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JCHS SOFTBALL AND BASEBALL HOLIDAY WORKOUT SCHEDULE/INFORMATION (UPDATED 12/15)
Coach Spak has provided the following holiday workout schedule and information for all players to use to continue their workout sessions over the holiday break. If you have any questions regarding the specifics of the schedule or the workout session information, please see Coach Spak before the winter break.

Click here to down the JCHS Softball and Baseball Holiday Workout Schedule/Information (PDF)

JOHNS CREEK ASSIGNED TO AAAAAA REGION 6 FOR 2012 SEASON (UPDATED 12/3)
The GHSA reclassification committee has completed its initial assignments of classifications and regions and Johns Creek has moved from AAAA to the newest (and largest) classification in Georgia, AAAAAA (that's right, 6 As in all!). Johns Creek, as the 4th smallest school in the AAAAAA classification will compete with familiar rivals Chattahoochee, Lambert, South Forsyth and others but is also now in the same classification with mega-schools like Collins Hill, Peachtree Ridge, Grayson, Mill Creek, Camden County, etc. Schools in the AAAAAA classification will range from 1940 to 4000 students based on enrollment for clearly the largest discrepancy of any of the 6 classifications. The Lady Gladiators have been assigned to Region 6 which consists of 8 teams overall, 4 from Fulton County and 4 from Forsyth County. The Region has been divided into sub-regions A and B with the Fulton schools in A and the Forsyth schools in B. The schedule of region games for the 2012 season will be left to the region coaches to decide at their region softball meeting early next year. The specific teams in AAAAAA Region 6 along with the sub-region assignments are shown below:

Sub-Region A Sub-Region B
Alpharetta Lambert
Centennial North Forsyth
Chattahoochee South Forsyth
Johns Creek West Forsyth

ERIN AND KARA NAMED 2011 AAAA ALL-STATE SOFTBALL SELECTIONS (UPDATED 12/3)
Two Lady Gladiators, Erin Thorn and Kara Langill, were selected to the 2011 Georgia AAAA All-State team as selected by a committee of coaches representing all 8 regions in the AAAA classification. Erin, co-player of the year in Region 7-AAAA, was named to the 2nd team and Kara, co-pitcher of the year in Region 7-AAAA, was named an Honorable Mention. Both players join Lindsey Anderson as Lady Gladiators that have been named All-State while representing Johns Creek softball. Congratulations to both players on this well deserved honor.

ERIN THORN SIGNS NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT WITH GCSU (UPDATED 11/15)
Putting the final touch on an outstanding high school softball career, Erin Thorn signed a national letter of intent (NLI) this morning to play softball at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville starting next Fall. All the players and families of the JCHS softball program congratulate Erin on this tremendous accomplishment as she becomes the 2nd player in Johns Creek HS softball history to sign on to play at the next level following in the footsteps of Lindsey Anderson who now plays at Georgia Tech. Joining Erin at the signing ceremony were proud parents Jim and Paula along with the entire JCHS coaching staff including Head Coach Billy Nicholson and Assistant Coaches Dick Prindle, Beth Spak, and Heather Cross. Everyone wishes Erin the best of luck as a GCSU Bobcat!

ERIN HAS A GREAT WEEKEND AT GADC ALL STATE GAMES (UPDATED 11/13)
Erin represented herself and Johns Creek very well over the weekend at the 2011 Georgia Dugout Club All State games held in Columbus. Playing for the powerhouse north team featuring players from Regions 7 & 8, Erin batted .500 over the 3 game series with 3 hits and 3 runs in 6 at-bats including a home run! The Region 7/8 team swept the 3 games winning 11-1, 11-3, and 5-1. It was fitting final series of games for Erin and an end to a great high school career.

LADY GLADIATORS GARNER ALL-REGION HONORS (UPDATED 11/9)
The 2011 Region 7-AAAA All-Region team and associated honors were announced today and Johns Creek was well represented. Earning selection to the All-Region team were senior Erin Thorn and juniors Kara Langill and Courtney Jacobs. Erin was also honored as co-player for the year for the Region and Kara was honored as co-pitcher of the year. Victoria Swanson was selected as an Honorable Mention to the all-region squad. Congratulations to these Lady Gladiators for their region honors as voted by all of the coaches in Region 7-AAAA.

2011 Region 7-AAAA All-Region Team - Erin Thorn, Kara Langill, Courtney Jacobs
2011 Region 7-AAAA Co-Player of the Year - Erin Thorn
2011 Region 7-AAAA Co-Pitcher of the Year - Kara Langill
2011 Region 7-AAAA All-Region Honorable Mention - Victoria Swanson

Click here to see the entire Region 7-AAAA All-Region team

2011 LADY GLADIATORS SOFTBALL AWARDS BANQUET (UPDATED 10/25)
The 2011 Lady Gladiators softball awards banquet was held last evening at the Atlanta Athletic Club. Numerous Varsity and JV players were recognized for their 2011 athletic and academic accomplishments by Principal Greene and the Johns Creek coaching staff. For details on the awards recipients and a copy of the banquet program, see the AWARDS web page. A photo slideshow from the banquet can be viewed using the link below.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of 2011 Lady Gladiators Softball Awards Banquet (10/25)

