Class AAAAA state playoffs
Who: Starr’s Mill Panthers (25-0) vs. Groves Rebels (11-11)

When: Friday, 4:30 and 7:30 p.m. (If game, Saturday)

Seth Yetter a McIntosh high school graduate (2004) recently placed fifth in the High Jump at the ACC Outdoor track and field championships in Winston Salem, N.C.

Not since 2002 has a McIntosh inline hockey team won the GHRA State Championship and for the 2005-2006 season, the odds were not in favor of the AAAA high school team with only three returning players and a freshman goalie.

Christ the King, which started the church league basketball season 1-4, came back to win the last six games in a row to finish 7-4 and emerge as church league champs. The new league, sponsored by the Athletic Department of Trinity Fellowship Assembly of God, featured churches from both Coweta and Fayette counties. The Christ the King team also had the distinction of having the only female player in the league, Jessica Epps of Senoia.

•The Peachtree City Tennis Center recently hosted the Peachtree City Junior Tennis Open and the local boys dominated the play on their home courts, winning four of the five titles.

The U13 93 Lazers Green bounced back from a fall season that saw them finish dead last.

Storms kept the McIntosh, Starr's Mill and Whitewater varsity girls soccer teams from playing their state semi-final soccer games Wednesday night.

The Starr's Mill varsity boys soccer team hosted Walton on Tuesday night for a chance to go to the AAAAA state championship game.

Move over, Landmark.

The Lady Bobcats brought home a state title, the first in school history, and had four girls win individual state titles in seven events on their way to amassing 84 total points, the highest point total at the state meet for any team in any classification this year.

There are four teams from Fayette County left in the AAAAA and AAAA state soccer playoffs; Starr’s Mill’s boys and girls and McIntosh and Whitewater’s girls.

Starr’s Mill (25-0) vs. Groves (11-11)

The Panthers open the state playoffs at home once again and they are hoping to make quick work of the Groves Rebels. Ranked first in the GaSports.com baseball coaches poll, the Panthers scored 258 runs this season and allowed 75, while posting seven shutouts. Starr’s Mill has a balanced offense that seems to produce 1-9, with Joey Lewis and Brian Fletcher crushing home runs throughout the season. They also have a stable of good pitching led by Andrew Robinson, who was on the mound for four shutouts, and Bryan Daniels, who pitched in three shutouts.

Dani Rossi, 13, a seventh grader at Fayette Middle School, was visiting his aunts and uncles in Bradenton, Fla.

The Prep Op 1 girls of Gym South Gymnastics competed in their State Meet on Sunday, April 30.
There are nine girls on the team who practice and compete together.

Starr's Mill's varsity boys and girls soccer teams dispatched of some old foes on Friday night to advance to the AAAAA semi-finals this week. The Lady Panthers took an early lead against Parkview and held on for a 5-4 win, while the boys got a 1-0 win over Brookwood.

The Our Lady of Mercy girls track team won the first state championship in school history over the weekend.

The Lady Bobcats won seven individual state titles in the meet and scored a total of 84 points, the most by any team in any classification. State champions were Leigh Burton in the long jump and the 100 meter intermediate hurdles; Hannah Allen in the discus; Raven Moore in the 100 meter and 200 meter dash and Sarah Hohenberger in the 800 and 1,600 meter run.

The Bulldog Clubs in Coweta County and Fayette County have been selected to host one of the 2006 "Dawg Days" events sponsored by the UGA Athletic Association and the local Bulldog Clubs. The "Dawg Days" events will feature UGA coaches including Head Football Coach Mark Richt, 2005 SEC Coach of the Year, and UGA Athletics Director Damon Evans. The program will also include special guest Emcee Neil Williamson of WSB Radio and the Georgia Tailgate Show. The UGA Bookstore will bring merchandise and souvenirs to the event.

With the addition of the East Coweta girls soccer team as a contender for a state championship, the Southern Crescent has reaffirmed its spot as a soccer hotbed. In both Class AAAAA and AAAA, there are five local girls teams still alive in the state playoffs; East Coweta, Fayette County, McIntosh, Starr’s Mill and Whitewater, while the male counterparts at McIntosh, Starr’s Mill and Whitewater have made the state quarterfinals as well. By the end of the weekend, we will know how many of these teams have made the final four of the classifications.

Some teams like Starr’s Mill, East Coweta, Fayette County and Landmark Christian know they have made the state playoffs, they just don’t know who they will face when the opening pitch is thrown next Friday. Others, like Sandy Creek and Whitewater, are fighting for their playoff lives. They opened the region playoffs yesterday after the paper went to press and, if they won, they will make the playoffs but seeding won’t be determined until more games have been played.

The McIntosh boys and girls tennis teams won their matches in the first round of the AAAA state playoffs. The boys won 5-0 against Central High in Macon. Qualifying wins were by Austin Tilton, 6-0, 6-0; Joe Styga, 6-0, 6-1 and John Higgins, 6-0. 6-1.

Starr’s Mill hosted the region 4-AAAAA boys track meet on Saturday and Monday and local athletes performed well with 10 boys earning bids to the AAAAA state meet. To qualify for the state meet, one must finish within the top two positions in their event, while one must finish in the top six to score points for the school in the meet. Those scoring points for their schools were:

McIntosh senior volleyball player Megan Cheatham recently signed with Berry College to play volleyball.

Starr’s Mill won the local junior varsity End of the Season tournament.

Starr’s Mill’s Lauren Gisler recently signed her NCAA National Letter of Intent to play collegiate softball.

Shorter College’s football program recently announced that it has added sixteen walk-ons to its list of football scholarship recipients. Each of these players initially signed with the Hawks as a part of the school’s Preferred Walk-on Program.

They did it.

The Starr’s Mill Panthers varsity baseball team went 25-0 in the regular season and will enter the playoffs as the number one ranked team in the state, according to a GaSports.com baseball coaches poll. In their last four games, all against region opponents, the Panthers got the job done. They defeated Mundy’s Mill 15-10 last Thursday, getting four RBIs from Jimmy Tanner, two RBIs from Joey Lewis and a home run from Brian Fletcher. Will Mathis picked up the win on the mound. Starr’s Mill followed that game with a 7-6 win over Fayette County. Lewis hit a home run and drove in two runs, Tanner drove in two runs as well and Spencer Shelton drove in another. Lewis was the winning pitcher in the game.

The four local girls teams that made their respective state soccer tournaments won their opening round games.

McIntosh, Sandy Creek and Whitewater competed in the boys 4-AAAA region track meet at Woodward Academy. Sandy Creek had the best day, as they had nine athletes or teams score points for the school and had four athletes or teams finish in the top two to qualify for the state meet.

Three Sandy Creek seniors signed athletic scholarships on Friday morning. James Tomlin signed a four year scholarship to attend and play tennis for the Air Force Academy, while Kel Cudsik signed a scholarship to attend and play baseball for Middle Georgia College and Tyler Bestill signed a scholarship to attend and play baseball for Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.