AAA GIRLS BASKETBALL

East Rankin edges Presbyterian in classic
Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
For those basketball fans who enjoy a run and gun style with defense just an afterthought Pelahatchie wasn’t the place for you on Saturday evening. If you’re a basketball purist with a deep appreciation of the art of playing defense in an emotion filled playoff atmosphere you surely would have been pleased to discover that the game is still played with that emphasis in some high school sectors. The build up to the battle between top ranked Presbyterian and second ranked East Rankin proved it wasn’t just hype but rather a prelude to what was to come. The best in what girls high school basketball has to offer was in full display before a jam packed and deafening crowd in the Coach Billy Rhodes Gymnasium on the campus of East Rankin Academy.
East Rankin had battled back from being down six points halfway through the final quarter in a game where points were at a premium to earn a 36-32 win in an all out war. In a game that pitted the best two players in MAIS girls basketball, Brooke Rhodes of East Rankin and Katye Magee of Presbyterian, the biggest shot came from East Rankin guard Brianna May who canned a 3-pointer from the corner with 39 seconds remaining to give the Lady Patriots a lead they would not relinquish. (Above) Erin Holifield (#20) of Presbyterian defended by Bridget Byrd (#10) and Brooke Rhodes (#23) of East Rankin
Brooke Rhodes got East Rankin off to an early 2-0 lead as the senior converted a steal in the backcourt into an easy lay-in two minutes into the opening quarter. That 2-0 lead remained unchanged until the 2:16 mark when Rachel Knight canned an 8 foot jumper from the baseline to put the Lady Patriots on top 4-0. Presbyterian scored their first basket of the game on the next possession as Katye Magee drained a 17 footer from the wing to cut the lead in half at 4-2 with 2:06 remaining in the first quarter. While just three combined baskets were scored in the first 7:50 of the quarter the last ten seconds included an Erin Holifield offensive rebound and put back to tie the game at 4-4 with just 10 seconds on the clock and with time winding down East Rankin’s Rachel Knight hit a jumper from 7 feet to give the Lady Patriots a 6-4 advantage heading into the second quarter. (Above) East Rankin timeout late in the fourth quarter
Erin Holifield started the second quarter with a quick basket and then hit a turnaround jumper from the block to put the Lady Bobcats up 8-6 at the 6:41 mark. East Rankin answered with five straight points as Kaitlyn Coghlan went baseline for a basket, Rachel Knight pulled down an offensive rebound and scored and Brooke Rhodes converted on one of two free throws to put the Lady Patriots back on top 11-8. With just under two minutes remaining in the half Katye Magee nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the key to knot things up at 13-13. The half would end with a Brianna May jumper from the free throw line and Erin Holifield’s basket off an offensive rebound with the score 15-15.
Neither team displayed any signs of retreat to begin the second half as each possession seemed to have players diving for a loose ball. Brianna May’s 3-pointer from the wing and a Brooke Rhodes free throw gave East Rankin a slim 19-15 advantage three minutes into the third quarter. Presbyterian regained the lead at 20-19 with 54 seconds remaining in the quarter when Erin Holifield knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing and a Katye Magee driving basket with 7 seconds left gave the Lady Bobcats their biggest lead at 22-19 to end the quarter. (Above) Presbyterian grabbed a six point lead midway through the fourth quarter
Presbyterian threatened to pull away in the opening minutes of the final quarter as Magee hit a 3-pointer from the wing for a 25-19 lead but Brianna May countered with a 3-pointer of her own on the next possession to pull East Rankin back to within three points at 25-22 with 7:21 remaining. Presbyterian took a 30-24 lead at the 4:19 mark when Trista Magee hit a 3-pointer from the corner. The Lady Bobcats maintained a lead for 7:21 of the fourth quarter but with 39 seconds remaining, and Presbyterian clinging to a 32-30 lead, junior guard Brianna May calmly canned a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Lady Patriots a 33-32 lead causing a deafening response from the East Rankin crowd. (Above) Brooke Rhodes looking to get the ball to Rachel Knight (#35) in the post
After Presbyterian failed in their attempt to retake the lead Bridget Byrd was fouled and hit one of two free throws to put East Rankin up 34-32 with 19 seconds remaining. Following a Presbyterian time-out Erin Holifield’s drive and shot attempt rolled off the side rim with 9 seconds left and Brooke Rhodes pulled down the rebound and was immediately fouled. Rhodes sank both free throws to seal a 36-32 win.
Rhodes of East Rankin led all scorers with 12 points, Brianna May added 11, Rachel Knight and Kaitlyn Coghlan had 6 each and Bridget Byrd 1.
For Presbyterian Erin Holifield had 11 points, Katye Magee added 10, Alex Bradley and Erin Smith had 4 each and Trista Magee 3.
With the win East Rankin improves to 26-2 overall and will take on Jackson Prep on Tuesday.
Presbyterian slips to 19-6 and will be at Bay High also on Tuesday. (Above) East Rankin's Rachel Knight (#35) defended by Erin Holifield of Presbyterian
Post game comments:
East Rankin head coach Michael McAnally
“Physical and a little ugly are the two things that come to mind for me and not a lot of scoring. We’ve had these kinds of contests with Presbyterian in the past where there’s just not a lot of scoring. Both teams defend so well and the atmosphere and adrenaline kind of makes things ugly in the first half. I think you saw some of that tonight until the teams settled down. We just had a terrible time getting shots because they defended so well.”
What was the mindset near the end of the game?
“We went down six points at one point 25-19 and it was hard for us to get into any flow on offense. We just needed someone to step up and make plays. I thought Brianna May played outstanding. She hit a big three late in the game that gave us the lead and she was really big. The stars, the Brooke Rhodes and Katye Magee’s, kind of balance each other out but the role players are the ones that have to step up and Brianna May really did that for us tonight.”
What does this kind of win do for your team going forward?
“It gives us a lot of confidence going forward. We’re two pretty good teams. There are a lot of good teams and you never know what’s going to happen, but there’s a pretty good chance that we’ll see each other again. You don’t want to say you went 0-2 in the regular season against them so it balances things out. Our team knows we can beat them and our team knows we can play better. I’m sure Coach Bilderback will say the same thing. We just have to learn to be a little sharper and I thought there were times we gave up some easy baskets. We didn’t take advantage of some easy looks down low that we have to make and we had some defensive breakdowns but give them credit for putting that kind of pressure on us.”
Could it have gotten any louder today?
“It was pretty funny, when we talked about our new seating we wondered if we would ever need it. I think today proved that we did. If not for the new seating this place would have been really full. A lot of fun today, two good basketball teams and two passionate fan bases. This is what makes my job and your job and just high school basketball so special.”

ERA...6...9...4...17...36

PCS...4...11..7...10...32

(Photo at top of page) East Rankin's Brianna May (#24)

Bobcats shifting gears as postseason plays approaches

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

The Presbyterian Bobcats are shifting gears as post-season play rapidly approaches as was displayed Saturday evening in a 51-25 win over East Rankin in Pelahatchie. Hayden Eustachy led all scorers with a game high 22 points as the Bobcats jumped out to an early lead en-route to improving their season mark to 19-5 with two games remaining before post season plays cranks up.
Sophomore Tyler Rhodes hit a 17 foot jumper for an early East Rankin lead but Hayden Eustachy canned a 3-pointer off the glass at the buzzer to cap off a Presbyterian 10-0 run to finish the opening quarter on top 10-2. (Above) Cade Martin (#25) of Presbyterian pulls down an offensive rebound
The Bobcats increased their lead to 19-2 on a James Akers basket at the 5:51 mark of the second quarter. Presbyterian grabbed their biggest lead of 33-10 on an Akers assist to Hunter Hawkins with 6 seconds remaining in the half. Tyler Rhodes was fouled attempting a 3-pointer at the buzzer and canned all three free throws as the Patriots trailed 33-13 at the halfway point.
Presbyterian maintained their twenty point margin as they entered the final quarter with a 43-23 advantage and went on to grab a 51-25 win.
Hayden Eustachy led the Bobcats with 22 points, Hunter Hawkins added 8, James Akers 7, Dan Rust 6, Cade Martin 4 and Drew Deen and Gage Garner had 2 apiece.
Tyler Rhodes led East Rankin with 8 points, Thomas Flickner had 6, Mathew Toal 4, Dylan Cross, Spencer Shoemaker and Tyler Gray 2 each and Blake Hill 1.
The Patriots slipped to 13-12 with the loss and will be at Jackson Prep on Tuesday before finishing out the regular season schedule at home on Friday night against Copiah on senior night.

(Above) East Rankin's Tyler Rhodes (#11) with a first half drive

Post game comments:

Presbyterian head coach Gary Harris
“We were struggling coming into tonight offensively. I thought tonight we looked more like we did earlier in the season, we got our rhythm back. We defended well and rebounded really well in the first half, that’s what was able to give us the lead early. I’ve been on our guys about rebounding, we’ve been wanting to run and I told them we cannot run if we don’t rebound. Tonight I thought we did a better job of rebounding the ball.”
A couple of your guys got banged up a bit tonight, what's their status?

