighth seed in the Lincoln Region of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. The opponent awaiting the Lady Bulldogs is Saint Joseph’s. There was no question that UGA would be making a 20th consecutive trip to the tournament, but there was some inquiries on where they would be seeded and what region they would be in after limping to finish with a 20-11 record. The Lady Bulldogs started this season with 11 straight wins, but struggled down the stretch. Now, it feels like they have new life and anything can happen. UGA is one of eight SEC teams to make the field of 64. The first round matchup against St. Joe’s will be this Sunday in Storrs, Connecticut.

GEORGIA STATE

EXCITING SEASON ENDS IN HEARTBREAK BY JAY UNDERWOOD | JUNDERWOOD@SCOREATL.COM

hen Monday rolled around, Georgia State students were on spring break, but heartbreak was prevalent, because the Panthers were eliminated from the reaching the Big Dance. After a magical season, the Panthers came up one point short in overtime and found themselves in the NIT, after the whole season had looked to be pointing towards a run in the NCAA tournament. Louisiana-Lafayette took the Panthers to overtime in the Sun Belt championship game and scored the tying basket to force overtime with less than two seconds on the clock. Ron Hunter’s squad led by 10 points late in the second half only to see weight of the season and importance of the moment stifle the team and inable any offensive flow or solid looks at the basket. Hunter said that Ryan Harrow was “dead tired” late in the game, which caused

him to change the offensive strategy. Harrow played like a man on a mission, scoring 37 points, a career-high trying to get his team a championship with his father in attendance. He was looking for some help from his teammates that had stepped up all season, but they were having off nights based on their standards. RJ Hunter scored 17 points, but it was on 4-12 shooting. He struggled to find his range from beyond the arc shooting 3-9, below his season mark of .398. While many people may call this season a lost opportunity, anyone who followed the Panthers this season know that it was a success. Hunter and his team changed a culture around a University that had never experienced winning and dominance the way it did this season. It is wrong to judge success versus the backdrop of other programs with more established traditions. This Panthers team only lost two games to teams in their conference by a total of five points. The NIT pitted the Panthers against a solid Clemson team and the result was a 78-66 defeat to end the season. Recruits were able to watch the Panthers play on the national stage multiple times this season and despite the heartbreak, a strong returning cast could bring a hungry group of guys to the court next season.

GEORGIA TECH

LADY JACKETS SNAG NO. 10 SEED, FACE LSU BY VIC TEMPLE | VTEMPLE@SCOREATL.COM

he Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets women’s basketball team was given a No. 10 seed Monday by the NCAA tournament selection committee. Head coach MaChelle Joseph’s team is in the “Big Dance” for the seventh time in eight years. Tech finished the season 20-11 overall and 9-7 in ACC, play good enough for seventh place in conference standings. In its tournament history, Tech is 0-2 against No. 7 seeds in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The good news is the Lady Jackets are 4-2 in the first round in their last six outings. The Lady Jackets play the LSU Tigers (19-12, 7-9 SEC) Sunday in Baton Rouge. The game will be broadcast at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN2. ON THE DIAMONDS … The softball team (18-6, 7-4 ACC) can watch their counterparts before taking to the road themselves for a double-header Wednesday with the North Carolina State Wolfpack (15-9, 6-3 ACC). The Yellow Jackets seek to extend their 10-game road-win streak. The

KENNESAW STATE

OWLS BEAT MERCER, FOOTBALL TRYOUTS BEGIN SATURDAY BY BRIAN JONES | BJONES@SCOREATL.COM

he baseball team took on Mercer for a three game-set this past weekend and it was not the outcome they wanted. The Owls did win the first game of the series on Friday by a score of 2-1. Pitcher Travis Bergen pitched six innings and gave up four hits and one run while striking out six Bears. Justin McCalvin came in for relief and pitched three innings giving up two hits to earn his second win of the year. Cornell led the Owls with two hits while Max Pentecost and Bo Way each had a hit. The win by the Owls was important because it was also the first home loss for the Bears. The Bears would bounce back with backto-back wins on Saturday. Mercer won Game 1 8-4 and got past the Owls again in Game 2 11-8. Kal Simmons led the Owls with five hits in the two losses while Brendan Morgan collected four RBIs. The Owls were back at Stillwell Stadium on Tuesday to face Georgia Tech. And despite

