Mark your calendars: Sports-filled weeks await

March is almost gone.

In the Byler way of life, that means one thing. It's time to buy a calendar.

Sure, I could pay the full $13.95 in late December for a brand-new calendar. On the other hand, I could wait a few months, late March, for instance, and have my pick of calendars featuring Garfield, Jeopardy! trivia, kittens or the Irish countryside - all for a dollar.

I chose Garfield.

Almost one-fourth of the calendar is useless, of course. January, February and most of March are already gone. But for a 93 percent discount, I can deal with it.

Now fully armed with a deeply discounted but still 75 percent useful calendar, I find that today is Mothering Sunday - in England.

A week ago it was Canberra Day in Australia. Last Tuesday, the Mexican holiday of Benito Juarez' birthday.

I'm glad I've got my calendar.

Here are a few more useful dates that I'm circling on my new calendar. You might want to take a look, too:

Monday, March 27, baseball

Evans vs. Westside

Two teams with some of the best baseball history in the state come together for a 5 p.m. start. Westside began the season at 10-1 this year and was ranked No. 9 in this past week's AA GaSports.com coaches poll. Evans held the No. 6 spot last week in the AAAA coaches poll and entered the weekend with a 6-3 record.

Tuesday, March 28, girls soccer

Augusta Prep vs. Westminster

A year-round rivalry returns to the soccer field for these two Georgia Independent Schools Association Region 4-AAA schools. The Lady Cavaliers are well rested after a six-day break. Hopefully the injury bug will leave Augusta Prep alone long enough for them to face a Westminster team that already holds a 6-0 region win over John Milledge.

April 11, baseball

Greenbrier vs. Evans

It's safe to say that every Knight has this date on the calendar circled. After an 11-1 Wolfpack win at Evans, the Knights will bring everything they have to Greenbrier only two days after spring break. If there's any team the Wolfpack should not overlook, Evans is the one.

April 11, baseball

Harlem vs. Hephzibah

While half of the county will be at the Greenbrier/Evans rematch, the other half can see Harlem play host to a huge region game. Hephzibah is always strong, but the young, resilient Bulldogs have rebounded from a slow start, and their experience is growing each game. This game should have big region implications.

April 13, soccer

Greenbrier vs. Evans

Last chance for the Knights and Lady Knights to get revenge on their region rivals. There's no better time to do that than on Greenbrier's Senior Night. For the seniors, it's not only a night to say good-bye, it also might be a night to claim the region title.

April 14, baseball

Evans vs. Lakeside

A rematch of a contest that saw Lakeside hand Evans a win this past weekend with seven Panther errors. Lakeside won't be as kind in this meeting, and a win for the Panthers would bring some attention to a team that's been somewhat overlooked this year.

April 15, baseball

Greenbrier vs. Lakeside

The best week of baseball this year wraps up with the final game of the Columbia County Trilogy. Lakeside hits the road to face both Evans and Greenbrier on back-to-back days. That's like David facing Goliath, then Darth Vader one day later. Of course, Lakeside will need more than a sling shot and a light saber to pull off both upsets.

That should take care of your calendar for the next three weeks.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. There's that golf tournament coming up April 6-9. You might want to pencil that one in, too.