"They're fine. This time of year it’s going to happen. They (ERA) were down and they had to gamble a little bit but nothing was vicious or dirty they were just trying to scramble and make things happen and our guys have to do a better job protecting the ball when they drive. There are hands in there and we have to work on that.”

Who's up next for Presbyterian?
"We have two public schools, Bay High on Tuesday and Hancock on Friday. Bay High was ranked #1 in 4-A for awhile and they’re a very good team. They beat Purvis by about 40 points and we struggled with Purvis so it’s going to be a test, but it will be fun going to play them on their senior night. Our guys will just get after it and it will help us for our tournament. Then we have Hancock High on Friday for senior night at our place, so two good public school teams which will really test us going into the tournament."

PCS...10...23...10...8...51

ERA...2....11...10....2...25

Leake cruises past Columbia

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

The Leake Rebelettes rolled into Columbia to take on the Columbia Lady Cougars on Friday night in the last game of the regular season for both teams before district tournament action starts. The defending overall champions battered injury stricken Columbia 75-57 to improve to 28-2 on the season. Senior Emily Kea led Leake with 15 points and was one of four starters to hit double figures in the road win.
Olivia Ryals got the Lady Cougars on the board early as the senior hit a basket off the glass for a 2-0 Columbia lead. Ryals has been sidelined most of the season with a knee injury and returned for senior night. The Lady Cougars grabbed the lead again at 4-2 on an Ashton Scarborough bucket with two minutes gone in the opening quarter but Leake reeled of 12 straight points (9 from Emily Kea) to take a 14-4 lead at the 4:08 mark. With under one minute remaining in the opening quarter, and Leake enjoying a 22-7 advantage, freshman point guard Hannah Peoples hit three baskets, the last a 3-pointer from the corner as time expired, to extend the Leake lead to 29-7 after one quarter of play.

(Above) Leake senior Emily Kea (#15) led the Rebelettes with 15 pts
Leake outscored Columbia 14-2 the first four minutes of the second quarter as the Rebelettes took their biggest lead of the night at 43-9 en-route to a 75-57 win.
Emily Kea led Leake with 15 points, Char’Lesa Tadlock added 14, Hannah Peoples 13, Jenny Wilbanks 12, Kelsey Harvey 6, Shelby Howard and Cheyenne Evans 4 each, Jessi Powers 3 and Shelbi Horn and Anna Crawford 2 apiece.
Ashton Scarborough had a game high 21 points to pace Columbia. Olivia Ryals, Lauren Williamson, Sissy Price and Hannah Martin all had 8 each and Clare Herring added 4.
The Lady Cougars fell to 15-11 with the loss and will take on Bowling Green next Friday in district 4AA tournament play.

LA...29...24...20....2....75
CA....7...18...10....22...57

Second half surge propels Columbia

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

The Columbia Cougars overcame a sloppy first half to take a 73-55 win over the Leake Rebels on Friday night in Columbia. Christian Robbins and Drew Broome combined for 40 points and 28 rebounds as the tenth ranked Cougars improved 16-8.
Leake got out to a fast 7-2 start after a Jonathan Ware basket just two minutes into the first quarter. After the Rebels took a 14-8 advantage on Grant Wilson’s 17 foot jumper Columbia reeled off a 7-0 run to take their first lead of the night at 15-14 with 1:23 left in the quarter. Leake answered with 3-pointers from Ryan Sessums and Aaron Shepard to close the first quarter with a 20-15 lead.

(Above) Drew Broome (#10) of Columbia with a finger roll basket against Leake
After a Taylor Fortenberry basket to start the second quarter pulled Columbia to within three points at 20-17. Leake took their biggest lead of the night at 23-17 on a Wesley Webb 3-pointer from the wing at the 7:33 mark. Columbia then exploded for nine straight points as Drew Broome hit a baseline jumper, Cole Oglesbee converted a steal into a basket, Tanner Pace nailed a jumper from the elbow and Christian Robbins hit a bucket plus one to put the Cougars up 26-23 with 5:38 left in the half. With Columbia on top 29-28 it was Leake who finish the half with a run. The Rebels ended the last 3:24 of the half with nine straight points to take a 37-29 halftime lead over the home-standing Columbia Cougars. (Above) Columbia's Tanner Pace (#21) nails a 3-pointer
Leake started the third quarter with a Wesley Webb 15 footer and a 3-pointer from Ryan Sessums that gave Leake their biggest lead at 42-29 just one minute into the second half. With four minutes left in the quarter and Leake maintaining a healthy 43-34 lead Columbia began chipping away. Drew Broome’s tip in and a Tanner Pace 3-pointer from the wing at the 3:25 mark pulled the Cougars to within three points at 43-40. Christian Robbins followed with a jumper from the elbow to make it 43-42 and with one minute remaining in the third quarter Columbia regained the lead at 46-45 on a Robbins basket from the baseline. The Cougars finished the quarter with a Pace 15 foot jumper and a Drew Broome offensive rebound and put back to take a 50-45 lead into the final quarter.
Columbia quickly got out to a 54-46 lead on a basket from Robbins and a driving finger roll bucket from Drew Broome two minutes into the quarter. Columbia extended their lead to 65-50 on a Taylor Fortenberry baseline drive with 2:33 remaining as the Cougars outscored Leake 23-9 in the fourth quarter to take a 73-55 win. (Above) Columbia center Christian Robbins (#0) had a game high 21 points
Christian Robbins led the way for Columbia with 21 points and 15 rebounds, Drew Broome added 19 points and 13 rebounds, Tanner Pace had 11, Taylor Fortenberry 8, Cole Oglesbee 7, Brooks Robinson 3 and Blake Dunaway 2.
For Leake, Ryan Sessums had 17 points, Wesley Webb added 14, Grant Wilson 10, Aaron Shepard 7, Austin Shepard 3 and Dustin Cullen and Jonathan Ware 2 apiece.
Leake slipped to 12-16 with the loss.
Next up for both squads will be district tournament action.

CA...15...14...21...23...73
LA...20...17....9....9....55

Hillcrest mauls East Rankin

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

East Rankin was in a bad position last night. The Patriots had the daunting task of playing at second ranked Hillcrest two days after the Cougars were upset 63-55 on the road by Canton. It didn’t take long for Hillcrest to leave little doubt that they were in no mood for another upset as the Cougars dismantled East Rankin 66-32 on senior night. Point guard Josh Rogers led all scorers with 22 points as Hillcrest improved to 23-3 with just one game remaining before the district 3AA tournament begins next week. (Above) Josh Rogers (#5) of Hillcrest led all scorers with 22 pts
Hillcrest started as though they were shot out of a cannon in racing out to an 11-2 lead just three minutes into the opening quarter. The Cougars converted three early East Rankin turnovers into baskets and Preston Haynes drained an early 3-pointer from the wing to help propel a smooth transition game to an early lead. The onslaught continued as Hillcrest grabbed a rebound off an East Rankin shot and quickly threw an outlet pass to Josh Rogers who lofted a soft floater in the lane for a 13-2 Cougar lead. Rogers put Hillcrest up 16-2 on their next possession as the southpaw hit all bottom for a 3-pointer from the corner at the 3:25 mark. East Rankin closed the gap to 23-12 on a Spencer Shoemaker assist to Brian Boyles and Tyler Rhodes hit a shot off the glass plus one to end the first quarter.
Hillcrest opened the second quarter with thirteen straight points as five different players contributed to give the Cougars a 38-12 advantage with 1:04 left in the half. Tyler Madden’s two free throws got East Rankin on the board in the quarter with 55 seconds remaining but Austin Hartzog finished with a basket from the elbow and one of two free throws to give Hillcrest their biggest lead of the game at 41-14 entering the halfway point. (Above) Chris Prather (#22) of Hillcrest launches a 3-pointer
Hillcrest picked up right where they left off to start the third quarter as the Cougar pressure defense made it difficult on the East Rankin offensive sets. Josh Rogers nailed another 3 –pointer just one minute into the quarter to put Hillcrest up 44-14. A Remarcus Stallings assist to Chris Prather closed out the third quarter with Hillcrest on top 59-28.
Hillcrest emptied the bench in the final quarter as the Cougars rolled to a 66-32 home win on senior night. Josh Rogers led all scorers with 22 points, Austin Hartzog and Preston Haynes each had 11, Chris Prather added 6 and Spencer Burroughs 2.
“We played well defensively tonight, lots of forced turnovers” said Hillcrest head coach James Crain. “Offensively we did okay but we can get better, a lot of kids played tonight. We’ve been consistent the whole season and if we can remain that way we’ll be successful when tournament play starts.”
Tyler Gray led East Rankin with 7 points, Mathew Toal and Tyler Madden added 5 each, Brian Boyles had 4, Dylan Cross and Tyler Rhodes 3 apiece and Reed Davis 2.
East Rankin slips to 13-11 with the loss and will host Presbyterian on Saturday.
Hillcrest travels to Jackson Prep Saturday.