Wolfpack, on the other hand, will look to get back to their winning ways after seeing their 14-game win streak snapped by Florida State in Tallahassee. The Wolfpack and Yellow Jackets are fourth and fifth, respectively, in the league standings. A win for either team will be a swing in the right direction. Swinging over to men’s baseball. Tech has a six-game road swing of their own, one that pits the Yellow Jackets against two in-state foes. Last night at Stillwell Stadium, Tech advanced past the Kennesaw State Owls (12-12) by a score of 8-7. Matt Gonzalez scored the winning run off a balk and tied the series (1-1) with the Owls. Next in the rotation is a threegame series with the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill this weekend. The Yellow Jackets (12-8) return home Tuesday for a short stint to face Mercer at Russ Chandler Stadium and off again to finish the last weekend in March with a conference series against Pittsburgh. NEWS AND NOTES … The No. 20 Georgia Tech women’s tennis team (7-3, 4-2 ACC) is heading to Northwestern Friday after beating Maryland (5-7, 1-6 ACC) with a 7-0 shutout Sunday at the University of Maryland Tennis Center. Stay current on all Georgia Tech athletics on the road by following women’s basketball (@GTWBB), softball (@GaTechSoftball), tennis (@GT_WTEN) and men’s baseball (@ GT_baseball) on Twitter.

a great effort by the offense, the Owls could not complete the season sweep of the Yellow Jackets, losing 8-7. Tech was up 5-1 in the third inning after KSU being up 1-0 in the first. But Alex Liquori hit a grand slam in the sixth to tie the game at five. The Yellow Jackets took back the lead in the seventh inning as they scored two more runs, but the Owls tied it again in the bottom of the seventh. Tech got the go-ahead run in the ninth when Matt Gonzalez scored from third via a balk by McCalvin. The loss put the Owls at 12-12 on the year. They will look to get back above .500 when they face Lipscomb this weekend for a threegame set. EXCELLENT OWL … The athletic department gave track and field athlete Christie Leverette the Owls of Excellence award for the month of March. The award is given to an athlete who excels in their sport, in the classroom and in the community. Leverette was the Atlantic Sun Scholar Athlete of the Year for the 2012-2013 season. She also does volunteer work at the VKSU and SGA annual Day of Service Event called The Big Event. And Saturday marks another big day for the football team as the coaches will hold tryouts for student athletes. Over 100 students are expected to participate and it will take place at the Perch at KSU Sports and Recreation Park.

Vol. 10 Iss. 11 | March 21-27, 2014 ATLANTA HAWKS

BIG MEN GET HAWKS ON TRACK BY JAY UNDERWOOD | JUNDERWOOD@SCOREATL.COM

he Hawks have gotten back to their winning ways that they experienced early in the season after escaping one of the worst losing streaks in recent years. The turnaround corresponded with several players coming back from injuries and picking up where they left off. Paul Millsap is back, and is trying to make up for lost time. In his first six games back from injury, he has averaged 20.3 points a game and 7.3 rebounds a game. While playing alongside Pero Antic, Millsap has really performed beyond the All-Star level that Hawks fans have come to expect. Antic allows the Hawks to properly space the floor by stepping out beyond the arc and offering a mid range game. He also displays excellent court vision to go along with quick decision making to find the open man and the best open look.

ATLANTA BRAVES

MEDLEN HAS SECOND TOMMY JOHN SURGERY BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

raves’ starter Kris Medlen underwent the second Tommy John surgery of his career on Tuesday to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Dr. James Andrews, of course, performed the operation. “The news is obviously very tough but I knew when I walked off the mound mid-inning what I had felt,” Medlen explained to the Atlanta Journal Constitution on Monday when it was confirmed he would have to go under the knife. “The love and support I’ve felt from my family/teammates…the Braves organization and Braves fans everywhere really means the world to me and will definitely help me through all this…. I approach this process with the same drive that I’ve had my entire life and will do everything I can to come back from this ‘thing’ twice. Once again, thank you so much and Go Bravos!!!” The 28-year-old right-hander missed almost the entirety of Atlanta’s 2011 campaign after his first Tommy John surgery. He bounced

Pero came back for one game before Millsap and is averaging 11.9 points per game to go along with 4.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Where Antic was most missed on the defensive end of the floor. His defensive presence in the paint keeps quicker guards from attacking the paint with reckless abandon, while also limiting the damage done by opposing players in the post. DENNIS THE MENACE … Complementing the return of numerous players from injury is the emergence of Dennis Schröder and his role off the bench. While his stats are similar to early in the season, he is now playing with more confidence and no longer scared to make a mistake. This allows him to play with controlled aggression that opens up lanes in the defense for players to fill and find open shots. Currently the Hawks are four games up on the Knicks for the final playoff spot in the East. They are also four games behind the Nets for the sixth seed in the playoffs, where they would get a more favorable matchup against the Raptors or the Bulls and avoid the two stalwarts of the East, Miami and Indiana, until the second round.

