Chipola Comes Up Short

After going 4-8 last year in conference play and missing the State Basketball Tournament for the first time in many years, the Chipola Indians returned to familiar ground this season. They captured the Panhandle Conference Championship, made a returned appearance in the State Tournament and then made it all the way to the Championship game. Unfortunately their bid to return to the land of State Champions came up one game short as the Indians fell to Panhandle Conference rival Tallahassee last Saturday night by a score of 61-52.

Chipola began tournament play on Thursday and won a hard fought, and costly, 71-65 victory over St. Petersburg College. The contest was brutally physical as the two teams combined for a total of 56 fouls and 69 free throws. The Indians took an early 11-3 lead but then saw the Titans storm back to overtake them and hold a 33-24 halftime lead. Chipola continued to trail much of the second half until Shamarr Bowden began to heat up from the outside. His four second half 3 pointers helped the Indians take the lead and hold on for a 6 point win. The win was costly though as starting center Keith DeWitt went down with an elbow injury and spent the rest of the tournament with his arm in a sling.

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Pirates Sail Over Hornets

The Sneads Pirates set their sails early on and then cruised to a 19-4 win over Cottondale on Tuesday night in high school baseball action. Devin Hayes went the distance for Sneads as he picked up the win. Hayes also helped his own cause with a two run home run in the second inning.

The Pirates plated three runs in their first at bat as Aaron Green doubled. Garrett Harris and John Locke both reached base and that set up a 2 RBI single by Trevin Hall. Locke came home to score on an error and the Pirates led 3-0. Cottondale failed to score in their at bat but the Pirates added more runs in the second. Green led off with a single and Harris reached on an error. Locke was then hit by a pitch to load the bases. Hall hit into a fielder’s choice but that brought Green home to score. That is when Hayes stepped to the plate and sent one deep over the left center field fence. That put the Pirates up 7-0 going to the bottom of the second.

Cottondale got three runs in their second at bat as Caleb Toole reached after being hit by a pitch. Aaron McClain singled and Devin Thomas reached base on a fielder’s choice that scored Toole. Patrick McClain then ripped a 2 RBI double to score Aaron McClain and Thomas. That made it a 7-4 ball game after two complete innings. But the Pirates exploded in the third inning to put the game out of reach.

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STATE JUCO BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BEGINS MARCH 2 AT CHIPOLA

The top 16 community college basketball teams in Florida will begin arriving in Marianna Tuesday for the Florida Junior College Men’s and Women’s State Basketball Tournament set for March 2-5 in Chipola College’s Milton H. Johnson Health Center.

Some 400 basketball players along with coaches, cheerleaders and fans will fill nearly 200 hotel rooms during the tourney. Teams will begin practice Tuesday in the Johnson Center and in local high school gyms. Each team is assigned a local host family to help with any need that may arise during the tournament.

Numerous Division I College coaches and recruiters also are expected to scout the talent in the competition. Tournament officials estimate that more than $250,000 will flow into the area during the tournament from food, lodging, recreation and incidental expenses.

Women’s action begins Wednesday, March 2, at 1 p.m., as Indian River takes on Central Florida. At 3 p.m., Pensacola meets Daytona. The 6 p.m. game features Northwest and St. Petersburg. Santa Fe and Miami Dade play in the 8 p.m. nightcap on Wednesday.

The men’s tournament tips off Thursday, March 3, at 1 p.m. as Central Florida takes on Brevard. At 3 p.m., Tallahassee takes on Polk. Chipola faces St. Petersburg in the 6 p.m. game. Palm Beach and Daytona meet in the 8 p.m. nightcap on Thursday.

Men’s and women’s semi-finals are set for Friday, March 4, with women’s games at 1 and 6 p.m. and men’s contests at 3 and 8 p.m. The State Championship title games are set for Saturday, March 5, with the women at 5 p.m., and the men at 7:30 p.m.

Waste Management is official host sponsor for the event. The Jackson County Tourist Development Council awarded a grant to help promote the tournament. The Florida Lottery is also a major sponsor of the event.

Tournament passes—$25 for adults and $15 for students—will get fans into all 14 exciting tournament games. Single session tickets—two games—are $10 each.

For ticket information, call 718-2220, or visit the official tourney web site at: www.chipola.edu

CHIPOLA HOSTS NORTHWEST TUESDAY, FEB. 1

Chipola hosts Northwest Florida, Tuesday, Feb. 1, in the Milton H. Johnson Health Center. The women’s game tips off at 5:30 p.m. followed by the men’s game at 7:30 p.m.

The Indians improved to 19-2 on the year 5-0 in panhandle play with a 78-57 win over Gulf Coast on Jan. 25. Marcos Knight led Chipola with 17 points and 9 rebounds. Geron Johnson had 17 points and 5 rebounds. Elijah Pittman scored 10 points and pulled down 6 rebounds. After the first round of conference play, the Indians have beaten all Panhandle teams at least once.

The Indians scored a 71-67 win over Tallahassee on Jan. 18. Chipola beat Northwest 56-55 on Jan. 15. The Indians outlasted Pensacola 76-67 on Jan. 11. Chipola opened league play with a 68-64 win over Gulf Coast on Jan. 8.

In the Jan. 25 Men’s FCCAA State Poll, Chipola (19-2, 5-0) moved in to first place. Palm Beach (20-2) is second. Central Florida is third (19-5). Northwest Florida State (17-4, 2-3) is fourth. Pensacola State (15-8, 3-3) is fifth. Tallahassee (17-7, 3-3) is eighth.

