Score Vol. 12 Is. 14

Time to look great!

VOLUME 12 ISSUE 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016

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YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

HOLD ON TIGHT Strange Magic | Pg. 9 As spring playoffs approach, untold storylines form across the state.

The Way Life’s Meant To Be | Pg. 4 Craig Sager II reminisces about what it was like growing up with two new stadiums

The Atlanta Hawks prepare for their conference-best ninth straight playoff appearance. | Pg. 7

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Vol. 12 Iss. 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016

STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock

GRAPHIC DESIGNER Rhonda Rawls

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COLUMNISTS

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ON THE COVER

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PREP COVER

MANAGING EDITOR Craig Sager II ASST. MANAGING EDITOR Kyle Sandy

MARKETING/ Lauren Goldstein

PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR

BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick

BEAT WRITERS: Ricky Dimon (Braves) Dan Mathews (UGA) Craig Sager II (Falcons, Ken nesaw) Colin Hubbard (GA Tech)

Kyle Sandy (GSU, GHSA, Hawks)

STAFF WRITERS Tyler Andrews Ned Kaish

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TEAM SCOOP AND VOICES

06 11 12

SCORE LIST | NUMBERS GEORGIA STATE | KENNESAW STATE GEORGIA | GEORGIA TECH BRAVES | FALCONS HAWKS | HIGH SCHOOL HAPPENINGS

COVER PHOTOS COURTESY OF AP/JASON DECROW AND CECIL COPELAND,

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SAGER SAYS

GROWING UP WITH TWO NEW STADIUMS

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM realize that a major chapter of my life is coming Iums to a close. The new Braves’ and Falcons’ stadiset to open in 2017 remains a reality stuck in

oscillation. My outlook is melded between imagining the new fan experience and reminiscing about my childhood experiences. With Turner Field’s final season underway, I’m still trying to gauge how different the fan experience will be a year from now. The same is to be said about the new Falcons stadium.

I grew up with these two stadiums from their beginnings. I was only four-years old when the Georgia Dome opened and my family posed for a family photo on the hood of our blue (twotoned) Astro van in front of the newly christened Dome. We used the picture for our Christmas card that year.

My mom would take my two sisters (ages six and one) and I to every Falcons home game up until we were at the age where our own sports and activities began marking up the weekend calendar. I learned the game of football during this time. I still remember my “Eureka” moment when I finally decrypted what the down markers on the sideline were used for. It is actually one of the earliest memories I have in my life. I can still feel that rush of information that detonated at this precise moment and how enriching that feeling was. It was the first time I both saw and understood the game of football.

The place where I learned the game of football became the same place that I opened my sophomore season of high school football in the 2003 Corky Kell Classic. I was actually

SANDY’S SPIEL

HEART OF SEASON SORTS OUT CONTENDERS

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

H

igh school baseball season is nearly two months in. Teams jockey for position as they try to find a groove, but a couple programs have already hit their stride and look like the odds on favorites to win state. Of those teams, none look better than Class AAA’s No. 1 Blessed Trinity. The Titans are a sparkling 18-1 and have outscored their opponents 201-to-21. The pitching staff has already fired 11 shutouts with seven consecutive all coming in region play.

Make no mistake, Blessed Trinity hasn’t played cupcakes. They have already beaten some of the state’s best and have now moved into the national part of their schedule. The Titans have beaten 5A No. 2 Allatoona, 6A No. 8 Lambert, 6A No. 2 Pope, 4A No. 5 St. Pius and 3A No. 3 Westminster before beating a pair of

Louisiana schools. If they can beat 21-3 Teurlings Catholic to complete a 3-game sweep of the Bayou, the MaxPreps Xcellent 25’s No. 8 ranked Titans will continue to build upon one of the most impressive resumes in the country.

The two-time defending state champs finished 33-2 last year and ended the season on a 31-game winning streak. If they can clear the hurdle of Teurlings Catholic, it might be a safe bet that the Titans go unscathed.

Seniors at the plate and juniors on the mound has been a recipe for success for Coach Andy Harlin. Seniors Jake Bogosian (.353 w/ 25 RBI), Garrett Dupuis (.409 w/ 20 RBI), Colin Dore (.366 w/ 16 RBI) and Conor Davis (.469 w/ 16 RBI) lead a quartet of mashers with freshman CJ Abrams raking a team-leading .545 with 14 RBI.

lucky enough to play in three high school football games in the Georgia Dome and got to call the Tucker McEachern game from the booth this past season on Fox Sports South.

THE TED …

As a football fan, I can seem partial to the Dome, but Turner Field is just as memorable to me. I remember life before Turner Field, when I’d watch Fred McGriff play in the old Fulton County Stadium. I sat in Centennial Olympic Stadium for opening ceremonies in 1996 and watched the venue transform to a new, fun and exciting place to watch the Braves. With a giant firework-shooting Coca-Cola bottle in left field and tomahawkchopping neon lights on top of the scoreboard in center field, this place looked and felt like home.

Add the skyline, a guaranteed breathtaking sunset and the Olympic torch painting the backdrop of the stadium and it really didn’t get more “Atlanta” than that. When I hear ‘Atlanta’, this is the image that pops in my head.