HC...23...18...18...7...66

ER...12.....2...14...4...32

East Rankin girls earn road win

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

Winning at Hillcrest Christian isn’t an easy task but the East Rankin Lady Patriots earned a hard fought 49-40 road win over Hillcrest to avenge last year’s loss on the Lady Cougar’s home-court. Kaitlyn Coghlan had a game 23 points and Brooke Rhodes added 15 as East Rankin improved to 25-2 on the season. The table is now set for a huge AAA battle this Saturday as top ranked Presbyterian visits Pelahatchie to take on #2 ranked East Rankin.
Hillcrest found themselves down 11-4 following a Kaitlyn Coghlan 3-pointer from the wing at the 2:04 mark of the opening quarter but the Lady Cougars got a 12 foot jumper from Breanna Howard and a basket from Beverly Bailey to close out the quarter down 11-8.

(Above) Breanna Howard (#12) of Hillcrest defended by Brooke Rhodes (#23)
Rachel Knight’s baseline jumper from 12 feet pushed the East Rankin lead to 13-8 to open up the second quarter. The Lady Patriots extended their lead to 21-12 after Kaitlyn Coghlan hit a 3-pointer from the corner and then nailed a jumper from the elbow after a Hillcrest turnover at the 3:47 mark of the second quarter. East Rankin enjoyed their biggest lead of the half at 27-15 following two Brooke Rhodes free throws with 27 seconds remaining. Breanna Howard’s basket in the paint with 6 seconds left kept Hillcrest to within ten points at 27-17 as the half ended.
It didn’t take long for Hillcrest to cut into East Rankin’s halftime advantage as Karly Kliesch started the third quarter on fire. The senior nailed two 3-pointers from the top of the key in less than a minute and a half to pull the Lady Cougars to within four points at 27-23. Following a Kaitlyn Coghlan 17 footer that pushed East Rankin’s lead back to six at 29-23 Kliesch struck again. This time from the wing to narrow the margin to 29-26 with 4:54 left in the third quarter. Anna Posey made it a 29-28 game after converting an East Rankin turnover into a 10 foot jumper to complete a Hillcrest 11-2 run to start the second half. Hillcrest pulled even with East Rankin at 32-32 on a Beverly Bailey drive with 2:49 left in the quarter but Rachel Knight’s 6 footer with 9 seconds remaining gave the Lady Patriots a 34-32 lead heading into the final quarter. (Above) Beverly Bailey (#24) of Hillcrest works for an open shot
Bailey’s floater in the lane knotted the game up at 34-34 to start the fourth quarter but Kaitlyn Coghlan hit a 3-pointer and sank one of two free throws as East Rankin eased back out to a 38-34 lead at the 5:40 mark. Hillcrest fired right back with consecutive baskets from Breanna Howard and Jessica Griffin to tie the game at 38-38 but East Rankin would outscore Hillcrest 11-2 the final 2:38 to seal up a 49-40 road win. The Lady Patriots finished the final two minutes going 8/10 from the free throw line along with a Brooke Rhodes 3-pointer from the corner.
“Our play wasn’t real sharp tonight but this is a hard place to play, they beat us here last season,” said East Rankin head coach Michael McAnally. “We don’t match up well with them but I’m proud of our girls. Our zone defense was really good for us tonight.” (Above) East Rankin's Brianna May (#24) splits two Hillcrest defenders
Kaitlyn Coghlan led all scorers with 23 points, Brooke Rhodes added 15, Rachel Knight 5 and Kaila Knight, Bridget Byrd and Brianna May had 2 apiece.
For Hillcrest Breanna Howard finished with 12 points, Karly Kliesch added 10, Beverly Bailey had 9, Jessica Griffin 5 and Anna Posey 4.
Next up for East Rankin is Presbyterian on Saturday in Pelahatchie.
Hillcrest falls to 17-8 and will be at Jackson Prep on Saturday. ER...11...16...7...15...49
HC....8.....9...15...8...40
(Photo at top of page) Brooke Rhodes (#23) of East Rankin being defended by Jaden Goff (#14) of Hillcrest

Apaches top River Oaks, 58-35
Courtesy of The Minden Press-Herald

The Glenbrook Apaches took control of their destiny in district play with a 58-35 win over River Oaks Tuesday night. The Apaches can win district by winning their last two district games.
Tuesday night, Glenbrook jumped out early and rolled to the win over a team that had beaten them the last time they played.
“River Oaks may have been a little off last night, but we were able to capitalize on that,” Glenbrook head coach Chris Kourvelas said. “The last time we played, they were on and we were off, this time that was reversed. But that’s how the game is played sometimes.”
Glenbrook led 14-8 after the first quarter and then took a 26-16 lead into the locker room at the half. The Apaches out-scored the Mustangs 22-16 in the third and 10-3 in the fourth to take the win.
“We played a very good team tonight, Kourvelas said. “They made a few runs on us, but we kept pushing them back in the water. I feel like if you can push a team back in the water like that, it’s a good quality for your team to have.”
Colton Spurlock led the Apaches, as he recorded a double-double. Spurlock scored 13 points, pulled down 11 rebounds and added eight assists. Blake Branch and Thomas Beam each scored 11 points and DeAngelo McDonald grabbed 10 rebounds.
“Winning is tough in our district,” Kourvelas said. “We’ve got two more district games and we just have to take care of business.”

.

Comments:

From Anonymous,

In order for GB to win the district outright, they would have to win their final two district games and RO would have to lose one of their last two district games. If both teams win out, then the two will meet up at a neutral site and play for a third time to determine the first and second place in the district.

From FAN,

Is the above post by Anonymous correct? Or an opinion/suggestion?

Anonymous said...
The above post is indeed a fact. RO destroyed GB at home and GB destroyed RO at GB. If both teams win out then they will be tied for first place with one loss a piece. A tie breaker game will be played between the two to determine the champ.
Anonymous said...
Surely there is a tiebreaker in this district. If not, the MAIS has a tiebreaker for each district to follow.

PLEASE FAX DISTRICT TOURNAMENT BRACKETS TO 985-732-9306

Gray reaches milestone at Brookhaven

Southern Sports & Travel

On January 23, 2010, a milestone was achieved at Copiah Academy when Brookhaven coach Barry Gray chalked up his 700th high school girls win of his career. As a Brookhaven senior, Barry helped lead the Cougars to the school's first state championship. After graduating from Brookhaven Academy and the University of Mississippi, Barry began his coaching career at Hillcrest Christian School then moved on to coach girls at Winston Academy, coached boys at Indianola Academy, and coached girls and boys at Kirk Academy before returning to his alma-mater where he has spent the last 15 years helping put the Lady Cougars on the map by repeatedly capturing championships. His coaching career in the MAIS basketball association is 702 wins with only 150 losses. At Brookhaven alone he has captured 6 state titles and 1 Overall title leading the Lady Cougars to their only undefeated season in the school's history at 43-0. His overall high school career in boys and girls is 801 wins and only 201 losses. Included in those wins are:

*20 District Championships

*10 North and South State Championships

*6 State Championships

*Perfect undefeated season in 2004.

He has also had the privilege of coaching the MAIS All star game on 6 occasions. If ask about his coaching career you wouldn’t hear him quote the numbers or the championships achieved, he would say what a humbling experience and a blessing from the Lord it has been to have the opportunity to lead young athletes in their journey toward the REAL victory in life, their relationship with Jesus Christ.

His current girls squad at Brookhaven is the top ranked team in AA with a 22-3 record.

(Above) Brookhaven girls head coach Barry Gray with wife Lindy

*(Photo at top of page) Headmaster Herbert Davis making a presentation during the ceremony

Raiderettes defense Marshall

Courtesy of The Grenada Star
At the end of the first quarter of Saturday’s Kirk-Marshall Academy game at Holly Springs, the Raiderettes had allowed 12 points. Coach Mike Reans didn’t haven’t talk to his team about their play on the defensive side.“The first thing they said when they came to the huddle was, ‘that was way too many points." Reans said. “They knew what needed to be done and went out and did it.” The Raiderettes allowed just a point in the second period and only 10 points in the second half en route to a 32-23 victory.

Kirk improved to 25-1 overall and a perfect 8-0 inside District 1-AA. “It was one of those game that we knew that we had to go out and execute,” Reans said. “Our girls knew that it was going to be a grind and we had to be able to weather the storm. They came out and made the plays down the stretch to win.” It was a significant win for the Raiderettes coming on the road. Over the year’s it has always been a tough place for them to get a win. “Anytime, you can go up there and get a win, it is big,” Reans said. “We will take it an move on to the next one.” Courtney Parella paced all scorers with 17 points. Holly Wells had seven points and Beth Mann finished with four points. Carmen Woods scored two points. Kelsey Marter and Jordan Rutland each had a point.

Kirk turns their attention to a match up with Class AAA foe Pillow. The two teams have split two games earlier this season. “Pillow is playing really well right now,” Reans said. “They are coming off a big win against Jackson Prep. We will go back to work and get ready to play.”