MADISON COUNTY OVERPOWERS LADY GLADIATORS IN STATE PLAYOFFS (UPDATED 10/14)
After being rained out on Wednesday, the round #1 state playoff match-up between Madison County and Johns Creek got underway on Thursday following a brief rain delay as afternoon storms moved through the Danielsville area. Madison County demonstrated why they were a 4th place finisher in Columbus last season as they overpowered the Lady Gladiators with a combination of strong hitting, pitching, and defense. In addition to the 5 HRs hit by the top of the Red Raider lineup, they turned 5 double plays on the evening squelching several Johns Creek rallies. The Lady Gladiators had opportunities including bases loaded several times but could not take advantage of the situations. Madison County will advance to round #2 of the state playoffs by virtue of the 9-0 and 8-0 victories over Johns Creek while the Lady Gladiators 2011 season will come to a close. It was however a great season for the Lady Gladiators softball team as they notched a 20-win season, turned in outstanding performances in the Milton and Greenbrier tournaments (3-0-1 and 3-1 records respectively), handed Walnut Grove (24-0 and #1 ranked in AAA at the time) their first loss of the season, and then qualified for the state playoffs as the #3 seed from Region 7-AAAA with a fantastic performance in the Region tournament that included two extra-inning ITB wins along the way. Congratulations to the Lady Gladiators for their 2011 season performance and we wish our seniors the best of luck as they leave our program -- we will miss you in 2012.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of state playoff action with Madison County (10/13)

AAAA STATE PLAYOFF INFORMATION - JOHNS CREEK @ MADISON COUNTY (UPDATED 10/7)
The Lady Gladiators captured 3rd place in Region 7-AAAA on Thursday with an exciting extra-inning win over Sequoyah. As the 3rd seed from Region 7-AAAA, the Lady Gladiators will play the Madison County Red Raiders, the #2 seed from Region 8-AAAA, in the 1st round of the state playoffs next week. Region tournament results are due to the GHSA by the end of today and the AAAA state playoff tournament bracket should be available for publication today or tomorrow. Round #1 of the state playoff is a best 2 of 3 series with 2 games on Wednesday, 10/12, and 1 game on Thursday, 10/13 (if needed). All games will be played at Madison County High School in Danielsville, GA. A map link to Madison County HS has been added to the DIRECTIONS page. The trip will take 1 1/2 to 2 hours depending on traffic. As was the case with the Region tournament, admission is $7 daily and GAA passes are not honored. More information on the upcoming state playoff series will be posted as available.

GHSA AAAA State Playoffs Tournament Bracket, PDF (Finalized) (10/8)

JCHS SENIOR ERIN THORN SELECTED TO GADC SENIOR ALL STATE EVENT (UPDATED 10/7)
Erin Thorn has been selected to participate in the 2011 Georgia Dugout Club Senior All State Game to be held the weekend of November 11/12 in Columbus. Seniors selected to the all state event are placed on one of four teams based on their school's region. Players will participate in skill contests on Friday night and then teams will play a round robin on Saturday. Congratulations to Erin on her selection to the team following in the footsteps of Johns Creek alum Lindsey Anderson (Georgia Tech) who was selected to the event in 2009.

LADY GLADIATORS CAPTURE REGION 7-AAAA #3 SEED WITH 5-4 WIN OVER SEQUOYAH (UPDATED 10/6)
The Lady Gladiators secured their berth to the state playoffs on Monday with a thrilling victory over sub-region rival South Forsyth in an 8-inning classic 7-6. On Wednesday, Johns Creek returned to Twin Creeks to take on the winner of the South Forsyth/Sequoyah game to determine which team would get the #3 seed and which would be the #4 seed. Following an emotional and gutsy performance on Monday, the Lady Gladiators showed up on Wednesday and offered nothing in the way of resistance as Sequoyah rolled to a 13-1 win in a 4-inning contest. The victory by Sequoyah set up a final showdown on Thursday in a winner take-all for the #3 seed. A totally different Johns Creek team showed up for the game on Thursday showing no lasting effects from the thrashing they took on Wednesday. Although Sequoyah jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, the Lady Gladiators would bounce back to take a 3-1 lead late into the game. In an effort to make sure that the fans got their money's worth, Sequoyah tied the score 3-3 with 2 late runs to push the contest into extra frames. Neither team would score a run in the 8th inning as the game moved to the 9th. Johns Creek plated 2 runs in the 9th inning to take a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the inning but Sequoyah would bounce back to make the score 5-4 and to have runners in scoring position with 2 outs and a chance to win the game. Kara Langill would however end the Sequoyah rally there and the Lady Gladiators went home with a 9-inning ITB victory and the #3 seed in the upcoming state tournament. Congratulations to the Lady Gladiators and the coaching staff on this fantastic accomplishment!

Note: although I love GameChanger, it really picked a lousy time for the server to be down leaving fans without play-by-play in what was one of the most significant games of the season. Since this report is being done remotely, it will take some time to sort out details of the game and they will be posted later.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of Region 7-AAAA tournament action with Sequoyah (10/7,10/8)

LADY GLADIATORS CLINCH BERTH IN 1ST ROUND OF STATE PLAYOFFS (UPDATED 10/3)
Coach Nicholson had one simple goal for the 2011 Lady Gladiator softball team - make it to the state playoffs. The entire season was built around preparation for region play and the region tournament. Inconsistency in key region games cost the Lady Gladiators the opportunity to capture a #1 or #2 seed to the state playoffs by winning the sub-region. As a result, the team had to earn their berth in the region tournament requiring they win at least 3 games out of the first 4 in the tournament.

