Thursday, November 12, 2009

Chipola Men Win; Ladies Fall & Prepare to Host Alzheimer’s Classic This Weekend

By Clint Cox

The Chipola Men’s Basketball team opened up the 2009-10 season with a 96-73 win over L.B. Wallace last Friday night in the Milton H. Johnson Classic. The Indians, playing under new Head Coach Jake Headrick, were without several players due to injuries but jumped out to an early lead none the less. Chipola led 52-26 at the half. Leading the way for the Indians was Lashay Page with 26 points, including seven 3-pointers. He was followed by Dexter Ellington with 18 points and Marvin Fitzgerald with 10.

The men will pack up their bags for three straight road games this weekend. They take on Bevill State in Jasper, Ala. on Thursday, then head to Decatur, Ga. for a Friday contest against Atlanta Metro and Georgia Perimeter on Saturday. Chipola (1-0) is ranked #13 in the nation and #5 in the state.

The Chipola Lady Indians, ranked #3 in the nation and #2 in the state, mounted a furious rally late in the second half but it was not enough as they fell 63-61 to #14 ranked Monroe Community College. After trailing by as many as 15 points in the second half Chipola battled back to tie the game at 61-61. But the Lady Indians missed a couple of free throws that would have given them the lead. Jasmine Shaw led Chipola with 19 points.

The Chipola Lady Indians host the Fourth Annual Alzheimer’s Classic, Nov. 13-15, in the Milton H. Johnson Health Center. The Classic will once again feature the toughest women’s field of any regular season tournament in the country as five of the seven teams participating are ranked in the top 15 nationally.  The Classic will also feature 10 of the top 15 teams in the country, and 19 of the top 50 junior college players in the country according to Dan Olson’s Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.

The classic tips off Friday, Nov. 13, with Tallahassee and Jefferson College (MO) at 2 p.m.  Pensacola meets Trinity Valley at 4 p.m. A pair of ranked teams will square off in the final game of the day at 6 p.m. when third-ranked Chipola takes on number 14 Monroe Community College (NY).

Saturday’s action starts at noon with Tallahassee and Wallace (Hanceville). At 2 p.m., Monroe plays Pensacola. The final two games of the day promise to provide some great basketball as four top-seven teams are in action.  At 4 p.m., number five Trinity Valley (TX) battles number seven Gulf Coast. The 6 p.m. contest features a top-three match-up between number two, Jefferson College (MO), and third-ranked Chipola College.

 Two games are slated for Sunday, Nov. 15, with Gulf Coast and Monroe at noon, and Chipola and Trinity Valley at 2 p.m.

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