Knights' fans deserving of sportsmanship award

The Georgia High School Association made the announcement in early September, but it hasn't lost its luster: Evans High School was among only 31 high schools across the state to earn a prestigious award from the GHSA and Georgia Electric Membership Corp..

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Evans received the 2007 GEMC Cooperative Spirit Sportsmanship Award for "exemplary sportsmanship demonstrated during the 2006-07 school year," according to a statement released by the GHSA.

The award was first offered two years ago to honor sportsmanship throughout the state. The news release said the program not only considers the sportsmanship of the school's athletes but also of its students, school staff, parents and game spectators.

That's right - the spectators.

In my opinion, Evans High School has the best fans in the county across all sports. Since I took over this position almost 2 years ago, I've found that Evans regularly has the biggest and loudest student sections at football, basketball and baseball games.

Don't get me wrong. The student sections and fan support are extremely strong at Greenbrier, Lakeside and Harlem. Even Augusta Prep and Augusta Christian, with a much more limited student body, show strong support at most sporting events.

One of my favorite times of the year is basketball season, when the student sections take up more than a quarter of the gym and are loud enough to truly affect the outcome of a game. We're now on the eve of that time of year.

Evans routinely comes through as boasting the biggest and loudest fans in the county. Apparently, the GHSA agrees.

Perhaps you don't. Consider this a direct challenge to the county's other student sections. Prove me wrong.

Be nice - don't ruin your school's chance at a sportsmanship award - but prove me wrong.

Augusta Prep awards

Augusta Prep's run to a second consecutive GISA Class AAA volleyball state championship wasn't really all that big of a surprise. The Lady Cavaliers hadn't lost to a private school all season long and also managed wins over Aiken and South Aiken during regular season play.

More news has come out of the Augusta Prep squad that is of little surprise. A good amount of Lady Cavaliers has earned region- and statewide recognition from the Georgia Independent Schools Association.

Paige Kerr, Megan Cutting, Laura Kopald, Nicole Abbott, Jen Hicks and Alex Daitch were named to the All-Region 4-AAA Team, while Mary Glenn Yort and Elizabeth Hayes picked up All-Region Honorable Mention honors.

That's eight Lady Cavaliers recognized by the region - and a volleyball team has only six starters.

The GISA also named its Class AAA All-State Team. Kopald, Abbott and Hicks were part of that team.

Kopald and Abbott also earned a spot on the GISA All-Star Team that will face off against the South Carolina Independent Schools Association All-Star Team in a match Nov. 10 in Columbia.