Posey recipient of Don Souder Award

Brookhaven Academy senior Gage Posey is the 2013 male recipient of the prestigious Don Souder Award given to the top MAIS student-athlete amongst its’ 115 member schools. Posey is Brookhaven Academy's fourth recipient of the award.

In athletics Posey participated in football, basketball and baseball for the Cougars.

The 6’2” southpaw led the Cougar football team to the Class AA State Championship and displayed his mental toughness when his squad needed him most. Posey accounted for 4,011 total yards and 46 touchdowns, 7 in the state championship win over Marshall Academy.

Brookhaven head football coach Tripp McCarty said, "Gage was an absolute joy to coach. Even with all his stats and achievements he is still a humble competitor. I consider it a privilege to have coached him. He is everything we preach in our programs to our athletes."

In basketball the senior led his team in scoring and rebounding, averaging 19 points and 12 rebounds a game.

Posey excelled in baseball as well, hitting at a .420 clip and earning himself a baseball scholarship at Hinds Community College. "Gage is the hardest working kid I've ever coached. Anything I ever asked him to do he did it without hesitation. To excel in 3 major sports for 4 straight years shows how great of an athlete he truly is. He's the guy you want to have the ball when the game is on the line. Leadership for him came naturally. He not only wanted to win but he wanted to win the right way. Brookhaven Academy will truly miss Gage's character, his competitiveness, and his leadership," said Brookhaven head baseball coach Casey Edwards.

In his senior year he was voted onto the MAIS All-Star football squad as well as an All-MAIS second team selection.

Posey was also selected as the Southern Sports & Travel Player of the Year.

He was selected as an MAIS All-Star and second team All-MAIS and Southern Sports & Travel All-MAIS team in basketball.

In baseball Posey was an MAIS All-Star selection.

Gage Posey is the son of Kevin and Rhonda Posey and maintained a 3.91 GPA while participating in English, Math and Science honors courses at Brookhaven Academy his senior year.

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Photo by Johnny Smith, Johnny Smith Photography

From the Notebook.......................

”The older you get the faster time goes by”  is an old saying that I had heard for years and honestly never put much thought into until now and yes, it’s true. The 2012/13 MAIS athletic season is remarkably almost complete and it has been one of great stories and achievements.

August 17^th seems to have been just yesterday but that was Southern Sports & Travel’s kickoff to the 2012 football season with coverage of defending Class AA champion Simpson traveling to Madden to battle Leake. A mini capsule of the 2012/13 season will be posted soon.

>>The official countdown to the 2013 MAIS football season has officially been launched and fans can expect to see changes in the Class AA & Class A playoff formats. The MAIS has approved a 16 team system that eliminates the north and south formats and puts into place a seeding based on powerpoints system.

>>Coaching changes are an expected event each year but this has been one of many. Some go unnoticed but others are an exception such as Hall of Fame basketball coach Dale Watts, Simpson football coach Billy Wayne Hankins and Silliman track coach Sharon Kline. One of the strangest was that of Central Private head basketball coach Henry Gantz who guided his boys’ team to the schools’ first ever Overall Championship. Central Private and Gantz quietly parted ways without any explanation.

>>The Southern Sports & Travel Baseball Player of the Year is expected to be announced next week unless a delay occurs in gathering much needed information.

>>Re-alignment kicks in beginning in the fall and some traditional Class AA mainstays are moving. Columbia makes its’ way to Class AAA Division-II while Marshall moves to Class A.

Questions accompanied some of the changes with concerns that Southern Sports & Travel would no longer provide coverage of those two schools but the recent two year trend has demonstrated a wider coverage of MAIS schools that encompassed all three classifications. The wider coverage has been fruitful as web traffic and sponsors have both increased.

>>As Southern Sports & Travel continues to grow each year so too does the news and announcements that come by way of school representatives to the site. This has been a useful tool for many different parties who have been frustrated for many years in the area of information gathering. In the age of social media all areas can serve a useful purpose, hence the use of Facebook and Twitter in providing information as quickly as possible.