back in impressive fashion with a 10-1 record and a 1.57 ERA in 2012. Last season, Medlen went 15-12 with a 3.11 ERA and started Game 1 of an NLDS series against the L.A. Dodgers. ON THE BRIGHTER SIDE … A big key to this year was always going to be the rebounds of Dan Uggla and B.J. Upton. With the pitching staff having lost Medlen and with Brandon Beachy potentially heading to the exact same fate, Uggla and Upton—and the entire offense—become even more important. Uggla hit .179 in 2013 and did not make the postseason roster. Upton batted .184 and struck out 151 times in 391 at-bats. If last year was a disaster, this spring has offered reasons for encouragement. Uggla belted his third home run of the preseason and added a two-run triple one inning later in Atlanta’s 4-0 win over Houston in a rain-shortened contest on Monday at Osceola County Stadium. The veteran second baseman sports a .273 average in 15 games and he leads the team with 10 RBIs. Upton is hitting .297 and tops the Braves in steals with four in five attempts. “That was about as good of a pass as I have seen him take in a long time,” manager Fredi Gonzalez told the team’s website in reference to Uggla’s triple. “That ball stayed on a line and stayed true. He hit it hard. That’s a really good sign. Sometimes you hit a ball to right field and it just dies. This ball was a laser.”

turner when they played host to arguably the greatest return man in NFL history on Tuesday with free agent Devin Hester. The signing of Arenas may have knocked Hester out of the picture, but the Falcons are clearly interested and in need of an elite return man. In 2013, Atlanta’s longest kickoff return was 34 yards and the longest punt return was 25 yards. Hester’s eight seasons in the pros includes 13 punt returns for touchdowns and five kickoff returns for touchdowns. Hester, like Arenas is also versatile and has hauled in 14 receiving touchdowns on the offensive side of the ball.

COURT HESTER … One main reason why Arenas is likely to play a role in the secondary this season is that the Falcons still showed interest in finding a re-

CHASING HISTORY … Tony Gonzalez and his Hall of Fame resume often stole the spotlight during his time in Atlanta. Every touchdown and every reception either increased his current record or allowed him to pass another Hall of Famer. With Gonzalez in the CBS booth this upcoming season, there will still be plenty of history to look for. Receiver Roddy White is not only entering the final year of his contract, but the 10 year pro sits just two touchdowns away from Terance Mathis’ franchise record of 57 receiving touchdowns. White battled through multiple injuries last season and hauled in just three touchdown receptions. However, without Gonzalez in the playbook and a healthy offense around him, White will help pace the offense with another big year.

ATLANTA FALCONS

FALCONS GAIN VERSATILITY WITH ARENAS BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

he NFL’s free agency period is a just week old, but the Falcons signed their eighth free agent on Tuesday in Arizona’s Javier Arenas. The cornerback/return man brought back 24 kickoffs last season for 493 yards and a career-best 21.4 yards per return. On defense, the former Alabama standout and 2010 second-round pick has played in 63 games and recorded 148 tackles, five sacks, three forced fumbles, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries and 22 passes defensed in just 12 starts. Arenas became the first college football player to ever amass more than 1,500 punt return yards and 2,000 kickoff return yards in a career. However, this move looks to be more about Arenas bringing depth to the secondary and possibly starring in the nickel role.

GWINNETT GLADIATORS

GLADIATORS RIDING LATE SEASON PUSH BY JOE DEIGHTON | JDEIGHTON@SCOREATL.COM

he points are piling up with a late-season run by the Gladiators. Gwinnett has won seven out of 10 and moved to 25 wins and 55 points this season. The Glads split in a homeand-home with division-rival South Carolina before defeating Elmira 5-1 on Monday night. Casey Pierro-Zabotel scored just 50 seconds into the game. The forward would add another goal midway through the second period to put the Gladiators up 3-1. Mike Merrifield and Mike Seidel scored a goal apiece, which was the first for both as Gladiators. Maxime Legault had a goal and an assist, finishing with a plus-2 rating. Gwinnett outshot the Jackals 41-19 in the game. It was one of the more dominating performances overall by the team this season. Goalie Mark Guggenberger had 18 saves, as he picked up his sixth win of the season.

BRICK WALL … In hockey, a team is only as good as the starting goaltender. The Gladiators have been through 12 starting goalies this season without much success. That is, until Mark Guggenberger became the starter for the Glads. Since joining Gwinnett last month, Guggenberger is 6-2 with a .917 save percentage and 2.86 GAA. In eight games with the Gladiators, Guggenberger has allowed 21 goals. The 25-year old came over from the Alaska Aces where he played just six games this year. It looks like Guggenberger will be the starting goaltender for the rest of the season and that is a good sign for more wins to come. ON THE MENU … The road-trip will continue this week with the team traveling to face Reading for the final time this season. The Gladiators will then take on Fort Wayne and Toledo this weekend. The Glads beat the Comets in Fort Wayne 3-2 back on Dec. 29. The team will face the Toledo Walleye twice in two nights this Saturday and Sunday to finish off three games in three nights on the road. Gwinnett and Toledo will be playing for the first time since last season and this will be the only two games against one another this year.

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