Adairsville's Vic Beasley had his most impactful game of the season Sunday as the Atlanta Falcons routed the Arizona Cardinals at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Beasley upset the Cardinals' passing game with a sack and two pass deflections while finishing with three total tackles in the 40-14 win. NFL VIC BEASLEY — Atlanta Falcons (4th yr. pro; DE; Clemson; Adairsville HS)… had his biggest impact game of the year Sunday as the Falcons snapped a five-game losing streak and defeated the visiting Arizona Cardinals 40-14. Beasley deflected a pass that turned into a pick-six for linebacker Deion Jones in the first quarter to tie the score at 7-all. He batted down another pass in the third quarter and recorded a sack early in the fourth quarter finishing the day with three total tackles. Atlanta (5-9) plays at the Carolina Panthers Sunday. PRO BASKETBALL ELIJAH ROBINSON — Villa San Martin (1st yr., pro; Argentinian League; F; Emmanuel College; Excel Christian Academy)… came off the bench to score 20 points with two rebounds and an assist in a 90-81 home loss Wednesday to Salta Basketball. Villa San Martin (7-6) is third in the Argentine League’s North Division. COLLEGE BASKETBALL MARK CHESTER — Georgia Northwestern CC (Fr., G, Cass HS)… had four points in the Bobcats’ Saturday loss to visiting West Georgia Tech CC. He also had three points, seven rebounds, and three assists last Monday in a 99-51 loss in Griffin to Southern Crescent CC. Georgia Northwestern (2-8) has lost five straight and will look to bounce back when they return to action January 8 at home against Barber-Scotia CC (NC). KIMORA McCLINIC — Middle Georgia State University (So., G, Cartersville HS)… scored four points and grabbed one rebound as the Bobcats lost at William Carey (MS) Friday night, 71-50. She also had three points, a rebound, and an assist in an 88-76 loss Sunday afternoon at Loyola University (LA). MGSU (5-5, 1-2 Southern States Athletic Conference) returns to action January 3 at Martin Methodist. JANA MORNING — Berry College (So., G, Cass HS)… the Lady Vikings’ starting guard scored 13 points, collected nine rebounds, dished three assists, and had four steals in a 66-63 win Friday night over visiting LaGrange College. She also had three points, seven rebounds, one assist, and one steal in a 69-64 loss last Monday at Mississippi University for Women. Berry (3-6, 0-1 SAA) hosts Agnes Scott Tuesday before traveling to Dallas, TX to face UT-Dallas and Concordia-Texas December 28-29. JOSIE SUMMERVILLE — North Park University (Fr., F, Adairsville HS)… scored six points with three rebounds, a blocked shot, and a steal in a 68-60 loss Saturday at Elmhurst College. The Vikings (5-5, 2-2 Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) plays at St. Mary’s College (IN) Wednesday afternoon. COLLEGE FOOTBALL JORDAN FERGUSON — Middle Tennessee State University (Soph., DL, Cartersville HS)… played three years at St. Francis HS and his senior season at Norcross HS before transferring to Cartersville HS in the spring of 2017 to graduate. He played in 11 games this season for the Blue Raiders who lost 45-13 Saturday night to Appalachian State in the New Orleans Bowl. Ferguson finished the year with 12 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss. COLLEGE WRESTLING ROBBY EARICK — Life University (So., 149-wt. class, Cartersville HS)… went 2-1 as an individual as his team went 3-0 at the Smoky Mountain Collegiate Duals in Pigeon Forge, TN this past weekend. Earick pinned his opponent from Bluefield College (VA) in a team 44-6 win and defeated his opponent from Midway University (KY) in an Eagles’ 46-3 victory. His loss was to his Campbellsville (KY) University opponent, but the team won 25-13 over the NAIA 15th-ranked Tigers. Next for Life is the NWCA National Duals January 4-5 in Louisville, KY.