The Lady Gladiators took care of business on Saturday with wins over Rome and Woodland earning the right to play South Forsyth for the 3rd time this season with the winner securing at a minimum a 4th seed berth to the state playoff. On Monday afternoon, Johns Creek and South Forsyth squared off at Twin Creeks Park in Canton. The Lady Gladiators, as the visiting team, took an early 1-0 lead when Erin Thorn doubled in the first inning scoring on a Diana Ruth single down the LF line. South would bounce back in the bottom of the 1st scoring 3 including 2 on a HR to deep left. South would later the extend the lead to 4-1 but Johns Creek would answer with a run in the 3rd when Courtney Jacobs led off with a single. Diana would single, Victoria Swanson reached on an error, and Jenna Restivo drew a bases loaded walk to plate Courtney. South responded in the bottom of the 3rd to push the lead to 5-2.

In the top of the 4th, Candace Roper reached on an error, Darby McNally walked, and Haley Cutcliff reached on an error scoring Candace. Courtney followed with a bunt single to load the bases and Diana would again pick up an RBI with a single to bring the Lady Gladiators within a run. Victoria hit a sacrifice fly to deep LF to score Haley tying the score at 5-5. Both teams were scoreless through the rest of regulation play although each team had ample opportunities to push across more runs. In the bottom of the 7th, Kara Langill struck out the leadoff batter for South. The next South batter singled and then stole 2nd base to put the winning run in scoring position with only 1 out. The next batter flew out to Haley in RF with the runner advancing to 3B after tagging up. With 2 outs and the winning run at 3B, Kara quickly went ahead in the count 0-2. Following a foul ball, the South batter hit a line drive to the LC gap that looked certain to drop in for the game winner. Courtney made a diving catch to end the inning and to force ITB.

Haley was placed at 2B to start the inning with Courtney leading off for Johns Creek. Unable to get down a bunt to advance Haley, Courtney settled for an infield single to put runners at 1st and 2nd. Diana singled for her third hit of the day to load the bases. Victoria then lined a single to LC to plate Haley and Courtney staking the Gladiators to a 7-5 lead. South responded in the bottom of the 8th with a double to start the inning closing the gap to 7-6 with no outs. Following a flyout, a base running mistake by South resulted in an out at 3B on the lead runner leaving the War Eagles with 2-outs and a runner at 1B. The next batter lofted a foul fly ball down the LF line which was chased down by Erin Thorn making a beautiful over the shoulder catch to end the game. Kara picked up another region win from the circle. The Lady Gladiators totalled 9 hits on the evening led by Diana and Courtney with 3 each and Victoria, Erin, and Candace each with 1 hit. Victoria drove in 3 runs including the game winner in the top of the 8th inning.

With the victory, the Lady Gladiators secured a berth in the 1st round of the state playoffs as either a 3rd or 4th seed. Johns Creek continues region play in the tournament on Wednesday against the winner of the South Forsyth/Sequoyah game with Johns Creek needing only a single win to take the 3rd seed. Two losses by the Lady Gladiators will result in a 4th place seed. The first round state playoff opponent will not be known until late in the week (Friday or Saturday) following completion of Region 7-AAAA tournament play and the conclusion of the Region 8-AAAA tournament (Region 7 is matched to Region 8 in round #1 of state).

Click here to read a nice newspaper recap article for Monday's game with South Forsyth (ForsythNews.com)
Click here to see the photo slideshow of Region 7-AAAA tournament win over South Forsyth (10/3)

LADY GLADIATORS TAKE FIRST TWO REGION TOURNAMENT CONTESTS (UPDATED 10/1)
The Lady Gladiators got off to a strong start in the Region 7-AAAA tournament on Saturday at Twin Creeks Park. In the opening game, Johns Creek as the #3 seed from sub-region "B" played the #4 seed from sub-region "A", the Rome Wolves. The Lady Gladiators fell behind 1-0 in the 1st frame and did not score until the 3rd inning when they took the lead 3-1 behind a 3-run outburst all with 2 outs. Haley Cutcliff started the rally with a single followed by Courtney, Erin, Diana, and Victoria at the top of the order. Johns Creek padded the lead in the next few innings and coasted to a 8-1 victory behind strong pitching from Kara Langill. Leading the offense were the top of the order (Courtney, Erin, Diana, Victoria) who combined for 7 of the 9 Gladiator hits, 5 of the 8 runs, and all 4 RBI. Both Darby and Haley added a hit apiece with Darby scoring 2 runs and Haley one.

The Lady Gladiators advanced to game #2 in the winner bracket to face the same Woodland (Bartow) team that defeated them 10-0 in the 2010 region tournament. This time, the result would be different as Johns Creek jumped out to a 6-0 lead before allowing Woodland back in the game as the score narrowed to 6-5 before the Lady Gladiators padded the lead with a 3-run 6th inning. In route to the 9-5 victory, Johns Creek pounded out 14 hits with 8 of the 9 starters getting at least 1 hit each. Erin and Victoria led the way with 3 hits apiece while Jenna and Darby each had 2 hits along with very timely RBIs. Kara got the win with another strong game from the circle.

