Recapping the past week in area sports

Kaitlynn Hudson became the first golfer in the five-year history of the Eastern Greene girls golf program to qualify for the regional tournament

Hudson competed Saturday in the IHSAA girls golf regional at Country Oaks Golf Club in Montgomery.

Hudson's 98 wasn't the score she'd hoped for and was 12 strokes higher than the 86 she'd shot at the Bloomington North sectional to advance.

Don't read too much into that.

Tournament courses are set up to identify the best blayers. The courses are longer, the fairways tighter and the greens faster. It's not the typical high school course many of these players are accustomed to.

The game becomes exponentially harder. Every shot is more difficult and more challenging. That multiplies itself over the course of 18 holes.

And the girls played Country Oaks from the men's white tees.

Hudson was the only player in her foursome of individual qualifiers to break 100. All of these girls played well enough to advance to the regional and are considered good golfers.

Hudson, a junior, looks forward to her senior season and hopes to have an even better year next year.

Congratulations, Kaitlynn. You competed and you represented your school proudly.

***

Friday saw two firsts for the Eastern Greene football program. The Thunderbirds claimed the first conference championship and secured the first winning season in the 13-year history of the program.

The T-Birds are off to a rousing 6-0 start - again, the best in program history - after a 70-28 romp over the other Thunderbirds from North Central.

No, they didn't open the season against Linton. Everyone knows that. Give the Thunderbirds their due. They've beaten everyone on their schedule so far.

Dual-threat quarterback Jeff Graham has been an offensive force. Graham rushed for a school record 332 yards against North Central.

Last season Graham was QB Briar Martindale's primary target and a dangerous weapon at receiver. With Graham moving under center, the T-Birds needed someone to step in and fill Graham's role from a season ago.

Sophomore Caleb Hamilton - in his first year playing football - looks to be that player.

Eastern Greene faces its stiffest test Friday when the Thunderbirds travel to Mount Vernon on the banks of the Ohio.

The Class 3A Tigers are 3-3. They lost 7-3 to 4A Boonville last week.

Wouldn't it be something if the T-Birds were 7-0 when Linton visits Eastern Greene October 9?

***

Another possible first never came to pass.

White River Valley entertained Shoals on the soccer pitch Tuesday.

The Wolverines figured to have a real chance to pick up the first win in the brief history of the program.

But WRV was unable to capitalize on several scoring opportunities and lost to Shoals 3-1.

The Wolverines are still seeking that elusive first win but it will come. They've made considerable progress this year.

The product on the field is noticeably improved. The players are more athletic. The Wolverines have played well defensively and they've been competitive in their matches.

WRV limited a good South Knox team to just two goals in last week's match.

South Knox is ranked 15th in Class A (IHSAA soccer has two classes. Class A is comprised of 1A-3A schools.)

That illustrates just how far the program has come in the last year.

If only Matt Settles could find a few more players. It's tough without substitutes available. Playing a full 80 minutes is tough to sustain. Fresher legs would enable them to put together more offensive strikes in the second half.

***

Donnie Clayton is recuperating about as well as could be expected. The long-time Miner football statistician was bowled over on a sideline play at Springs Valley and suffered a broken leg. He sustained two fractures just below the knee.

According to son Darren, Donnie was treated at Paoli Hospital and released that Friday night. He returned to Bloomingtom Hospital for further treatment the next morning. He returned home that afternoon and has been resting at home since.

Donnie is scheduled for surgery Thursday in Bloomington.

He will be off his feet for two months after the surgery is done.

"That will drive him nuts," Darren said. "He's not the kind of guy to sit around."

***

On a sad note, John Dieball passed away Thursday, September 24 at age 43.

John leaves behind wife Cindy and 11 children, with another due in April.

Two of those 11 are current Linton-Stockton basketball stars Joe and Josh Dieball.

John Dieball was a talker. To say John was an extrovert would be a gross understatement.

He was an interesting and intelligent man, conversant on a variety of subjects. I always enjoyed his company.

When I would sit behind the end line to shoot photos at Miner basketball games, John would often accompany me. If I didn't see a shot or a pass or a rebound while I was snapping a photo I could always count on John to fill me in. And I loved hearing his in-game commentary.

Thanks buddy!

It's going to be chilling to look in the stands and not see John this year.

I'll miss you John!

Terry Schwinghammer is a sports writer for the Greene County Daily World. He can be reached by telephone at (812) 847-4487, ext. 27. He can also be reached via email at tschwing32@yahoo.com.