Updates on selected games from Cartersville Little League and Bartow County Little League. Games played May 4, 9, and 11. Additional games from the selected date range will be posted as they become available from their respective leagues. Cartersville Little League (major) Thursday, May 11 DODGERS 12, PHILLIES 7 Dodgers: Chandler Mathison two hits including HR, two RBIs; Jacob Peace two hits including HR, three RBIs; Jimmy Channell two hits; Justin Peace two hits, one RBI; Carter Acrey one hit, one RBI; Silas Freeman one hit, one RBI; Tyler Taylor and Ahmari Thomas one hit each. Tyler Taylor (2 IP, 4ER, 6H, 2BB, 1K); Jacob Peace (4 IP, 3ER, 3H, 1BB, 9K). Phillies: Pearse Mullinax two hits, one RBI; Kaden Stephenson two hits; Sawyer Wilson one hit, one RBI; Ricky Hawkins one hit, one RBI; Zayne Canady and Andrew Thayer one hit each. Pearse Mullinax (3 IP, 0R, 4H, 1BB, 3K); Kaden Stephenson (1.1 IP, 2ER, 2H, 2BB); JaKeveon Porter (0.2 IP, 2H, 5ER, 2BB); Brodie McWhorter (1 IP, 5ER, 4H, 3BB, 2K). COLTS 9, TIGERS 6 Colts: Trevor Harris two hits including HR, two RBIs; Grant Knight two hits, three RBIs; Jack Chatman two hits, one RBI; Cole Jackson two hits, one RBI; McClain Knight, Turner Abernathy, Brody Tidwell one hit each. Hunter Shirley (2.1 IP, 5R, 0ER, 2H, 4BB, 5K); Jack Chatman (3.2 IP, 1R, 0ER, 1H, 1BB, 3K). Tigers: Garrett McRay one hit, two RBIs; Cam Williams and Colt Williams one hit each; Trenton Payne, Hunter Owens, Dawson Sutton one RBI each. Trenton Payne (5 IP, 8R, 5ER, 9H, 1BB, 3K); Garrett McRay (1 IP, 1ER, 2H, 1BB, 1K). INDIANS 9, CRACKERS 7 Indians: Hunter Kelly two hits, two RBIs; Harrison Childers two hits, one RBI; Collin Fletcher one hit, two RBIs; Trip Bradley one hit, one RBi; Lucas Henry one hit, one RBI; Maddox Frazier one RBI. Harrison Childers (2 IP, 1R, 0ER, 1H, 1K); Hunter Kelly (4 IP, 6R, 0ER, 2H, 4BB, 5K). Crackers: Tyler Shelton HR, two RBIs; Caleb Harrell, Drake Carver one hit each; Isaac Seigler one RBI. Isaac Seigler (5 IP, 9R, 1ER, 7H, 0BB, 8K). CLL (major) STANDINGS (as posted 5/13) Braves . . . . . . . . . 16-1 Crackers . . . . . . . 14-3 Indians . . . . . . . . . 13-4 Dodgers . . . . . . . . 7-10 Phillies . . . . . . . . . 7-10 Colts . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12 Tigers . . . . . . . . . . 3-14 Padres . . . . . . . . . . 3-14 Bartow County Little League (major) Thursday, May 4 CARDINALS 12, TWINS 0 Cardinals: Julian Herndon two hits including triple, five RBIs; Sahaj Patel two hits. Twins: no hits Tuesday, May 9 BRAVES 10, METS 4 Braves: Hunter Smith one hit, two RBIs; Joshua McBroom double; Brice Craig one hit. Mets: Jake Crapps, David Kelley, Elijah Tempelton, Carter Collum one hit each; Jordan Durham one RBI. ORIOLES 10, GIANTS 0 Orioles: Tyler Driggers three hits w/ two triples, three RBIs; Braden Powell two doubles; Devon Pryer solo HR; Ashton Phillips three RBIs. Giants: non hits GIANTS 14, CARDINALS 4 Giants: Caleb Wiley two hits, one RBI; Andrew Stiles one double, four RBIs; Julian Chartier one double, three RBIs; Jesse Wiseman one hit, one RBI; Bryson Hook one hit; Gabriel Perdue two RBIs; Ethan Griffith one RBI. RANGERS 13, TWINS 4 Rangers: Christopher Cabe and Cameron Constantine two hits each; Kaiden Pirkle grand slam HR; Titus Bagley grand slam HR. Twins: Cadyn Wade two hits including triple, two RBIs; Tyler Marston one hit, one RBI; Koby Reagan one RBI. BCLL (major) STANDINGS (for games posted through Tuesday, May 9) Orioles . . . . . . . . . . . 9-0-0 Athletics . . . . . . . . . . 8-1-0 Braves . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2-1 Giants . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4-0 Rangers . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5-0 Tigers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5-0 Cubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7-0 Mets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7-1 Cardinals . . . . . . . . . . 2-10-0 Twins . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0-10-0 ​NOTE: Pitching data not provided for BCLL games. Games not completed or not posted on the respective leagues' GameChanger sites are not included, but will be added to future posts when made available. Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League capsules and game results are provided to BartowSportsZone.com by the two leagues and are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports at 410 Cherokee Place in Cartersville.