The Woodland wrestling team won the McCallie Invitational Wrestling Tournament over the weekend in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The tournament championship marks a fifth title for the Wildcats' grapplers this season. The 26-team event was held Friday and Saturday at the McCallie Student Activity Center. The Wildcats finished 19 points ahead of North Hall with Cleveland (TN), host McCallie (TN), and Vestavia Hills (AL) rounding out the top five teams. Woodland had four individual champions in the tournament. Kyle Gollhofer won the 120-pound weight class, Caleb Henson captured the 126-pound division, Caden McCrary won the 132-pound bracket, and Jaxon Smith took the top podium spot at 145 pounds. Other top placers for Woodland included Gavin Nix (113) and Cole Cochran (138) with third place finishes. Carson Bailey finished fourth in the 106-pound division. Caleb Jones (152), Tommy Duke (160), and Demarcus Williams (195) all placed fifth. Blake Cash took sixth place in the 170-pound division. Next for Woodland is the Osceola High School (FL) Knockout Classic December 28-29 in Kissimmee, Florida.

The Adairsville wrestling team had eleven competitors place in the top four of the 12-team tournament over this past weekend at Social Circle. As a result, the Tigers placed third as a team in the event despite missing three starters due to injuries. Those three are expected to return to the Adairsville lineup this week according to Tigers' head coach Ryan Torrence. Angel Banda won his weight class and Joseph Pacheco had a runner-up finish at Social Circle. Jaxson Owens, Doss Dudley, James Standridge, Jody Sutton, Cody Shook and Austin Jackson all placed third. Brendan Luginbuhl, Evan Henry, and Dominick Schroeder finished fourth.

It has been a roller-coaster early season ride for the Adairsville Tigers. Adairsville is the only team to have knocked off first place North Murray, but after dropping a 53-49 game to Murray County Saturday, the Tigers have also lost to two of the teams at the bottom of the Region 6-AAA standings. Adairsville led 16-6 after one quarter behind a trio of three-pointers by Mason Boswell, but the visiting Indians narrowed the margin to 25-19 by halftime and took a 35-34 lead into the fourth quarter. Boswell finished with 23 points to lead Adairsville in scoring. Danarous Johnson followed with 14 for the Tigers. Murray County improved to 6-7 overall and 3-5 in region play. Adairsville (4-5, 4-4) travels to Cass Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. MURRAY COUNTY 54, ADAIRSVILLE GIRLS 46 Visiting Murray County grabbed a 21-9 advantage in the game’s first eight minutes and then held off a charge by the Adairsville girls for an eight-point region win. Adairsville limited the visiting Lady Indians to only seven points in the second quarter to get back into the game 28-20 at halftime, but the Lady Tigers’ struggled at the free throw line in the second half and could not make up the total deficit. Nakiyah Washington led Adairsville with 16 points. Aaliyah Applin followed with 12 points — all in the second half. Murray County improved to 7-6 overall and 5-3 with their victory. Adairsville (3-8, 1-7) plays at Cass Tuesday at 6 p.m.