Oliphant explodes for 36 as Lady Spartans squash Trinity

Courtesy of Marq Mitcham

Caroline Oliphant gunned in 36 points as the Prairie View Lady Spartans dismantled Trinity Episcopal 54-33 Monday night at Spartan Gym. With Logan Tubbs, the team’s only other senior and second-leading scorer out of the lineup after undergoing surgery to have her appendix removed last week, the brunt of the offensive load fell on Oliphant. And did the 5-4 fifth-year starter ever respond. Single-handedly outscoring the Lady Saints, Oliphant scored the Lady Spartans’ first 13 points and finished the night 12-of-20 from the floor, including a sizzling 6-of-7 from 3-point range. While Oliphant was the offensive catalyst, she had plenty of help on the defensive side of the floor as the Lady Spartans contested nearly every shot and forced a myriad of turnovers. “That was as good of an effort as we’ve had all year,” said Prairie View coach Dave Farrell. “We played well and played together. We had a great defensive effort. That’s a good basketball team we played tonight.” Trinity certainly had the Lady Spartans attention after winning the previous matchup 41-36 in Natchez on Jan. 5. Since then, the Lady Spartans (18-4) have won six straight. Trinity led 2-0 and 4-2 in the early going, but Oliphant soon took the game into her own hands. Draining an open 3 on the kickout pass from Jerri Ann Lord, Oliphant put the Lady Spartans ahead to stay. On the Lady Spartans next possession, Oliphant connected for 3 more — this time on a contested shot from the left baseline. After Trinity’s Sarah Bryan scored from down low, Oliphant stroked her third consecutive trey to put the Lady Spartans up 11-6. Rosie Woods’ transition bucket again closed the gap to 3, but Oliphant’s jumper from the free throw line and Lord’s 3 off the glass at the buzzer staked Prairie View to a 16-8 lead at the end of the quarter. Trinity got back into the game on the strength of a 6-0 run to start the second quarter. Madelyn Cross finished a drive off of a nice move and Bethany Ogden added a pair of transition buckets to bring the Lady Saints within 16-14. Prairie View responded by outscoring Trinity 11-3 over the final five minutes of the half. With the Lady Spartans leading 20-16, Kristin Kindrix’s steal set up Oliphant on the break. Moments later, Oliphant lit up her fourth 3 of the half to put Prairie View up by nine, 25-16, with just under two minutes to play in the half. Prairie View carried a 27-17 edge into the break and Trinity never closed within double digits in the second half. Lord’s layup widened the spread to 39-24 going into the fourth quarter. Prairie View gradually added to its lead throughout the final frame. Oliphant snatched a team-high seven rebounds and five steals to go along with her 36 points. Molly Gregory took up the slack for Tubbs’ absence inside with nine points. Trinity (15-8) received 14 points from Ogden.

Prairie View resumes MAIS District 6-2A play tonight at 6 p.m. in Pineville against Cenla Christian.

Brookhaven edges Bowling Green in thriller
Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
Last night’s district 4AA matchup between top ranked Brookhaven and third ranked Bowling Green appeared to be just another game on the onset but by the time the first half had ended it had the feel of a state title game as the intensity and emotions had everyone in attendance engulfed in a classic battle between the two rivals. In the end Brookhaven edged Bowling Green 58-54 to seal up the number one seed in the upcoming district 4AA tournament at Columbia.
Turnovers plagued Brookhaven in the opening quarter and Bowling Green’s transition game was clicking as the Buccaneers got out to a 12-6 lead at the 4:23 mark following baskets from Shod Fortenberry and Colton Owens off consecutive Brookhaven turnovers. Bowling Green quickly increased that lead to 18-6 on two straight 3-pointers from freshman Mack McElveen. With 2:01 left in the first quarter Brookhaven’s Bubba Keene stopped the bleeding a bit as he hit on two free throws but a Jaron Edwards 12 foot jumper and another McElveen 3-pointer gave Bowling Green a 23-8 lead after one quarter of play.

(Above) Bowling Green's attempt to tie the game fell short in the closing seconds
Brookhaven opened the second quarter with baskets from Bubba Keene and Jake Reed to trim the deficit to 23-12. Bowling Green answered with five straight points on a Dylan Varnado drive and 3 of 4 free throws from Colton Owens for the Buccaneer’s biggest lead at 28-12 with nearly two minutes gone in the quarter. At the 5:29 mark of the second quarter Owens picked up his third foul with Bowling Green up 28-14 and left the game. Just 18 seconds later Bowling Green center Shod Fortenberry was tagged with a third foul and the momentum began to swing to the Cougars. Jaron Edwards nailed a 3-pointer to put Bowling Green up 33-18 with 4:23 left in the half but Brookhaven made a furious 15-0 run that went unanswered. Jake Reed hit a 3-pointer from the wing with 2:20 left, Jamison Powell converted on one of two free throws, Reed converted a basket plus one with 1:47 remaining, Brock Smith pulled down an offensive rebound and sank a floater in the lane and then hit two free throws following a Bowling Green turnover with 23 seconds left in the half to pull the Cougars to within four points at 33-29. Bubba Keene’s steal and lay-in with 19 seconds left in the half made it 33-31 and it seemed as though the half would end with Bowling Green up two but Jake Reed rebounded a Bowling Green miss and went the length of the floor for a lay-in at the buzzer to tie the game at 33-33 as the Brookhaven fans exploded.

(Above) Sydney Chaffin of Brookhaven gets off a jumper in the first half
Brookhaven opened the third quarter with a Jamison Powell 3-pointer from the top of the key to give the Cougars their first lead of the game at 36-33. Bowling Green’s Mack McElveen hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game to knot things up at 36-36 but the Buccaneer’s foul trouble began to mount as Shod Fortenberry drew his fourth foul with 6:25 left in the third quarter. Brookhaven held a narrow 41-40 lead after Bubba Keene hit one of two free throws with 3:28 on the clock but Bowling Green jumped on top once more at 44-41 after four straight points from McElveen. Brookhaven finished the third quarter as they did the second….with a run. Brock Smith and Bubba Keene hit buckets to put the Cougars back up 45-44 with just over a minute left in the quarter. Jamison Powell added on two free throws and Jake Reed converted a Bowling Green turnover into a basket with 3 seconds left to give Brookhaven their biggest lead at 49-44 to end the quarter.
The fourth quarter sent emotions and the intensity level up a notch as both the players and the crowd sensed that two of the best AA boy’s basketball teams were on display in a tension packed playoff atmosphere. Bowling Green struck first on a Dylan Varnado assist to Shod Fortenberry followed by a Jaron Edwards 3-pointer to tie the game at 49-49. Brock Smith converted on both ends of a one and one to put the Cougars back up 51-49 with 6:20 left to play but Bowling Green answered with two baskets from Fortenberry and a Varnado free throw for a 54-51 Buccaneer cushion with five minutes left in the game. That would be Bowling Green’s last lead as Sydney Chaffin hit a jumper from just inside the 3-point line, Jamison Powell hit a free throw and Jake Reed hit one of two free throws after being fouled by Jaron Edwards. Edwards was assessed a technical after the foul which sent him to the bench with his fifth. Reed converted on one of two technical free throws and the Cougars retained possession with just 1:32 left in the game and a 56-54 lead. The drama continued as Brookhaven turned the ball over with 47 seconds left but a Bowling Green missed shot wound up quickly down court only to have Sydney Chaffin’s shot attempt in the paint rattle out and a scramble for the ball resulted in the Cougars knocking it out of bounds giving Bowling Green possession with 18 seconds remaining.
Following a Bowling Green timeout Dylan Varnado’s drive and attempt went off side rim but Shod Fortenberry pulled down the offensive rebound and he too was unable to convert as the ball scattered into the waiting hands of Bubba Keene who sealed the game with a lay-in at the other end just as the horn sounded for a thrilling 58-54 Brookhaven win.

(Above) Brookhaven's Jamison Powell drives on Jaron Edwards of Bowling Green
Jake Reed had a game high 20 points to lead Brookhaven, Bubba Keene added 13, Brock Smith 10, Sydney Chaffin 8 and Jamison Powell 7.
For Bowling Green Mack McElveen had 16 points, Jaron Edwards added 14, Shod Fortenberry chipped in with 10, Dylan Varnado and Colton Owens had 7 each and Dean King had 2.
“I thought Bowling Green came out more ready to play than we were,” said Brookhaven head coach Dale Watts. “They came out running and shooting well but we regrouped and got back in it by halftime and it was a dogfight the rest of the way.” When asked how these types of games prepare a team for the post-season Watts said, “We were coming off three easy games and those games often create more bad than good. We needed to see what we could do tonight, we played hard but not well, lot’s of mental mistakes.”
Brookhaven will be hosting Trinity this afternoon while Bowling Green (19-6 & 4-2) entertains Columbia in a district matchup.
BA….8….25…16….9.…58
BG…23..10..11..10….54

Lady Cougars stifle Bowling Green
Southern Sports and Travel, By Darron Thomas
The 2nd ranked Brookhaven Lady Cougars nailed down the top seed for the upcoming district 4AA tournament with a convincing 42-16 win over #6 Bowling Green. With the win Brookhaven improved to 20-3 overall and 7-0 in district play. Bowling Green started out with a Brittany Cooper 10 foot jumper from the baseline and a Beth Reedy 3-pointer from the wing for an early 5-1 lead with just over three minutes gone in the opening quarter. Brookhaven countered as Laura Beth Wright scored off an offensive rebound and then nailed a 3-pointer from the wing to put the Lady Cougars on top 6-5 at the 2:13 mark. Bowling Green finished the scoring in the first quarter on baskets from Whitney Crowe and Mackayla Dykes for a 9-6 advantage.

