Sports

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Alabama Week 8 Review Alabama earned its 13th straight win over Tennessee, but the 35-13 victory wasn’t the headline from Tusca-loosa. Tua Tagovailoa left the game with a sprained ankle in the second quarter and did not return. He will miss this Saturday’s game against Arkansas, and the Crimson Tide have

Class 7A Rank Record Points 1. Thompson 8-0 262 2. McGill-Toolen 8-0 212 3. Central-Phenix City 8-1 187 4. Hoover 7-1 167 5. Theodore 7-1 130 6. James Clemens 6-2 108 7. Mountain Brook 7-1 94 8. Auburn 6-2 59 9. Sparkman 7-1 48 10. Prattville 6-2 27 Others receiving votes: Vestavia Hills (5-3) 9,

Messenger file photo by Alex Chaney From AHSAA Hokes Bluff High School senior Ashton Gulledge is best known for his quarterbacking role for the Class 4A Eagles of head coach Mike Robertson. Last week, Gulledge proved to be equally as strong at his strong safety post on defense. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound standout recorded 18 tackles

Photo: Southside High’s Maggie Bell (left) battles at the net against a pair of Alexandria players during the Lady Panthers’ match victory in the Class 5A, Area 12 championship last Monday (Oct. 21) at SHS. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger) By Chris McCarthy/Publisher/Editor Backed by a raucous student section, the Southside High volleyball team won a second straight Class 5A,

Messenger file photo by Chris McCarthy Southside went 3-2 at Guntersville Invitational Tournament last Saturday (Oct. 19). The Class 5A No. 6 Lady Panthers (45-13), opened with a 25-17, 25-15 win over Hayden and a 25-11, 25-12 victory over Fyffe. Southside lost to Danville, 23-25, 25-23, 12-15 before beating Donoho, 25-27, 25-23, 15-9. The Lady

Messenger file photo by Chris McCarthy Several area high school cross country finished in the top 10 in two 5K events last Saturday (Oct. 19). At the Wildcat Fall Classic in Anniston, Glencoe High’s Katie Giles (pictured above) finished as the girls’ event runner-up with a time of 21:36.59, just 22 seconds behind the winning

Photo: Hokes Bluff’s Brody Lumpkin (obscured) and Hunter Burke (30) stop Cherokee County’s Damien Ramsey short of the goal line in a two-point conversion attempt that would have won the game in overtime during the Eagles’ 28-27 victory in Class 4A, Region 6 action last Friday (Oct. 18). (Alex Chaney)  It took two overtime periods,

Photo: Etowah High’s Jaylon Billingsley tackles Alexandria’s C.J. Orr for a loss during the Blue Devils’ 34-10 Class 5A, Region 6 victory last Friday (Oct. 18) in Attalla. (Travis Greene) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Seventh-ranked Etowah weathered a tight first 18 minutes against No. 6 Alexandria last Friday (Oct. 18) in Attalla before pulling away for

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent West End submitted one of its best offensive performances of the season in a 46-28 victory over Gaston in Class 2A, Region 6 action on Friday (Oct. 18) at Captain Bill Boyd Field in Gadsden. The Patriots (2-6, 1-4) scored on five of their first six half possessions and led 46-14

Photo: Southside High’s Aulden Battles (right) catches a pass in front of Boaz’s Carson Chamblee during the Panthers’ 24-14 loss last Friday (Oct. 18). (Gary Wells) By Ricky Smith/For Sand Mountain Reporter Boaz secured a Class 5A state playoff berth with a 24-14 win over Southside at Barney Hood Stadium last Friday (Oct. 18). The

Messenger file photo by Gary Wells Courtesy of Sand Mountain Reporter The Sardis High football team celebrated homecoming by shutting out Crossville, 28-0, last Friday (Oct. 18) in a Class 5A, Region 6 matchup in Sardis City. The Lions improved to 5-3 overall and finished 4-2 in the Region 6 standings. They clinched the region’s

Messenger file photo by Colin Edwards Westbrook Christian clinched a berth in the state playoffs with a 45-14 victory over Class 2A, Region 6 opponent Woodland last Friday (Oct. 18). The Warriors (6-2, 5-2) host Cleveland this Friday (Oct. 25) to determine the region’s third and fourth playoff seeds. For Westbrook, Will Noles was 4-of-5

Messenger file photo by Gary Wells Daniel Maye (pictured above) scored two touchdowns and rushed for over 100 yards as Glencoe earned its first win of the 2019 season with a 27-6 victory over Weaver last Friday (Oct. 18). It was Glencoe’s first win since a 40-6 triumph over West End last year and the

  Woodville out-gunned Coosa Christian, 71-56, in Class 1A, Region 7 action last Friday (Oct. 18) in Gadsden. Quarterback Trevor Horne (pictured above) and receiver Evan Delp were standouts for the Conquerors (1-7, 1-4). Horne completed 12 of 34 passes for 335 yards and six touchdowns, while Delp had six catches for 272 yards and

Courtesy of al.com Gadsden City remained winless on the season following a 24-14 Class 7A, Region 7 loss to Huntsville in the Titans’ homecoming last Friday (Oct. 25). Respective touchdown runs by Trey Blount and C.J. Miller (pictured above) in the first half gave GCHS 14-7 lead, but the Panthers (5-4, 2-4) scored 18 unanswered