Turner Field’s opening came during the same time period of the maligned, but must-see steroid era of baseball. I was one of the spectators at the 2000 Home Run Derby watching the peak of the juicing greats as Sammy Sosa blasted Herculean homers. Sosa’s performance was punctuated with a 508-foot blast that sailed On the mound, Blessed Trinity boasts a combined 0.57 ERA. Seniors John Michael Bertrand (5-0, 0.60 ERA) and Hayden Lehman (3-0, 0.59 ERA) anchor the staff with juniors Peyton Glavine (4-0, 0.84 ERA), Patrick McNamara (2-0, 0.95 ERA), Cole McNamee (10, 0.00 ERA) and Connor Durham (1-0, 0.00 ERA) rounding out the staff. Glavine, of course the son of 2014 MLB Hall of Fame Inductee Tom Glavine who is most remembered for his collapse on September 30, 2007 with the New York Mets when he was knocked out of the playoff-deciding 162nd game of the season after collecting just one out and allowing seven runs against the last place Florida Marlins and famously said he was only “disappointed, not devastated” in his performance preventing the Mets to make the postseason which dominoed into New York missing the playoffs for eight straight years before last season’s magical run.

The balance and depth the Titans have makes them as good as any team in the country. It will take a momentous upset to see Blessed Trinity drop a game in-state with their roster loaded with next level talent headlined by quarterback of the football team and first baseman, Auburn-commit Conor Davis.

AROUND THE STATE…

No. 1 Walton suffered a 2-1 loss to Etowah

over the center-field TV cameras. I remember every second of that ball’s path from home plate to oblivion and I don’t now if I’ll ever see someone hit the baseball as hard as he did that day.

In 1998, I was sitting behind the Braves dugout days before my birthday. It was a July afternoon game, so as you can imagine, it was miserably hot. I was surviving the heat with my frozen lemonade. As I looked down to take another spoonful, John Smoltz sliced a foul ball that blistered through the muggy summer air and sliced a direct path to my left ring finger. The ball chipped the bone on impact and spilled my lemonade, before ricocheting halfway up the section. The man that eventually wound up with the baseball came down to make sure I was okay and then handed me the ball. It was amazing how quickly the pain went away the second that man handed me what was my first-ever foul ball.

I can’t help but be excited for the next generation to experience the same path of growth I had with a new Dome and Turner Field. That being said, leave the Ipads at home, limit the ‘selfies’ and preserve the authentic experiences that shape our love of the game and the precious memories that come with it.

Photo courtesy of Wakefield Beasley & Associates in Region 5-AAAAAA, but they remain the top dogs after handing No. 3 Pope a 10-5 defeat at the Dog Pound on Friday. While both No. 2 Collins Hill and No. 4 Norcross rise, No. 5 Mountain View slips two spots after losing to North Gwinnett. Two Region 4 teams crash the party for the first time in No. 8 North Paulding and No. 10 Harrison. Lee County and North Cobb both depart.

Region 8-AAAAA loads the top ten with three teams as No. 9 Winder-Barrow debuts following a 4-1 win over No. 2 Gainesville who relinquishes its top spot to Allatoona. No. 3 Cambridge and No. 4 Columbus both climb into the top five. Columbus scored a 5-4 win over Class AAAA’s No. 4 Marist. No. 10 Ola replaces Hardaway who has fallen to 10-6. Dalton also nosedives out of the top ten to make room for Winder-Barrow.

Buford holds onto the No. 2 ranking in AAAA even after splitting with No. 10 Madison County. No. 7 Spalding is scalding hot with 12-straight wins. Andrew Compton is batting .534 and fellow senior Alec Hayes is raking at .481 to pace the Jaguars. Sophomore Chase Coppect has swing-and-miss stuff on the mound, leading the team with five wins and 42 K’s.

Photo courtesy of Cecil Copeland

©2015 Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Inc. All rights reserved. For official contest rules, visit choa.org/comeback.

Vol. 12 Iss. 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016

This comeback athlete had a long road back. Today it’s 8.5 miles.

Know a young athlete who overcame a serious injury or illness? Nominate them for Comeback Athlete of the Month at choa.org/comeback.

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Trevor Story

Baltimore Orioles

Golden State, with the help of the referees this season in a couple narrow games have won tied the Chicago Bulls record of 72 wins in a single season. They can break the record with a win over Memphis Golden State will be the heavy favorite to win a second straight NBA title this year as the No. 1 seed out of the West.

What a story. Trevor Story the rookie shortstop for the Colorado Rockies who is replacing the suspended Jose Reyes has popped seven homers in his first six games. No rookie has gotten off to as hot a start as Story.

It will be interesting to see if he can keep it up.

Buck Showalter’s birds are 6-0 to start the season. Chris Davis, Mark Trumbo, Manny Machado, Adam Jones and even Joey Rickard have all gotten in on the action at the plate while the pitching staff has done just enough to carry its own weight to keep Baltimore the MLB’s last undefeated team.

