Sports

Bleckley County 2018 Honor Graduate Chandler Abney signed a letter of intent on Thursday, June 14, 2018 to play baseball at Gordon State College in Barnesville. Despite being out some of this season from the Tommy John Surgery he has last year, as Bleckley County baseball player Abney was a career .300 hitter. He drove in 18 RBI’s, scored 28 runs and had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage during his last season as a Bleckley County Royal. Pictured above (seated, l-r) are Gordon State Coach Aaron Mizell, Chandler Abney and his mother Cori Abney. (Back row, l-r) are Brian Abney, Christy Abney, Buddy Peacock, Cindy Peacock, John Reddock, Laney Reddock, Madi Abney, sister Ansley Abney and father Shayne Abney.

Coaches, youth, parents, volunteers and Forest City Gun Club staff were a part of a very successful 2018 TCW Trap Skeet and Sporting Clays Match in Savannah on May 26, 2018. Seniors participating were Dayne Cadwell, Andrew Fowler, Wyatt Hargrove, Kristen Nobles and J.W. Simpson and junior A.J. Simpson finished completed the 4-H shooters from Dodge. The senior team placed eighth overall. Wyatt Hargrove became the State 4-H champion in skeet and placed 15th overall. Dayne Cadwell placed eighth overall, seventh in skeet and fifth in sporting clays. A.J. Simpson was 12th overall junior in skeet. Pictured above (l-r) are coach Wayne Cadwell, J.W. Simpson, Dayne Cadwell, Kristen Nobles, A.J. Simpson, Wyatt Hargrove and coach Ricky Hargrove. Andrew Fowler and coach Lorie Cadwell are not pictured.

The Dodge County High School soccer team hosted its annual soccer camp June 4-6. More than 50 youth attended the camp. During the camp, participants learned the values of teamwork and other great character skills. They also were taught the fundamentals of soccer, like passing, receiving the ball, trapping, heading, dribbling, shooting, kicking, and much more, including precision and how to control the ball. All of the participants received a t-shirt and had the opportunity for interaction with the high school players one-on-one and in the team capacity. They also discovered that the more practice one devotes to the sport, the better equipped one will be in an actual match. Pictured above are camp participants and leaders posing for picture during a break time during the sessions.

Margaret Simmons, the Southern States Athletic Conference Player of the Year has been named to the NAIA Softball All-American team. She hit .386 with 11 homers and 13 doubles during her freshman year at Middle Georgia State University. Simmons had a total of 68 hits and her slugging percentage was .670. She was also the SSAC Freshman of the Year. Simmons is a 2017 graduate of Dodge County High School and the daughter of Bubba and Claudia Graham of Eastman.

Dodge County Recreation Department 8U Allstar team was the tournament champion in a Soperton baseball tournament. Pictured above front row (l-r): Landon Anderson, Jace Bellflower, Carter McKinney, Hayden Garcia, and Tucker Sheffield; back row (l-r): Landon Little, Jeremiah McKay, Mason Johnson, Justin Burse, Mason Fordham, and Riley Spires.

Dodge County Recreation Department 10U Allstars were tournament champions in a Soperton baseball tournament. Pictured above front row (l-r): Ace Roberson, Brycen Pruett, Landon Walker, Karson Jones; middle row (l-r): Dawson Butler, Christian Lecouris, Brandon White, Kain Mincey, Holden Thomas, Landon Sheffield, Duke Johnson; back row (l-r): Coaches: Steve Walker, Chad Jones, Justin Butler and Jessie Mincey.

Scene from the Indians and Panthers spring football game. (Photo by Miranda Bush) [Full Story »]