September 24, 2024 Zoie Shiflett and Presley Crabbe combined on a two-hitter Tuesday night as the Lady Canes blanked Woodland 8-0. Virginia Tech commit Jordan Bishop hit her 14th home run of the season and Sam Evans hit a two-run homer in her first varsity at-bat in the Canes’ victory. Fourth-ranked Cartersville led 4-0 after one inning and added two runs in both the fourth and fifth frames to close out the game. Reese Dumas (three RBI) and Kinsey Woodard produced two hits for Cartersville. Kennedy Crenshaw (RBI), Layne Callan (RBI), Milayah Bryant (double), and Addi Burns added one hit. Jordan Hammonds and Elizabeth Hartsfield had base hits for Woodland. Gracie Korb (0.1 IP, 4ER, 1H, 4BB) and Evelyn Tucker (3.2 IP, 4R, 3ER, 8H, 0BB, 1K) pitched for the Lady Cats. Woodland (5-13, 5-12 Region 7-4A) is scheduled to play at Dalton on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Cartersville (19-4, 16-1) plays at Southeast Whitfield on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CASS 8, SOUTHEAST WHITFIELD 0 Cass pitcher Kylie Gentry tossed a six-inning, one-hitter Tuesday night in the Colonels’ 8-0 win at Southeast Whitfield. Gentry allowed a leadoff single in the second inning and issued a one-out walk in the third inning but otherwise kept the Lady Raiders’ bats silenced. She struck out nine and faced only two batters over the minimum. The Cass offense peppered the Raiders for fourteen hits. Braelyn Franklin led with four hits, including a triple and one RBI. Darianna Sosa homered twice with three RBI. Molli Morrow (RBI) and Harlee Thomason had two hits. Bailey York (two RBI), Cayce Brown (RBI), KK Evans, and Chloe Hill added one hit for the Lady Colonels. Southeast Whitfield falls to 1-20 overall and 1-16 in Region 7-4A. Cass (14-8, 12-6) has a one-game edge on Cedartown for the No. 3 spot in the region and will visit the Lady Bulldogs next Tuesday in their next region contest.  Cass has a non-region game on Monday at Pepperell at 5 p.m. LAFAYETTE 10, ADAIRSVILLE 0 Sixth-ranked LaFayette shutout host Adairsville Tuesday night in Tiger Valley, 10-0. Two Lady Ramblers’ pitchers limited Adairsville to four hits and two walks. Alivia Joslin, Maddie Baggett, Ansley Powell, and Katie Anglian had the Lady Tigers’ hits. LaFayette improved to 18-4 overall and 13-3 in Region 7-AAA. Adairsville (12-11, 4-10) is scheduled to play at LaFayette on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. to complete the two-game series.

September 23, 2024 The Lady Canes secured a 12-3 victory in a non-region game at Carrollton on Monday evening, with Jordan Bishop contributing three hits, two of which were home runs and five RBI. Cartersville had three additional players with two hits each: Addi Burns (two RBI), Allana Williams (two RBI), and Kennedy Crenshaw. Kinsey Woodard (RBI), Reese Dumas (RBI), Lakaiya Banks, and Zoie Shiflett added one hit for Cartersville. Shiflett earned the pitching win after throwing four innings with no runs allowed, one walk, and three strikeouts. Presley Crabbe finished the last two innings, giving up three runs (0 earned) on three hits with no walks. The loss dropped Carrollton to 10-8 on the season. Fourth-ranked Cartersville (18-4, 15-1) hosts Woodland on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. CASS 8, HIRAM 0 The Cass Lady Colonels posted runs in five of their six offensive frames Monday night, and pitchers Kylie Gentry and Emma Gibson combined to shutout visiting Hiram 8-0. Gentry struck out ten in her five innings in the circle. She allowed one hit and one walk. Gibson allowed one hit and struck out one in her one inning. Harlee Thomason had three hits, including one double and one RBI, to pace the Lady Colonels’ offense. Bailey York followed with two hits, including a triple. Molli Morrow (three RBIs), Braelyn Franklin (double, RBI), Chloe Hill (RBI), and Payton Mize added one hit for Cass.  The loss dropped Hiram to 4-16 overall and 2-14 in Region 7-AAAA. Cass (13-8, 11-6) plays at Southeast Whitfield on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. RIDGELAND 14, ADAIRSVILLE 6 The Lady Tigers led 3-1 after one inning Monday, but a seven-run second inning by Ridgeland put the Panthers ahead for good, resulting in an eventual 14-6 win. Ashlyn Carlton gave Adairsville the early advantage with a three-run homer. Taylor Evans doubled home a run for the Tigers in the third inning, and the Tigers strung together three straight hits in the fifth, leading to their other two runs. Carlton (1.2 IP, 8R, 7ER, 7H, 1BB, 1K) and Maddie Baggett (3.1 IP, 6ER, 5H, 5BB, 2K) pitched for Adairsville.  Baggett and Ansley Powell (RBI) had two hits for Adairsville. Alivia Joslin and Ashlynn Durden added one hit. Ridgeland improved to 9-15 overall and 4-8 in Region 7-AAA. Adairsville (12-10, 4-8) hosts LaFayette on Tuesday at 5:55 p.m.

