Eagle Golfer Plays Well In State Match Play Championship

Sean Covich
Sports Information Director
July 31


(JACKSON)-Meridian Community College golfer, Justin Eaves, qualified for the Mississippi Golf Association State Match Play Championship this past weekend.

Eaves, who was named a NJCAA All-American in 2006, finished in the top-32 after qualifying at Colonial-Deerfield County Club in Jackson, MS. Eaves will be one of six returning sophomores for the Eagle golf team in 2006-07.

Eaves defeated Delta State University golfer, Lee Rhodus, 1 Up in the first round of match play Friday morning.

Eaves then defeated William Carey College golfer, Brandon Payne, 2 and 1 in the second round of match play Friday afternoon.

Eaves would advance to Saturday to play University of Arizona golfer and former State Match Play champion, Trey Denton.

Denton defeated Eaves, 5 and 4 on Saturday in the quarterfinals. Denton went on to win the championship by deafening LSU golfer, Back Troutman in the final match.

“Meet The Eagles” Day Scheduled

MCC Sports Information
July 28

(MERIDIAN)-The Meridian community and MCC Eagle fans will have an opportunity to meet the 2006 MCC men’s and women’s soccer teams Saturday, August 19th at the MCC soccer field.
Lunch will be severed at the field starting at 11:00 a.m. with the 2006 Eagle soccer team players being introduced at 11:30 a.m.

For a ticket of just $40, Eagle fans will get an assortment of MCC gear; including a cap, visor, t-shirt, pocket schedules, poster schedules, and a free pass to home soccer games.

Purchasing your ticket will also give you a chance to win prizes from Judge Little Sporting Goods, Wal-Mart, MCC Bookstore, and the grand prize drawing for $1,000.

The festivities will conclude with an inter-squad match, women play at 12:30 pm and the men play at 1:00 p.m.

For more information, please contact soccer coach, Alex George (601) 484-8697.

Coach Rose Announces Full List Of Signee’s

Sean Covich
MCC Sports Information Director
July 20

(MERIDIAN)-Meridian Community College head baseball coach, Chris Rose, released his list of 2006 signee’s that will enter the MCC baseball program as freshman.

Rose, who is entering his second year as head coach for the Eagles received the 2006 Mississippi Association of Coaches JuCo Baseball Coach of the Year after winning the MACJC state championship. This was the second consecutive year that the Diamond Eagles have won the state championship.

2006-2007 Baseball Signees:

Chase Porch - East Union HS - SS/RHP (Drafted by Atlanta Braves)
Chris Hilliard - North Pontotoc HS - LHP
Shannon Steed - Simpson Academy. - INF
Jared Parks - Madison Central HS - SS
Josh Demoney - Madison Central HS - OF
Dirk Welch - West Jones HS - C
Ian Sharp - West Jones HS - LHP/OF
John Randall Moore - West Jones HS - RHP
Jonathan Wray - Starkville HS - RHP
Graham Upshaw - Canton Academy - RHP
Drew Snider - West Lauderdale - OF
Scott Mosley - Enterprise HS - OF
Jason Coats - Starkville Academy. - RHP (MCC Soccer Signee)
Matt Holliman - Germantown HS, TN - INF (Early sign at Ole Miss)
Toddrick Stevenson - Walker HS, LA - OF (Early sign at LSU)

Former MCC Eagle Gets Called Up To Majors

By Kevin Druley / MLB.com

(KANSAS CITY) -- Paul Phillips was squatting down before he took the news standing up.

The newest Royal, promoted from Triple-A Omaha Saturday, received word of his call up on Friday night after being removed from his team's game in Des Moines in the middle of the third inning.

"They took me out and I was like, 'What did I do wrong?" Phillips said. "But it was a good thing. They told me, 'You're done, you're going to the big leagues.'"

Phillips will take the spot of Paul Bako, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list after Friday's game with a torn right oblique. The move was retroactive to July 2.

Phillips was batting .251 with eight home runs and 32 RBIs in 70 games for Omaha this season. He played four games with Kansas City in 2004 and in 23 more last season, hitting a combined .264.

On Aug. 17, 2005, in Seattle, he became the first Royal to hit a grand slam for his first home run in the Majors.

But he remembers more than that.

"That was a great moment, don't get me wrong," Phillips said. "But one of the moments that stands out to me was when we were playing Cleveland on a day game here. I had a couple of blocked balls in the ninth inning and then ended up getting the double to drive in the winning run."

Manager Buddy Bell said Saturday that John Buck would start behind the plate for the rest of the weekend. Though Buck usually doesn't catch on day games following night games, he cited the looming All-Star break as a chance to get rest.

Phillips plans to keep true to the backup code and be ready whenever he's called on.

"I felt like I've gotten better as a catcher, better as a player," he said. "I can understand more stuff and certain philosophies of certain pitchers. I think I'll be better this year than last year."

The odd couple: Third baseman Mark Teahen and Phillips have been teammates before, most recently in May and early June in Omaha.

