The
Smith Spotlight: Savannah Jordan
One of the most successful sports in Fayette County is girl’s soccer, usually having 2 or 3 teams in the hunt for the state title every year and this one is no different. At Whitewater High School the girl’s team is lead by Junior Forward Savannah Jordan, she is a primary player on a team that is undefeated and has been recently ranked nationally by ESPN.
Savannah started playing soccer when she was 13 years old, that same year she began playing for the Concorde travel team. She still plays on the travel team and is also a part of the ODP(Olympic Development Program), in this program she plays for Team Georgia as well as the Region 3 team(a team of players from all over the Southeast). Savannah was also invited to a camp for the U17 National Team. Jordan and the Region 3 team just returned from playing teams in Italy and Switzerland in a couple of weeks, this is not the first time she has played overseas and she really enjoys the experience. “It’s a whole different atmosphere over there” Jordan says “and I love it”.
As she plays for all these teams, Savannah devotes the majority of her time to perfecting her game, “I’m pretty much doing something every day, whether is speed, agility training or just playing with my team”. Savannah attracted the attention of many colleges around the country, collecting offers from Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn, California, and Pepperdine among others. After taking several visits she decided to take her talents to Gainesville and play for the University of Florida, she committed last August. Though she has been a lifetime fan she said it was a hard decision, “It was really hard for me, but in the end Florida was the right fit for me” she says.
Upon her completion of ODP Jordan hopes to be invited to be on the National team and be the next face of US women’s soccer much like Hope Solo and Alex Morgan. All in all Savannah Jordan is a rare talent who is becoming a household name already and it will be exciting to see the how the career of this rising star unfolds.
Savannah started playing soccer when she was 13 years old, that same year she began playing for the Concorde travel team. She still plays on the travel team and is also a part of the ODP(Olympic Development Program), in this program she plays for Team Georgia as well as the Region 3 team(a team of players from all over the Southeast). Savannah was also invited to a camp for the U17 National Team. Jordan and the Region 3 team just returned from playing teams in Italy and Switzerland in a couple of weeks, this is not the first time she has played overseas and she really enjoys the experience. “It’s a whole different atmosphere over there” Jordan says “and I love it”.
As she plays for all these teams, Savannah devotes the majority of her time to perfecting her game, “I’m pretty much doing something every day, whether is speed, agility training or just playing with my team”. Savannah attracted the attention of many colleges around the country, collecting offers from Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn, California, and Pepperdine among others. After taking several visits she decided to take her talents to Gainesville and play for the University of Florida, she committed last August. Though she has been a lifetime fan she said it was a hard decision, “It was really hard for me, but in the end Florida was the right fit for me” she says.
Upon her completion of ODP Jordan hopes to be invited to be on the National team and be the next face of US women’s soccer much like Hope Solo and Alex Morgan. All in all Savannah Jordan is a rare talent who is becoming a household name already and it will be exciting to see the how the career of this rising star unfolds.
The
Smith Spotlight: Shane Giunta
Lacrosse is the fastest growing sport in the United States, gaining thousands of new players every year, and in Fayette County popularity is growing exponentially. This past year at Whitewater High School because of the growing interest this was the first year the team had to cut players. This year’s team is very young but they have strong veteran leadership in Junior goalie Shane Giunta. He picked up the game in middle school and fell in love with it, Shane has been playing for 3 years now and this will be his 2nd year on the varsity team. He not only plays for Whitewater but he also plays for the Copperhead travel team which he sees as a great opportunity. “It really helps with exposure and experience” Giunta says. “We play teams from Virginia to Maryland and we get to go up against such good players”. Shane uses this experience to help coach up the young talent at WHS, “We have a lot of young talent, I’m trying to coach up the younger kids so they can be more experienced and confident” says Shane. Due to their youth many don’t expect the Men’s Lacrosse team to go far but Giunta feels they have a real shot to be a sleeper team and clinch a berth in the state playoffs. Among his many goals for this season Shane would like to have a .650 goal average (percentage of shots saved), be recruited by colleges, and increase his overall knowledge of the game. Shane highly recommends taking a interest in lacrosse for those who have never really given it a thought, “Honestly if you watch it you’ll love it, its non-stop action and if you watch you won’t regret it”.
Griffin
Beats Whitewater in a Thriller 23-22
In the wake of the controversial story about the match up of Whitewater vs. Griffin, both teams came into the game feeling they had something to prove. Whitewater wanted to show they were as hard working as anyone out there, and Griffin wanted to prove they were more than just happy to be there, they wanted a championship. Both sides packed Whitewater’s stadium, and were treated to an instant classic that went down to the very last play.
