When the 2016 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship tees off for the second round Saturday in Eugene, Oregon, Cartersville native and 18th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners’ assistant coach, Jim Garren, will be on the course supporting his players. Garren (photo, right, with one of his players) is in Oregon this week helping lead the Sooners to what he hopes will be a National Championship, and at minimum, an improvement on the team’s 28th place finish in last year’s national tournament. Oklahoma shot a team total 290 (10-over) on Friday to stand tied for 15th after one round in the championship. Arkansas and TCU were tied for the lead after one day at 2-over, 282. “We played solid in the opening round and it is a golf course that is not going to separate scores very much,” noted Garren after his team’s opening round. “The only disappointment was how we played as a team on holes five and six. We dropped some shots there and those holes are two of the easier holes on the course after starting on hole number ten.” “Overall, it was a pretty good day. We’re fairly pleased,” he added. Garren, a former golfer for the Cartersville Hurricanes is in his second season as an assistant at OU. He was a member of three Georgia High School Association Class AA state championship teams. (2000-2002). He continued his playing career as a member of the Wallace State junior college team in 2003 before transferring to Kennesaw State University, where he earned his degree in Sports Management in 2008. Garren began his coaching career in 2008 as an assistant coach and director of recruiting at Southern Mississippi. The Golden Eagles established five team records during his tenure and produced four Academic All-America Scholars and a pair of All-Conference USA selections. In 2013, Garren moved further west to serve as the men’s golf assistant at New Mexico, where the Lobos won four tournaments including a Mountain West championship. He also helped develop a pair of PING All-West Region and All-Mountain West selections in Gavin Green and Victor Perez. Green was tabbed a second-team All-American and MWC Player of the Year. New Mexico also had three Academic All-America Scholars during Garren’s season with the Lobos. Garren arrived at Oklahoma University in August of 2014 after being hired by current head coach Ryan Hybl, another Georgia native. Hybl is from Colbert, GA and has served as the Sooners’ head coach since 2009. He was previously an assistant coach at the University of Georgia and played four seasons for the Bulldogs (2001-04). Hybl was a two-time, All-America and All-SEC selection at UGA and was team captain as a junior and a senior. In the 2015 season, Hybl and Garren led OU to a 20-stroke victory at the NCAA San Diego Regional and a fifth-straight NCAA Championships appearance. OU also had two players, Michael Gellerman (third team) and Grant Hirschman (honorable mention), to receive All-America recognition in 2015. By qualifying for the 2016 national tournament, Oklahoma is in some elite company. Only Georgia, Illinois, Texas, and USC have joined the Sooners in the past six straight NCAA Championships. Garren pointed to this year’s team as not only good, but with great potential. “The unique thing about this team is our youth,” noted Garren. “We’re excited about what we’ve accomplished, but also excited about this team’s potential. Even our senior has only been in our top five for the last two seasons. Our fall was strong, but we started slowly in the spring and we’ve really improved each week.” This past fall, Oklahoma won The Gopher Invitational in Plymouth, MN and the Ka’anapali Collegiate Classic in Maui, Hawaii. The team also collected a runner-up finish at the UTSA/Oak Hills Invitational in San Antonio, TX in February and placed third in Las Vegas at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters in March. The Sooners finished fourth in the Big 12 Championship in Trinity, TX April 29-May 1 and earned their trip to the NCAA Championship with a runner-up finish at the NCAA Stillwater Regional May 16-18. At Stillwater, Oklahoma shot 292-296-302—890 (+26) to finish behind Big 12 Conference rival, Oklahoma State (+7) at the par-72, 7418-yard Karsten Creek Golf Club. Clemson (+37), Louisville (+43), and Purdue (+46) rounded out the five qualifying teams for the NCAA Championship from the Stillwater Regional. Individually, three Sooners finished in the top 20 at Stillwater. Junior Max McGreevy shot 3-over to claim fourth. Sophomore Grant Hirschman tied for eighth with a 6-over total, and Freshman Brad Dalke tied for 15th by carding a 9-over finish. Freshman Blaine Hale (T27, +13) and Senior Luke Kwon (T44, +20) rounded out the OU individual scores. Garren and Hybl will be out on the course with the Sooners throughout the championship providing all the help they are allowed. “Honestly, about 90 percent of what we do with these guys is psychological and motivational,” Garren observed. “These guys all have swing coaches and we don’t do much with their swings. As college coaches, we focus on course management, short game techniques, confidence, and suggestions on how a player might improve his scoring. I keep a lot of notes and will share trends that can possibly help with club selection later in a round,” said the Sooners’ assistant. Garren’s daily responsibilities with the OU program are varied, and include a lot of the recruiting duties as the Sooners try to collect the top young players in the nation. “We recruit year round and I’m on the road with recruiting at least a couple of times each month,” he pointed out. “Most of my mornings are filled with phone calls, clerical and administrative tasks for compliance, NCAA