MOULTRIE – Three-time state wrestling champion Logan Paradice and two-sport dominator Amareyia Knighton have been named Colquitt County’s Athletes of the Year by ITG Next.
Paradice finished his high school career with a 114-2 record, with both losses coming early in his freshman season.
He was 45-0 as a senior.
He won state championships in his freshman, junior and senior seasons. He attended an out-of-state school as a sophomore.
Paradice has received a scholarship to wrestle at Northern Iowa, which has one of the top wrestling programs in the country.
Older brother Austin Paradice is a two-time Georgia high school champion.
Knighton is a four-year starter on the Lady Packers basketball team and a starter in each of the first years Colquitt County has had a flag football team.
In basketball, she finished her career with 1,302 points and ranks seventh in Lady Packer history.
She has been named All-State in flag football the last two seasons.
This year, she earned the state’s defensive Player of the Year Award after being credited with 147 flag pulls and 14 tackles for loss, including eight sacks.
She also had seven interceptions.
Knighton also was a dangerous offensive performer as well, helping lead the Lady Packers to two straight Area championships.
Her versatility has earned her a scholarship to play flag football at Brewton-Parker College.
The Athlete of the Year awards are presented by Vereen Sports Medicine.
Of this and that:
• Former Lady Packer Emily Allegood has helped lead the Florida SouthWestern women’s softball team to the NJCAA World Series.
The Buccaneers will take a 52-5 record to the May 19-24 World Series, which will be held in Yuma, Arizona.
Florida SouthWestern clinched the Florida College System Activities Association (FCSAA) championship by defeating Chipola on May 9.
Allegood was 1-for-3 in the championship game and heads into the postseason with a .404 batting average.
The sophomore third baseman has 11 doubles, four triples, three home runs and 28 runs batted in.
• Mercer University pitcher Jeb Johnson has a 4-4 record and a 5.27 ERA for the 31-21 Bears.
Johnson has made 18 appearances, including eight starts, and has one complete game and one save.
In 56.1 innings, he has struck out 54 batters while walking just 12.
• JT Whatley hit .290 with eight doubles, three homers and 25 runs batted in for the Thomas University baseball team, which finished 22-30 this season.
The senior infielder was second on the team in runs batted in.
• Pitcher Gavin Steptoe finished 1-1 with a 6.27 ERA for the Night Hawks.
He made 14 appearances, including nine starts this season.
• The Lowndes baseball team swept Brookwood 6-4 and 4-2 to reach the Class 6A baseball Final Four.
The two-time defending state champion Vikings are 26-11 as they prepare to play host to 34-2 Etowah in one semifinal.
Walton will travel to meet North Gwinnett in the other semifinal.
• Grayson will meet Campbell at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at McEachern for the Class 6A state boys soccer championship.
Walton and Buford will square off at 5 p.m to determine the girls championship, also at McEachern.
• In boys tennis, West Forsyth will be at Walton and North Gwinnett will travel to Lambert for Final Four boys tennis matches.
South Forsyth will go to Walton and North Gwinnett will travel to West Forsyth in girls semifinal matches.