The Lady Gladiators now advance to the winner bracket final to face sub-region foe South Forsyth for the 3rd time this season needing at least 1 win in the next 2 games in order to advance to the state playoffs for the first time since 2009.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of Region 7-AAAA tournament action (10/1)

LADY GLADIATORS CLOSE OUT REGION PLAY WITH BIG WIN ON SENIOR NIGHT (UPDATED 9/27)
The Lady Gladiators closed out the regular season on Tuesday with a 13-5 win over Forsyth Central. The victory, coming on Senior Night, pushed the Johns Creek region record to 6-4 overall and a #3 sub-region seed for the upcoming Region 7-AAAA tournament that begins Saturday, 10/1. A great crowd was on hand for Senior Night and the weather was perfect as the team and spectators honored the 5 Johns Creek seniors: Erin Thorn, Candace Roper, Diana Ruth, Haley Cutcliff, and Taylor Sheffield. The Lady Gladiators pounded out 14 hits led by Victoria Swanson with 4 and Darby McNally with 3. Haley Cutcliff and Jenna Restivo also had great nights at the plate with 2 hits each. Rounding out the offense were single hit nights by Candace Roper, Kara Langill, and Courtney Jacobs. Kara Langill took the win in the circle picking up her 13th win of the 2011 season. With the lead at 12-5 and the Lady Gladiators in need of 1 run to end the game early by run rule, Candace Roper and Darby McNally singled. Haley Cutcliff then drilled a single to LF scoring Candace from 2B to seal the victory.

The Lady Gladiators begin Region 7-AAAA tournament play on Saturday, 10/1, at 11:00am at Twin Creeks (Canton). The likely opponent will be Rome with Cass a possibility. The final sub-region seeds will be posted on Wednesday once the results from all of Tuesday's region games are reported.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of Senior Night win over Forsyth Central (9/27)

LADY GLADIATORS DROP CLOSE ONE TO SOUTH FORSYTH ON PINK OUT NIGHT (UPDATED 9/28)
The Lady Gladiators dropped a close game to region foe South Forsyth on Thursday night 5-4. In a hard fought contest played in a light rain most of the evening, Johns Creek jumped out to an early 2-run lead which held up until the 5th inning when South scored 4 runs to take a 4-2 lead. The Lady Gladiators immediately responded in the bottom of the inning with 2 runs to tie the score at 4-4. South would score one more run in the top of the 7th and then hold off the Lady Gladiators in the bottom of the 7th for the win. Diana and Victoria both singled in the bottom of the 7th frame but with 2 outs, Johns Creek was unable to push across the tying run to force an extra inning ITB.

It was Pink Out Night at the softball complex and the Lady Gladiators were resplendent in their pink jerseys and also their new pink socks. Last week was GHSA Breast Cancer Awareness Week for Fall sports but without any home games that week, GHSA granted the Lady Gladiators permission to don their pink uniforms for the South Forsyth home game. See below for the brief slideshow from the Pink Out game.

LADY GLADIATORS POST 3-0-1 RECORD IN MILTON TOURNAMENT (UPDATED 9/24)
The Lady Gladiators made their 3rd consecutive annual appearance in the Milton Tournament this week with 2 games on Wednesday and 2 games on Saturday. On Wednesday, Johns Creek began tournament play with the Pope Greyhounds - a team with only 2 losses on the 2011 season. In a tight game, Pope took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 7th inning but the Lady Gladiators rallied to tie the score 3-3 and that is how the game ended. Kara Langill was in the circle for Johns Creek and held the explosive Pope team to only 3 runs on 9 hits. Leading Johns Creek on offense was Erin Thorn with 2 hits and Jenna, Kara, and Victoria each with one hit. Kara had the key hit in the 7th inning with a bases loaded double down the LF line to tie the game. The Wednesday nightcap featured Johns Creek against Mundy's Mill. The Lady Gladiators jumped out on top in the 1st inning scoring 5 runs and with Erin in the circle, the game was never in doubt. Although the Lady Gladiators only had 5 hits in the game, they combined the hits with 7 walks and some key Mundy's Mill errors to score 9 runs in the game. Erin held the Mundy's Mill lineup scoreless and Coach Nicholson went to the bench early to get all of the Lady Gladiators into the game.

Following a Region contest with South Forsyth on Thursday, the Lady Gladiators returned to action in the Milton Tournament on Saturday with 2 tough games. In the first contest, Johns Creek took on Evans (Augusta). Johns Creek had 10 hits in the game pushing across 5 runs for an early 5-2 lead. Leading the offense with 2-hit games were Haley Cutcliff, Kara Langill, and Courtney Jacobs. Haley delivered a critical 2-RBI hit midway through the game to push the lead to 5-2. Evans chipped away at the lead with timely hits and critical errors by the Lady Gladiators to close the gap to 5-4. Kara was however too strong in the circle and Johns Creek closed out the game with a 5-4 win. Next up for the Lady Gladiators was Camden County. The Wildcats got out to an early 1-0 lead in the 1st inning and that score held up until the Lady Gladiators were able to push across a run in the bottom of the 4th. Erin Thorn led the offense with a 2-hit performance including the game winner in the bottom of the 6th inning, a solo HR to LF for her 6th of the season. In all, Johns Creek only had 5 hits on the game with Victoria, Diana, and Courtney picking up the other hits. Kara Langill pitched another strong game giving up only a single run on 4 hits striking out 9 Wildcats in the process along with only 3 walks.

