February 29, 2024 The Adairsville Tigers earned a series split with visiting Cass Thursday night by holding off the Colonels, 4-3. Cass scored a run in the top of the first inning and led 1-0 until Adairsville scored four times in the bottom of the fourth. The Colonels narrowed the margin to 4-3 in the top of the fifth but that would be the end of the scoring. Jack Nelson (5 IP, 3R, 2ER, 6H, 2BB, 7K) started on the mound for the Tigers and picked up the pitching win. Ryan Farr (2 IP, 0R, 0H, 5K) worked two spotless innings and struck out five of six batters faced. Cayden Roberts (4 IP, 4ER, 6H, 2BB, 1K) suffered the pitching loss for Cass. Trenton Payne (2 IP, 0ER, 1H, 3K) pitched the final two frames for the Colonels. Jarrett Scott led the Tigers with three hits. Peyton Bowen followed with two hits. Nelson (solo HR) and Hudson Parr (double, two RBIs) contributed one hit. Easton Elrod added one RBI. Chase Tatum (two RBIs), Devan Hutchinson (RBI), Payne, Roberts, Caleb Freeman, and Jesiel Moctezuma had one hit for Cass. Adairsville (4-2) hosts Sonoraville on Monday at 5:30 p.m. Cass (4-4) plays at Central-Carroll on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. WOODLAND 11, SONORAVILLE 1 The Wildcats posted runs in four of five innings and a pair of Wildcats’ pitchers limited the Phoenix to just one hit as Woodland beat visiting Sonoraville Thursday evening, 11-1. Zach Lambert pitched the first four innings and allowed just one, unearned run on one hit and three walks. He struck out three. Lucas Baker worked a hitless and scoreless fifth inning. He struck out one. Conner Lujan and Ayden Ray led the Wildcats’ offense with two hits each including a double and one RBI. Jake Clowers (two RBIs), Mason Williams (two RBIs), Connor Stermer, Logan Bentley (RBI), Joshua Hicks (RBI), and Cam Williams contributed one hit. Woodland (5-3) plays at Pepperell on Friday at 5:45 p.m. and hosts Wheeler on Saturday at 1 p.m. EXCEL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 19, UNITY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL 0 The Excel Christian Eagles completed a two-game, regular season sweep of Unity Christian School Thursday evening with a 19-0 win and a second, no-hitter in three innings in Rome. Gavin Dyson pitched all three innings for Excel striking out six of the ten batters he faced. David Jinks and Jacob Jinks (double) had three hits and two RBIs each to help lead the office. Dyson contributed two hits including a double and five RBIs. Kamarion Profit (three RBIs), McKaden Gentry (RBI), and Kohl Williams (RBI) also finished with two hits. Cameron Adams (RBI) and Carter May had one hit and one RBI each. Russell Jones drove in two runs. Excel (2-0) hosts Cornerstone Prep on Monday at 3 p.m. and Oakwood Christian for a doubleheader that starts at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

February 28, 2024 The Woodland Lady Cats scored seven first-half goals Wednesday night at Rockmart and finished off the Yellow Jackets in the second half with three more for a 10-0, mercy rule win. Ansley Burns and Reagan Weightman scored two goals and had one assist each., Brionna Carver also scored a pair of goals for Woodland in the second half. Libby Morgan, Maddie Weightman, and Carlie Forman finished with one goal and one assist. Taylor Moore scored a goal and Ximena Avendano added one assist. The loss dropped Rockmart to 2-2 on the season. Woodland (2-0) hosts Adairsville on Friday at 5 p.m. WOODLAND BOYS 11, ROCKMART 1 The Woodland boys led 6-1 at the intermission and added five second-half goals to complete an 11-1 win Wednesday night at Rockmart. Eight different Wildcats scored goals with Luis Olvera Sanchez and Emilio Gonzalez scoring two goals each for Woodland. Juan Mendoza, Chris Sanchez, Hunter Limbaugh, and Joel Alberto contributed one goal and one assist. Deiby Sanchez and Miguel Pineda had one goal apiece while Wmillio Gonzalez and Saul Ortega added one assist each. Woodland keeper Miguel Pineda finished with four saves. The Wildcats (4-0) host Adairsville on Friday at 7:30 p.m.

