Championships — and near misses — highlight year’s top sports stories

The year 2017 in sports can be linked to one word: champions.

Four high schools teams in Columbus claimed state championships in 2017, with Columbus’ girls basketball team, boys golf team and girls golf team winning it all, and Northside’s softball team finishing the job as well. Back in track season, several local athletes finished first at state, including Jordan’s D’Andre Snead, Northside’s Alec Tanksley, Central’s Karon Delince and Central’s 4x400 girls relay team.

At the higher levels, the University of Georgia football team took down Auburn for its first SEC championship since 2005 and is now in the College Football Playoff. Of course, this year was also all about the Atlanta Falcons, which came painstakingly close to its first Super Bowl victory before the game slipped away.

The past year was one filled with championship performances, near misses and a little of everything in between. Here are our top 10 sports stories from 2017.

10. Columbus boys, girls golf win state title

Both Columbus High School golf teams showed through the regular season that they had the talent to win it all, and in May they were able to make it happen.

The opening round of the Class 4A boys and girls tournaments —both played in Columbus — saw the Blue Devils and Lady Blue Devils work their way to the top of the team leaderboards. Their strong first day proved to be blessings, as the first-ever second round of each tournament was cancelled due to inclement weather.

Both Columbus teams were declared champions, giving the boys their second straight title and the girls their second championship since 2013.

9. Columbus Lions play in inaugural NAL championship game

The Columbus Lions’ indoor football team made quite an impression in the first season of the National Arena League.

The Lions were dominant, going 9-3 with a six-game winning streak to finish the regular season. After beating Lehigh Valley in the first round, the Lions advanced to the championship game with the chance to win their third straight indoor title.

Down 27-21 to the Jacksonville Sharks, the Lions reached the 5-yard line with only seconds to go. A botched snap was then recovered by Jacksonville, ending the Lions’ title pursuit.

8. Central High football ranked among nation’s best

The Central Red Devils football team came into the season with high expectations, and for the most part they lived up to the hype.

Headlined by five-star wide receiver Justyn Ross, the Red Devils held the top spot in Class 7A and rolled through the regular season 9-0. Central dominated Theodore in the first round and did the same against Lee-Montgomery, with Ross making a one-handed catch that appeared on SportsCenter.

After rising to No. 14 in USA Today’s national rankings, the Red Devils fell to McGill-Toolen in an overtime thriller, ending their season in the semifinals.

7. Columbus Cottonmouths involved in bus crash

While traveling to Peoria, Ill., to play the Rivermen, the Columbus Cottonmouths hockey team’s charter bus crashed on an interchange ramp about 20 miles from the city.

At the intersections of Interstates 155 and 74, the bus careened off a rain-slicked on-ramp, leaving the 23 players and hockey support staff with injuries. Goalie Brandon Jaeger, equipment manager Mike Nash and bus driver Wayne Allen suffered serious, nonlife-threatening injuries.

“We were definitely in God’s hands,” Cottonmouths head coach and general manager Jerome Bechard said.

6. Northside softball wins state title

The Northside High School softball team came within one game of a state title in 2016, leaving the team members on a mission in 2017.

The Lady Patriots dominated through the regular season and didn’t slow down in the state playoffs, making short work of their competition en route to the Elite Eight tournament.

After three more wins, Northside faced Stephens County with a state title on the line.

The Lady Patriots dropped the first of the day’s games against Stephens County but dominated in the second. Pitcher Hannah George struck out the last batter to clinch the program’s first-ever state title.

5. Bobby Howard resigns from Central

Legendary high school baseball coach Bobby Howard surprised many in the Chattahoochee Valley when he resigned as Central High School baseball coach on May 24. The longtime Columbus High head coach’s tenure with the Red Devils ended after two seasons and two Class 7A state playoff appearances.

Howard declined to discuss why, instead saying it was time for a “new and different voice” at Central.

Howard was later named head coach at Cartersville, but his tenure there was short-lived. After a miscommunication regarding his retirement benefits, Howard resigned on July 27.

4. Columbus girls basketball beats Carver for state title

It was apparent from the start of the Class 4A girls basketball state tournament that the Columbus High and Carver High teams were on a collision course to Atlanta.

After trading blows in the regular season, the two tangled in Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion in an instant classic. Carver roared back in the fourth quarter to force overtime, but the Lady Blue Devils got the last laugh. Tatyana Wyatt drilled a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the extra session to give Columbus a 69-67 victory and its first state title.

3. Cottonmouths to suspend operations for next season

The Columbus Cottonmouths’ future came into question when owners Wanda and Shelby Amos announced in March their plans to sell the team. When no sale was made, the team announced in May it had ceased operations for the upcoming season.

One month later, Residential World Media chairman Fidel Jenkins presented himself as a potential new owner. Jenkins outlined a plan to rebrand the team as the Columbus Burn, but his plans were derailed when the Southern Professional Hockey League terminated his application.

Afterward, Jenkins said he still hoped to bring professional hockey to Columbus.

2. Georgia wins SEC, advances to Rose Bowl

The Bulldogs quickly overcame losing their starting quarterback in the season opener and went on a wild ride of a regular season.

Led by true freshman quarterback Jake Fromm, the Bulldogs reeled off nine straight victories before losing at No. 10 Auburn 40-17. Georgia regrouped to win its next three games, including a rematch with Auburn in the SEC Championship Game.

The Bulldogs are the No. 3 team in the College Football Playoff and will face No. 2 Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.

1. Falcons lose Super Bowl after 28-3 lead

In a game that went down in infamy for the Atlanta fanbase, the Falcons took a 25-point lead with 8:31 to go in the third when Matt Ryan hit Tevin Coleman for a 6-yard touchdown, making the city’s first professional sports championship since 1995 appear inevitable.

Aside from Julio Jones’ jaw-dropping catch in the fourth quarter, the rest of the game after Coleman’s score was all New England. The Patriots outscored Atlanta 28-0 in the final 17:06 of regulation and finished the job on James White’s 2-yard touchdown run in overtime.

The victory gave the Patriots their fifth Super Bowl win and leaving the Falcons with 28-3 jokes that will live for years to come.

This story was originally published December 28, 2017 at 3:31 PM with the headline "Championships — and near misses — highlight year’s top sports stories."