Albany Herald

ALBANY — American Legion Post 182 of Leesburg opened up its season with a pair of close wins Saturday in the opening day of the Memorial Day Classic tournament at Darton.

In Post 182’s opener against Albany Post 30, Worth County pitcher Ryan Hickox threw a complete game to lead Post 182 to a 4-3 victory.

Later in the day, Post 182 beat Vero Beach, 6-5, behind Baconton Charter ace William Sullivan.

Sullivan, who had a standout year for the Blazers, got the win, while Worth County’s Eli Reddell picked up the save.

The Post 30 Sr. and Jr. teams both went 0-2 Saturday.

The Post 30 Sr. team also lost to Wiregrass, 4-3, and the Post 30 Jr. team lost to Vero Beach, 11-5, and Wiregrass, 10-7.

The two-day tournament concludes today with five games at Darton College.

Wiregrass and Vero Beach kick things off at 9:30 a.m., and are followed by Post 182 vs. Wiregrass (noon), Post 30 vs. Vero Beach (2:30 p.m.), Post 182 vs. Post 30 Jr. (5 p.m.) and Post 30 vs. Post 30 Jr. (7:30 p.m.).

Ex-Southland star McGowan honored

AMERICUS – Mollie McGowan, a junior on the Georgia Southwestern women’s tennis team, has been named to the 2012 Capital One Academic All-District III At-Large Team.

McGowan, an Americus native and former Southland star, has compiled a 3.95 grade point average as an exercise science major. A first-team selection, she now becomes eligible to earn Academic All-American honors, with voting to be done in the near future.

McGowan played No. 3 singles and No. 2 doubles this spring for the 8-13 Lady Hurricanes. The Americus native finished with a 5-14 singles record and a 6-14 doubles mark while helping the squad earn its most Peach Belt Conference wins in a season. A two-sport athlete, she was named to the 2011 PBC All-Academic Women’s Cross Country First Team in the fall.

In addition, McGowan was named the 2011-12 GSW Female Scholar Athlete of the Year and she recently earned induction into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society. She is a two-time PBC All-Academic women’s tennis award winner and is on pace to be named to the PBC Presidential Honor Roll for a second-consecutive year.

McGowan becomes the first GSW female student-athlete to earn Academic All-District honors in the department’s NCAA era (since 2006).

DWS basketball camp set for next week

ALBANY – Deerfield-Windsor basketball coach Gordy Gruhl will hold his annual “Hoop for the Stars Basketball Cam”next week.

The camp will be Tuesday through Friday in DWS’s Henry Gym.

It will be 9 a.m. to noon for grades 4, 5 and 6; and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. for grades 7 and 8.

Cost is $70 and registration is the morning or afternoon of the first session. For information, call 431-0328.