PIckens Academy

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 Pickens Academy girls basketball team secured its spot in the Elite Eight in Montgomery with a 51-11 win over Escambia Academy last Tuesday night. The Lady Pirates played solid defense and shot the ball well enough for a 40-point win over the Cougars.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Pickens Academy saw its season end at Clarke Prep Thursday night, as the Gators used a big second half to defeat the Pirates 60-32. PA had defeated Clarke Prep twice during the regular season, but were unable to get the win when it mattered most.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Junior Seth Peeks and eighth-grader Lane Goodman carried Pickens Academy for most of the night against Tuscaloosa Academy Thursday night, but the Knights were just too much behind the hot shooting of guard Hadrien McNeil, as TA won 50-38.

Goodman has recently been inserted into the starting lineup on the varsity team and has given the Pirates a spark, both offensively and defensively.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor

Both teams got off to a slow start, but Tuscaloosa Academy would get just enough from Kelsey Curry, Chloe Johnson, and Amity White to defeat Pickens Academy 32-18 Thursday night. The Lady Pirates lost to TA 41-11 back in December, but would hold their own in the contest on their home court.

“We played really good defense and did a good job on Curry and Johnson,” Pickens Academy head coach Wade Goodman said. “When you can hold them to that, that’s solid defense.”

By Brian Hamilton, Sports Correspondent

Pickens Academy fell behind 11-0 to Columbus Christian in the opening round of the Columbus Christian Christmas tournament and pulled closer throughout the game, but ultimately fell to the Rams 64-58.

“Missed layups, missed opportunities, that’s the kind of stuff that gets you beat,” Pickens Academy head coach Jeremy Pate said. “At this point in the season we’ve got to start making those count.”

By Brian Hamilton, Sports Correspondent

The Lady Pirates fell to Heritage Academy 42-27 in the opening day of the Columbus Christian Christmas Tournament. Pickens Academy stayed close with the Lady Patriots, trailing just 20-19 at halftime before ultimately falling to Heritage Academy. PA once again had trouble with the zone press, which the Lady Patriots applied for most of the game.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON, Sports Correspondent

Pickens Academy lost their first game of the season in the Final Four against Escambia Academy after starting the season 18-0. Pirates head coach Jeremy Pate said while he expects this team to go through growing pains, he still has the same expectations as he had for last year’s team.

BY BRIAN HAMILTON, Sports Correspondent

Pickens Academy head coach Wade Goodman is faced with the task of replacing the majority of his team’s scoring in Olivia Lewis and Allison Latham. Lewis and Latham were stalwarts on a team that won a state championship in 2017 and advanced to the Final Four in 2018.

The two-time state champion head coach has only seven girls on his varsity roster and with no senior-laden talent at his disposal, Goodman says he is looking for some of his underclassmen girls to step into leadership roles early on.

The clock ran continuously throughout the fourth quarter, as Crenshaw had already built a 70-6 lead.