Early on, and throughout the 1st half it appeared the Griffin Bears just wanted the game more. They made big plays, blocked 3 punts, and forced 3 turnovers and jumped to a 16-0 lead. The Wildcat offense was out of sync, failing to move the ball consistently; the only managed a field goal and found themselves down at halftime 16-3.
The second half started off with the Wildcats driving all the way into the Griffin 5 yard line and not score a point, at that moment all hope seemed to have been lost, and then the Cats came alive. The defense forced the fumble and Whitewater was able to capitalize as Trey Wafford ran it in from 8 yards out to make it 16-10. The defense would force a punt on Griffin’s next drive; Senior John-Mark Rhodes would run it 75 yards down to the Griffin 3 yard line where Wafford punched it in to make it 16-16. Griffin would respond though, taking it the length of the field scoring a touchdown to regain the lead 23-16. Whitewater would respond with a recovered onside kick and, lead by Wafford and Junior Kendall Conley; the Wildcats scored a touchdown but went for a 2 point conversion and failed Griffin lead 23-22.
With less than 3 minutes to go and 0 timeouts, Whitewater was looking defeat in the face, but they would respond. The defense forced a 3 and out, and Whitewater took over at their own 40 yard with 55 seconds to go. Trey Wafford and John-Mark Rhodes made big plays on the drive and it appeared the Wildcats would once again come away with a close win, but poor clock management left the Wildcats at the Griffin 30 with 6 seconds left and one play left. The Cats couldn’t convert the long field goal and Griffin came home with the win 23-22. The Griffin bears have made the next step toward the Georgia Dome and will keep playing, and for Whitewater their season ends on a sour note, losing their last 2 games.
Wildcats continue winning ways, defeat Fayette 23-6
After defeating Upson Lee last Friday, Whitewater extended their winning streak to five and their spirits were riding high. Many expected Senior Night against winless Fayette County to be an easy game, they expected wrong.
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| courtesy of projects.ajc.com |
Fans on both sides were treated to a hard fought game between both teams that was close going into the final quarter. On the first play of the game Junior Joey Renta recovered the onside kick and Whitewater started in Fayette territory, however they couldn’t capitalize as John-Mark Rhodes threw an interception on the drive. Fayette would take advantage of the turnover and score on a 77 yard TD run from Dionte Richards and the Tigers had a 6-0 lead. After that the Whitewater defense was locked in.
Juniors Patrick Dalton, Malik Harris, Kendall Conley as well as senior Roshaud Turner lead the front 7 that kept Fayette in the backfield all night, Junior Malcolm Graham lead the secondary that once again didn’t give up a single passing yard.
Juniors Patrick Dalton, Malik Harris, Kendall Conley as well as senior Roshaud Turner lead the front 7 that kept Fayette in the backfield all night, Junior Malcolm Graham lead the secondary that once again didn’t give up a single passing yard.
Whitewater’s offense struggled as penalties derailed every drive, Junior Austin Barnard added a field goal and Fayette lead 6-3 at the half. On the first drive of the second half, senior Trey Wafford scored on a six yard touchdown run that gave the Wildcats a 10-6 lead, Barnard added two more field goals and Whitewater lead 16-6 at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Whitewater’s “Stone Wall” defense provided all the necessary stops and Rhodes connected with Senior Al Sutton on a 36 yard TD to ice the game, 23-6.
Whitewater head coach Amos McCreary was excited to get the win but cautioned his team about not looking ahead and starting games strong. “Were fine in wins, we just have to practice harder, make more plays, and play better early,” he said.
Whitewater wins a defensive battle 14-7
After beating rival Starr's Mill last week, the Wildcats were riding a four game winning streak. A win against Upson Lee would put the Wildcats in the driver's seat in the sub-region. In typical Whitewater fashion it was a tightly competitive game that went down to the wire.
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| courtesy of berecruited.com |
Throughout the first half the neither offense could keep a sustained drive. Whitewater missed three field goals and the game remained scoreless for the bulk of the half. However, Trey Wafford eventually scored from two yards out and the Wildcats lead 7-0 at the half. The story remained the same in the second half. Whitewater's "Stone Wall" defense lived up to their name, but Upson Lee answered with a defensive stop of their own every time. The score didn't change until the fourth quarter when junior Malcolm Graham intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown, raising the Wildcats lead to 14-0. Upson Lee scored on their next drive however, and cut the lead to seven.
