Claire Davis and Keara McDaniel led Cass with 13 and 11 points, respectively as the Lady Colonels finished play with a 56-34 win over the Social Circle Redskins at the Apalachee Thanksgiving Tournament Saturday. Cass trailed 10-9 after the opening eight minutes, but pulled ahead 23-19 by halftime and led 41-31 heading into the final period. Jada Hyman led Social Circle (1-2) with 14 points. Rounding out the scoring for Cass: Kiana McDaniel scored nine points, Haley Johnson six, Miya Winston and Justice Bennett five each; Amaya Ford and Mikaela Jackson three apiece; and Zion Hayes added one point. Cass (3-1) travels to Dalton Tuesday night to play at Christian Heritage at 6 p.m. The boys teams will follow at 7:30 p.m.

The Cass Lady Colonels bounced back from a Wednesday night loss to Class A Private defending state champion Hebron Christian with an 84-40 win over host Apalachee Friday evening at the Lady Wildcats’ Thanksgiving Shootout. Cass raced to a 21-8 lead in the first eight minutes Friday night and never trailed Apalachee. The Colonels led 43-19 at halftime and built a 30-point lead by the end of the third quarter. Claire Davis finished with a game-high 15 points for the balanced Cass scoring attack. Freshman Miya Winston followed with 13. Zion Hayes scored 12 and Keara McDaniel totaled 11 points. Mikaela Jackson finished with nine; Keana McDaniel seven; Reese Howard and Haley Johnson six each; Amaya Ford five; and Justice Bennett added two points. Jasmine Williams scored 13 points for the Wildcats (0-5). The win was a bounce-back for Cass who fell to Hebron Christian 61-44 Wednesday afternoon. Davis had 15 points and five rebounds in the loss. Winston added 14 points and six rebounds. Cass (2-1) wraps up action at the Apalachee Shootout Saturday afternoon against Social Circle (1-1).

The Adairsville girls basketball team outscored Model 8-2 in overtime Tuesday night to improve to 3-0 on the season with a 52-46 win at the Armuchee Thanksgiving Invitational in Rome. The Lady Tigers trailed 23-17 at halftime, but caught the Blue Devils by the end of the third quarter and tied the score at 35-all. Both teams scored nine points in the fourth quarter and went to the overtime period tied at 44-all. Autumn Henderson led Adairsville in scoring with 14 points. Naxyria Roberts scored 12. Lexie Childers followed with 11. Haley Stiles posted eight points. Alissa Winters and Ya’Torrean Hale added four and three points, respectively. Ansley Coogler led Model with 16 points. Rachael Burkehalter scored 11 for the Blue Devils. The loss dropped Model to 0-2 on the seaason. Adairsville (3-0) plays at Dalton Academy next Tuesday.

The Cartersville boys basketball team evened its early season mark with a 62-59 win Tuesday afternoon over Lassiter at the Woodstock High School Thanksgiving Invitational. The Purple Hurricanes trailed most of the contest, but rallied in the final period to outscore the Trojans 16-6 for a three-point win. Lassiter led 18-9 at the end of the first quarter, 36-26 at halftime, and 53-46 heading into the final eight minutes. Cartersville’s Kam Callahan knocked down seven 3-pointers and scored 32 points to lead all scorers. Romo Pace finished with 14 points. Luke Gambill scored 11. Jaeden Scott contributed three points and Jamauri Brice added two for the Canes. Noah Grigsby led the Trojans (0-3) with 15 points. Harper Kirby and Rickardo Jackson added 10 points each for Lassiter. Cartersville (1-1) travels to Sonoraville next Tuesday.