By Kyle Sandy

WHO’S HOT

Warriors

SCORE LIST

By Craig Sager II PLAYOFFS ARRIVE

The Atlanta Hawks are in the playoffs for the ninth straight season and the final seeding will be solidified following the final night of the regular season on Wednesday. The Hawks currently sit at No. 3 in the Eastern Conference and would match up with Charlotte, although a possible matchup with the Heat remains possible for the opening round.

DAZED AND CONFUSED

The Braves lost to Cardinals 12-7 Sunday and dropped a 6-4 game to the Nationals on Monday to a 0-6 record. The Braves, who led Washington 2-0 and 4-3, are off to their worst start since dropping their first 10 games in 1988. Only three major league clubs have reached the postseason after starting 0-6, according to STATS LLC: Pittsburgh (1974), Cincinnati (1995) and Tampa Bay (2011).

OFFSEASON DISTRACTIONS

The Georgia Bulldogs are trying to build a new foundation with head coach Kirby Smart and got their first major distraction on Tuesday as freshman Julian Rochester and Chad Clay were arrested on felony charges for shooting solo cups with a BB gun in the dorm room. With the spring game around the corner, Smart needs to get the team refocused and the momentum moving again as soon as possible.

MASTERS MELTDOWN

It was an unforgettably painful finish to the Masters as defending champion Jordan Spieth’s quadruple-bogey seven at the 12th derailed his weekend. After closing out the front nine with four straight birdies, he stood on the 10th tee with a 5-shot lead and the whole world expecting that the back nine would amount to a tap-in putt for the jacket. He is young, but this will be a difficult memory to move past.

COLLINS SUSPENDED

Last year’s second round pick, Jalen Collins, of the Atlanta Falcons has been suspended without pay for the first four games of the 2016 regular season for violating the NFL policy on performance enhancing substances. Collins is eligible to participate in all offseason and preseason practices and games. “I have already spoken to Jalen about this, and I have no doubt this will be something that he will learn from,” assured Dan Quinn.

STREAK SNAPPED

Blessed Trinity baseball’s winning streak of 49 games – believed to be the second-longest active streak in the country – ended last week in Louisiana. Blessed Trinity lost 6-5 to Tuerlings Catholic, the No. 2 team in Louisiana according to MaxPreps, with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning that broke a 5-5 tie in Lafayette, La. The Titans return to region action with an 18-1 record.

WHO’S NOT

SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Jordan Spieth

UGA

Braves

With a five stroke lead, last year’s Masters champion couldn’t close the deal. It was a nightmare to watch as Spieth turned into the Loch Ness Monster, living in the water as he couldn’t wake himself up from one of the biggest collapses in golf history.

Two top recruits, Chad Clay and Julian Rochester, were arrested for shooting a BB gun in their dorm room.

Clay, a Peachtree Ridge standout and Rochester, a McEachern defensive tackle, were shooting solo cups.

Welcome to the SEC. We will see if there is any punishment but it’s not a good start to their careers.

Atlanta is enjoying its worst start in 28 years when they began the season 0-6 in 1988. Terrible pitching and terrible hitting has the team ranked 29th in both categories. It is a wait and see approach right now as this isn’t unexpected. The Braves will take their lumps for at least three more seasons.

NUMBERS

OUR TWO CENTS

By Kyle Sandy

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.

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TRIVIA QUESTION

WHAT EASTERN CONFERENCE TEAM SWEPT THE HAWKS THIS SEASON? ANSWER ON PAGE 14

“

SANITY AT LAST

I thought today was probably the best 48-minute game we’ve played against them. They [The Raptors] are a difficult team to guard.

Their guards are very tough and physical.

- Kyle Korver after Friday’s 95-87 victory.

9

Straight seasons the Hawks have made the NBA Playoffs.

28

Years since the Braves started 0-6.

.206

Braves team batting average, ranking 29th.

6.67

Braves team ERA, ranking 29th.

0.5

0.5 – Game lead for the Hawks in the Southeast division.

21

First half points for Kent Bazemore against the Cavaliers.

7

Trevor Story homeruns in six games.

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Hit in Mallex Smith’s major league debut.

Vol. 12 Iss. 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016

ON THE COVER

ATLANTA HAWKS

HAWKS EASTERN CONFERENCE OUTLOOK

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

Y

ear in and year out, for the past nine seasons when the flowers begin to bloom in spring, the Atlanta Hawks begin to lace it up for another hopeful NBA playoff run. From humble beginnings back in 2007-08 when they snuck into the playoffs for the first time in eight years with a 37-45 record boasting a roster led by the likes of Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and Mike Bibby, to last year’s magical 60-win season, Atlanta has become a mainstay in April and early May. The Hawks finally broke through to the conference finals last year, but what will it take for the oft one-and-done Hawks to finally exercise the demons of early exits and emerge from the Eastern Conference for a chance to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy?

After winning 19 games in a row last year, it looked like the Hawks might have peaked too soon. This year a rocky start has since smoothed over down the stretch as At-

lanta has claimed victory in 17 of their last 23 games. So do they have what it takes to make it out of the East?

Everything will start and stop with Paul Millsap no matter what anyone else tells you.