paper work, budgets, items for the athletic department, and work with our boosters. We can hold formal practices with our guys 20 hours each week, so we usually do three hours or so several days each week,” added the coach. Garren also likes to point to his Cartersville roots as a huge influence on where he stands today with one of the top collegiate programs in the country. “In my youth, I was influenced by the way Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods played the game,” said Garren. “But as a teenager, I was lucky to get to play a lot of golf at Cartersville Country Club with Jason Bohn and Scott Hamilton who are now some of the PGA Tour’s elite. In those days, Bohn was playing on the Canadian and Hooters Tours and I got to see how he worked on his game. Of course he is now among the top players on the PGA Tour and Scott (Hamilton) was influential as both a player and how he teaches the game. Scott has remained available to me, answering questions all eight years I’ve been doing this,” reflected Garren. The NCAA Championship Tournament continues with stroke play Saturday and Sunday before a team cut and Garren knows what his team has to do to advance. “We need all five guys in the game each round,” he stated. “We hit the ball nicely and we are straighter than a lot of teams out here. We just have to make sure every one of our guys are contributing and stay in the game each day. If we do that, I think we’ll be fine,” Garren concluded. The University of Oregon is the host for the 2016 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships. The tournaments are being played at Eugene Country Club. The women’s championship ran May 20-25 with Washington edging defending national champion, Stanford, 3-2 in the match play finals. The victory, Washington’s first-ever, was literally decided on a final putt on the 18th hole of the championship match’s fifth pairing. The men’s championship is being conducted May 27-June 1 on the same course used for the women’s tournament. While the women played the course at just over 6,300 yards, Eugene Country Club is playing as a par-70 at 7,014 yards for the men’s tournament. Entering the championship, the top eight seeded teams include: Stanford (Pac12), Texas (Big12), Southern California (Pac12), Illinois (B1G), Oklahoma State (Big12), Georgia (SEC), Arizona State (Pac12), and Vanderbilt (SEC). Oklahoma was seeded 18th of 30 teams in the field and is paired in the first two rounds with Alabama and Florida of the Southeastern Conference Other teams that qualified for the championship in Eugene include: Auburn, LSU, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Kentucky make nine teams in the field from the Southeastern Conference. Clemson, Florida State, Wake Forest, Virginia, and Louisville represent the Atlantic Coast Conference. California and Oregon are in the field from the Pac-12 for a total of five teams from that conference. Baylor and Texas Christian qualified to make five teams from the Big 12. Houston and Alabama-Birmingham represent Conference USA. South Florida (AAC), San Diego State (MWC), and Purdue (B1G) round out the team championship field. Ryan Cole of James Madison is the top seeded individual player in the field. All 30 teams and six individuals will complete 54 holes of stroke play. Following 54 holes of competition, the top 15 teams along with the top nine individuals not on an advancing team will advance for one additional day of stroke play to determine the top eight teams for match-play competition and the 72-hole stroke-play individual champion. The top eight teams after 72 holes of play will be placed into a bracket with the No. 1 seed playing the No. 8 seed, the No. 2 seed playing the No. 7 seed, the No. 3 seed playing the No. 6 seed and the No. 4 seed playing the No. 5 seed in match play. The first three rounds, played May 27-29, start each day at 10am EDT. Online scoring coverage for the first three rounds is available through Golfstat. Use this link: http://www.golfstatresults.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=team&tid=8167 The final round of stroke play and the individual national championship final round will have television coverage on Golf Channel on Monday, May 30, 7-10pm. All of the team match play for the final eight teams will also be televised by Golf Channel. The team match play quarterfinals will be Tuesday, May 31: 1:30-3:30pm The team match play semifinals will be Tuesday, May 31: 6:30-10pm The team match play finals will be Wednesday, June 1: 6-10pm

Four local D-I baseball players and their teams completed play in their respective conference championship tournaments this week, while another gets started this weekend at the NAIA World Series. Michael Goss and Jo Jo Underwood, along with their UNC-Greensboro teammates won one of three games at the Southern Conference Championship Tournament this week. Robert Harris made an appearance in the Sun Belt Conference Championship Tournament for Troy, and Connor Justus and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets await their NCAA Tournament fate after dropping three of four games in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Meanwhile, relief pitcher Ty Fowler and the Tennessee Wesleyan College Bulldogs are in Lewiston, Idaho for the NAIA World Series. Here’s the latest ‘Athletes Beyond Bartow’ college baseball update. TY FOWLER — Tennessee Wesleyan College (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . .TWC opens play in the NAIA World Series May 28 in Lewiston, Idaho against ninth-seeded Sterling College. The Bulldogs (48-13) are the No. 2 seed in the 10-team, double-elimination tournament that continues through June 3. Fowler has made nine appearances