Golfers Bill Faith and Buck Brumlow paced a quartet of players with local connections Thursday in the opening round of the 98th Georgia State Golf Association Amateur Championship being played at Ansley Golf Club - Settindown Creek. The 72-hole championship includes a field of 144 players that will be cut to the low 70 players and ties after 36 holes. The championship is being conducted at 7,150 yards to a par of 72. Faith, an Atlanta resident and member of Cartersville Country Club, fired an opening round 75 and was tied for 47th place after 18 holes of action. Brumlow (shown in photo) — a rising Cartersville High School junior — shot 76 in the first round and is tied for 59th place. CCC member Harrison Gaylor shot an 8-over par 80 for a tie for 106th place and Dalton resident Brendan Hughes, who grew up at Cartersville Country Club, shot an 81 in the first round. Andy Mao of Johns Creek is the first round leader at 6-under par 66 with Suwanee’s Spencer Ball right behind at 5-under par 67. Five players shot 68, including Ben Carr of Columbus, Jonathan Keppler of Marietta, Will Chandler of Atlanta, and Tim Schaetzel of Atlanta. The Georgia Amateur Championship continues through Sunday.

The Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department, the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department, and the local Fellowship of Christian Athletes recently announced registration opportunities for events, leagues, and more. CPRD has opened registration for its adult summer softball league at Dellinger Park. BCRD has started registration for its Fall youth sports (football, cheerleading, volleyball, and soccer), and FCA is hosting a co-ed softball event on August 17. See the fliers below for more information.

Bartow County 10U was eliminated Monday night by Hart County, 7-0, at the Georgia Little League 10U state softball tournament in Augusta. Hart County scored four runs in the first inning and three more in the second on their way to the shutout in an elimination game of the double-elimination tournament. Bartow County finished the tournament with a 1-2 record. Their other loss was 4-0 to Harris County in the opening round. The Bartow win came over West Point on Sunday, 7-2. In Monday night’s loss, Bartow managed only three hits — two by Carley Aspenwall and one from Allana Williams. The locals managed to get baserunners to third in both of the first two frames, but Hart County pitching shut down the scoring effort each time. The Bartow 10U roster included: Akyra Davis, Keely Blalock, Harlee Temples, Savannah Viktora, Bailey York, Harlee Thomason, Abby George, Alli Fain, Lakiaya Banks, Nakayla Evans, Kyndell Hembree, Aspenwall, and Williams. In other state tournament softball action, Bartow County 12U lost two straight games at the Georgia State Little League Softball state tournament. Bartow lost Saturday’s opener to Harris County 12-3 and fell again Sunday to West Point, 11-1. The Bartow 12U team roster included: Savannah Mayfield, Jordan Clay, Abbi Wear, Ashlyn Carlton, Amanda Phillips, Olivia Woods, Jorden Edens, Tatum Canady, Faith Swinks, Kennedy Stevens, Abby Dekoker, and Jordan Bishop. Little League baseball state tournament action involving local teams picks up again Saturday with the Cartersville 9-11 year old team playing in the Georgia 11U state tournament at Brooks Park in Savannah. That Georgia Little League state event continues through July 19. Cartersville 11U opens play this Saturday against Northern Little League of Columbus in the double-elimination tournament. At West Point, Cartersville Junior Little League (13-14 year olds) will open the Georgia Junior Little League state tournament against Elbert County Saturday. That double-elimination state championship continues through July 18. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center

This week's 'Athletes Beyond Bartow' update features the five professional baseball athletes with Cartersville ties. Minor league pitchers Elliott Anderson and Sam Howard had productive performances on the mound and Cartersville native Luke Schiltz made his professional pitching debut, Anderson has yet to allow an earned run since his assignment to the Rookie Advanced Appalachian League Burlington Royals while Howard made two scoreless relief appearances for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes. Schiltz made a ninth inning appearance for the AZL Rangers in the Rookie Arizona League. L-R: Luke Schiltz, Anthony Seigler, Elliott Anderson, Connor Justus, Sam Howard ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Burlington Royals (1st yr. pro; LHP; Rookie Advanced Appalachian League; Kansas City Royals’ organization; Auburn; Cartersville HS)… picked up his first professional save and his first hold in a busy week of work that included four appearances. He worked a scoreless ninth inning last Wednesday at home against the Princeton Rays to collect his first save. Anderson issued a walk, but retired the three other batters he faced in Burlington’s 7-4 win. Sunday, Anderson made his longest pro appearances and was credited with a hold as the Royals beat the Danville Braves 3-1. The southpaw entered with two outs in the seventh inning and retired five of the eight batters he faced, working into the ninth inning. He did allow a walk and two hits in the scoreless appearance, but also had one strikeout. Thursday, he was inserted with two outs in the ninth inning of an eventual 7-5 loss to visiting Pulaski. Anderson allowed an inherited runner to score on a single, but followed that with a strikeout to end the frame. In a home, ninth inning appearance last Monday (July 1) he was touched for a base hit but retired the other three batters faced for a scoreless frame in a 3-0 loss to Princeton. Through five relief appearances totaling five innings, he has five strikeouts and is yet to allow an earned run. Burlington (9-10) is in third place in the Appalachian League East Division trailing the Bluefield Blue Jays by two games. SAM HOWARD — Albuquerque Isotopes (6th yr. pro; LHP; Triple-A Pacific Coast League; Colorado Rockies’ organization; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS)… made two relief appearances last week without allowing an earned run. Wednesday at Sacramento, Howard allowed a pair of singles in an eighth inning appearance but got a flyout and a groundout double play in the ‘Topes 1-0 loss. Sunday at home against Las Vegas, Howard was called on in the sixth inning where he struck out the first batter faced but again allowed a pair of singles before getting out of the inning with a pair of force outs. For the season, he is 1-1 in 32 relief appearances across 40 innings. Howard has a 4.24 ERA and has recorded 50 strikeouts. Albuquerque (37-53) remains in last place in the PCL’s Pacific Southern Division. The Isotopes are 18-1/2 games behind first place El Paso. CONNOR JUSTUS — Mobile BayBears (4th yr. pro; Inf., Double-A Southern League; L.A. Angels’ organization; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS)… went 1-for-13 with a walk in five games last week as his season batting average slipped to .182 through 75 games and 220 official at-bats. He drew a walk as a pinch hitter last Monday in a loss at Biloxi and had a one-out double to right field in the seventh inning of Thursday’s 4-2 win over visiting Jacksonville. Defensively, Justus carries a .943 fielding percentage in 262 total chances. He has split time between second base, third base, and shortstop with 43 of his 74 games at shortstop. Mobile is 8-10 in the Southern League’s second half schedule, trailing Jacksonville by two games. The BayBears are 35-51 for the overall season. LUKE SCHILTZ — AZL Rangers (1st yr. pro; RHP; Rookie Arizona League; Texas Rangers’ organization; Cartersville native; Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS)… made his professional debut last Friday in the Rookie Arizona League with a ninth inning appearance during a 10-5 loss to the AZL Indians Blue. Schiltz got a pop up to his catcher in foul territory for the first out of the inning, but that was followed by a solo home run to right field by Aaron Bracho. He then got a ground out and a fly out to end the frame. The AZL Rangers are 11-6 in the West Division and trail the AZL Padres 1 by 1/2 game. ANTHONY SEIGLER — Charleston RiverDogs (2nd yr. pro; C; Class A South Atlantic League; N.Y. Yankees’ organization; Cartersville HS)… In six games last week, Seigler was 3-for-21 with four walks and two RBI. He also scored a run. Through 21 games since joining the RiverDogs, he has a .224 batting average and six RBI in 67 official at-bats. He has drawn 19 walks and has one stolen base. Defensively, the catcher has committed two errrors in 123 total chances for a .984 fielding percentage. He has thrown out 6-of-18 stolen base attempts. Charleston is 8-10 in the South Atlantic League’s second half. The RiverDogs are in fourth place in the Southern Division trailing the Augusta GreenJackets and the Rome Braves by two games. Overall, Charleston is 45-43 for the year.