The Cass basketball teams swept to a pair of Region 7-AAAAA wins Saturday at Woodland. The Lady Colonels beat the Lady Cats 61-34 and the Colonels took the boys’ contest 49-46 over the Wildcats. The Cass girls led 16-8 after one period and extended their lead to 34-15 by halftime. The Lady Colonels led 50-21 after three periods on their way to a 27-point victory. Londaisha Smith and Payton Stoddard led Cass with 15 and 12 points, respectively. Claire Davis and Sharia Wade tossed in seven points each. Brianna Stephenson scored six. Alexis Ware posted five. Taryn Callahan had three points while Amber Brittian, Ariana Hames, and Abby Stoddard added two points apiece. The Lady Cats got 14 points from Morgan Cooper. Madgie Robinson followed with five points. Jordan Thompson and Gracie Styles scored four. Ansley Evans had three points. Nickiah Metcalf and Abigail Taylor each contributed two points. Woodland falls to 1-8 on the season and 1-4 in Region 7-AAAAA. The Lady Cats will play Rome in the opening round of the Rome Holiday Tournament Monday at 4 p.m. at Berry College. Cass (8-2, 4-2) snaps a two-game skid where they lost back-to-back road games to Top Ten-ranked teams Rome and Carrollton. The Lady Colonels host Adairsville Tuesday before taking a few days off prior to participating in the Adairsville Ace Hardware Christmas Tournament December 27-29. CASS BOYS 49, WOODLAND 46 The Colonels won a tightly contested region game at Woodland Saturday, 49-46. Cass led 23-19 at halftime and extended the lead to 36-26 heading into the final period. Woodland made a a valiant run at the Colonels, but came up three points short. Jacquez Fountain had a game-high 17 points to lead the Cass offense. Jordan Ford followed with 15 points for the Colonels. Ethan Carter tossed in six points. Justice Hayes had five. C.J. Pipkin, Jaylen Johnson, and Zaylan Chaney each added two points for Cass. Dawson Wilkins led Woodland scorer’s with 16 points. Hunter Johnson contributed 10. D.J. Robinson and Jaylen Ballard had six points each. Peyton Roberts and Justice Carter both added four points for the Wildcats. Woodland (3-7, 0-5) has now dropped four straight since edging Cartersville on December 1. The Wildcats open play in the Rome Holiday Tournament Monday night at 5:30 p.m. against Rome at Berry College. Cass (4-7, 2-4) hosts Adairsville Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. and will play in the Rockmart Christmas Tournament Thursday through Saturday.

The Cass High School wrestling team finished second Saturday at the Buford Takedown Sportswear Tournament hosted by Buford High School. The host Wolves won the 30-team event with 247.5 points. Cass was next with 172.5. West Laurens (171), Indian Land HS (SC) (160.5) and Rockdale County (154.5) rounded out the top five teams. Ben Mills (photo) won the 132-pound division for the Colonels. Bryce Kresho had a second place finish and Noah Hoffmeier added a third place for Cass in their respective weight classes. Other placers for Cass included: Nick Mills and Kendall Arnold fourth, Isaac Linley, Blake Carrington, and Reed Davis fifth. Hunter Rees added a sixth place finish. Clockwise from top left: Kendall Arnold, Noah Hoffmeier, Reed Davis, Blake Carrington, Nick Mills, Hunter Rees, Isaac Linley, Bryce Kresho.

The Excel Christian Academy boys basketball team lost at Gordon Central Saturday afternoon, 50-38, in non-region action. The host Warriors took a 16-13 lead after one period and led 23-15 at halftime on their way to an eventual 12-point win and a season split with Excel. The Eagles won the first meeting between the two teams 50-48 back on November 17. Dawon Lackey had a game-high 28 points for Gordon Central (1-10) who won for the first time this season. Evan Lee and Josiah Mosley paced the Eagles with nine points each. Rayshawn Womck scored seven. Kalil Holley tossed in six points. Brenden Quillin added five and Trippe Anderson had two points for ECA. Excel Christian (3-7) has a break in the schedule before playing at Adairsville December 27 in the opening round of the Ace Hardware Christmas Tournament at Adairsville High School. Tip for that game is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.

