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Sports

What a Weekend In Store For Parkview, Providence Christian

Graduations, baseball finals heighten excitement of holiday weekend.

If this weekend in Lilburn doesn't get you revved up, check your pulse.

In a highly awaited crescendo to the school year -- Memorial Day weekend, too -- Parkview and Providence Christian High seniors are graduating, and the schools' baseball teams are in the Class AAAAA and A finals.

"It's a great way to end my senior year," said Parkview senior Katie Carroll, a Panthers basketball player. "It'll probably be crazy at Parkview all weekend."

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Parkview's commencement is in its football stadium today at 8 p.m., and Providence's is at Lilburn's Mount Carmel Church at 10 a.m. Saturday. But those are just the start of what both communities hope will be reason to celebrate through summer vacation. Both schools' baseball teams open their best-of-three-game series with doubleheaders Saturday, followed by third games on Monday, if needed.

Parkview has a little more time to savor it all between tonight's commencement for about 570 and the start of its doubleheader Saturday at 4 p.m. against visiting Hillgrove. It'll be more of a whirlwind day for Providence, though, with little time between its 10 a.m. graduation for about 80 and its 3 p.m. doubleheader at Hebron Christian in Dacula.

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With weather forecasted in the upper 80s and minimal chance of rain, Parkview's parking lot likely will be filled with orange-and-blue-clad tailgaters, and Hebron's with Providence's red-and-blue revelers.

Sweeps of today's twin bills would be greatest punctuation to Parkview and Providence's dream seasons, yet series sweeps have been hard to come by for both. The Panthers were pushed to three games in two of their previous four playoff series, and the Stars had to go the distance in their last three rounds.

But if momentum means anything, both could make short work of their final opponents. The Panthers are coming off consecutive 8-4 and 8-2 wins at Colquitt County (after losing the opener) in the semifinals, while the Stars were rebounding from the same first-game loss with 10-0 and 15-4 wins over Treutlen. Parkview (27-9) scored six runs in the top of the first inning in the decisive game at Colquitt to reach its first championship series since winning state in 2001 and '02. Providence (26-11), in its first final, exploded with three grand slam homers in its decisive 15-4 victory over Truetlen County on coach Adam Cantrell's 36th birthday Tuesday.

"If we keep the momentum we have, we can beat anybody right now," said Stars catcher Christin Stewart, whose 25 homers is a Gwinnett County record. "We have to keep the momentum with our bats."

Providence junior McKenzie Scott plans to cheer on several friends graduating, then attend Saturday's doubleheader. She said Stars fans are having T-shirts made and some undoubtedly will come wearing body paint. She plans to paint her nails a spirited red or blue and be at Hebron early enough to party in the parking lot.

"Pretty much everyone in the school is going," she said. "It's the biggest thing that's happened for us in a while."

Scott was among throngs of fans who attended Providence's boys soccer final at Walker a few weeks ago. She knows how Providence fans travel.

"We had more people there than Walker did -- at least double," she said. "I bet the parking lot this time will be packed."

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