Finch joins pair of former Knights as all-state pick

Recently, I missed an achievement of former Greenbrier High School star Nolan Belcher.

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In all honesty, he has accomplished so much it's been hard to keep up. This, however, was a biggie.

Belcher was named a 2008 Louisville Slugger High School All-American.

The All-American Team features 24 players taken in the first three rounds of the Major League Baseball Draft. He was featured along with the other all-stars in the June 13 edition of Collegiate Baseball Magazine .

There were three seniors and one junior from Georgia chosen as All-Americans. The other two seniors were both taken in the first round of the draft: Shortstop Tim Beckham of Griffin High School was the No. 1 overall selection by Tampa Bay, and pitcher Ethan Martin of Stephens County went 15th to the Dodgers.

The magazine noted that Belcher lost just two games during his brilliant four-year varsity career, and that he finished 12-1 with two saves and 142 strikeouts in 78 innings as a senior.

Belcher had a terrific fall for the University of South Carolina and could be in line for a spot on the team's starting rotation.

Cumpton might start

Belcher's former Greenbrier teammate, Brandon Cumpton, also had a solid fall.

The right-hander is a sophomore at Georgia Tech and is in the running not only to start for the Jackets, but he could earn one of the coveted weekend starting jobs.

With Belcher, Cumpton, Jeff Rowland (Georgia Tech) and Rich Poythress (University of Georgia), college baseball will be a lot of fun to watch this season.

Finch in lofty company

When Evans tailback Jonathan Finch was named to the AAAA All-State Team this season, he became just the third running back in school history to earn the honor. He joined former Knights greats Lenny Springs and Zack Scott on that very short list.

Finch was an honorable mention All-Stater in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution , but he earned first team honors from the Associated Press.

He was the first Evans back to be named as a first team All-State player as an underclassman.

Scott earned honorable mention status as a junior, then a first-team nod the next year. Springs was honored as a senior.

Tudor picks East Carolina

Lakeside High School will be the site of a signing ceremony Monday for East Carolina football signee Kyle Tudor.

Tudor was injured for a portion of his senior season, but his career was still one to remember.

The linebacker racked up more than 100 tackles in his sophomore and junior seasons, and he no doubt would have made it three years in a row if not for the injury.