on the season with a 1-0 record, 15 strikeouts, and a 2.45 ERA. MICHAEL GOSS — UNC-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . homered, had a sacrifice fly, and went 2-for-3 with two RBI in the Spartans’ Southern Conference Tournament finale’ and 15-10 loss to Furman May 27 in Greenville, SC. He added a hit and a sacrifice in a 9-6 tournament win over Wofford College May 26. UNCG went 1-2 in the conference tournament. Goss hit .311 for the season in 45 starts. He hit four home runs and had 20 extra base hits with 29 RBI. The Spartans finished the regular season and conference tournament play with a 38-21 mark. ROBERT HARRIS — Troy University (Jr., Adairsville HS) . . .worked the ninth inning of a loss to Texas State in the Trojans’ Sun Belt Conference Tournament opener in San Marcos, TX on May 25. Troy lost to the host Bobcats, 11-6. Harris was touched for four earned runs on four hits. In an elimination game the following day, Troy (33-26) built an eight run lead through four innings, but was edged by Arkansas State, 13-12, when the Red Wolves scored three times in the bottom of the ninth. Harris appeared in relief in 22 games in 2016. He pitched 34 innings and struck out 31 with a 6.88 ERA. CONNOR JUSTUS — Georgia Tech (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . completed the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, NC going 3-for-14 in four games. The Yellow Jackets defeated Boston College in a play-in game May 24, but lost all three pool-play games May 25-27 to Miami, Florida State, and NC State. Justus walked four times and was hit by a pitch for a team-leading 12th time this season during the tournament. His hits included a double and he scored a pair of runs. Justus has a .332 batting average and he has started all 59 games at shortstop. He has six home runs and 24 extra base hits for a .502 slugging percentage and 36 RBI. His on-base percentage is a team-high .454 and his defensive fielding percentage is .950 in 278 chances. Georgia Tech also leads the nation in double plays turned. The Yellow Jackets (36-23) will learn their NCAA postseason fate on Monday during the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship Selection Show beginning at 12 p.m. on ESPNU. JO JO UNDERWOOD — University of North Carolina-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . had a plate appearance and played third base in a pair of Southern Conference Tournament games May 26 and 27. The Spartans won one of three games in the conference tournament. He appeared in 30 games and had a pair of hits, a sacrifice fly, and was hit by a pitch in 18 plate appearances during the 2016 season. Utilized often in late innings defensively at third base or catcher, Underwood committed only one error in 33 defensive chances on the year for a .970 fielding percentage. The Spartans finished the regular season and conference tournament play with a 38-21 record.

Update for professional golfers affiliated with Scott Hamilton Golf Academy at Cartersville Country Club. See the included table for current player tour ranks and recent results. Bartow Sports Zone tracks the professional golfers on multiple tours affiliated with Cartersville Country Club's Scott Hamilton Golf Academy. Scott Hamilton is the long time Director of Golf at CCC and is teacher/advisor/instructor to many prominent golf professionals.

Photos courtesy Reinhardt University. (L-R: Randi Wimpy, Taylor Weeks, Taylor Braselton, Sydney Flowers) Two local members of the Reinhardt University softball team were named to the NFCA NAIA All-Region First Team this past week and two other local players on the Lady Eagles' team were recently recognized with conference accolades. The National Fast Pitch Coaches Association makes the selections for each Region of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. The NAIA divides the country into East, Central, Great Lakes, Midwest, Southwest, and West regions. Three players from Reinhardt University were named to the NAIA East Region First Team and two are Bartow County players. Former Woodland High School standout, Randi Wimpy, along with former Adairsville High School standout, Taylor Weeks were named for the honor. Their teammate, Micalah Sacre was also selected. Wimpy, a 2014 and 2015 NAIA First Team All-American, was tabbed All-Conference again in 2016. She was named to the conference All-Defensive Team as a catcher and was the 2016 Appalachian Athletic Conference Player of the Year. The 2016 NAIA All-America Team announcement will be made later this month. Weeks and former Woodland Lady Cat, Taylor Braselton, were also members of the 2016 All-AAC squad. Braselton was Reinhardt’s representative on the AAC Champions of Character Team and earned a spot on the conference All-Academic Team. Former Woodland and current Eagles’ teammate, Sydney Flowers, along with Weeks were also tabbed for the 2016 AAC All-Academic Team. Additionally, Weeks became the first-ever Reinhardt softball player to earn College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) First Team Academic All-America honors. She is the second Reinhardt athlete to ever to earn the recognition. The CoSIDA award combines work in the classroom and accomplishments on the playing field. The Adairsville junior, carries a 3.90 GPA in Elementary Education. Weeks hit for a team-leading .444 average during the season and drove in 39 runs. Wimpy batted .429, scored a team-high 55 runs, and drove in 64 runs. Braselton hit .353 with 12 RBI, and Flowers saw action in 33 games with a .192 batting average and six RBI. Reinhardt finished the 2016 campaign with a 41-12 mark. The Lady Eagles were also Appalachian Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champions.

