The school year is winding down, and so are the regular seasons in Cobb County high school sports. The time has passed when every game is weighed the same and every win, loss, achievement or failure is considered equal. Championships and state playoffs are nearing, and with them comes the excitement and pressure of the postseason. In the coming weeks, dozens of state champions will be determined in a variety of spring sports.
UPCOMING FINALS …
Looking sport-by-sport at the contending teams and upcoming matchups, just around the corner are the gymnastics championships. A one-day final, set to take place on Friday, April 30, at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, the gymnastics championships will feature several teams from Cobb County including Pope, Lassiter and Walton. Additionally, Kell’s Leslie Miller will compete individually.
Also, right around the corner, Cobb schools will have several teams in the golf state championships. On the boys side, in Region 5, Class 5A, Harrison will compete as the No. 1 region qualifier, coming in with a team score of 281, with Etowah trailing as the No. 2 qualifier with a team score of 298. Harrison will be led by their low medalist, Blaine Woodruff, who earned the honor after shooting a 68.
Harrison comes into the state championships as the No. 1 region qualifier in Region 5 on the girls side as well, boasting a team score of 175. They are followed by Kennesaw Mountain, whose team score is just higher at 179.
Cobb is represented in Region 6 by the girls team from Walton, who comes to the tournament tied with Roswell as the top region qualifier, both holding team scores of 167.
SOCCER NEARING PLAYOFFS …
Moving on into the realm of soccer, Cobb County finds itself well represented in the upcoming Class 5A boys tournament which is set to take place from April 27 through May 14. The tournament will begin with a field of 32 teams, seven of which come from Cobb County. On April 17, when the tournament begins, the first Cobb County team to take the field will be Region 5 representative, North Cobb, against their Region 8 opponent, Meadowcreek at 7 p.m. Following that kick off, Harrison will take on Parkview, McEachern will face off against Dacula, and Lassiter will battle Northview, and Pebblebrook will square off against Houston County, with all four games set to begin at 7:30. Just half an hour later, at 8:00, the final Cobb County teams will take the field, including Walton vs. Collins Hill and Marietta vs. Brookwood.
Of all seven match-ups, Lassiter versus Northview may be the game to watch. Lassiter, who is currently ranked No. 3 will try to knock off the No. 1 ranked Northview. Meanwhile, the Walton vs. Collins Hill matchup will feature excitement of its own, as Collins Hill the No. 2 team, is looking to repeat as state champions.
In Class 4A, representing as the sole competitor from Cobb County, Hillgrove will help kick off the state tournament on April 17 as well, taking on North Springs at 7 p.m. Hillgrove, though perhaps not the tournament favorite, is nevertheless a team to be feared. The Hawks, although coming off a tough loss to Dalton in the 7-AAAA finals, finished their season with an impressive 14-1-2 record. Currently the team to beat in the tournament looks to be McIntosh who posted a 17-1 record and holds the No. 1 ranking.
Meanwhile, on the girl’s side, in AAAAA, there will be five teams representing Cobb County when the state tournament kicks off on April 28. At 6 p.m. Region 5 competitor, Kennesaw Mountain will take on Region 8 representative Brookwood. An hour later, another county team, Walton, will face off against Collins Hill at 7:00 p.m., followed by Pope vs. Northview, Lassiter vs. Chattahoochee, and Harrison vs. Grayson at 7:30.
For the girls, the tournament favorite is none other than Cobb County’s Walton, although the three-time defending champion Panthers from Parkview can never be discounted. Additionally, Harrison should put up a good fight as well, as they are currently riding a 12-game win streak and will no doubt present Grayson with all they can handle. Meanwhile, Kennesaw Mountain’s competition, Brookwood, won’t go down easily. Just two weeks ago, the Lady Broncos barely lost to Parkview 2-1 and are currently Class 5A’s No. 3-ranked team in the state.
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