The 10U Bartow County Little League girls softball team survived an elimination game Sunday evening at the Georgia Little League state tournament, but the 10U Cartersville Little League baseball team fell in its losers’ bracket contest. Bartow 10U Little League softball got a pair of hits and three RBI from Nakayla Evans to pace the offense while pitcher Lakiaya Banks struck out eleven in a 9-2 win over West Point. Banks limited West Point to a pair of runs on one hit and five walks. Carley Aspenwall, Kyndell Hembree, Allana Williams, and Harlee Thomason added one hit each for the Bartow attack. Thomason, Banks, and Bailey York drove in one run apiece. Bartow County 10U, who lost 4-0 to Harris County in its tournament opener Saturday, advances to another elimination game Monday night against Hart County at 6 p.m. The double-elimination Georgia Little League Softball 10U state tournament continues through Wednesday at Crawford Creek Park in Augusta. CARTERSVILLE LL 10U ELIMINATED AT STATE TOURNEY Elbert County raced to an early 11-1 lead over Cartersville Little League baseball 10U Sunday afternoon and held off the local team 16-12 at the Georgia 10U Little League state tournament in Athens. The loss was a second straight for Cartersville 10U and eliminated them from the double-elimination tournament. Cartersville dropped its opener to Northern-Columbus Saturday. Elbert County advances to another elimination game Monday night against Smyrna. Down by ten runs Sunday afternoon, Cartersville 10U threatened with a nine-run fourth inning to narrow the margin to 11-10, but Elbert County scored a single run in the fifth and four more in the sixth to build a 16-10 lead. Cartersville scored twice in their half of the final frame and had the bases loaded before a final groundout ended the threat. Blake Lutjens paced the Cartersville offense with a pair of hits and two RBI. Devon Beavers drove in three runs — two with a fourth inning single and another with a bases loaded hit-by-pitch. Zachary Stiles pushed two runs across with a bases loaded walk in the fourth inning and an RBI single in the sixth. Cole Henson, Clint Hosea, Cash Priest, and Dixon Lindsey had one hit each for Cartersville. Dallen Fuqua was credited with one RBI. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center

A pair of local 10U Little League teams suffered opening round losses at their respective state tournaments Saturday. Bartow County Little League 10U softball girls were shutout 4-0 by Harris County in their first game of the double-elimination tournament at Crawford Creek Park hosted by Martinez-Evans Little League. Meanwhile at Holland Park in Athens, Cartersville Little League 10U baseball was stopped by Northern Little League of Columbus 7-1 to send the locals to the loser’s bracket of their state tournament. In the Bartow softball loss, pitcher Lakiaya Banks kept the local team in a scoreless battle until the fifth inning when Harris County plated four runs. Banks allowed just two hits in the contest along with three walks. She fanned ten. Cartersville 10U baseball actually led 1-0 after one inning in their contest. Clint Hosea walked with one out in the bottom of the first inning and managed to eventually score on three wild pitches. Northern scored twice in the top of the second inning on three walks, an infield error, and a sacrifice fly to take a 2-1 lead. The score remained that way until the final frame when Northern plated five runs to put the game away. The five-run Northern sixth inning included three walks, two hits, and a pair of Cartersville miscues. Carter Callen had the only Cartersville 10U base hit in the game. It came on a second innng single to lead off the frame, but Callen was stranded at second. Cartersville had some opportunities, however. The locals drew a total of eight walks. Northern managed only three hits off a quartet of Cartersville pitchers. Callan (1.1 IP, 2R, 1ER, 0H, 3BB, 4K) started on the mound and worked into the second inning. Dallen Fuqua (3.2 IP, 2ER, 2H, 2BB, 3K) worked the bulk of the contest with Hosea (0.2 IP, 3R, 1ER, 1H, 2BB, 1K) and Blake Lutjens (0.1 IP) retiring the final three outs in the sixth. Bartow County 10U softball plays again Sunday at 5:30 p.m. in an elimination game. Cartersville 10U baseball also has an elimination game Sunday at 1 p.m. against Elbert County. The Georgia Little League 10U state softball tournament continues through Wednesday night. The 10U baseball event continues through Friday. 10U Georgia Little League Softball State Tournament results: Saturday’s games Vine Ingle 20, Elbert County 1 Harris County 4, Bartow County 0 Oconee County 12, West Point 0 Sunday’s schedule Hart County v. Vine Ingle, 10am Harris County v. Oconee County, 12:30pm Bartow County v. West Point, 5:30pm (elimination game, winner plays at 6pm Monday) 10U Georgia Little League Baseball State Tournament results: Saturday’s games Vine Ingle 15, Elbert County 4 Smyrna 35, West Point 1 Northern 7, Cartersville 1 Athens 27, Franklin County 0 Sunday’s schedule Smyrna v. Athens, 10 am Vine Ingle v. Northern, 10 am Cartersville v. Elbert County, 1 pm (elimination game, winner plays at 6pm Monday v. Smyrna/Athens loser) West Point v. Franklin County, 1 pm (elimination game, winner plays at 6pm Monday v Vine Ingle/Northern loser) Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center

