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All three Cartersville teams participating in the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association District 5 10-and-under tournament in Ellijay won Friday night (June 19) by one-sided scores. Cartersville Gray 9U defeated Haralson County 20-1 and advanced to face Bartow Green at 10am Saturday at Gilmer County River Park Field #1. Cartersville White 10U defeated Gilmer 16-0 and advanced to meet Cartersville Purple 10U Saturday at 11:30am at the Gilmer High School softball field. Cartersville Purple 10U (in photo post-game) shutout Bartow White 15-0 to advance. Drake Carver tossed three innings of no-hit baseball to lead Cartersville Purple 10U. Carver struck out seven and walked only two. Cartersville Purple 10U struck for a pair of runs in the first inning to take their initial lead, then poured on six runs in the second frame and seven more in the third for the mercy rule, three-inning win. Nicholas Kennedy had a pair of hits and two RBI to lead the Cartersville Purple 10U offensive attack. Brice Craig (RBI), Avery Higgins (RBI), Paul Gamble (3 RBI), Trip Bradley (RBI), Thomas Norris (RBI), and Carver added one hit each. Hunter Kelly added an RBI. A.J. Christina and Will Litton chipped in with runs scored. J.J. Norris is the manager of the Cartersville Purple 10U team. His coaches are Jeremy Carver and J.J. Jones. The tournament continues throughout the day Saturday, June 20. The schedule skips Sunday, but resumes with games Monday and Tuesday. If the losers’ bracket survivor knocks off the only unbeaten team Tuesday night, an “if game” will be played Wednesday night. The District 5 GRPA 10U tournament is hosted by Gilmer County Parks and Recreation at River Park and Gilmer County High School in Ellijay.

Bartow County native and Cass High School graduate, Todd Wofford, has always loved sports. While excelling at football, he also played basketball and ran track in high school to stay competitive all year long. "I would have played baseball in high school too, if it were not at the same time as track," said Wofford. His passion for sports and love of competition has ultimately led him to a profession he loves as well. Wofford, now the head football coach at Central Gwinnett High School in Lawrenceville, was a standout receiver at Cass High School and later at Presbyterian College. Like most coaches, the route to a head coaching position has taken him down many roads. Following his playing days at Presbyterian, Wofford spent time as an assistant coach for the Blue Hose. His resume' also includes coaching stops as an assistant at Woodland in Cartersville, Hiram, Peachtree Ridge, and Gainesville High Schools before becoming the head coach for the Central Gwinnett Black Knights in 2010. The father of four (Kennedy, age 9; Christian 6; Peyton and Parker 3) and wife Aja now make their home near work in Lawrenceville, but says he still feels the draw of family and friends back in Bartow County. “I try my best to get back to Cartersville once a month or so,” said Wofford, “but sometimes my schedule simply doesn’t allow it.” He believes the Gwinnett County school is the right spot for building a championship caliber program. “Central is an attractive situation because it is a Class AAAAAA school at the highest level in Georgia and we play in the toughest county in the state. There is a ton of talent and tradition around here as well. The administration is really supportive and a huge reason we’ve been able to turn things around,” the coach remarked. “With all that, I believe we can ultimately win a state championship here.” After a pair of 4-6 seasons in 2010 and 2011, the Black Knights were 6-4 in 2012. Wofford’s team slipped to 2-8 in 2013, but last season was a huge change of direction for the program full of accomplishments and a 7-5 record. “Last season was a great experience for myself and the community of Lawrenceville,” noted Wofford. “Making the playoffs for the first time since 2005 was huge and getting to the second round of the state playoffs was exciting. Accomplishing that in my fifth year as a head coach was nice. When I was hired, we projected that it might take that long to get the program turned around. We had a winning season in 2012, but last season was the true turn around. Beating county rival Brookwood for the first time in 21 years helped too,” Wofford said. The veteran coach says men he played for and worked with over the years have influenced him and the way he works with players. “Coaches Bruce Miller and John Camp had a huge impact on my style,” said Wofford, “but I’ve also been impacted by a lot of other coaches I’ve worked with throughout my career.” Wofford has quite a list of accomplished former players, including Kendrick Lewis (Gainesville) who is currently playing for the Baltimore Ravens and T. J. Jones (Gainesville) who is currently with the Detroit Lions. Other notable players coached by Wofford include: Blake Sims (Gainesville) Alabama; Trevor Lindley (Hiram) former Philadelphia Eagle; Antonio Sims (Hiram) UGA; Trey Johnson (Central Gwinnett) Ohio State; Adonis Thomas (Central Gwinnett) Alabama; and Francis Kallon (Central Gwinnett) Georgia Tech. Wofford not only looks forward to the future at Central Gwinnett, he is excited about his chosen profession. “I expect Central to continue to improve. We are always working to get back into the playoffs and expect to make another run in the state playoffs,” added Wofford. “The challenge of going against great competition and great coaches excites me. It’s also exciting to watch young men progress both on and off the field,” the coach concluded. Central Gwinnett plays in Region 8-AAAAAA with Archer, Berkmar, Brookwood, Dacula, Grayson, Parkview, Shiloh, and South Gwinnett. Coach Wofford and his Black Knights open the 2015 season at home August 28 when they host Collins Hill.