All four local high school girls teams lost games Friday night. Cass lost its second straight after seven wins to start the year. Both Lady Colonels' losses this week have been to Top Ten teams in Class 5A. The Adairsville girls dropped a one-point game at Haralson County and Cartersville fell at Paulding County. CARROLLTON 56, CASS GIRLS 36 The Lady Colonels dropped another Region 7-AAAAA road contest Friday night to their second Top Ten opponent in a row. Carrollton (5-2, 3-1) topped Cass 56-36 Friday night after Cass lost at Top Ten-ranked Rome Wednesday night. The Lady Colonels trailed just 13-11 after one quarter and were behind 23-22 at the intermission, but Carrollton pushed its lead out to 35-28 after three quarters before pulling away in the final eight minutes. Payton Stoddard led the Colonels with 10 points; Claire Davis contributed nine; and Alexis Ware added eight. Cass (7-2, 3-2) heads to Woodland Saturday at 3 p.m HARALSON COUNTY 36, ADAIRSVILLE GIRLS 35 The Adairsville girls were outscored 16-4 in the fourth quarter Friday night as host Haralson County edged the Lady Tigers, 36-35. The win for the Lady Rebels was their first of the year. The Haralson County girls are now 1-6 on the season and 1-5 in region games. Indiya Smith led Haralson County with 20 points. Morgan Pope scored seven for the Rebels. Nakiya Washington had a game-high 25 points for Adairsville. Havyn Isaac scored six points. Coriana McDaniel and Alexa Varner added two points each. Adairsville (3-7, 1-6) plays Murray County Saturday afternoon at home at 3 p.m. KELL 36, WOODLAND GIRLS 33 The Lady Cats made a nice second half run at Kell Friday night, but came up short, 36-33. Kell led 11-5 after one quarter and 22-13 at halftime before Woodland got back in the game by winning the third period, 22-5. The Lady Cats trailed by only two points heading into the fourth quarter, but the host Longhorns escaped with a three-point win. Amaya Moss led Kell with 15 points. Kya Williams added eight for the Lady ‘Horns (4-5, 2-2). Morgan Cooper scored nine points for Woodland. She was followed by Gracie Styles with seven; Ansley Evans with six; Madgie Robinson with five; then Jordan Thompson, Nickiah Metcalf, and Lauren Morris with two points each. The Lady Cats (1-7, 1-3) host Cass Saturday at 3 p.m. PAULDING COUNTY 47, CARTERSVILLE GIRLS 41 A close contest throughout, the Lady Canes held a 9-7 lead after one quarter and took a 23-17 advantage to the intermission locker room. In the third quarter, the host Lady Patriots outscored Cartersville 17-6 to grab a 34-29 lead and held on over the final eight minutes. Haley Johnson paced Cartersville with 10 points, eight of which came in the final period. Three other Canes had six points apiece. The win for Paulding County was their first of the year to improve to 1-9 on the season. Cartersville (3-2) opens the Rome Holiday Tournament Monday at 4 p.m. at Georgia Highlands’ Rome campus against Coosa.

