Sports

CARROLLTON - The Lady Pirates lost a heartbreaker to South Choctaw on Thursday night, as a blocking foul was called on Kate Wilkins with less than a second left in the game. Pickens Academy had just missed two opportunities to win the game, which was tied at 35-35, but South Choctaw retrieved the rebound and headed up court before the foul was called underneath the Lady Pirates’ basket. The Lady Rebels’ Mallory Mosley was given two free throws with no time left on the clock.

GORDO - The Gordo Lady wave took on Holt Thursday night, in a battle of winless teams, unless you count Aliceville's recent forfeit against Gordo as a win. It would be Holt that came out on top with their first win of the season, a 47-29 win.
The Lady Wave got on the board first on an Emily Bryant layup for a 2-0 lead. Holt would then tie the game at 2-2 on a Williams layup.
Neither team scored for almost three minutes until Williams broke a 2-2 tie with a layup with 3:39. Gordo's Taylor Clegg would answer shortly after with a steal and layup to tie the game at 4-4.

Pickens Academy alumnus Josh Wright, a four-time AISA state champion at Bessemer Academy, was recently named head coach at Tuscaloosa Academy. Wright and his wife, Caroline, live in Tuscaloosa, which made the move hard to turn down. "It was a big factor that I get to wake my daughter up, take her to school, and I get to see her when I come home," Wright said.

The Pickens County Tornadoes, ranked sixth in Class 1A, captured the regular season Area 9 championship on January 14, by defeating the Holy Spirit Saints 67-63.
It was Senior night at Pickens County and all varsity basketball seniors were honored between the boys and girls games.
The Seniors honored were Kelcei Phillips, Jacoris Barnes, Ladesmon Brown, K.J. Byrd, Jaylon Jones, Xavier King and Xerrance Washington.

The Pickens County Lady Tornadoes had a tough week of play, dropping to 1-9 on the season. On Saturday, January 9, the Lady Tornadoes played the Sipsey Valley Lady Bears and lost a heartbreaker 49-47 in overtime. Sipsey Valley led 9-6 after one period and then held a one-point lead at halftime, 19-18. Pickens County took the lead after three quarters, 28-25, but the Lady Bears came back in the fourth to tie the game at 45-45 at the end of regulation. The Lady Tornadoes could score only two points in overtime and Sipsey Valley came away with a 49-47 victory.

BY BARRY AMBROSE
Sports Correspondent

The Pickens County Lady Tornadoes dropped wo games in the first half of the week to fall to 1-5 on the season. On Monday, January 4, the Lady Tornadoes traveled to Holy Spirit and lost a close one, 50-46. Leading the way for Pickens County in a losing effort was Kelcei Stewart with 29 points.

BY BARRY AMBROSE
Sports Correspondent

The #1-ranked team in Class 1A, the Pickens County Tornadoes upped their record to 5-1 (4-0 in the Area) with an easy 77-27 win over the Hubbertville Lions.
Pickens County went on a 7-0 run to start the game, and had a 17-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.
To begin the second quarter, Pickens County went on a run again, this time 12-0, to open up a 29-11 lead.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

Heritage Christian started fast and finished fast, as the Eagles cruised to a 57-34 region win Monday night.
The Eagles jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead, as Tobias Stoutermire nailed two corner threes, followed by a three by Ty Stoutermire.
Pickens Academy got on the board with a jumper by Rafe Brown, cutting the lead to 9-2. A layup by Aidan Johnson would make the score 9-4 with 2:52 left in the first quarter, as Heritage went on a scoring drought.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BARRY AMBROSE
Sports Correspondent

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Managing Editor
brian@pcherald.com

It looked as if Gordo’s season opener with Oakman may get delayed or even postponed, as a violent thunderstorm swept through the area just around an hour before kickoff.
However, when the clock struck 7 p.m., the weather was all clear and there wasn’t as much as a rain drop during the contest.
Gordo played sloppy early offensively and gave up big plays on defense, but settled in before halftime to build a 34-13 lead at intermission, in route to a 48-19 win.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Editor

