Adairsville’s 2010-11 leading scorer Corey Fuleki signs with Georgia Northwestern becoming the college’s sixth men’s basketball signee this off-season. Fuleki, seated center, is joined by his father Frank Fuleki, left, and mother Stacey Fuleki, right. Standing, from left, is Adairsville Assistant Boy’s Basketball Coach Kent Howard, Adairsville Head Boy’s Basketball Coach Jacob Travis, and Georgia Northwestern Men’s Head Basketball Coach David Stephenson.
In a late summer ceremony at Adairsville High School, a tiger tandem which left its mark on the 7-AA prep region in Georgia has signed to play its first two years of collegiate basketball at Georgia Northwestern Technical College.
Adairsville standouts Corey Fuleki and Emily Cole begin their collegiate careers Monday as they start classes at Georgia Northwestern; officially becoming the newest Bobcats at GNTC.
The Bobcat men’s program has had a huge off-season signing multiple all-region and state A.A.U. standouts from both Georgia and Tennessee this summer. The Lady Cats women’s program is revamping after capturing their state conference title in its first year of existence last season.
Now, with both programs officially in their first full seasons of competition in NJCAA’s Region XVII, Georgia Northwestern continues its recruitment of the region with a stop in Bartow County. The two-year college is excited about grabbing these two tigers and watching them prowl into the 2011-12 line-up.
**Corey Fuleki, Georgia Northwestern Signee**
At 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Fuleki brings a huge frame with an athletic resume to the region’s largest college. The lone Adairsville standout in the all-region basketball line-up this past season packs quite a punch, athletically-speaking.
The former offensive lineman began the summer by considering a college football recruitment offer in Mississippi. In the end, Fuleki would make the decision to take on his biggest passion and pursue it on the collegiate level at Georgia Northwestern. As a prep star on the gridiron, Fuleki was a formidable force on the offensive line, at the tight end slot, and even from long-range as the Tiger field goal kicker.
The story is no different on the North Georgia hardwood as Fuleki averaged 19 points a game in his senior season; leading his region in scoring. Fuleki brings a rare combination to the Bobcat roster. “He can power his way around down low, as well as drop shots from outside,” said Jacob Travis, Adairsville Boy’s Head Basketball Coach. “He was one of the hardest people to defend across the region this past season. He could play inside and out.”
Fuleki opened Adairsville’s 2010 season with a buzzer-beating game-winner from outside on the road against Sonoraville. “He’ll be a very positive fit with what we are trying to do with this program,” said Georgia Northwestern Men’s Head Basketball Coach, David Stephenson. “We’ve been blessed to have good kids, good student-athletes, who have made their way to Georgia Northwestern. The character of the kids coming in this year is really a testament to the involvement of the families.”
Corey’s father, Frank Fuleki, found out three years ago about the desire his son has for the game. “We’d play in the driveway when we could,” said Mr. Fuleki. “In his sophomore year, though, we played one time and Corey went to drop his shoulder to drive through me. I just flew. I haven’t played one-on-one with him since.” Fuleki is considering a health care degree among his educational options. That may come in handy.
Mom, Stacey Fuleki, is excited mostly by what lies ahead for her son in the classroom. “He wants to use basketball as a way to get his education,” said Mrs. Fuleki. “I really like that Coach (Stephenson) seems more concerned with how Corey will perform in his classes than how he will contribute on the court.”
“Coach Travis and Coach Stephenson have a lot in common. A lot of things I value,” said the GNTC recruit. This season, the Adairsville line-up has a huge hole to fill. “We are losing a ton, offensively,” said Travis. “We are losing a guy who really put us on his shoulders at times when ballgames were on the line.”
For Georgia Northwestern, they are filling a huge hole with the addition of Fuleki. “We’ve lost an all-conference player in our co-captain, Jesse Moore,” said Stephenson of the former Dade County standout who joined the Bobcats in 2009. “He’s played down low for us and battled hard for two years. Corey will really have his work cut out for him.”
Official tryouts for men’s varsity basketball at Georgia Northwestern will take place August 25-27 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Rossville Athletic Complex. The “R.A.C.” is the home of the GNTC Bobcats men’s basketball program. Practices will begin October 1.
**Emily Cole, Georgia Northwestern Signee**
It’s a second chance.