In conjunction with the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department, the Andre Fluellen / Ronnie Brown Summer Football & Cheer Camp will be at Cartersville High School on Saturday, June 20. Cartersville natives and NFL stars Andre Fluellen and Ronnie Brown will lead instruction for football athletes ages 8 to 18. The cheerleading instruction for the camp will be led by Brittani Richards, Golden Girls Dance Team Coach at Florida State University. The cheerleading instruction is for ages 5 to 18. Andre Fluellen and Ronnie Brown are both former players at Cartersville High School. Fluellen, entering his eighth NFL season, was recently picked up by the Buffalo Bills. Ten year NFL veteran, Ronnie Brown, is currently a free agent hoping to be picked up by an NFL club to play another year. NFL Players Chris Davis, Sammie Hill, Landon Cohen, Everette Brown and Damario Pressley will also participate in this year's camp. Participants may register at www.fluellenbrowncamp.com. For additional information, contact Nakia Clarke at 404-232-0555. On site registration for the cheer camp will begin at 7am on the day of the camp with instruction from 8am until 11am. On site registration for the football camp will begin at 8am on the day of the camp with instruction from 9am until 11am. For even more about the upcoming camps, see Jason Greenberg's story 'Brown, Fluellen set for 5th annual camp' at The Daily Tribune News.

Adairsville High School head football coach, Eric Bishop, has his 2015 team working hard this summer in preparation for the upcoming season. Fresh off a runner-up finish in Region 6-AAA, a trip to the second round of the state playoffs and a 10-2 record, the Tigers seek to build this year on the momentum established a season ago. See Jason Greenberg's story 'Tigers football making progress in spring' at The Daily Tribune. Adairsville will host Cass in a pre-season scrimmage August 14 and will open the 2015 regular season at Ridgeland August 21. The Tigers regular season home opener is August 27 against Woodland. Adairsville's first two regular season games will be broadcast by Bartow Sports Zone and AM1270 WYXC. The games will be available 'on air', via Internet connection with TuneIn.com and on any mobile device with the TuneIn app.

Cartersville High School football will compete Friday (June 19) along with twenty-four other top programs across the state in The Corky Kell 7 On 7 Invitational in Roswell. The 7 On 7 Invitational is a passing league style event and an annual prelude to The Corky Kell Classic featuring some of the top competition in the metro Atlanta area. The event takes place at the Roswell Area Parks Football Complex located at 10495 Woodstock Road in Roswell. Games will also be played at Roswell High School stadium and the stadium of Blessed Trinity. The twenty-five teams are divided into five pools with competition beginning at 9:30am. The Hurricanes are assigned to Pool E at Roswell Area Parks Field #3 along with Colquitt County, Centennial, Collins Hill, and Cherokee. Other schools in the event include: Roswell, Brookwood, North Paulding, Peachtree Ridge, Gainesville, Blessed Trinity, Walton, Norcross, Archer, Carrollton, Houston County, Mill Creek, Kell, Tucker, Sandy Creek, Byrnes, Glynn Academy, North Gwinnett, Mays, and Creekview.

