.jpg "Image") Coach Dale Peay’s EMCC golf team placed sixth in this week’s season-opening MACJC event held at the Laurel Country Club.
Coach Dale Peay’s freshman-laden EMCC squad carded a two-day total of 641 (315-326) to finish just eight strokes out of second place among the 12-team MACJC field. With an opening-round 315 as a team, the Lions sat in second place heading into Tuesday’s closing round. Mississippi Gulf Coast claimed the team title with a two-round score of 612 (303-309) to finish 21 strokes better than runner-up Northeast Mississippi.
Freshman Jordan Jamar of Bossier City, La., led the Lions with a 12th-place individual finish in firing a two-day total of 157 (78-79) on the par-72, 6,667-yard layout. Caledonia’s Hal Larkin followed with a 15th-place tie for EMCC (82-79—161), while Northwest Rankin’s James Winter finished 20th (86-76—162) in competing as an individual scorer during the tournament.
Belmont’s Trey Adams (78-85—163) and Will Black of Calhoun City (77-88—165) tied for 21st and 28th, respectively, while Northwest Rankin’s Garrett Alford rounded out EMCC’s scorecard in a tie for 47th place (93-83—176).
Nic Ishee of Mississippi Gulf Coast took medalist honors at the Laurel event with an ever-par 144 (72-72), five strokes better than runners-up Blake Hatfield of Northeast Mississippi and MGCCC’s Richie Williams.
East Mississippi will join the other MACJC schools at Raymond’s Eagle Ridge Golf Club for an upcoming two-day tournament (Feb. 22-23) set to be hosted by Hinds Community College.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 18 February 2009 )
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.jpg "Image") Southeast Lauderdale catcher Noah Greer has become EMCC’s second baseball signee of the spring signing period.
A 6-foot, 190-pound defensive specialist, Greer has been named Southeast Lauderdale’s defensive MVP each of the last two seasons as the team’s starting catcher. As a junior, he hit .310 with 20 runs batted in for coach Shay Cooper’s 2008 Tigers.
“Noah is a great defensive catcher who controls the game from behind the plate,” EMCC assistant baseball coach Josh Snider noted. “He is a terrific team leader and is very well respected among his peers and teammates.”
The son of Jewell and Lisa Greer of Meridian, Greer is an active member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes organization.
Greer joins previously announced EMCC baseball signee Tyler Aldridge, a 5-foot-10, 200-pound pitcher/shortstop from Caledonia High School.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 17 February 2009 )
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.jpg "Image") Sophomore standout Angelique Burtts (right) totaled 26 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals to help lead the 19-4 Lady Lions to their ninth straight win with Monday’s 68-60 road triumph over Holmes. Freshman guard Terence Bennett tallied a season-high 18 points off the bench in the nightcap, but the Lions dropped a 68-63 decision to the Bulldogs.
Winners of 15 of their last 17 decisions, coach Sharon Thompson’s 19-4 Lady Lions improved their North Division mark to 10-1 on the season. The EMCC women are putting together their most successful season since going 21-6 overall and 12-0 in North Division play in 1992-93 under the guidance of former women’s basketball coach Dale Peay.
Sophomore forward Angelique Burtts once again led the way for the EMCC women with a team-high 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting. The Georgia State signee added six rebounds, five assists and four steals in an outstanding all-around effort for the winners. Freshman Martika Hull of Southeast Lauderdale recorded her seventh double-double of the campaign with 19 points on 7-of-9 field goals and 5-of-5 free throws to go along with her dozen rebounds.
In dropping to 7-12 overall and 3-8 in North Division play, the Lady Bulldogs were led by Kimberly Anderson (25 points) and Courtney O’Briant (24), who combined for 49 of Holmes’ 60 points in the women’s contest.
In getting swept by Holmes on the year, coach Mark White’s Lions fell to 14-9 overall and are now tied with the Bulldogs for second place behind divisional leader Itawamba in the North Division standings. The 14 wins this season are the most for the Lions since the 1999-2000 EMCC club posted a 15-11 overall mark.
Hampered by 12-of-24 free-throw shooting in the contest, the Lions battled back from a 36-20 halftime deficit to get to within a basket (62-60) following Terence Bennett’s three-point play. However down the stretch, EMCC could not quite catch the Bulldogs, who benefitted from a 9-of-18 performance from beyond the three-point arc. Bennett, a freshman guard from Jackson’s Forest Hill High School, paced the visitors with a season-high 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting off the bench. The Starkville tandem of Coco Ware and Woodie Howard followed with nine points apiece, but were only a combined 7-of-20 from the field.
Holmes improved to 16-7 overall and moved into a second-place tie with EMCC in the MACJC’s North Division standings with identical 7-4 divisional marks. The Bulldogs were led by Jonathan Ratliff’s game-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting off the bench, including a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc. James Archie and Al Graham added 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the winners.