February 28, 2024 The Cass girls and the Cartersville boys won a tri-meet Tuesday night hosted by Cass High School at Cochran Stadium. The Lady Colonels scored 41 points to defeat Cartersville (36) and Adairsville (22). The Canes’ boys totaled 75 points with Adairsville and Cass following with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Event winners: Girls Discus Throw - Nicole Perez - Adairsville - 97-9 Boys Discus Throw - Thoreau Lipscomb - Cartersville - 126-1 Girls Triple Jump - Nyliah Woods - Cass - 29-8 Boys Triple Jump - Jackson Montgomery - Cartersville - 38-4.25 Girls High Jump - Aliya McBryde - Adairsville - 5-4 Boys High Jump - Cam’ren Collum - Cartersville - 6-2 Girls Shot Put - Nicole Perez - Adairsville - 33-6.25 Boys Shot Put - Thoreau Lipscomb - Cartersville - 39-11.25 Girls Long Jump - Aliya McBryde - Adairsville - 15-4.75 Boys Jump Jump - Charles Coleman - Adairsville - 20-9.25 Girls 100m Hurdles - Aliya McBryde - Adairsville - 16.82 Boys 100m Hurdles - Victor McQueen - Adairsville - 18.05 Girls 100m Dash - Kaitlyn Godwin - Cass - 12.54 Boys 100m Dash - Dakari Young - Cartersville - 11.55 Girls 1600m Run - Vivi Vest - Cartersville - 6:20.82 Boys 1600m Run - Carson Robinson - Cartersville - 4:52.94 Girls 4x800m Relay - Cass - 16:12.50 Boys 4x800m Relay - Cass - 10:10.69 Boys 4x200m Relay - Cartersville - 1:39.13 Girls 4x100m Relay - Cass - 52.64 Boys 4x100m Relay - Cartersville - 42.58 Girls 400m Dash - Kaitlyn Godwin - Cass - 1:06.90 Boys 400m Dash - Kemarie Mitchell - Cartersville - 52.18 Girls 300m Hurdles - Leyla Booth - Cartersville - 51.03 Boys 300m Hurdles - Jimmy Channell - Cartersville - 44.90 Girls 800m Run - Kylie Ham - Cartersville - 2:43.26 Boys 800m Run - Will Feuerbach - Cartersville - 2:01.55 Girls 200m Dash - Kaitlyn Godwin - Cass - 26.37 Boys 200m Dash - Bryson Everett - Cartersville - 23.48 Girls 4x400m Relay - Cartersville - 5:17.71 Boys 4x400m Relay - Cartersville - 3:53.95 Next scheduled meets: Adairsville - Saturday, March 2 - Southeast High School Invitational - Dalton Cartersville - Saturday, March 2 - Purple Hurricane Invitational - Cartersville Cass - Saturday, March 2 - Southeast High School Invitational - Dalton

February 28, 2024 The Adairsville tennis teams played their first Region 6-AAA matches Tuesday night against Gordon Lee. The Tigers won 5-0 and the Lady Tigers won 4-1. Adairsville boys' results: Singles Line 1 -- Braden Potter won 6-4, 6-3 Line 2 -- Micahel Spinks won 6-0, 6-0 Line 3 -- Bryson Gooden won 6-1, 7-5 Doubles Line 1 -- Camden Teems/  Carter Collum won 6-0, 6-4 Line 2 -- Braden Mathis/ Jack Baxter won 6-0, 6-1 Adairsville girls' results: Singles Line 1 -- Madison Abernathy lost 6-2, 4-6, 2-6 Line 2 -- Adysen Garvey won 6-2, 6-3 Line 3 -- Camdyn Collins won 6-0, 6-0 Doubles Line 1 -- Ella Baker/ Darby Adams won 6-3, 6-3 Line 2 -- Stella Rood/ Caroline O'Kelley won 6-2, 7-6 Adairsville's next match is Thursday at Trion.