A difficult season continued for former Cartersville High and Clemson quarterback Sunday in a 30-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville. The Jaguars dropped to 2-8 on the season and have an offense producing an NFL-low 14.7 points per game. The team has scored just four offensive touchdowns in their last four games. In that same stretch, the offense has produced just seven plays of 20 or more yards. The Jags longest play Sunday was a 22-yard pass from Lawrence to Marvin Jones, Jr. when Jacksonville trailed 30-3 late in the fourth quarter. Lawrence was frustrated in post-game comments Sunday, but assured his coach and fans that he will keep fighting. "There's not much left to say," Lawrence told reporters after the game. "I'm not going to sit up here and say all the positive things that came out of it. There's not much out of today. We got our butt kicked, didn't look good all the way around, so, where you go from here is just keep going to work. Everybody has to stay together and keep fighting. I know I will. I'm never going to quit." On the college football front, a pair of local specialists -- Kennesaw State long snapper Jacob Potter and Incarnate Word placekicker John Scifers -- have helped their respective teams earn spots in the NCAA FCS playoffs that begin this Saturday. NFL TREVOR LAWRENCE — Jacksonville Jaguars (Rookie season, Cartersville HS) … finished 16-for-25 passing for 158 yards Sunday in a 30-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Lawrence also rushed for 23 yards on three attempts as the Jaguars fell to 2-8 on the season. Jacksonville hosts the Atlanta Falcons Sunday in a 1 p.m. kickoff. COLLEGE FOOTBALL TERRY BERDIN — Reinhardt University (Jr., Cartersville HS) … had one carry for two yards Saturday in Reinhardt’s 16-13 NAIA playoff loss in Waleska to Keiser University. The Eagles’ season ended with a 9-3 record. CHRIS BLACKSTON — University of West Georgia (Sr., Adairsville HS)… had one tackle Saturday as the Wolves defeated Albany State 23-7 in the opening round of the NCAA D-II playoffs. West Georgia (9-2) advances to play at No. 1-ranked Valdosta State Saturday at 1 p.m. TREY CREAMER — UNC Charlotte (R-Sr., Cartersville HS)… made two tackles Saturday in the 49ers’ 49-28 home loss to Marshall. Charlotte (5-6) has another chance to become bowl eligible Saturday at Old Dominion. JONATHAN CRUZ — UNC Charlotte (Sr., Cartersville HS)… made all four PAT kick attempts but missed a 44-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter during Charlotte’s 49-28 home loss Saturday to Marshall. Cruz also kicked off four times with two going for touchbacks. The 49ers (5-6) play at Old Dominion this Saturday. JORDAN FERGUSON — Middle Tennessee State University (R-Jr., Cartersville HS)… the Cartersville High graduate who prepped at St. Francis High School in Milton had three tackles in the Blue Raiders’ 24-17 home loss to Old Dominion Saturday. The starting defensive lineman now has 49 tackles this season. MTSU (5-6) travels to Boca Raton, Florida Saturday night to play at Florida Atlantic University. MANNY JONES — Colorado State University (Grad Student, Woodland HS) … made one tackle in the Rams’50-45 loss Saturday at Hawaii. CSU (3-8) hosts Nevada this Saturday night. TITUS JONES — Colorado State University (R-So., Woodland HS) … made one tackle in CSU’s loss Saturday at Hawaii. The Rams (3-8) close out the 2021 season Saturday at home against Nevada. JACOB POTTER — Kennesaw State University (Sr., Adairsville HS) … snapped for field goals, extra points, and punts in KSU’s 49-17 Big South Conference clinching win over Monmouth University. Fifth-ranked KSU (10-1) opens the 2021 FCS playoffs Saturday at home against Davidson (8-2) at 2 p.m. JOHN SCIFERS — University Incarnate Word (Grad Student, Woodland HS) … had ten kickoffs, six for touchbacks, in the Cardinals’ 55-14 win at Houston