The past year provided many surprises and lots of exciting moments in the local sports scene.
From triumphs on the football field to long overdue victories, sports fans in Jackson County were treated to several different types of sports memories to keep from JCCHS, Jefferson and East Jackson, as well as from Park and Rec and other area sporting events.
Here’s a look at five of the biggest sports stories of 2009, in no particular order.
Jefferson’s J.J. Damons looks for a way through a host of Eagle defenders during November’s “Backyard Brawl,” one of the biggest moments of 2009.
2009 sporting year was a memorable one
“Backyard Brawl” For Title
An estimated crowd of 5,500 people were on hand at Memorial Stadium in Jefferson on Nov. 6 to see which county team, the Jefferson Dragons or the East Jackson Eagles, would come away as the 8-AA region champs.
Both teams entered the game with undefeated records, and right from the start, it proved to be an exciting game.
After both defenses stepped up, the score stood at 0-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Jefferson wasted no time in the second quarter, as J.J. Damons broke into the end zone just 12 seconds into the quarter.
East Jackson answered on the following play, as C.J. Allen returned the punt 99 yards to put the Eagles on the board, tying the score at 7-7.
With less than 10 minutes remaining in the half, Jefferson’s Darius Minor connected with Tyler Porter on a 47-yard touchdown to retake the lead. The Dragons then padded that lead on a pass from Minor to Lucas Reed to give Jefferson a 21-7 advantage at the half.
Jefferson would again build on their lead in the third quarter, with Minor scoring on a keeper to move the score to 28-7.
But in the fourth quarter, the Eagles came to life. First Deon Sewell scored on a three-yard run to move to within 14 points. The Eagles then pulled off a successful on-side kick, and took the opportunity to score on a 33-yard pass from quarterback Evan Williamson to Cody Gibbs to make it a 28-21 ball game.
The Eagles’ comeback attempt was halted when J.J. Damons scored again for the Dragons, giving them the 35-21 advantage that would make up the final score. Jefferson would come away with their second region title of the year, and make it all the way to the second round of post-season play, where their season ended against Buford.
The Rise of East Jackson
After having a 3-7 overall and 3-6 region outing in their first season of 8-AA play in 2008, most assumed 2009 would be a solid year for the football Eagles of East Jackson.
But few in the pre-season would have predicted the heights the Eagles rose to over the course of the second season of region play.
The Eagles started off their year with a big win over West Hall, then moved right into region play, defeating Fannin County and Oglethorpe County. After defeating Union County and Riverside Military Academy, the Eagles continued their undefeated run over Banks County, Rabun County, North Oconee and Dawson County, holding the four teams to only 22 points scored over the four-week span.
East Jackson saw their undefeated season come to an end in their showdown with Jefferson for the region title, which they lost 35-21.
The Eagles then went on to defeat Manchester in the first round of playoff action before falling to Lovett on the road to end their season.
East Jackson came away from 2009 with an overall record of 10-2, 8-1 in the region and as region runners-up. With a strong line-up returning in 2010, the Eagles are expected to be a top story again next year.
Mat Dragons Do It Again
2009 was another strong year for the Jefferson wrestling program.
First, the Mat Dragons recorded their eighth straight State Duals title, their 20th overall title for the program. Jefferson recorded the victory with a solid win over Lovett, 48-19.
A few weeks later, Jefferson added another chapter to their history book, as the Mat Dragons became 13-time Traditional State Champs by taking top honors in the AA State Tournament at the Gwinnett Arena.
Jefferson wracked up 225.5 points en route to the title. Second place Lovett scored 133 points.
Two Mat Dragons came home as state champs in their weight classes. Cason Thurmond brought home top honors in the 103 lb. class, while Zac Crosby came out on top in the 171 lb. class.
Of the 13 wrestlers that Jefferson took to the state competition, 11 placed.
During the off-season, the Jefferson wrestling team was inducted into the Northeast Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, while coach Doug Thurmond was inducted into the Georgia chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
Panthers Have Resurgent Season
It had been a long dry spell for the Panther nation on the football field at JCCHS.
Prior to the 2009 season, the Panthers had won only eight games since 2001.
But beginning with kick off on Aug. 28, the Panther fans had a lot to cheer about.
First, Jackson County picked up a 44-0 victory over Our Lady of Mercy. They would go on to defeat Sonoraville 42-7 one week later, making them 2-0 on a season for the first time since 1981.
During the next off week, the Panthers were honored by WAGA, the Fox television affiliate out of Atlanta, as the sports team of the week.
Jackson County then picked up their first homecoming victory in about 20 years with a 13-3 win over Prince Avenue Christian. The win marked the first time in 28 years that the Panthers had gone 3-0 going into the fourth game of the season.
From there, unfortunately things cooled for the Panthers as they entered region play. They came up just short against Morgan County on Sept. 25, as they lost 14-7.
Jackson County would continue to look for that elusive region victory over the next three games, but would score only 14 points against Hart County, Franklin County and Eastside.
The Panthers came oh so close on Oct. 23 against Elbert County, but was one point shy as they lost 28-27.
After being shut out against Oconee County, the Panthers finally picked up their first region victory since 2006.
Jackson County ended their season with a 4-6 overall record and 1-6 in the region.
With the news that the Panthers will move to 8-AA next year, the Panther nation is hoping the success of ’09 bodes well for things to come.
Jackson Co. Hosts Little League World Series
Nicholson was the site of the 2009 Dizzy Dean 11-Year-Old Baseball World Series in July. Thirty-five teams took to the field in a round robin format, with eight teams winning pool play to advance to a double elimination round to play for the championship.