February 28, 2024 The Georgia Highlands College baseball Chargers blasted visiting Roane State on Tuesday (Feb. 27) 18-1 and 14-3 in a doubleheader sweep. Pitchers Chandler Anderson and Andrew Arnold combined for seven strikeouts in the first victory. Brodie Chestnutt, Hunter Ward, and Reece Robertson combined to scatter five hits with six strikeouts in Game 2. Luke Orfi led the Chargers’ offensive attack with seven hits in the doubleheader including a home run, two doubles, and six RBIs. Barrett Eldridge followed with five hits including a homer, a double, and five RBIs. Grayson Godbee was next with two homers and two doubles that produced five runs. Davis Newman had three hits including a home run, a double, and five RBIs. Clay Wiesen homered and tripled with two RBIs, and Gray Wilson finished with a pair of doubles and one RBI in the two games. Ali Banks (triple, two RBIs), Will Cawthon (RBI), Ryan Martin, Trevor Lovett (sac fly, two RBIs), and Tyler Phillips added one hit. Roane State CC fell to 8-9 with the two losses. Georgia Highlands (18-2) hosts USC Salkehatchie on Saturday and Sunday in a four-game series.

February 27, 2024 The Adairsville girls' soccer team raced to a 6-0 lead in the first half Tuesday night at Hiram en route to a 7-0 blanking of the Lady Hornets. Jordyn Hartline opened the Lady Tigers scoring off a corner kick in the third minute. Alexa Damer quickly followed with an unassisted goal in the 11th minute. The Adairsville scoring barrage continued in the 13th minute when Alivia Joslin found the net off an assist from Damer.  Joslin then assisted Damer in the 17th minute and Joslin scored in the 24th minute from a penalty kick. Samantha Gough put Adairsville up 6-0 at the half with a goal in the 35th minute off a feed from Damer. Gough added the only goal of the second half in the 77th minute with the assist going to Joslin. “This was our best game of the season,” noted head coach Dave Sexauer following the game. “The team passed well, communicated, and used their speed to control play most of the game.” Adairsville (5-1) plays at Woodland on Friday. ADAIRSVILLE BOYS 1, HIRAM 1 The team report coming soon.

February 27, 2024 The Cass High tennis teams dropped a pair of 3-2 decisions Tuesday night to visiting Gordon Central. GORDON CENTRAL 3, CASS GIRLS 2 Singles Line 1 — Carley Cagle lost 2-6, 0-6 Line 2 — Bridget Galloway lost 0-6, 1-6 Line 3 — Riley Rogers lost 0-6, 0-6 Doubles Line 1 — Dariana Sosa and Reese Howard won 6-1, 6-0 Line 2 — Makenna Martin and Rainey Parham won 6-2, 6-0 GORDON CENTRAL 3, CASS BOYS 2 Singles Line 1 — Cliff Chatman lost 2-6, 1-6 Line 2 — Kadin West lost 3-6, 0-6 Line 3 — Jerlen Plala lost 0-6, 1-6 Doubles Line 1 — Lincoln Ritter and Drake Bush won 7-5, 6-2 Line 2 — Nick Moser and Jackson Armona won 6-2, 6-2 The Colonels return to the hardcourts at Sonoraville on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. Matches at the Gordon County Rec Department.

February 27, 2024 Pitchers McKaden Gentry and David Jinks combined on a five-inning, no-hitter Tuesday night at Joe Cowan Park in Euharlee as the Excel Christian Academy Eagles opened their 2024 baseball campaign with a 10-0 win over Unity Christian School of Rome. Gentry struck out eleven and yielded just three walks in the first four frames. Jinks walked one in the fifth inning and fanned two. Cameron Adams paced the Eagles’ offense with a pair of doubles. Gavin Dyson (RBI), David Jinks (double, two RBIs), Gentry (two RBIs), Jacob Jinks (two RBIs), and Kohl Williams contributed one hit each. Excel (1-0) plays at Unity Christian (0-1) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

