Spartan Spear-It » Sports

Game Time! Spartan Football Season Kicks Off Friday!

joshansmith — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:17:43 +0000

As summer lives out its last month in 2010, students can all feel football season creeping upon us. That’s right, another Spartan football season has snuck back on campus and — this year — onto a new, $1 million-plus, synthetic turf field. With new head coach Tim Cokely and his staff — and a motivated GACS varsity football team — the Spartans are ready to rock and roll.

The GACS Spartans take on the region AAA Columbia High School Eagles on Friday, Aug. 27 in an interdivision game to kick off the 2010 season.

The season opener features a reconstructed Spartan football team that is coming off of a couple of disappointing seasons, going 1-9 last season and 4-7 in 2008.

This year’s squad is missing some key players from last year, including Julian Horton, a wide receiver and defensive back, who set the GACS single-season record for receptions with 51 last year. He’s now playing at the college level with the Arkansas Razorbacks. Also gone is Beaux Herbert, a quarterback who now plays football for Nicholls State. Herbert set the single-season record for passing completions, connecting 123 times last season for the Spartans.

Head coach Tim Cokely is a fresh addition to the program. With years of successful experience, including six state championships in Florida, Cokely hopes to turn some heads back toward the Spartan football program — some heads that the Spartans might have lost over the past few seasons. This year’s motto — “A cord of three strands is uneasily broken” — is a passage from Ecclesiastes 4:12.

“By working together, our synergy makes us a strong force, not only on the field of battle, but also in the game of life,” Coach Cokely said.

As for the Eagles, they are entering this season hoping for much better results than last year, when they finished 3-7. The program’s history includes a rocky 0.466 all-time winning percentage with two region titles. Allen Mario enters his second season as head coach of Columbia.

This will be the first time these two teams have ever squared up against one another. Preparation for a team the Spartan’s have never faced is key, and the coaching staff and team that did the better job of preparing will be revealed in Friday’s game. Based on last year’s record for the Spartans (1-9) and the Eagles (3-7), not much of an outcome can be easily predicted for this game. Both teams are coming off of disappointing seasons. The Spartans are hoping to turn a program around that just hasn’t won many games over the past couple seasons. Similarly, the Eagles have a relatively new coach in Mario who is also aspiring to lift up a football program that has seemed lost recently.

It’s the first game of a new decade, it’s Senior Night at GACS, and fans are looking forward to the brand new playing ground they are calling Reynolds Field, which will be dedicated in honor of the late Christian coach Charles “Chub” R. Reynolds at 7:15 p.m. before the game. This is an important opportunity for the two squads to pick up a big win to start out 2010, especially considering the fact they both are coming off losing seasons.

College Athletes – Class of 2010

gacsadviser — Wed, 05 May 2010 20:03:36 +0000

Spring Signees: The following student athletes are the latest additions to this year’s list of college signees.

Wesley Pate – Boston University (swimming)
Kim Slade – Berry College (lacrosse)
Taylor Bruner – Armstrong Atlantic State University (baseball)
Morgan Winston – Wingate University (tennis)
Taylor Martin – Berry College (lacrosse)
Jessica Tuggle – Valdosta State University (tennis)
Casey Cox – Berry College (lacrosse)

Congratulations to all the following seniors who have signed and are headed to play sports at the next level:
Lindsay Adams: Kennesaw State University, Golf
Madeline Barker: University of Georgia, Soccer
Taylor Bruner: Armstrong Atlantic State University, Baseball
Will Freeman: University of Georgia, Swimming
Claire Goodson: College of Charleston, Track & Field
Beaux Hebert: Nicholls State University, Football
Julian Horton: University of Arkansas, Football
Amanda Komisarow: Furman University,Volleyball
Taylor Martin: Berry College, Lacrosse
Chaney Means: Western Kentucky University, Basketball
Wesley Pate: Boston University, Swimming
Corey Simmons: University of South Carolina, Football
Kim Slade: Berry College, Lacrosse
Jessica Tuggle: Valdosta State University, Tennis
Trent Wiedeman: College of Charleston, Basketball
Morgan Winston: Wingate University, Tennis

Freeman, Swimmers Recognized

gacsadviser — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 14:56:47 +0000

GACS Swimmer WILL FREEMAN will represent the USA as a member of the US National Junior Team in the Barcelona, Spain meet of the 2010 Mare Nostrum, June 9 and 10. The Mare Nostrum is an annual three-meet European event with meets held along the Mediterranean Sea in Monaco, Spain, and France. He will be swimming the 1500 meter free, 400 meter IM, 400 meter free, and 200 meter butterfly. The entire GACS community congratulates Freeman for his impressive accomplishments in swimming and fans look forward to following his future endeavors.

Congratulations to the following students for being selected as 2010 Academic All-Americans in Swimming: Alan Almand, Deniz Beyhan, Erika Dore, Caroline Freeman, Will Freeman, Spencer Frendt, Stephanie Lord, Elise Martin, Alex Mixon, Wesley Pate and Stephanie Wilding. This prestigious award is given to seniors who have lettered in swimming and maintained a 3.75 or higher GPA.

Jessica Tuggle Balances Track & Tennis

gacsadviser — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 14:04:58 +0000

SENIOR JESSICA TUGGLE, Track; photo attribution: Jonathan Phillips, Gwinnett Daily Post

Spartan athletes have always been known not only for their athletic abilities but also their great sportsmanship and outstanding attitudes. Recently, Senior Jessica Tuggle has been in the spotlight for her amazing ability to balance a thriving tennis career and a busy track schedule.