Bartow County athletes won one gold, two silver, and two bronze medals at the GHSA State Track and Field Championships this weekend held at three different locations across the state. Woodland’s Thomas Jolly won the Class AAAAA pole vault to lead all local finishes. Cass’ Ray Varnum had an impressive state meet. He won silver in the Class AAAAA long jump and took bronze in the 110 meter hurdles. Adairsville’s Josie Summerville was a silver medalist in the Class AAA shot put and Cartersville’s Keonte Jackson won bronze in the Class AAAA high jump. The Class AAA meet was held at Hugh Mills Stadium in Albany. The Class AAAA championship was at Berry College in Rome and the Class AAAAA state meet was at Carrollton High School. Local summary: ADAIRSVILLE GIRLS — Lady Tigers finished 16th with 11 points. Greater Atlanta Christian won Class 3A girls championship. — Josie Summerville finished runner-up in the shot put. (37-10) — Nakiyah Washington finished sixth in discus throw. (101-5) ADAIRSVILLE BOYS — Tigers finished 29th in Class AAA. Cedar Grove won Class 3A boys championship. — Chad Lowery was 6th in the discus throw. (136-07) CARTERSVILLE BOYS — Canes finished 27th in Class AAAA. Marist boys won Class 4A boys championship. — Keonte Jackson finished third in the high jump. (6-4) WOODLAND BOYS — Wildcats finished 14th in Class AAAAA. Cedar Shoals won Class 5A boys title. — Thomas Jolly won Class 5A pole vault. (15-0) — Trevor Knowles placed 6th in the high jump. (6-02) WOODLAND GIRLS — Lady Cats finished 28th in Class AAAAA. Buford won the Class 5A girls championship. — Karson Norris placed 8th in the pole vault. (8-0) — Carli Clymer placed 6th in the 800 meter run. (2:23.22) CASS BOYS — Colonels finished 10th in Class AAAAA. Cedar Shoals won Class 5A boys title. — Ray Varnum was state runner-up in the long jump. (23-05.25) — Ray Varnum placed third in the 110 meter hurdles. (14.79) — Tavarus Varnum finished 5th in the high jump. (6-02) CASS GIRLS — Lady Colonels were 28th in Class AAAAA. Buford won the Class 5A title. — Chanelle Clemmons placed 4th in the shot put. (38-03.5)

Adairsville’s Josie Summerville finished runner-up in the Class AAA shot put Friday at Hugh Mills Stadium in Albany. Her throw of 37 feet, 10 inches trailed only Kelsey Jones of Appling who won with a throw of 38 feet, one-half inch. Nakiyah Washington of the Lady Tigers earned sixth place points in the discus with a throw of 101 feet, 5 inches. The performances by Summerville and Washington has Adairsville in 10th place in Class AAA going into Saturday’s final events. At Berry College in Rome, Cartersville high jumper Keonte Jackson placed third with a mark of 6 feet, 4 inches and earned the Hurricanes 5.5 points. Cartersville is in 19th place in Class AAAA heading into Saturday’s finals. In Carrollton, the Woodland and Cass boys remained in the top eight after Friday’s results. Woodland is tied for sixth with 13 points. Cass has 12 points and is currently eighth with all remaining finals Saturday.