February 27, 2024 It was another hard-fought road victory for the Lady Canes Tuesday night at Harris County launching the Cartersville girls to their first Final Four appearance since 2010. The Lady Canes traded leads with the host Lady Tigers throughout the night, but it was Cartersville that came out on top following a frenzied fourth quarter, 47-46. The Hurricanes led 8-4 in a sluggish first quarter. KK Arnold and Taff Bradley had two buckets each for Cartersville and Allana Coulter scored both baskets for the Lady Tigers. The pace picked up in the second period. JaNiya Broome, who led Harris County with 17 points, scored nine in the period and Brooke Bass added four. Cartersville stayed within three points at the intermission with Arnold, Ansley Griffin, Nayel Camper, and Senai Camper scoring two points each. Bradley scored five in the second quarter. In the third quarter, Cartersville regained the lead 38-36. Griffin posted eight in the period including a pair of threes. Senai Camper made a three-pointer and had five points in the quarter. Three-pointers by Bryanna Jordan and Cauley plus six points by Coulter kept the Lady Tigers close. With the score tied at 38-all, Arnold’s drive to the basket and subsequent layup gave Cartersville a 40-38 lead with 5:15 remaining. Harris County regained the lead on their next possession with a bucket and a free throw. A Lady Canes’ turnover resulted in another Lady Tigers score and a 43-40 Harris County lead with 4:12 to play. Bradley scored in the post on the Lady Canes’ next two possessions and Cartersville held a 44-43 advantage with 3:15 left in the game. Following two more stops by Cartersville, another Bradley power move underneath gave the Lady Canes a 46-43 lead with 2:31 remaining and coach Karisma Boykin used a timeout. Harris County cut the lead to 46-45 on their ensuing possession and Cartersville went right back the Bradley in the post. She was fouled and made one of two free throws for a 47-45 Canes’ lead. With 1:16 left in the game, Broome went to the charity stripe for Harris County and made one of two free throws narrowing Cartersville’s lead to 47-46. Following a Bradley miss on the next trip, Griffin made a timely steal and the Canes called timeout to set up the final stretch. Coming out of the timeout, Arnold missed on a drive to the basket but made a steal following the Harris County rebound, and again the Canes — up by one — used a timeout with 0:33 remaining. The frenetic pace continued with a Cartersville turnover on the throw-in, but Arnold was able to force a held ball with 0:15 to play. The possession arrow favored Harris County giving the Tigers an opportunity for a go-ahead basket in the final seconds. Broome was forced to pass off her dribble to Bass in the waning seconds. She missed a last-second shot attempt and it appeared Bradley had the rebound to secure the Cartersville victory. Unfortunately, however, Bradley was whistled for a foul with 0.4 seconds left in the game. The foul sent Harris County to the free throw line with a chance to win or tie, but the Lady Tigers’ shooter missed both attempts and the Lady Canes escaped with another thrilling tournament win. In addition to Broome’s 17 points (8 of her team’s 10 in the fourth quarter), Coulter scored 14 for Harris County. Bass contributed seven. Cauley scored five and Bryanna Jordan added three for the Lady Tigers (25-4). Bradley scored a game-high 18 points for Cartersville including seven of the Lady Canes’ nine points in the final period. Ansley Griffin followed with 10 points. KK Arnold tossed in eight. Senai Camper and Nayel Camper added seven and four points, respectively. Bradley added nine rebounds and three steals. Griffin had a pair of boards and one assist. Arnold contributed seven assists and three steals, and Senai Camper added eight assists with five rebounds. Cartersville (18-12) will play 2nd-ranked Jackson-Atlanta in the Final Four on Friday afternoon at the University of West Georgia in Carrollton. Jackson knocked off top-ranked Union Grove 80-55 in the quarterfinals on Tuesday night. The other Class 5A girls' state semifinal will be Dalton against Midtown — also at UWG — at 5 p.m. on Friday. Dalton beat Arabia Mountain 71-52 and Midtown topped Jones County, 58-37.