"He can play the piano and sing ... and cook," Teahen said. "He lived with me during Spring Training so he cooked and cleaned and I brought home the bacon.

"He's multi-talented. I don't have much dirt on him."


Full name is Paul Anthony Phillips...Graduated from West Lauderdale (Collinsville, Miss.) High in 1995...lettered in football and baseball...Graduated from Meridian (Miss.) Community College in 1997...attended the University of Alabama where he played centerfield for the Crimson Tide...Paul's first cousin, Andy, is an infielder in the New York Yankees system...the two were teammates at Alabama in 1998.

MCC Golf Signs Final Two Players

Sean Covich
MCC Sports Information
June 14

(MERIDIAN)- Meridian Community College golf coach, Sean Covich, will add the final two members of his inaugural recruiting class this Saturday. Jarrod Lemaster of Scottsboro, AL and Bryant Self of Tupelo, MS who both verbally committed to the MCC golf program last month, will sign letters of intent to play for Covich’s first squad at 3:00 PM Saturday in the Damon Fitness Center. Lemaster and Self will participate in MCC’s June 15th Orientation Saturday morning then sign with the golf program that afternoon.

“I’m excited to have these guys visit campus again,” Covich said. “They both came down last month and really feel in love with our school and our golf tradition, its going to be really nice to have these young gentlemen and their families back on campus.”

Lemaster is a product of Alabama’s famed Robert Trent Jones Junior Golf Tour, which plays the spectacular Robert Trent Jones, Jr. Golf Trail. Lemaster was named the RTJ Jr. Tour Player-of-the-Year in 2005, after he won five RTJ Jr. Tour events. Lemaster also captured three high school medalist titles for Scottsboro High School in the spring of 2006.

“Jarrod is a smart player,” Covich said. “Also, it doesn’t hurt that his home course is where the NJCAA national championship will be played next year.”

Self led Tupelo High School to a runner-up finish in the 5A golf state championship his junior season. During his senior year, Self participated The Palmetto high school championship, a national event held in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and captured third place out of nearly 400 high school golfers from around the nation.

“Bryant is a great competitor who still has his best golf ahead of him,” Covich said. “He’s also a wonderful student; I look for him to be a leader in the classroom as well as on the golf course.”

Lemaster and Self will join Meridian area golfers Michael Burton, Ryan Hill, and Joshua Ivy, along with Belmont, MS junior golfer, Curt Sparks as part of Covich’s inaugural recruiting class.

Jarrod Lemaster:
-Scottsboro High School
-Scottsboro, AL
Accomplishments:
-Won five Robert Trent Jones Junior Golf Tour events in 2005
-Was named the 2005 RTJ Junior Tour Player-of-the-Year
-Won local qualifier of the Optimist World Junior
-Finished runner up at the 2005 University of Alabama’s Golf Camp
-Participated in two Southeastern Junior Golf Tour events in 2005, finishing with 1 top-ten and a low round of 73
-Won medalist honors three times for Scottsboro High School in 2005

Bryant Self:
-Tupelo High School
-Belden, MS
Accomplishments:
-Named All-State in high school golf his sophomore, junior and senior year
-Won medalist honors at the 2006 District Championship
-During his senior season at Tupelo, he captured 11 medalist honors
-Finished 3rd at the 2006 State Championship golf tournament
-Finished 3rd out of nearly 500 high school golfers from around the nation in the 2006 Palmetto High School Championship, played in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina-Led Tupelo High School to a State Championship runner-up finish in his junior season

Former MCC Baseball Player Receives Law Degree

Commercial Dispatch
Columbus, MS

Judson R. Jones of Columbus received a Juris Doctor degree cum laude from the University of Mississippi School of Law May 13 at the commencement ceremony. A member of Phi Delta Phi and the Moot Court Board, Jones was also the recipient of the AmJur Award for secured transactions and the AmJur Award for partnership taxation.

Jones graduated magna cum laude from Mississippi State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering. While at MSU, he was a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Tau Beta Pi, Chi Epsilon and was vice president of the MSU chapter of the Institute for Transportation Engineers. He was awarded the Chevron-Texaco Engineering Scholarship, the Michael Engineering Scholarship and the W.M. Parker Memorial Engineering Scholarship.

He graduated with highest honors from Meridian Community College. He was also a member of the MCC Eagles baseball team and was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1999 Major League Baseball Draft.

He is a graduate of Heritage Academy in Columbus.

Jones will practice construction law in Jackson as an associate of the law firm of Mockbee, Hall and Drake.

Rose Continues Winning Standard At MCC

By Marty Stamper / staff writer
The Meridian Star
Published: July 07

Chris Rose joined a long line of successful coaches when he became head baseball coach at Meridian Community College for the 2006 season.

He maintained the standard as the Eagles won the MACJC state championship and will be honored as the Mississippi Association of Coaches Junior/Community College Baseball Coach of the Year at the annual banquet at the Hilton Hotel in Jackson at 7 p.m. tonight.

