DUBLIN — Bulloch Academy finished second in the GISA Region 3-AAA wrestling championships Saturday.
    The Gators had three region champions and four region runners-up en route to posting 132 points in the tournament. Host Trinity Christian School won the region title with 145 points and Windsor Academy from Macon was third with 102 points.
    "I was definitely pleased with the performances of our guys today," said BA head wrestling coach Andy Tomlin.          
    Junior Codi Johnson and freshmen Mitchell Ball and Daniel Hendrix all went undefeated to become region champions in their respective weight classes. Johnson dominated at 189 pounds, Ball was untouchable at 103 and Hendrix was unstoppable at 112.
    Senior Blaine Lovett (130), sophomore Asa Johnson (160) and freshmen John Gowan (119) and Harrison Averitt (125) took second places in the tournament.
    Third-place points went to senior Jonathan Lumpkin (215), senior Will Johnson (140), junior Caleb Bohannon (171), sophomore Dillian Finch (152) and freshmen Eddie Howard (135) and Connor Fordham (285). Eighth grader Dylan Stuckey (145) was fourth.
    All 14 Gators wrestlers qualified for the Class AAA traditional tournament, which is Feb. 4-5 at Tattnall Square Academy in Macon.
    "This is the first time in the history of the program that BA has had state qualifiers in all 14 weight classes," said Tomlin. "Last year, we had six qualifiers and we finished in sixth place. It should be interesting. What we saw Saturday was definitely how it is going to be at state. It will be a showdown between us and Trinity. We've got a lot of work to do in the next two week. I am looking for our middle-weight wrestlers to step up to the challenge."

Metter, SEB split
    METTER — The Southeast Bulloch Lady Yellow Jackets extended their winning streak to three as they defeated Metter 62-24 Saturday on the road.
    The boys did not fare as well, falling 61-37 to Metter.
    The Tigers (9-7) were led in scoring by Devin Byrd, who scored 15 points. Southeast Bulloch's Blake Lundy led the Yellow Jackets with 13 points.
    Southeast Bulloch hosts Swainsboro on Tuesday, while Metter returns to region play to take on Savannah Christian.

Yellow Jackets JV tops MHS
    METTER — The Southeast Bulloch junior varsity Yellow Jackets went on the road for a 37-29 win Saturday over Metter.
    Scoring was led by Metter's Jay Byrd, who finished with 12. SEB was paced by Devante Tremble, who scored 11.

Tigers claim big region win
    CLAXTON — The Claxton Tigers (11-3, 5-0 Region 3E-A_ knocked off region rival Savannah Country Day 57-47 Saturday at home.
    Chandler Jenkins scored 16 points to lead the Tigers. Rashod Lovett added 12 and LaBron Glover also finished with 12.
    Hornets' Kevin Blackburn led all scorers with 21 points.
    Claxton heads to Pembroke to face Bryan County Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Gators drop close one
    The Bulloch Academy girls hit a snag in the road, losing 64-52 to Trinity Christian Saturday night in Dublin.
    Taylor Collins and Haley Burke each had solid performances, turning in respective efforts of 22 and 13 points, but it wasn’t quite enough to keep up with the Lady Crusaders.
    With the loss, the Lady Gators drop to 15-5 overall and 2-4 in Region 4I-AAAA competition. BA will try to get back on track Monday as it travels to Milledgeville for a 6 p.m. tipoff with John Milledge.
    The Lady Gators’ B-team didn’t have any more luck Saturday as they dropped a low scoring 28-17 decision to Trinity.
    Page Spence (7 points) and Madison Poole (4 points) led the way for Bulloch.

Williams scores late to lead CHS to win
    CLAXTON — Shatasha Williams hit a layup with 23 seconds remaining to cap her 14 point performance and provide the winning margin as Claxton held off Savannah Country Day for a 45-44 win Saturday at the Tiger’s Den.
    Mariah Morgan tied Shatasha Williams’ team-high with 14 points of her own and Deetra Williams (11 points, 15 rebounds) recorded a double-double in the Tigers’ winning effort.
    With the victory, Claxton improves to 4-13 overall and 2-3 in Region 3-A competition.

SHS freshmen take down Screven
    The Statesboro Blue Devils' freshmen team defeated Screven County 55-30 Saturday morning.
    Statesboro's Jadarius Smith led all scorers with 12 points. Dashure Carter added eight.
    Desmond white scored eight points for the Gamecocks.
    Statesboro returns to action Thursday at 6 p.m. on the road at Swainsboro.

CBA hosting meeting
    The Chain Baseball Academy is hosting a meeting Sunday Jan. 30, at 4 p.m. at the Chain Baseball Academy to discuss spring and summer plans.
    All players ages 10-18 interested in trying out for a Chain team are encouraged to attend. Topics will include budget, schedule and coaches.         Please call the Chain Baseball Academy at (912) 352-3466 or visit www.chainbaseball.com for more information.