The Lady Gladiators enter the final week of the regular season with a home contest against Forsyth Central on Tuesday, 9/27, which is also Senior Night. The senior night activities get underway at 5:30pm and the game begins at 5:55pm.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators at Milton Tournament (9/21 & 9/24)

LADY GLADIATORS TAKE KEY REGION WIN AT CREEKVIEW 4-2 (UPDATED 9/20)
The Lady Gladiators followed up on their Walnut Grove performance of Saturday with a 4-2 win over Creekview on the road. With the victory, Johns Creek secured no worse than the #3 seed for the upcoming region tournament and at the same time kept alive their hopes for a 2nd place finish. Once again, the Lady Gladiators were led by Junior Kara Langill in the circle. With Erin behind the plate, Kara kept the potent Creekview offense in check while the Johns Creek offense did just enough to secure the win. As it turns out, the Lady Gladiators scored all the runs Kara would need in the top of the 1st inning. Courtney Jacobs led off the game with a walk taking 2nd and 3rd on wild pitches. Erin walked and then stole 2B with Courtney scoring on the play beating the throw from 2B. Diana walked as the first three Gladiator batters reached base. Jenna drove a line drive over the head of the CF scoring Erin on the play with Diana moving to third. Candace followed with a ground ball to 3B which was not handled cleanly scoring Diana on the error. The Lady Gladiators would later extend the lead to 4-0 following consecutive doubles from Diana and Victoria. In addition to her work in the circle, Kara also led the Lady Gladiators with 2 hits on the night. Creekview would score once in the 3rd and 6th innings but that was it as the Lady Gladiators pushed their region record to 5-3 with 2 regular season games remaining and a chance to better their 6-4 region record from a year ago. The team returns to action Thursday at home against South Forsyth (Pink Out Night) followed by the regular season finale next Tuesday at home against Forsyth Central (Senior Night).

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators at Creekview (9/20)

LADY GLADIATORS 3-1 AT THE GREENBRIER TOURNAMENT - AUGUSTA (UPDATED 9/18)
The Lady Gladiators headed east to Augusta on Friday afternoon for the Greenbrier Invitational Tournament. On Friday evening, Vidalia was the opponent and Johns Creek prevailed 4-2 behind a strong pitching performance from Kara Langill. Erin Thorn, Diana Ruth, and Victoria Swanson got the Lady Gladiators on the board in the first inning to tie the score at 1-1. In the 2nd frame, Courtney Jacobs delivered a bases loaded single to stake Johns Creek to a 2-1 lead. Kara later delivered the key hit of the game scoring 2 runs on a bases loaded double to LF just missing a home run by a few feet. Vidalia would score once more to make the final 4-2.

Saturday morning featured a 10:00am start against South Effingham. Without going into a lot of detail, suffice it to say that the Lady Gladiators did not show up for game ready to play falling 13-4 in 6 innings. After a 2-hour break with a chance to rest and fuel up for the afternoon pair of games, the Lady Gladiators took on Thomson. Kara dominated the Thomson lineup giving up only a single hit and striking out 13. At the same time, the Johns Creek bats came alive with the offense pounding out 12 hits led by Erin Thorn 3-4, Diana Ruth 2-4, and Candace Roper 2-4. Diana and Candace had 2-RBI apiece as did Darby McNally and Jenna Restivo. Rounding out the hitting attach for the Lady Gladiators were Courtney Jacobs and Kara Langill with a hit each.

Prior to the final game of the tournament for the Lady Gladiators, the tournament organizers put on a home run contest. Erin participated for the Lady Gladiators and with Coach Nicholson serving up his best soft toss, Erin belted out 4 home runs to take 3rd place in the contest barely missing out on a spot in the finals. Great job Erin!

In the nightcap for the Lady Gladiators, the team faced Walnut Grove which is currently the #1 ranked team in AAA with a 23-0 record (well, make that 23-1 now). In a fantastic back and forth game, Walnut Grove took the early 1-0 lead in the first inning but the Lady Gladiators bounced back in the bottom of the 1st. Courtney Jacobs led off with a single and stole 2B. Diana Ruth continued her torrid hitting with a single advancing Courtney to 3B. Diana then attempted a steal of 2B but was thrown out however Courtney was able to steal home to tie the score 1-1. Walnut Grove took the lead 2-1 in the top of the 5th inning but the Lady Gladiators bounced back with a huge inning in the bottom of the 5th. Taylor Sheffield and Courtney singled to start the inning. Erin Thorn then walked to load the bases. Diana Ruth next singled home Taylor and Courtney to take a 3-2 lead. Victoria Swanson followed with a sacrifice fly to deep LF scoring Erin from 3B pushing the lead to 4-2. As the game entered the 6th inning, time had expired and the Lady Gladiators focused on holding the 2-run lead while getting 3 more outs. The Warriors' leadoff batter homered to LF to close the gap to 4-3 but Kara took care of business with the next 3 batters ending the game on a routine fly ball to Courtney in CF. Kara gave up 4 hits and struck out 4 in a superb pitching performance against one of the best teams in the state. The Lady Gladiators offense got the timely hits and runs needed to support her but the Johns Creek defense was flawless. The outfield saw plenty of action with freshman Olivia Durrence getting the start in RF and making several nice catches. Diana Ruth had a stellar game in LF catching everything that came her way except for the home run. Courtney made several nice running catches in CF in what was a good night for the outfield. In the infield, Erin was behind the plate for the second game in a row and did a superb job catching. Jenna moved to 3B, Darby to SS, with Taylor at 2B and Victoria at 1B. The infield played error-free ball handling all of their fielding chances flawlessly. The combination of superb pitching with outstanding infield and outfield play and some timely hitting resulted in a great win for the Lady Gladiators over previously unbeaten and #1 ranked Walnut Grove. The coaching staff was all smiles as they hopped on the bus for the ride back to Atlanta, a quick birthday dinner for Coach Prindle at Zaxby's (who was celebrating his 29th birthday on Saturday), and arrival back at JCHS to end a great trip. See the photo slideshow below for 201 photos from the Augusta trip and tournament.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators at the Greenbrier Tournament (9/16-17)