“I felt very honored to receive it,” said Rose. “When you win something like that, it just shows the type of players that you had. They overcame a lot of adversities. That’s what a team is supposed to do, but from my point of view, all I was trying to do was put them in a situation and try to be successful at the end of the day.

“Especially in the state tournament, they stepped up and got it done. All that is is a reflection of the guys that I had. I truly didn’t do anything that special. I’m just proud of them.

“I’m excited about it. (Former MCC head) Coach (Chad) Caillet won it in his first year and I guess I was lucky enough to win my first year. That’s over now though and we’ve got to move on.

“We’re pretty much done recruiting for next year, so we’re trying to get the following year’s class started.”

Rose was an assistant to Caillet in 2005 when the Eagles went 41-12 and posted the first undefeated home field record in school history. The native of Ohio came to MCC after five years as an assistant at the University of Mobile. He was a four-year letterman as a catcher at UM.

As an assistant coach at UM, Rose helped guide the Rams to their first-ever NAIA World Series appearance in 2001. In coaching the Ram pitchers, Rose’s staff compiled the lowest earned run average in the Gulf Coast Atlantic Conference every year of his tenure at UM.

McPhail Enjoys MAC Honor

By Marty Stamper
Meridian Star
July 5, 2006

Wanda McPhail, Meridian Community College men’s and women’s head tennis coach, has been named one of the Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC) Community College Coaches of the Year.

Along with four other community college coaches, McPhail will be honored Friday night in Jackson at 7 p.m. at the MAC Coaches Hall of Fame and Awards Banquet at the Hilton hotel.

“It’s wonderful to be remembered and honored by your peers and I’m certainly excited to do that,” said McPhail, a native of Union.

“It’s the second time I’ve received it since I’ve been at MCC.”

“I owe a lot of the success I’ve had to the role models I’ve had. (Former Union girls’ basketball) Coach T.L. Gregory was a huge influence in my life. On top of what it took to be a winner, he taught us to have a tremendous work ethic and never give up. He was a tremendous influence on all the girls.”

“As far as tennis, I owe a great deal to Lucille Wood at East Central Community College. She put a tennis racket in my hand. I never dreamed she was putting something in my hand that I would end up loving as much as I loved basketball and would eventually lead to something that I would make my living at.”

“She taught me a love for the game and introduced me to the game. It’s something that I love passionately.”

McPhail recently completed her sixth year at MCC. This past spring, she led the MCC women’s team to a fifth straight appearance in the NJCAA national championship tournament. Her women’s squad also captured yet another MACJC State/Region 23 championship.

“We’ve won the girl’s state/region tournament four of the last five years,” McPhail said.

In addition to McPhails upcoming MAC coaching honor, she was also named both the Mississippi Association Community/Junior Colleges and region 23 Coach of the Year.

The Lady Eagle tennis team finished 14th in the final NJCAA rankings.

McPhail led the MCC men’s team to a fifth straight trip to the NJCAA national championship tournament. The men’s squad finished 19th in the final NJCAA rankings.

“The guys have won the state/region tournament three of the last five years,” McPhail said.

“This year we were the runner-up.”

“The bottom line is I have tremendous support from the administration for the tennis program. They allow us the freedom to go out and recruit good players and I’ve been able to do that. To me, that’s the key to the success of the program.”

“It’s easy to go out and find a good No. 1 and No. 2 player, but that doesn’t do you much good unless you can have some depth as well and I’ve been able to get the players that could play throughout the lineup. That’s really the key to it.”

“The players come in and work really hard year-round. We’re well-conditioned. It’s not always the fun part of it, but it’s a very important part.”

“I believe I have a ministry as well as a job. God has blessed me in this endeavor as much as in anything else in life. I truly believe that God has placed me where I am and has blessed me with the players that I’ve had and allowed me to be successful here.”

Prior to coming to MCC, McPhail coached at West Lauderdale for nine years.

Caruso Learns Ropes At MCC

By Marty Stamper / staff writer
Published: July 01
The Meridian Star

It didn't take Joe Caruso long to find out what being an assistant baseball coach at Meridian Community College is all about.

Just days after being selected to the Eagles' staff, Caruso spent four days getting MCC's Scaggs Field prepared for the State Games and evaluating the participating talent in preparation for next year's recruiting.

"I'm originally from Lock Haven, Penn.," said Caruso, a former standout at the University of Alabama. "I played at Alabama for four years and then went off and played pro ball for seven years. In the time I spent at Alabama, we got a lot of great players from Meridian and I heard of a tradition here that was excellent. Meeting with (MCC head) coach (Chris) Rose, I just felt like it was going to be a good fit for me to get my feet wet. I've worked field maintenance as we go. I'm learning Chris as we go. I'm meeting faculty and staff at Meridian and so far it's been open arms from everybody. I've enjoyed myself so far. I loved the State Games. It was something that has great tradition and is something I've actually heard of being from Pennsylvania. It was a lot of fun to sit here and watch the talent."