The Adairsville Tigers were the only boys local high school basketball team to pick up a victory Friday night. Excel Christian Academy, Cass, Woodland, and Cartersville all dropped contests. ADAIRSVILLE BOYS 56, HARALSON COUNTY 23 The Tigers took care of visiting Haralson County Friday night, 56-23, in a Region 6-AAA tilt. Adairsville grabbed a 17-6 lead after one quarter and extended their lead to 33-10 by halftime. Deangelo McFarling led the Rebels (1-6) with nine points. Adairsville was led by Savaun Henderson’s 15 points. Connor Crunkelton scored eight. Courtney Slocum contributed seven points. Malachi Garder totaled five. TJ Pintup and Diego Perez scored four each. Danarous Johnson, Tucker Deems, and Hayden Poarch tossed in three apiece. Mason Boswell and Tyshawn Savage rounded out the scoring with two points each. Adairsville (4-4, 4-3) entertains region foe Murray County Saturday at 4:30 p.m. LASSITER 64, EXCEL CHRISTIAN BOYS 42 Class 7A Lassiter beat the visiting Excel Christian Academy boys Friday night, 64-42 in a non-region matchup for both teams in Marietta. Lassiter led 15-10 after one quarter, 28-18 at halftime, and 47-29 after three quarters on their way to a 22-point win. Bradley Frye and Kyle Keener led the Trojans (3-8) with 18 and 13 points, respectively. Rayshawn Womack led Excel with 10 points. He was followed by Josiah Mosley with nine, Brenden Quillian with seven, Kalil Holley with four, Jacob Day and Evan Lee with three each, Trippe Anderson scored two points, and Robby Poston added one point. Excel (3-6, 0-4) plays at Gordon Central Saturday at 1 p.m. CARROLLTON 66, CASS BOYS 48 Marcellious Lockett had a game-high 17 points as Carrollton cruised past visiting Cass Friday night, 66-48. The host Trojans led 39-17 by halftime and pushed their lead to 51-30 through three quarters. Jordan Ford, Jacquez Fountain, and Justice Hayes scored nine points each for Cass. Ethan Carter scored seven. Zaylan Chaney posted five points. Braxton Benham scored four. Andrew Glaze and Jaylon Johnson added two each. Jaquan Heard added one point for the Colonels. Carrollton improved to 5-2 overall and 4-0 in Region 7-AAAAA. Cass (3-7, 1-4) plays at Woodland Saturday at 4:30 p.m. before hosting Adairsville Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. KELL 65, WOODLAND BOYS 48 Woodland trailed 31-20 at halftime and 50-33 after three quarters in their eventual 17-point loss Friday at Kell. Justin Perry and Scoota Henderson led the host Longhorns (6-3, 4-0) with 16 points apiece. Marvin Kambe and Isaiah Dubose added eight each. Dawson Wilkins led Woodland with 18 points. He was followed by Justice Carter and Hunter Johnson with eight points each. Jaylen Ballard scored six for the Wildcats. DJ Robinson added five and Peyton Roberts three points. Woodland (3-6, 0-4) hosts Cass Saturday at 4:30 p.m. PAULDING COUNTY 101, CARTERSVILLE BOYS 61 The short-handed Canes stayed close in the first half, but Class 5A Paulding County took control in the second half for a one-sided non-region victory Friday night in Dallas. The Canes trailed only 39-32 at halftime, but the host Patriots extended their lead to 65-48 in the third quarter before stretching it even more in the final stanza. Six Patriots (9-1) reached double-figures led by Jervon Morris with 22. Kevin Brown had 19 points. John Cook scored 15. Trell Evans and Keon Sedgwick posted 13 each, and Corleone Thomas added 11 for Paulding. Perignon Dyer led Cartersville with 24 points. Micah Tart tossed in 11. Tyriek Hammock score eight. Taywaun Johnson had six points. Robert Novak scored four. Raylin Royal and Jaylen Garnigan added three each. Cartersville (1-4) opens action in the Rome Holiday Tournament Monday at 5:30 at Georgia Highlands’ Rome campus. The Canes will face Coosa.

The Excel Christian Academy boys basketball team snapped a five-game skid Thursday night by running away with an 86-43 non-region win over visiting Georgia School for the Deaf. The Eagles led 16-9 after eight minutes and were up 34-21 at halftime before generating a 37-point outburst in the third quarter to build a 71-34 lead. Excel had five players reach double figures in scoring. Josiah Mosley led the way with 18 points. Rayshawn Womack followed with 14. Trippe Anderson, Jake Murray, and Kalil Holley all had 12 each for Excel. Robby Poston contributed nine points Jacob Day had six and Jun Choi scored three points. DeMarco Brown led Georgia School for the Deaf (1-8) with 28 points. Excel Christian (3-5, 0-4) plays at Class 7A Lassiter Friday at 7:30 p.m. and at Class AA Gordon Central Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

