Honorable mentions
Baseball
Justin Gibbs, Banks County: 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs against Lakeview Academy last Saturday.
Ryan Avery, Chestatee: 2-for-3 with three runs and an RBI against Johnson last Friday.
Ralston Cash, Lakeview Academy: 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs against St. Francis last Friday.
Chris Swancey, Jefferson: 3-for-3 with two RBIs against Oglethorpe County last Friday.
Michael Cidboy, Jefferson: Two hits and four runs against Oglethorpe County last Friday.
Kevin Frederick, White County: 4-for-4 against North Hall last Friday.
Travis Rutkiewicz, White County: 4-for-4 against North Hall last Friday.
Landon Anderson, Buford: Three hits, two doubles and an RBI against Stephens County last Friday.
Josh Rudnik, Buford: Two hits and four RBIs against Stephens County last Friday.
David Gonzalez, Gainesville: 4-for-4 with three RBIs against Pickens last Wednesday.
Tai-Ler Jones, Gainesville: 3-for-5 with a home run, three runs and two RBIs against Pickens last Wednesday.
Drew Uptegraph, Lumpkin County: 11 strikeouts, 2-for-3 with an RBI against East Hall last Wednesday.
K.J. McAllister, North Hall: Hit for the cycle with five runs and four RBIs against West Hall last Wednesday.
Nate Strong, North Hall: 2-for-3 with four RBIs against West Hall last Wednesday.
Jimmy Fitzgerald, Flowery Branch: 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs against Chestatee last Wednesday.
James Wilson, Flowery Branch: 10 strikeouts against Chestatee last Wednesday.
Soccer
Tess Patton, North Hall: Three goals against Dalton last Friday.
Allie Wright, North Hall: Four goals and one assist over two games last week.
Bradee Burrell, North Hall: Two goals and four assists against East Hall last Tuesday.
Juan Morfin, Johnson: Two goals against Lumpkin County last Tuesday.
Vicente Trujillo, Johnson: Goal and an assist against West Hall last Thursday.
Megan Fligg, Chestatee: Two goals against West Forsyth last Tuesday.
Tania Perez, West Hall: Goal and an assist against Johnson last Thursday.
Yones Yanes, Gainesville: Goal and an assist against Lumpkin County last Thursday.
Gerardo Mongragon, Buford: Two goals against Chestatee last Saturday.
Track and field
Nolan Clark, North Hall: Set a school record of 9 minutes, 37.4 seconds in the 3200-meter at the Roswell Relays last Saturday.
It’s not often that Lumpkin County High’s Devin Dunson leaves home plate without a hit.
In fact, it only happened once last week. The senior shortstop and pitcher was 4-for-4 with two RBIs in the Indians’ (11-1, 9-1 Region 7-AAA) win over East Hall last Wednesday, with a encore performance of 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs in a win against Pickens last Friday.
Dunson also pitched a one-hitter mound against Pickens, going the distance in the mercy rule-shortened game.
"The team has been on a little winning streak lately," said Dunson, whose Indians have not lost in six games. "We’re doing well everyday and just taking things one game at a time."
Dunson has taken that approach personally, and not just from a team perspective. Instead of swinging for the fences at every at-bat, the 6-foot, 180-pound No. 3 hitter in Lumpkin County’s lineup began looking for the outfield gaps.
"I was trying to hit too many home runs," Dunson said of his approach last season. "This year I’m just trying to get base hits.
"I’m still getting a few (home runs), but I’m hitting a lot better than I was last year."
The results are remarkable when looking at the team stat sheet. Dunson, who signed with Kennesaw State last November, entered last Friday’s game batting .559, while leading the team in hits and RBIs.
"As a returning senior who is a four-year starter, that’s what you expect out someone with that much experience," Indians coach Nick Jenkins said. "We expect him to do a little bit of all for us."
That includes pitching, something Dunson hasn’t doesn’t much of this year after breaking two ribs in a 14-7 win against Jackson County on Feb. 24. He exclusively played shortstop until Friday, when he made his first start since the injury.
"He didn’t have any problems swinging the bat or playing defense," Jenkins said. "But when he was pitching he couldn’t get good extension and that limited him for several weeks."
Now cleared to pitch, Dunson brings a high-80 mile per hour fastball, an above-average curveball and a change-up to the Lumpkin County rotation. He pitched exclusively for his Team Georgia summer team and will do so with Kennesaw State next year.
"Kennesaw’s always been on my mind," Dunson said. "They came to watch me pitch. I don’t think they ever saw me hit.
"I’m going to miss swinging the stick," he said. "I’m going to try to take a few hacks and let them see what I got."
But Dunson has bigger goals to chase before he joins the Owls next spring. With the Indians sitting atop Region 7-AAA alongside Creekview, he and six other seniors on the team have their sights set on playing host to a first-round opponent in the Class AAA state playoffs in May.
A region title may be on that list of things to do as well.
"We’ve been a waiting a while for this," Dunson said. "Coach tells us not to look too far ahead, but I’d say we want to be region champions and take it further."