GWINNETT BEAT, MAY 7-13: Collins Hill’s Court takes state golf title; Brookwood tennis advances

"Championship Month" might hold no greater meaning than in Gwinnett County where multiple schools are trying to bring countless state crowns to the home of success. With the girls state track and field championships set to conclude the weekend of May 8, (after press deadlines), Gwinnett County was set to be well-represented in Albany’s Hugh Mills Stadium.
The schedule featured qualifying on Thursday, field event finals on Friday and track finals on Saturday. In the lower classifications, Wesleyan has 13 participants competing in 12 different events. Greater Atlanta Christian will feature eight ladies competing in eight different events. Jessica Tuggle will go in the triple jump, long jump and 100-meter hurdles as well as the 400-meter relay. Buford will seek titles with Maya Dillard in the 1600-meter run and the 800-meter run. In the Class 5A events, Peachtree Ridge has a shot at the 1600-meter relay as well as the 300-meter hurdles with Autumn Burnette and Monique Pate competing.
Parkview’s Alexis Jones-Hardy will look to add a few more titles to her recent collection from regionals in the long jump and the 100-meter dash. The Lady Panthers will compete in seven events. Mill Creek has four participants going in three events including Carson Simpson and Jessica Steele in the pole vault and Chandler Griffin in the discus. Grayson has eight girls going including the speedy Taren White (200-meters, 400-meters, 400-meter relay, 1600-meter relay).
North Gwinnett, meanwhile, will run in two events. Collins Hill will compete in a slew of events ranging from the 1600-meter run (Nicky Akande) to the long jump (Bria Young) to the 3200-meter run (Chloe Whitworth) and the 1600-meter relay. Brookwood has nearly as many competitors with six events and nine participants. Berkmar will send three runners to Albany while Central Gwinnett will be represented in two events. Duluth will have Maya Thomas and Deja Williams going in the 100-meter dash while Norcross will attempt to capture a title with Talia Oliver in the shot put. The boys will compete starting Thursday May 13 through Saturday May 15 in Jefferson.
COLLINS HILL SWEEPS …
The Georgia state golf championships were held earlier this week and several Gwinnettians made impressive runs. The Class 5A girls, meanwhile, teed off on the Plantation Course at Reynolds Plantation. Collins Hill’s Lauren Court shot a 73 to claim the individual state crown and help the Lady Eagles secure the overall team title. Collins Hill took home the state championship with a team score of 158, just better than runner-up Tift County’s 161. Brookwood finished with a 176 while Grayson posted a 196. The Class 5A boys championship was decided at Lake Oconee’s Reynolds Plantation on the Landing Course. Norcross finished third behind Josh Klipstein’s 75 while Ryan Trocchio shot a 76. Due to rain, the Class A and 2A championships were delayed until after press deadline.
On the tennis courts, the Brookwood boys took care of Milton 3-2. The Broncos were led by Grayson Mills at No. 1 singles and Mark Guentert at No. 3 singles, as well as the No. 1 doubles team of Matthew Shemanski and Chris Eastwood.
According to Brookwood head coach Heath Hinton, Guentert’s match was "epic," with the sophomore pulling out the match’s final decision. Brookwood starts five seniors in his lineup, which Coach Hinton says is the "best chance [to win the state championship] since the school’s last state title in 2000."
Says Hinton of his team, "this year we believe we have a chance, but we also know how tough it will be. In fact, we are already very grateful for making it this far."
Though tennis is an individual vs. an individual or a doubles team vs. a double team contest at the core, Hinton acknowledges that this team is in fact one cohesive unit.
"This group does a great job at sacrificing and supporting and I know that our win last week had a lot to do with the team atmosphere created by this group and not simply [being] the best tennis players."
Coach Hinton’s squad faced Walton though the result was unavailable at press deadline.
SOCCER ACTION …
On the soccer pitch, Kim Spence scored two goals in a 4-0 win over East Paulding to help the three-time defending state champs advance to face Lassiter. With the two goals, Spence now has 29 on the season and 86 for her career, a new school record. With one more goal, she would break the single-season school record. Kansas Bayly had a goal and two assists while Stephanie Guetierez added a goal herself.
The North Gwinnett girls, ranked No. 5 in the state, earned a 1-0 win over Milton and will now face Region 8, No. 3 seed Grayson. The Lady Rams pulled off a huge 2-0 upset over No. 4 Harrison as Brooke Van Baush netted two goals for Grayson. Goalkeeper Molly Williams made 31 saves to preserve the shutout win.
In other girls soccer results, Dacula lost to Etowah, Kennesaw Mountain fell Brookwood and Walton blanked Collins Hill 2-0. GAC also ousted Paideia 4-1. The boys soccer action was hot as Gwinnett battled Cobb for first round supremacy. Collins Hill bested Walton 3-1 and will now face Region 5 champion Harrison, 5-1 winners over Parkview. Brookwood needed penalty kicks (4-2) to advance past Marietta while Centennial blanked Norcross 4-0. In Class AA/A, GAC used a Denzel Clarke goal to edge Paideia 1-0 and will now travel to Athens Academy. Also, Wesleyan edged Westminster 1-0 and will now face Hebron Christian.
NEWS AND NOTES …
In other action from the county, the Peachtree Ridge boys lacrosse team clinched the No. 2 seed in the state playoffs with a 15-0 win over Grayson. Cory Hall had three goals and four assists for the Lions…North Gwinnett has found new basketball coaches for both the boys and the girls programs. Bryan Sellers will take over the girls team after Tony Watkins left for Lanier High School. Sellers served as a Bulldogs assistant the last four seasons and previously coached at Lumpkin County and Dawson County. Former assistant Zach Smith, 26, takes over the boys program after Len Garner was asked to resign. This will be Smith’s first head coaching job. … Finally, the Parkview baseball team was ranked No. 15 in the latest Super 25 USA Today rankings, down from No. 12 the prior week.