Baptist to capture the Southland Conference championship and an automatic FCS playoff bid. UIW (9-2) opens the playoff bracket at home Saturday at 3 p.m. against Stephen F. Austin (8-3). EVAN SLOCUM — Wake Forest University (Fr., Cartersville HS) … had three tackles in the Deamon Deacons’ 48-27 loss Saturday at Clemson. Wake Forest (9-2) travels to Boston College Saturday. BRANDON WADE — University of West Florida (R-So., Cartersville HS) … saw action but did not record any stats in the Argonauts’ 33-30 NCAA D-II home playoff loss to Newberry. The defensive lineman finished the season with eight tackles. UWF finished the season 9-2. SWIMMING GRAYSON BREEDLOVE — Lenoir-Rhyne University (So., Cartersville HS) … was the first leg of LRU’s 400 yard medley relay B team that placed 17th at the Kellianne Nagy Fall Frenzy hosted by Queens University of Charlotte this past Friday through Sunday. Her 200-yard medley relay team placed 16th Saturday and her 400-yard freestyle relay team was 17th Sunday. The Bears return to action December 17-20 at the University of Tampa Spartan Invitational in Clearwater, Florida. HARPER POWELL — Florida Tech (Fr., Adairsville HS) … competing with the Panthers at their own Invitational Friday through Sunday in Melbourne, Florida, Powell was a member of the 5th place 200-yard freestyle relay team; 7th place 200-yard medley relay team; 8th place 400-yard freestyle relay team; and finished 10th in the 50-yard freestyle as an individual. Florida Tech returns to action Saturday, December 18 at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida. WRESTLING RASHAR LOCKLEAR — Central Methodist University (Fr., Cartersville HS) … went 0-2 in the Freshman/Sophomore 174-pound Black Division of the Lindenwood University (Missouri) Open. Next for the Eagles is the Drury Open Saturday in Springfield, Missouri. CADEN McCRARY — University of North Carolina (Fr., Woodland HS) … went 0-2 at the Life University Freshman/Sophomore Open Saturday in Marietta. North Carolina also had a 24-12 win Sunday night at home over Campbell. The Tar Heels will face Wisconsin and Rutgers Saturday night in the Garden State Grapple in Newark, New Jersey. BASKETBALL DiANTHONY HEATHCOCK — Columbia International University (So., Woodland HS) … started both home games and totaled 49 minutes across the two wins last week for the Rams. CIU defeated Reinhardt Wednesday and Montreat Saturday. Heathcock scored nine pointss with seven rebounds and one blocked shot in the 90-85 win over Montreat. He scored 13 points with 21 rebounds and two blocked shots against Reinhardt. The Rams (4-3) play at Point University Tuesday and have an exhibition at NCAA D-I Gardner-Webb Wednesday night. T.J. HORTON — Georgia Highlands College (Fr., Cartersville HS) … scored eight points with three rebounds, one assist, and one steal last Tuesday in an 82-78 win at Chattahoochee Valley CC. He also had seven points, three rebounds, and one assist Friday in an 88-82 home loss to State College Florida-Manatee/Sarasota. Sunday, Horton scored 12 points with four boards and one assist in a 102-64 home loss to Chipola College. Georgia Highlands College (3-2) plays Thursday against Indian River State College at SCF-Manatee, Friday at SCF-Manatee, and Saturday against Eastern Florida State in Bradenton, Florida. JAYLON PUGH — Furman University (Sr., Cartersville HS) … played two minutes off the bench in the Paladins’ 95-89 loss at Belmont last Monday. Furman also beat Radford Friday night and lost to Navy Sunday. The Paladins (3-2) play at USC-Upstate Saturday afternoon. JOSIE SUMMERVILLE — North Park University (Sr., Adairsville HS) … totaled four points and six rebounds with three assists and one steal coming off the bench in two wins this past week. The Vikings beat Rose-Hulman Tech Friday and Bethany Lutheran Saturday. NPU (4-1) hosts Olivet College Saturday afternoon.