Former Adairsville High School baseball player, Grant DeBruin, made his first appearance of the 2016 season on May 20 with the Potomac Nationals. He started at first base. DeBruin has been in extended spring training and is coming off a minor league all-star campaign in 2015. Meanwhile, former Hurricane and current Georgia Tech shortstop, Connor Justus, was tabbed as a national semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy. This week's report for local baseball 'Athletes Beyond Bartow' updates the active local professionals. It also includes the college players wrapping up their NCAA D-I regular seasons and those in post season with NAIA teams. Week ending May 23: PROS GRANT DeBRUIN — Potomac Nationals (Adairsville HS) . . . made his first appearance of the year with the Potomac Nationals May 20, starting at first base. He went 0-for-4 as the Carolina League, Advanced Class A Nationals lost 4-3 to the Frederick Keys. DeBruin, who spent most of last season playing corner infield positions and was a league all-star, has been in extended spring training for the Nationals. Potomac (21-18) currently sits 5.5 games back of the Lynchburg Hillcats in the Carolina League Northern Division. SAM HOWARD — Modesto Nuts (Cartersville HS) . . .suffered a pitching loss May 18 at home against the Visalia Rawhide despite one of his best performances of the season. Howard went 6 and 2/3 innings, allowed only one, unearned run on four hits and a walk as the Nuts lost 1-0. He struck out nine. The lefty is now 2-2 on the season through eight starts and 43 and 1/3 innings pitched. Opponents are only hitting .193 against him and he carries a 2.91 ERA. The Nuts (17-25) trail Visalia by nine games in the California League North Division. DONAVAN TATE — Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Cartersville HS) . . .remains on the disabled list for the Los Angeles Dodgers’ affiliate. The Quakes are leading the Advanced Class A California League South Division by two games over the High Desert Mavericks, a Texas Rangers affiliate. COLLEGE CONNOR JUSTUS — Georgia Tech (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . was recognized this past week as a semifinalist for the 2016 Dick Howser Trophy. The award is given to the top player in collegiate baseball. The Yellow Jackets’ shortstop went 1-for-5 and scored a run in a 6-3 extra innings win over Georgia at Turner Field on May 17. He was also 3-for-13, scored four runs, walked, was hit by a pitch, and reached on an error in a three-game home series against Boston College May 19-21. The 22nd-ranked Jackets lost two of three games in the ACC series and slipped to the 9th-seed in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Justus has a .340 batting average in 55 starts and leads the team with 56 runs scored. He has hit six home runs and has 36 RBI with 23 extra base hits and nine stolen bases. Georgia Tech (35-20, 13-16 ACC) faces 8th-seed, Boston College at 3pm Tuesday, May 24 in a play in game. The winner advances to ACC Tournament pool play May 25-28 and will face top seed Miami, 4th-seed Florida State, and 5th seeded North Carolina State. The pool winner plays for the ACC title on Sunday, May 29. MICHAEL GOSS — UNC-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . went 0-for-3, playing in two of three games against Mercer to wrap up regular season play in the Southern Conference. He reached base after being hit by a pitch in a 1-0 win on May 19 and was 0-for-1 in a 9-1 loss on May 20. Goss has a .310 batting average in 42 starts for the Spartans. He has hit three homers and collected 27 RBI. UNC-Greensboro (37-19, 15-9) begins the 2016 Southern Conference Tournament Wednesday as the No. 3 seed. UNCG will play 6th-seed, Samford at 7:30pm. The winner of the double-elimination conference tournament earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The SoCon Championship tournament runs through Sunday, May 29. JO JO UNDERWOOD — University of North Carolina-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . had one at bat and saw time at third base in a 9-1 loss to conference regular season champ Mercer May 20. Underwood has appeared in 28 games and has a .133 batting average in 15 at bats with a double and three RBI. He has been utilized defensively at third base and catcher. ROBERT HARRIS — Troy University (Jr., Adairsville HS) . . .made a seventh inning appearance May 21 and tossed a shutout frame