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Editor

 Saturday, September 28, 2019 marked the second tournament of the 2019-2020 season for the Pickens Anglers’ High School Club.  The event was held at Vienna Access Area on the Tenn-Tom Waterway.  Recent weather patterns have been less than favorable if you are trying to get a good stand of turnip greens up for the winter, but the heat wave has kept water temperatures very favorable for fish activity.  Student Anglers’ had a good day fishing and all fish weighed in for the day were alive.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON
Editor

There was no questioning who the superior swarm of Yellow Jackets were on Friday night, as Winston County traveled south into a buzz saw that was Aliceville. By the time the damage was done, Aliceville came away with a 39-0 win on homecoming.
“Honestly, I’m glad it’s over,” Aliceville coach Melvin Pete said of homecoming. “Everything that comes with homecoming can be a distraction. Everybody enjoys themselves, but we have to try and explain to our kids that we’ve got to take care of business. You have to concentrate on being the last act.”

BY BARRY AMBROSE Sports Correspondent If you were in Reform on Friday night, you might have thought you were attending a heavyweight championship fight. In reality, you were attending a heavyweight bout, but it wasn't a boxing match, it was high school football at it's finest. G. S. Spruill stadium was the site of a Class 1A Top-10 matchup between the #5 South Lamar Stallions and the homestanding #9 Pickens County Tornadoes. At stake in this game was the #1 spot in Region 6, which is very important as far as the state playoff picture goes.

For all the trouble Pickens Academy had scoring through the first three games, the Pirates didn’t have to much trouble on Friday night.
“It was a big win for us,” Pickens Academy coach Scotty Pennington said. “It was a region win too. I talked to their coach last week and they (Meadowview) are just getting back to playing 11-man ball. They played 8-man for five years. They’re still trying to get used to it.”
Pickens Academy  jumped on Meadowview Christian early on homecoming and didn’t let up until the score was 61-8.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Waves kicked off their area tournament with a 19-1 win over Holt, followed by a 4-2 win over Hale County, a team that had beaten Gordo twice in the regular season. The two wins on Tuesday set the Lady Waves up to face the Wildcats again on Thursday, only needing one win to claim the area championship. Not only did Gordo not pick up a win in either game, but they were blown out by Hale County by scores of 21-3 and 15-0.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Pirates traveled to Eufaula, Ala. on Friday, April 26 to take on the No. 1 seeded Lakeside School Chiefs in the second round of the AISA Class AA playoffs and were swept clean in Friday's two games by scores of 12-0 and 17-3. The loss ends the season for the Pickens Academy baseball team.

Lakeside School, 12

Pickens Academy, 0

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Gordo saw Game 2 slip away on Friday night, as Bayside Academy knocked in a run in the seventh inning of game two for a 3-2 win Friday night, which sent the game to a deciding Game 3 at noon on Saturday. Gordo would win Game 3, however, moving on to the state quarterfinals.

Gordo, 9 Bayside Academy, 3

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Pirates started the state tournament strong on Thursday a week after afternoon, steamrolling Lowndes Academy 10-0 after winning the regionals comfortably last week. Then in the second game, against Edgewood — and as a matter of fact, for the rest of the tournament — the hitting woes reared their ugly head again. Shelby's pitching was downright dominant, as no opponent managed to hit a ball out of the infield all tournament, yet Pickens Academy still managed to lose two games because of their troubles at the plate.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Wave finished off their regular season schedule with a 10-7 win over Winfield — ranked 5th in Class 4A — on senior night Tuesday night. Gordo had just lost to Winfield 4-2 in the WAC tournament on April 20th, but returned the favor on Tuesday, the last home game in a Green Wave uniform for Bethany Vintson, Halli Koon, and Anna Kate Dykes.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

After a season of ups and downs and following an evening of destruction in Pickens County, the Pickens Academy baseball team  traveled four hours to Atmore, Ala. to face Escambia Academy on Friday April 19, with the winner earning a berth in the second round of the AISA Class 2A playoffs.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Gordo began the 2019 AHSAA Class 3A playoffs with a bang last weekend, as the Green Wave defeated Fultondale 14-4 and 16-2 to advance to the second round of the playoffs.

