MOULTRIE — Colquitt County’s Ryan Helms, who won his third straight state high school diving championship in February, has been selected as the Region 1-AAAAA co-Athlete of the Year.
Helms, who is a junior, shares the award with Tift County High senior Israel Troupe, a first-team All-Region 1-AAAAA selection in both football and baseball.
Troupe has signed to play football at the University of Georgia next fall.
Troupe also was the region’s Athlete of the Year in 2006.
Tift County’s Morgan Jones also was a repeat selection as the region’s Female Athlete of the Year.
Jones won the all around title at the state gymnastics meet for the second year in a row and won five individual titles.
The selections are made by the sportswriters who cover Region 1-AAAAA.
In winning his third straight title at the state swimming and diving meet at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, Helms shattered the previous state record.
He scored a 615.00, breaking the record of 557.20, held by Wesleyan’s Webb Worthington.
Helms scored over 600 points in two other high school meets this year. He won the 37th Metro Atlanta Swimming and Diving Championships, also held at the Westminster Schools, with a pool record 611.60.
He also scored 610.40 at the Clarke-Oconee Invitational in Athens.
Helms won the state championship as a freshman in 2005 with a 472.60.
As a sophomore, he raised his score to 518.70.
Helms now is setting his sights on four straight championships.
The other four-time champions are Moultrie High’s David Howard (1976-1979), Colquitt County’s Brad Baell (1985-1988), Coquitt County’s Adam Terrell (1990-1993) and Worthington, who won the Class AAAA championships 2002-2005.
As a senior on the Tift County baseball team, Troupe hit .410 with six doubles, four home runs and 28 runs batted in.
He also had a .627 slugging percentage, a .529 on-base percentage and was 10-for-10 in stolen base attempts.
Last fall, Troupe had 62 catches for 672 yards and six touchdowns; rushed 19 times for for 120 yards, returned eight kickoffs for 194 yards and had 14 punt returns for 108 yards.
Troupe went on to p play in the GACA North-South All-Start Game and participated in the East Meets West All-American Game.
Jones, who is just a junior, became the first girl outside the Atlanta area to win an all around title in 2006 and she repeated the feat this year.
Local Sports
Helms named Athlete of the Year
- Local Sports
-
-
Level 3 gymnasts first, Level 4 team second in Thomasville
The Moultrie YMCA MGs headed to Thomasville on January 28 to continue their meet season in the Rose City gymnastics invitational and the Level 3’s took first place and the Level 4’s placed second.
-
Register wins region wrestling championship
Travis Register will take an unbeaten record into next weekend’s state sectional after going 2-0 and winning the 220-pound weight class at Saturday’s Region 1-AAAAA wrestling tournament at Lowndes.
-
Lady Packers hold off Tift County
The Colquitt County girls basketball team held off a determined Tift County second-half rally on Saturday on the William Bryant Court at the Espy Gymnasium to get a 59-48 Region 1-AAAAA victory.
-
Talking it over
The defending Region 1-AAAAA champion Colquitt County High baseball team held an intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday at Ike Aultman Field at Packer Park. The Packers are gearing up for their Feb. 21 season-opener against Lawton Chiles of Tallahassee at Packer Park. Packers assistant coach Jake Mobley talks with sophomore pitcher, and little brother, Gabe Mobley during Saturday’s scrimmage.
-
Seventh-grade girls win conference championship
The Colquitt County seventh-grade girls’ basketball team claimed the conference championship Saturday, upsetting previously undefeated Coffee, 20-19.
-
On the mound
The defending Region 1-AAAAA champion Colquitt County High baseball team held an intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday at Ike Aultman Field at Packer Park. The Packers are gearing up for their Feb. 21 season-opener against Lawton Chiles of Tallahassee at Packer Park. Senior Vann Pitts pitches in relief.
-
Lamb signs to run at Columbus State
When Colquitt County High’s Heath Lamb signed in 2010 to run cross country at Darton College, he said that one of his goals was to be able to run faster.
Lamb accomplished that and more in his two years with the Cavaliers.
And his performances with Darton have not gone unnoticed.
Lamb signed this week with Columbus State University. -
Going to be a Blazer
Colquitt County linebacker/fullback Sharmaine Washington, front, right, was joined by his girl friend Najla Almond and Packers linebackers coach Danny Blaylock when he signed letter of commitment with Valdosta State University on Wednesday.
-
Rifle team defeats Fitzgerald
The Colquitt County High rifle team kept its record unblemished on Thursday, defeating Fitzgerald handily at the high school, 1,098-897.
-
Dykes signs to play baseball at Georgia Perimeter College
Colquitt County head baseball coach Tony Kirkland has a number of reasons to like Austin Dykes.
- More Local Sports Headlines
-
US, UK Pressure on Syria; More Homs Violence
Raw Video: Mass Killer Wants Medal, Freedom
Few Answers in Death of Sons of Missing Utah Mom
Court Strips Contador of Tour De France Title
Runaway Goat Leads Police on Wild Chase
And the Winner for Best Super Bowl Ad Is...
Raw Video: Deadly Helicopter Crash in Australia
Raw Video: Smoke, Purported Gunfire in Syria
Romney Latest Poll to Join Let-me-explain Club
Blast Kills Husband of Missing Utah Mom, 2 Boys
Obama: US, Israel Will Work Against Iran Nukes
NJ Museum Finds 19th Century Recording
Snow Causes Disruptions in Much of Europe
Clinton: Vetoed U.N. Syria Resolution 'travesty'
Romney Picks Up Decisive Win in Nevada Caucuses
Gingrich Renews Vow to Campaign Until Convention
Romney Rolls to Easy Win in Nevada GOP Caucuses
Raw Video: Missing Family Found Alive in Ore.
Police Clear Tents From Occupy Site in DC
Killer of Fla. Girl Found in Landfill Gets Life