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Alabama Week 7 Review Alabama scored double digits in every quarter, and the Crimson Tide cruised to a 47-28 road win over Texas A&M. The UA offense was yet again unstoppable, and the Tide was able to get the ground game going to supplement Tua Tagovailoa’s passing attack. Najee Harris rushed

Class 7A Rank Record Points 1. Thompson 7-0 262 2. McGill-Toolen 7-0 212 3. Central-Phenix City 7-1 187 4. Hoover 6-1 167 5. Mountain Brook 7-0 137 6. Sparkman 7-0 114 7. Prattville 6-1 78 8. Theodore 6-1 62 9. Austin 6-1 59 10. James Clemens 5-2 16 Others receiving votes: Vestavia Hills (5-2) 12,

Messenger file photo by Colin Edwards Several local football players were recognized in the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Prep Spotlight for the week of Oct. 11. Westbrook Christian had a trio of 100-yard rushers in the Warriors’ 42-0 win over Gaston. Karmichael Cattling (pictured above) gained 126 yards on 16 carries, John Reese Bellew

Photo courtesy of Becky Staples The Ashville High girls finished second and the Ashville boys placed third at the Creekbank Invitational 5K last Saturday (Oct. 12) at Choccolocco Park in Oxford. The Lady Bulldogs posted a runner-up average time of 23:00, with Taylor Knight (pictured above) taking fourth place with a time of 20:56.23. Gadsden

Messenger file photo by C his McCarthy The Southside High girls and boys’ cross country teams placed second and third, respectively, at the Pleasant Valley Twilight 5K on Oct. 10. With an average time of 23:31.05, the Lady Panthers finished only eight seconds behind event winner Pleasant Valley. Camryn Davis (pictured above) posted the Southside’s

Photo: Westbrook Christian’s cade Phillips (12) catches the ball between a pair of Gaston defenders during the Warriors’ 42-0 victory last Friday (Oct. 11). (Gary Wells) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Westbrook Christian bolstered its postseason hopes with a 42-0 shutout over Etowah County neighbor and Class 2A, Region 6 rival Gaston last Friday (Oct. 11) at

By Taylor Beck/Sand Mountain Reporter With potential state playoff positions hanging in the balance, the Sardis Lions hung on late to defeat its Class 5A, Region 6 rival Pirates at L.F. Corley Jr. Stadium in Boaz, 31-28. With the victory, the Lions improve to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in region play and clinched a playoff

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Southside struggled to contain Class 5A, No. 9 Alexandria’s potent rushing attack, and the Panthers left Lou Scales Stadium with a 41-20 defeat last Friday (Oct. 11). The Panthers’ promising opening drive ended with a 47-yard missed field goal, and the Valley Cubs (6-0, 4-0) were on the board just two

Photo: Hokes Bluff’s Jaylen Robinson catches a pass over Cleburne County’s Samuel Groce during the Eagles’ 43-0 victory last Friday (Oct. 11) in Heflin. (Alex Chaney) Darrian Meads rushed for over 200 yards and Ashton Gulledge scored three touchdown passes in Hokes Bluff’s 43-0 Class 4A, Region 6 victory over Cleburne County last Friday (Oct.

Courtesy of Cherokee County Herald Senior running back Kendrick Fife ran for 220 yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries in leading Cherokee County to a 47-22 victory over visiting Ashville in Class 4A, Region 6 football action last Friday (Oct. 11) in Centre. But it was the Warrior defense that put Cherokee County (4-3,

Etowah defeated Douglas, 35-0, in Class 5A Region 6 action last Friday (Oct. 11) at DHS. For the No. 10 Blue Devils (7-1, 4-0), Brady Troup (pictured above) threw two touchdown passes and Davis ran for another two scores. Etowah hosts Alexandria this Friday (Oct. 18) to determine the region title. Coosa Christian earned its

Courtesy of Florence Times-Daily Florence battled the second-half rain and churned out a tough 24-10 win over Gadsden City (0-7, 0-5) thanks to its defense and some late-game heroics from senior Dee Beckwith, who finished with 12 carries for 114 rushing yards and two touchdowns and was 2 for 3 through the air with 41

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Auburn Week 6 Review Auburn submitted its worst offensive performance of the season in a 24-13 loss at Florida last Saturday, Oct. 5, in Gainesville. Quarterback Bo Nix completed only 11 of his 27 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, while the Tigers only recorded 124 yards rushing.

Messenger file photo by Chris McCarthy Gadsden State went 3-1 at the Showdown on the Wabash Tournament last weekend in Vincennes, Ind. The Lady Cardinals (18-7) opened the tournament on Oct. 4 with a 22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-13 win over St. Louis (Mo.) Community College, followed by a 25-15, 19-25, 25-18, 22-25, 15-7 victory over

Class 7A Rank Record Points 1. Thompson 6-0 274 2. McGill-Toolen 6-0 221 3. Central-Phenix City 6-1 194 4. Hoover 5-1 175 5. Mountain Brook 6-0 141 6. Theodore 6-0 122 7. Sparkman 6-0 87 8. Prattville 5-1 49 9. Vestavia Hills 5-1 41 10. Austin 5-1 33 Others receiving votes: Lee-Montgomery (6-1) 24, James