Cass High School head football coach, Bobby Hughes, has his team in full preparations for the 2015 season with summer weight room workouts and camps. Hughes is excited about the prospects for the Colonels upcoming campaign and has just over 100 players participating regularly. See Jason Greenberg's story 'Cass sees increased participation in workouts,' at The Daily Tribune. Bartow Sports Zone is partnering with AM1270 WYXC and will be broadcasting all ten Cass regular season games this year plus bonus broadcasts of games featuring Adairsville and Woodland. All 13 games on the regular season broadcast schedule will be available over the airwaves of AM1270, available via Internet link, and through the TuneIn app for mobile devices. More broadcast details coming soon. 2015 Bartow Sports Zone / AM1270 WYXC Football Schedule Friday, August 21 -- Adairsville at Ridgeland Thursday, August 27 -- Woodland at Adairsville Friday, August 28 -- Cartersville at Cass Friday, September 4 -- Cass at Coosa Friday, September 11 -- Cass at Forsyth Central Friday, September 18 -- Dalton at Cass Friday, September 25 -- Cass at Creekview Friday, October 2 -- Woodland at Cass Friday, October 9 -- Sequoyah at Cass Friday, October 16 -- LFO at Adairsville --or-- Woodland at Rome Friday, October 23 -- Cass at River Ridge Friday, October 30 -- Cass at Rome Friday, November 6 -- Region Play-In Game at Cass

When Cartersville Purple 8U lost its opener last Friday in the 2015 Georgia Recreation and Parks Association Invitational in Gordon County, the long climb back through the losers' bracket had to appear extremely difficult, if not impossible. The team and its coaches did not panic, however, and put together a string of eight consecutive victories to capture the tournament crown. Calhoun 8U, who went 4-0 until the finals, opened the tournament by knocking off the eventual champions. After winning the opener over Cartersville Purple, Calhoun 8U defeated Bartow 8U, Dalton Red, and Cartersville White to reach the championship games unblemished. Meanwhile, Cartersville Purple had to battle back through the losers' bracket on Saturday and Sunday winning three games each day. Cartersville Purple had wins over Bremen, Gilmer, and Bartow 7U on Saturday followed by Sunday victories over Dalton Red, Gordon County 8U, and Cartersville White to reach Monday night's title games. Due to Friday's loss to Calhoun, Cartersville Purple needed two wins Monday (June 15) over that same team to win the double-elimination event. That is exactly what they pulled off. Cartersville Purple won a pair of see-saw battles 17-16 and 12-10 to avenge their opening round loss and claim the GRPA Invitational championship. The offense was explosive in both games. Logan Shrewsbury led the team with 7 hits and 5 runs scored in the two championship games. He was followed by Jakeveon Porter, Cameron Cochran, and Julian Cline who totaled five hits each. Porter scored four runs, Cline five, and Cameron Cochran added a run scored. Thomas Peters, Logan Woody, and Casen Cochran had four hits each for Cartersville. Cochran crossed the plate three times in the title games. Peters and Woody scored four runs each. Tristan McKibben and Maddox Frazier had three hits apiece in Monday's games. McKibben scored a pair of runs and Luke Parker added a hit for Cartersville. Cartersville Purple is coached by Robin McKibben, Luke Bunce, Geoff Shrewsbury, and Jay Frazier.