Millsap has blossomed into a true superstar, stuffing stat sheets that take your breath away. The only thing missing is a major shoe deal and national media attention. 17.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.81 steals and 1.70 blocks per game make Millsap the ultimate two way player, capable of doing everything on the floor, not to mention he is also shooting a respectable 32 percent from three and hit 5-of-7 against the Celtics in his latest monster performance.

Millsap might not average the gaudy 2510-5 numbers some other stars do on a nightly basis but it is his unselfishness in a system that cares more about the end result than the individual success that keeps him from being

mentioned as a Top 5 power forward in the sport.

Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder also have the potential to change playoff series with their scoring and playmaking. Schroder’s unpredictable wild-card style of play can be good and bad. Teague will be leaned on as the steady constant. Al Horford and Kent Bazemore along with Kyle Korver must play their roles as well if Atlanta wants to take care of business with home court advantage in the first round.

During the postseason, unsung heroes sometimes can steal the show. Danny Green with the Spurs and Andre Iguodala of Golden State in years past have played that role in crunch time. Don’t underestimate Atlanta’s late season addition of veteran Kris Humphries. Remember when Zaza Pachulia became a folk hero in Atlanta for standing toe-to-toe with Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics? Humphries brings that same toughness and lunch pail type attitude that Atlanta lacked last year in the Eastern conference finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers as power forward Tristan Thompson cleaned up the glass en route to the 5-year $80 million contract he earned in the offseason.

BEST OF THE REST…

The Eastern Conference playoff field was set this weekend, but the seeding is still open to change as the regular season closes on Wednesday. Top seed Cleveland owns home court throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs and Toronto is guaranteed the No. 2 seed. Atlanta, Miami, Boston and Charlotte are all subject to change in their battle for the No. 3 seed to the No. 6 seed depending on Wednesday’s outcomes. Indiana and Detroit are locked in a race for the No. 7 seed and are guaranteed at least the eighth seed regardless of what happens. Chicago and Washington are the bubble teams that missed out on the postseason. Last year, the San Antonio Spurs were the only team in the NBA that the Hawks did not beat at least once, but this year the Hawks have gone 0-3 against the defending

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conference champion Cavaliers after getting swept in last year’s playoffs.

The Hawks are 29-22 against the Eastern Conference this season and the only teams that the Hawks had losing records against in their regular season matchups that made the playoffs are the Cavs (0-3), the Heat (13) and the Raptors (1-3). However, knowing that the Cavs are the only team in conference playoffs that swept the Hawks this season, will require a huge swing in confidence for the Hawks to surpass King James and get past a much healthier Cavs team than a year ago.

James has expressed in several points of the season that his body feels as good as it has in years, and that he’s primed to make another run at ending Cleveland’s five decade long championship drought. James netted 34 points in the Cavs’ 109-94 win over Atlanta Monday night and has averaged 28.4 points in the last 10 games, while shooting 63 percent from the field and nearly 52 percent on 3-pointers.

“It’s just a feeling,” James told ESPN.com on his increased focus and energy. “It’s not a game. It’s not a time of the month. It’s just a feeling and I know it, and I know when the switch needs to be turned for me, and I was able to do that for my team.”

James finished 13-of-16 from the field, made all five free throws and delivered the kind of performance reminds Hawks fans why he is the King of the Eastern Conference.

“I hope he can keep it up,” Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said. “If he plays like this, man, we’re going to be tough to beat. He’s just taken it to a whole other level the last three or four weeks, playing at a very high level, shooting the ball very well, shooting it with confidence and also getting it to the basket. I like the LeBron I see right now.”

Let’s not kid ourselves. The Hawks will have to rewrite history and depose LeBron to take the next step and make it out of the East, where an even bigger challenge likely awaits.

So, let the games begin!

Photos courtesy of Curtis Compton/AJC and AJC.com

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SPRING SPORTS

SPRING SPORTS UPDATE

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

S

pring Break has slowed down the action on the pitch across the state, but a few teams still played over the past week. No. 4 Mill Creek dropped an out-of-state match and sees Parkview slide ahead of them to No. 3 in Class AAAAAA. Norcross falls from No. 7 to No. 10 after three straight losses. The Blue Devils are now 10-3 after a 10-0 start. All three losses have come to ranked teams however, losing to No. 4 Mill Creek 3-1, No. 8 Duluth 3-1 and No. 3 Parkview on Friday 2-0.

Not much happened in classes AAAAA through AA. No. 3 Houston County took care of Class A No. 9 Stratford Academy 3-2.

No movement occurred in 5A-3A. The only change in Class AA was Putnam County swapping with Riverside Military to take over the No. 5 spot. Riverside drew with Dacula 0-0 while Putnam crushed both Greene County

and Georgia Military.