This week's 'Athletes Beyond Bartow' update features the five professional baseball athletes with Cartersville ties. The two newest additions -- Elliott Anderson and Luke Schiltz -- have both been assigned following the June MLB draft and their respective signings. Anderson made his debut Saturday for the Rookie Advanced League Burlington Royals while Schiltz awaits his first live action for the Arizona League Rangers. Meanwhile, Sam Howard, Connor Justus, and Anthony Seigler continue their toils in Triple-A, Double-A, and Class A, respectively. L-R: Luke Schiltz, Anthony Seigler, Elliott Anderson, Connor Justus, Sam Howard ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Burlington Royals (1st yr. pro; LHP; Rookie Advanced Appalachian League; Kansas City Royals’ organization; Auburn; Cartersville HS)… made his professional debut Saturday in the eighth inning of a 6-3 loss at the Bluefield Blue Jays. Anderson faced the minimum and recorded one strikeout. Burlington (5-6) is 1-1/2 games behind the Pulaski Yankees in the Appalachian League’s East Division. The 10-team league plays a 68-game schedule from mid-June through late August with the top two teams in each division qualifying for the post-season playoffs. SAM HOWARD — Albuquerque Isotopes (6th yr. pro; LHP; Triple-A Pacific Coast League; Colorado Rockies’ organization; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS)… made three, one-inning appearances last week with a pair of shutout performances at Reno last Monday and at home against Tacoma Thursday night. He struck out two of the three batters he faced in the ninth inning at Reno and fanned one of three Thursday. He was saddled with a pitching loss Friday night at home against Tacoma after allowing a pair of tenth inning runs (one earned) on two hits. It should be noted, the PCL places a runner at second base to begin extra innings. For the season, Howard is 1-1 with a 4.46 ERA in 30 relief appearances. He has 49 strikeouts in just over 38 innings pitched. Albuquerque (34-48) is fourth in the PCL’s Pacific Southern Division. The Isotopes are 16-1/2 games behind El Paso. CONNOR JUSTUS — Mobile BayBears (4th yr. pro; Inf.; Double-A Southern League; L.A. Angels’ organization; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS)… was 2-for-22 at the plate in seven games this past week. Both hits were doubles. He walked three times, scored three runs, and had one RBI during the stretch of games that included a home contest against Jacksonville before a five-game series at Birmingham. Sunday’s game was at Biloxi. For the season, Justus has a .188 batting average through 70 games and 207 official at-bats. He has one home run and 15 RBI. Defensively, he has a .949 fielding percentage in 253 total chances. The infielder has 42 starts at shortstop, 16 at second base, and 11 at third base. Ten games into the Southern League’s second half schedule, the BayBears are 4-6 and trail Jacksonville by two games in the South Division. LUKE SCHILTZ — AZL Rangers (1st yr. pro; RHP; Rookie Arizona League; Texas Rangers’ organization; Cartersville native; Stoneman Douglas (FL) HS)… has been assigned to the Rookie Arizona League AZL Rangers but has not made a game appearance as of Sunday night. Members of the 21-team Arizona League for newly signed rookies, the Rangers are 9-3 and in first place in the West Division. The league plays a 56-game schedule between mid-June and late August. ANTHONY SEIGLER — Charleston RiverDogs (2nd yr. pro; C; Class A South Atlantic League; N.Y. Yankees’ organization; Cartersville HS)… saw action in five games last week and was 4-for-14 with six walks, three RBI, and a stolen base. In Friday’s 12-5 home win over Asheville, the Yankees’ No. 6 overall prospect reached base five times drawing walks in the first, third, and sixth innings. He singled home two runs in the fourth and another in the seventh for his fourth multi-hit effort in 14 games with the RiverDogs. Seigler has a .261 batting average with two doubles and four RBI. He has an on-base percentage of .452 in 46 official at-bats. In nine starts at catcher, he has a .989 fielding percentage with one error and 11 assists in 87 total chances. He has thrown out four of 14 base stealers. Charleston (5-6) is currently third in the SAL second half standings and trails the Rome Braves by two games. The RiverDogs are 42-39 overall.