"I thought we came out a little sluggish mentally, but I thought they got in a rhythm pretty quick and I thought we swung the bats pretty well and the pitchers did a good job," Gordo coach Jonathan Pate said.

Gordo, 14 Fultondale, 4

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Gordo hosted Greene County in an area doubleheader on Tuesday evening and had no problem with the Lady Tigers, winning both games 16-0 in three innings. Chloe Harville pitched a perfect game against Greene County in the second game of the doubleheader.

Gordo, 16

Greene County, 0

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy lost to Tuscaloosa Academy in blowout fashion last Monday evening, but bounced back on Tuesday evening, winning both games of a doubleheader against Russell Christian by scores of 4-0 and 14-4. The Lady Pirates had last Thursday’s doubleheader with Bessemer Academy cancelled due to weather, ending the regular season. Pickens Academy will play in their regional tournament on Thursday, April 25th in Demopolis against the winner of Monroe Academy and Patrician Academy, with the first game starting at 2 p.m.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy’s Mackenzie McCool signed with the Mississippi University for Women last Thursday morning in Carrollton. The senior is an integral piece to the Lady Pirates’ effort to bring home the school’s first ever state championship this season.

McCool played her freshman and sophomore seasons for Pickens Academy, before transferring to New Hope in Mississippi for her junior season. The slugger then returned to PA for her senior season and has already hit four home runs.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy had just suffered through a difficult game against South Choctaw Academy, a game that PA won 2-1 and the Lady Rebel fans were angry because of a call where the runner left early. South Choctaw had an opportunity to really put their foot down on the Lady Pirates had they won that game, yet PA survived and went on to win their last two meetings to win the area championship.

Pickens Academy, 1 South Choctaw, 0

Andrew Martin of Gordo and Carson Poe of Tuscaloosa won the doubles bowling competition at the 13th Annual USBC Youth State Tournament in Mobile March 23-24.

Youth from across the state competed in this United States Bowling Congress-sanctioned event at AMF Camellia Lanes in Mobile. The singles and doubles competitions were held March 23, and the team events were held March 24.

Martin and Poe combined to win the doubles competition for those with a handicap of 350 and over with a score of 1,175. They took third place in the scratch series.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy was unable to keep their momentum from a strong showing in the Clarkdale tournament several weeks back, but the Lady Pirates did manage to pick up a shutout win over Marengo Academy, sandwiched in between losses to South Choctaw and Monroe Academy, before picking up a much needed regular season win over South Choctaw last Tuesday evening.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Wave had its best showing of the season last weekend, as they went to Northside and reeled off four straight wins before falling to Buckhorn, the number one team in Class 6A on Saturday evening. Gordo picked up wins over Hamilton and Northridge on Friday and then ousting Holy Spirit and Robertsdale on Saturday before falling to Buckhorn.

Gordo advanced to 8-10 on the season after the Northside tournament.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Green Wave finished spring break week with a record of 4-1 through Thursday evening, improving to 14-3 overall. The intriguing aspect of Gordo’s games this week is that assistant coach Tray Gilbert had the opportunity to coach against his father, James Gilbert, and alma mater, Geraldine, in two of the Green Wave’s games. Fortunately, for Gordo, the younger Gilbert’s team got the better end of the deal, with the Green Wave winning 11-1 and 16-1 over Gilbert’s former school.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Gordo travelled to Walker County last weekend to compete in the Curry Tournament and dropped three-of-four games to drop their record to 3-9, with their lone win in the tournament coming in a 4-0 shutout against Lamar County, a team it had defeated the weekend before. The Lady Wave would get back on track Tuesday, however, when they picked up a 4-2 home win over Class 6A Northridge.