September 21, 2024 Charles Wilson / BartowSportsZone.com The Cedartown Bulldogs utilized a powerful wing-T rushing attack and took advantage of three special teams miscues in the first half to defeat visiting Cass, 36-0, on Friday night. Running backs Sam Smith, Juelz Davis, and Michael Gibbons had touchdown runs for the Bulldogs in the first half. Kicker Edgar Bermudez kicked a pair of short field goals, and UCF-commit defensive back Demarcus Gardner returned one of his two interceptions for a 95-yard pick-six for most of the Cedartown scoring. They also added a safety late in the third quarter after the Cass defense stopped a potential touchdown drive on downs at the 1-yard line. Three bad punt snaps by Cass set up a field goal and two touchdowns for Cedartown in the first half. The Bulldogs started scoring drives at the Cass 15-yard line, 28-yard line, and 20-yard line. The Cass defense stiffened following the first miscue and held the Bulldogs to a 26-yard field goal by Bermudez. The kick gave Cedartown a 3-0 lead with 7:15 remaining in the first quarter. Two possessions later, the Bulldogs put together their only sustained drive of the first half. A 30-yard run by Clemson commit Tae Harris keyed the drive, and Sam Smith finished it with a 20-yard run around the right end. Bermudez added the first of his four PAT kicks to give Cedartown a 10-0 lead with 6:06 left in the half. Cass's second bad punt snap set up a second short field at the 28-yard line. Four plays later, Juelz Davis scored on a 5-yard run to give the Bulldogs a 17-0 advantage with 3:36 left in the second quarter. The Cass offense's three-and-out was followed by another poor snap, which was punted under pressure but only got back to the line of scrimmage.   Starting at the Cass 20-yard line, Cedartown needed only three plays to punch in a 7-yard run by fullback Michael Gibbons with 1:20 remaining before the intermission. The Bulldogs carried a 24-0 advantage to the locker room. On the second half's opening drive, Cedartown methodically drove to the Cass 1-yard line before turning the ball over on downs. The drive took 7:47 off the clock and led to a safety when Cass quarterback Elijah Slocum was tackled in the end zone on the ensuing play. This gave the Bulldogs a 26-0 lead with 4:07 remaining in the third quarter. Cedartown returned the Cass free kick after the safety to their 36-yard line and put together another lengthy drive with their running game and the aid of two 15-yard penalties on the Colonels. Bermudez kicked a 22-yard field goal to culminate the Bulldogs’ 13-play, 55-yard drive and gave Cedartown a 29-0 lead with 9:31 remaining in the game. The Colonels marched their next possession into Cedartown territory, reaching the Bulldogs’ 39-yard line. However, a pass by Slocum was picked off at the 5-yard line by Gardner and returned 95 yards for the final Cedartown points and a 36-0 lead with 6:00 remaining. Cass drove into Cedartown territory again, but Gardner picked off another pass to halt any late scoring ideas the Colonels fancied. Tae Harris rushed for 81 yards on ten carries for the Bulldogs. Braylon Hill carried 14 times for 75 yards for Cass. Slocum rushed for 35 yards on nine attempts and was 6-for-13 passing for 39 yards. He threw two interceptions. Jachai Delgado rushed 14 times for 35 yards for the Colonels. Eighth-ranked Cedartown improved to 6-0 overall and 2-0 in Region 7-AAAA. Cass (3-3, 0-2) has now dropped three straight after a 3-0 start. The Colonels will look to bounce back on Friday when they host Woodland in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.