The Adairsville Lady Tigers’ golf team qualified for the state tournament with a sixth place finish at the Area IV AAA tournament. “These were not our best scores, but the ladies played well enough to get the job done,” said AHS coach Kurt Scoggins. Seniors Keighley Hudziak and Sabrina Fanello shot 100 and 104, respectively, to lead the Lady Tigers. Freshman Cortni Jacobs shot 112 to complete Adairsville’s 316 total. Freshman Lindsey Anglin shot 120. Calhoun won the Area tournament with a team total 248. The Lady Jackets were followed by five other state tournament qualifiers including Bremen (253), North Murray (271), Westminster (276), Pace Academy (313), and Adairsville. The girls Class AAA Championship will be May 22-23 at Okefenokee Country Club in Blackshear. In other Area golf tournaments, the Adairsville boys finished 11th (436) in Area 4-AAA. The Cass boys were 4th (355) in Area 4-AAAAA, and the Cartersville boys were 5th (365) in Area 4-AAAA. None of those teams were able to qualify for the state championship tournaments.

Georgia Highlands scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth inning Friday afternoon to break open a previously tied game and defeated South Georgia 9-3 to reach the championship round of the 2017 Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Championship Tournament. The Chargers led 2-0 heading to the seventh inning when South Georgia scored three times to go ahead 3-2. GHC tied the game 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh on a Matt Vaccaro RBI single, before the big eighth inning rally. Caleb McElwaney led off the second inning with a solo home run and John White homered in the fifth for the Chargers’ early lead. In the eighth, Georgia Highlands scored six times. Devin Bilardello had a two-RBI single, White added a RBI single, and Vaccaro blasted a three-run homer. Tyler Sellers earned the pitching win by working the final two and two-thirds innings. He did not allow a run and yielded only two hits. He fanned two. Matthew Norton (6.1 IP, 3ER, 6H, 1BB, 5K) started on the mound for the Chargers. Georgia Highlands (39-19) is the only undefeated team remaining in the double-elimination tournament. The Chargers will play the South Georgia (38-21) vs. ABAC (31-27) winner Saturday at noon at LakePoint. With a victory, GHC wins the tournament and advances to the East Central Regional at Dyersburg State (TN). The South Georgia-ABAC winner will need to defeat Georgia Highlands twice to win the title.

The 2017 Georgia State Golf Association (GSGA) Mid-Amateur Championship gets underway Friday, May 19 and is hosted this year by Cartersville Country Club. Chad Branton, current club champion at Cartersville Country Club (photo), heads a local contingent of players that will play for the title against a statewide field. The Mid-Am field consists of 144 players age 25 or older. The group of competitors was determined through GSGA player exemptions from various championship events and a series of six statewide 18-hole qualifiers in April that were held in Savannah, Flowery Branch, Columbus, Warner Robins, Alpharetta, Hampton, and Cartersville. The 54-hole championship runs Friday through Sunday on the 7,006-yard, par 72, Cartersville Country Club course. John Engler, Jr. of Augusta is the defending champion. Engler won the 2016 Mid-Amateur title on his home course — Augusta Country Club. Local contenders in the event with their first round tee times listed: Player — Home — Starting Hole — Tee Time Chad Branton — Cartersville — 1 — 2:00pm Scott Davenport — Marietta — 1 — 1:10pm Cres Dodd — Calhoun — 1 — 1:20pm Chase Jones — Cartersville — 10 — 1:10pm Robert Niedergall III — Cartersville — 10 — 9:40am David Noll -- Dalton -- 1 -- 1:30pm Tevis Upton — Acworth — 10 — 1:10pm Rob VanGorder, Jr. — Acworth — 1 — 1:20pm Fred Wolford — Acworth — 10 — 9:40am The Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship, held annually since 1982, is open to male amateur golfers who are GSGA members, are residents of Georgia and are at least 25 years of age on the day of the first round. Tournament scoring may be followed online at — http://www.ghintpp.com/gsga/TPPOnlineScoring/Default.aspx?ID=804