Neither local team remaining for the final day of the 2019 Georgia Recreation and Parks Association (GRPA) 8U State Tournaments came away with a title Friday, but the Bartow 8U girls softball team finished as state runner-up and the Cartersville Purple 8U baseball team placed third in action at the Sonoraville Recreation Complex in Calhoun. Both teams entered Friday’s action as one of three teams remaining in their respective tournaments and both needed three wins on the day to win their double-elimination events. Bartow 8U softball defeated Gordon County 19-10 to reach the state championship round, but fell to unbeaten Rockmart 19-11 to finish second of ten state tournament teams. Cartersville Purple 8U baseball was edged by Whitfield County 15-14 Friday morning to finish in third place. Whitfield was the eventual state runner-up after falling to Calhoun in the finals, 16-8. Bartow 8U softball scored in each inning in their win over Gordon County. The locals led most of the way, but a five-run top of the third inning gave Gordon County a temporary 6-4 lead. Bartow answered with four runs in the bottom of the inning and put the game away with an 11-run fourth inning outburst. Addi Lu Black, Shyia Woods, Samantha Porter, Isabella Tummins, and Carly Adams led Bartow’s offense with three hits each. Black and Tummins had a double and a triple each in their three hits. Woods had two doubles and Porter had a double among her three safeties. Paislee Rooks, Lillie Hollis, Carder Brock, and Maci Walker had two hits each in Bartow’s win. Kylee Poston contributed a double and Sloan Callan added one hit. Bartow held a 6-5 lead after one inning in the title game loss to Rockmart, but the eventual state champs took an 8-6 lead in the second inning and pushed their advantage to 16-7 after three frames on their way to an eight-run win. Callan and Black had three hits to pace Bartow. Woods had a home run and a double to lead four players with two hits. Brock doubled and tripled. Hollis had a double as one of her two hits and Adams also finished with two hits. Porter tripled, Kaidee Pirkle doubled, and Rooks added a base hit. Both of Bartow’s losses in the tournament were to Rockmart — in the first round and again in the championship game. Between those two games, Bartow 8U softball had wins over Calhoun (30-9), Dalton (23-1), Lafayette (25-10), Summerville (17-7), and Gordon County (19-10) to complete the tournament with a 5-2 mark. In 8U baseball action Friday, Cartersville Purple led or was tied in each inning except the final one in a 15-14 loss to Whitfield County. Cartersville Purple led 3-2 after one inning and 7-4 through the second inning. Whitfield took a 9-7 lead in the top of the third, but Cartersville Purple tied the game 9-9 in their half of the frame. Purple went up 11-9 in the fourth, but Whitfield knotted the score again in the fifth inning 13-13. Whitfield County outscored Cartersville Purple 4-3 in the final inning to advance with a 15-14 victory. Bowen Hardy led the Cartersville Purple offense with four hits including a double and two RBI. William Groce followed with three hits and two RBI. Price Startup (2 RBI), Colt Priest, and Walker Phillips (RBI) contributed a pair of hits each. Parker Huth (RBI), Noah Leffew, and Blake Forstie had the other Cartersville hits. Cade McFarland drove in a run. Cartersville Purple opened the state tournament with three straight wins over Rockmart Black (42-7), Morgan County (20-11), and Jasper County (19-6) before falling in two straight to eventual champion Calhoun (28-5) and runner-up Whitfield County. Cartersville Purple 8U's third place finish was the best of four local teams in the state tournament. Bartow Blue (3-2) placed fourth with their losses also coming to Calhoun and Whitfield County. Bartow White went 2-2 to finish seventh, and Cartersville Gold placed ninth. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center.