>>In the fall Southern Sports & Travel will begin its’ sixth year of providing MAIS athletic coverage and I’m pleased to say that each year has shown growth, even the brief hiccup that was the shortened 2011 year. This past year I was pleased to go out of the box and do an automobile seat belt series that included the stories of three young people who each had eye-opening experiences.

>>Summer provides a time to perform a necessary task and while it is one I don’t enjoy it is a vital necessity to the continued growth of Southern Sports & Travel and the coverage it offers. Renewing sponsorships and seeking out new supporters interesting in contributing is a must and that endeavor will begin soon so as to not infringe on the start of the 2013 MAIS football season. If your school doesn’t support Southern Sports & Travel through a sponsorship ad please encouragement them to do so by contacting me at aafandaman@yahoo.com or phone/text 985-750-3455.

Mabry recipient of Don Souder Award

Lamar School senior Olivia Mabry is the 2013 female recipient of the prestigious Don Souder Award given to the top MAIS student-athlete amongst its’ 115 member schools. Mabry is Lamar's first ever recipient of the award.

In athletics Mabry participated in basketball, soccer, tennis and cheerleading for the Lady Raiders.

During her senior season she led Lamar to the MAIS Division-II Soccer Championship and was named to the MAIS All-Star team and the Clarion-Ledger All-State squad.

Mabry also helped guide the Lady Raider basketball program to one of their best seasons in recent history. She was named to the MAIS-All Star team and was a second team All-MAIS selection.

Outside of her athletic achievements Mabry was Senior Class President and her school’s National Honor Society President and Fellowship of Christian Athletes President.

Mabry did all this while maintaining a 4.06 GPA.

Lamar girls’ head basketball coach Russell Cruise said, “Olivia Mabry is a well-rounded, well-respected young woman whom we will all miss next year.  I know that her journey is just beginning as she will be attending Mississippi College next year.  I am glad to have had the chance to be a small part of her and her wonderful family’s life all be it for a short period.  I will never forget the impact she has made on my family as well as the younger girls she has been in contact with and set an example for everywhere.”

Mabry will be attending Mississippi College in the fall where she will not only continue her education but also her basketball career as a member of the Lady Choctaw’s team.

Olivia is the daughter of Joey and Melissa Mabry.

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Photo by Mark Whiddon, Whiddon Photography

Cougar to play baseball at Copiah-Lincoln

Brookhaven senior Matthew Evans has signed to play baseball at Copiah-Lincoln Community College.

Shown above: Back row is coach Bryan Noble (Co-Lin), Coach Casey Edwards (BA), Coach Clay Smith (Co-Lin Head Coach)

Front row is dad Jerry Evans, Matthew Evans and mom Sherylyn Evans

Watson signs with Copiah-Lincoln

Brookhaven senior Graham Watson has signed to play tennis at Copiah-Lincoln Community College

Shown above: Back row is coach Brenda Smith

Front Row is dad Ronnie Watson, Graham Watson and mom Lynn Watson

Young signs to play for Lions

Presbyterian senior Tyler Young has signed to play baseball at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba.

Chelette signs with Bishop

Blake Chelette, senior (pitcher/outfielder) at Central Private, signed with Bishop State Community College to continue his baseball career.

Lamar wins Class AA Golf State Championship

Lamar School - 2013 Class AA State Champions

Lady Warriors win Class A Championship

The Deer Creek Lady Warriors recently captured the Class A Tennis Championship. Deer Creek is coached by Sherry Ballinger.

Central Private wins 12th state championship

Central Private School - 2013 Class AA State Champions

Central Private swept Marshall to win the school's twelfth state title in baseball. Senior Chase Martin pitched a complete game in leading the Rebels to a 14-2 win on Friday. Central Private, under the direction of head coach Jason Kinchen, finishes the 2013 season at 29-4.

Tri-County wins Class A Championship

The Tri-County Academy Rebels captured the school's first ever state title in baseball on Saturday with a 9-7 game three win over defending Class A champion Glenbrook. Tri-County is led by head coach Ricky Owens and finished the season at 28-4.