Drew Wilson tossed a complete game, 7-inning shutout Thursday afternoon at LakePoint Sports in Emerson as the host Georgia Highlands baseball team won its first game of the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association conference championship tournament, 10-0, over Andrew College. Wilson was in command throughout. He scattered three hits and a pair of walks while striking out two. Nick Piccapietra was 2-for-4 at the plate with a pair of doubles and drove in six runs while Brandon Bell homered and doubled in a three-hit performance to lead the Chargers’ offense. Bell had two RBIs. Nick Fink had two hits including a triple with one RBI. Matt Vaccaro added two hits and one RBI. Caleb McElwaney had two hits and Grand Bodison added a hit as the Chargers out hit the Tigers 12 to 3. Andrew bounced back Thursday evening to edge top-seed East Georgia in the losers’ bracket, 2-1. The Tigers will play ABAC Friday at 1pm in an elimination game. 2nd-seed Georgia Highlands (38-19) advances to play upstart South Georgia Friday at 10am in a game of tournament unbeatens. South Georgia (38-20) is the No. 5 seed. South Georgia has tournament wins over Gordon State and GCAA regular season champion East Georgia. The Georgia Highlands - South Georgia winner advances to the GCAA championship on Saturday. The loser must play an elimination game Friday at 4pm against the ABAC-Andrew survivor. The winner of the GCAA tournament advances to the NJCAA East Central Regional May 17-19 at Dyersburg State in western Tennessee. The regional winner in Tennessee will qualify for the NJCAA World Series that begins May 27 in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Thursday was the first day of GHSA State Track and Field Championships competition at three different stadiums around the state of Georgia and Woodland High School's Thomas Jolly claimed a state championship in the Class AAAAA pole vault. The state meets continue through Saturday in Albany, Rome, and Carrollton. Jolly, who finished third in the Class AAAAA pole vault last year, won the 2017 title with a vault of 15 feet. His runner-up was region rival Joe Street of Carrollton who cleared 13 feet, 6 inches along with Jake Rubin of North Springs. Jolly will compete again Friday with his Woodland teammates in the 4x400M relay. Cass had three athletes with top-five finishes in Class AAAAA field events Thursday in Carrollton. Ray Varnum was second in the Long Jump, Channelle Clemmons was fourth in the Shot Put, and Tavarus Varnum had a fifth place finish in the High Jump. Woodland's Trevor Knowles was sixth in the High Jump. Karson Norris placed eighth in the Pole Vault, and Carli Clymer placed ninth in the 1600M Run. After Day 1 of the three-day state championships, Woodland is tied for sixth as a team in the Class 5A team standings with 13 points. Cass is right behind in eighth with 12. GHSA Track & Field State Championships May 11-13, 2017 (Girls and Boys) Class AAA — Hugh Mills Stadium, Albany Class AAAA — Valhalla Stadium, Berry College, Rome Class AAAAA — Grisham Stadium, Carrollton HS 1st — Thomas Jolly — Woodland — Boys Pole Vault — 15.00 2nd — Ray Varnum — Cass — Boys Long Jump — 23-05.25 4th — Channelle Clemmons — Cass — Girls Shot Put — 38-3.50 5th — Tavarus Varnum — Cass — Boys High Jump — 6-02.00 6th — Trevor Knowles — Woodland — Boys High Jump — 6-02.00 6th — Chad Lowery — Adairsville — Boys Discus — 136-07 8th — Karson Norris — Woodland — Girls Pole Vault — 8-00.00 9th — Carli Clymer — Woodland — Girls 1600M Run — 5:18.70