The Cass girls basketball team lost for the first time this season Wednesday night falling at 9th-ranked Rome, 64-54. Rome held a 15-9 lead after the opening eight minutes and 24-22 at halftime. The Lady Wolves then pushed their lead out to 47-38 by the end of the third period and held on for the Region 7-AAAAA victory. Tarrah Gibson led all scorers in the game with 16 points for Rome. Amberly Brown followed with 14 and TaEmmica Nation scored 11 for the Wolves. Londaisha Smith (photo) led Cass with 12 points. Payton Stoddard scored 11 and Claire Davis posted 10 points for the Lady Colonels. Sharia Wade contributed nine points. Amber Brittian and Alexis Ware totaled four points each. Taryn Callahan had three points and Brianna Stephenson added one. Rome improved to 5-1 overall and 3-0 in region play. Cass (7-1, 3-1) plays at Carrollton Friday night at 6 p.m. and at Woodland Saturday at 3 p.m. ROME 66, CASS BOYS 61 The Cass boys lost a narrow road decision Wednesday night at Rome, 66-61. The Colonels stayed close throughout the night and had the Wolves’ lead down to two points with only 0:40 remaining, but failed to complete the comeback. “That was a tough loss,” said Cass head coach Sean Glaze (photo). “We stayed in the game, but just had too many bad offensive possessions throughout the night.” Cass trailed 17-15 after one quarter, 35-24 at halftime, and 48-41 through three quarters before making their late run at the lead. Rome’s Caleb Byrd led all scorers with 30 points. Jaylen Nelson and Justyn Smith added 13 and 10 respectively for the Wolves (3-1, 2-1). Ethan Carter and Jacquez Fountain led the Colonels’ scoring with 19 and 15 points. C.J. Pipkin, Justice Hayes, and Zaylan Chaney scored seven each for Cass. Braxton Benham finished with six points. Cass (3-6, 1-3) plays at Carrollton Friday night at 7:30 p.m. and at Woodland Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

Blessed Trinity successfully defended their GHSA Class 4A state championship by defeating Cartersville Wednesday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, 23-9. Blessed Trinity who knocked off Cartersville in the second round in 2017, finished the 2018 season 15-0 for back-to-back championships. Cartersville, who finished this season 14-1, won the state title in 2015 and 2016 and the Canes' only two losses in four years have been to the Titans. The Hurricanes scored first on a 37-yard field goal by Oscar Hernandez, but the Titans took a 7-3 lead to the intermission following a nine yard, second quarter touchdown pass from Jake Smith to Ryan Dupont. Hernandez added a 21-yard field goal in the third quarter that cut the Blessed Trinity lead to 7-6, but the Canes would get no closer. A high snap on a punt attempt from its own end zone bounced out of play for a Titans’ safety to make the score 9-6 and then Smith connected with Ryan Davis for a 54-yard touchdown pass that built a 16-6 advantage for Blessed Trinity. On the Hurricanes’ next possession Tee Webb found Dadrian Dennis on a slant, but Davis stripped the ball and Blessed Trinity delivered the knockout blow when Smith would punch the ball in from one yard out giving the Titans a 23-6 lead. Hernandez kicked his third field goal of the game to make the score 23-9 with 2:41 remaining, but an onside kick attempt failed and the Titans ran out the clock. For Blessed Trinity, Steele Chambers rushed for 98 yards on 22 attempts. Quarterback Jake Smith was 10-for-18 for 156 yards and two touchdowns. Ryan Davis caught seven passes for 135 yards and one score. Dupont had the other touchdown reception on his nine-yarder. Quinton Reese, Alex Poma, Davis, and Chambers all had five tackles apiece for the Titans. Marcus Gary (photo) finished with 175 rushing yards on 26 attempts for the Purple Hurricanes. Tee Webb was 12-for-26 for 149 yards. He had two throws intercepted. Jackson Lowe hauled in four receptions for 29 yards. Devonte Ross caught two passes for 49 yards. Marquail Coaxum had two receptions for 40 yards and Dadrian Dennis had one catch for 18 yards. Bobby Harris, Harrison Allen, Sunni Moorehead, and Tristan Carlton had six tackles each. Cartersville ends its season with a 14-1 record. The Cartersville senior class closes their careers with a 55-2 record, two state titles, and four region championships.