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Athlete of the week: Dual threat Dragon torches in the court
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Honorable mentions

Basketball

Dustin Duckworth, East Hall: 13 points, 10 rebounds against North Hall last Saturday.

Kymmon Woods, East Hall: 15 points, 11 rebounds against West Forsyth last Friday.

Jaymee Carnes, Gainesville: 25 points against Wesleyan last Saturday.

Mikalyn DeFoor, Gainesville: 16 points against West Hall last Friday.

Erin Knight, Jefferson: 17 points against East Jackson last Friday.

Trey Redmond, North Georgia Christian: 33 points against Hallelujah Community School last Saturday.

Ishmael Hollis, Flowery Branch: 19 points against Johnson last Friday.

Jessica Harper, Flowery Branch: 17 points against Johnson last Friday.

Devaris Finch, Johnson: 22 points against Flowery Branch last Friday.

Jayla Moon, West Hall: Averaged 27 points and 13.5 rebounds in two games last week.

Shawn Chapman, Lumpkin County: 18 points against Chestatee last Friday.

E.J. Young, Lumpkin County: 18 points against Chestatee last Friday.

Chris Guthrie, Lumpkin County: 17 points against Chestatee last Friday.

Cara Malone, Lumpkin County: 16 points against North Hall last Tuesday.

Peyton Robertson, Chestatee: 19 points against Lumpkin County last Friday.

Chelsea Wilson, Chestatee: 18 points against Lumpkin County last Friday.

Brandon McKinney, Riverside Military: Averaged 22.5 points in two games last week.

Jessi Phillips, Dawson County: 17 points against Banks County last Friday.

Ja’Kar Bridges, Buford: Averaged 17.5 points in two games last week.

Blanche Alverson, Buford: 22 points against Lovett last Tuesday.

Ashely Lowery, White County: 17 points against Chestatee last Tuesday.

Luke Crumley, White County: 17 points against Chestatee last Tuesday.

Haughton Carswell, Lakeview Academy: 22 points against Athens Academy last Tuesday.

Ross Biegler, Lakeview Academy: 17 points against Athens Academy last Tuesday.

Ryan Griffin, Banks County: 17 points against Jefferson last Tuesday.

Wrestling

Wesley Adams, North Hall: 5-0 at the Trojan War last Saturday.

Nick Quinn, North Hall: 5-0 at the Trojan War.

Shane Doster, North Hall: 5-0 at the Trojan War.

Swimming

Pat Tracy, Flowery Branch:
Won the boys 50-meter freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships last Saturday.

Emily Nichols, Flowery Branch: Won the girls 500 freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Savannah Bassett, Flowery Branch: Won the girls 100 backstroke at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Taylor Howard, Flowery Branch: Won the girls 100 breaststroke and the 200 individual medley at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Cory Hene, Chestatee: Won the boys 100 freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Sara Schwanke, Chestatee: Won the girls 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Crystal Martin, Chestatee: Won the girls 100 freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Andrew Aubuchon, Gainesville: Won the boys 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Andy Doan, Gainesville: Won the boys 100 backstroke and 200 individual medley at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Christopher Reed, Riverside Military: Won the boys 500 freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Matthew Gallaway, Riverside Military: Won the boys 100 breastsroke at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Janette Smitherman, North Hall: Won the girls 200 freestyle at the Hall County Swimming Championships.

Three wins, two 20-point games and a still-unbeaten subregion record: It’s just another week for Jefferson’s Darius Minor.

The junior point guard strung together 20- and 27-point performances for the Dragons last Tuesday and Friday. He then traded in his double-figure scoring efforts for a solid defensive performance that helped lead Jefferson to a 36-31 win against Union County on Saturday.

“It was a very tough week,” Minor said. “Two fast-paced games then a slow-paced game. You can’t say much about that.”

Minor and his teammates said enough in the games. The 3-0 week has the Dragons (15-3, 4-0) entering the homestretch of subregion play with a six-game winning streak and a two-game lead in Region 8B-AA.

Even so, Minor wants to get better. With North Oconee and long-time rival Commerce scheduled this week, he hopes to see results similar to last week’s.

“We’re happy, but we’re not satisfied,” he said. “We’re still not as good as we need to be.”

Minor is most excited about playing Class A Commerce, despite the difference in classifications.
He has become a Tiger killer this year in both basketball and football.

Minor scored 15 points against the Tigers earlier this season and had a hand in a 35-14 win against Commerce in his debut at quarterback for the Jefferson football team.

“Just beating Commerce is fun,” Minor said. “It doesn’t matter what sport.”

Minor’s abilities in multiple sports hasn’t just frustrated Commerce, but plenty of other schools, especially in Region 8-AA.

Fresh off a region championship in football, he has made a smooth transition to basketball, averaging 15 points per game on a Jefferson team looking to win a region title in yet another sport.

“He’s one of the best point guards I’ve had,” Dragons coach Bolling DuBose said. “He works extremely hard, he’s really progressed in shooting and getting the ball to the right player.”

Minor has become a useful player for DuBose because of his all-around abilities. At six-feet tall, he ranks second among Jefferson rebounders. He is also one of the team’s best defenders.

“He helps us so many ways,” DuBose said. “There are certain zone defenses where we put him back under the basketball because he jumps so well, and that’s why he has so many rebounds.”

DuBose also believes that the qualities that make Minor a good point guard have improved his decision-making abilities as quarterback.

“I really think playing point guard has helped him make the transition to football a lot easier,” DuBose said. “When he was a quarterback he was making the same decisions and reads that he does on a basketball court.”

Minor is expected to be a legitimate college prospect in both sports at the Division-II or mid-major Division-I level.

“A lot of colleges don’t know about him yet,” DuBose said. “They’re certainly going to learn about him.”

But Minor believes his best opportunity after high school will come on the court where he can earn extensive playing time at the Division-II level.

“It depends on how much you love the game,” Minor said. “If you love the game more than you love the fame, of course you’ll go to a Division-II school for more playing time.”

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