Some interesting results took place in Class A. Back from the dead is defending state champs Atlanta International. The Eagles knocked off No. 4 Whitefield Academy 2-0 and now jump from No. 10 to No. 6, even though they sport just a 5-8-1 record. While AIS is peaking at the right time, No. 3 St. AnnePacelli has been solid all year long. The Vikings’ only loss came to Mt. de Sales early in March, 3-2. They haven’t played too many teams with sexy records, but Pacelli has beaten No. 7 First Presbyterian Day 3-1 back on March 9 and just picked up a 3-2 win over No. 9 Stratford Academy. The Vikings visit Class AAAAA’s Shaw (10-1-1) on Wednesday and host 5A’s No. 5 Columbus (10-1) on the 20th to boost their resume and see how they stack up against two of the state’s better teams.

It was a wild week in the state’s highest classification as former girls No. 1 Lassiter lost to West Forsyth 2-1. No. 2 Walton dropped a 3-2 contest to undefeated Pace Academy and No. 3 Harrison made a leap to No. 1 after posting a 3-0 win over Hillgrove. Harrison’s only losses this season came to Starr’s Mill (5-4) and Pope (2-1).

In Class AAAAA, the top 10 remains the same despite No. 2 Starr’s Mill and No. 3 Columbus each falling short to Class AAAA No. 1 Marist. Unbeaten Marist continues to pace the Class AAAA field, with St. Pius, Whitewater and Woodward Academy rounding out the top 4. Whitewater used a 1-0 win over Woodward Academy on March 29 to solidify its spot at No. 3. North Oconee defeated North Hall 1-0 and makes its debut at No. 9.

In Class AAA, Adairsville dropped to No. 9 after a 3-2 loss to Sonoraville. Calhoun’s 2-1 loss to Adairsville on March 22 holds the Yellow Jackets at No. 10.

Pace Academy staked its claim on the top spot in Class AA. The Knights defeated previous No. 2 Lovett 3-2 on Tuesday and improved to 10-0. Greater Atlanta Christian edged Lovett 3-1 last week.

LACROSSE ACTION…

In Class AAAAAA, top-ranked North

Gwinnett improved to 13-0 after a 15-11 win at Bolles (FL) this weekend and Lambert pulled out a 7-6 win over Westminster to move to a perfect 12-0. Chattahoochee replaces North Paulding at No. 10.

In Class A-AAAAA, Westminster remains No. 1 after an impressive 7-4 win over Walton and a competitive 7-6 loss to Lambert. No. 2 Allatoona’s only loss was to Lambert (8-10) on Feb. 27. McIntosh replaced Marist at No. 10.

On the girls side, Mill Creek had an impressive week as the No. 3 team in Class AAAAAA and handed Cambridge a 15-13 defeat. Mill Creek is now 12-0 and owns notable victories over Blessed Trinity, Centennial, Chattahoochee and the Bears. Chattahoochee sits at No. 4 after pushing Mill Creek to a 14-13 thriller last week.

In Class A-AAAAA, Cambridge remains No. 3 despite last week’s 13-12 loss to No. 1 Blessed Trinity and 15-13 loss to Class AAAAAAA No. 3 Mill Creek. Cambridge defeated No. 4 Westminster 13-12 on March 24 to protect its place in the top 3. St. Pius returns to the poll at No. 9 and McIntosh drops to No. 10. Creekview jumped to No. 8.

Photos courtesy of Cecil Copeland, Sonny Kennedy and DeAnna Fiveash

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Vol. 12 Iss. 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016 UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

FRESHMAN DEALT FELONIES EARLY TUESDAY

BY DAN MATHEWS | DMATHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

in Athens, which means two things.

Iandt’sTheApril annual G-Day game is around the corner the probability of offseason arrests peaks

and begins to threaten the distant kickoff to the upcoming season.

New head coach Kirby Smart was dealt his first offseason distraction this week as Georgia freshman football players Julian Rochester and Chad Clay were jailed Tuesday morning, each accused of two felonies, on charges related to shooting and possessing a BB gun.

Rochester and Clay were each charged with having a weapon in a school zone, and criminal damage in the second degree, according to the online booking site for Athens-Clarke County.

Both were booked at 12:13 a.m., and remained in jail as of 10:30 a.m. The weapon in a school zone charge carries no bond. They were granted a $2,000 bond on the weapons charge after a hearing Tuesday morning, according to their attorney, Kim Stephens. Both were released on a $2,000 bond at 11:22 a.m.

The criminal damage charge carries a bond of $5,000.

GEORGIA STATE

ROACH’S LATE HOMER CAN’T COMPLETE COMEBACK

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

T

railing 9-5 heading into the ninth inning, the Panthers (15-17, 4-8) were only able to push across two more runs on Sunday against Arkansas Little-Rock (15-16, 8-7) as their rally fell short, 9-7. Scoreless through three innings, the Trojans broke through for one run in the bottom of the fourth before Georgia State hung five runs in the fifth. The Panthers sent nine men to the plate and eight of them got hits, including doubles by Will Kilgore, Ryan Blanton and Justin Jones. Jones’ double scored the first two runs and then Joey Roach, Jack Thompson and Darius Sewell followed with RBI singles to give the Panthers a 5-1 lead.