The Cartersville High School boys basketball team dropped its season opening game Monday night in a holiday tournament at Woodstock, falling to South Forsyth 71-50. The Canes trailed just 15-12 after one period, but the War Eagles separated over the next two periods. The War Eagles scored 38 points in the second and third periods combined, doubling the Cartersville total. Kam Callahn made four 3-pointers for Cartersville and led the team with 24 points. Romo Pace scored 16 for the Canes. Jaedon Scott collected four steals. Cartersville (0-1) plays Lassiter Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. at Woodstock High School.

The Excel Christian Academy boys evened their season record at 2-2 Monday night with a 79-74 overtime win over visiting Cornerstone Prep. The game was tied 36-all at the intermission but Excel took a 59-51 lead by the end of the third quarter. Cornerstone (1-4) outscored the Eagles 18-10 in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime. Excel then outscored the visitors 10-5 in the extra period to capture the win. Jakaden Barkley scored 27 to lead the Eagles. Elijah Payne followed with 18 and Comari Nettles finished with 17 points. Jacob Taylor scored 14 and Trey Webb chipped in three points. Jonathan Everill and Devon Sweat led Cornerstone with 24 points each. Excel will return to action Thursday, December 2 at home against Pepperell.

Results for the four local high school competition cheerleading teams that qualified for the GHSA State Finals competition last weekend at the Macon Centreplex. Cartersville placed fourth in Class 5A for the top finish among local teams. Adairsville was seventh in Class AAA. Cass was 10th in Class 5A and Woodland finished 14th in the Co-Ed division. Complete results for the divisions including local teams are listed below: Class AAA 1 - Dawson County 2 - Pierce County 3 - Mary Persons 4 - Morgan County 5 - East Jackson 6 - Sonoraville 7 - Adairsville 8 - Greater Atlanta Christian 9 - Stephens County 10 - East Forsyth 11 - Ringgold 12 - Hart County 13 - Appling County 14 - Oconee County 15 - Rockmart 16 - LaFayette Class AAAAA 1 - McIntosh 2 - Whitewater 3 - Greenbrier 4 - Cartersville 5 - Starr’s Mill 6 - Calhoun 7 - Ola 8 - Villa Rica 9 - Loganville 10 - Cass 11 - Wayne County 12 - Walnut Grove 13 - Veterans 14 - Ware County 15 - Eastside 16 - Warner Robins GHSA Co-Ed 1 - Northgate 2 - Forsyth Central 3 - Chapel Hill 4 - Peachtree Ridge 5 - Milton 6 - Union Grove 7 - Winder-Barrow 8 - Apalachee 9 - Lowndes 10 - Glynn Academy 11 - Chestatee 12 - East Paulding 13 - Grovetown 14 - Woodland 15 - Wheeler 16 - Cook County

The Adairsville girls basketball team collected a second straight win at the Armuchee Invitational Tournament Monday night with a 52-41 victory over the host Lady Indians. Adairsville led 17-14 after one quarter; 32-22 at halftime; and 47-28 after three quarters before holding on for an 11-point victory. Haley Stiles scored 12 of her game-high 17 points in the first quarter. Alissa Winters and Ya’Torrean Hale followed with eight points apiece for the Tigers. Makayla Wade pumped in seven. Autumn Henderson scored six. Lexie Childers contributed four points and Sarah Brownlee chipped in two points for Adairsville. Olivia Moses scored 16 for Armuchee (0-2). Bailey Tomlin added 10 for the Indians. Adairsville (2-0) wraps up play in the invitational Tuesday at 5 p.m. against Model. MT. ZION-CARROLL 61, WOODLAND GIRLS 36 The Woodland girls slipped to 0-2 on the season Monday night following a 61-36 loss to Mt. Zion-Carroll at the Paulding County Invitational. Mt. Zion (3-1) led 21-6 after one quarter and 41-16 at halftime. Jordan Kierbow led the Eagles with 27 points. Abigail Taylor paced the Lady Cats with 19 points. Reagan Weightman followed with eight points. Morgan Echols scored four points. Dylynn Motes and Megan Schultz finished with two points each. Kasidee Wall added one point. Woodland wraps up play in the tournament Tuesday at 3 p.m. against Hiram. CASS BOYS 62, KENNESAW MOUNTAIN 52 The Cass boys improved to 2-0 Saturday with a 62-52 win over Kennesaw Mountain in a game played at Woodstock High School. The Colonels trailed by seven points at halftime before outscoring the Mustangs 40-23 in the second half for a 10-point win. “We found a way to fight through some adversity, stick together, and gain some valuable game experience,” said first year Cass head coach Byron Taylor. “We are such a young team with several guys adjusting to new roles at the varsity level. Every rep in practice and play in games just adds to our experience level and comfort level as a team. It’s nice to start 2-0, but we have a window of improvement we will continue to chase all season long.” Jackson Hale led the Colonels with 18 points. Ethan McIntosh scored nine. Sacovie White, Jayden Foster, and Devin Henderson followed with eight points each. Jelani Hames contributed seven and Kaden Baldwin added four points for Cass. Jake Whitaker led Kennesaw Mountain (0-2) with 18 points. Cass travels to Rome Tuesday for a 7:30 p.m. start.

Playing their first round game at the Armuchee High School Invitational Tournament Saturday in Rome, the Adairsville High School girls basketball team edged Sonoraville, 33-29. The Lady Tigers trailed 7-4 after one quarter and were behind 14-13 at halftime before outscoring the Lady Phoenix 11-2 in the third quarter to take the lead, 24-16. Haley Stiles, who scored all 13 of her points in the second half, led Adairsville. She was followed by Autumn Henderson with six, Alissa Winters four, and Ya’torrean Hale with three points. Aliya McBride, Lexie Childers, and Mia Scott chipped in two points each and Naxyna Roberts added one point for the Tigers. Diona Smith led Sonoraville (0-1) with 10 points. Adairsville (1-0) plays host Armuchee Monday night at 6:30 p.m. WOODLAND GIRLS DROP OPENER The Woodland High School girls basketball team lost its opening game of the 2021-22 season Saturday at Paulding County, 43-25. The game was the first game for both teams in the Paulding County Invitational which continues through Tuesday. The host Patriots (2-2) built a 19-1 lead in the first eight minutes and were in control throughout. Paulding led 25-6 at halftime and 33-20 through three quarters. Bra’nae Madisett had a game-high 17 points to lead Paulding County. Woodland was led by Abigail Taylor with 12 points. Morgan Echols scored six. Cassidy Wall finished with five points. Megan Schultz and Jakaya Garnigan added one point each for the Lady Cats. Woodland (0-1) plays consolation games Monday and Tuesday in the tournament.