LADY GLADIATORS DOWN LAMBERT 9-0 FOR 3 IN A ROW (UPDATED 9/13)
The Lady Gladiators won their 3rd straight region road game Tuesday night with a dominating performance over Lambert. Kara Langill went the distance to take the win for Johns Creek striking out 13 batters in the process. Lambert only threatened once with runners at 2nd and 3rd but Kara struck out the final batter to keep Lambert scoreless. Johns Creek, meanwhile, was efficient on offense pounding out 10 hits and scoring 2 runs in 3 innings and 3 runs in the final frame to put the game out of reach. Diana Ruth, Darby NcNally, Victoria Swanson and Kara led the offense with 2-hit nights with Courtney Jacobs and Jenna Restivo also collecting hits on the evening. The Lady Gladiators are back in action Thursday with another region game on the road at rival Chattahoochee.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Lambert (9/13)

LADY GLADIATORS DOWN FORSYTH CENTRAL 9-2 (UPDATED 9/8)
The Lady Gladiators continued their road stretch of region play on Thursday soundly defeating Forsyth Central 9-2 at Lady Bulldogs Field in Cumming. Erin Thorn was again the offensive spark for the team going 3-4 on the night with her 5th home run of the season. With the Lady Gladiators down 2-0, Courtney singled to start the 3rd inning. Erin followed with a bomb to LF to tie the score at 2-2 and swing the momentum back to Johns Creek. Kara Langill would later break open the game with a line drive double to LF with the bases loaded scoring 3 runs in the process. Kara was again strong in the circle picking up the win and with Jenna out of town this week, Erin filled in behind the plate and did a great job as the Lady Gladiator's catcher for the evening. With Erin behind the plate, Marie Fithian filled in at SS and made several key plays to retire Lady Bulldog batters. Kara struck 8 batters on the evening while allowing 8 hits but both Forsyth Central runs were unearned. In all, the Johns Creek offense banged out 11 hits with Diana joining Erin with a multi-hit evening going 2-4 and with Darby, Candace, Kara, Courtney, and Victoria each picking up key hits to round out the attack. The win pushed the Lady Gladiators to 3-2 in region play with two critical road games scheduled for next week against Lambert and Chattahoochee. Both games are must wins for the team if they are to keep pace with league leading Creekview.

SENIOR NIGHT SCHEDULE CHANGE (UPDATED 9/8)
There has been a schedule change for Tuesday, 9/27, that affects both the Varsity and JV squads. The JV game originally scheduled to be played prior to the Varsity game that evening has been moved to Monday, 9/26, at 5:00pm. The Varsity game will still be played on Tuesday, 9/27, but the game time has been changed to 5:55pm. Senior Night festivities will take place prior to the Varsity contest on Tuesday, 9/27, and will start promptly at 5:30pm. Go to the SCHEDULES page to get the latest copies of the Varsity and JV schedules.

LADY GLADIATORS TAKE ROAD REGION WIN AT SOUTH FORSYTH (UPDATED 9/1)
The Lady Gladiators took to the road for the first time this season in region play to take on the Eagles of South Forsyth. Johns Creek jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the 1st inning with Courtney Jacobs leading off with a double followed by Erin Thorn reaching 3rd on a 3-base South Forsyth error scoring Courtney in the process. Diana Ruth would then drive in Erin for the early 2-0 lead. Following a single run by South Forsyth in the bottom of the 1st frame, Courtney doubled to drive in Candace and Haley. Erin then lined a home run down the left field line barely clearly the fence and also striking the foul pole for her 4th of the season. With Courtney and Erin scoring on the HR, the lead pushed out to 6-1. The Lady Gladiators would later add 2 runs and South Forsyth would only be able to score 2 over the next 6 innings for an 8-3 final. Kara Langill went the distance in the circle for the win striking out 5 in the process and scattering 7 hits. Haley Cutcliff and Taylor Sheffield played solid defense all night and Victoria Swanson made some key saves at 1B on low throws. Courtney and Erin led the offense with 2-hits each and Victoria and Jenna rounded the 6-hit attack. Although only getting 6 hits on the night, Johns Creek made the most of their base runners in taking the road win and pushing their region record to 2-2. Next up is Forsyth Central in an away region contest next Thursday.