(Above) Bowling Green had trouble cracking the Brookhaven defense
Bowling Green increased their lead to 12-6 to open the second quarter as Brittany Cooper hit a 3-pointer at the 7:41 mark. On Brookhaven’s next four possessions it was all Anna Mangold. The junior went baseline and off the glass, scored on an assist from Anna Lofton, laid in a basket on an inbounds pass from Terah Winborne and hit a turnaround jumper from 8 feet to put the Lady Cougars up 14-12 with 5:30 left in the half. Bowling Green’s Mackayla Dykes went end-to end to tie the game at 14-14 but Brookhaven caught fire and finished the quarter with an 8-0 run to take a 22-14 halftime lead. In that run Mary Lindsey Magee hit a jumper from the free throw line, Anna Lofton converted on two free throws, Laura Beth Wright converted a backcourt steal into a basket and Magee had a tip in at the buzzer.

(Above) Anna Mangold (#33) of Brookhaven with two of her game high 16 points
The third quarter provided just eight points and unfortunately for Bowling Green they all came from Brookhaven. Anna Mangold continued her solid post play as she hit a basket off the glass to put the Lady Cougars up 24-14. Laura Beth Wright pushed the lead out to 27-14 with a 3-pointer at the 1:29 mark and Mangold went baseline for a bucket plus one as the third quarter ended with the home standing Lady Cougars on top 30-14.
Laken Adams scored Bowling Green’s first basket of the second half three minutes into the final quarter but Brookhaven’s pressure defense gave little ground as the Lady Cougars yielded just that one basket the entire second half of play. In the final quarter Mary Lindsey Magee bucketed six points to lead Brookhaven to a 42-16 district win.

(Above) Terah Winbrone (#14) of Brookhaven draws attention from Caroline Haik (#10) and Mackayla Dykes (#2) of Bowling Green
“Bowling Green got up early but after that I thought we guarded really good,” said Brookhaven head coach Barry Gray. “This was our best defensive game of the year and we had strong post play from Anna Mangold and Mary Magee.”
Anna Mangold led the Lady Cougars with a game high 16 points, Laura Beth Wright added 10 points and 8 rebounds, Mary Magee had 10 points and 7 rebounds and Anna Lofton, Meredith Allen and Haley Langston had 2 apiece.
Brookhaven will host Trinity today.
For Bowling Green Brittany Cooper had 5 points, Mackayla Dykes added 4, Beth Reedy 3 and Laken Adams and Whitney Crowe 2 each.
Bowling Green slips to 19-7 overall and 4-2 in district 4AA play and will host Columbia this afternoon.
BA…6…16…8…12…42
BG…9….5….0….2…16

Top ranked Presbyterian holds off Prep

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

Just six days ago the Presbyterian Lady Bobcats defeated then top ranked East Rankin 40-37. Since then Presbyterian has taken the top spot in AAA basketball and with the rest in between games they looked primed to tag a big loss on Jackson Prep in front of a big home crowd last night in Hattiesburg. The Lady Bobcats needed four quarters of intensity last night as they edged a determined Jackson Prep team 42-38 to improve to 17-5 and 8-0 in their division.
Both teams traded 3-pointers to start the opening quarter. Erin Holifield nailed a three for Presbyterian while Prep’s Betsy Baird did the same. With the game tied at 7-7 and just under three minutes left in the quarter Holifield converted on two free throws on consecutive possessions to put the Lady Bobcats up 11-7. Elizabeth Wade’s jumper from the free throw line closed out the quarter with Prep only down 11-9. Claire Thompson’s 12 foot jumper tied things up at 11-11 to start the second quarter. Presbyterian then put together a 7-2 run to take an 18-13 lead at the 3:02 mark of the quarter. Katye Magee and Erin Holifield hit two free throws each and Magee’s transition bucket plus one gave the Lady Bobcats the five point cushion. Jackson Prep stayed close as two Laura Lee Smith free throws and a Laurel Bane turnaround jumper in the paint helped the Lady Patriots head into the halftime break down just 21-17. (Above) Presbyterian's Erin Smith (#10) goes up for two of her four points.
Prep started the third quarter with five straight points as Betsy Baird hit a 3-pointer from the wing and Laura Lee Smith hit a jumper from the elbow to give the Lady Patriots a 22-21 lead, their first since 3:36 of the first quarter. Both squads traded baskets and with 4:46 left in the third quarter Prep enjoyed a slim 24-23 lead. That would prove to be their last lead of the night as Presbyterian got seven straight points from senior Shealy Molpus and a fast break bucket from Erin Smith to end the third quarter with a 9-0 run and a 32-24 lead.
That lead expanded to ten at 34-24 on an Erin Smith deuce to start the final quarter but Jackson Prep’s defensive pressure started paying dividends and the Lady Patriots trimmed the deficit to 36-32 on a Julia Wright basket at the 2:44 mark following a Presbyterian turnover. Laura Lee Smith hit two free throws one minute later to pull Prep to within two points at 36-34. Katye Magee hit two free throws to give Presbyterian a little breathing room at 38-34 at the 1:38 mark. Following a Jackson Prep turnover with one minute remaining Magee converted on two more free throws to increase the lead to 40-34. Prep went to the line and picked up two free throws from Laurel Bane for a 40-36 score with 33 seconds remaining. After Magee converted on one of two free throws Prep got to within three points at 41-38 when Elizabeth Wade hit an eight foot jumper with 13 seconds left. Presbyterian’s Erin Holifield iced the game with a free throw with just four seconds remaining to give the top ranked Lady Bobcats a hard fought 42-38 win. (Above) Katye Magee (#3) of Presbyterian and Prep's Elizabeth Wade battle for possession
“It was a good win for us,” said Presbyterian head coach Missy Bilderback. “We had an emotional win the other night (ERA) and tonight gives us two big wins back to back,” said Bilderback. “We’ve sealed up the #1 seed for our divisional tournament.”
Katye Magee had a game high 15 points to lead Presbyterian, Erin Holifield added 12 on the night, Shealy Molpus had 11 and Erin Smith 4.
Betsy Baird and Laura Lee Smith each had 10 points to lead Jackson Prep, Elizabeth Wade and Laurel Bane had 6 apiece, Julia Wright 4 and Claire Thompson 2.
With the loss Prep falls to 12-9 and 5-3. Next up for the Lady Patriots is a date with #3 MRA on Saturday in Jackson.

Presbyterian heads to Purvis for two varsity games on Saturday.

.

PC...11...10...11...10...42

JP....9.....8.....7...14...38

Strong second half propels Prep

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

Last night’s battle between the second and third ranked AAA teams was just that, a battle, but for only one half. Jackson Prep overcame a 36-35 halftime deficit to take a 71-51 road win over third ranked Presbyterian last night in Hattiesburg.
Senior Brannon Morris led the second ranked Patriots with 17 points as Prep improved to 20-3 which sets up a huge matchup this Saturday as top ranked MRA visits Jackson Prep. "We're looking forward to the challenge," said Prep head coach David Horner. “MRA has been at the top for some time and they’re ranked number one for a reason.”
Last night the Presbyterian Bobcats were looking to avenge a 51-49 loss to Prep back on January 5th in Jackson. Prep got out to an early 6-3 lead following a Lawrence Martin drive and lay-in at the 6:48 mark of the opening quarter. Presbyterian tied things up at 7-7 on a Hunter Hawkins basket in the paint and then grabbed their first lead at 8-7 on a Hayden Eustachy free throw with 5:08 left in the quarter. With both squads tied at 14-14 Presbyterian finished the quarter with a Eustachy 3-pointer from the wing with 24 seconds left to take a 17-14 lead after one quarter of play.

(Above) James Akers (#5) of Presbyterian drives on Cody McCain (#25) and Brannon Morris (#10) of Jackson Prep
Neither team managed more than a four point advantage in a second quarter that produced a tie and seven lead changes. Presbyterian went up 28-24 on a Gage Garner lay-in plus one with 3:38 left in the first half but Prep answered as Brannon Morris nailed a 3-pointer from the corner and converted on two free throws to give Prep a 29-28 lead. The Bobcats regained the lead as Gage Garner hit four free throws in the last 20 seconds of the half to send both teams in the locker-room with Presbyterian clinging to a 36-35 advantage.
Both squads started the second half much the same as the first and just under three minutes into the quarter the game was knotted up at 41-41. Prep then held Presbyterian scoreless the remainder of the quarter en-route to a 10-0 run in which four different players scored to put the Patriots up 51-41 with one quarter remaining.

(Above) Presbyterian's Hayden Eustachy (#1) led the Bobcats with 16 points
Hunter Hawkins went glass to start the fourth quarter for Presbyterian but Prep began to stretch the lead as Brannon Morris and Ben Lane hit 3-pointers from the wing to give Prep a 57-45 advantage at the 5:47 mark. Pack Toler’s driving bucket and another 3-pointer from Lawrence Martin gave the Patriots their biggest lead at 62-45 halfway through the final quarter as Jackson Prep went on to take a 71-51 win.
“We have lots of seniors with experience and tonight our guys finished strong,” said Horner. “This was a big road win for us and it insures us a number one seed heading into tournament play.”
Brannon Morris led Prep with 17 points, Lawrence Martin added 11, Pack Toler 10, Cody McCain 9, Emmett Manning 7, Drew Carter 6, Ben Lane 3 and De Graeber 2.
Presbyterian was led by Hayden Eustachy with 16 points, Gage Garner added 9, James Akers 8, Mitchell Moore 5 and Hunter Hawkins 4.
The Bobcats fell to 15-5 and will travel to Purvis on Saturday.