Jessica has been competing in tennis since she was eight and she started track in the seventh grade. Jessica is currently ranked first for Class AA in the triple jump with thirty-seven feet and seven-an- a-half inches, long jump with sixteen feet and eleven-and-a-half inches, and 100 hurdles at fifteen-and-a-half seconds.

Not only is Jessica top of her class in track, she helped lead the GACS tennis team to a Class AA runner-up finish in 2009.

Jessica is loved by her teammates because she’s a real team player; she’s always willing to help someone out when she has a spare second, which doesn’t happen very often! Most of Jessica’s afternoons consist of running from the tennis courts to track practice then getting home with just enough time to get her homework finished.

Although most high school students would be overwhelmed with Jessica’s crazy schedule, she puts up with the exhaustion because of her love of competing and the sports in which she excels. Jessica hasn’t officially decided what sport she’ll be playing in college but she’s sure she will be competing at the next level.

Spartan Fans Salute Lady Spartans!

gacsadviser — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:48:15 +0000

Despite a tough loss to the #1 ranked Vidalia Lady Indians on March 11 at the Macon Centreplex (75-68), the GACS Lady Spartans enjoyed a winning season.The ladies won the 6-AA Region Championship against the Buford Lady Wolves, advancing to the state playoffs.

GACS beat Fannin County in Round Two and Blessed Trinity in the Elite Eight before facing the Vidalia Lady Indians in the Final Four.

The Spartan Fans salute the Lady Spartans for an impressive 26-5 season! Congratulations to the team, Head Coach Cal Boyd, and his Assistant Coaches Martin, Wiedeman, Bailey, and Faust. You made us proud!

Wrestlers Finish Successful Season

gacsadviser — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:21:43 +0000

The Spartans Wrestling team sent 7 boys to the state tournament this season. Three wrestlers stood out at State and advanced through the tournament. Sophomores Kalif Raymond (119) and Caleb Bumpers (112) were both incredibly successful at state. Kalif came away with 2 wins and Caleb had 3 wins (just one shy of placing). Junior Jared Hemmings (171) came away with the school’s only medal this year placing 4th at state. This is Jared’s second time to qualify for state and his first state medal.

Congratulations to the entire Wrestling Team and Head Coach Jeff Harsh for on an incredible season!

Spartan Swim and Dive Teams Have Great Season

gacsadviser — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:20:04 +0000

The Spartan Swim and Dive Team had a fantastic season this year, ending with a State Championship for the boys’ team and a third place trophy for the girls’ team. At the State Meet, there were twelve team records broken, six All-American Consideration times, and two Automatic All-American times achieved.

“I couldn’t be prouder of our Boys’ and Girls’ State Teams! All their hard work, dedication and determination was rewarded with fantastic performances! Everyone on the team stepped up and swam to the best of their abilities with almost everyone swimming lifetime best times. It was a coach’s dream come true,” says the ecstatic Coach Beth McGee.

The boys score was tied with Wesleyan going into the last relay of the meet, but the Spartan 400 free relay team, consisting of DJ Boutté, Wesley Pate, Chase Flint, and Will Freeman, swam an astounding race and dropped six seconds of their time from preliminaries, to tie up the meet. The Dive Team scored points for placed divers for the first time in GACS history.

Congratulations to all the Spartan Swimmers for a record-breaking season!

Spartan Basketball Takes Region

gacsadviser — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:39:27 +0000

The boys’ basketball team defeated Decatur last night 63–34 to claim the Region 6 AA championship. The Spartans will play at home this Friday night in the 1st round of the state tournament. Following the game last night the Region 6 AA Team of the Year was announced. Selected to the team were Trent Wiedeman, Paul Dawson, Elliott Long, and Malcolm Brogdon was named Player of the Year.

The Lady Spartans defeated Buford 55-50 in the Region 6AA championship game. The team was led by freshman Kristina Nelson with 28 points and 12 rebounds, Sierra Lawrence with 10 points, and Peyton Whitted with 8 points. The win captures the region #1 seed for the state tournament and guarantees the first 2 games to be played at GAC! The girls will play the #4 seed from Region 7AA on Saturday in the first round.

An estimated 1,500 basketball fans attended these region finals in the GACS Forum on Monday, February 22. Continue cheering on the Spartan teams as they roll on into state competition. Go, Spartans!

GAC Boys’ Team Wins State Swim Title

gacsadviser — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:31:27 +0000

In swim & dive, the Spartan boys’ team won the State Championship in the Class A-AAAA swim meet, held on the campus of Westminster, Thursday, February 18. The GAC boys scored 271 points, finishing ahead of Wesleyan (264) and Westminster (248).

The girls’ team did very well also, taking 3rd place in state action. The GAC girls totaled 198.5 points, finishing behind perennial powers Marist (325) and Westminster (277.5).

Click and read the entire Gwinnett Post Story.

Spartan Basketball Turning Heads

gacsadviser — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:11:45 +0000

LADY SPARTANS MOVE UP TO #2 AFTER BUFORD UPSET

CLASS AA RANKINGS – GIRLS
1. Vidalia
2. Greater Atlanta Christian
3. Buford
4. Northeast – Macon
5. Laney
6. Fannin County
7. Dodge County
8. Thomasville
9. North Oconee
10. Rabun County
[Source: Feb. 8 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

SPARTAN BOYS STAY ATOP AA RANKINGS

CLASS AA RANKINGS – BOYS
1. Greater Atlanta Christian
2. Northeast – Macon
3. Laney
4. Decatur
5. Blessed Trinity
6. Dade County
7. Thomasville
8. Dublin
9. Jefferson
10. McIntosh County Academy
[Source: Feb. 8 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]