Coastal Pines Technical College

 By Kevin Price

Pierce County’s defense has paved the way for the Bears to reach the Class AAA state semifinals for

the third time in four seasons.

And this past Friday night, the stop-em unit for the Bears helped Pierce jump out to an early double-

digit lead and then keep a good Peach County team at bay as the defending state champions

advanced beyond the quarterfinals yet again with a 35-30 victory in Blackshear.

A player standing out for the Pierce defense was senior defensive back T-votny Brewton who had nine

tackles, a tackle for loss, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble and also intercepted a pass.

His impressive showing has led 912 Sports to name Brewton the Coastal Pines Technical College

Player of the Week.

“Vot had a great game against Peach, helping us get to the state semifinals,” said third-year Pierce

head coach Ryan Herring. “He’s a high-character young man, too.”

For the season, Brewton has totaled 72 tackles including 44 solo stops. Six of his nine tackles in

Friday’s game were of the solo variety. Brewton had a season-high 11 tackles in the 20-0 victory over

Appling County in the final game of the regular season to help the Bears clinch the Region 1

championship and top seed for the state playoffs.

He has a sack and three tackles for losses through 13 games. Brewton, who is 6-foot-2 and weighs 172

pounds, has now caused four fumbles and intercepted two passes for the Bears.

The Bears are 11-2 overall heading into Friday’s semifinal at home against Carver-Atlanta. The Bears

defeated Carver-Atlanta 51-18 in last year’s quarterfinals.

The Panthers appear to be a more formidable foe this time around, what with two 1,000-yard rushers

in the backfield along with quarterback Bryce Bowens who passed for 255 yards and three

touchdowns last week.

The Pierce defense, which will be challenged this week, has recorded seven shutouts for the season

and had posted four in a row going into last week’s meeting with Peach. One of the Bears’ shutouts

was a 17-0 victory over Fitzgerald at home on Sept. 24. Fitzgerald is playing Friday night in the Class

AA semifinals against Swainsboro.

Players of the Week

2021 Regular Season

Week 1 - CJ Parker (Jeff Davis)

Week 2- Jake Lindsey (Camden)

Week 3 - Anthony Paulk (Coffee)

Week 4 - Jaylen Lilly (Charlton)

Week 5 - Thomas Castellanos (Ware)

Week 6 - Ty Everson (Pierce)

Week 7 - Samari Dowdy (New Hampstead)

Week 8 - Cartevious Norton (Ware)

Week 9 - Ahmari Douglas (Long County)

Week 10 - Jordan Triplett (Frederica)

Week 11 - Zion Gillard (Richmond Hill)

Week 12 - DJ Bell (Pierce)

2021 State Playoffs

First Round - Marques Johnson (Liberty County)

Second Round - Taylen Crosby (Appling County)

Quarterfinals - T-votny Brewton (Pierce County)

  By Kevin Price

Long County is set to continue its season in the flag football postseason following the Thanksgiving break, and the Blue Tide will do so with a standout quarterback looking to lead the team to more victories in the state playoffs.  

Sophomore signal-caller Kyleigh Sizemore leads the state with 33 touchdown passes and is among the leading passers as well with more than 1,400 yards for the season. 

With the season Sizemore has put together so far, 912 Sports is naming her for the Coastal Pines Technical College Girls Student-Athlete of the Week award. 

Long County’s coach, Michael Austin, has high praise for his sophomore quarterback.

“I’ve coached quarterbacks on Friday nights for over 15 years. She is what you want in a quarterback,” Austin noted. “Her composure on the field is amazing. She is one of the most coachable kids I have ever been around. She handles corrective criticism well while maintaining her quiet confidence.”

Long County’s current record is 10-2. The team will open play next Tuesday in the Class A-4A State Flag Football Championship in the Georgia High School Association. The opponent for the Blue Tide will be Swainsboro, another school in the 912 Sports coverage area.

Long is the No. 2 seed from Area 1 while Swainsboro is the No. 3 seed from Area 3. The winner of the first-round matchup will take on the Shaw-Hebron Christian winner in the second round. That game will also be played on Tuesday. Both of the first-round contests as well as the second-round game are being hosted by Hebron Christian, the top-seed from Area 7. 

With two wins, Long will advance to the Elite Eight set for Dec. 2. 

Sizemore also plays softball, basketball and soccer at Long County. 

“She trusts the girls around her and knows her job is to distribute the ball,” Austin added about his quarterback. “I love that I get the honor of coaching her.”

Girls Student-Athlete of Week

Week 1 - Presley Harrison (Appling, Softball)

Week 2 - Scarlett Patton (Camden, Softball)

Week 3 - Natalie Herrin (Pierce, Softball)

Week 4 - Lilly Wood (Glynn Academy, Volleyball)

Week 5 - Marin Bograd (Camden, Cross Country)

Week 6 - Kamila Vicente (Glynn Academy, Softball)

Week 7 - Erica Bentley (Brunswick, Softball)

Week 8 - Tori Wright (Vidalia, Softball)

Week 9 - Macaia Difuntorum (Statesboro, Volleyball)

Week 10 - Erin Meeks (Ware, Softball)

Week 11 - Presley Harrison (Appling, Softball)

Week 12 - Ellie Runyan (Frederica, Cross Country)

Week 13 - Kate Merritt (Coffee, Cross Country)

Week 14 - Kyleigh Sizemore (Long Co., Flag Football)