Both the Cartersville Little League and Bartow County Little League regular seasons are hitting their latter stages and the title chase continues for several teams. The Braves lead the Crackers by a single game in Cartersville Little League play and the Indians are third at three games back. In Bartow County Little League play, the Orioles remain undefeated through games posted May 10 with the Athletics and Braves in hot pursuit. Bartow County Little League (major) Monday, May 8 BRAVES 6, TIGERS 4 Braves: Brice Craig three hits including HR, two RBIs; Erich Wilburn HR, RBI; Tyler Martin one hit, one RBI; Conner Lujan one hit, one RBI. Tigers: Dawson Walters HR, two RBIs; Graham Hilburn one hit. ATHLETICS 13, CUBS 3 Athletics: Landon O’Neal two hits, two RBIs; Hayden Blalock two hits, one RBI; Dawson Craig one hit; Robert Mitchell one hit, two RBIs; Brayden Butler one hit, two RBIs; Riley Belcher one hit, two RBIs; Hayden Heath one hit, one RBI; Thomas Wells one hit. Cubs: Eddie Boggs one hit, one RBI; Corey Brookshire one hit; Todd Gaddy one hit. Bartow County Little League (major) Standings (for games thru Mon. May 8) Orioles .......8-0-0 Athletics .....8-1-0 Braves ...... 8-2-1 Tigers ....... 6-5-0 Giants ....... 5-3-0 Rangers .... 5-5-0 Cubs .........3-7-0 Mets ..........2-6-1 Cardinals ....1-9-0 Twins ......... 0-8-0 Cartersville Little League (major) Monday, May 8 BRAVES 17, PADRES 4 Braves: Martavius Cochran four hits including HR, six RBIs; Joshua Clay four hits including triple, RBI; Anderson McCary three hits, RBI; Miles Owens two hits including triple, four RBIs; Hayden James two hits, two RBIs; Cooper Teeples one hit, one RBI; Caleb Daniel, Nicholas Hruby, Matthew Clay one hit. Hayden James (2 IP, 2ER, 3H, 3BB, 1K); Joshua Clay (1.2 IP, 2ER, 1H, 2BB, 2K); Martavius Cochran (1.1 IP, 0R, 1H, 1BB, 4K). Padres: Avery Higgins two hits; Luke Altizer one hit, one RBI; Mateo Castillo one hit, one RBI; Malachi Jeffries one hit; Lee Camp one RBI. A.J. Christina (3 IP, 7R, 5ER, 7H, 2BB, 5K); Geoffrey Gore (1 IP, 3ER, 6H, 2K); Avery Higgins (1 IP, 7ER, 6H, 2BB, 2K). DODGERS 10, PHILLIES 8 Dodgers: Tyler Taylor two hits, two RBIs; Chandler Mathison two hits; Noah Herring one hit, two RBIs; Silas Freeman one hit, one RBI; Jacob Peace one hit, one RBI; Charlie Rothschild one hit, one RBI; Ayden Ray one hit; Justin Peace one hit. Ayden Ray (0.1 IP, 4ER, 4H, 3BB, 1K); Jacob Peace (3.2 IP, 0R, 2H, 10K); Hayden Hold (2 IP, 3R, 1ER, 2H, 2BB, 3K). Phillies: JaKeveon Porter three hits; Kaden Stephenson two hits; JaKiyon Porter grand slam HR, four RBIs; Andrew Thayer one hit; Brodie McWhorter one hit. JaKiyon Porter (3.2 IP, 4R, 2ER, 5H, 5BB, 7K); Kaden Stephenson (1.1 IP, 6ER, 5H, 2BB, 2K). Wednesday, May 10 BRAVES 5, PHILLIES 3 Braves: Nicholas Hruby two hit, one RBI; Caleb Daniel two hits; Chris Roper one hit, one RBI; Hayden James, Martavius Cochran, Anderson McCary, Joshua Clay one hit each; Davis Waddell one RBI. Nicholas Hruby (5 IP, 3ER, 1H, 5BB, 4K); Miles Owens (1 IP, 0R, 1H, 3K). Phillies: Zayne Canady triple, RBI; JaKeveon Porter one hit; JaKiyon Porter, Brodie McWhorter one RBI each. Sawyer Wilson (4.2 IP, 5R, 4ER, 9H, 2BB, 5K); Pearse Mullinax (0.1 IP). INDIANS 7, TIGERS 6 Indians: Trip Bradley two hits including HR, four RBIs; Harrison Childers double, HR, RBI; Collin Fletcher two hits; Gavin Shrewsberry, Maddox Frazier one hit each. Gavin Shrewsberry (4 IP, 2R, 1ER, 3H, 2BB, 11K); Trip Bradley (2 IP, 4R, 0ER, 1H, 2BB, 7K). Tigers: Connor Brasfield two hits, two RBIs; Colt Williams triple; Kace Adams one hit. Connor Brasfield (4.1 IP, 4R, 2ER, 6H, 5BB, 5K); Garrett McRay (1 IP, 3ER, 2H, 1BB). Cartersville Little League (major) Standings (as posted by CLL 5/11) Braves ....... 14-1 Crackers .... 13-2 Indians ....... 11-4 Phillies ....... 7-8 Dodgers ..... 6-9 Colts .......... 4-11 Tigers ......... 3-12 Padres ........ 2-13 Cartersville Little League (minor, kid pitch) A’s ...................... 13-0-1 White Sox .......... 11-3-0 Cubs .................. 7-5-2 Rockies .............. 7-6-1 Diamondbacks .... 6-6-2 Reds .................. 6-8-0 Red Sox ............. 2-12-0 Rays ................... 1-13-0 Cartersville Little League (coach pitch) Yankees ........... 9-3 * Nationals ........... 6-6 Giants ................ 6-6 Mets ................. 3-9 *playoff champions ​NOTE: Pitching data not provided for BCLL games. Games not completed or not posted on the respective leagues' GameChanger sites are not included, but will be added to future posts when made available. Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League capsules and game results are provided to BartowSportsZone.com by the two leagues and are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports at 410 Cherokee Place in Cartersville.

