Sports

Glencoe came up short against Susan Moore, 59-51, the Class 3A, Area 12 championship on Feb. 8 at Susan Moore. Ashley Morgan (pictured above) scored 23 points for the Lady Yellow Jackets, while Cami Zahorscak added eight and Lauren Cole seven. Glencoe (19-9) travels to Locust Fork tonight (Feb. 11) in the subregional playoffs. Sardis

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Auburn Week 5 Review After a poor start to the conference season, the Tigers took advantage of a three-game home stretch to get back above .500. Auburn defeated Missouri, Ala-bama and Florida – all by double digits – and looked closer to last year’s team that won the SEC championship. The

Photo: Southside High’s Kaylee Brown (12 shoots over Etowah’s Shy’ere Gibbs during the Lady Panthers’ 46-31 victory in the Class 5A, Area 12 championship game on Wednesday (Feb. 6). (Gary Wells)  By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Southside built an early first quarter lead and never looked back as the Lady Panthers sprinted past Etowah, 46-31, to

Photo: Westbrook Christian senior Jackson Luttrell signed a football scholarship with Jacksonville State University on Wednesday, Feb. 6. Pictured, sitting, from left: Jackson’s mom Tonya, Jackson, Jackson’s dad Phil. Stan-ding, from left: Westbrook athletic director Matt Kennedy, former Westbrook head football Brian Mintz, Jackson’s sister Morgan. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Jackson Luttrell will stay local

Photo: Etowah High seniors Emil Smith (right) and Trey Cole signed football scholarship on Wednesday (Feb. 6). (Mike Goodson/Messenger) By Mike Goodson/Sports Correspondent A pair of Etowah High seniors will showcase their gridiron skills at the next level. Emil Smith and Trey Cole both signed football scholarship on Wednesday (Feb. 6) in Attalla. Smith, who

Photo: Southside High’s Chris Lengyel (2) attempts a jump shot as Alexandria’s Landan Williams (left) defends during the Panthers’ 52-47 loss in the Class 5A, Area Tournament semifinals last Tuesday (Feb. 5) in Attalla. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Southside High’s potent perimeter game faded down the stretch last Tuesday (Feb. 5) in the Class

Released February 3 GIRLS Class 7A 1. Hoover 2. McGill-Toolen 3. Sparkman 4. Austin 5. Davidson 6. Spain Park 7. Grissom 8. Auburn 9. Hewitt-Trussville 10. Foley Class 6A 1. Hazel Green 2. Blount 3. Eufaula 4. Hartselle 5. Huffman 6. McAdory 7. Carver-Birmingham 8. Cullman 9. Opelika 10. Muscle Shoals Class 5A 1. Ramsay

One local high school athlete medaled and three others posted top 10 finishes at the AHSAA state indoor track & field meet last weekend at the Birmingham Crossplex. Gadsden City’s Jakari Embry (pictured above) was the area’s lone medalist, as the Titan junior took home the third-place bronze in the Class 7A boys 60-meter hurdles

By Cole Frederick/Sports Correspondent Alabama Week 4 Review Alabama earned yet an-other impressive home win in knocking off Mississippi State, 83-79, at Coleman Coliseum. Donta Hall scored 19 points for the Crimson Tide, while John Petty and Riley Norris chipped in 13 and 11 points, respectively. UA improved to 13-7 overall and 4-3 in league

By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Garry Shirley has returned to the Land of the Conquerors. The 1981 Etowah High School graduate was recently named head baseball coach at Coosa Christian, where he was from 2005 until 2012. Shirley replaces Joey Millican, who resigned this past summer due to personal reasons. During Shirley’s initial eight seasons at Coosa,

GIRLS Class 7A 1. Hoover 2. McGill-Toolen 3. Sparkman 4. Austin 5. Spain Park 6. Davidson 7. Grissom 8. Auburn 9. Foley 10. Hewitt-Trussville Class 6A 1. Hazel Green 2. Eufaula 3. Blount 4. Hartselle 5. Huffman 6. McAdory 7. Carver-Birmingham 8. Cullman 9. Opelika 10. Muscle Shoals Class 5A 1. Ramsay 2. Charles Henderson

Photo: Southside High girls bowling team members Ashlee Hull, Jennifer Clontz, Rose Losco and Cheyanne Bohannon (pictured, from left) celebrate during the AHSAA state championship match on Jan. 25 at Oak Mountain Lanes in Pelham. (Dennis Victory/al.com) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor The Southside High girls bowling team found itself in unfamiliar territory on Jan. 25 in

Photo courtesy of Daniel Boyette/al.com By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor The Attalla City Board of Education certainly didn’t drag its heels in hiring a new football coach and athletic director at Etowah High. On the same day that the board accepted Drew Noles’ retirement, it hired John Holladay as the school’s 27th head coach. Noles, who last

Auburn Week 3 Review Auburn dropped under .500 in conference play after back-to-back narrow losses to Kentucky and South Ca-rolina. The Wildcats handed Auburn its first loss at home this season as they knocked off the Tigers, 82-80. Guards Keldon Johnson and Tyler Herro each scored 20 points for Kentucky and were able to sustain

The Southside High girls defeated Hartselle, 1,299 to 1,147, to win a third straight North Regional Bowling Tournament championship on Jan. 18 in Vestavia Hills. The two-time defending state champion Lady Panthers advanced to this week’s state tournament in Pelham. Coming out of pool play as the second seed, Southside opened single elimination play with

