ESPN RISE

Girls' Soccer - Parkview

You won't find a championship ring anywhere close to Parkview girls' soccer coach Judson Hamby. It's not that he doesn't own one  he has two  it's that he puts his championship hardware away as a reminder to his team to remain focused on the present and not their past accomplishments. "I never wear them,"he says. "If I get one, I wear it for two days. Then we just put them in the trophy case and not talk about it." That mindset has produced back-to-back Class AAAAA championships for the Panthers. Last season, senior Megan Geiger netted the game-winning goal to lead Parkview to a 1-0 win over South Forsyth in the state finals as the team captured its third crown in four years. The Panthers are on the prowl again this year, led by a talented cluster of returning stars. Junior Kim Spence is a dangerous scorer and tallied 21 goals and six assists last year. Senior Kristina Pascutti netted 15 goals and five assists, while junior Maureen Buff wreaked havoc in the midfield. Sophomore Charelle Jarrett is a shutdown defender in the back, while seniors Taylor Jackson and Morgan Mitchell are key cogs in the championship machine. Despite the loss of All- American goalie Ashley Baker, the Panthers are favored to repeat this spring. Hamby is aware his unit will be hunted, and has them ready to accept the challenge. "When you have success, people want to beat you," he says. "Every year they understand that."

Baseball - Brookwood

The Broncos wrapped up their second straight Region 8 championship en route to winning the Class AAAAA title last year. Brookwood finished the 2008 season 34-3 and earned the No. 5 spot in the ESPN RISE FAB 50. Senior Matt Adams earned Gwinnett Daily Post first team All-County honors last year, while classmates Ronnie Freeman and Michael Brown were named to the second team. With the return of six other seniors and a strong JV contingent, Brookwood could be headed back to the finals in 2009.

Girls' Track - Redan

Redan is loaded with talent and ready to build on last season's success. Last year, the Raiders placed second in Class AAAAA, buoyed by the individual performances of seniors Tamala Daley and Kennisha Holden. Holden won the 400 dash and 300 hurdles, while Daley wound up taking second in the long jump. The combination of Daley, Holden, juniors Alissa Morgan, Soyong Smith, Tanisha Dyess and Osato Uzamere and senior Christina Mondestin sparked Redan to wins in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays.

Boys' Soccer - Stone Mountain

The Pirates have to be mentioned in the discussion of the area's most exciting teams to watch. With a wealth of talent led by senior forwards Rury Alvarez and Jose Cruz attacking the net, Stone Mountain featured DeKalb County's most explosive offensive attack in 2008. Last spring, Alvarez led the county in scoring with 56 goals and 20 assists. Cruz chimed in with 14 goals and a county-high 32 helpers. Junior John Michael Mendy could be primed for a breakout season as the team's No. 3 scorer.

BREAK OUT TEAMS

GIRLS' LACROSSE  CHATTAHOOCHEE Senior attacker Maddie Fink earned All-State honors after tallying 91 points last spring. BASEBALL  GREATER ATLANTA CHRISTIAN All-American Drew Steckenrider clocked seven homers and drove in 25 runs as a junior in 2008. GIRLS' TENNIS  WALKER Last year, the Wolverines captured their third Class AA state title since 2000. BOYS' TRACK  CHAPEL HILL Senior Taylor Lord is the defending Class AAAA champ in the 1,400 and 3,200.