Central Georgia Sports ReportJune 26, 2026Comment

Friday's Report: Ed DeFore, Russell Henley, Westside's Reeves; Hawks, Falcons, Tech, UGA, Braves; World Cup/USA, MLB, WNBA, NCAA moves, golf, NASCAR, tennis, NFL, NBA/Draft, NHL

Central Georgia Sports ReportJune 26, 2026Comment

📰S📰C📰O📰R📰E📰B📰O📰A📰R📰D
⚾ ⚾ ⚾ Baseball ⚾ ⚾ ⚾
⚾ ⚾ ⚾ Coastal Plain ⚾ ⚾ ⚾

Macon 9, Florence 5

📰C📰O📰V📰E📰R📰A📰G📰E📰

Around/About Central Georgia

Public service for Ed DeFore on Saturday

Nearly two decades after the name of the facility was changed, Ed DeFore will be remembered and celebrated on the grounds that will be part of his large legacy.

The Ed DeFore Sports Complex at Westside will host a public memorial for the lifetime Maconite who died on May 19 at the age of 94. It will start at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday in the football stadium.

Here is the full obituary.

DeFore spent 45 years in some form of city or county public service, retiring as a Bibb Commissioner at the end of 2016.

At that point, more than half of his life had been spent serving Macon and Bibb County, from city council to county commission to Macon Water Authority to the Board of Education.

He was inducted into the Macon Sports Hall of Fame in 2002, six years after the athletics facilities at Westside became the Ed DeFore Sports Complex.

The Lanier grad was drafted by the Cardinals and played in assorted pro leagues. The longtime youth sports coach and advocate helped organize the Soap Box Derby in Macon, which has become a major downtown event.

The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame honored him with the Erk Russell Spirit Award in 2012.

Henley off to good start

That monstrous 80 sure does seem like a fairly long time ago.

Russell Henley showed no stress from the brutal third round last week at the U.S. Open, and turned in a solid 66 in the first round of the travelers in Connecticut to sit three shots behind leader Eric Cole.

It’s a UGA group at 14th, with Henley, Brian Harman, and Harris English among the six.

The 66 is his second-lowest first-round score in 15 events. He’s had three 66s and two 65s.

Only 11 players in the 72-player field are over par, with Lucas Glover at the bottom at only 5 over.

Henley’s lone hiccup came on 15, after five birdies and nine pars. He botched his second shot after going 262 yards off the tee, and then was left on a 10-footer for par.

He immediately settled down and parred the final three holes.

Henley and Cam Young tee off at 1:45 p.m. on Friday. Young struggled to a 2-over day to sit in 68th.

Alumni Update

Westside grad Reeves signs free-agent ‘exhibit 10’ NBA contract

Around/About Georgia

Hawks 'shocked' to get Veesaar, who is introduced with Hubert Davis on hand

How’d Atlanta do in the draft?

The evaluation that led to Pitts' new deal

What's going on with the Braves near midway point of '26?

Tech mourns passing of All-American Perdoni

UGA finishes 8th in Director’s Cup standings

Georgia’s Jackson D1Baseball’s Player of the Year

Georgia Tech leads nation with four D1 Baseball All-Americans, including Houston County’s Burress

Retired UFC fighter was arrested in the Atlanta airport

A Worthy Read

I tried making weight like a fighter. Here's what I learned about combat sports' most dangerous addiction

Soccer/World Cup

Next/Knockout Round: USA vs. Bosnia/Herzegovina, Wednesday, 8 p.m., Santa Clara, Cal.

Türkiye stuns USMNT with 98th-minute goal

Pochettino annoyed by perceived disappointment after US finishes group play with 3-2 loss

USMNT to face Bosnia in World Cup round of 32

Merlín the duck takes a trip to the stadium, but FIFA rules keep him out of Mexico match

Scotland fans brave the heat and humidity to support their team at the World Cup against Brazil

Japan and Sweden play to draw as both advance

Knockout Round
First matches
Italics=likely
Sunday: South Africa vs. Canada, Inglewood, Cal.
Monday: Brazil vs. Japan, 1 p.m., Houston; Germany vs. Paraguay, 4:30 p.m.; Netherlands vs. Morocco, 9 p.m.,Mexico
Tuesday: Ivory Coast vs. Norway, 1 p.m., Arlington; France vs. Sweden, 5 p.m., East Rutherford; Mexico vs. Scotland, 9 p.m., Mexico City

Ecuador advances, beats Germany on Plata’s 77th-minute goal

Australia clinches knockout round spot with draw; Paraguay also likely to advance

Brobbey and the Dutch roll in the rain to win, top World Cup Group F

Ivory Coast into knockout round for 1st time as Pépé scores twice

Turkey coach Montella says he won’t resign after winless World Cup start, admonishes heckling fans

Messi celebrates his 39th birthday with Argentina teammates during a joyful World Cup

Norway brought its own food to the World Cup. But not because it distrusts US products

Haiti finally scores again at a World Cup after 52 years, giving the team a moral victory

France’s Kylian Mbappé, Norway’s Erling Haaland take center stage

MLB/NL

Crow-Armstrong haunts Mets as Cubs complete season sweep

Harper and Hill homers in the 9th help rally Phillies over the Nationals