Corner, 5 Gordo, 4

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

After a week where the Lady Pirates dropped four games, three in the Glenwood tournament in Phenix City and one at home against Southern Academy, Pickens Academy has reeled off seven consecutive wins, starting with four wins in the Clarkdale tournament in Meridian, Miss. on Friday and Saturday, March 15th and 16th.

Pickens Academy, 10 Hancock, 0

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy's baseball team appeared to be hitting its stride after a dominant 14-0 win over Columbus Christian on March 7th, and jumping out to a 6-1 lead on Southern last week, however, the Pirates' errors began to pile up in the game against the Cougars, as they blew the lead to lose 9-8.

Pickens Academy, 14 Columbus Christian, 0

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Wave picked up a much needed win over Lamar County on Saturday, March 9th at home. In a day where Gordo opened a double-header with Bibb County at 9 a.m., an 11-1 loss, Gordo was able to pull off a 7-5 win over the Lady Bulldogs in the afternoon.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Pirates are 1-4 since starting the season 4-0, having suffered a 7-1 loss to Edgewood, 1-0 loss to Pike Liberal Arts, 2-1 loss to Glenwood in the Glenwood Tournament, and also dropping a home game last Tuesday night to Southern Academy 9-5. Pickens Academy's lone win in the Glenwood tournament was a 1-0 win over arch-nemesis Macon East.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Early into what is a long and grinding baseball season, The Gordo Green Wave has yet to suffer their first loss. After wins over Fayette, Northside, and Sumiton Christian last week, Gordo's baseball team went into the weekend with a record of 6-0.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Gordo softball fell to 1-4 on the season Thursday, as the Lady Wave was washed ashore by Northside. Just a day before, Gordo lost a 5-3 lead in the final inning to fall 7-5 to Hillcrest.

Hillcrest, 7 Gordo, 5

Andrew Martin of Gordo and Carson Poe of Tuscaloosa won the doubles bowling competition at the 2019 Tuscaloosa USBC Youth City Tournament on Feb. 24.

About 48 youth bowlers from the West Alabama area competed in this United States Bowling Congress-sanctioned event on Saturday, Feb. 23,  at AMF Bama Lanes and 51 bowlers competed on Sunday, Feb. 24, at Leland Lanes in Tuscaloosa. The team events were held Feb. 23, and the doubles and singles events were held Feb. 24.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy’s softball team has jumped out to a 3-0 start to the 2019 season, defeating Tuscaloosa Academy 12-0 and 14-8 in a doubleheader on Monday, February 25th, while shutting out Southern Academy 6-0 on Tuesday. The Lady Pirates’ starting pitcher Shelby Lowe pitched the two shutouts, while Courtney Dudley earned the win in the second of a doubleheader against Tuscaloosa Academy.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Gordo softball team travelled to Tuscaloosa Monday evening to play Holy Spirit in their season opener. The game was originally scheduled to begin at 5 p.m., but the opening pitch was delayed until 6:15 p.m. because of poor field conditions. The opener did not go as planned for the Lady Wave, however, as they saw one of their best players, Kaylee Quimby, leave with an injury, ultimately falling to the Lady Saints 8-3.

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

The Lady Pirates fought back from a four-point deficit with just over a minute left to take a one-point lead, however, Lowndes Academy would score with 25 seconds left in the game to win 31-30.

“It’s a tough loss and it needs to hurt,” Pickens Academy head coach Wade Goodman said. “When they hurt like that and we’ve got four juniors and a couple sophomores coming back, that should make them get in that gym and get better. We didn’t do that this year. It needs to hurt so bad that it gets them in the gym.”

By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens County was able to withstand a scoring barrage by Meek due Payton Key and Caleb Aaron last Tuesday night to win 85-60 in the subregional playoff and advance to the northwest regional semifinals in Hanceville. Key finished the game with 35 points, while Aaron added 18, as the two career 1,000-point accounted for 53 of Meek’s 60 points. The Tornadoes would use a stingy full-court press, however, to pull away and win comfortably.