Five-foot-4 Emily Cole thought her career as a student-athlete was over just one year ago. In a scrimmage game at Trion High School just under one year ago, Cole would suffer a broken ankle. It was a fracture so severe that the bone tore through the skin.
However, what happened next really tells her story. “There were EMTs at the scrimmage and we just set the bone back into place right then,” said Cole without even a flinch. “I was worried it (career) was over.” And without the assistance of pain medication, the bone was set right there on the hardwood.
“She’s tough,” said Emily’s dad, Frank Cole. “But I’m not that tough. It was almost too much to hear her saying ‘it’s over’ after going down with the injury. Seeing her hurt that way was so hard to take.”
Doctors told Cole it would be three months before she would be walking. The basketball season would be over by then. However, Cole was running six weeks later. “I was trying to talk my coaches into letting me play,” recalls the GNTC recruit. “I came to every game. However, I had to sit and watch my senior season go by.” Cole did get to play for one play in senior night. “The other team let me score the first two points. It was pretty special.”
In a strange twist of fate, Cole wouldn’t be alone on the bench last season. Her 15-year-old sister, Paige, would also break her ankle in the exact same way during a game against Cass High School just three days later. “It took about six pillows and two pairs of crutches to get those two to every game, comfortably,” said their mother, Kim Cole. “They weren’t about to miss a game for anything.”
But like Mrs. Cole recalls Emily’s gymnastics coach saying when her daughter was only five years old, “Emily only has two gears, fast and faster.” Averaging over 11 points a game in her junior season as a Lady Tiger, Cole was set to be among the team leaders as one of only four seniors on the Adairsville roster last season.
With rehab now behind her, Cole is locked in on something she thought she’d never be thinking about. Monday, she will officially be a college freshman competing in collegiate women’s basketball this season. “After the injury, there just weren’t any offers out there,” said Cole. “To have this opportunity is a blessing.”
Georgia Northwestern Women’s Head Basketball Coach Jim Williams summed it all up. “She’s what being a Lady Bobcat is all about. She has definitely earned a second chance.”
Cole began her career playing 14-under recreation ball in Gordon County. “I was going to a private school and they didn’t have basketball for girls,” recalls Cole. “So before my ninth-grade year, I begged my parents to let me go to a public school.”
They gave her a shot.
Four years later, she’s about to step into a college classroom as a freshman. A year which will also see her take the floor as a collegiate women’s basketball player. “She has a heart the size of that gym,” said Mrs. Cole pointing towards the direction of the Adairsville High School gymnasium.
“I’m looking forward to college life,” said Cole. “Girls there are there to get both academics and basketball. Not just interested in playing ball. They aren’t there because they have to be. They want the education. Everyone is there working hard and wants to win. No one is there because they have to or their parents are making them take part. They made the choice.”
Cole plans to play two years at Georgia Northwestern, then hopefully moving on after that. “I’m thinking of possibly going to Shorter (University) and trying to continue my career there.”
Williams likes what he knows so far about his future Lady Cat. “She’s got a good attitude and is a team player,” said Williams. “She has a great shot and isn’t afraid to take the ball inside. Skill-wise, it’s just what we are looking for. She’s going to fill a hole on the outside where we lost some good perimeter talent. She brings some youth to a veteran line-up.”
Cole is truly thankful for second chances. “I’m just a blessed person,” said Cole. “God has given me another opportunity. I really thought it was over. He took all the prayers that were prayed and all the hopes I had and gave them back to me. I’m truly happy.”
Official tryouts for women’s varsity basketball at Georgia Northwestern will take place August 29-30, and September 1 beginning at 7 p.m. at the Rome, Georgia YMCA.
For more information on Bobcat and Lady Cats Athletics at Georgia Northwestern, contact the Office of Sports Information at 706 764-3813. You may also e-mail Don Foley in the Office of Sports Information at dfoley@gntc.edu. For more information on Georgia Northwestern Technical College, visit their website at GNTC.edu.
Former Adairsville girls’ basketball standout Emily Cole signs her letter of application with Georgia Northwestern. Pictured with Cole, seated from left, are father Butch Cole and mother Kim Cole. Standing, from left, is sister Cassandra Cole, Georgia Northwestern Women’s Head Basketball Coach Jim Williams, former Adairsville Girls’ Head Basketball Coach Michael Roberson, Georgia Northwestern Women’s Assistant Head Coach Robbie Nash, and sister Paige Cole.