The Lady Indians improved to 17-6 on the year 3-2 in Panhandle play with a 55-46 win over Gulf Coast on Jan. 25. Jasmine Shaw led Chipola with 18 points and 3 rebounds. Carleeda Green had 12 points and 4 rebounds. Sara Djassi added 9 points and 3 rebounds.

Chipola scored a 55-47 win over Tallahassee on Jan. 18. Shaw led Chipola with 15. Carleeda Green had 14. Jeniece Johnson scored 13 points. Chipola fell to Northwest, 57-49, in Niceville on Jan. 15. Chipola lost a close 73-66 game to top-ranked Pensacola on Jan. 11.

The Lady Indians opened league play with a 64-59 win over the Lady Commodores on Jan. 8 marking the first time that Chipola coach David Lane’s Lady Indians beaten the Lady Commodores in Panama City.

Chipola (17-6, 3-2) moved to third in the FCCAA State women’s poll. Pensacola (23-0, 6-0) is first. Northwest Florida State (17-4, 2-3) is second. Gulf Coast (13-7, 2-4) is fourth. Tallahassee (12-7, 1-5) is fifth.

Both Chipola teams travel to Pensacola, Jan. 29 before returning home to host Northwest Florida on Feb. 1.

For the latest scores and stats, visit www.chipola.edu or call 718-2CJC.

Bulldogs Blow Past Bay

The Marianna Bulldogs improved to 2-0 on the young season with a 57-45 win over Bay High on Tuesday night. The Bulldogs placed four players in double figures and jumped out to a big early lead on the hot shooting of Quay Royster and Kendal Leeks. Leeks hit 6 points in the first quarter as Marianna took a 13-5 lead going into the second quarter. In that second quarter it was Royster that got the hot hand as he pumped in 10 points. The Bulldogs outscored the Tornadoes 18-7 in the second quarter to hold a 31-12 lead at the half.

In the third quarter the Bay began to battle back and the Bulldogs managed to slightly outscored them 20-18. But that gave Marianna a 51-30 lead as the final quarter began. The Tornadoes made a run and the Bulldogs got a little sloppy with their ball handling. Bay cut the Bulldog lead down to as few as 13 points but Kruize Pinkins, Tre Jackson and Leeks came up with baskets to keep the Bulldog’s lead safe.

Royster led the Bulldogs with 12 points and was followed by Jackson with 11. The two big men, Leeks and Pinkins, each chipped in 10 points in the win. The Bulldogs will next be in action on Thursday night when they travel to Malone to take on the Tigers in their annual rivalry. In JV action the junior Bulldogs beat Bay 52-37 to improve to 2-0 as well on the season. They were led by Anthony Speights with 11, Keymon Borders with 10 and Roderick Copeland with 9.

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FHSAA Board Expands Classifications; Creates Rural Division

The Florida High School Athletic Association Board of Directors recently voted to create a rural classification in most sanctioned team sports, and to increase the number of classifications in sanctioned team sports. “When the FHSAA originally went up to six classifications in team sports in 1999, we had 517 member schools, with 480 of those playing team sports. Now that we have 670 member schools and 650 of those in team sports, the number of teams in individual districts is too large,” said Executive Director Roger Dearing. “Moving to eight classifications allows for fewer teams in each district, which allows for more flexibility in scheduling for the season.” “We have a number of member schools that need issues addressed in terms of equitable competition,” added Dearing. “We need to make sure people know this is not a public-private issue. This is an issue of small rural schools that do not draw their student populations from larger urban areas or outside the state or country, and have a difficult time competing against those that do. There is a way for all schools to exist and succeed with the advent of this new division.”

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Friday Night Football Preview – 11/19/10

Cottondale (4-5) at Lafayette County – Mayo (9-1) 7 pm

It will be an all out Hornet fight on Friday night as Cottondale travels to Mayo to take on the Lafayette County Hornets in round one of the FHSAA Class 1B playoffs. Cottondale is coming off a rough outing against a very good Liberty County squad. This will be the first time in the playoffs for Cottondale since the 2005 season and on offense they will be relying on the legs of Dominique Webb (857 yards & 7 TDs) and Evan Davis (500 yards & 5 TDs). They’ll also need a solid performance from QB CJ Smith, who has thrown for 711 yards and 7 TDs. Defensively Cottondale has been led by Eli Jackson with 76 tackles followed by Ronnie Dixon (70), Davis with 67 and Cody Saye with 58. That defense will certainly have their hands full on Friday night as they will be trying to stop the high scoring attack of Lafayette County. The red and white Hornets of Mayo have averaged 40 points a ball game this year. And while Cottondale may be in their first playoffs in awhile, this is not the first rodeo for the Mayoians. Lafayette County has now made the playoffs six straight seasons and in those six season they have amassed a record of 58-9.

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Lady Pirates Claim District Title & 1st Round Playoff Win / Bulldogs Bite Tiger Sharks

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Marianna Falls In District Semi Finals

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Bulldog JV Football Goes For Undefeated Season

Not many sporting teams pull off an undefeated season but that opportunity lies ahead of the Marianna High School JV Football team. The Bulldogs travel to Panama City on Thursday night to take on Bay High and a win would give the Junior Bulldogs a perfect 5-0 record to complete the 2010 season.
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