Semipro football tryouts
    The East Georgia Rebels, a semipro football team in the Georgia Developmental Football League, will hold tryouts Jan. 22 and Feb. 5 at Mill Creek Park.
    The fee for either tryout is $30. Registration takes place from noon-1 p.m. the day of the tryouts, and the tryout itself will last from 1 p.m.-4 p.m.
    For questions, call Bobby Dammarell at (912) 978-9346 or e-mail eastgeorgiarebels@yahoo.com.

Chipper, Broxton highlight GSU dinner
    The Georgia Southern Baseball Dugout Club will host "An Evening with the All-Stars" Friday, Feb. 4, in the Nessmith-Lane Ballroom on campus.
    The event will get underway with a 6:30 p.m. silent auction followed by dinner at 7:15 p.m. A question-and-answer session with Major League Baseball All-Stars Chipper Jones and Jonathan Broxton and host Ryan Chambers of the Georgia Southern Radio Network will follow the dinner.
    A six-time All-Star, Jones played his entire career with the Atlanta Braves since 1995. The 1999 National League MVP played high school baseball in Jacksonville, Fla.
    Augusta native Jonathan Broxton earned a spot on the National League All-Star team each of the last two seasons. Broxton recorded a career-best 36 saves in 2009 while posting a 2.61 ERA. He has played for the Los Angeles Dodgers since breaking into the major leagues in 2005. Broxton was a member of the  Burke County Bears before being drafted in the second round in 2002.
    Tickets for the event may be purchased at the Athletics Ticket Office or by calling (1-800) GSU-WINS. Tickets are $75 for adults and $50 for children ages 17 and under. The children's ticket includes a complimentary baseball signed by an All-Star. A corporate table for eight is available for sponsorship for $800. payable to the "Georgia Southern Dugout Club."

GSU Swim & Dive wins five of six duels
    DAVIDSON, N.C. — The Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team (12-4) defeated five of its six opponents Saturday, January 22nd, in the seven-team Davidson meet. The Eagles defeated Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) foes Campbell, Howard, Liberty, North Carolina A&T and Radford. Davidson, playing host to the 16-event meet at the Cannon Natatorium, was the only team to top Georgia Southern. 
    Georgia Southern recorded 13 top-three finishes throughout the day, including five first-place finishes. Senior Lindsay Goodman (Knoxville, Tenn.) led the charge, posting first-place times in the 100 backstroke (59.91) and 200 back (2:09.62). Goodman also finished in second place in the 200 I.M. (2:13.81).
    Goodman swam the backstroke leg of the 200 medley relay to help the Georgia Southern “A” team, which included Courtney Harrison (Greenville, S.C), Kristen Haudenschild (Woodbridge, Va.) and Caroline Bevillard (Bishop, Ga.), finish third (1:52.20).
    In the diving competition, Georgia Southern’s Sara Meisenhelder (Carmel, Ind.) took first-place honors on the 1-meter board with a season best 240.10 while finishing in third place on the 3-meter board (218.55).
    Georgia Southern will conclude its regular season next Saturday, January 29th, at home. The Eagles will play host to North Florida at 12 p.m. at the Recreation Activity Center (RAC) located on Akins Boulevard on campus. Admission to the meet is free.

GSU baseball tickets on sale
    Georgia Southern baseball tickets are available for the 2011 season.
    Season tickets start at  $70 for adults and $35 for youth and include more than 30 home games. The Eagles play 14 of their first 16 games at home in J.I. Clements Stadium.
    Highlights of the 2011 home schedule include five games against ranked opponents, the season opener with George Washington, and a home series against the defending SoCon champion. The Citadel.
    Season ticket prices for 2011 range from $35 for youth general admission to $100 for adult reserved seats. Adult general admission tickets $70 and reserved seats are $100. Youth general tickets start at $35  for general admission seats, while reserved seats are just $50. Senior and faculty and staff general admission tickets are available for purchase for $60.
    The 2011 season opens Friday, February 18th, at J.I. Clements Stadium with a three-game series against George Washington.

Bail reduced for So. Miss shooter
    HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Bail has been reduced to $1.5 million for a southwest Mississippi man arrested in the shooting of three Southern Mississippi defensive players.
    Travis "Taurus" Brown was arrested Nov. 19 and charged with three counts of aggravated assault in the shootings of linebackers Martez Smith and Tim Grean, and defensive lineman Deddrick Jones.
    Brown's attorney Michael Crosby said Saturday that bail for the 29-year-old man from Purvis had been reduced from $3 million. He says his client will remain jailed, in part because he's on probation for past charges.
    All three players survived the shootings and are out of the hospital. Smith was paralyzed from the waist down and is undergoing rehab.

    If you have a score to report, please call the Statesboro Herald sports desk at (912) 489-9408.