Calhoun girls, boys run well in Carrollton
The Calhoun girls and boys cross country teams took a trip to Carrollton on Saturday to compete in the Carrollton Orthopedic Invitational and came away top four finishes as a team in both races.
The Lady Jackets took fourth in the Class A-AAA division with a score of 87 as they were led by another impressive performance from Ashley Hartness, who placed second individually with a time of 22:34.23. Anna Gibson also placed in the top five with a 23:06.56 for fifth, and Mari Morales was just behind her in sixth with a 23:08.47. Rounding out the team scoring for Calhoun was Teresa Nguyen (42nd, 26:02.13) and Ashley Jaramillo (49th, 26:54.90).
The Calhoun boys followed with a strong race of their own as they also placed fourth as a team with a score of 140 in the Class A-AAA division. Felipe Barrios took the lead for the Jacket with a sixth-place individual finish and a time of 18:26.39. Nestor Hernandez (21st, 19:46.89) and Angel Santiago (25th, 19:58.09) were next up, and Oscar Huerta (36th, 20:27.42) and Jonathan Santana ( 52nd, 21:19.09) completed the team score.
Calhoun will look to continue their success this week when they travel to Adairsville for the Tiger Invitational at Manning Mill Park on Thursday at 6 p.m.
In other recent prep sports action:
SOFTBALL Gordon Central 9, Coosa 3
The Lady Warriors used a steady offensive effort and strong pitching to earn their second straight win in region play on Thursday.
Gordon Central (7-9, 3-6 in 7-AA) scored at least one run in each of the first five innings, which was plenty of support for starting pitcher Morgan Frank, as they won their second region game in a span of two days after also defeating Model on Wednesday. The Lady Warriors scored two in the first, added four in the second and then put one more run on the board in each of the third, fourth and fifth innings.
Leading the offense for Gordon Central was Marissa Self with two hits, two RBIs and two runs scored, and Frank also had two hits and an RBI. Javan Vineyard, Kaleigh Rogers and Brooklyn Towe each had a hit and an RBI apiece, and Sarah Crowder added a hit and a run scored. Jada Jaco also drew three walks and scored two runs, and Cara Crump drove in a run.
Frank earned the win in the circle, going seven innings for the complete game and allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits while striking out nine.
Gordon Central was on the road for another Region 7-AA matchup on Tuesday against Pepperell. (For details on that game, see Saturday’s Calhoun Times.) They will visit Dade County on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Ringgold 4, Calhoun 3
The Lady Jackets broke a 1-1 tie to take the lead with two runs in the top of the seventh, but Ringgold answered with three of their own in the bottom half to decide the region contest.
Calhoun (10-4, 8-3 in 6-AAA) got a big offensive day from Lyndi Rae Davis who drove in all three runs as the sophomore had a homer and a double among her three hits. Anna Taylor added two hits of her own, Erin Barnes had a double and a run scored, Espee Reyes contributed a hit and a run scored and Carlie Henderson and Lona Sims each had a hit apiece.
Maggie McBrayer took the loss for the Lady Jackets despite a solid outing in which she went the distance, totaling seven innings, and gave up four runs on seven hits while striking out seven.
Calhoun was on the road at Adairsville on Tuesday for another 6-AAA matchup. (For details on that game, see Saturday’s Calhoun Times.) They will visit Haralson County on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
VOLLEYBALL Lady Jackets win area opener
The Calhoun Lady Jackets went on the road to Haralson County for a tri-match on Thursday and came away with a split, but the win came in their Area 5-AAA opener.
Calhoun lost a hardfought match in three sets (23-25, 25-19, 11-15) to Oak Mountain in their first match on Thursday. They battled back to dominate their second match of the night, however, against host and area foe Haralson County, beating them in two sets (25-9, 25-8).
Leading the stats for the Lady Jackets (20-2, 1-0 in 5-AAA) was Ashlyn Brzozoski with 55 digs and four aces and Anna George with 19 kills, five aces and two blocks. Also contributing was Nena Marcus with six kills, Emma Kate Smith with five kills, four aces and three digs, Sophie Stewart with five kills, Calli Edens with three aces and three digs, Erin Kelly with three kills, two blocks and two aces, Anna Hoblitzell with three digs, two kills and one ace, Emma Ledford with three digs and one ace and Erin Paul with two digs.
The Lady Jackets were back at home on Tuesday night for a trimatch including Murray County and area foe and rival Sonoraville. ( For details on that match, see Saturday’s Calhoun Times.) They will visit Adairsville on Thursday for a tri-match starting at 5 p.m. that also includes Gordon Central.
Calhoun plays top competition in Gatlinburg
The Calhoun Lady Jackets traveled to Gatlinburg, Tenn. on Friday and Saturday to compete in the Rocky Top Classic and faced some top teams from three different states, coming away with mixed results.
The Lady Jackets ( 22- 6) finished the tournament with a 2-4 record in two days, earning wins against Redan, 25-5, 25-10, and Morristown West (Tenn.), 19-25, 29-27, 15-11 and falling to Boone (Tenn.), 18-25, 24-26, Buckhorn ( Ala.), 16- 25, 16- 25, Summit (Tenn.), 13-25, 17-25 and Gibbs (Tenn.), 25-20, 22-25, 10-15.
“We were in one of the top pools and played all 6-A schools,” said Calhoun coach Randy Rice. “It was good for the girls to be exposed to that level of competition. That is what we went for. I hope we can rebound and get going in the area. Once again, we were the best team in the gym one match and then not so good afterward. We competed in all the matches and led early in all. We just could not sustain the momentum. Hopefully, we can fix a few things and get back on track.”