with one strikeout as the Trojans shutout South Alabama 8-0 at home. Harris now has 21 appearances for 33 innings pitched. He has accumulated 31 strikeouts and has a 6.00 ERA. He has one loss and one save. 4th-seeded Troy (32-24, 17-13) begins the Sun Belt Conference Championship Tournament in San Marcos, TX Wednesday, May 25 at 4pm CT against 5th-seeded Texas State. The double-elimination tournament format continues through Sunday, May 29. ADAM CLARK — Georgia Gwinnett College (Sr., Cartersville HS) . . .Started and went four innings May 20 in a no decision. He allowed an earned run on four hits and a walk while striking out six, but the Grizzlies were eliminated in a 4-3 loss to Lindsey Wilson (KY) in the opening round regional finals. Clark made 14 starts for GGC and finished the season with a 6-1 record. He pitched 70 and 2/3 innings and struck out 53. Opponents had a .238 batting average against Clark and his ERA was 3.18. Georgia Gwinnett finished the season with a 57-6 record. TY FOWLER — Tennessee Wesleyan College (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . Fowler did not make an appearance, but the Bulldogs won the NAIA Opening Round Kingsport Bracket May 17-20 to advance to the NAIA World Series. Tennessee Wesleyan defeated Rio Grande (OH) before winning two of three games against Saint Thomas University (FL) to win the regional. Fowler has made nine pitching appearances in 2016 for 11 innings pitched, a 1-0 record, and a 2.45 ERA. With the opening round regional win, the Bulldogs (48-13) advance to the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, ID, May 27-June 3. TWC will be the No. 2 seed at the World Series and play the Sterling (KS) / Point University (GA) winner at 3pm on Saturday, May 28. Did we miss someone? If so, please let us know. Use the contact page of this web site or Email: bartowsportszone@comcast.net

Chad Branton of Cartersville tied for 12th place at the Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship May 20-22 at Augusta Country Club. Branton fired a 3-over par, 216 total (70-70-76) in the 54-hole event. The 35th Mid-Am was won by Augusta’s John Engler, Jr. who fired a 6-under par 207 (68-66-73) on his home track. Engler edged Taylor Smith of Covington by one stroke. The Georgia Mid-Amateur included a final field of 144 players and the event is open to Georgia State Golf Association members age 25 or older. A total of 633 players entered the 2016 tournament. Qualifying for the final tournament field occurred at six, 18-hole qualifiers in April. Other local notables: David Noll, Jr., Dalton, T19, +6 Chris Hall, Kennesaw, T23, +7 Cres Dodd, Calhoun, T42, +12

Former Cartersville Hurricane and current Georgia Tech junior shortstop Connor Justus was named a semifinalist for the 2016 Dick Howser Trophy on Friday, an award given to the top player in college baseball. Justus is the fifth Georgia Tech player to be named a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist or finalist. Previous winners from Georgia Tech include Jason Varitek in 1994 and Mark Teixeira in 2000. Justus is one of 43 national semifinalists and one of 13 semifinalists representing an ACC school. Justus, considered one of the top shortstops in the country, is enjoying his best season as a Yellow Jacket in 2016. He is batting a career-best .345 with six home runs, 54 runs scored and 36 RBIs. He is tied for the team lead in steals with nine and has made 92 consecutive starts at shortstop for the Jackets. Most impressive, the Jackets’ leadoff hitter holds a .462 on-base percentage, which is good for 87th in the country. This is the 30th year of the Dick Howser Trophy. The finalists will be announced on June 9. The 2016 award will be presented at TD Ameritrade Stadium in downtown Omaha, the home of the College World Series for the sixth year. The winner will be unveiled on MLB Network on June 17, and then a press conference with the winner will be held on June 18 on the opening day of the 2016 CWS. The Dick Howser Trophy, given in memory of the former Florida State University All-America shortstop and major league player and manager, who died of brain cancer in 1987, is regarded by many as college baseball’s most prestigious award. Criteria for consideration of the trophy include performance on the field, leadership, moral character and courage, qualities that were exemplified by Dick Howser’s life. —Information provided by Georgia Tech.