Cass High School will host a basketball camp for boys ages 7 to 13 years old June 21-22. The camps will run from 9am to 1pm each day. For more information, contact Cass High School head basketball coach David Brock — 770-606-5845 or email: david.brock@bartow.k12.ga.us The cost is $75.

Michael Kimsey won a pair of gold medals this past Saturday at the 2017 International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation Atlanta Spring Open held at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta. The event was a qualifier for the 2017 National Championships and the 2017 World Championships. Kimsey won gold in the Blue/Master 2/Super-Heavyweight division and the Blue/Master 2/Open class. A special education teacher and assistant wrestling coach at Adairsville High School, Kimsey is now ranked 173rd in the world. He will compete in the National Championships in Las Vegas July 6-8 and the World Championships at the Las Vegas Convention Center August 24-26.

Former Cartersville High School pole vaulter, Anna Hightower, set a new career best at the Torrin Lawrence Memorial last weekend in Athens competing for Georgia Tech to headline this week's Athletes Beyond Bartow update. Meanwhile, Sam Howard had another solid outing Friday for the Hartford Yard Goats and the bat of Connor Justus is starting to heat up in this week's update for Athletes Beyond Bartow. On the college baseball diamonds, the JUCO, NAIA, and NCAA D-II playoffs have started and the Division I conference races are winding down as those teams get ready for conference tournaments in two weeks. In college softball, five local athletes are part of the NAIA playoff run by Reinhardt University and we have locals also representing on NCAA D-I and D-II teams in the post-season. MiLB SAM HOWARD — Hartford Yard Goats - Double-A - Eastern League - Colorado Rockies affiliate (4th year pro; LHP; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS). . . Howard took a shutout into the sixth inning last Friday, but allowed a solo home run in the sixth and one more run on a double and RBI single in the seventh in a 2-1 loss at Harrisburg. In four starts in 2017, Howard is now 0-2 with a 2.55 ERA in 17.2 innings. He has limited opponents to a .185 batting average and has 15 strikeouts. The Yard Goats are 10-17 and 7.5 games back of first place Trenton (NYY) in the Eastern Division of the Eastern League. CONNOR JUSTUS — Inland Empire 66ers - Class A Advanced - California League - Los Angeles Angels affiliate (2nd year pro; SS; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS). . . Justus was 6-for-17 in seven games last week at home against Lancaster and on the road at Rancho Cucamonga. Justus hit a two-run homer last Wednesday at home in a 4-3 come-from-behind win over Lancaster. His first home run of the year tied the game 3-3 and the 66ers added another run later in the inning for a walk-off victory. After a slow start at the plate, Justus has now hit safely in four of his last five games and has lifted his batting average to .200 with nine RBIs, five doubles, and three stolen bases. Defensively, he has a .961 fielding percentage in 102 chances and has been part of 19 double plays. Inland Empire has a 14-17 record and is in second place in the California League’s South Division. The 66ers are 2 games back of first-place Rancho Cucamonga (LAD). COLLEGE BASEBALL ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Auburn University (Freshman, LHP, Cartersville HS). . . made a ninth inning appearance Sunday against Alabama in an 11-9 15-inning home loss. Anderson walked a batter and struck out one facing three Tide hitters. He has made nine appearances (9.1 innings) and is 1-0 with a 7.71 ERA. Auburn (32-17, 14-10 SEC) plays at UAB Tuesday and at LSU for a three-game SEC series this weekend, starting Friday night. TY FOWLER — Tennessee Wesleyan College (Senior, RHP, Cartersville HS). . . started the Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament championship game and went 4.1 innings Sunday in Kingsport, Tennessee. Fowler received no decision, but NAIA 10th-ranked TWC went on to win the conference title game 4-1 over Truett-McConnell College. Fowler allowed one earned run on four hits and four walks. He also worked the final two innings last Wednesday in the Bulldogs’ 13-6 tournament opening win over Bluefield College (VA). He allowed four, unearned runs, on five hits, a walk, and two strikeouts. Tennessee Wesleyan (39-18) won its third consecutive AAC championship and 10th in 11 years. The Bulldogs earned an automatic berth to the NAIA National Championship Opening Round, which begins on Monday, May 15. The full 45-team field, pairings, and sites will be announced on Thursday. MICHAEL GOSS — UNC-Greensboro (Senior, 1B, Cartersville HS). . . went 3-for-5 Sunday with his sixth home run of the season in an 8-5 win at VMI. He was also 2-for-7 with a walk and was hit by a pitch in the first two games of the series, both UNCG losses. Goss has a .333 batting average in 150 official at bats this season in 42 games. He has 18 extra base hits (.547 SLG%) and 40 RBIs. The Spartans (28-18, 11-7 Southern Conference) host The Citadel for three conference games this weekend. BRADLEY HOOD — Georgia Highlands College (Sophomore, RHP, Cass HS). . . made a sixth inning appearance Saturday in the second game of a doubleheader at West Georgia Tech and was tagged with a loss. He retired one batter, but allowed a home run that was the difference in a 7-6 game. Hood has made nine appearances for 12.1 innings and a 1.46 ERA with 14 strikeouts. The Chargers (37-19, 14-10 GCAA) host the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association tournament that begins Wednesday afternoon at LakePoint Sports in Emerson. GHC received a first round bye and will play the ABAC-Gordon State winner on Thursday in the double-elimination tournament. SEAN McDERMOTT — Cleveland State CC (Sophomore, 1B, Adairsville HS). . . committed to Mercer for the next two seasons, McDermott and the Cougars open the TCCAA playoffs Monday night at home against Volunteer State CC. McDermott is hitting .371 with eight homers and 35 RBIs through 44 games. Cleveland State is 33-16 overall and 13-14 in conference play. The Cougars are the No. 4 seed in the tournament. JO JO UNDERWOOD — UNC-Greensboro (Senior, C/3B, Cartersville HS). . . made a pair of appearances this past week at Elon and at VMI with four putouts. He also drew one walk at the plate and is currently hitting .250 in 14 games for the Spartans. He has two homers and six RBIs in 36 official at bats. UNCG (28-18, 11-7 Southern Conference) host The Citadel for three conference games this weekend. CHAZ WILSON — Columbus State Universtiy (Senior, RHP, Cass HS). . . The Cougars play in the Peach Belt Conference Championship Tournament this week in Florence, SC and will be the No. 4 seed. Wilson graduated last week with a degree in Accounting and a 3.96 GPA. He has made only six appearances this season, but has a 1.93 ERA with four strikeouts and four walks in 4.2 innings. He has accumulated 66 innings pitched with 45 strikeouts in a four-year career at Union University and Columbus State. CSU (29-19, 15-9 PBC) plays UNC-Pembroke in the first round of the double-elimination conference tournament Wednesday night. COLLEGE SOFTBALL BETHANY BALLARD — Armstrong State University (Senior, C/1B, Cass HS). . . the Lady Pirates will host an NCAA D2 