September 21, 2024 Three local high school varsity cross country teams participated in the annual Wingfoot XC Classic Saturday at Sam Smith Park in Cartersville. The Cartersville boys finished 29th in the 32-team Championship Boys race. The elite competition included 223 runners. Will Feuerbach (81st, 16:53), Barrett Stepp (94th, 17:08), and Kaleb Lanier (162nd, 17:49) led the Hurricanes with sub-18:00 runs. Hayden Mitchell (176th, 18:05) and Tripp Chitwood (184th, 18:13) rounded out the Cartersville scoring runs. Micah Sanders (195th, 18:27) and Carson Robinson (218th, 19:40) also competed for the Canes.  The Lady Canes varsity competed in the Varsity A 5K Division and was 18th of 32 teams. The race included 220 runners. Sofia Burns (7th, 19:18) led the Cartersville scoring runners. Kylie Ham (112th, 23:05), Jordan Hathaway (119th, 23:20), Hadley Finnemore (126th, 23:27), and Samantha Stepp (134th, 23:35) rounded out the Lady Canes’ top five. Of 38 Varsity Boys B 5K Division teams, the Cass varsity boys placed 21st, competing against 311 participants. Nicholas Robinson (50th, 18:20) led the Colonels. Sawyer Foy (89th, 19:16), Leonardo Galeana (109th, 19:29), Adam Brush (144th, 19:54), and Booker Gearhart (146th, 19:55) also had scoring runs for Cass. Next for Cartersville is the Conquer the Mountain Invitational on Thursday in Carrollton. Cass will run at the Darlington Cross Country Festival next Saturday in Rome.

September 21, 2024 The Adairsville High volleyball team lost all four matches on Saturday at the Southeast Whitfield Invitational tournament in Dalton. The Tigers had straight sets losses to Chattooga, Northwest Whitfield, and LaFayette. They also lost a three-set match with Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe (16-25, 26-24, 5-15). Payton Hartline had four kills and three digs against Chattooga. Alexis Scott finished with three kills and one dig. Cara Harp contributed three kills, five assists, and two digs. Alexa Wyne had six assists and four digs. Addie Pearson totaled 16 digs. In the three-set loss to LFO, Hartline had five kills and two digs. Scott totaled three kills and one dig. Harp produced six assists with one kill and three digs. Pearson had two kills and 15 digs. Against Northwest Whitfield, Ella Steward tallied four kills, five blocks, and one dig. Pearson had seven digs. Scott totaled four kills, two blocks, and three digs. Wynn produced five assists and two digs.  In the LaFayette match, Pearson had three kills and ten digs. Scott accumulated three kills, two digs, and one block. Harp finished with five digs, four assists, and two aces. Adairsville (11-24, 3-6) returns to Region 7-AAA play on Tuesday at Heritage-Catoosa and will also play Northwest Whitfield.

