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SPORTS NEWS FOR
WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2002
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Mustang stadium gets facelift |
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By Jim Steele
steele@mckenziebanner.com |
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Huntingdon's high school football stadium will be a lot
more fan-friendly this season. It will be coach-friendly
and media-friendly as well.
Paul Ward Stadium has undergone a facelift and that has
brought some excitement to the Mustang camp this year.
"We re-did part of the home side," said assistant football
coach Eric Swenson. "We cleaned and power washed the home
side and we added another story to the press box. It's
going to be nice."
Damage from drainage, leakage and running water eroded
some of the concrete on the home side of the stadium.
"The concrete had deteriorated pretty badly," the coach
said. "So we filled it with concrete and re-did the whole
right side; we also re-did some of the railing."
In addition, coaches and media will find their environment
more palatable.
"The press box is more accessible to the media and we put
a roof over where the coaches are," Swenson said. "I think
the press and coaches will like it a lot better."
Swenson said this renovated facility will be a source of
pride for the school.
"It looks like a whole new set of bleachers on the home
side," he said. "This is going to be a nice place to play
and Coach (Mike) Mansfield is a stickler for things like
that."
The Mustangs moved from Pudor Field and the old high
school to Paul Ward Stadium and the new high school
adjacent to the Carroll County Fairgrounds in 1980. |
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Pyramid floor creates excitement at Carroll Academy |
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By Jim Steele
steele@mckenziebanner.com |
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Once upon a time, Michael Jordan made a giant leap on
the hardwood that used to cover the floor of the Memphis
Pyramid.
Penny Hardaway thrilled Memphis Tiger crowds. Rick
Pitino, John Thompson and Denny Crum used to sneer at
officials from the sidelines. John Ward even broadcast a
handful of games from those boards.
This year, athletes from Carroll Academy as well as a
half-dozen other schools will tread those same boards in
Huntingdon. Carroll Academy recently purchased the floor
from the Pyramid at a bargain price. With the advent of
the NBA in Memphis, it became necessary to use a
different floor for the Memphis Grizzlies and the
University of Memphis. As a result, the old floor went
on the market.
Carroll Academy will hold an open house from 11 a.m. to
2 p.m. today (Wednesday) to showcase the new court.
"We went shopping around for basketball floors and I
found out that we might be able to have the old floor at
the Pyramid," said Randy Hatch, Carroll County director
of Juvenile Court, Carroll Academy senior administrator
and basketball coach. "I contacted Alan Freeman of the
Pyramid and offered him a price."
That price was $12,000. They eventually agreed on
$14,000 for the floor. None of the money came from the
coffers of Carroll County.
"We have been playing basketball for four years and
basically, we've been playing all road games," Hatch
said. "We would visit many area teams twice and they'd
pay us anywhere between $500 and $1,000 to play at their
place."
So trips to Hardin County, Riverside High School,
Crockett County among other places have stuffed the
Jaguars' piggy bank. The money from these road games
added up and Carroll Academy's athletic fund was solvent
enough to offer cash for the floor.
"The new floors for the Pyramid cost $120,000 each, one
for Memphis State and the other for the Grizzlies, each
with their own logo for the teams," Hatch said. "We got
this floor for almost a tenth of what a new floor costs.
And no county money was used to pay for any of this."
Hatch said that athletes will run across the original
Pyramid logo, which adorns center court.
"We've kept everything intact," said Hatch. "It's weird
because I've watch games at the Pyramid for 10 years and
now here's the floor in our gym."
In addition, Carroll Academy purchased the hydraulic
basketball goals that will be used as side goals for
practice in the gym.
"I think seeing that Pyramid logo on the floor will
create a lot of curiosity," Hatch said. "We have 12 home
games scheduled this year; players rarely get to play on
a floor that Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson played on,
but these kids will get to do it."
University School of Jackson, Trinity Christian and
Camden Central are but a few of the teams scheduled to
play at Carroll Academy this fall and winter. |
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Soccer Begins Soon! |
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The McKenzie Soccer League is currently making plans for
the 2002 fall season. The following schedules are
established:
- August 5 at 6:30 p.m., a meeting of all
coaches, parents and supporters at City Hall. Please be
there.
- August 10, from 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. will be the
first signup at City Hall.
- August 17, from 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. will be the
final signup at City Hall.
- August 19 at 6:30 p.m. teams will be selected at
City Hall.
- August 21 shirts will be ordered.
- September 7....Games Begin
- October 19....Season Ends.
Games will be played each Saturday with a limited
schedule on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Additional
information will be available at the August 5 meeting at
City Hall. Any questions may be directed to John Barham
at 352-3472.
Above all, Let's Have Fun! |
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Phone (731) 352-3323 or
Fax (731) 352-3322
washburn@mckenziebanner.com
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coming soon! |
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