We continue our senior spotlights with the Southeast Bulloch baseball team. The Jackets were 5-3, and were on a four-game winning streak and were 3-0 in Region play when the season came to a close. Coach Brandon Peterson had a chance to tell us his thoughts on seniors Tucker Czech, Peyton Carr, Ethan Shannon and Landon Deal.

“Tucker Czech has a good outlook on life as he’s always smiling and happy,” Peterson said. He did a tremendous job converting to catching the last two seasons which was not his natural position. He also showed tremendous leadership from day one this season. 

“Peyton Carr is a guy that has been a varsity starter for three years but was really coming into his own,” Peterson said. “he was having a great season at the plate, and had kind of transitioned into a closer role for us on the mound.” 

“Ethan Shannon was mostly a role player last year for us but had won a job as a starter in the outfield this year,” Peterson said. “He is just a gritty competitor, the kind of guy I would take on my team any day.

“Landon is one of the best young men I have been associated with,” Peterson said. “He was on manager and wasn’t on the field, but he was without a doubt a very important part of the team.”

“Being a part of the Southeast Bulloch baseball team was a great experience,” Czech said. “I loved everyone who was a part of it. From the coaching staff, to our manager Landon Deal, we were a very close group. Having our season come to a close show you how fast something can be taken from you, but I feel like I made the most of my time there.’

“One thing I have learned is that the team has always been family,” said Carr. “As seniors we were hoping to go out with a bang, so it is very upsetting to have the season end. We were working extremely hard to achieve our goals and having that taken away from us hurts a lot.”

“I learned a great deal about being a better teammate, leader and player throughout the time we had this season,” Shannon said. “I’m upset for the way the season ended, but not just for me but for how much potential I feel like this team had. I felt like great things were coming this season for us, and we were on a hot streak, it’s been like a bad dream or something.”

“Being a part of the Southeast Bulloch baseball team has changed my life,”  Deal said. “I joined the team as a manager my sophomore year, and I have loved it. I was very disappointed I didn’t get a chance to watch our team finish the season like they wanted to. I know I am not in control of these things though, God is.”

Czech signed an official letter of intent this week to attend the University of South Carolina Beaufort earlier this week.

The Bulloch Academy golf team had only two seniors on this co-ed team, and they both happened to be girls. Gator head golf coach Walt Garvin gave us his thoughts on seniors Abby Newton and Sloan Aubrey.

First and foremost, I would say how much I will miss both of these girls next year. They were in a unique situation to be the two seniors on a co-ed golf team. For them having to compete against boys, they never got upset, they accepted the challenge. I felt both of them would be key components for us to compete for a region title in one of the hardest golf regions in the state. I feel for both of them having their senior seasons getting cut after only two matches.

“Sloan was a key component to our golf team,” Garvin said. “The team score always had to be the best four scores of the players in the lineup and you could count on Sloan coming through when we needed her. . Sloan had a super junior season and I was looking forward to her having a rock solid senior year and helping this team achieve our goals. She always had a routine during her rounds, and always stuck to the plan which shows me that she believed in herself. She is an exceptional student and I cannot wait to see how she flourishes at Mercer University or UGA.

“Abby bounced between our number one and two player,” Garvin said. “She was an exceptional athlete at Bulloch Academy and I am glad she is furthering her golf career at Georgia Southern. Abby thrived on having to compete with the boys and always had a smile on her face when she beat them. She was looking forward to this season with it being her last because her game has improved so much in the last year. Abby has always been a team player and always has time to help her teammates and others.”

“It’s been tough being a senior, and knowing this is the last high school sport I would play,” Newton said.” I felt like we had a strong team this year, and had a great shot at winning Region on our home course.”

“I’ve played golf since I was little, and it was the only thing I had left as a senior,” Aubrey said. “It’s really sad to put hard work and effort into something, and not see the results of that work. I would give anything to play one more high school round, and was looking forward to our team being able to host the Region at Forest Heights.”