September 21, 2024 Charles Wilson / BartowSportsZone.com Adairsville quarterback Ethan Long tossed three touchdown passes and ran for another score as the Tigers beat visiting LaFayette on Friday night, 44-13. In the first quarter, Long threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Kolt McCord, followed by an 18-yarder to Colt Sanford in the second quarter and a 34-yard touchdown pass to Xavious Nalls in the third quarter. He also scored a 1-yard keeper in the second quarter. With 4:49 remaining in the first quarter, the Tigers took a 7-0 lead after Long's first touchdown pass. Cooper Souders successfully converted the extra point kick. Later in the period, Souders capped a 6-play, 67-yard drive with a 23-yard field goal and a 10-0 advantage with 0:43 left in the quarter. Long’s touchdown keeper gave the Tigers a 17-0 lead before the Ramblers got on the scoreboard. LaFayette drove 65 yards on 11 plays for a touchdown with 1:40 remaining in the first half. The scoring play was a 2-yard pass from Khalas Finley to Dylan Henton. Gage Kohl made the PAT to cut the Adairsville lead to 17-7. Adairsville took the ensuing kickoff and drove 84 yards in five plays to extend their lead. Long’s pass to Sanford gave the Tigers a 23-7 advantage at the intermission. The PAT kick failed.  LaFayette recovered an onside kick to begin the second half and took only two plays to narrow Adairsville’s lead to 23-13. Finley broke free for a 46-yard touchdown run, but the Ramblers' two-point conversion attempt failed with 10:53 left in the third quarter. With the lead narrowed to ten points, Adairsville closed out the game with 21-unanswered points. Long’s touchdown connection with Nalls capped a 45-yard, five-play scoring drive with 7:56 remaining in the third and a 30-13 lead. On the next Adairsville possession, Jamarian Pullum scored on a 21-yard scamper to put the Tigers ahead 37-13 with 5:09 remaining in the third period. In the fourth quarter, Ezekiel Carter posted the Tigers' final touchdown of the night with a two-yard run. Souders' PAT gave Adairsville a 44-13 lead and triggered a running clock for the remainder of the game. LaFayette (0-5, 0-1) hosts Ridgeland next week. Adairsville (4-1, 1-0) visits Calhoun on Friday for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. ~~ Larry Gardner contributed to this report.

September 21, 2024 Charles Wilson / BartowSportsZone.com The Cartersville Purple Hurricanes dominated the Woodland Wildcats with a 55-7 victory on Friday night. Cartersville struck early, opening the scoring with a 63-yard Nate Russell touchdown pass to Brady Marchese . A two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving the Canes up, 6-0, with 10:21 remaining in the first quarter. On the next drive, Russell added a 12-yard rushing touchdown for a 13-0 advantage with 8:17 left in the period. Baylon Long and Jacaiden Leonard followed with rushing touchdowns of their own, pushing Cartersville to a swift 26-0 lead. Long's 3-yard run came with 11:22 remaining in the second quarter, and Leonard's 3-yard plunge occurred with 8:18 left in the half. With 6:51 remaining in the second quarter, Cartersville’s defense secured a safety and a 28-0 advantage after tackling Woodland in the end zone following a snap over the head of the Wildcats' punter. Andrew Purdy capitalized on the next Canes' possession with an 8-yard touchdown run. It was the Hurricanes’ fourth rushing touchdown of the night. Woodland put points on the scoreboard before the intermission. Isaiah Livsey fended off several would-be tacklers and scored on a 19-yard run with just over a minute remaining in the first half. The Wildcats' touchdown cut the deficit to 35-7 at the half. In the second half, Freshman quarterback Harris Turner tossed a pair of touchdown passes for the Hurricanes. Turner connected with Jackson Montgomery for an 11-yard scoring play to give Cartersville a 42-7 lead with 6:36 remaining in the third quarter. He also had a 40-yard touchdown pass to Cooper Melvin with 4:07 left in the game. Between those two scoring strikes with 11:07 remaining, Kaiden Kent punched in a sweep play from the 7-yard line, adding to the 55-7 final score. Woodland (1-3, 0-1) travels to Cass on Sept. 27. Cartersville (6-0, 2-0) enters a bye week before hosting Cass on Oct. 4. ~~ Kevin Pate, Matt Santini, and David Herron contributed to this report.