After a Whitewater 3 and out, Upson Lee was driving deep in Wildcat territory late in the game, but the defense made one last stand as senior Roshaud Turner pulled in an interception that sealed the victory 14-7.
The Wildcats are now on a five game winning streak and are tied a top the region with Northgate. After the game Whitewater head coach Amos McCreary felt that this was on of the biggest wins to date. "It's a big win and puts us up there, there are two teams up there: us and Northgate so were in the driver's seat".
After playing Fayette this Friday, McIntosh the following Friday and then a bye week, Whitewater will play at Northgate in a giant game that will most likely decide the region champ.
Defense
shines as Whitewater Wins 14-12
Throughout the first half the Wildcat offense couldn’t get in sync, failing to capitalize on great field position, not moving the ball with consistency, and turning the ball over several times. Through all the difficulties, Senior Blake Barnes ran it in from 5 yards and the Wildcats took a 7-0 lead. Defensively, the Steelers had “The Steel Curtain”, the Vikings had “The Purple People Eaters”, the Bears had “The Monsters of the Midway”, and the Whitewater Wildcats have “The Stone Wall”. Junior Malcholm Graham and Senior Brandon Boldon lead a secondary that for the second straight home game did allow a single passing yard, up front, Junior Patrick Dalton lead a front seven that dominated all game long. Despite Harris County’s great field position all night, the defense held every time and the Wildcats lead at the half 7-0.
On the first series of the 2nd half, the Harris County offense broke of a 72 yard touchdown run, but failed the 2 point conversion and found themselves down 7-6. For the better part of the next two quarters a defensive grudge match ensued until Trey Wafford scored a 3 yard touchdown, and the Wildcats were up 14-6 with 3 minutes to play.
Harris County returned the kickoff inside the Whitewater 25, and a crucial pass interference on Whitewater on 4th down set up Harris County on the Whitewater 5 yard line with 1:30 to go. Finally on 3rd and goal, Harris County punched it in and was a 2 point conversion away from a tie game, but the Wildcat defense held one last time as Harris County couldn’t score. Malcholm Graham recovered the onside kick and the Wildcats came home with the win 14-12. Coach Amos McCreary was excited after the game, and felt that Whitewater was now the team that could make some noise in the playoffs. “The enthusiasm was through the roof, we played well all night, best effort yet so far, no doubt.”
Whitewater's defense stuffs Ola, wins 23-7
After a tough 43-20 loss at Sandy Creek last Friday, Whitewater looked to get back to their winning ways in the home opener against Ola. The stands were full as many on the Whitewater side expected a blowout; they were greatly surprised to see a tight, competitive game.
Early in the first quarter the Wildcat’s offense couldn’t get in sync as the undersized, but physical Ola dominated the line of scrimmage. The defense was also shaky early, as Ola took an early 7-0 lead. Whitewater was able to respond on the next drive. Quarterback John-Mark Rhodes connected with Trey Wafford on a 19 yard touchdown and the game was tied 7-7, but the Wildcats would lose Wafford to an injury later and he would not return.
Only one word describes the Wildcat’s defense from that point on: dominant. The secondary lead by junior Jake Carlson, who had an interception, didn’t allow a single yard.
Without Wafford, the Whitewater offense couldn’t do much and both teams went into the half tied 7-7. On the first play of the second half the Wildcat defense forced a turnover, and the offense started deep in Ola territory, but costly mistakes made the Wildcats settle for an Austin Barnard field goal (30 yards) as they took a 10-7 lead. The defense once again forced a turnover on Ola’s next offensive play, and the offense would capitalize, Colton Clemons ran it in from seven yards and the Cats took a 17-7 lead.
Senior running back Blake Barnes ran for close to 80 yards in the second half and added a 22 yard touchdown run. The running back by committee of Blake Barnes, Colton Clemons and Jared Vincent were able to bleed out the clock for a 23-7 win.
Along with Jake Carlson the defense was lead by freshman Josh Alexander, who had several tackles for loss. John-Mark Rhodes lead the offense with a touchdown pass and over 75 yards rushing. Freshman Christian Wafford added five catches.
Although the Wildcats came out with a double-digit win coach Amos McCreary still thinks there’s a lot of room for improvement.
“We came out a little tentative in the first half, but we played hard in the second half,” he said, adding that the Wildcats need to improve on their intensity.“We have to raise our intensity level every game, because in our region there isn’t a team that can’t beat us.”
“We came out a little tentative in the first half, but we played hard in the second half,” he said, adding that the Wildcats need to improve on their intensity.“We have to raise our intensity level every game, because in our region there isn’t a team that can’t beat us.”
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