By Joshua Price/Special to the Messenger West End High School has a rich history of athletics. From football to basketball to baseball to track and field to volleyball, the Patriots have found much success over the past 53 years, including a number of county, area and state championships. Before West End formed in 1966, two

GIRLS Class 7A 1. Hoover 2. McGill-Toolen 3. Sparkman 4. Austin 5. Spain Park 6. Davidson 7. Grissom 8. Auburn 9. Hewitt-Trussville 10. Foley Class 6A 1. Hazel Green 2. Eufaula 3. Hartselle 4. McAdory 5. Blount 6. Huffman 7. Cullman 8. Opelika 9. Dothan 10. Carver-Birmingham Class 5A 1. Ramsay 2. Charles Henderson 3.

By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor The Bart Sessions era at Gadsden City High School is over after 21 months and six victories. GCHS Principal Kevin Young confirmed that he relived Sessions of his duties as head football coach effective immediately. Young added that Sessions (pictured above) will continue to teach physical education at GCHS. Young said that

Southside defeated Hartselle, 1,299 to 1,147, to win a third straight North Regional Bowling Tournament championship on Jan. 18 in Vestavia Hills. The two-time defending state champion Lady Panthers advanced to this week’s state tournament in Pelham. Coming out of pool play as the second seed, Southside opened single elimination play with a 1,244 –

By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Drew Noles (pictured above) won’t have very far to travel to the next phase of his coaching career. To be exact, his new school’s campus is located a mere 5.3 miles from his former one. One day after retiring as head football coach at Etowah High School on Jan. 17, Noles accepted

Photo: Hokes Bluff’s Hayden Lipscomb (32) goes up for a basket as Southside’s Colton Morrison (20) and Jordan Grantland (3) defend during the Eagles’ 72-49 win in the Etowah County Schools Tournament championship on Jan. 18 in Sardis City. (Alex Chaney) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Hokes Bluff’s interior and exterior work proved too much for Southside

Photo: Glencoe High’s Abby Vice (left) drives to the basket as Southside’s Savannah Nunn defends during the Lady Yellow Jackets’ 42-39 victory in the championship game of the Etowah County Schools Tournament on Jan. 19 in Sardis City. (Gary Wells) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor The last time Glencoe High won the Etowah County Girls Basketball Tournament,

GIRLS Class 7A 1. Hoover 2. McGill-Toolen 3. Sparkman 4. Austin 5. Spain Park 6. Davidson 7. Grissom 8. Auburn 9. Hewitt-Trussville 10. Foley Class 6A 1. Hazel Green 2. Eufaula 3. Hartselle 4. Blount 5. Opelika 6. Huffman 7. McAdory 8. Cullman 9. Park Crossing 10. Dothan Class 5A 1. Ramsay (19-6) 2. Charles

By Mike Goodson/Sports Correspondent Southside jumped out to a 14-5 lead after one quarter and never trailed in a 39-19 win over Hokes Bluff in the semifinal round of the Etowah County Schools Basketball Tournament on Wednesday, Jan. 15, at Sardis. The Lady Panthers (15-4) face either Glencoe or Sardis in Friday’s championship game. Southside

Photo: Hokes Bluff’s Hayden Lipscomb (left) blocks a shot by Sardis’ Alex James during the Eagles’ 56-49 win in the Etowah County Basketball Tournament semifinals on Wednesday, Jan. 16, at Sardis. Credit: Shannon J. Allen/Sand Mountain Reporter. By Mike Goodson/Sports Correspondent Hokes Bluff outscored Sardis 21-9 over the final eight of the game to take a

By Cole Frederick Auburn Week 2 Review After beginning conference play with a road loss at Ole Miss, the Tigers bounced back and won two straight games by double digits over Georgia and Texas A&M. Auburn took care of the Bulldogs, 93-78, and followed that up with an 85-66 victory over the Aggies. Bryce Brown

Photo: West End’s Gavin Knue (left) guards Sardis’ Brock Ondo during the Yellow Jackets’ 63-43 victory in the quarterfinals of the Etowah County Schools Basketball Tournament on Tuesday, Jan. 15, in Sardis City. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger) By Chris McCarthy Publisher/Editor Glencoe maintained a double-digit lead from late in the first quarter to the final buzzer in

Photo: Sardis High’s Kaitlin Morris (23) guards West End’s Montanna Mashburn during the Lady Lions’ 57-12 victory in the quarterfinals of the Etowah County Schools Basketball Tournament on Tuesday, Jan. 15, in Sardis City. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger) By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor The Sardis High girls put the pedal to the metal early on and never let up

Photo: Former Etowah High head football coach Drew Noles, Etowah senior Jamin Graham, Hokes Bluff junior Darrian Meads and Hokes Bluff head football coach Mike Robertson (pictured, from left) gather for a photo following the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s Mr. Football and Back/Lineman of the Year Banquet on Tuesday, Jan. 15, in Montgomery. Graham and

By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor Thirty-nine student-athletes make up the 2018 All-Etowah County Schools football team. State playoff participants Southside and Hokes Bluff had the most players represented with 12 and 10, respectively. Seven players were selected from Sardis, followed by Glencoe with four and Gaston and West End with three each. Highlighting the list is