Magnolia Heights claims back-to-back crowns

Southern Sports & Travel

Magnolia Heights completed the season all coaches and players dream of last night in Senatobia as the Chiefs cemented their place in MAIS history with one of the most dominant stretches ever seen in the association’s 44 year baseball history.

Colin Liles went the distance in picking up his tenth win and struck out eleven and freshman Dustin Skelton went 3 for 4 on the night to lead Magnolia Heights to a 6-1 win over fourth ranked Washington to give the Chiefs their second consecutive Class AAA Division-II State Championship and a perfect 37-0 season mark.

All but one of Magnolia Height’s starters collected at least one hit on the night with the exception of senior Jacob Billingsley. Billingsley, who led the Chiefs in RBI’s during the season, was on the receiving end of four walks.

The start of the game was delayed two hours due to a heavy downpour one hour prior to when the first pitch was scheduled to be delivered and the delay seemed to have affected Magnolia Heights starter Colin Liles who saw his first pitched drilled into centerfield by Washington leadoff hitter Chase Palasini.

Carson Smyly’s ground-out enabled Palasini to advance to third base and following a Colin Liles strikeout of Michael Bruton to notch the second out Washington would get on the board first when Walker Coleman’s single to left field brought Palasini home to give the fourth ranked Generals a quick 1-0 advantage.

Magnolia Heights was kept in check by Washington starter Michael Bruton over the first two innings but the Chiefs would come alive in their half of the third inning.

Dustin Skelton got things going as the freshman lined a leadoff double into centerfield. Adam Shackleford (Courtesy runner) advanced to third on a fly out to right field and was brought home on Luke Latham’s infield hit with one out in the inning.

Washington would walk Jacob Billingsley only to see sophomore David Herrington single to right field and bring home Shackleford but Latham’s attempt to score from second base would result in the senior being called out at the plate. (Photo at top of page)

Magnolia Heights grabbed their first lead of the night at 2-1 as Jamell Newson beat out a throw to first base which scored Billingsley.

After allowing three first inning hits Colin Liles would settle in and retire twelve straight Washington batters and in the bottom of the fourth inning Magnolia Heights erupted.

Jackson Pitts hit a one-out double to centerfield and courtesy runner Cole Kelly would register the third run of the evening when Dustin Skelton singled to centerfield.

Dalton Skelton followed with a double to the centerfield wall and Magnolia Heights stretched their lead to 4-1 on Luke Latham’s sacrifice fly to right field that scored Dustin Skelton from third base.

Things would deteriorate for Washington after Jacob Billingsley drew another intentional walk.

David Herrington’s pop-up was misplayed and allowed Dalton Skelton and Billingsley to score and give the Chiefs a 6-1 cushion.

Washington would strand two runners in both the fifth and sixth innings and Colin Liles would close the door on the Generals in the seventh inning.  

Liles (Photo right) struck out Timothy Stone and Roman Fratesi’s ground-out registered the second out.

Magnolia Height’s rush to the mound for the traditional dog-pile ensued after Liles sat down Gore Pulliam to put the wrap on a dominating 2013 season with a 6-1 win.

Colin Liles (10-0) went the distance striking out eleven and the senior helped his cause by going 2 for 3 at the plate.

Freshman Dustin Skelton went 3 for 4, Luke Latham 2 for 4 and sophomore David Herrington had two RBI's in the win.

Michael Bruton took the loss for Washington (21-13).

The win was the fifth state baseball title for Magnolia Heights and third in the past four seasons under head coach Chris McMinn, now in his eighth season in Senatobia.

It was also Magnolia Height’s first back to back championships and eleventh state title series appearance.

The discussion now shifts to where does this Magnolia Heights squad belong in the group of best MAIS teams ever?

A starting point in that discussion should be their 69-5 record over the past two seasons.

Post Game with Magnolia Heights Head Coach Chris McMinn

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Magnolia Heights School - 2013 Class AAA Division-II State Champions