Teams from both the Cartersville and Bartow County Recreation Departments played in the Georgia Recreation 8-and-under Invitational this weekend hosted by Gordon County Parks and Recreation. Cartersville’s Purple team lost its opener Friday night against Calhoun 8U, but battled all the way back through the loser’s bracket Saturday and Sunday to earn a rematch with Calhoun 8U Monday night in the tournament finals. Calhoun 8U reached the title round unbeaten with additional wins over Bartow 8U, Dalton Red, and Cartersville White. Cartersville Purple needs two wins Monday night to win the double-elimination tournament. Cartersville Purple won six consecutive elimination games to reach the championship game. They won three games Saturday and three more Sunday. Saturday’s wins were over Bremen, Gilmer, and Bartow 7U. Purple then beat Dalton Red, Gordon County 8U, and Cartersville White on Sunday. Cartersville White had three straight wins to open the tournament before losing back-to-back to Calhoun 8U and Cartersville Purple on Sunday. Cartersville White defeated Dalton White Friday plus Gilmer and Calhoun 7U Saturday. The Cartersville Purple roster includes: Jordan Brinkley, Julian Cline, Cameron Cochran, Casen Cochran, Maddox Frazier, Tristan McKibben, Luke Parker, Thomas Peters, Jekeveon Porter, Logan Shrewsbury, Sawyer Wilson, and Logan Woody. Cartersville Purple is coached by Robin McKibben, Luke Bunce, Geoff Shrewsbury, and Jay Frazier. The Cartersville White roster includes: Logan Buchanan, Owen Dunn, Caleb Freeman, Cooper Graves, Jack Graves, Andrew Lutjens, Brodie McWhorter, Asa Mitcham, Noah Pogue, Preston Sorrells, Andrew Watson, and Brock Wilson. Cartersville White is coached by Darren Wilson, Ty Mitcham, Hans Lutjens, and Joey Pogue. Bartow 7U defeated Gordon County 16-10 Friday night and Pickens County 15-13 on Saturday. Their losses were to Calhoun 7U 12-2 and Cartersville Purple 16-0. Bartow 8U opened the tournament Friday night with a 9-6 victory over Bremen. They were then sent to the loser’s bracket by finalist Calhoun 8U, 16-0. Bartow 8U bounced back to eliminate Whitfield County 17-7, before falling the Gordon County 14-2. Bartow 7U consists of Lucas Baker, Issac Burnett, Cayden Cothran, Drew Davey, Reed Ezell, Clayton Blackmon, Gavin Hubbard, Jayden Jinks, Noah King, Jacob McKinnies, Caiden Moore, and Cam’ron Scott. Coaches for Bartow 7U are Mike Ezell, Joe Baker, and Mike Burnett. Bartow 8U includes Brayden Butler, Brett Good, Reece Heaton, David Jinks, Hunter Lovett, Joshua McBroom, Xavious Nalls, Talen Nix, Jacob Pasley, Kamarion Profit, Trey Winters, and Nicholas Wright. Coaches for the 8-year-old team are Jason Wright, Kevin Nix, Mike Jinks, and Jody Pasley. Bartow 7U’s next event is the Dizzy Dean District Tournament in Kennesaw that starts June 19. Bartow 7U opens that tournament with a 6pm game against New Georgia. Bartow 8U plays next in the Dizzy District tournament in Acworth that starts June 16. Bartow 8U is scheduled to open that event with a 7:30pm game against Oregon Park Piranhas.

The Bartow County 6-year-old baseball all-stars finished runner-up Saturday (June 13) at the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association Invitational hosted by Gordon County. Bartow 6U dropped their opener to Calhoun, but bounced back to defeat Gordon County in preliminary round robin play. Calhoun won 16-10 in five innings, before Bartow topped Gordon County 15-10. Calhoun also defeated Gordon County to finish the preliminary round 2-0 and earn the top seed for bracket play. In the championship bracket, Bartow 6U defeated Gordon County 17-13 to advanced to the GRPA Invitational title game. Bartow was edged by Calhoun in the championship game, 8-6. Members of the Bartow 6U team are Jakez Baldwin, Graham Coheley, Connor Corbin, Colby Craig, Evan Hardin, Taylor Hicks, Drazen Jones, Seth Miller, Drew Nida, Eli Pierson, Jonathan Scott, Brody Varner. The coaches are Randy Chatman, Greg Corbin, Brian Pierson, and Andrew Nida. Next for the Bartow County 6-year-olds will be the Dizzy Dean District Tournament which starts June 25. Bartow 6U opens that tournament against Acworth Blue with a 5:30 start at Oregon Park.

