Thursday's Daily News 'n Notes: Longtime coach Marchman dies; GC VBall advances in regional; Mercer women bump Florida; huge Honor Roll; lotsa football
Thursday's Central Georgia - and of interest to Central Georgia - news and notes, compiled from staff reports, email reports, the web, and social media. Updates will be noted, so check back.
THURSDAY
Scores
College
Basketball
M-Georgia Southern 82, Savannah State 71
Volleyball
Georgia College def. Augusta 20-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-19, NCAA Regional semifinal
Thursday’s high school buffet has variety of flavors
As always, you can find more results and info here than anywhere else, scores and details, in the Scoreboard.
It’s a signing period, so this is where to get more info – not just smiling faces – on the area’s high school signings, as well as junior college players moving on. FPD, Mary Persons, Dodge County, Lamar County, GMC, and Houston County and Central Georgia Tech on Thursday. A report, with the earlier signings, in The Latest Coverage.
The Sports Reports predictions for the Central Georgia playoff games are up. Upsets? Upset alerts?
Remember: the final regular-season standings are up, and will be updated at after all teams in Central Georgia regions are done.
Re-visitables: An abbreviated Monday Afternoon Quarterback looks at the rough Friday last week and what to expect this week, and the news of fraudulent Dylan Thomas GoFundMe page and ensuing arrest. And the predictions for Friday are up.
Coming Friday morning, preview capsules on the GHSA and GISA second round games and, promise, a ranking of all of those Central Georgia GHSA and GISA teams, all 45, one list, as well as the final regular-season standings, for reference and saving. Been done for a week.
Longtime football coach Marchman dead at 69
Football fans of some age in Milledgeville as well as many followers of several other teams around the area and state are in mourning with the death Thursday of longtime coach Don Marchman at 69.
The Marchmans in 2015.
Photo: Facebook
Marchman died 13 days after his wife of 44 years, Janet Bullard Marchman, passed away.
Known for his personality and friendliness as well as his coaching acumen, Marchman was assisting former player J.T. Wall at John Milledge - hired by then-head coach Marchman as an assistant in 2009 - when he was diagnosed nearly five years ago with dementia, which soon led to the premature end of a four-decade coaching career.
He graduated from Baldwin, which was the only school in the county at which he didn’t coach. Marchman went 49-49-2 as a head coach at John Milledge, and also served as an assistant at GMC.
Marchman, a Georgia College graduate, spent four years as a head coach at Edmund Burke, three at Brentwood, two at old Gordon-Ivey and Windsor, and one at Deerfield-Windsor, Chapel Hill Academy, and old River North Academy. According to the Georgia High School Football Historians Association, he had a record of 124-122-6 in 23 seasons.
He also coached at Tattnall, Southland and GMC.
Marchman is survived by his daughter Lindsay Marchman Rozier and grandson Will Rozier, niece Cindy Hill and nephew Doug Marchman.
Services are Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at the Trojan Center at John Milledge with burial to follow at Baldwin Memorial Gardens Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 1-2:30 p.m. at the Trojan Center. Donations, in lieu of flowers, are asked to be made to the Special Olympics c/o Thomas Ritch, 6046 Financial Dr. Norcross, GA 30071, www.specialolympicsga.org, or to The Stadium Fund @ John Milledgeville Academy (Athletics Program), 197 Log Cabin Rd. NE, Milledgeville, GA 31061.
Moore’s Funeral Home and Crematory - www.mooresfuneralhome.com – is in charge of arrangements.
Georgia College advances in NCAA volleyball
Georgia College took down third seed Augusta in four sets to advance to the NCAA Regional final on Friday in Wingate, N.C. The Bobcats avenged a 3-1 loss to Augusta in the Peach Belt tournament championship.
Mercer women knock off Florida
The last employer of Mercer head coach Susie Gardner came to town, and I wasn’t a good trip.
Southern Conference preseason player of the year KeKe Calloway, a Mary Persons grad, scored 30 points and had 10 assists as the Bears topped Florida 92-82 at Hawkins Arena.
Mercer led by 21 entering the fourth quarter, and the Gators rallied hard and made it a four-point game with 2:54 left, but that’s as close as they got as the lead grew to 12.
Here’s the box. More to come.
Honor Roll
Former Jones County receiver Nick Singleton has added to the resume in a big way.
The ex-Greyhound is the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference offensive player of the year. He had 61 catches, third nationally, with 77 yards and four touchdowns, with at least four catches in every game.
The Iowa Western sophomore was one of 10 Reivers making all-conference.
Last year, he caught 12 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown. ...
A pair of Central Georgians made the Gulf South Conference team.
Former Northside standout Quentin Stanford earned honors for the third time on the offensive line,
Former Peach County kicker Omar Cervantes, a freshman, also made the first team.
The 10-1 Wolves open the Division II playoffs Saturday at home against Wingate and wideout J.T. Stokes and Malik Bledsoe, both of Mary Persons. ...
Georgia College's Unnbjorg Omarsdottir was named to the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association All-Southeast Region second team.
The two-time Peach Belt pick was part of a defense that had 12 shutouts last season, and added some offense with four goals. She's the fifth player in program history to make the team. ...
Taylor Svehla became the first two-time D2CCA All-Southeast Region volleyball player in Georgia College program history Wednesday.
The PBC Player of the Year, a second-team pick last year, averages 3.45 kills and 1.06 blocks per set with a .307 hitting percentage. She led the conference in blocks and solo blocks. ...
Mercer's Stephen Houzah is the Southern Conference special teams player of the week.
The senior returned three kickoffs for 177 yards, a school record, in the win at Chattanooga. His 73-yarder set up Mercer's first score, and his 91-yarder put the Bears in position for the winning touchdown in the 13-9 road win.
He also had a special-teams tackle, and two catches for 10 yards. ...
A number of Central Georgia players participated in the Georgia Dugout Club’s all-state game at LaGrange: Mary Persons infielder Destiny Middleton (a North Carolina commit), GMC shortstop Cade Bass, West Laurens utility Kendall Morton (Louisiana-Monroe), and Monticello third baseman Mia Jenkins (Troy).
Football updates
Georgia
UMass secondary faces talented WR
Red-zone O has woes, but two-minute O doesn't
But hopes are high for red-zone O improvement
Georgia Tech
Kennesaw State
Falcons