From Hindered to a
CONTENDER Quin McGlamery, Valdosta High School
VAULTING VALEDICTORIAN
Katelin Stecz, Lowndes High School
COLUMBUS HIGH SCHOOL GOLFERS COACHED BY THEIR DADS Mary Catherine McDaniel & Jonathon Parker
Rackley Speeding His Way to a Successful Ryan Rackley, Valwood School
IN THE
GAME
APR/MAY 2018
Racing Career
HONORING THE ELITE 4 North Carter Street Lakeland, Georgia 31635 (229) 482-3585
978 Valdosta Highway Homerville, Georgia 31634 (912) 487-1200
202 W. Washington Ave. Nashville, Georgia 31639 (229) 686-9451
1201 S. Patterson Street Valdosta, Georgia 31603 (229) 244-3585
3303 Inner Perimeter Road Valdosta, Georgia 31605 (229) 244-3585
www.fmb.net
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Member FDIC
OF SOUTH GEORGIA
18
Player Profiles
32
Rackley Speeding His Way to a Successful Racing Career
37
Vaulting Valedictorian
38 39 40
South Georgia’s Top Athletes
Ryan Rackley, Valwood School Katelin Stecz, Lowndes High School
Long Jumper Looking for State Title Repeat Alonie Sutton, Smiths Station High School
Griffin Ready to Make History
Shooting for Greatness Nizarre Thompson, Colquitt Co. High School
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Scholastic Baseballers
44
Columbus High School Golfers Coached by Their Dads
46 49 50 54 55
Riley Jones, Jackson NeSmith, & Tyler Carter Thomas Co. Central High School Mary Catherine McDaniel & Jonathon Parker
All in for 3rd State Championship Gracie Hemmings, Brookstone School
A-Town Alive and Kicking
From Hindered to a Contender Quin McGlamery, Valdosta High School
Two Brothers, Two Tumors, One Battle Aaron & Andrew Eunice, Cook Co.
What’s Wrong With Kentucky?
56
The Story Behind Storey
57
How Early Is Too Early?
58 60 61 62
Tre’ Storey, Bainbridge High School
Above and Beyond Her Calling Cristi Griffin, Lee Co. High School
Overlooking Mayfield
10 Questions With David Kovalik Spencer High School
Baseball Athlete Looking for Back-to-Back-to-Back State Titles Nick Adams, Glenwood School
In The Game | 9
Rackley Speeding His Way to a Successful
Racing Career Written by: Phil Jones | Photography by: Milla Creationz Photography
For many of us, the thought of a 13-year-old driving anything at break neck speed is frightening. But, for Valwood School seventh-grade student Ryan Rackley, it’s what he does and does very well. The son of Darren and Paula Rackley, Rackley has actually been racing since he was 7 years old, when he started racing go-karts. Since then, he has made a dizzying rise through the various levels of racing and the different style cars that represent each classification, having mastered each one. That includes his start in go-karts (known in racing circles as simply the kart series), up to legends cars, where he races now. His next step, believe it or not, will be to graduate to a stock car, similar to what you see in the NASCAR series. Pretty unbelievable, you say? Not when you dig deeper into the Rackley family and see that racing is a family affair. Darren, Rackley’s father, was a racer himself. He only recently decided to retire and concentrate his efforts on his son’s budding career. Rackley actually first showed a glimpse of his racing chops at one of Darren’s races back in 2012. “I was competing at a race at the Carolina Motorsports Park, and instead of loading up the golf cart for Ryan to drive around in like I usually do, I loaded up a kart that I had just purchased for him and decided I’d let him go out on the track to just try it out,” Darren said. “So, I had a break between my races, put him in the kart, and was talking to him about checking his brake pedal pressure, making sure his brakes were good, that kind of thing. Well, before I could finish talking to him, he dropped his visor down, hit the gas, and took off. I watched him get up speed down the backstretch, then spin out as he went into turn one. He came back, started over, did it again, and spun out again. Finally, after one or two more tries, he got the hang of it, and the rest is history.” 32 | itgnext.com
In The Game | 33
From Hindered to a Written by: Gerald Thomas III | Photography by: Eric Vinson
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Quin McGlamery is a senior wrestler and former cross-country runner at Valdosta High School. As a junior, which was his last season running, he helped the Wildcats win the region and finish 16th at state, the best finish in school history for Valdosta’s cross-country team. In wrestling, he was elected team captain and helped the team win region duals and place fourth at state duals. Individually, he won the 120-pound division region championship and came in third place in the state tournament. McGlamery said that his love for sports came in middle school, where he tried out for football and basketball. He felt that he was a decent player, but struggled because his autism didn’t allow him to understand the social cues that are required for team sports. He said that he was advised by one of his coaches to wrestle. When asked how he didn’t let his autism deter him, McGlamery said: “I feel like it was the way I was raised. I didn’t know I was autistic until I was 15 years old, which helped me because my parents didn’t use it as an excuse, and now I look at it as a super power in a weird way because I’m able to hyper-focus on my sport and do what I love.” Most of his time outside of school is spent in
the gym, what he calls his laboratory. McGlamery’s father said that at one point he and McGlamery’s mother were terrified that he would get hurt on the football field or the wrestling mat. His father felt more comfortable when McGlamery started winning matches and competing against wrestlers his size and decided to let him run with it. McGlamery credited his parents as being the greatest help in his wrestling career because they have traveled across the country to take him to camps and tournaments. McGlamery explained his reasoning behind discontinuing his cross-country career. “I wanted to take time to focus on college trips, preseason national tournaments, to start garner-
Recovery Shake
5
Ways to Get Points in Wrestling Takedown (2 points)
– Take control of your opponent and take them to the ground.
Escape (1 point)
– Get away or get to a neutral position while your opponent has you on the mat.
Reversal (2 points)
– Gain control of your opponent while they have you down on the mat.
Ingredients
- 2 scoops protein powder - 1 handful ice - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - 1/2 banana - 2 to 3 frozen strawberries
Directions
- Add all ingredients to blender. - Blend and enjoy. Serving size: 1 shake Recipe yields 1 serving
Near Fall (2 or 3 points)
– Nearly pin your opponent by having both of their shoulders held for two seconds. (2 seconds – 2 points) (5 seconds – 3 points)
Penalty Points (1 or 2 points)
– Awarded to opponent when you are penalized for: illegal holds, technical violations, unnecessary roughness, unsportsmanlike conduct, flagrant misconduct (ejection/end of match), stalling, false start In The Game | 51
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