September 20, 2024 The Adairsville, Cass, Excel Christian, and Woodland volleyball teams were all in action Thursday night and the local teams did not fair well. Cass (5-14, 1-6) lost to Armuchee (25-5, 25-15) and Model (25-7, 25-18) in a tri-match at Model High School. Woodland (3-22, 0-7) lost in straight sets at North Paulding (25-9 and 25-8). Adairsville won the first set at Sonoraville 25-20 but lost the next two sets to the Phoenix 25-14 and 15-9. Excel (1-13) dropped a three-set match to Notre Dame Academy at home. The Eagles lost the opening set 25-21, won the second set 25-21, but lost the third set 15-8. Excel also lost a 25-4 and 25-9 decision to St. John Bosco Academy. Adairsville will participate in the Southeast Whitfield tournament on Saturday. Cass hosts Darlington and Cambridge on Tuesday.  Woodland plays at Gordon Central and will also face Dade County on Tuesday. Excel visits Georgia Cumberland Academy on Thursday.

September 19, 2024 Cartersville posted six runs in the top of the first inning Thursday night and added three more in the fourth inning for a 9-0 five-inning, Region 7-AAAA win at Cass. The Lady Canes’ victory completed a three-game season sweep of the Lady Colonels. Zoie Shiflett (3.2 IP, 0R, 2H, 0BB, 6K) and Presley Crabbe (1.1 IP, 0R, 0H, 0BB, 3K) combined in the circle for Cartersville to complete the shutout. Shiflett also homered twice and drove in five runs. Allana Williams (RBI) and Kinsey Woodard (double) produced two hits for the Lady Canes. Jordan Bishop hit a solo home run. Lakaiya Banks (double), Kennedy Crenshaw, Reece Dumas, Layne Callan (double, two RBI), and Taryn Bradley added one hit. Lily Powell (0.1 IP, 6ER, 6H, 0BB, 1K) suffered the pitching loss for Cass. Emma Gibson (4.2 IP, 3ER, 5H, 3BB, 1K) pitched in relief for the Lady Colonels.  Chloe Hill and Darianna Sosa had one hit each for Cass.  The Lady Canes (17-4, 15-1) visit Carrollton on Monday for a non-region game and will host Woodland on Tuesday. Cass (12-8, 10-6) hosts Hiram on Monday, visits Southeast Whitfield on Tuesday, and entertains Pace Academy for a non-region game on Wednesday. WOODLAND 5, CEDARTOWN 4 Kamryn Smith and Bitsy Hartsfield hit back-to-back home runs Thursday night in the bottom of the fourth inning to give Woodland a 5-3 lead in an eventual 5-4 home win over Cedartown. The Bulldogs led 3-0 in the early innings before the Lady Cats posted their five runs across the third and fourth innings. Cedartown scored a run in the top of the seventh and had a potential tying run on base, but Wildcats’ pitcher Gracie Korb shut down the Bulldogs’ threat with a flyout and a strikeout. Korb (7 IP, 4R, 2ER, 5H, 7BB, 1K) picked up the pitching victory for Woodland by working all seven innings in the circle. Smith (double, three-run home run) and Hartsfield (solo home run) led the Lady Cats’ offense with two hits. Mackenzie Araya (RBI) and Bailey Gerstner added one hit. The loss dropped Cedartown to 16-9 overall and 11-7 in Region 7-AAAA. Woodland (5-12, 5-11) plays at Cartersville on Tuesday.

September 18, 2024 Two bases loaded walks in the top of the seventh inning Wednesday evening helped lift the visiting Gilmer Bobcats past Adairsville, 5-3. Gilmer took a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, and the score remained the same until the host Lady Tigers tied the game in the bottom of the sixth. Adairsville started the bottom of the seventh with a baserunner but then went quietly with two strikeouts and a pop out. Seven Tigers had one hit each — Alivia Joslin, Brie Patterson, Cheyenne Gunter, Ashlyn Carlton, Taylor Evans, Ashlynn Durden, and Maddie Baggett. Baggett (6 IP, 5R, 4ER, 7H, 4BB, 4K) went six innings in the circle for Adairsville. Jordan Clay (0.1 IP, 0R, 2BB, 1K) and Carlton (0.2 IP) also pitched for the Tigers. Gilmer improved to 5-18 overall and 1-12 in Region 7-AAA. Adairsville (12-9, 4-8) hosts Ridgeland on Monday.