LADY GLADIATORS HEADING TO AUGUSTA FOR GREENBRIER TOURNEY IN SEPTEMBER (UPDATED 9/8)
The Lady Gladiators will take the roads on September 16th heading for Augusta to participate in the annual Greenbrier softball tournament. Johns Creek will play 1 game on Friday and 3 games Saturday. The team will take a charter bus departing JCHS on Friday afternoon and stay overnight in Augusta before returning late Saturday evening. The master JCHS varsity schedule has been updated to reflect the additional games and the schedule for the tournament is below. More information on the location of the games and the team hotel will be sent to parents this week.

Friday (9/16): Vidalia, 7:00pm
Saturday (9/17): South Effingham, 10:00am
Saturday (9/17): Thomson, 2:00pm
Saturday (9/17): Walnut Grove, 3:30pm

CREEKVIEW THUMPS JOHNS CREEK 9-0 IN REGION BATTLE (UPDATED 8/31)
The Lady Gladiators hosted league leading Creekview on Tuesday night in a region contest. The game was close with Creekview taking a 1-0 lead into the 6th inning before Johns Creek errors and some timely hits broke open the game. Creekview scored 8 runs combined in the 6th and 7th innings to take a 9-0 win. The Lady Gladiators region record drops to 1-2 on the season with region foe South Forsyth next up on the schedule.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Creekview (8/31)

JOHNS CREEK TAKES ONE FROM NORTHVIEW 9-4 IN NON-REGION CONTEST (UPDATED 8/30)
The Lady Gladiators hosted neighbor program Northview on Monday evening for a non-region contest. Northview jumped out to an early 3-1 lead with 2 runs in the top of the 1st inning and another in the 2nd inning before the Johns Creek offense came alive in the bottom of the 2nd. The Lady Gladiators plated 4 runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 5-3 lead. Johns Creek would only give up one more run to Northview before putting the game out of reach in the bottom of the 6th inning scoring 4 more runs. Kara Langill took the win with a complete game in the circle. Haley Cutcliff was one of the defensive stars with several fine catches at 3B. Jenna Restivo continued her strong play behind the plate throwing out a Northview runner attempting to steal 2nd. Courtney Jacobs cut down a runner at home to keep Northview off the board in the 3rd inning with a fine throw to Jenna who applied the tag. Offensively, Diana Ruth stayed hot with a 2-hit game. Courtney also had a 2-hit game and hits from Haley, Erin, Candace, and Victoria rounded out the 8-hit attack. Haley, Victoria, and Courtney each had 2 RBI on the evening. The Lady Gladiators resume region play on Tuesday with a home contest against division leading Creekview.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Northview (8/30)

JOHNS CREEK DEFEATS WOODWARD ACADEMY 9-1 AT KENNESAW STATE (UPDATED 8/29)
The Lady Gladiators traveled to Kennesaw State University on Saturday for their annual non-region contest with Woodward Academy. Kara Langill put on a dominating performance in the circle holding Woodward to a single run. The Lady Gladiators provided Kara all the run support she needed with 9 runs in the 6-inning contest leading to a 9-1 victory. Erin Thorn homered for the 2nd consecutive game and also tripled to continue her torrid hitting pace. Diana Ruth also continued her strong hitting with a 2-hit performance and Victoria Swanson also went 3-4 on the day. Candace Roper delivered a double to the LC gap and also hit the ball well in her other at-bats. Let's hope the team kept a few runs in the bag as they will need them this week with home games against Northview (Monday), Creekview (Tuesday), and then on the road at South Forsyth (Thursday). The Tuesday and Thursday sub-region games will go a long way toward sorting out the standings in 7-AAAA "B".

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Woodward (8/29)

LADY GLADIATORS BEGIN REGION 7-AAAA PLAY, 1-1 FOR THE WEEK (UPDATED 8/26)
The Lady Gladiators varsity squad kicked off Region 7-AAAA play on Tuesday with Lambert at home. After taking an early 3-0 lead in the game and a 3-1 lead into the final inning, poor defense by the Lady Gladiators and clutch hitting from Lambert resulted in a tough 8-3 loss to the Longhorns. On Thursday, the Lady Gladiators bounced back with a great win over neighbor and rival Chattahoochee 6-2. After falling behind early 1-0, the Lady Gladiators offense sprung into action behind the bat of Senior Erin Thorn who had 2 home runs for the evening, 5 RBI, as part of a 4-4 hitting exhibition. In all, the Gladiators pounded out 9 hits including a 2-hit game from Diana Ruth and hits by Darby McNally, Haley Cutcliff, and Courtney Jacobs.

The Lady Gladiators face off with Woodward Academy on Saturday at Kennesaw State University and then Northview on Monday at home in two non-region contests. Region action continues on Tuesday at home with Creekview and then the Lady Gladiators hit the road for the next four region contests starting Thursday at South Forsyth.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Lambert (8/23)

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action against Chattahoochee (8/25)

LADY GLADIATORS JV MOVE TO 1-3 ON SEASON (UPDATED 8/26)
The Lady Gladiators JV squad moved to 1-3 on the season this week with a dominating victory over Lambert on Tuesday but a loss to rival Chattahoochee on Thursday. After losses to Wesleyan and River Ridge in the opening week, the JV squad bounced back with a great win over Lambert earlier this week. The JV is in action again on Thursday night against South Forsyth at South Forsyth prior to the Varsity game.

