Davis, Patterson, Perez, Sharpe Sign College Scholarships

GHS Softball, GHS Wrestling, Team FYN Sports

Four more Gilmer High School athletes signed college scholarships yesterday morning, as Chancey Davis, Lucas Patterson, Alberto Perez and Keegan Sharpe put their respective names on the dotted line during a ceremony in the GHS Theatre.

Davis

Chancey Davis is seated with (left to right): father Mitchell Davis, stepmother Lori Davis, mother Angela Sutton and stepfather Lee Sutton. Standing behind Chancey are West Georgia Technical College Golden Lady Knights coach Monica Mills and Gilmer High School Lady Cats softball head coach Kim Charles. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Chancey Davis is seated with (left to right): father Mitchell Davis, stepmother Lori Davis, mother Angela Sutton and stepfather Lee Sutton. Standing behind Chancey are West Georgia Technical College Golden Lady Knights coach Monica Mills and Gilmer High School Lady Cats softball head coach Kim Charles. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

The West Georgia Technical College Lady Golden Knights, located in Carrollton and a member of the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association, will be receiving Chancey Davis on their softball team.

“This is one of the things I’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Davis said. “When I was a freshman, I never thought I’d be signing somewhere. It’s very surreal, but exciting.”

In addition to being a softball player for 11 years, Davis has also dabbled in tennis, soccer and basketball. She has received numerous accolades during her tenure as a GHS Lady Cat. She was named the 2013 Miss GHS Tennis, the 2014 Most Versatile Award for GHS tennis, a 2015 Region 7-AAAA Honorable Mention for softball and received the 2015 Lady Cat award for softball.

Asbury University and Georgia Highlands College also attempted to recruit Davis, but the decision to sign with the Lady Knights came after a major shift in direction for a school that had already offered Davis a scholarship.

“I was committed to the University of Pikeville, but their coach left and after she notified me, nobody from the college would really tell me if my offer stood,” Davis explained. “I decided that it must be a sign that I shouldn’t go there. I talked to Coach (Monica) Mills a few days after that and she gave me an opportunity to come to a camp. She liked my skills and gave me an offer.”

Davis also listed a lot of people that helped her reach the pinnacle of signing a college scholarship.

“There’s a lot of people,” Davis admitted. “My high school coaches, Kim and Al Charles, Amy Nunn and Scott Kiser. My travel coach, Evan Johnson and my hitting coach, Katravo Dew. My strength and conditioning coaches, Mark Woodring and Nate Wingard. My friends, my teachers, my teammates and Coach Mills for giving me the opportunity. I also want to thank my family, for always supporting me.”

Patterson

Lucas Patterson is seated with (left to right): Clear Creek Middle School wrestling head coach Walt Monroe, stepfather Ronald Ledford, mother Heather Patterson and grandmother Ruby Ledford. Standing are Gilmer High School coach Casey Wingard, Gilmer High School coach Josh Snider, Life University coach Ron Gorman and Gilmer High School coach Sam Snider. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Lucas Patterson is seated with (left to right): Clear Creek Middle School wrestling head coach Walt Monroe, stepfather Ronald Ledford, mother Heather Patterson and grandmother Ruby Ledford. Standing are Gilmer High School coach Casey Wingard, Gilmer High School coach Josh Snider, Life University coach Ron Gorman and Gilmer High School coach Sam Snider. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Life University, a private National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Division I school in Marietta, will welcome Lucas Patterson to the Running Eagles wrestling team.

“It’s a happy day, but it’s a sad day at the same time,” Patterson admitted. “I’m excited about wrestling for the team.”

Patterson started his grappling at Clear Creek Middle School in seventh grade. During his career at GHS, Patterson captured the 132-pound state championship twice in Region 7-AAAA and received the Drill Partner, Team Captain and MVP awards as a part of the Bobcat wrestling regime.