Starter Bryan White was unable to make the lead stand, giving up three runs apiece in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings as Little Rock surged ahead 7-5. White’s command failed him, walking six batters in five innings while allowing seven runs. The Trojans tacked on two more insurance runs in the eighth off of Rhett Harper. Ryan Scott went 2-for-5 at the

“I’m disappointed with the poor judgment of Julian and Chad,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said in a statement. “We expect full compliance with the policies of the University and of our football program from all our student-athletes. Information is still being gathered but they will be disciplined in an appropriate manner.”

Smart also spoke briefly about the arrests during a regularly scheduled interview on AM 680.

“Poor decisions,” Smart said. “It’s something we’re going to have to deal with as a university and a team.”

WHAT NOW…

The players were apparently shooting solo cups in their dorm room with a BB gun, which left marks on the door and in other areas of the room.

“Every kid eating with a steak knife in the campus dining hall commits a felony under the statute,” Stephens injudiciously told reporters.

Both Rochester and Clay are early enrollees. Rochester, a defensive lineman from Powder Spring and McEachern High School, was one of the team’s top recruits. Clay is a defensive back from Marietta and Peachtree Ridge High School.

These are the first felony arrests for a Georgia football player since Johnathan Taylor in June 2014 on domestic violence charges.

These are the second and third arrests of a Georgia football player this spring. Defensive lineman Jonathan Ledbetter was arrested last month on two misdemeanor alcohol charges.

plate with four RBIs, causing the Panther pitching staff headaches all day.

Joey Roach hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to pull Georgia State within two runs. The Panthers then put the tying runs on base with two outs as Jarrett Hood and James Clements drew walks before Keenan Wingfield extinguished Cody McGill’s fire. McGill gave up two hits, one walk and the homer to Roach before Wingfield collected his third save of the season.

The Panthers outhit the Trojans 13 to 6.

Roach finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Justin Jones went 3-for-5 with two runs batted in and Ryan Blanton and Will Johnson both notched two hits.

PANTHER PERFECT

The No. 51-ranked Georgia State men’s tennis team earned a 4-1 victory over Troy on Sunday afternoon. GSU improved to 16-4 (3-0 Sun Belt). The Panthers struggled in doubles play with Troy sweeping all three matches. In singles play Georgia State made up ground with Jannis Koeke, Zackery Kennedy, Sebastian Acuna and Felipe Jaworski all scoring wins to secure the victory for the Panthers.

The match-clincher came from Jaworski, who earned a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Hassan Ndayishimiye in the No. 6 match.

Georgia State travels to Statesboro to face Georgia Southern in their final road match of the season on April 15 at 3 P.M.

GEORGIA TECH

BASEBALL CONTINUES STRONG SEASON

BY COLIN HUBBARD | INFO@SCOREATL.COM

he Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets’ baseball T team continued their strong play outside of the ACC after knocking off Mercer and Ken-

nesaw State but failed to win a series against the Pittsburgh Panthers.

The Yellow Jackets sit at a record of 23-8 but seven of their losses have come against teams in their own conference. The Yellow Jackets split a series with the Panthers after the middle game was rained out, but their seven wins is still good enough for third place in the coastal division.

The Yellow Jackets trail the North Carolina Tar Heels by just one game, but the class of the division, the Miami Hurricanes appear to be untouchable in the 2016 season. The Hurricanes hold a commanding 11-2 record in ACC play so it appears that the Yellow Jackets will be fighting for second place.

The Yellow Jackets are 21-0 when allowing five or fewer runs and lead all of Division 1 with 55 double plays turned. Connor Justice leads the Yellow Jackets with a .395 batting average and has 17 multi-hit games to go with it.

The Yellow Jackets will open up a 3-game

KENNESAW STATE

OWLS WELCOME GIRLS HEAD COACH AGNUS BERENATO

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

he press conference to introduce Agnus T Berenato as women’s basketball head coach at Kennesaw State is set for this Thurs-

day (April 14) at 11 a.m. ET. The winningest coach at the University of Pittsburgh and the second-winningest at Georgia Tech, Berenato was named the new head women’s basketball coach at Kennesaw State University on Wednesday, March 30 by Director of Athletics Vaughn Williams.

Berenato has a proven reputation of building programs. Within three years of assuming head-coaching duties at Georgia Tech, she led the Yellow Jackets to the 1992 WNIT championship. The next year, Tech made its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Two years after taking the helm at Pitt, the Panthers rattled off five consecutive postseason berths, including back-to-back NCAA Sweet 16’s in 2008 and 2009.

“It is an honor to be selected as the Kennesaw State University women’s basketball head coach. To work with, and for, Director of Athletics Vaughn Williams at this thriving uni-

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series with North Carolina State at Russ Chandler Stadium starting this Friday night and will be looking to pick up the sweep to keep close with the Tar Heels.

SPRING FOOTBALL IS IN FULL SWING

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets’ football team spring practices are officially under way after starting last week and great progress is being made. A lot of improvements will hopefully be made after having a very disappointing 2015 season and that all starts with head coach Paul Johnson.

There are a few things that they will need to take care of first and foremost and that all starts with their secondary. The Yellow Jackets lost safeties Jamal Golden and Demond Smith and cornerbacks Chris Milton and D.J. White as well. It appears that sophomore A.J. Gray will get the nod at one of the safety spots but the corner positions are still up for grabs.