The Woodland High School boys basketball team earned a 60-51 season-opening win Saturday at Gordon Central. The Wildcats led at each quarter stop throughout the game. Woodland led 14-9 after the opening eight minutes; 29-18 at halftime; and 42-31 after three periods on the way to a nine-point victory. Diaz Garrett led all scorers in the game with 25 points for Woodland. Brelace Williams and Jayden Hames followed with nine points each. Harlin Morris scored eight. Zyon Heath and Kyler Williams added five and four points, respectively, for the Wildcats. Scott James led the Warriors with 16 points. Blake Broome scored 15 for Gordon Central (1-1). Woodland (1-0) will host Gordon Central Tuesday, November 30 at 7:30 p.m.

Defending state champion Warner Robins came up with a five-play, goal line stand in the final minute Friday night at Weinman Stadium to knock off top-ranked Cartersville 24-17 in the second round of the Class 5A state playoffs. Trailing by a touchdown, Cartersville quarterback Jake Parker connected with Jacob Ray on a 44-yard pass play to move to the Demons’ 29-yard line. Runs by Paul Gamble and Amari White gave the Canes a first down at the Warner Robins 5-yard line. After second and third down runs by White and Gamble were denied at the 1-yard line, coach Conor Foster called timeout prior to a 4th-and-goal play with 1:07 remaining. Quarterback Jake Parker rolled to his right and threw back to an inside receiver where pass interference was called. The penalty was marked half the distance to the goal and allowed a repeat of 4th-and-goal now inside the 1-yard line. Following another Cartersville timeout with 1:01 remaining, Warner Robins was able to deny the next rush attempt by Malachi Jefferies and held on for the seven point win. The two teams traded possessions in the opening quarter before Warner Robins broke the ice at the 8:49 mark of the second quarter. Demons’ quarterback Christon Lane connected with Cam Flowers on a 4th-down, 28-yard touchdown pass and a 7-0 Warner Robins lead. Cartersville answered on the Purple Hurricanes’ next possession. Parker hit Jacob Ray on a nice pass play that moved the Canes inside the Warner Robins five yard line. Two plays later, Amari White hurdled his way into the end zone from three yards out to knot the score at 7-7 with 4:39 left in the second period. Canes’ defensive end Nasir Grandberry forced a fumble that was recovered by Chris Ryan to thwart another Warner Robins drive into the end zone just before the intermission and the two teams went to halftime tied. After the Canes’ defense stopped the Demons’ opening drive of the second half, Cartersville running back Amari White broke free for an 83-yard jaunt to take a 14-7 lead with 8:38 remaining in the third quarter. Warner Robins responded, however, with a scoring drive of their own but the Canes’ defense limited the Demons to a field goal. A pair of lengthy runs by Jafrederick Perry set up a 20-yard field goal by Daniel Barber, but Cartersville held on to a 14-10 lead with less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, Parker hooked up with Colin Fletcher to move the Cartersville offense to the Warner Robins 7-yard line. Unfortunately for the locals, the drive stalled there and the Canes settled for a 24-yard field goal by Jesus Gutierrez and a 17-10 lead with 9:43 left in the game. Warner Robins tied the score 17-17 with a 39-yard touchdown pass from Lane to Malcolm Brown with 9:19 remaining. The play was set up by a nice kickoff return by the Demons. On their next possession, Warner Robins took the lead for the first time since late in the second quarter and set up the final goal line stand dramatics. Jafrederick Perry converted a key 4th down with a run, then followed it with a 23-yard scamper to the Canes’ one-yard line. He scored on the next play to give the Demons a 24-17 lead with 6:44 left in the game. Warner Robins (11-1) advances to the state quarterfinals and will travel to Jones County. The Greyhounds beat Eastside in Friday’s second round, 66-42. Cartersville has its season end with a 10-1 record.