February 27, 2024 The Cartersville Purple Hurricanes (6-0) will participate this week in the 2024 Perfect Game High School Showdown in Hoover, Alabama. Currently ranked No. 1 in Class 5A in Georgia, the Canes will play in the 16-team Red Bracket with four games over three days — Thursday through Saturday. Cartersville opens the first round on Thursday at 8 p.m. against the Calera (Ala.) Eagles. The game is slated for Hoover High School. The outcome of the opening game will determine the Hurricanes second opponent and game time. The first-round winner will play on Friday at 5 p.m. against the Bob Jones (Miss.) / Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee, Ga.) winner. The losers of those first-round games will square off on Friday at 1 p.m. The tournament semifinals and championship games are scheduled for 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturday at the Hoover Met Sports Complex on Fields 2 and 3. If knocked out of the championship bracket, all teams will receive a four-game slate at the event with consolation games. Those game times and field locations will be determined. Other teams in the Red Bracket include Providence School (Jacksonville, Fla.), Grissom (Huntsville, Ala.), Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, NC), Chelsea (Ala.), Thompson (Alabaster, Ala.),  Dublin (Ga.), Hernando (Miss.), Russell County (Seale, Ala.), Pickens County (Jasper, Ga.), Gulf Shores (Ala.), IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), and Barbe (Lake Charles, La.). Cartersville is the #3 seed in the Red Bracket, behind top-seeded Thompson and Wesleyan Christian Academy -- winners of their sixth state title last year. The Canes are seeded one spot ahead of IMG Academy. “It’s the best high school baseball tournament in the country. I don’t think there’s any doubt about it,” said Tucker. “The talent there, the teams, the atmosphere – it’s exciting. It’s kind of like how Omaha is to the College World Series.” The Cartersville offense has been led by Caleb Daniel’s .625 batting average, team-leading three home runs and 12 runs batted in. Following closely is Cam Cochran, who has the most RBIs at 13 alongside his .471 batting average and a home run. Other leaders include leadoff man Luke Miller (.444, team-leading 10 runs scored) and Landon Cole (.438, 8 RBIs, leading with three doubles). The defense has been paced by seniors Sawyer Wilson and Ryan Johnson, both 2-0 on the season with eight total innings pitched each. Johnson began the season with three strikeouts on the way to his current 12 while Wilson and Nate Russell have sat down nine batters each. Andrew Purdy has collected two saves. “Caleb Daniel had one of the best weeks a Cartersville player may have ever had last week,” Tucker added. “He went 8-for-12 in four games with two home runs, a triple, a double, eight RBIs, and scored six runs. That’s video game numbers. Andrew Purdy is doing great in the cleanup role, getting on base. “On the mound, Ryan has set the tone. Andrew has done well as the closer. Sawyer has already picked up two wins and Logan Shrewsbury is doing well out of the bullpen.” Others have stepped in as steady contributors. “It’s his first time playing on the varsity, but Aidan Larkin has been tremendous in getting on base and leading us with five stolen bases,” said Tucker. “The hits he wants aren’t there yet, but they’ll come. He’s doing what the number two hitter needs to do.” The Canes have eight players committed so far to play at the next level with D-I signees Johnson and Daniel (UGA), Purdy (Alabama), Larkin (Kentucky) and Wilson (Kennesaw State) alongside Luke Miller (Columbus State), Dawson Bishop (South Carolina-Lancaster) and Nick Ruby (Bryan College). Larkin, the future Wildcat, gives himself and his team a decent grade so far, but with room for improvement. “It’s been a fun year. We have great guys,” Larkin said. “Landon Cole has worked really hard to get better. Caleb Daniel has been on fire, too. Luke Miller has been a great leadoff hitter and got bigger in the offseason, more physical at the plate. I feel I’ve done pretty well in getting on base and playing pretty good defense. I’d like to cut down on the strikeouts a little bit, maybe put the ball in play a little more and work it to the opposite field a little better,” Larkin concluded. "The upcoming tournament finishes off the first third of the season and will be a good measuring stick for this team," added Tucker. “We move into our region schedule from there and then, if we do well enough, on to the state tournament. We’ve worked hard these first few weeks, knowing the type of competition we’re going to see in Hoover.” Editor's note: The final portion of this story was shared from CanesAthletics.com.