JP…14…21…16..20…71
PC…17…19…5….10…51

Thursday night recap......

*The Kirk Raiderettes improved to 24-1 on the season with a 51-21 home win over Carroll last night. Courtney Parella had a game high 12 points and Holly Wells added 11 (three 3’s) as the 3rd ranked Raiderettes had little resistance from the Lady Rebels. Kirk travels to Holly Springs on Saturday to take on district foe Marshall as they try to lock down the top seed in the upcoming district 1AA tournament to be held at Indianola.
Also scoring for Kirk on the night was Beth Mann with 7 points, Katie Lee Jones, Kelsey Marter, Jordan Rutland and Marah Evans all had 4 apiece, Carmen Woods and Emily Lundy had 2 each and Audra Woods had 1.
Carroll was led by Memie Corley with 10 points, Skylar Alford added 5, Kacy Beavers 4 and Faith McCorkle had 2.
With the loss Carroll slips to 10-11. Carroll will host Winston tonight in a district 2AA matchup.
*In the boy’s game Carroll improved to 17-4 with a 61-47 win over Kirk. Nick Mumme had a game high 21 points, including four 3-pointers, to lead the Rebels. CJ Hodges added 15 points, Breland Marett had 11, Hayden Harrell 7, Ken Daves 4, Justin Blaylock 2 and Andrew Wright 1.
Kirk slipped to 3-15 with the loss. The Raiders were led by Shane Provine with 13 points, James Henderson added 8, Will Thimmes and Kris Harbin had 7 each, Sayle Roberts 5, Reid Walker and Sam Denley 2 apiece.
*River Oaks earned a 79-63 road win over Franklin as the 5th ranked Mustangs improved to 14-2 on the season. Senior Martez Sellers led all scorers with 30 points, Vincent Moore recorded a triple-double as the junior scored 14 points, hauled down 12 rebounds, dished out 10 assists and had 5 steals, Slade Daniel added 12 points and 10 rebounds and Darryl Barnes chipped in with 11 points. The Mustangs travel to Bastrop tonight to take on Prairie View in a district 6AA confrontation.

Glenbrook tops PVA
Courtesy of the Minden Press-Herald
The Glenbrook Apaches beat the Prairie View Spartans, 58-41 Tuesday night to earn their first 2009-10 district win.
“We started off slow tonight, then we made some adjustments and the quarter break and then at the half,” Glenbrook head coach Chris Kourvelas said. “In the third quarter we came out and played a bit better.”
The Apaches trailed 11-10 after the first and then won each of the last three quarters (10-7, 17-12 and 21-11) to take the 58-41 win.
“We went on an 8-0 run in the third quarter and started to put them away,” Kourvelas said. Prairie View has a great team and we’ll have to play them again at their house in a couple of weeks. Winning is tough in our district and we’re just looking forward to the rest of our district schedule.”
Colton Spurlock led the Apaches with 23 points and eight rebounds and DeAngelo McDonald added eight points and 12 rebounds.

Glenbrook improved to 16-6 while Prairie View fell to 13-9.

From the notebook……….

*After crisscrossing Mississippi and Louisiana the past three weeks I’ve seen some quality teams that could wind up taking home some hardware next month in tournament play. Trips to Jackson, Carrollton, Batesville, Brookhaven, Columbia, Alexandria, McComb and Franklinton have afforded me the opportunity to see eight of the top ten AA boy’s teams in action and five of the top ten girl’s teams. I’ll see top ranked Leake play East Rankin in girl’s action this Thursday night and I desperately want to catch Kirk’s girls before the end of January. Next month could provide some fantastic tournament play as this season may prove to be one with lots of parity.
*What I’ve also had the privilege of seeing is some great young talent that everyone will be exposed to over the next handful of seasons. Four that I’ve seen this season come to mind. Last week I was at the Presbyterian/Parklane girl’s game and was amazed to see this seventh grader playing on what many consider the best team in the MAIS. I’m not talking about mop-up play in the fourth quarter, she logged lots of quality minutes. Trista Magee, sister of Katye Magee, is a name to remember. Three freshmen to keep a close eye on as they progress through the next three years are Hannah Peoples of Leake, Mackayla Dykes of Bowling Green and Aaron McAlexander of Marshall. Peoples started as an eight grader on last season’s overall girl’s title team. Dykes has started for Bowling Green since last season’s district tournament at Centreville and has put up some big numbers this year and McAlexander could be one the better players in the MAIS as he moves up to the varsity level at Marshall.
*The weekly poll that was posted on Southern Sports & Travel last week regarding the new playoff format was interesting. The question was “Do you think the new playoff format will be better?” There were 82 responses with 41 saying yes and 41 no.
*As tournament play approaches I’ll be updating scores and information via twitter. To receive updates during post season sign on to follow me. Just look on the sidebar near the bottom of the page.
*An open invitation still exists for anyone with a passion for writing to contribute to Southern Sports & Travel. A week never goes by that I don’t get a text or email offering information about
something but the challenge north of Jackson is big. Southern Sports & Travel will continue to grow through its’ current form or a new one, who wants to be a part of it?
*Here’s a big “get well soon” to River Oaks head coach Roger Stockton who has been a bit ill lately.
*Please text scores to 985-750-3455.

Marshall powers past North Delta

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

The fourth ranked Marshall Patriots improved to 16-6 with a 60-48 road win over North Delta on Saturday but more importantly they sit atop the district 1AA standings with a 5-1 mark. Sophomore guard Jordan Wyke had a game high 25 points and Jordan Brock added 14 as the Patriots nailed nine 3-pointers on the night.
Marshall got out to a 5-2 lead on a Jordan Brock basket and a Jordan Wyke 3-pointer from the wing. North Delta took a 6-5 at the 5:45 mark following two straight buckets from Jim Tom Copeland. Marshall went back up 11-9 on a John Tomlinson basket in the paint with 3:02 left in an opening quarter that had five ties and three lead changes. North Delta guard Bryan Nickle sliced through the Patriot defense for two consecutive baskets for a 13-11 Green Wave lead with just one minute remaining in the quarter. Marshall got a basket from Jake Omedeo on the Patriot’s next possession to tie it at 13-13 and both teams traded buckets to end the first quarter knotted up at 15-15. (Above) Jordan Wyke (#20) of Marshall with a 3-point jumper
Jake Omedeo’s 15 foot jumper at the four minute mark of the second quarter completed a Marshall 10-1 run to put the Patriots up 25-16. Corbin Baker hit a 3-pointer for North Delta at the 3:46 mark to make it 25-19 but Marshall’s Jordan Wyke was on fire as the sophomore hit 3-pointers from the wing on consecutive possessions to put the Patriots up 31-19. North Delta pulled back to within three points at 33-30 with 1:24 left in the half on eight straight points from guard Chris Brown. Marshall finished the quarter on a Jordan Brock transition basket with 24 seconds left that put the Patriots up 38-32 at the halfway point.
Marshall’s 3-point shooting barrage continued in the third quarter as Taylor Maurey and Jordan Wyke both nailed three’s to put the Pats up 44-32. Another Wyke 3-pointer at the 3:53 mark extended the lead to 47-34 and Marshall’s biggest lead. North Delta outscored Marshall 10-6 to close out the third quarter with a 53-44 deficit. (Above) Jim Tom Copeland (#24) of North Delta defended by Marshall's Jake Omedeo (#33)
Marshall claimed their biggest lead of the game at the 5:29 mark of the fourth quarter when Taylor Maurey hit the Patriot’s ninth 3-pointer of the night for a 58-44 advantage. Marshall held North Delta to four points in the final quarter en-route to a 60-48 win.
“I’m pleased with our performance tonight,” said Marshall head coach Craig Dailey. “Our intensity was good on the road.” The Patriots were without starting guard Caleb Byrd who has been sidelined with an MCL injury. “On offense we lulled a little with Caleb out but he should be back on Monday.”
Jordan Wyke led Marshall with a game high 25 points including six 3-pointers. Jordan Brock contributed with 14 points, Jake Omedeo added 11, Taylor Maurey 8 and Chase Ferrell 2. (Above) Jordan Wyke (#20) tries to shoot over North Delta's Corbin Baker (#12)
For North Delta, Jim Tom Copeland had 16 points, Chris Brown added 12, Bryan Nickle had 8, Derrick Shawn 5, Geri Lamm 4 and Corbin Baker 3 points.
Next up for Marshall is Memphis Home School while North Delta (11-7 & 4-2) travels to West Memphis on Tuesday.
MA…15…23…15…7…60
ND…15…17…12…4…48