Step Durham and Lance Austin might have the nod at the moment but Lamont Simmons who transferred in from Southern California is also in the mix after sitting out last season due to the transfer.

Improving the pass protection will also be one of the main focuses. The Yellow Jackets were dreadful against the pass in 2015 and quarterback Justin Thomas’s completion percentage took a beating as a result. His percentage dropped 10 percent from 51 to 41.

The annual spring football game will take place on Apr. 23 at noon.

versity is an exciting opportunity,” said Berenato. “I am fired up to get back on the court, meet the team and represent Kennesaw State and our KSU community. Together we will enjoy the journey, grow our student-athletes and experience the thrill of victory. I would like to thank President Dr. Daniel Papp, a man of great integrity and vision; Vaughn Williams and the search committee for their commitment to women’s basketball, the commitment to building a formidable Division-I athletic program and their confidence in me to lead this program.”

WINNING REPUTATION…

Berenato has won 444 games in her 29year head coaching career that spans four years at Rider University, 15 at Georgia Tech and 10 at Pitt. Her teams have competed in the postseason on 11 different occasions.

She is recognized as an inspirational leader and motivator and a dynamic public speaker.

In her three years since leaving Pitt, Berenato has been an analyst for the American Sports Network, has continued to remain active in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), spoken to Fortune 500 companies and University commencements and presented at the Final Four.

Named an ACC Women’s Basketball Legend in 2014, Berenato was recognized on two occasions as a Division I Coach of the Year by the Atlanta Tip-Off Club. She has been inducted into the South Jersey Hall of Fame, the Rider College Hall of Fame and the Mount St. Mary’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

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ATLANTA HAWKS

HAWKS HUNKER DOWN ON CELTICS

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

A

tlanta scored a huge win on Saturday night at Philips Arena, beating the Boston Celtics 118-107 to hold a 1-game lead over Boston for the third-seed in the East.

Atlanta (48-32) pulled away late using a 25-16 fourth quarter to finish off the Celtics (47-33). It was a tale of two halves for both teams as the Celtics led 71-67 at halftime. In the second half, Boston was held to just 36 points.

The star-power of Paul Millsap overwhelmed Boston down the stretch. He finished with a game-high 31 points, 16 rebounds, three assists, two steals and five blocks while going 5-of-7 from three-point land.

“Tonight was a tough game for us,” Millsap said. “The last game was a tough game.

Cleveland is going to be a tough game.

Washington is going to be tough. I think it’s important that we step up to the challenge that’s been presented to us.”

Millsap wasn’t the only unstoppable

ATLANTA BRAVES

BRAVES LOSE OPENING DAY THRILLER AT HOME TO NATIONALS

BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

T

he Atlanta Braves came up just short in the final Opening Day at Turner Field. Facing the National League East rival Washington Nationals on Monday, Atlanta could not maintain a late lead and fell to Washington 4-3 in 10 innings.

It was a battle of the long-ball during the first four innings, with each team going deep twice. Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy hit solo shots for the Nationals, while Freddie Freeman and Adonis Garcia answered for the Braves.

The latter stages of the showdown turned into a relative comedy of pitching and fielding blunders. Atlanta took the lead in the bottom of the eighth inning when Garcia walked with the bases loaded to score Jeff Francoeur. Washington answered in the top of the ninth off Braves’ closer Jason Grilli, who walked leadoff batter Jayson Werth. Although Grilli engineered fine damage control by getting out of a no-out, bases-loaded jam relatively unscathed, Werth eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Michael Taylor. Center fielder Ender Inciarte’s throw

force for Atlanta. The two-headed backcourt of Jeff Teague (24) and Dennis Schroder (15) combined for 39 points and 14 assists.

Kent Bazemore added 21 points as well. Marcus Smart led Boston with 19 points off the bench while Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder both netted 16 in a game that the Celtics at one point held a 12-point lead before Atlanta ripped off an 18-4 run to end the third.

“We needed this win,” Thomas said.

“We were up 12 at one point. In the fourth quarter, we just couldn’t make shots. It was tough for us. It was a tough game for myself.

I’m very frustrated with this. It hurts.”

After hitting 10 first half threes, the Celtics went 1-of-11 in the second half.

“I think it was just a crazy pace in the first half,” Teague said. “They did a great job of making shots and getting it to the open man and playing in transition in the second half, I think we locked down, got back on defense and tried to make it tough for them and it helped us to get a big win.”

FINISHING STRONG

The Hawks finish the season on the road at Cleveland and Washington following a 3-1 home stand that opened with a 110-108 loss in overtime to the Cavaliers. Atlanta still hasn’t wrapped up the three-seed and will need to take care of business this week with Boston and Miami both one-game back in the standings.

beat Werth to the plate with room to spare, but A.J. Pierzynski muffed it and could not apply the tag. The Nats went on to score the winning run in the top of the 10th, when a Murphy double drove in Ryan Zimmerman.

“Things just didn’t fall into place,” Freeman told the team’s website. “This was the last Opening Day at Turner Field. Things are supposed to fall into place. It just didn’t happen. We played a great ballgame until the last couple of innings.”