LADY GLADIATORS VARSITY KICK OFF THE 2011 SEASON WITH 3-2 START (UPDATED 8/13)
The Lady Gladiators varsity squad kicked off the 2011 season this past week first with a 6-4 victory over neighbor Northview in a Wednesday night friendly. The team next participated in the Kell Invitational Tournament finishing 2-2 overall with wins over North Paulding 5-4 and Kell 10-6 on Friday night before losing to Northgate 5-4 and Mt. Pisgah 7-4 on Saturday. The Lady Gladiators led 2010 AAAA Elite 8 finisher Northgate 4-3 with two outs in the bottom of the final inning but Northgate delivered a timely hit to score 2 runs and claim the victory. The varsity squad returns to practice this week as school opens in preparation for the start of sub-region play the following week. The JV squad is in action on Monday at home against Wesleyan and at home on Wednesday against River Ridge.

Click here to see the photo slideshow of the Lady Gladiators in action at the Kell Tournament

2011 JCHS VARSITY & JV SOFTBALL TEAMS ANNOUNCED (UPDATED 8/9)
Coach Nicholson announced the 2011 Lady Gladiators Varsity and JV teams today. The Varsity squad will carry 16 players including 5 swing players that will also play for the JV squad. The JV team will carry 13 players including the 5 swing players. Rosters in PDF format may be downloaded for both teams below. Also, see the VARSITY and JV pages for more detailed player rosters including photos (new player photos will be added in the next 7-10 days).

Click here to download the 2011 JCHS Varsity softball team roster (PDF)

Click here to download the 2011 JCHS JV softball team roster (PDF)

KELL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE RELEASED (8/3)
The Kell Tournament schedule has been released and the Lady Gladiators have been assigned to Group 3. We will play 4 pool games on Friday & Saturday. The Lady Gladiators are in arguably the toughest pool with 2 teams from AAAA that played in the Elite 8 last year and a class A team that made the round of 16. The competition for next weekend will be top notch and a great way to prepare for the 7-AAAA region schedule. Click on the image to the right or the link below for a copy of the complete Kell Tournament schedule. The Kell Tournament games have also been integrated into the JCHS master schedule as well as on PrepCountry and GameChanger.

Click to download the 2011 Kell Tournament schedule (PDF)

JCHS LADY GLADIATOR 2011 VARSITY AND JV SCHEDULES (UPDATED 8/30)
The Johns Creek Lady Gladiators varsity and JV schedules for the 2011 season have been released and can be downloaded using the links below. The sub-region and non-region regular season games have been finalized and those dates, times, and locations are provided in the schedules. The varsity will participate in the Kell, Buford, and Milton Tournaments and although the dates of those tournaments are noted in the schedule, the specific game schedules for them are not available at this time. The schedule will be updated once the tournament schedules are released. Check back periodically for schedule updates.

Note: Northview scrimmage game moved to Wednesday, August 10th.

Click to download the 2011 Lady Gladiator Varsity softball schedule (PDF)

Click to download the 2011 Lady Gladiator JV softball schedule (PDF)

JCHS DIAMOND CLUB OFFICERS ELECTED FOR 2011 SEASON (ADDED 11/10)
Diamond Club officers for the 2011 season were elected at the General Member Meeting held on Wednesday, 11/10. The following officers were elected and will serve a one-year term starting January 1st and running through December 31st of 2011. Congratulations to each of these individuals for being elected to the Executive Board and thank you in advance for volunteering to be part of the Diamond Club leadership team. If you have questions about a specific area of Diamond Club operation, do not hesitate to contact the appropriate Board member or club president Reese Jacobs for general questions or information.

President - Reese Jacobs
VP Operations - John Restivo
VP Fund Raising - Lindy Swanson
Treasurer - Jim Thorn
Secretary - Deb Langill

The following individuals have volunteered as committee members for the 2011 season. If you have any interest in volunteering to help on one of the committees below, please contact the committee chairperson or club president Reese Jacobs.

Concessions - Maria Restivo (concessions)
Softball Spiritwear - Cindy McNally (spiritwear)
Statistician - Jim Thorn (statistician)
Pre-Game Meal Coordinator - Brenda Ruth (mealcoordinator)
Feeder Program - Reese Jacobs (feederprogram)
Field Operations - Jim Thorn (fieldoperations)
Capital Projects - John Restivo (vpoperations)
Special Events (Banquet) - Paula Thorn (specialevents)
Special Events (Senior Night) - Cindy McNally/Reese Jacobs
Web Site/Communications - Reese Jacobs (info)

SUBSCRIBE TO THE 2011 JCHS FASTPITCH SOFTBALL PROGRAM EMAIL LIST
Subscribe to the JCHS fastpitch softball program email list to receive email notifications of meetings and special events for the upcoming 2011 fastpitch softball season. Click here to go to the email list subscription form, complete the form, and you will be added to the distribution list.

LADY GLADIATORS 2009 & 2010 NEWS ARCHIVE (UPDATED 4/4)
For a look back at the 2009 & 2010 Lady Gladiators softball seasons including news articles, game reports, photos and slideshows, click on the links below for the 2009 or 2010 season archive pages.

Click here to view the Lady Gladiators 2009 softball news archive

Click here to view the Lady Gladiators 2010 softball news archive