August 4, 2000

Southwest
Daniel Ewing, a 6-foot-3, 165-pound shooting guard at Willowridge High (Texas), will be taking his show to Duke University for the 2001-02 season. Ewing, who averaged 16.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 3.5 steals per game during Willowridge's Class 5A state title run last season, chose Duke over the likes of Arizona, Georgia Tech and Kansas.

With a second-half rally, the North edged the South, 17-13, in the 2000 Southwestern Bell Football All-Star Game (Texas) Tuesday. Sparking the North charge was game MVP Chance Mock of The Woodlands High. Mock tossed two second-half touchdown passes, which rallied the North from a 13-3 deficit. Post High's Billy Crawford was named the defensive MVP from the North.

Southeast
A digital psychrometer, a handheld device that gathers ground temperature, air temperature, humidity and wind speed into one reading, is now being used by school officials in Cobb County, Ga., and Fairfax County, Va. There have been 13 heat-related deaths of high school athletes in the last five years, and according to school officials, the psychrometer will be able to gauge whether it is too hot for athletes to practice.

Claiming its second American Legion state baseball title in as many years, the Benton Fitness Unlimited team (Ark.) dropped the North Little Rock Colts, 10-4, for the Class AAA championship Wednesday. Boyd Goodner proved to be too much on the hill and at the plate. He picked up the win in relief while going 3-for-5 and drilling a go-ahead, two-run homer in the sixth inning.

Northeast
Riding the extremely tired arm of Mike Duperre, Andrews (Maine) outlasted Augusta, 14-11, Wednesday to win the American Legion state title. Duperre, who was pitching on just two days rest, went eight innings on the mound for a depleted Andrews pitching staff. Simon Williams earned tournament MVP honors thanks to a .577 batting average in six games.

An 11th-inning, bases-loaded walk enabled Coffey (N.H.) to slip past Jutras, 7-6, to win the New Hampshire American Legion Baseball Tournament Wednesday. Jutras held a 5-1 lead heading into the seventh inning with their ace, Keith Potvin, on the mound. But Potvin, who pitched for Goffstown High this year and went 12-0 with 137 strikeouts and a 0.74 ERA, could not close it out.

A flood of walks allowed Coffey to pick up two runs in the seventh and eighth innings to tie the game. With his team trailing by one run in the 11th, Jon Matte singled with two outs to drive in the tying run. A bases-loaded walk to Reed Willett finished the game.

Mid-Atlantic
A win at the Tony DiVivo Memorial Tournament Wednesday helped Iron Area (N.J.) earn a spot in the Senior Babe Ruth (16- to 18-year-olds) World Series, to be held Aug. 12-19 in Concord, N.H. Iron Area discarded Onondaga (N.Y.), 12-6, behind tournament MVP Rob Ogilvie. Ogilvie went 2-for-2 with two walks, one hit-by-a-pitch and three runs scored.

After an incredible 13-inning win Monday, Greenbelt Post 136 (Md.) didn't have enough left to overcome Damascus Post 171 two days later. Damascus won the Maryland American Legion championship, 8-7, on a Mike Ahearn run in the bottom of the ninth inning Wednesday. Greenbelt battled all the way back from a six-run deficit, but a throwing error allowed Ahearn to score. Ryan Hamerski had three doubles in the game for Damascus, including one in the ninth. Ahearn took his spot at second as a pinch runner.

West
The best high school quarterback in the state of Colorado has decided to attend Colorado State University for the 2001 season. Bear Creek High's Justin Holland, who has torn up the Rocky Mountain state for 7,428 yards and 74 touchdowns over the course of his sophomore and junior seasons, made his college decision Monday. Holland chose the Rams over Miami, Michigan State and Texas A&M.

The A and AA American Legion state title games in Montana Wednesday proved to be no contest. Behind Daren Olson's four-hitter and Cody Wilcox knocking in four runs, the Bitterroot Red Sox routed Glasgow, 13-1. As for the AA contest, Jon Hansen picked up two hits and two RBI to help the Billings Scarlets top Lethbridge, 7-0.

Erika Blanco, who coached the Bullard High (Calif.) softball team to an impressive 145-15-1 record the last four years, began her duties as an assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton Tuesday. Blanco stepped down a couple of weeks ago as the head coach at Bullard, which won the Central Section Yosemite Division title in 1999.