Both Freeman and Garcia went 1-for-3, with the first baseman driving in one run and the third baseman delivering two RBIs. Inciarte and Erik Aybar also had hits for Atlanta, which managed only four in total against Max Scherzer and a combination of five relievers. The Braves got six innings from Julio Teheran, who scattered five hits and three walks while striking out four hitters.

ROSTER FINALIZED …

From a purely nostalgic standpoint, Braves’ fans had to be enthused when Francoeur made the team to ensure a second stint in Atlanta. Francoeur figured to be joined on the list of outfielders by either Michael Bourn or Emilio Bonifacio, but that did not turn out to be the case. Instead, Drew Stubbs found himself on the 25-man roster while Bourn and Bonifacio were released.

Manager Fredi Gonzalez called releasing Bourn, “ the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”

ATLANTA FALCONS

COLLINS BENCHED, RYAN HOSTS ANNUAL TOURNEY

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

alen Collins of the Atlanta Falcons has been Jgames suspended without pay for the first four of the 2016 regular season for violat-

ing the NFL policy on performance enhancing substances.

Collins is eligible to participate in all offseason and preseason practices and games.

[Note: The NFL policy on performance enhancing substances is posted on nflcommunications.com. After logging in, click on “About NFL” from the homepage and then “NFL Policies.”]

STATEMENT BY FALCONS HEAD COACH DAN QUINN:

We are disappointed to hear the news regarding Jalen today. I have already spoken to Jalen about this, and I have no doubt this will be something that he will learn from.

RYAN HITS THE LINKS…

TPC Sugarloaf was loaded with Atlanta stars on Monday for Matt Ryan’s Celebrity-Am Classic, an event he has hosted for the past six years that benefits Aflac Cancer Center of

HIGH SCHOOL HAPPENINGS

KNIGHTS PENALIZED; SHOWCASE TOURS GEORGIA

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

he Grady Knights basketball team will be T levied penalties for playing with an ineligible player sources told Sandy’s Spiel this

weekend.

Grady, who finished with a school record 28 wins, won the Region 6-AAAA championship and advanced to the Final Four, is set to vacate all wins since January 26 including their first region championship since 1993 which would drop the Knights’ record from 28-4 to 18-14. Head Coach Brian Weeden was named Sandy’s Spiel Class AAAA Coach of the Year and Grady was named AAAA’s Most Improved Team, improving from a 14-15 record a season ago.

This would not be the first time the Grady athletic program has been called into question.

In 2013-14 the football team suited up 17 players that used fake addresses.

In 2014, the Georgia High School Association, sanctioned Grady after an investigation found that 17 members of its football team had used fake addresses to attend the school. Just over two years ago was when Atlanta Superinten-

Children’s Health Care of Atlanta.

Ryan’s event draws only the best of the best, and it’s become something he looks forward to every year. He and his wife Sarah host two events a year dedicated to CHOA, something near and dear to their hearts.

“I think it’s always fun to be able to get out away from football and see all the guys turnout and see what their golf swings look like,” Matt Ryan said of his event. “Just to have a good time and raise money for CHOA. You really can’t raise enough money for them. It’s become a great partnership and it’s become something I look forward to every year.”

The golfers were led by Ryan’s current teammates such as Andy Levitre, Josh Harris, Matt Bryant, Matt Schaub and Ryan Schraeder, but also former Falcons players like Michael Jenkins, Steve Bartkowki, Brian Finneran and DJ Shockley joined in on the fun.

Former Atlanta Braves standouts Chipper Jones, Otis Nixon, Javy Lopez, and Phil Niekro were all in attendance.

“Anytime we as professional athletes get to scratch the back of some other athletes and help their cause it only helps our cause later down the road in whatever charities we choose to back,” Jones told AtlantaFalcons.com. “It’s a great tournament and I love this venue. Matt Ryan is one of the icons here in Atlanta and anytime he invites you, you show up and play.”

dent Erroll Davis announced that their threemonth investigation found that the players and their parents falsely claimed they lived in the Midtown area so they could play on the Grady High football team.

ELITE SHOWCASE…

The Junior Elite Classic Showcase highlights some of the best camps around the state as all players are invited to see how they stack up against some of the Georgia’s best. Two showcases are held in April with Walton High School on April 17 and Devaul Henderson Park in Richmond Hill on April 27. The showcases are spread throughout the spring and across the state giving each location the proper exposure. Gwinnett County’s event will be held on May 1 with the location still to be determined and on Dec. 27 it will be Cobb County’s time to shine again as McEachern holds the final showcase.

Turnouts were in the hundreds for each event last year as players put on performances that were taped and sent off to college scouts across the south. Countless attendees have used the Junior Elite Showcases as a springboard for their college careers.

From D-I to D-III, all levels of talent have hit the gridiron as National Preps coordinates the on-field activities. The Junior Elite Classic review committee as well as recruiting services from around the Southeast have their eyes locked on the performances of rising freshmen through the Class of 2017. Over 160 colleges and coaches will receive the results after completion of each showcase.

Vol. 12 Iss. 14 | Apr. 13 - Apr. 19, 2016

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