Pope baseball

Walton boys lacrosse team rallies to win state championship

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After being taken to overtime at the very end of regulation, the Walton boys lacrosse team didn’t waste much time putting away the defending state champions.Walton boys lacrosse team

The Raiders got a goal from Tate Harran 18 seconds into sudden-death overtime to defeat Lambert 8-7 Saturday at Kennesaw State University in the Georgia High School Association Class 6A-7A title game.

It’s the first championship since 2011 for Walton (2011), which spoiled Lambert’s bid for a fifth crown.

The win also erased the Longhorns’ comeback in the final minutes. Walton led 7-4 with less than six minutes to play. In the last minute of regulation, Benny O’Rourke scored twice for Lambert, including the tying goal with 0.1 seconds left.

Hannan was one of three Raiders who scored two goals, including Taylor Aston and James Gerr.

Pope baseball in finals

The only other state high school championship left in the 2018-19 school year is baseball, and the Pope Greyhounds will be aiming for their third consecutive state title this coming week.

Pope will meet Heritage of Conyers in a best two-of-three series for the 6A championship that starts Wednesday with a doubleheader at State Mutual Stadium in Rome.

The games begin at 5 and 7:30 p.m. If necessary, a decisive third game would be played at the same venue at 7:30 p.m.

Admission is $13, plus a $2 administration fee.

 

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East Cobb sports update: Pope baseball, Lassiter and Walton boys lacrosse reach state semifinals

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The Pope baseball team’s hopes of winning three consecutive state championships is alive. There’s also a chance for an all-East Cobb boys lacrosse state final.

The Greyhounds, who ousted Lee County 2 games to 1 in a home baseball series this week, moved up the finale of that series on Thursday to avoid the rain, and came away with a 9-1 victory.East Cobb sports update

The victory came in a rematch between the finalists for the 2017 Georgia Class 6A title. Lee County won the opener 8-7 and Pope rallied with an 18-8 win in the second game of a doubleheader.

Pope is 28-7 on the season and won’t have to travel far in the semifinals, meeting Harrison, which eliminated Houston County Friday in a game that was delayed by rain from Thursday night.

This will be the fourth consecutive semifinal appearance for Pope. The series with Harrison begins with a doubleheader on Tuesday, and a third game, if necessary, would be played on Wednesday.

Walton’s baseball season came to an end this week when the Raiders were swept in the Class 7A quarterfinals by Parkview, by scores of 5-3 and 7-4. The teams have won two of the last three titles.

Lacrosse playoffs

New Lassiter High School gym, Lassiter back stadium parking lotThe Lassiter boys lacrosse team has reached the semifinals of the Class 6A-7A tournament after defeating Mill Creek 16-9 this week. The Trojans, who have reached the finals three years in a row, will next play the team they’ve met in those championship games.

The Lambert Longhorns downed North Gwinnett 12-4 and will play host to Lassiter on Tuesday or Wednesday. Lambert, in Forsyth County, has beaten the Trojans in two of those three title games.

The Walton boys reached the other semifinal match in Class 6A-7A, as the Raiders toppled Etowah 8-5 on the road on Friday. They will be playing host to Centennial.

The Walton girls team was eliminated Friday in the quarterfinals, losing at North Paulding 14-13.

Soccer semis

The Pope boys have reached the Class 6A semifinals, and will be playing at Dalton on Tuesday. The Greyhounds defeated Tucker 3-2 in the quarterfinals this week.

The Kell boys were eliminated in the first round in Class 5A by Lithia Springs, while Walton reached the second round in Class 7A before falling to Hillgrove. The Lassiter boys also lost in the second round in 7A to another Cobb school, Kennesaw Mountain. 

In girls soccer, the Walton girls also were ousted in the second round by Hillgrove, while Lassiter beat Kennesaw Mountain to advance to the Class 7A quarterfinals, where they were beaten by Parkview.

In Class 6A, the Pope girls were eliminated in the quarterfinals this week by Heritage of Conyers, and Johns Creek downed Sprayberry in the first round.

 

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East Cobb Sports Roundup: Pope baseball seeks repeat state title; Walton girls close in on all-sports crown

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The end of the school year means the end of prep sports in Georgia, and several East Cobb high school teams are still in action with quite a bit at stake

The Walton girls and boys golf teams are competing Monday and Tuesday in the Georgia High School Association Class 7A state championships in Tifton, and Moultrie, respectively. The Lassiter boys also are in the hunt.

On Tuesday, the Pope baseball team will try to defend its Class 6A GHSA state title in Rome in a finals series against fellow Cobb County school Allatoona.

For the Greyhounds and Buccaneers, there’s also something else that could be riding on the outcome of their best-of-three series: the overall championship in all-sports standings for Class 6A, compiled by the Georgia Athletic Directors Association.

The competition is called the Directors’ Cup, and the awards go to schools receiving the most points in overall, boys and girls competitions.

In the current Class 6A standings, Allatoona is third with 955 points, and Pope is fourth with 940 points. The winner of the baseball title will get 100 points, and the runner-up will receive 90.

Pope’s Region 7 rival Alpharetta (1007 points) and Harrison (992) hold down first and second places, respectively. The Harrison girls and the Allatoona boys both have teams competing in the golf championships.

Pope earned the 2017 Directors’ Cup for Class 6A.

The Walton girls, led by their dominating volleyball and tennis teams that repeated as state champions, currently lead the Directors’ Cup standings in Class 7A with 669 points. But Lambert High School of Forsyth County, which downed Lassiter Saturday to win the girls Class 7A state lacrosse championship, is right behind with 601 points, and is vying for its sixth straight state title in girls golf.

Walton is 5th overall in Directors’ Cup standings in Class 7A, and Lassiter is 9th. On the boys’ side, Lassiter is 9th and Walton is 12th. The Lassiter girls are 13th.

In the 6A boys standings, Pope is 8th, and the Greyhounds’ girls are 5th.

In Class 5A, Kell finished its sports season in 11th place overall, while the boys were 15th and the girls were 9th.

 

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