With one more week to prepare for Jefferson County and the rigors of the eight-game Region 3AA football schedule, the SCHS Gamecocks of Greg Manior will travel to the banks of Battle Creek Friday night to face the Tattnall County Battle Creek Warriors in their final tune-up before the region opener at Kelly Memorial Stadium next week.
Stepping up several notches in competition, the undefeated and second-ranked SCHS Lady Gamecocks of Billy Pollock downed AAAAA’s No. 10-ranked Parkview and previously unbeaten AAAA South Effingham in the semifinals and finals, respectively, to repeat as champions of the Battle in the Boro at Mill Creek in Statesboro last weekend. The Red and White hosts Southeast Bulloch this Sept. 2 afternoon at 5 in a crucial 3AA-A subregion battle. On Friday, the team will travel to Hazlehurst to face 2AA power Jeff Davis with a junior varsity game as well.
Taking advantage of several Rooster miscues, the Effingham County Rebels ran off to a 21-0 third quarter lead and did what they had to do to hold off the Screven County Gamecocks late to take a 28-14 season-opening win at Kelly Memorial Stadium Aug. 27. In front of perhaps the largest crowd in eight years, the 50th season at the present stadium began on a down note. “We made some significant mental mistakes tonight,” said Greg Manior following his first game as the head coach of SCHS.
The early “stretch” run of a possible 18 games in 15 days ends Friday for Billy Pollock’s Lady Gamecock softball team. However, it will not equal quite that many. A possible seven games in the Tattnall County Warrior Creek Classic turned out to be just six. A contest with South Effingham Aug. 26 was postponed because of wet grounds. Barring rain Wednesday, this Sept. 2 afternoon or Friday, the schedule will be “but” 16 games in those same 15 days.
A pair of teams who did not make the playoffs in 2009 but are looking for serious improvement in 2010 will collide Friday night when the Screven County Gamecocks of new coach Greg Manior and the Effingham County Rebels of new coach Rick Tomberline face off at Kelly Memorial Stadium. Kickoff time is 7:30 p.m. Coming off a 3-7 campaign, the Rebels have not been to the post season since 2005 and have not won a postseason contest since 1995.
Holding off a late comeback attempt by Vidalia in the tournament semifinal, the SCHS Lady Gamecocks went on to defeat powerful Savannah Christian 2-0 in the final to claim the championship of the Tattnall County Warrior Blast Tournament late Saturday evening. After winning six straight games over the two-day event and routing Jefferson County Tuesday 14-0, the team travels to South Effingham to face AAAA powerhouse South Effingham this Aug. 26 afternoon.
There is one of two places for Gamecock fans to be Friday night. Unfortunately, for me anyway, it is not possible to be in both. You may head to the Mill Creek Complex in Statesboro supporting the SCHS Lady Gamecock softball team of Billy Pollock. They have 5:45 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. games to open play in the Battle in the Boro Tournament. The second one is against the same Savannah Christian Lady Raider squad they just defeated for the Warrior Blast Tournament title last Saturday night.
Surviving a blistering hot sun, the SCHS Lady Gamecock cross country team of Anna Canetto, with just five members participating, captured first place in a four-team event on the SCHS campus Tuesday afternoon. The team will not be in action again until Sept. 9 when they go to Magnolia Springs, suddenly a hot bed of activity, for a meet hosted by Jenkins County. “Considering the heat this afternoon our times were really good,” said Canetto. “This really gives us something to build upon for future meets.”
After squandering three first-half scoring opportunities, the SCHS Gamecocks, debuting new head coach Greg Manior’s offensive and defensive schemes, scored on their first three second half possessions before turning the game over to the junior varsity in the final stanza to win 29-7 at South Effingham Saturday morning. Delayed by weather for better than 14 hours, the opening kickoff in the annual August scrimmage finally took place a day later at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.
The scoreboard registered a 20-6 win by the Tri County Panthers over the visited semi-professional East Georgia Rebels Aug. 21 in the first round of the playoffs, but the record books instead will read 0-0.
At least until Saturday.
The game now will be replayed Aug. 28 because the semi-pro football league has granted a do-over after the Rebels protested the shortage of officials for the contest. Being a league playoff game, it is mandatory that an official run the game clock. That did not happen.