The East Mississippi basketball teams will close out the regular season Thursday by playing host to divisional foe Northeast Mississippi. Game times are set for 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at Keyes T. Currie Coliseum on the Scooba campus. Along with honoring the teams’ departing sophomore players and managers, EMCC officials are encouraging all fans planning to attend Thursday’s games to wear pink in recognition of the WBCA’s Pink Zone event. The Lady Lions are aiming to raise awareness about breast cancer and pay tribute to the late North Carolina State women’s basketball coaching legend Kay Yow.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 17 February 2009 )
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 Will Sanders (left) had two hits, including his first collegiate home run, in Saturday’s first game at Southwest Mississippi, while Chase Pearson collected two singles in the nightcap against the SMCC Bears.
After the homestanding Bears plated two runs in the second and third innings of the opening contest off EMCC starter Austin Riggs of Amory, Starkville freshman Will Sanders put the Lions on the board in the fourth with a solo home run. EMCC followed with a pair of runs in the sixth inning to close the gap to 4-3. Southeast Lauderdale’s Addison Swink scored on a wild pitch after reaching on a triple. Later in the inning, Sanders reached base on a hit-by-pitch and was driven home on a two-out single by freshman David Williams of Hernando. However, Southwest answered with three runs in the bottom of the sixth off Lion relievers Alex Lummus and Ricky Gardner to pull away for the four-run victory.
Riggs took the loss for the visitors in the first game, surrendering four earned runs on six hits while working into the third inning. Sanders had two of EMCC’s five hits, adding a single and scoring two runs in the contest.
The Lions dropped their fifth straight decision of the year in the nightcap, getting shut out for the third time during their current losing streak. With EMCC trailing, 1-0, the Bears pushed across three runs in the bottom of the third after two outs had been recorded.
EMCC could only manage six singles in the second contest, two by freshman Chase Pearson of Hatley. Freshman Tyler Richardson of West Lauderdale absorbed the loss for the Lions after giving up four earned runs on seven hits while pitching into the fourth inning.
After rain forced postponement of their scheduled Friday games in Decatur, coach Tony Montgomery’s 1-5 EMCC Lions will take on Andrew College of Georgia and East Central Sunday afternoon on the ECCC campus at 12:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., respectively. In another EMCC baseball schedule adjustment, East Mississippi will travel to Marion, Ala., to meet Marion Military Academy in a Wednesday road doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. The Lions are slated to make their 2009 home debut Saturday (Feb. 21) at refurbished Gerald Poole Field when they play host to Mississippi Gulf Coast in a doubleheader set to commence at 1 p.m. on the Scooba campus.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 14 February 2009 )
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 Freshman Martika Hull (right) recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds, while sophomore Larry Foster nailed a pair of clutch 3-pointers during Thursday’s basketball sweep at Mississippi Delta. EMCC prevailed, 69-53, in the women’s game and claimed an 81-78 victory in the men’s contest.
With their most wins in a season since posting a 21-6 overall record and going undefeated in the North Division during the 1992-93 campaign, coach Sharon Thompson’s 2008-09 EMCC squad is now 18-4 overall and 9-1 in divisional play. Having extended their current winning streak to eight consecutive games, the Lady Lions have claimed 14 of their last 16 decisions.
Jumping out to a 22-5 lead in the contest, the EMCC women owned a 38-20 halftime advantage. After the Lady Lions pulled ahead by as many as 25 points in the second stanza, Mississippi Delta managed to close the gap and cut the deficit to single digits with six minutes remaining in the contest. A veteran East Mississippi ballclub kept its collective cool and continued to ride the inside game of all-star candidates Angelique Burtts and Martika Hull to pull away for the 16-point road victory over the Lady Trojans.
Burtts finished the contest with a team-high 17 points, while Hull of Southeast Lauderdale posted her sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore Jasmine Abrams of Columbus added nine points and nine rebounds for the winners.
In the men’s contest, coach Mark White’s 14-8 Lions, now 7-3 in North Division play, capped a second-half comeback with some timely three-point shooting by sophomore guard Larry Foster down the stretch. With EMCC down 36-31 at the half and trailing by as many as eight in the second half, Foster nailed a trey with two minutes remaining to put EMCC on top by six points. The Trojans countered with a 3-pointer of their own, before Foster beat the shot-clock buzzer with a clutch triple in the final minute of play. Freshman Coco Ware of Starkville sealed the six-point victory by hitting 4-of-4 free throws over the waning seconds.
Ware and fellow Starkville native Woodie Howard led the Lions with 19 points apiece, while Foster, of York, Ala., finished with 13.
EMCC previously knocked off Mississippi Delta – 62-49 in the women’s game and 72-66 in the men’s contest – last month (Jan. 20) in Scooba.
The East Mississippi basketball teams wrap up their regular-season road slate by playing at Holmes on Monday (Feb. 16), before closing out their home schedule next Thursday (Feb. 19) by welcoming Northeast Mississippi to EMCC’s Keyes T. Currie Coliseum.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 13 February 2009 )
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