It was a full day of action Thursday for local 8U softball and baseball teams representing the Bartow County and Cartersville Recreation Departments at the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association (GRPA) State Tournaments at Sonoraville Recreation Complex in Calhoun. On the softball diamonds, the Bartow County 8U girls won three elimination games to be one of only three teams remaining in the double-elimination tournament. Bartow pounded Dalton 23-1 Thursday morning, defeated Lafayette 25-10 in the afternoon, and topped Summerville 17-7 in a late afternoon contest. In the 8U baseball state tournament, Cartersville Purple 8U suffered its first loss in the double-elimination tournament falling to Calhoun, 28-5. Cartersville Purple — one of the final three teams remaining — will look to bounce back Friday morning against Whitfield County. The Cartersville Purple/Whitfield winner will face Calhoun later in the day needing two wins to take the title. Calhoun is the only remaining unbeaten. Bartow County Blue 8U staved off a pair of elimination games Thursday, but lost its third game of the day to Whitfield County, 11-9. Bartow Blue had wins earlier in the day over Bartow County White 17-1 and Jasper County 15-3 to finish in fourth place. BARTOW COUNTY 8U SOFTBALL REACHES FINAL THREE Bartow County 8U softball survived three elimination games Thursday to advance as one of three remaining teams at the GRPA State Tournament. Bartow opened the day with a 23-1 win over Dalton as Sloan Callan, Addi Lu Black, Shyla Woods, and Lillie Hollis finished with three hits each. Carder Brock, Samantha Porter, Paislee Rooks, Isabella Tummins, Maci Walker, and Kaidee Pirkle contributed a pair of hits apiece with Kylee Poston and Carly Adams adding one hit each. In Bartow’s 25-10 win over Lafayette, the locals raced to a 15-2 lead in the first inning and led 23-7 after two frames on their way to a 15-run victory. Black led the way with four hits including a pair of doubles. Woods had three hits including two triples and a double. Hollis had three hits including a home run. Poston’s three hits included a triple and two doubles. Walker had three hits including two doubles. Porter and Pirkle contributed three hits including a double each and Callan had three base hits. Adams finished with two doubles. Rooks collected two hits including a double. Brock added two hits and Tummins had one hit. In the win over Summerville, Bartow 8U led 10-4 after two innings and pulled away with a six run fourth inning to win 17-7. Porter and Black led Bartow with three hits apiece. Callan, Hollis, Brock, Tummins, Adams, Walker, and Pirkle finished with two hits each. Woods, Rooks, and Poston all added one hit. CALHOUN 8U 28, CARTERSVILLE PURPLE 8U 5 Calhoun 8U baseball remains the only unbeaten team of three remaining in the double-elimination tournament following a 28-5 win over Cartersville Purple 8U. Calhoun led 7-3 after one inning and 16-5 through two frames before scoring a dozen runs in the third to close out the contest. Bowen Hardy had two hits for Cartersville Purple. Walker Phillips, Will Groce, Price Startup, Parker Huth, Blake Forstie, Chris Parker, and Noah Leffew had one hit apiece. BARTOW BLUE FINISHES FOURTH AT STATE TOURNEY Bartow Blue 8U baseball survived two elimination games Thursday, but was eliminated from the GRPA state tournament in a third game by Whitfield County, 11-9. Whitfield County led 8-2 after two innings but Bartow Blue narrowed the margin to 8-5 in the third. Whitfield pushed its lead to 11-5 through five frames and a four-run Bartow Blue bottom of the sixth inning came up two runs short. Noah Rogers paced Bartow Blue with three hits including a pair of triples. Brodie Gardner also had three hits. Cade McCorkle and Will Whitman both finished with two hits includig one double each. Jaxton Huskins tripled. Jackson Watts doubled. Abel Gentry, Joseph Frederick, and Austin O’Neal added one hit apiece. In Bartow Blue’s win over Jasper County, Logan Smith and McCorkle led the way with three hits each. McCorkle’s three hits included two triples. Houston Walden, Gardner, Rogers, O’Neal, Huskins, Gentry, and Whitman contributed two hits each. Frederick added a base hit. Walden and Huskins both had three hits including one home run each as Bartow Blue eliminated Bartow White 8U. O’Neal also had three hits including a pair of triples. Watts contributed a triple and a double for Bartow Blue. Frederick and Gentry both had two hits including a double each. Whitman, McCorkle, and Smith finished with two hits each and Rogers added a base hit. Bartow White 8U was led by two hits each by Jasper Pruitt and Triston Brawner. Corbin Dotson contributed a hit and scored Bartow White’s run. Knox Gunter, Jace Reynolds, Brady Young, Javon Harris, Maddox Koontz, and Zion Weems added one hit apiece. SPECIAL PHOTO: The two Bartow County 8U teams and coaches combine for a photo Thursday. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center.

Rockmart Little League 12U baseball blanked Cartersville Little League 3-0 Wednesday night to win the 2019 Georgia Little League District 1 championship at Rudy York Field. The winner-take-all game was needed after the two teams split their first two meetings in the double-elimination tournament by identical 5-2 scores. Cartersville won the first game of the tournament last Saturday over Rockmart, but after both teams defeated Bartow County, Rockmart won back-to-back matchups with Cartersville Tuesday and Wednesday. Although he suffered the loss Wednesday, Cartersville pitcher Brodie McWhorter (6 IP, 3R, 2ER, 6H, 1BB, 3K) kept Cartersville close with a solid, complete-game performance on the mound. Rockmart scored all three runs in the top of the fifth inning. Four hits and a catcher's interference produced the runs. Meanwhile, a pair of Rockmart pitchers limited Cartersville to only five hits and three walks while striking out nine. Tristan McKibben, Nolan Elrod, Logan Shrewsbury, Cameron Cochran, and Casen Cochran had the five Cartersville base hits — all singles. Rockmart advances to represent District 1 at the Georgia Little League Baseball State Tournament that begins July 13 in Toccoa. Wednesday night's win by Rockmart Little League marks their first District 1 title since 2002 and the league’s ninth district championship since 1963. Cartersville’s loss snapped a string of eleven straight district championships and leaves the Cartersville program with 15 of the last 17 district titles and 29 total dating back to 1962. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center.

