Lady Packers ready to start season

Published 4:41 pm Tuesday, December 6, 2005

MOULTRIE — The 2005 Colquitt County High girls softball team will open its season this weekend with at least five games — and possibly six — in the Georgia Leadoff Classic at Remington Park in Thomasville.

The Lady Packers, under new coach Carman Phillips, will meet Crisp County at 4 p.m. Friday in their tournament opener.

Their 8:30 p.m. Friday game, originally scheduled against North Cobb, appears in jeopardy.

North Cobb coach Jo Beth Weaver, the former Lady Packer basketball player and Colquitt County Hall of Fame member, said Tuesday that she was informed on Monday that the trip to South Georgia was turned down by school administrators.

“It is embarrassing,” Weaver said Tuesday. “I’m not real happy about it. In my 21 years of coaching, this is the first time this has happened.

“I did what I was supposed to do. I’ve never had any trouble before. The south Georgia trip has always been a good, positive experience.”

Weaver said she was looking forward to bringing her Lady Warriors team south, stopping for a meal at her hometown of Norman Park, then continuing to Thomasville to play against her alma mater for the first time.

“This is just breaking my heart,” she said. “There is nothing we can do.”

Phillips said late Tuesday that she was unsure of what arrangements have been made to make up for North Cobb’s absence.

The Lady Packers will return to Remington Park for as many as four games on Saturday.

At 9 a.m., the Lady Packers will meet Cook.

Colquitt will then enter the championship round and will play at least two games. If the Lady Packers reach the championship game, they will have played six.

The tournament will bring together 12 teams playing in three pools, including two the Lady Packers will go up against in the regular season while trying for a spot in the postseason.

Pool A includes Thomas County Central, Atkinson County, Westover and Valdosta. Colquitt County, Cook and Crisp County are in Pool B. In Pool C are Houston County, Camden County, Cairo and Americus-Sumter County.

Phillips is the Lady Packers fourth coach in as many years, taking over from Tara Fowler who had the team last season. Joey Thomas coached the Lady Packers in 2003 and Keith Croft was the coach in 2001 and 2002, the first two seasons the Lady Packers played fast-pitch softball.

Phillips, who played fast-pitch at Valdosta State, will be assisted by Amy Chason, who was Fowler’s assistant coach last year.

Former Lady Packer Nikki Kistler will coach the B-team. Marlon Daniels will be back to work with the middle school team.

The Lady Packers must replace two 2004 seniors, Joni Connell and Jenna Milligan as they try to improve on last year’s 6-12 record, which included a 2-8 mark in Region 1-AAAAA.

The roster includes 26 players, including 18 listed as varsity players.

The varsity includes Tori Bozeman, Brandy Murphy, Ashley Stafford, Nikki Hudson, Morgan Jones, Leigh Norman, Heather Roberts, Melanie Bass, Ashley Chafin, Lunden Connell, Ashley Everett, Lori Griner, Jessica Harvin, Shayna Owens, Brittany Sikes, Ashley Skeen, Tiffany Troupe and Maggie Davidson.

Bass, Everett, Harvin, Owens, Skeen and Troupe are sophomores and will play both varsity and junior varsity. Davidson, a freshman, also is listed as both a varsity and junior varsity player.

Also on the junior varsity team will be Danielle Flom, Haley Hancock, Camille James, Hannah Bass, Christian Davis, Jesi Faulkner, Katie Rice and Nicole Thomas.

The team’s four seniors are Bozeman, Elkins, Murphy and Stafford, a two-time All-Region 1-AAAAA selection.

Chafin, Connell and Griner got valuable experience last season as freshmen.

Following the tournament in Thomasville, the Lady Packers will be off until Tuesday, Aug. 23, when they will travel to Tift County to meet the defending Region 1-AAAAA champion Lady Blue Devils.

Colquitt’s girls will play their home-opener on Thursday, Aug. 25, against Lowndes. The junior varsity team will play at 4 p.m. and the varsity game will get started at about 5:45 p.m.

The junior varsity will open its season on Saturday, Aug. 20, in a tournament in Lee County.