Local YBOA teams make national tournament

As teams from across the nation have converged on Riverview Park this week for the Nike Peach Jam, two local teams are headed to Orlando, Fla., this weekend to begin their quest for a national title.

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If the success of the Augusta Boys and Girls Club and North Augusta Jackets 13-and-under teams are any indication, an all-area final is looking like a smart bet.

The local teams will compete in the Youth Basketball of America National Championship tournament, which begins Friday and runs through July 26 in Polk County, Fla.

Augusta's team - featuring players from Langford, Murphy, Tutt, Glenn Hills, East Augusta and Tubman Middle Schools and one player from Thomson Middle School - won the Georgia YBOA state championship in Atlanta June 1 to advance to the national tournament.

The team, coached by Tim Daniels Sr., Chad Cook and Earnest Tolbert, features Daniels' son, Tim, and two familiar names - Dorian Sabb, the younger brother of former Laney High School football star J.K. Sabb and Ismail Tolbert, the younger brother of former Josey stars Troy and Armark Tolbert.

"This is a special team because they all know each other well and have been playing together for a long time," Daniels said.

North Augusta, coached by C.F. Johnson, Cary Johnson and Lionel Jackson, captured a pair of South Carolina state championships earlier this summer in Amateur Athletic Union and YBOA play.

Through late June, the Jackets - a team made up of North Augusta Middle School players - had entered seven tournaments and won each of them.

"An Augusta-North Augusta championship game is looking like a real possibility," Daniels said. "That would be great."

The Boys and Girls Club of Augusta's 10-and-under team, coached by Carlos Carter; 11-and-under team, coached by Chris Stallings, and 17-and-under team, coached by Hawthorne Welcher, are also headed to Florida for the YBOA tournament.

WATER WORLD: The Cambridge-Stevens Pointe Swim Team won the CSRA Swim League's Division 2 championship and is expected to move up to Division 1 next year.

The CSP team, coached by Ryan Gober, is the largest community team in the area, with 130 swimmers, and became the first area team to go undefeated for three straight seasons.

ON THE FENCE: Dr. Rudy Volkmann, coach and owner of The Augusta Fencers Club, won the bronze medal in the veterans division at the U.S. Fencing Association national championships earlier this month.

The event, held in Austin, Texas, featured the nation's elite. Volkmann competed in the 60-and-over veteran sabre event and will represent the U.S. in September in the World Fencing Championships in Limoges, France.

"It is a great honor to represent my country in this sport," Volkmann said. "It is clearly the highlight of my competitive career."

In addition to running the Augusta Fencers Club, Volkmann is also the artistic director of the Augusta Jazz Project.

RANGEY: The Augusta PressTech Rangers, a live pitch team that competes in the West Augusta Recreation Department's 9-10 year old division, recently finished an undefeated season and are competing in the Richmond County Championship this week at Eisenhower Park.

In their first-round game earlier this week, the Rangers defeated South Augusta 13-1.

Reach Rob Mueller at (706) 823-3425.

--From the Thursday, July 17, 2003 printed edition of the Augusta Chronicle