September 18, 2024 On Tuesday night, the Cartersville High volleyball team remained unbeaten in Region 7-AAAA, winning over Southeast Whitfield and Hiram in Dalton. Cartersville defeated the host Lady Raiders 25-17 and 25-20 and Hiram in two sets, 25-12 and 25-15. Cass defeated Woodland 25-17 and 25-13 at Cedartown but lost to the host Lady Bulldogs 25-16 and 25-17.  Woodland also lost to Cedartown 25-23 and 25-10 at the tri-match. Katie Clowers had seven aces for Woodland in their four sets. Karisma Torres contributed three kills. Host Adairsville lost to Heritage-Catoosa 25-20 and 25-12. The Lady Tigers also fell to LaFayette 25-15 and 25-9 on a night they celebrated their seniors. Alexa Wynn had six assists and five digs, while Ella Steward added three digs, one ace, two kills, and one block in the loss to Heritage. Cara Harp had two kills against LaFayette, and Addie Pearson totaled 18 digs in the two matches. In Emerson, Excel Christian Academy lost in three sets to Unity Christian on Tuesday night — 25-8, 25-7, and 25-14. Cartersville (22-6, 7-0) hosts Mount Paran Christian next Tuesday. Cass (5-12, 1-6) visits Model on Thursday and will also square off with Armuchee. Woodland (3-21, 0-7) travels to North Paulding on Thursday. Adairsville (11-19, 3-5) plays at Sonoraville on Thursday and hosts Chattooga on Saturday. Excel (1-11, 1-8) entertains St. John Bosco Academy and Notre Dame Academy on Thursday.

September 17, 2024 Cartersville pitcher Zoie Shiflett struck out eight and threw a five-inning, no-hitter Tuesday night in the Lady Canes’ 14-0 win at Dalton. Shiflett needed just 84 pitches and faced 20 batters. She hit one batter and walked three. Lakaiya Banks  led the Cartersville offense with three hits, including a double and two RBI. Jordan Bishop (home run, three RBI), Kennedy Crenshaw (double, four RBI), and Allana Williams (RBI) followed with two hits. Layne Callan (two RBI), Addi Burns, and Kinsey Woodard added one hit. The loss dropped Dalton to 4-13 overall and 4-11 in Region 7-AAAA. 4th-ranked Cartersville (16-4, 14-1) plays at Cass on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CASS 12, WOODLAND 11 In a game loaded with hits and defensive miscues, the Cass Lady Colonels held off host Woodland in the late innings Tuesday night for a 12-11 region win. Woodland and Cass combined for 30 hits — 15 each — but also combined for ten errors — five each. Kylie Gentry of Cass (7 IP, 11R, 5ER, 15H, 3BB, 4K) outdueled Woodland’s Kamryn Smith (7 IP, 12R, 2ER, 15H, 2BB, 3K) in the pitching circle. Chloe Hill (two RBI) and Sydney Satterfield (double, two RBI) led the Lady Colonels’ offense with three hits. Molli Morrow (RBI), Cayce Brown (RBI), and KK Evans (double, RBI) contributed two hits. Darianna Sosa (three RBI), Braelyn Franklin, and Harlee Thomason added one hit. Jordan Hammonds (double, RBI) led Woodland with four hits. Smith (double, three RBI) and Alana Carnes (two RBI) had three hits. Ashlyn Baines contributed two hits. Bailey Ryan, Lanie Calhoun, and Destiny Eckhart (RBI) added one hit for the Lady Cats. Woodland (4-12, 4-11) hosts Cedartown on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Cass (12-7, 10-5) entertains Cartersville on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.