One of state's top all-time coaches resigns; Sprayberry's Carter, Campbell's Davis among state's top diamond gems.
The spring and summer always bring a host of coaching changes in the football world, but Westside-Macon's Robert Davis' resignation certainly came as a surprise. One of the state's winningest coaches made the decision to bring his 355 wins home last Friday, according to The Macon Telegraph.
“It’s just time to go,” he said. “Maybe we just need a younger guy to handle things like cutbacks, downsizing and a bad economy.”
Prior to coming to Westside in 1997, Davis won three state titles at Warner Robins. Last year, Westside lost in the quarterfinals to Tucker in the state 4-A playoffs, the farthest a team got under his watch.
His 355 victories rank second to Lincoln County head coach Larry Campbell.
Apalachee Lifts its Way to the Title
The Apalachee Wildcats weightlifting team won its third Class 4A title in four years last week from the Georgia Coaches Association in Perry, Ga.
Apalachee got a second-place finish from Alex Camp (141-150-pound weight class) and Jon Lee (161-170). Chris Parr (226-245) took third and James Vang (140 and under) and Alfie Willie (171-180) placed fourth.
Valdosta managed to edge out defending AAAAA champions Peachtree Ridge by a count of 60 points to 28.
Peachtree Ridge did get some hardware though as Lion Brandon King won the 141-150 division. South Gwinnett's Shaun Ray Peart came in fourth and fellow Comet Darius Bryant was sixth in the 140-pound and below division.
The Lions' Akil Piggott took fourth in the 161-170 division, Vincent Brown was second in the 181-190 division and Tyler Botts was third in the 206-225 division. Mill Creek's Brandon Smith topped the 191-205 division.
Spotlight: David Carter (Sprayberry) and LeAndre Davis (Campbell)
Heavy rain cancelled large portions of spring sports last week, including golf, soccer and baseball.
So to take advantage of the quiet on the front, it is fair to spotlight a couple of high school baseball seniors who have started out the season playing top-notch baseball.
In an article recently published by The Marietta-Daily Journal, Campbell's LeAndre Davis is frequently referred to as potentially the best player you have not heard of. The senior at the Cobb County school has started all four years of his high school career for the Spartans and has evolved into a threat in the Campbell batting lineup as well as on the mound.
Campbell head coach Ron Wendt said over and over again that he was good enough to be mentioned in the same breath as the top players in the county and only needed the chance to prove it. In Wendt's interview with the MDJ, he said plainly "he's healthy this year and he's lighting it up" of Davis.
The three-hole hitter for the Spartans, and his numbers are all ready piling up. Entering the rain-soaked week, Davis was hitting .467 with three home runs, 12 RBI, 12 runs scored and seven stolen bases, ranking in the top five in the county in all of the categories except batting average.
Campbell, 7-3 overall and 1-2 in Region 6-AAAAA, will need to ride Davis' bat and arm to stay successful.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Cobb County is David Carter, who is trying to lead the Sprayberry Yellow Jackets back to the playoffs for the first time since 2006 when he was a freshman. At 6-4 overall and 3-1 in Region 7-AAAA, it certainly seems to be an attainable goal.
The multi-sport athlete has started all four years in both football and baseball for the Yellow Jackets, a trend he hopes to continue when he leaves for college next year. With a budding rivalry growing between new regional foe Hillgrove, Carter looks to work even harder to see to it that his team makes the playoffs.
That kind of leadership, according to head coach Phil Henderson, has made Carter the player he is. He is solid in the field and swings a heavy bat, and if he keeps it up the senior may just get his wish.