Former Woodland Lady Cat and Reinhardt NAIA All-American, Randi Wimpy, led the Eagles back to the NAIA National Tournament in 2016. Reinhardt was also named host for one of the national tournament's opening round sites. Unfortunately, the Eagles lost two straight in the double-elimination format and were eliminated on Tuesday. REINHARDT FALLS IN NAIA OPENING ROUND The Reinhardt University softball team, consisting of several Bartow County players, lost consecutive games at the NAIA Opening Round hosted by the Eagles May 16 and 17. Locals, Taylor Braselton, Taylor Weeks, and Randi Wimpy, all saw action in both games. Wimpy, the Appalachian Athletic Conference Player of the Year and NAIA All-American, finished her senior season with a .429 batting average and started all 53 games. In 2016, she had 10 home runs and 64 RBI with 33 extra base hits. Weeks led the Eagles with a .444 batting average and drove in 39 runs.Braselton finished with a .353 batting average and 12 RBI.The Eagles lost to Huntington (IN), 2-1, in eight innings on May 16 and lost to William Carey (MS), 6-3, on May 17. Wimpy was 2-for-6 with one RBI in the two NAIA opening round games. Weeks went 2-for-8 and score one run. Braselton scored one run. Reinhardt finished its season 41-12. BALLARD, ARMSTRONG STATE AT NCAA D2 WORLD SERIES Bethany Ballard, a former Cass Lady Colonel and member of the Armstrong State softball team, made a plate appearance May 17 at the NCAA D-II Women’s World Series in Denver, CO. The appearance came in a 3-2 loss to Humboldt State (CA) in the Pirates opening game of the eight-team tournament. Armstorng State (41-14) knocked off defending national champ, North Georgia, two of three games, May 11-12, to win the South/Southeast Super Regional and reach the national festival of NCAA D2 events. The Pirates defeated Grand Valley State (MI) in an elimination game, 7-4, Wednesday, and plays Adelphi University (NY) Thursday, May 19 at 2pm in another elimination game. The Armstrong/Adelphi winner must defeat Humboldt State twice to reac a best-of-three national championship final set for May 20-21. Ballard carries a .308 batting average as a catcher/firstbaseman/pinch hitter in 12 appearances. She has a pair of double and four RBI. YANTIS, SAMFORD IN NCAA D-I NATIONAL TOURNAMENT Former Cartersville pitcher, Annalyn Yantis, and the Samford Bulldogs are part of the NCAA D-I National Tournament. Samford is 40-18 and playing in the Opening Round at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The Bulldogs earned the Southern Conference's automatic bid by sweeping three straight games in the SoCon conference tournament. Samford defeated UNC-Greensboro, Mercer, and Furman on their way to the conference title. Yantis has pitched 17 and 2/3 innings this season across eight appearances with a 1-0 record and a 5.15 ERA.

The 2016 Cartersville Little League (Majors) regular season concluded with the Dodgers and Braves winning their respective conferences. All eight teams started the double-elimination league playoffs Monday night. Regular Season American Conference: (1) Dodgers, (2) Phillies, (3) Padres, (4) Colts National Conference: (1) Braves, (2) Tigers, (3) Indians, (4) Crackers Cartersville Little League (Majors) Playoffs Monday, May 16 — Opening Round results Tigers 9, Padres 4 Dodgers 8, Crackers 6 Phillies 16, Indians 15 Colts 9, Braves 8 Tuesday, May 17 — 5:45pm Winners’ bracket Dodgers vs. Tigers, Rudy York Field Phillies vs. Colts, Joe Frank Harris Field Elimination games Crackers 12, Padres 11 Braves 10, Indians 8 Wednesday, May 18 — 5:45pm Game 9: Colts/Phillies loser vs. Crackers, JFH Field Game 10: Dodgers/Tigers loser vs. Braves, BB Field Thursday, May 19 — 5:45pm Game 11: Dodgers/Tigers winner vs. Phillies/Colts winner, JFH Field Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, BB Field Monday, May 23 — 5:45pm Game 13: Game 11 loser vs. Game 12 winner, Rudy York Field Tuesday, May 24 — 5:45pm Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 13 winner, Rudy York Field Game 15: If needed, 30 minutes after Game 14

The 2015-16 Georgia Athletic Directors Association Directors Cup will wrap up in a few days with the conclusion of the state baseball playoffs in each classification. The annual award, presented by the GADA and sponsored by Regions Bank, goes to the schools accumulating the most points in all the Georgia High School Association playoffs across all sports. There are also awards for the highest scoring teams in each gender and awards for the highest scoring schools in each GHSA region. Each school accumulates points in up to eight sports for each gender. Higher point values, beginning with 100 points for a state championship, are awarded for advancement in each round of the playoffs. Cartersville led local schools by finishing 10th overall in Class AAAA. The Canes' boys athletic teams led Region 7-AAAA male sports and Cartersville was runner-up to Heritage-Catoosa in