North Delta takes district win over Marshall

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

North Delta earned a physical hard fought 34-25 win over Marshall on Saturday in Batesville. The Lady Green Wave, playing without starter Bradi Beard due to illness, played a ferocious man-to-man defense en-route to improving their overall mark to 17-10 and district record to 4-2.
North Delta took an early 2-0 lead on a Kourtney Norris offensive rebound and score. Marshall on got the board at the 6:31 mark on an Emily Burk assist to Chelsey Gilliam. The Lady Patriots would get an Emily Burk 3-pointer from the wing and a Burk 17 footer take a 10-7 lead into the second quarter. (Above) Sara Waldrip (#23) of North Delta nails a 3-pointer
North Delta tied the game at 10-10 on a Madison Greenlee 3-pointer from the wing one minute into the second quarter and the Lady Green Wave pressure defense began paying dividends as Laci DuBravec converted a Marshall turnover into a 3-pointer and a 13-10 lead at the 6:41 mark. Hanna Greenlee hit two free throws to put North Delta up 15-10 but a Kelsey Shaw 3-pointer kept Marshall close at 15-13 with just over three minutes left in the half. A Laci DuBravec free throw with two seconds left in the quarter gave North Delta a slim 16-13 halftime advantage.
The North Delta defense forced Marshall into turnovers on their first three possessions of the third quarter and Sara Waldrip and Linsey Hebert nailed consecutive 3-pointers to give the Lady Green Wave their biggest lead at 22-13 at the 4:10 mark. Callie Clanton provided the only scoring for Marshall in the quarter as the junior hit a 3-pointer and canned two free throws to keep the Lady Patriots close at 25-18 entering the final quarter.
Kelsey Shaw’s 3-pointer from the wing just ten seconds into the fourth quarter pulled Marshall to within four points at 25-21. Following a Laci Dubravec 3-pointer to put North Delta up 28-21, Emily Burk converted on two free throws and hit an eight footer from the baseline to make it a 28-25 game with 6:10 remaining. North Delta would hold Marshall scoreless the rest of the way as the Lady Green Wave went to the spread and hit 4/6 free throws down the stretch for the 34-25 district win. (Above) Kelsey Shaw (#22) of Marshall from the wing
“This was a big win for us tonight,” said North Delta head coach Phil Douglas. “Bradi Beard didn’t play due to illness and we had some last minute adjustments to make but the girls did a great job. This was a big district win for us over a good Marshall team. I have the utmost respect for Craig and the job he has done at Marshall.”
North Delta had balanced scoring from sophomore Laci DuBravec with 9 points, Sara Waldrip added 8, Madison Greenlee had 7, Lauren Kimzey and Linsey Hebert had 3 apiece and Kourtney Norris and Hanna Greenlee 2 each.
Marshall was led by Callie Clanton with 8 points, Emily Burk added 7, Kelsey Shaw had 5, Emma Elgin 3 and Chelsey Gilliam 2.

Marshall slips to 11-13 and 2-4 in district play.
ND…7…9…9…9…34
MA.10.3…5…7..25

(Above) Ceremony honoring North Delta girl's coach Phil Douglas on his 600th win

Raiderettes blast Lady Wave
Courtesy of The Grenada Star

Tuesday’s Kirk-North Delta girls game could have been named Ambush Game. The reason for that name was that the Raiderettes were coming off a 38-35 win over the Lady Green Wave to win the Kirk Invitational last weekend. It would have been easy to have a letdown. That didn’t happen, however. The Raiderettes raced to a 17-2 first period lead and never looked back winning 48-22. With the win, Kirk improves to 21-1 overall. “We talked with our team about pushing forward and not looking back,” Head Coach Mike Reans said. “I thought our girls came out and showed tremendous energy on both sides of the floor. They knew what they needed to do and responded well.” The Raiderettes kept the pressure on in the second period. Kirk outscored ND 10-3 in the second period to lead 27-5 at halftime. Kirk broke the game open in the third period outscoring North Delta 13-6. The Raiderettes put three players in double figures led by Holly Wells with 12 points. Courtney Parella and Carmen Woods each added 10 points. Kelsey Marter had eight points and Beth Mann chipped in a point. Jordan Rutland rounded out the scoring with two points.

Spartans take two from Cenla
Courtesy of The Bastrop Daily Enterprise

Receiving double figures scoring from four starters, Prairie View throttled Cenla Christian 69-20 Friday night at Spartan Gym to open MAIS District 6-2A play.
Prairie View settled the issue early by outscoring the Lady Lions 33-9 in the opening quarter.
“We played good defense tonight,” Prairie View coach Dave Farrell said. “We really got after them early.”
Steadily adding to the lead, the Lady Spartans were up 47-14 at intermission and 62-16 after three frames.
As usual, Caroline Oliphant had a stellar game for the Lady Spartans. Shooting 8-of-13 (4-of-6 from 2-point range and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc), the 5-4 senior point guard totaled 23 points with eight steals and five assists.
Sophomore forward Molly Gregory went double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
“Molly Gregory had a game,” Farrell said. “She was all over the boards. She was very active.”
Logan Tubbs, who shot 3-for-3 from the floor and 4-of-5 from the line, and Jerri Ann Lord added 10 points apiece as the Lady Spartans (15-4, 1-0) won their third straight.
Katie Dobernig paced the Lady Lions (6-5, 0-1) with seven points.
Robby Jones and Connor Smith teamed up for 35 points as Prairie View took care of Cenla Christian 60-47 Friday night at Spartan Gym in the MAIS District 6-2A opener for both schools.

Boys game..........
Leading from wire-to-wire, the Spartans raced to a 15-2 first quarter lead en route to snapping a three-game losing streak.
“Our guys played well, especially defensively,” Prairie View coach Billy Pee said. “We controlled the ball a little better than we had been.”
Prairie View maintained a 13-point edge (27-14) at halftime and bumped the margin to 42-24 at the end of three.
Cenla outscored the Spartans 23-18 in the fourth quarter, but the outcome was never in doubt.
“In the fourth quarter, we didn’t handle the situation real well,” Pee said. “But all-in-all, I thought our kids did a good job.”
Jones topped the Spartans’ page on the scorebook with 18 points and Smith furnished 17. For the Lions, David Ober had 15 points and Dan Green 14.
Prairie View (13-8, 1-0) visits Glenbrook on Tuesday, before returning to the home confines of Spartan Gym for a Friday date with River Oaks.

North Delta sweeps Carroll

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
The North Delta Green Wave rolled into Carrollton last night and left with a resounding 83-54 win over ninth ranked Carroll. Jim Tom Copeland and Geri Lamm combined for 35 points as the Green Wave improved to 11-6 overall. North Delta returns home today for a huge district 1AA matchup with Marshall.
Last night North Delta set the tone early as the Green Wave jumped up 4-0 on a Corbin Baker basket off the opening tip and Jim Tom Copeland’s eight footer in the paint. Carroll stayed close early on as a Nicholas Mumme basket off the glass pulled the Rebels to within two points at 6-4 with just over two minutes gone in the opening quarter. Carroll took a 9-8 lead at the 4:59 mark on a Hayden Harrell 3-pointer from the wing but North Delta answered with six straight as Bryan Nickle, Geri Lamm and Derrick Shawn all hit baskets to put the Green Wave back on top 14-9 as the pace began to pick up. Shawn nailed a 17 footer as North Delta closed out the opening quarter with a 6-0 run to go up 22-15.

(Above) Chris Brown (#30) of North Delta defending Carroll's Nicholas Mumme
Bailey Guckert opened the second quarter with a bucket to give North Delta its’ biggest lead at 24-15 but Carroll made an 8-2 run over the next two minutes to trim the deficit to 26-23. North Delta then proceeded to break open what was a tight game as Corbin Baker nailed a 3-pointer with just over four minutes left in the half to increase the lead to 29-23. Baker hit another 3-pointer at the two minute mark as North Delta went up 36-23 and began pulling away before the half. North Delta finished the half with their biggest lead at 41-25 on a fast break basket from Bryan Nickle and Ethan Frink’s lay-in and free throw.
Carroll would get no closer than eighteen points in the second half as the North Delta transition game was in full stride. A 3-pointer at the buzzer from Matthew Barefoot gave North Delta a commanding 68-40 lead heading into the final quarter.

(Above) Jim Tom Copeland (#24) of North Delta had a game high 19 pts
North Delta went on to take an 83-54 win over Carroll. With the win the Green Wave will make a splash into the Southern Sports & Travel top ten on Sunday.
“Our boys played hard,” said North Delta head coach Brad Wilson. “We’re getting better and showing more patience on offense, I’m proud of our game tonight.”
Jim Tom Copeland had a game high 19 points to lead North Delta, Geri Lamm added 16, Corbin Baker 13, Bryan Nickle 8, Derrick Shawn and Bailey Guckert 7 apiece, Ethan Frink 5, Chris Brown 4 and Matthew Barefoot with 3.

North Delta improves to 11-6 and will host seventh ranked Marshall this evening.
CJ Hodges led Carroll with 12 points, Breland Marett added 9, Nicholas Mumme had 8, Andrew Wright 6, Ken Daves 4, William Browning, Hayden Harrell and Jeremy Mumme 3 each, Justin Blaylock, Trey Taylor and Adam Jennings had 2 apiece.
Carroll slips to 15-4 with the loss and will travel to Oak Hill on Tuesday.
ND…22…19…26…15…83
CA…15…10…15…14…54

Girls action…….
In the girls matchup the North Delta Lady’s squad left little doubt from start to finish as to why they’re ranked #4 in the Southern Sports & Travel rankings. Ten different players scored as North Delta pounded out a 58-26 win over Carroll on the road to improve to 16-10.
North Delta got out to a 4-0 lead on consecutive baskets from Sara Waldrip. The lead grew to 10-4 at the 5:23 mark of the opening quarter when Linsey Hebert hit a 3-pointer from the wing. The Lady Green Wave ended the first quarter with a 13-2 run that culminated on Bradi Beard’s basket off a Carroll turnover to go up 23-6 entering the second quarter.

