Local Roundup - Gators scrap out win over MDS

Bulloch Academy sophmore Taylor Collins goes over the bar during the high jump at Saturday's Gator Relays. Collins finished third in her event.

BA high jump — Bulloch Academy sophmore Taylor Collins goes over the bar during the high jump at Saturday's Gator Relays. Collins finished third in her event.

Bulloch Academy managed only three hits off Memorial Day School left-handed ace pitcher Sal Sanchez, but they came at just the right time.

“I told the guys that if we could hang with Sanchez and keep it close, something good would happen in the later innings,” said BA head coach Daryl Evans after his Gators pulled off a 4-3 victory in GISA Region 2-AA action Friday. “Sanchez is a pretty good pitcher. We didn’t have a lot of opportunities to get runs.”

Down 2-1 in the bottom of the fifth, senior Taylor Burke reached on an error and junior Win Lee walked. Both advanced on a passed ball. Senior Matthew Sapp pounded a sharp single into the right center, plating both Burke and Lee for a 3-2 lead.

Sanchez, who had struck out nine batters and allowed just two hits in 5 1/3 innings, was relieved by his brother Gabby. The younger Sanchez coaxed another BA out but then had senior Brian Atkinson double off the right-center field fence to drive Sapp home for a 4-2 lead.

“Atkinson’s big two-out hit proved to be the difference,” said Evans.

BA junior Walker Blitch did just as efficient job as the Sanchezs. Blitch fanned 10 Matador batters, walked one and scattered seven hits through six innings of work to pick up his second win of the season. But Sal Sanchez walked four and hit a batter. That, along with untimely MDS errors, provided to be the difference.

The Matadors mounted a comeback attempt in the seventh off reliever Burke.

With one out, Sal Sanchez tattooed a 2-1 pitch over the center-field fence to trim the score to 4-3. Gabby Sanchez walked and went to third on a Tony Welch putout. Burke struck out Taylor Thompson to end the game.

Memorial (1-1 overall and 0-1 in the region) started the contest off with a bang, scoring two runs on three hits and utilizing two BA errors for a quick lead.

“Walker struggled with getting the ball up in the zone in the first inning,” said Evans. “He made the adjustment in the second through the sixth to keep the ball down in the zone and it worked.”

The Gators (3-2, 2-0) got one back in the bottom of the inning.

Sophomore Clayton Rogers reached on an error. With two outs, Sapp drew a walk. Blitch singled to the gap in right and Rogers raced home to cut the lead to 2-1.

Gabby Sanchez led Memorial, going 3-for-3 with an RBI and a walk. Taylor Thompson was 2-for-3 with a walk. For Bulloch, Sapp was 1-for-2 with two RBI and a walk.

Bulloch travels to Lyons next Tuesday to face Robert Toombs Christian Academy.

Hill leads SHS golf

WAYNESBORO — Walker Hill shot a team-low 77 as the Statesboro Blue Devils finished eighth out of 17 teams at the Tailor Made Adidas Invitational hosted by Burke County Saturday.

Chas Shiels (80), Jordan Herrington (82) and Jonathan Bachant (88) rounded out the SHS scoring.

The Devils return to the links Monday when they host Wayne County at Forest Heights Country Club at 3:05 p.m.

BA wins one event

at Gator Relays

The Bulloch Academy girls won just one event in the 11th annual Gator Relays track and field meet Saturday, but they amassed 116 points by sheer numbers to claim the first-place trophy for the second year in a row.

The Lady Gators won the 4x400-meter relay and had five second-place finishes, four thirds and three fourths for the victory in the 20-team meet, which was held at the Georgia Southern University track and field complex. Bulloch's girls, who won the 2009 meet with 117 points, beat Class AAA powerhouses Trinity Christian School of Dublin (108) and Mount de Sales of Macon (88), Class AA’s Brentwood School of Sandersville (65) and Class AAA’s Deerfield-Windsor Academy of Albany (61).

The Bulloch boys finished eighth in the strong 20-team field. Deerfield-Windsor won the meet with 116 points, Mount de Sales and Stratford Academy of Macon tied for second (85), Brentwood was fourth (47) and Bethesda Day School of Savannah was fifth (34). The Gators had 27 points.

In the running events, three and sometimes four full heats (eight runners) were the norm in all races in the huge meet, which was sponsored by Hendley Properties, Ellis Meats, Walker Pharmacy and Sonic.

BA junior Rachel Gilbert led the way for the Lady Gators. She was second in both the long jump (15-5 1/2) and the 400-meter dash (62.27), took third in the 200m dash (27.31) and ran a leg on the winning 4x400m relay team (4:22.05 with seniors Heaven Hinton and Kelcie Jacobs and freshman Anna Newton).

Junior Sally Marie Futch notched second-place finishes in the shot put (32-7 _) and in the discus (124-3). Futch broke the record she had set last year in the discus but Trinity’s Sarah Howard re-broke it with her winning throw of 125-7.

Other record-setting performances were by Mount de Sales’ Tony Zenon (10.92 in the 100m dash) and Howard (47-7 in the shot). Zenon recently signed a full scholarship to play football at Georgia Tech.

BA’s Jacobs was second in the 3200m run (12:41), was third in the 1600m run (5:48) and fourth in the 800m run (2:37). Hinton was third in the 300m hurdles (53.55) and eighth grader Hendley Kimbrell was third in the 100m hurdles (17.70)

The Bulloch boys had one third-place finish, a fourth, two fifths, a sixth, a seventh and three eighths. Junior Lestonz Lewis took third in the 100m dash (11.14), fifth in the 200m dash (23.60) and ran legs on both the relay teams.

Bulloch Academy hosts a six-team meet at Gator Alley on Wednesday.

GSU to begin

spring practice

Spring practice at Georgia Southern begins as the Eagles return to the option offense. New Eagles Head Coach Jeff Monken puts his team on the practice field on the banks of beautiful Eagle Creek for the first of 15 practice sessions Monday at 3:45 p.m.

GSU will hold practices Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons with morning sessions on Saturday for the first three weeks. Following two weekday practices in the final week, the Eagles will conclude spring ball with the Blue-White Spring Game at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 17.

Schedule and location are subject to change. Practices are open to the public, but any filming, recording or still photography is limited to members of the media only.

Lady Eagles

fall short vs. FU

Junior Melanie Rolle extended her win streak to seven matches with a straight set win over Jessica Preeg and helped clinch the doubles point, but could not lead Georgia Southern past Furman. The Eagles suffered their first conference loss of the season with a 5-2 loss to the Paladins, who picked up their first conference win Saturday morning at the Hanner Tennis Complex. Both teams stand at 8-5 overall with GS owning a 3-1 Southern Conference mark, while the Paladins moved to 1-0 in league play.

EFFA reverse

raffle set

The Eagle Football Assistance Association sponsors the third annual $10,000 Reverse Raffle which will be held the night of the Blue-White Spring Game, Saturday, April 17th, from 7-11 p.m., at the Gene Bishop Field House. Reverse Raffle tickets can be purchased from the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation for $100 each and each ticket covers food, beverages for the ticket purchaser and a guest.

For more information about the event or to purchase tickets for the Reverse Raffle, contact the Georgia Southern University Athletic Foundation at (912) 478-5520.

If you have a score to report, please call (912) 489-9408.

RAHN HUTCHESON/Special

Bulloch Academy pitcher Walker Blitch delivers against Memorial Day in Friday’s 4-3, Region 2-IAA ballgame.

By RAHN HUTCHESON

Special to the Herald