In the end, it was the team from Jeffersontown, Kentucky, defeating the North Point Nationals from Alabama 16-6 for the title.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald.
An estimated crowd of 5,500 people were on hand at Memorial Stadium in Jefferson on Nov. 6 to see which county team, the Jefferson Dragons or the East Jackson Eagles, would come away as the 8-AA region champs.
Both teams entered the game with undefeated records, and right from the start, it proved to be an exciting game.
After both defenses stepped up, the score stood at 0-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Jefferson wasted no time in the second quarter, as J.J. Damons broke into the end zone just 12 seconds into the quarter.
East Jackson answered on the following play, as C.J. Allen returned the punt 99 yards to put the Eagles on the board, tying the score at 7-7.
With less than 10 minutes remaining in the half, Jefferson’s Darius Minor connected with Tyler Porter on a 47-yard touchdown to retake the lead. The Dragons then padded that lead on a pass from Minor to Lucas Reed to give Jefferson a 21-7 advantage at the half.
Jefferson would again build on their lead in the third quarter, with Minor scoring on a keeper to move the score to 28-7.
But in the fourth quarter, the Eagles came to life. First Deon Sewell scored on a three-yard run to move to within 14 points. The Eagles then pulled off a successful on-side kick, and took the opportunity to score on a 33-yard pass from quarterback Evan Williamson to Cody Gibbs to make it a 28-21 ball game.
The Eagles’ comeback attempt was halted when J.J. Damons scored again for the Dragons, giving them the 35-21 advantage that would make up the final score. Jefferson would come away with their second region title of the year, and make it all the way to the second round of post-season play, where their season ended against Buford.
The Rise of East Jackson
After having a 3-7 overall and 3-6 region outing in their first season of 8-AA play in 2008, most assumed 2009 would be a solid year for the football Eagles of East Jackson.
The East Jackson Eagles get fired up with defensive line coach Wesley Wheeler. Photo by Ben Munro
The Eagles started off their year with a big win over West Hall, then moved right into region play, defeating Fannin County and Oglethorpe County. After defeating Union County and Riverside Military Academy, the Eagles continued their undefeated run over Banks County, Rabun County, North Oconee and Dawson County, holding the four teams to only 22 points scored over the four-week span.
East Jackson saw their undefeated season come to an end in their showdown with Jefferson for the region title, which they lost 35-21.
The Eagles then went on to defeat Manchester in the first round of playoff action before falling to Lovett on the road to end their season.
East Jackson came away from 2009 with an overall record of 10-2, 8-1 in the region and as region runners-up. With a strong line-up returning in 2010, the Eagles are expected to be a top story again next year.
Mat Dragons Do It Again
2009 was another strong year for the Jefferson wrestling program.
First, the Mat Dragons recorded their eighth straight State Duals title, their 20th overall title for the program. Jefferson recorded the victory with a solid win over Lovett, 48-19.
A few weeks later, Jefferson added another chapter to their history book, as the Mat Dragons became 13-time Traditional State Champs by taking top honors in the AA State Tournament at the Gwinnett Arena.
Jefferson wracked up 225.5 points en route to the title. Second place Lovett scored 133 points.
Two Mat Dragons came home as state champs in their weight classes. Cason Thurmond brought home top honors in the 103 lb. class, while Zac Crosby came out on top in the 171 lb. class.
Of the 13 wrestlers that Jefferson took to the state competition, 11 placed.
During the off-season, the Jefferson wrestling team was inducted into the Northeast Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, while coach Doug Thurmond was inducted into the Georgia chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
Panthers Have Resurgent Season
It had been a long dry spell for the Panther nation on the football field at JCCHS.
The Jackson County Panthers were honored as the team of the week by WAGA Fox 5 in Atlanta after winning their first two games of the season. Pictured are, left to right, Jonathan Holton, Rob Williams, field maintainer James Leigh, coach Billy Kirk and Ryan Howe. Photo by Brandon Reed
But beginning with kick off on Aug. 28, the Panther fans had a lot to cheer about.
First, Jackson County picked up a 44-0 victory over Our Lady of Mercy. They would go on to defeat Sonoraville 42-7 one week later, making them 2-0 on a season for the first time since 1981.
During the next off week, the Panthers were honored by WAGA, the Fox television affiliate out of Atlanta, as the sports team of the week.
Jackson County then picked up their first homecoming victory in about 20 years with a 13-3 win over Prince Avenue Christian. The win marked the first time in 28 years that the Panthers had gone 3-0 going into the fourth game of the season.
From there, unfortunately things cooled for the Panthers as they entered region play. They came up just short against Morgan County on Sept. 25, as they lost 14-7.
Jackson County would continue to look for that elusive region victory over the next three games, but would score only 14 points against Hart County, Franklin County and Eastside.
The Panthers came oh so close on Oct. 23 against Elbert County, but was one point shy as they lost 28-27.
After being shut out against Oconee County, the Panthers finally picked up their first region victory since 2006.
Jackson County ended their season with a 4-6 overall record and 1-6 in the region.
With the news that the Panthers will move to 8-AA next year, the Panther nation is hoping the success of ’09 bodes well for things to come.
Jackson Co. Hosts Little League World Series
Nicholson was the site of the 2009 Dizzy Dean 11-Year-Old Baseball World Series in July. Thirty-five teams took to the field in a round robin format, with eight teams winning pool play to advance to a double elimination round to play for the championship.
In the end, it was the team from Jeffersontown, Kentucky, defeating the North Point Nationals from Alabama 16-6 for the title.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald.
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