(Above) Linsey Hebert (#15) of North Delta launches a 3-pointer
Lauren Kimzey’s 3-pointer from the top of the key with 3:14 left in the half gave North Delta a 33-6 advantage. Carroll had no answer for the up-tempo play from the depth rich North Delta squad and faced a 37-10 halftime deficit.
North Delta rotated players in and out in the second half as they rolled to a 58-26 win. “I thought we had an outstanding game,” said North Delta head coach Phil Douglas. “We knew Carroll had played Indianola and Oak Hill close and that they had a good team so if you had told me before hand that we would win by 32 points tonight I wouldn’t have believed it.” North Delta has a big matchup with Marshall this evening in Batesville. “This was a big win for us tonight coming off a big loss to Kirk this week,” said Douglas. “It should motivate us for our game at home with Marshall.”

(Above) Lauren Kimzey (#20) with one of North Delta's eight 3-pointers on the night
Linsey Hebert and Sara Waldrip each had 11 points to lead North Delta, Bradi Beard and Laci DuBravec had 8 apiece, Kourtney Norris 6, Lauren Kimzey 5, Madison Greenlee 3, Crystal Contreas, Hanna Greenlee and Hannah Waldrip 2 each.
Carroll slipped to 10-9 and was led by Memrie Corley’s 9 points, Ashley Barry added 8, Haley Liddell 4, Kacy Beavers 3 and Skyler Alford had 2.
ND…23…14…10…11…58
CA….6…..4….9…..7….26

North Delta on the rise

Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas

While girl’s basketball programs such as Leake and Brookhaven get most of the attention a team in northern Mississippi is beginning to enter the conversation as a program on the rise in MAIS basketball. North Delta School sits just 27 miles west of Oxford in Batesville and under the direction of head coach Phil Douglas the Lady Green Wave have notched some quality wins the past two weeks that have them ranked at #4 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel poll. The sophomore laden squad has picked up wins over AAA schools such as Starkville, Magnolia Heights and Pillow and fell to a great Kirk (21-1) team by three points last week.
The evolution of the girl’s program at North Delta has been a result of lots of hard work and dedication but also the implementation of a tried and true mindset obtained through many years of coaching and teaching that is applied at the early stages of developing players through fundamentals. The North Delta girl’s basketball program hasn’t reached the level of a Leake or Brookhaven but they are navigating their way in that direction.

Coach’s corner……..
This week: North Delta head coach Phil Douglas
*What or who inspired you to get into coaching?
“I have felt that I wanted to coach since I was in the 6th grade. I started coaching youth baseball in the summer when I was 14 and continued to work with that program for 22 years. It has always intrigued me the "chess match" that takes place as coaches make adjustments during the course of the game. Having surrendered my life to full time Christian service when I was a teenager, I saw coaching as a platform to be used as a witness for the Lord. There are many coaches who have been my mentors. Early in my coaching career I used to work with Van Chancellor in his summer camps and he would come to my school and spend a week with me working my camp. I would pick his brain every opportunity I had. I was in the same division with Doyle Wolverton in the early '80s and had the opportunity to learn from his work ethic. Richard Duease and I have been friends for years and the list goes on and on of coaches that I have borrowed from to make me a better coach. I will never forget one of the first MAC coaching clinics I attended. In walks Bert Jenkins and Gerald Austin. You would have thought Moses and Aaron had just walked in. I was in awe of the programs they established and maintained. I continue to learn from coaches of all ages.”
*North Delta has jumped four spots in the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings, are your girls starting to gel at the right time?
“This team has matured tremendously since the beginning of the season. We have 9 sophomores, 1 junior and 3 seniors on our roster. It has really been rewarding to see how this team has grown. Quality wins over opponents such as MRA, Delta, Pillow, Magnolia Heights, Marshall, and Indianola have given my young team confidence that they can make a legitimate run in the post season.”
*What are the strengths and weaknesses of your squad? Depth & experience?
“It has really been amazing how this program has evolved in the 4 years I have been at North Delta. The varsity program had not won a game for 2 years prior to me coaching them. Our first year we went 12-15 with only 5 varsity players on the roster which included 4 sophomores and 1 freshman. We played 3 - 8th graders up and down just to have a team. The following season one of our starters transferred to public school so that left us with 4. Using 4 jr high girls playing up and down we improved our record to 24-12, advanced to the second round of the north state, losing to Bayou, the north state runner-up, in the closing moments of the game to narrowly miss going to the state tournament. This year we moved from A to AA. Our team has grown to 13 legitimate varsity players which includes the girl that went to the public school who decided to come back to North Delta. Most games we mix 9 players in our rotation only 3 of whom are seniors. These girls won 68 games as jr high players, were district 1A runner-up in '06, and district champions in '08 so they know how to win. It is hard to single out one person you have to stop to beat us because we have such a balanced scoring attack. We have good depth at the post and the perimeter so obviously that is a strength. You could look at our youth and not being battle tested at the varsity level as a weakness but as I said earlier these quality wins are really boosting our confidence. At this point I have to mention our jr high team for this year. We had 7 key players from our 24-1 district champion team move to varsity so you would think with such a young team there would be a rebuilding year, but not the case. We are 12-2 right now and plan on finishing strong in district play. We start 4- 8th graders and 1- 9th grader and rotate 4 to 5- 8th graders most games. We have 22 on the jr high team this year and next year will have 31 next year. The future of girl’s basketball at North Delta will hopefully be strong for many years to come.”
*Talk about the basketball program at North Delta.....how much time is spent with the younger players with regards to fundamentals, what is the ideal age to start teaching fundamentals and is there ever enough time to teach the game?
“I have already talked about how the program has evolved. My first year at ND I began a pee wee program. I devoted every Saturday from October thru January to working with our 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. Overall this year we have 56 girls involved in basketball from the 5th thru the 12th grades. That's not bad for a school that is just barely AA. I have 3 children of my own. Two of them played ball at the collegiate level, were all state and played in the all star games. I started working with them by the time they could walk so no, they’re never too young. We have a 1 year old granddaughter and we have already started working with her. I think that it should be fun though and every coach and parent needs to understand that basketball isn't for everybody.”
*Which player or players provide the team leadership that is so critical for success?
“We have been to the team camp at MRA each year I have coached at North Delta. During this week we elect team captains. This is not just a title, it is a responsibility. Obviously we look to them for leadership but not just to them. Each game is an opportunity. Success builds confidence and confidence success. Our players know who the "go to" people are in the closing moments of the game, but I don't want anyone on the floor who isn't willing to take the shot to win the game.”
*What is the biggest challenge with regards to preparing your girls week in and week out as post season play approaches?
“Every game is a challenge. There are no "cupcakes" left on our schedule. For example, this week we play Kirk again at Kirk, Carroll at Carroll, and Marshall at home. You have to be mentally and physically focused for every game. My wife, Nancy, is my assistant coach and between us we have practice running like a factory. We work as a team to prepare the girls mentally and physically for each challenge.”
*If you could change one thing about high school basketball what would it be?
“I can't single out any one thing that I would change. I have been blessed to be a part of a large fraternity called coaching. My first chance to coach at the varsity level was at North Delta in '79 when it was at Pleasant Grove. Overall I have spent 18 years coaching in the private school and 16 in the public school. Early in my career I felt that the overall perception of public schools was that private school athletics and coaching was inferior. I think that we get too caught up in the public school/private school thing. I have good friends who coach in both leagues, have coached in the public and private school all star games and have taken my teams to state championships in both leagues. Coaching is coaching period! If you're a coach, you teach the game. This doesn't change. Respect the game for what it is. The squeaking of the tennis shoes, the smell of popcorn, the roar of the crowd, the excitement in the dressing room after a big win, and seeing kids grow and learn and some to go on and play in college. These are the things that make the sport so much fun and so much a part of who I am and hope to be for many more years.”
*Do you like the new playoff format that allows only three teams to advance each week?
“Having coached for 34 years I have seen it all. I don't really have strong opinions concerning this. Obviously it makes the consolation game much more important.”
*What will it take for North Delta to make a run in the post season?
“A very successful coach once told me that he had rather be lucky than good any day. I think that it takes a little of both. You have to have everyone healthy, play well at the right time, be in a favorable bracket, and play the game well enough to be in a position to win in the last minute of the game. That's where a little luck doesn't hurt.”

The Douglas resume………
*Overall coaching record: 603-295
*Coach of the Year: 13 times
*2002 MAC 3A State Coach of the Year
*2003 MAC All Star Coach
*2009 MPSA All Star Coach
*B.S. University of Mississippi ‘73
*MEd University of Mississippi ‘78
*Masters in Leadership Delta State ‘94