Boo Weekley was the best finisher among Scott Hamilton Golf Academy players this week at the PGA Tour's FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee. Weekley fired a final round, five under 65 Sunday to climb up the leaderboard twenty-two spots and earned a top ten finish with a tie for eighth. Meanwhile Argentina’s Fabian Gomez won the FedEx St. Jude Classic by four strokes over England’s Greg Owen. It was his first PGA Tour win. Gomez, 36, shot a 4-under 66 Sunday to finish 13-under and four strokes ahead of Owen, who was even par on Sunday. They began the day tied at 9-under. Final standings for players in Memphis affiliated with the Scott Hamilton Golf Academy included: T8 -- Boo Weekley (-7) T22 -- Steven Bowditch (-4) T45 -- Harris English (Even) T53 -- Tom Gillis (+1) T69 -- Jim Renner (+8) NOTE: Chris Kirk, Russel Henley, Brendon Todd, Jamie Elson, Joe Durant, and Will Claxton did not play this week. Kyle Thompson missed the cut. Three Scott Hamilton Golf Academy players -- Chris Kirk, Russell Henley, and Brendon Todd -- have qualified for the U.S. Open that begins Thursday (June 18-21) at Chambers Bay Golf Club, University Place, Washington. Scott Hamilton is the Director of Golf at Cartersville Country Club and works with many prominent members of the PGA Tour through his instruction and teaching. Bartow Sports Zone tracks those tour players each week.

Former Cartersville High School and Georgia Southern University left hand pitcher, Sam Howard, is continuing his progress in the minors with the Colorado Rockies’ Class A affiliate Asheville Tourists. Howard, a 6-3, 170, 22-year-old, was drafted in the third round last summer by Colorado. Asheville is currently tied for fifth in South Atlantic League Southern Division with a 29-33 record. The Tourists are five games back of the Greenville Drive (Boston Red Sox affiliate) and the Savannah Sand Gnats (NY Mets). Those two teams are tied atop the division as the first half of the SAL season draws to a close. Howard has pitched 51.1 innings in 10 games — all starts. Opponents have a .235 batting average against him. He has 51 strikeouts and 10 walks with a 2-6 record and a 3.86 ERA. The local is coming off one of his best outings of the year last Tuesday night at home in Asheville against the Rome Braves. Howard struck out seven Braves and allowed only one earned run on four hits and a pair of walks in six innings. He started the seventh, but was relieved in the inning. Although the Tourists eventually won that game, Rome rallied in the seventh to tie the game and left Howard with a no-decision start. Howard’s next start for Asheville is likely Sunday against Charleston or Tuesday at Savannah. The Tourists’ website did not list the probable starters for those two games, but those dates would fall within the rotation of his previously scheduled starts. Fans may follow Sam Howard online at MiLB.com.

Several players from the Scott Hamilton Golf Academy are competing this week at the PGA Tour's FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee. Scott Hamilton is the Director of Golf at Cartersville Country Club and works with many prominent members of the PGA Tour through his instruction and teaching. Bartow Sports Zone tracks those tour players each week. Standings for players affilliated with the Scott Hamilton Golf Academy headed into Sunday's round (June 14): T19 -- Tom Gillis (-3) T30 -- Boo Weekley (-2) T47 -- Steven Bowditch (Even) T55 -- Harris English (+1) 73 -- Jim Renner (+6) NOTE: Chris Kirk, Russel Henley, Brendon Todd, Jamie Elson, Joe Durant, and Will Claxton did not play this week. Kyle Thompson missed the cut. Former SH Golf Academy player, Scott Brown (-8), was tied for third going into Sunday's final round. Through the first 54 holes, Brown trailed co-leaders Greg Owen and Fabian Gomez by one shot. Acworth's Jason Bohn, another former SH Golf Academy player, was at even par and tied for 47th.