The Sequoyah boys basketball team achieved something it had never done before in school history: reach the state playoffs. The Chiefs went on a nine-game win streak that dated back to Jan. 23. The ninth of those games, however, was the most important as it came in the region quarterfinals against Allatoona. The 67-51 victory qualified the team for the state tournament. Tyler Deihl continued to add to what has been an already impressive season by scoring 20 points in the game. The team lost on Saturday in the region semifinals to Hiram, 67-61, but is no doubt excited to be moving forward in tournament play.
By beating Kennesaw Mountain, the Etowah boys basketball team locked up its place in the state playoffs. The win did not come easy, as it took two overtimes to beat the Mustangs, 68-60. Seniors, Sam Mueller (21 points) and Alex Garay (18 points) led the way for the Eagles. Etowah had to like their chances to advance in the region tournament as their next game would be against Marietta, a team they had beat twice in the regular season. Marietta had upset second seed South Cobb to earn the match-up against Etowah. The Blue Devils proved that they would not go down easy in the tournament, pulling another upset over Etowah on Monday night, 45-43.
The Woodstock boys basketball team lost another overtime decision, ending a hard fought season that saw many ups and downs as the Wolverines lost four of their last five games. Kent Emanuel had 11 points in the team’s 60-59 loss to Harrison. Woodstock entered the region tournament as a four seed and had hoped to qualify for state.
The West Forsyth boys basketball team lost in the quarterfinals of the Region 7-AAA tournament to Johnson-Gainesville, 51-41. Though the results this season weren’t always pretty as the team finished with a 9-17 record, the Wolverines may be a team on the rise in Forsyth County. They won their first region playoff game this year by beating Creekview and have nine sophomores and juniors on their 2009-10 roster. With one more year of experience, this could be a team poised for a big turnaround next season.
Already guaranteed a spot in the state playoffs after beating Kennesaw Mountain 51-35, the Etowah Lady Eagles had their eyes set on improving their position in the seeds by taking down McEachern. The two teams split a pair of regular season meetings with the Lady Eagles getting the most recent victory. However, the Lady Indians played with a greater sense of urgency this time around, winning 44-40. McEachern held a 10-point lead as late as the third quarter, but Etowah mounted one last push, even taking a one-point lead in the fourth. In the end, Dominique Wilson and McEachern hit the key buckets down the stretch. Wilson scored with 20 seconds to go and hit two free throws in the closing seconds to secure the four-point victory.
WINTER SPORTS WRAP-UP …
Sequoyah swimmer Taylor Roy, just a sophomore, completed her season on top of the two events she qualified for in the state meet, winning the 500 freestyle by more than six seconds and defeating defending state champ Liz Braun of Sprayberry in the 200 freestyle by a body’s length. Roy was the No. 1 seed in the 500 freestyle, but qualified second to Braun in the 200 freestyle, setting up the thrilling final. She finished ninth in the 200 freestyle and 11th in the 100 butterfly at last year’s state championship race.
The Lambert girls swim team captured the highest finish of any Forsyth County boys or girls squad in its respective classification by finishing seventh in Class A-4A. The Lady Longhorns had eight individuals and three relay teams in the finals. Similar to Sequoyah, a sophomore, Ellen Johnson led the way for the team, finishing fifth in the 100-yard breaststroke and tenth in the 200 individual medley.
West Forsyth continued to set the bar high for future seasons to come as the Wolverines finished fourth at the Class 3A State Traditional wrestling meet. Tyler Everton won a state championship in the 160-pound division. Evan Burchette was runner-up in 135 as well as Ross Anderskow in 152. Cody Westray (103), Garrett Tedone (119), and Colton Cloud (171) placed fifth in their divisions.
South Forsyth also had two outstanding performers at the 5A state meet. Joe Pittman completed an unbeaten season by winning the state championship in the 171-pound division. Ryan Marionneaux placed third at 103 lbs.
Gupta can be reached at rgupta@scoreatl.com.
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