Cartersville Purple 8U won two games Wednesday at the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association (GRPA) state tournament in Calhoun to make it three straight wins in the event. Cartersville Purple 8U defeated Walton County 20-11 Wednesday afternoon and took down Jasper County 18-6 Wednesday evening. The tournament is being played at the Sonoraville Recreation Complex. In the win over Walton County, Cartersville Purple led 4-0 after two innings before Walton tied the score in the top of the third. Cartersville scored ten runs in the bottom of the third to take a 14-4 advantage and held off Walton County over the final two frames for a nine-run win. Will Groce paced Cartersville with four hits and had two RBI. Price Startup followed with three hits including a double and five RBI. Chris Parker also had a three-hit game with three RBI. Kolston Privett (RBI), Bowen Hardy, and Walker Phillips contributed three hits as well. Blake Forstie had a five-RBI game with two hits that included a double. Cade McFarland (RBI) and Easton Stephens tossed in a pair of hits each. Noah Leffew (2 RBI), Colt Priest (RBI), and Parker Huth added one hit apiece. In the evening game, Jasper County took a 5-0 lead in the top of the first before Cartersville scored 15 runs over their first three offensive frames. Jasper added a run in the fourth and Cartersville Purple ended the contest with a three-run fourth inning of their own and an 18-6 win. Startup had three hits including a pair of doubles and four RBI. Hardy finished with three hits including a double and two RBI and Phillips also managed three hits and one RBI. Groce had two hits including a double and two RBI. Huth and Forstie contributed two hits and one RBI each while Priest (RBI), McFarland (RBI), Privett (RBI) and Stephens added one hit apiece. Cartersville Purple 8U, now 3-0 in the double-elimination tournament, can finish no worse than third place and can win the state title with two more consecutive wins. Next for Cartersville Purple 8U is a 3 p.m. game Thursday against Wednesday night’s Calhoun/Gainesville winner. The winner of the Thursday 3 p.m. contest is locked into Friday’s championship round. The loser plays an elimination game at 4:30 p.m. Thursday. BARTOW WHITE 8U ELIMINATES CARTERSVILLE GOLD 8U Bartow County White 8U defeated Cartersville Gold 8U 21-9 Wednesday afternoon in an elimination game at the GRPA state tournament at Sonoraville Recreation Complex in Calhoun. Bartow White grabbed a 6-3 lead after two innings, but Cartersville Gold narrowed the margin to 6-5 in the top of the third. Bartow White then took control with an 11-run third inning on their way to the 12-run victory. Five Bartow White players had three hits each including Brock Morris (included two doubles), Knox Gunter (triple), Corbin Dotson (double), Maddox Koontz (double), and Triston Brawner. Javon Harris had two hits including a home run for Bartow White. George Murchison and Brady Young both had two hits including a triple each while Xavier Harris had a pair of hits including a double. Jasper Pruitt added a double and Zion Weems had the other Bartow White 8U hit. Camden Jones and Jake Thompson led Cartersville Gold 8U with three hits each. Hunter Campbell had a double and a triple. Braxton Mealer contributed two hits including a triple, while Owen Morneault finished with a pair of hits that included a double. Landon Hamilton, Jack Finnemore, Jack Mroczko, and Easton Raines rounded out the Cartersville Gold attack with one hit each. The loss eliminated Cartersville Gold 8U due to a 23-0 loss to Gainesville earlier in the day. Morneault had the only Cartersville base hit in that defeat. Wednesday morning, Bartow White 8U defeated Rockmart in an elimination game 22-9. Seven Bartow White 8U players had three hits each in the win including home runs for Pruitt and Javon Harris. Xavier Harris, Triston Brawner, Jace Reynolds, Gunter, and Murchison were the other Bartow players with three hits apiece. Brady Young, Dotson, and Koontz followed with two Bartow White hits each. Morris and Weems added one hit each. Bartow White 8U heads back to the diamond Thursday morning for an elimination game at 9 a.m. against Bartow Blue 8U. The winner plays again at 12 noon. BARTOW BLUE 8U SPLITS TWO GAMES AT STATE TOURNEY Bartow Blue 8U dropped its opening game at the GRPA state tournament Wednesday