overall points in their region. Adairsville was 19th overall in Class AAA. Woodland finished 53rd in Class AAAAA. Cass was 67th in Class AAAAA, and Excel Christian Academy was 83rd among Class A schools. CARTERSVILLE, 10th, Class AAAA, 630 points (Current Top Five Schools in Class AAAA: Marist, Buford, St. Pius X, Woodward Academy, North Oconee) Cartersville points: Football, 100 Cheerleading, 80 Girls Tennis, 70 Boys Tennis, 70 Volleyball, 53 Girls Cross Country, 45 Boys Cross Country, 38 Girls Soccer, 25 Boys Basketball, 25 Boys Soccer, 25 Wrestling, 15 Girls Track and Field, 14 ADAIRSVILLE, 19th, 404.20 points (Current Top Five Schools in Class AAA: Westminster, Blessed Trinity, Oconee County, Calhoun, Jefferson) Adairsville points: Football, 70 Girls Soccer, 70 Cheerleading, 54 Girls Tennis, 53 Wrestling, 36 Boys Cross Country, 26 Softball, 25 Girls Basketball, 25 Baseball, 25 Boys Track and Field, 13 Girls Track and Field, 7.20 WOODLAND, 53rd in Class AAAAA, 133.50 (Current Top Five Schools in Class AAAAA: Allatoona, Starr's Mill, Cambridge, McIntosh, Dunwoody) Woodland points: Wrestling, 90 Boys Track and Field, 43.50 CASS, 67th in Class AAAAA, 108 points (Current Top Five Schools in Class AAAAA: Allatoona, Starr's Mill, Cambridge, McIntosh, Dunwoody) Cass points: Wrestling, 83 Boys Tennis, 25 EXCEL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY, 83rd in Class A, 53 points (Current Top Five Schools in Class A: Commerce, Eagle's Landing Christian, Landmark Christian, Athens Academy, Stratford Academy) Excel Christian Academy points: Softball, 53 For more information regarding the Regions Bank, GADA Directors Cup, visit www.gadaonline.net

Former Cartersville High School pitcher, Adam Clark, worked seven innings in the championship game of the Association of Independent Institutions tournament as the Grizzlies advanced to the NAIA National Tournament this past week. At the peak of the season, there were 23 locals contributing in various programs around the country. Many of those players' seasons have now concluded. The weekly report for local baseball 'Athletes Beyond Bartow' includes update capsules for the college players that wrapped up their seasons in the past week or continue in D-I or post-season play. Michael Goss (UNC-Greensboro), Robert Harris (Troy University), Connor Justus (Georgia Tech), and Jo Jo Underwood (UNC-Greensboro) each have one more weekend, regular season conference series remaining before their respective conference tournaments begin the following week. Chaz Wilson (Columbus State University) is a relief pitcher with the Cougars who won the Peach Belt Conference regular season and conference tournament titles. CSU will host the Southeast Regional of the NCAA D-II Tournament May 19-22. Clark (Georgia Gwinnett College) along with Ty Fowler (Tennessee Wesleyan) are on teams in the NAIA National Tournament. The opening round begins at nine sites May 17. Meanwhile, Mason Robinson (Wallace State-Dothan CC) remains in contention in the Alabama Community College Conference tournament. Week ending May 16: ADAM CLARK — Georgia Gwinnett College (Sr., Cartersville HS) . . . tossed seven innings in the finals of the Association of Independent Institutions tournament as the Grizzlies won the title May 10. Clark allowed a run on two hits and a walk. He struck out six to pick up the win. He is 6-1 on the year with a 3.24 ERA in 13 starts. He was pitched 66 and 2/3 innings and collected 47 strikeouts. Opponents have a .236 batting average against him in 2016. Georgia Gwinnett (55-4) has won 13 striaght and is hosting the 5-team Lawrenceville Bracket in the Opening Round of the NAIA National Tournament May 17-20. BRANDON ETHERIDGE — Georgia Highlands CC (Soph., Cass HS) . . . went 2-for-11 with three walks and scored twice in the GCAA post-season tournament last week. The Chargers defeated Gordon State College in the opening round, but lost to Darton State and East Georgia State. Etheridge hit .278 in 56 games, scored 39 runs with 18 RBI and nine stolen bases. Georgia Highlands finished the season with a 28-31 record. TY FOWLER — Tennessee Wesleyan College (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . made a one inning relief appearance in the Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament May 11 in Kingsport, TN during a 16-7 win over Union College (KY).. He allowed three unearned runs off two hits and three walks. Fowler has made nine appearances for the Bulldogs, pitching 11 innings with a 2.45 ERA. Opponents have a .244 batting average against him. Tennessee Wesleyan (45-12) won five of six games in the tournament to capture the AAC title. The Bulldogs are the top seed at the NAIA Opening Round in Kingsport, TN May 17-20. MICHAEL GOSS — UNC-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . went 0-for-5 with a pair of walks and scored a run in a weekend Southern Conference series with Western Carolina. The Spartans dropped two of