February 27, 2024 The Woodland boys tennis team defeated visiting Rockmart 3-2 on Monday but the Lady Cats dropped a 1-4 decision. ROCKMART 4, WOODLAND GIRLS 1 Singles: Line 1 — Caleigh Williams lost 1-6, 1-6 Line 2 — Kathryn Kovacic won 6-7, 7-6, 10-3 Line 3 — Diana Librado lost 3-6, 7-5, 3-10 Doubles: Line 1 — Ellie Holt and Ella Bridges lost 0-6, 0-6 Line 2 — Katie Anne Jones and Sarah Smith lost 1-6, 4-6 WOODLAND BOYS 3, ROCKMART 2 Singles: Line 1 — Peter Heins won 6-1, 7-5 Line 2 — Domenic Ciavarro won 6-0, 6-0 Line 3 — Forfeit Doubles: Line 1 — Cadyn Wade and Jack Gore won 6-2, 6-3 Line 2 — Kaiden Holbrook and Alex Gerstner lost 4-6, 2-6 Woodland hosts Paulding County on Wednesday at 4 p.m.

February 27, 2024 Cayden Roberts hit a one-out single into left field to drive in Jesiel Moctezuma with the game-winning, walk-off run Monday night as the Cass Colonels nipped visiting Adairsville, 8-7. Chase Tatum picked up the pitching win after striking out two to end the Adairsville top of the seventh. Both teams posted three first-inning runs then Cass scored two runs in the third inning and one more in the fifth inning to build a 6-3 lead. The Tigers narrowed the margin to 6-5 in the top of the sixth, but the Colonels pushed across another run to take a 7-5 lead. Adairsville tied the game in the top of the seventh without the benefit of a base hit. The Tigers took advantage of four walks, a hit batsman, and a wild pitch. Roberts’ game-winning hit for Cass came after Moctezuma and Hunter Lovett started the inning with singles. Cass outhit Adairsville nine to six. Peyton Bowen (RBI) and Jack Nelson (double) both had two hits to lead the Tigers’ offense. Harrison Cole and Jarrett Scott had one hit each. PJ Weeks, Ryan Farr, and Hayden Blalock each drove in a run. McCayden Hufstetler (1.1 IP, 2R, 1ER, 4H, 2BB, 3K) was the pitcher of record for Adairsville in relief of starter Dawson Craig (0.2 IP, 3R, 0ER, 2H, 1BB, 1K) and relievers Scott (4 IP, 3ER, 3H, 4BB, 6K) and Kaiden Coker (0.1 IP, 1BF). Lovett (4.1 IP, 3R, 1ER, 5H, 3BB, 3K) started on the mound for Cass and worked into the fifth inning. Justin Peace (1.2 IP, 2R, 1ER, 1H, 1BB, 5K) and Trenton Payne (0.1 IP, 2ER, 3BB, 1K) pitched in middle relief for the Colonels. Devan Hutchinson (three RBIs), Roberts (RBI), Tatum, and Lovett (double) contributed two hits each for the Colonels. Connor Jenkins added a double and one RBI. Caleb Freeman added one RBI. Cass hosts Central-Carroll on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. and will play at Adairsville (3-2) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. WOODLAND 15, SOUTHEAST WHITFIELD 0 Woodland scored ten runs in the top of the first inning and Wildcats’ pitcher Logan Bentley tossed a four-inning one-hitter Monday in a 15-0 win at Southeast Whitfield. Woodland finished with eleven hits. Bentley had three hits including two doubles and four RBIs. Connor Stermer also produced three hits including a pair of doubles and two RBIs. Conner Lujan followed with two hits and one RBI. Ayden Ray hit a three-run home run in the opening inning. Jake Clowers had one hit and one RBI. Cam Williams contributed a hit and Lucas Baker, Mason Williams, and Luke Evans each added one RBI with a sacrifice fly. Woodland (4-3) hosts Sonoraville on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.