Weather

Local News

   ___________
 

___________
 
AD RATES
___________
 

National News

Saturday, against a stacked field in the Jackson Central Merry meet at the old USJ track, the Lady Rebs finished third among 13 teams, many of which were Class 3A teams.

McKenzie finished points behind meet winner, and perennial powers Dyersburg and JCM.

Meanwhile, the MHS boys' track team was sixth in the tough field.

"We didn't do too badly for our first meet," said MHS track coach David Duncan. "Now that we've gotten going, we'll see what happens."

Lady Rebel senior hit the trifecta at the meet, earning a first-place ribbon for discus, second for the 200m run and third in the triple jump. Smith also scored with a fifth-place finish in the 400 and a sixth-place showing in shot put. Renee Crawley earned two thirds, one for the high jump, the other for shot put. Sarah Hartz took third in the 800m run.

Jessica Johnson was sixth in the discus; Mallory Twyman was sixth in the long jump and fourth in the triple jump; Crystal Mattox was sixth in the hurdles.

Lucy Snead was seventh in the high hurdles; Amber King was seventh in the intermediate hurdles, fifth in the 3200m run and seventh in the mile. The mile relay team of Mary Holland, Mattox, Crystal Mann and Amber King was fifth. The 400 relay team would have finished first, but was disqualified for a lane violation. Had it not been for that controversial judgment, the Lady Rebels might have finished second in the meet. The team includes Smith, Mallory Brandon, Crawley and Hope Wyder.

The 800 relay team was fourth and includes Gordon, Crawley, Brandon and Wyder.

The two-mile relay team was fourth. That team includes Taylor, Snead, Mann and Holland.

On the boys' side, senior Brandon Cook was second in the 400m run. Cook also was eight in the 100 and fourth in the high hurdles. Kris Sydnor was fifth in the discus. Greg Pruitt was sixth in the 800.

The 3200 relay team of Ty Winkler, Kent Ozment, Matt Blalock and Caleb Owens was fourth. In the mile relay, Clint Anderson, Blalock, Owens and Pruitt scored.

McKenzie runs its next meet a week from Friday when it travels to Union City.

"In the past, we've gone down there and played five innings and then gone home," said MHS coach Josh Kee.

Not this year.

The Rebels took the defending Class 2A state champs to the limit before losing a heartbreaker 3-2 in eight innings. It was an eye-opening effort against the Tigers and their ace pitcher, Brandon Maness, already a signee for Tennessee Tech's baseball program.

"We played a real good, real clean baseball game," said Kee. "We went up against their ace and Brian Winston matched him inning for inning."

This setback was as much encouraging as it was heartbreaking because it could serve as a good measuring stick for how District 11AA is stacked.

"We played hard and made all the plays against the defending state champs at their place," said Kee. "I feel like we've got as good a shot as anybody right now."

The Rebels took a 2-0 lead on the Tigers and it stood up until the seventh inning. MHS scored twice in the third. Demerick Diggs and Matt Jones each walked and Jay Taylor laced a single to score Diggs. Then Winston aided his own cause with an RBI single.

Against Lexington's Maness, that was that...until the top of the seventh.

In that half, the Rebs had runners on first and second with nobody out. A line shot up the middle was snared like a snowcone by the Lexington second baseman and was the start of a triple play.

"Not much you can do or say in that situation," said Kee. "A player laid out and made a great play."

Lexington used that play as a springboard to a two-run bottom half and extra innings.

That game ended what was a pretty good week for the Rebels. MHS topped Humboldt in the SportsPlus event in Jackson, then traveled to Martin to defeat Westview in a slugfest.

McKenzie 3
Humboldt 2
Freshman hurler Drew Hayes pitched a complete game, fanned six and scattered five hits as the Rebels edged the Vikings in the SportsPlus Tournament at Jackson-North Side.

The Rebs scored in the second inning on Daniel Hollowell's RBI single. McKenzie tacked on another run in the third. John French singled and stole second. That enabled Taylor to push him across with a single. Jake Smith also singled in the inning.

With the game tied in the seventh, Matt Jones slapped the game-winning RBI single over the head of the Viking left fielder.
"We did just enough to get the win," said Kee.

French was 2-3 to lead the Rebel hitting attack. Jones, Taylor, Winston, Smith and Hayes each singled.

Boston College had taken a one-point lead with fewer than five seconds remaining in the game and the Lady 'Dores were faced with moving the length of the floor and getting a good shot off.
Sadly, it didn't go.

And so the curtain falls on this phase of McElhiney's basketball career.

I remember watching this little kid grow up in the shadow of two-time all-stater Kellie McElhiney. I remember this little fourth grader sitting next to her sis when she signed with Tennessee-Martin.

I jokingly asked the smiling little tot where she was going to sign.
Eight years and a state championship later, I found out.

It seems like only yesterday when Gleason coach Randy Frazier told me that Ashley was ready to play varsity high school basketball as a seventh grader; when Ashley actually played the last half of her eighth-grade season on the varsity; when she actually played in a state tournament game as an eighth grader.

There were euphoric highs as a Lady Bulldog. The 1999 Class A title comes to mind. Winning Miss Basketball as the overwhelming favorite. That day in the GHS library when Ashley tearfully signed to play with Vanderbilt, becoming the first female athlete in Weakley Co. history to sign an SEC basketball scholarship.

There were horrific lows, like when Gleason was 33-0 in the regional semifinals at South Fulton and freshman Ashley was hammered at the halfcourt line by Lake County players. There was no foul called and a struggling Lady Bulldog team eventually lost. Gleason was the best Class A team in the state that year (1996) and didn't even make the state tournament.

Thinking back, it would have been quite remarkable to see both Martin-Westview AND Gleason win state titles that year.

I remember hearing many a midstate sports writer tell me that McElhiney will ride the bench at Vanderbilt. "She'll never play in the SEC," they said. I told them, "not only will she play, she'll star."

McElhiney made liars and penitent idiots out of them all. What's more incredible is that she made me look good, almost like I know what I'm talking about.

Now those same morons are proving that they haven't learned any lessons. They suggest that McElhiney can't take the next step.

Were I a betting man...

A Vandy degree beckons; coaching beckons; perhaps a shot at the WNBA beckons. Her folks Danny and Sandra McElhiney have optimistic anxiety because they know there is a plentitude of options.

The curtain has fallen on this phase of McElhiney's career. We're giving her a standing ovation...and wondering what she'll do for an encore.

Advertisements