three games to the Catamounts and slipped to 36-17 overall and 14-7 in conference. Goss is hitting .316 on the year in 40 starts with three homers and 19 extra base hits. He has driven in 27 runs and stolen three bases. UNCG hosts SoCon co-leader, Mercer, May 19-21 in both teams’ final conference series prior to the Southern Conference Tournament in Greenville, SC May 24-29. ROBERT HARRIS — Troy University (Jr., Adairsville HS) . . . pitched the final inning of a 9-3 win at Georgia State May 14 as the Trojans swept a three-game series in Atlanta. Harris has worked 32 innings in 20 appearances. He has 30 strikeouts and a 6.19 ERA. Troy (30-23 overall, 15-12 Sun Belt Conference) hosts South Alabama for the final conference weekend of the season May 19-21. The Sun Belt Conference Tournament begins May 25 in San Marcos, TX. CONNOR JUSTUS — Georgia Tech (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . went 2-for-12 with one RBI and scored a run in a three game series over the weekend at Virginia. The Yellow Jackets’ shortstop has a .352 batting average and a .471 on-base percentage for the year that includes 14 doubles, three triples, six homers, 51 runs, and 36 RBI. Georgia Tech (33-18, 12-14 ACC) was 2-2 last week with a win over Savannah State and won one of three at Virginia. The 25th-ranked Jackets play Georgia at Turner Field May 17 and host Boston College May 19-21 in the final ACC regular season series. The Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament is in Durham, NC May 24-29. SEAN McDERMOTT — Cleveland State CC (Fr., Adairsville HS) . . . went 1-for-8 with one RBI as the Cougars were knocked out of the Tennessee Community College Athletic Association Tournament May 9-10 by Jackson State and Motlow State. McDermott hit .357 for the season in 48 games. He hit 12 home runs, scored 34 runs, and drove in 39. Cleveland State finished the year 30-21. CHRIS MORTON — Georgia Highlands CC (Fr., Cass HS) . . .the Chargers’ lefty pitched one inning against top-seeded Darton State in the GCAA tournament May 12. He yielded a pair of runs on two hits and two walks. He recorded one strikeout. Morton logged 7 and 2/3 innings across 10 relief appearances for the year. He had a 5.87 ERA with six strikeouts. Georgia Highlands (28-31) won one of three games at the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament. MASON ROBINSON — Wallace State-Dothan CC (Soph., Woodland HS) . . . hitting .299 through 51 games for the Governors with a .375 on-base percentage. He has three homers and 23 extra base hits along with nine stolen bases. Wallace State-Dothan defeated Lawson State, Shelton State, and Calhoun College in the preliminary rounds of the Alabama Community College Conference Tournament before losing to Chattahoochee Valley May 16 in the double-elimination portion of the tournament. WSCC faces Calhoun College in an elimination game May 17 with the winner needing two wins over Chatt Valley for a conference title. JO JO UNDERWOOD — University of North Carolina-Greensboro (Jr., Cartersville HS) . . . played in all three games of the Western Carolina series May 13-15 with one official at bat. He now has 27 appearances as a catcher, third baseman, or pinch hitter. The Spartans dropped two of three games to the Catamounts and slipped to 36-17 overall and 14-7 in conference. UNCG hosts SoCon co-leader, Mercer, May 19-21 in both teams’ final conference series prior to the Southern Conference Tournament in Greenville, SC May 24-29. 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Valerie Linley, who helped lead the Cass Lady Colonels to a Final Four appearance in 1994, brings the Destined To Succeed Basketball Camp to Excel Christian Academy May 23-May 27. The free camp is for boys and girls in Grades 3 through 8 and is being sponsored by The LaVette Insurance Group. The Emerson native played women’s basketball at Florida State from 1997-99 and was team co-captain as well as a two-time letter winner. She was a Team Community Leader at Florida State and was named to the ACC Top Six team and ACC honor roll in 1999. She played at Hiwassee Junior College prior to FSU in 1995-1997, where the point guard was a captain, the career assist leader, Defensive Player of the Year in 1997, and a Dick Vitale JUCO Preseason All-American. She was NJCAA All-Conference and All-Region in both 1996 and 1997. As a coach, Linley has served as an assistant at Florida State, head coach at Chiles (Tallahassee, FL) High School, and assistant at College of Charleston. She has served as a Fellowship of Christian Athletes huddle leader and earned a Master’s degree in Sports Administration from Florida State University in 2002. Third through fifth grade campers will meet each day, 8:30am to 12 noon. Sixth through eighth grade campers will meet each day from 1pm to 4:30pm. For more information, email DTOSMM@gmail.com —or— phone: 678-719-9003 Please also visit: www.destinedtosucceedmobilemission.webs.com