WBHS

The Winder-Barrow High School track teams both earned top six finishes at the Dacula Invitational Friday.

Most all events were completed before weather conditions turned ugly Friday night in the area.

The WBHS girls tied for fifth overall while the boys were sixth in the team standings. [Full Story »] 

Winder-Barrow High School baseball coach Brian Smith has a simple plan.

The veteran Bulldogg mentor knows his team will face a brutal region slate when the 8-AAAA schedule arrives. Therefore, Smith has always believed in playing a strong non-region schedule to help his team prepare for that slate of upcoming region foes.

The 2012 season began with a game against Stephens County which was followed by two games in Augusta Saturday. While WBHS fell to South Effingham 6-3 and Evans 13-7, Smith believes the experience at this juncture is more important than his team’s non-region record. [Full Story »] 

In most ways, it was a typical season opener for the Winder-Barrow High School baseball team Tuesday.

The Diamond Doggs saw some positive things, some things they need to work on and perhaps some glimpses of what the 2012 campaign will be like. In the end, WBHS dropped a 2-1 decision to visiting Stephens County High School leaving Bulldogg coach Brian Smith with at least some level of disappointment.

“Our pitching was definitely a bright spot,” Smith said after the game. “(Blake) Marbut was probably not even at his best despite throwing well. He went out there and got out of some tough situations. We still have to take advantage of opportunities when we have them. This one got away from us. I would like to see us play with more intensity. I always want our team to play like the region championship is on the line. When you do that, you will usually be O.K.when it comes to your effort level.” [Full Story »] 

The Winder-Barrow High School swim team capped a successful season with an appearance at the state meet.

Mitchell Buttler, Quinn McDaniels, Alex Hentenaar and Jake Hester competed in the 200 medley relay for the Swim Doggs Friday morning at Georgia Tech.

“The meet started off with huge excitement,” said coach Jennifer Blevins. “We were in the first heat of the first race. I remember looking at how still the water was and being so excited for all of the boys. We were winning the race most of the heat and ended up fourth. Every team deserved to be there and was trying to swim their best. Although the boys did not lower their time, they all swam a great race and have already started working on a plan for next year. The relay will only be losing Jake, who is a senior, but will be gaining an amazing swimmer in rising ninth grader Ian Hentenaar.” [Full Story »] 

Winder-Barrow High School pushed Rockdale County to the wire Monday night but ended up three points short of the upset.

The Bulldoggs fell 61-58 but had a chance to win the game in the final seconds. Trailing by two points after a basket by Kendall Isler, WBHS forced a turnover to give itself a chance at a potential game-winning basket. The Bulldoggs, however, also turned the basketball over and Rockdale County, a No. 1 seed, managed to escape, reach the Region 8-AAAA semifinals and qualify for the upcoming state tournament.

“There were many times this season I thought we could have tanked it,” WBHS coach David Sokol said after the game. “However, we began to click after our Christmas tournament. Our seniors were not going to allow this season to go to waste.” [Full Story »] 

Hank Williams Jr. had a smash hit song back in 1979 about a certain kind of “Family Tradition.”

While the country music singer related to the wild life, Winder-Barrow High School’s Alex Hentenaar knows about a different kind of “family tradition.” For Hentenaar, the tradition centers around a swimming pool and being one of the top athletes for the WBHS Swim Doggs.

“Alex is an amazing young man,” said WBHS coach Jennifer Blevins. “He comes from a large family including older sister Caitlin; older brother Billy and then younger brother, Ian. Caitlin and Billy are both students at the University of Georgia with Billy being a member of the Red Coat band. Both Caitlin and Billy swam for me when they were at Winder-Barrow and Ian will be with us next year. Needless to say, I will have 13 years of coaching all of the Hentenaar children. They are a great group of kids and I would not trade them for anything.” [Full Story »] 

Due to the differing nature of each sport, high school coaches often take varying approaches in working with their respective athletes.

Swimming is an individual sport in many ways although team scores are kept and compiled. For Winder-Barrow High School swim coach Jennifer Blevins, there are a number of methods she uses to motivate her athletes in an attempt to drive them to do their best.

“Coaching swimming is definitely different,” Blevins said. “First of all, the athletes don’t have as much control of their breathing as they do in any other sport. This is always an interesting concept to teach the swimmers. They have to find a breathing pattern and get used to limited air. It is definitely a learning process and my new swimmers are the ones who grow the most in this area. Yet, swimming is a sport that can get someone into shape quick and is no impact so the pressure of being on land is not pressed onto the body.” [Full Story »] 

It was another competition and another quality showing for the Winder-Barrow High School Swim Doggs Saturday.

Competing at the University of Georgia in Athens, team members established more personal records and posted state qualifying performances. All in all, it was a standout day for coach Jennifer Blevins’ program.

“The team was absolutely amazing,” the coach said. “I really enjoy watching their hard work pay off. They are definitely a great group of kids. They support each other, look out for each other, cheer each other on and are great representatives of Winder-Barrow High School and their families.” [Full Story »]