It was during a national tournament qualifier his sophomore year that Patterson met Life University officials, who expressed interest and retained it for the next two years. Patterson also wanted to thank those that helped get him garner a college scholarship.

“I’d like to thank Coaches Walt Monroe and Bo Dorsey, for getting me into wrestling,” Patterson said. “The Snider coaches, for helping push me throughout high school to do my best. (Ron) Gorman, for looking at me this whole time and helping me out.

Perez

Alberto Perez is seated with (left to right) Gilmer High School coach Casey Wingard, Clear Creek Middle School coach Walt Monroe, mother Juana Bautista and Gilmer High School coach Sam Snider. Standing are Gilmer High School coaches Greg Wingo and Josh Snider. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Alberto Perez is seated with (left to right) Gilmer High School coach Casey Wingard, Clear Creek Middle School coach Walt Monroe, mother Juana Bautista and Gilmer High School coach Sam Snider. Standing are Gilmer High School coaches Greg Wingo and Josh Snider. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Alberto Perez will head to Franklin Springs to wrestle for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Emmanuel College Lions.

“I feel very excited and accomplished,” Perez boasted. “It’s a very good day for me.”

Aside from wrestling, Perez has also played soccer and football. At 120 pounds, Perez is also a two-time state wrestling champion for GHS. He also received the Takedown Award from the Bobcats.

Perez received several offers from NAIA schools, but he went with Emmanuel College because of its promixity to Ellijay.

“Emmanuel was the best fit for me,” Perez explained. “They have a really good wrestling program. They won the (Division II) National Championship during this, their first year of having a team. So, I wanted to wrestle for the best.”

Perez also expressed appreciation to the select group that helped him obtain the scholarship.

“I’d like to thank my parents and my coaches, for helping me get there, plus my drilling partners and teammates,” Perez concluded.

Sharpe

Keegan Sharpe is seated with (left to right): stepfather Joe Weaver, mother Pamela Weaver, father Scott Sharpe and Scott's fiance Aletha Merwin. Standing in back are grandmother , girlfriend Kylie Duggan, stepsister Harley Weaver, stepbrother Kell Weaver and sister Chloe Sharpe. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

Keegan Sharpe is seated with (left to right): stepfather Joe Weaver, mother Pamela Weaver, father Scott Sharpe and Scott’s fiance Aletha Merwin. Standing in back are grandmother Millie Davis, girlfriend Kylie Duggan, stepsister Harley Weaver, stepbrother Kell Weaver and sister Chloe Sharpe. (Photo by: Kevin Hensley)

The first year that the Waleska-based Reinhardt University Eagles compiles a wrestling team, GHS will contribute Keegan Sharpe to the program.

“I’m very excited,” Sharpe said. “I look at a few colleges and I thought Reinhardt was the best. It’s close to Ellijay, plus I can drive back to go to church with my family. I felt like, with them making a new wrestling team, it was the perfect opportunity to join them and pursue wrestling like I have for the past seven years.”

In addition to wrestling, Sharpe has received a black belt in karate from Ben Kiker at United Karate Studios in Ellijay. The two overlapped once he started wrestling in sixth grade and after receiving the black belt, Sharpe focused his energy on wrestling. The dedication paid off, as Sharpe has been a two-time state placer at 145 pounds for Gilmer and received the Drill Partner, I Do What I Can (IDWIC) and Team Captain awards from the Bobcats.

Sharpe also listed people in his life that helped him reach the point of receiving a college scholarship.

“I’d like to thank all my coaches, Coach Monroe, Randy Haynes, Kyle Barr, Dorsey, Wingard, Wingo and the Snider’s,” Sharpe said. “My personal trainer, Mark Woodring, who helped prepare me for my 11th and 12th-grade year. I’d like to thank my girlfriend (Kylie Duggan), because she keeps me straight. She encouraged me to go to college and encourages me to do good things. I’d also like to thank my parents, because they’ve made me the person I am.”

 

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