morning, but bounced back with a 17-2 win over Rome-Floyd County in the afternoon to stay alive in the elimination bracket. Bartow Blue led Calhoun 4-3 in the third inning, but a seven-run bottom of the third ultimately made the difference for Calhoun in their 11-7 win. Houston Walden had three hits including a double for Bartow Blue against Calhoun. Cade McCorkle and Brodie Gardner also had three hits in the loss. Noah Rogers had two doubles as six Bartow Blue players contributed two hits each. Jaxton Huskins, Abel Gentry, Austin O’Neal, Karsin Darby, and Logan Smith also had two hits. Joseph Frederick added a triple and Jackson Watts tossed in a double. In their elimination game win over Rome-Floyd, Bartow Blue 8U scored six runs in the first inning, nine in the second, and two more in the third inning on their way to a 15-run victory. McCorkle, Rogers, O’Neal, Gardner, Watts, and Will Whitman paced Bartow with two hits apiece. Logan Smith, Walden, Huskins, Gentry, Frederick, and Darby added one hit each. BARTOW 8U SOFTBALL STAYS ALIVE AT STATE TOURNEY The Bartow County 8U softball team routed Calhoun 30-9 Wednesday evening at the Sonoraville Recreation Complex to earn a split through their first two games in the GRPA state tournament. Bartow fell in their state tournament opener to Rockmart Tuesday night, 15-7. Bartow plays Dalton Thursday morning at 10:30 a.m. in the first of potentially three elimination games on the day. The Bartow/Dalton winner plays Lafayette at 1:30 p.m. and the Bartow/Dalton/Lafayette survivor plays again at 4:30 p.m. Through the first two games, Shyla Woods has paced the Bartow County offense with six hits including a pair of home runs. Samantha Porter follows with five hits including a homer and Addi Lu Black also has five hits. Isabelle Tummins and Lillian Hollis have four hits including two home runs each in Bartow’s first two state tournament games. Kaidee Pirkle and Kylee Poston have contributed four hits including a double each, while Sloan Callan also has four hits. Carly Adams has three hits including a home run. Carder Brock has a double and a triple while Paislee Rooks and Maci Walker have both added two hits apiece. CARTERSVILLE GOLD 12U FALLS TWICE AT GRPA STATE TOURNAMENT Cartersville 12U Gold, the GRPA District 5 champions, were ousted Wednesday at the double-elimination state GRPA tournament in Augusta with a second straight loss. Cartersville Gold 12U dropped its first round game Tuesday evening to Glynn County 5-1 and fell to Moultrie Wednesday morning in an elimination game 7-0. Cartersville Gold 12U led 1-0 Tuesday night, but Glynn County scored five times in the fifth to win the contest. Peyton Bowen had two hits including a double in the loss to Glynn. Talan Nix had a hit in the first inning and scored Cartersville’s run. Will Camp added a base hit in the sixth inning. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center.

A trio of Rockmart Little League pitchers combined Tuesday night to limit Cartersville Little League 12U to only three hits and won 5-2 to force a winner-take-all game Wednesday night at Rudy York Field for the Georgia Little League District 1 championship. The teams have now split two games in the double-elimination tournament and Wednesday’s winner will advance to the Georgia Little League state tournament set to begin July 13 in Toccoa. Cartersville 12U topped Rockmart by an identical 5-2 score Saturday in both teams’ opening games in the tournament. Both teams beat Bartow County in the tournament to reach the championship round. In Tuesday night’s rematch, Rockmart went up 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning and took a 5-0 lead in the fourth. The four-run inning included a Rockmart two-run homer. Cartersville threatened and scored twice in the sixth taking advantage of three walks after two outs, but ultimately came up three runs short. Logan Shrewsbury (3 IP, 4R, 3ER, 3H, 3BB, 6K) started on the mound for Cartersville and was tagged with the loss. Tristan McKibben (0.2 IP, 1R, 0ER, 2H, 1K) and Luke Parker (1.1 IP, 0R, 2H, 1K) also pitched in the contest. Parker had an RBI double in Cartersville’s sixth inning. Thomas Peters and McKibben had the other Cartersville base hits. The two teams square off again Wednesday night at 6 p.m. for the District 1 title. Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center.