Twelve years and stronger than ever.
    That’s how Bulloch Academy athletic director and head track and field coach Clint Morgan sees today’s 12th annual Gator Relays.
    “It has become such a fun event,” said Morgan. “It’s gotten to be so popular that I’ve got coaches calling at the beginning of the school year wanting to know the date.”
    Hosted by Bulloch Academy, the all-classification meet will boast some of the best athletes in the Georgia Independent School Association (GISA). Student-athletes representing more than 15 schools from around the state will converge on Georgia Southern University’s track and field facility. 
    “The track facility at Georgia Southern is so comparable to what we run on at state (Hugh Mills Stadium in Albany),” said Morgan. “It makes people want to run there to prepare for the state meet.”
    An estimated 200 student-athletes will participate in the meet, which begins at approximately 10 a.m.  today. Admission is $5 per person for the day-long event and full concessions will be available. The major sponsors of the 2011 Gator Relays are Hendley Properties, Sheppard Lumber Company, The Sack Co. and SCM, Inc., Statesboro Appliance Center and Blount, Burke, Wimberly and Hendricks.
    In 2010, 20 boys’ and girls’ teams competed for the top team trophies.
    In the girls’ competition, Class AA Bulloch Academy tallied 116 points for the first-place trophy, which was their second in a row. Class AAA powerhouses Trinity Christian School of Dublin was second (108), Mount de Sales of Macon was third (88), Brentwood School of Sandersville was fourth (65) and Deerfield-Windsor of Albany was fifth (61).
    In the boys’ competition, Deerfield-Windsor notched 116 points for the win. Mount de Sales and Stratford tied for second (85), Brentwood was fourth (47) and Bethesda Day School of Savannah was fifth (34). Bulloch Academy was eighth with 27 points.
    In 2010, the Bulloch Academy girls’ track team won their second consecutive Class AA state title while the boys were state runner-ups. BA has since joined the Class AAA ranks and will be squaring off against the GISA’s biggest schools at the state championship meet in early May.
    In the girls’ meet, Bulloch Academy’s Sally Marie Futch, who is a recent signee to Division I Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Florida, and Trinity Christian School’s Sarah Howard will battle in both the shot and discus. At last year’s Gator Relays, Howard set meet records in both the events while Futch was second in both.
   
SEB defeats Swainsboro
    Southeast Bulloch defeated Swainsboro 11-3 on Friday.
    J.D. Smith pitched a complete game and got the win.
    Tyler Epps was 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Tyler Brown was 3-for-for with one RBI. Blake Fulmer was 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Aaron Rowe had an RBI.
    The Yellow Jackets will travel to South Effingham on Wednesday. 

Lady Gamecocks top East Laurens
    SYLVANIA — The Screven County Lady Gamecocks (8-3 Region 3-AA) defeated East Laurens 4-1 on Friday.
    Rochelle Shuman had two goals. Jennifer Suggs had one goal and one assist, and Gentri Becton had one goal. Hannah Jones and Stormee Nasworthy each had one assist.
    Screven County will host Jefferson County on Tuesday.

Scarboro leads Gamecocks to win
    The Screven County Gamecocks (4-8, 2-0 Region 3-AA) defeated the Jefferson County Warriors 12-2 in five innings Friday.
    Kameron Oliver was the winning pitcher. He pitched the complete game, gave up two hits and struck out two.
    Patrick Scarboro had two hits and 6 RBIs. Scarboro's second-inning home run put the Gamecocks in the lead. He also had a two-run double.
    Hobby Mills hit a two-run double, and Auston Peel ended the game with a 3-run homer in the bottom of the fifth.
    The Gamecocks will travel to Swainsboro on Tuesday. 

GSU softball visits College of Charleston for weekend series
    Georgia Southern Softball puts its five-game winning streak on the line this weekend as it travels to College of Charleston. The three-game Southern Conference matchup begins on today at 1 p.m. with a doubleheader at the Patriots Point Complex. The series concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m.

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