Southeast Region starting Thursday in Savannah. In limited playing time, Ballard is hitting .333 with one RBI. The Pirates open the four-team regional tournament against Peach Belt Conference foe Young Harris College. TAYLOR BRASELTON — Reinhardt University (Senior, SS, Woodland HS). . . received the 2017 Appalachian Athletic Conference Player of the Year award after leading Reinhardt in hits and batting average. She ranks in the top 35 nationally in 13 difference statistical categories. Braselton has a .458 batting average with 31 RBIs this season in 56 games and has 32 stolen bases. She was also named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) District 1 Academic All-District team with a 3.76 GPA in Business Administration. The Lady Eagles (41-14-1) await their Opening Round assignment in the NAIA National Championship Tournament which begins May 15. SYDNEY FLOWERS — Reinhardt University (Senior, UT, Woodland HS). . . hitting .205 with six RBIs in 44 official at bats and has played in 31 games for the Eagles this season. Reinhardt (41-14-1) awaits its Opening Round assignment in the NAIA National Championship Tournament which begins May 15. CASSIDY HOWREN — Reinhardt University (Junior, C, Adairsville HS). . . batting .240 with eight RBIs in 129 at bats across 55 games for the Eagles. She has started 52 games. Reinhardt (41-14-1) awaits its Opening Round assignment in the NAIA National Championship Tournament which begins May 15. HUNTER IRVIN — Reinhardt University (Sophomore, OF, Cartersville HS). . . in 17 appearances for the Lady Eagles, Irvin has a .250 batting average with a pair of doubles in 16 at bats. Reinhardt (41-14-1) awaits its Opening Round assignment in the NAIA National Championship Tournament which begins May 15. TAYLOR WEEKS — Reinhardt University (Senior, OF, Adairsville HS). . . was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) District 1 Academic All-District team for the second straight year. She was a 2016 CoSIDA First Team Academic All-America honoree. She was a First Team All-Appalachian Athletic Conference honoree this season with a .426 batting average over her last two seasons. Weeks has 30 RBIs this season and a .475 on base percentage. Academically, she has a 3.96 GPA while majoring in Early Childhood Education. The Lady Eagles (41-14-1) await their Opening Round assignment in the NAIA National Championship Tournament which begins May 15. ANNALYN YANTIS — Samford University (Sophomore, P, Cartersville HS). . . the Bulldogs open play in the Southern Conference Championship Tournament Wednesday in Chattanooga. Yantis has made six appearances this season for Samford with an 8.08 ERA. The Lady Bulldogs (22-34) play Mercer in the SoCon tournament opening round. TRACK AND FIELD MILES BEARDEN -- Kansas State University (Senior, Cartersville resident, Darlington HS) . . .Bearden set an outdoor personal record and cleared 2.15 meters to win the high jump over the weekend at the Ward Haylett Invitational, but the Wildcat men were edged by in-state rival Kansas 54-50 in the dual meet. BREE COLE — Jacksonville State University (Freshman, Cartersville HS). . . placed 14th with a time of 5:10.42 in the 1500M run Saturday at the University of Tennessee Challenge in Knoxville. Next for the Gamecocks is the Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Championships. JSU will host this weekend in Oxford, AL. ANNA HIGHTOWER — Georgia Tech (Sophomore, Cartersville HS). . . set a new career best in the pole vault with a mark of 3.81m at the Torrin Lawrence Memorial in Athens. It was the final meet before the Jackets host the ACC Outdoor Championships this weekend in Atlanta. SAMANTHA PATTERSON — Jacksonville State University (Junior, Woodland HS). . . was third in the pole vault with a mark of 10’-6” Saturday at the University of Tennessee Challenge in Knoxville. Next for the Gamecocks is the Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Championships. JSU will host this weekend in Oxford, AL.