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MCC Softball adds five

(MERIDIAN) – Meridian Community College softball program added five players for the 2010-2011 season on Tuesday afternoon.

Head coach, Robert Eakins, added Marlena Clayton, Mallory Lowe, Heather Reed, Meredith Roberson, and Laura Taylor to the Lady Eagles program.

Clayton, an infielder, is a local that comes to MCC from West Lauderdale High School.

“We are looking for her to step in immediately and play one of our corner positions next season. She is a tough athlete and that attitude should bring her some quick success at this level. She will be working to fine tune her offensive game to this level of competition. Being a 3-4 year starter at West Lauderdale we are expecting her to step in here and make the adjustments at this level and not miss a beat,” said Eakins.

Lowe, a left-handed pitcher, is from Laurel, MS, a recent graduate of West Jones High School.

“We are looking her to step in and help us immediately on the mound. Our plans right now is to use her in relief and to give our pitching department should stability and endurance. She has good control and a great quality arm. The addition of her should lead to great improvements in our defensive stats,” said Eakins.

Reed, a middle-infielder, is a local that comes to MCC from Meridian High School.

“We will get a long look at her at second base and will work this fall to help her make the transition to this level of competition. We look forward to working with her because she great work ethics and want to excel at this level. Out of our incoming freshmen she has the potential to make the most impact on our team. She has a lot of natural ability and just need the opportunity to showcase those skills,” said Eakins.

Roberson, an outfielder, is from Batesville, MS and is a graduate of South Panola High School.

“After playing under Coach Ashleigh Hicks she will be vital to our rebuilding efforts. She knows what the work ethics it takes to build a program and play at a championship level. She is listed as an outfielder but could action at several positions for us. She is extremely versatile. She has enough experience to help us offensively and could crack the starting lineup early next season,” said Eakins.

Taylor, is a utility player, that comes to MCC from Lake High School.

“We will be looking at her in the middle infield in the fall to help fill a void there. Offensively she is a switch hitter and has been working on her slap hitting from the right side. We are hoping that we can finish developing her there so we can make her a part of offensive game plan for the upcoming season to help increase run production,” said Eakins.

“We look forward to adding these young ladies with great expectations. Hopefully you will hear a lot great things about all of them and us, as we work to rebuild this program that the NJCAA D-1 level. Again we look forward to working these young ladies. They all come from good background and programs. They all want to be here and are eager to get to work. With that combination we are looking for a lot of great things from them,” said Eakins.

Webb inks with MCC tennis

(MERIDIAN) – The Meridian Community College men’s tennis program added another player for the 2010-2011 season on Tuesday afternoon.

Thomas Webb of Memphis, TN inked with head coach Wanda McPhail at the Damon Fitness Center.

Webb, a standout at Christian Brothers High School, in Memphis was the State Games of Mississippi Champion in 2009 and 2010 and ranked as one of the best 18’s in the State.

Webb was joined by his grandparents, Thomas Webb, Sr. and Joan Webb at the signing.

Eagle Summer Basketball Camp

Meridian Community College head men’s basketball coach, George Brooks will host the 2010 Eagle Summer Basketball Camp at Graham Gymnasium on Tuesday-Friday, July 6-9.

The camp will be held for kids third grade thru ninth grade on July 6-9 at MCC from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for $60.00 per camper. To register, contact George Brooks at 601-481-1336 or 601-938-7262.

The staff for the camp will include MCC players and coaches. The camp is a great opportunity to have fun, learn the game of basketball and receive individual instruction and development.

Campers will receive a t-shirt along with lunch and drinks everyday.

For more information, please contact MCC head men’s basketball coach, George Brooks at 601-481-1336 or 601-938-7262.

MCC looks to move on after Rose

By Daniel Rigdon / Sports Writer
The Meridian Star

MERIDIAN — The Meridian Community College administration will be looking to fill a big void now that former skipper Chris Rose accepted the head coaching job at East Mississippi Community College Thursday afternoon at a press conference in Scooba.

"We hate to see him go. He did an outstanding job at MCC," said Meridian Community College president Dr. Scott Elliott. "We hate to see him go, but from what I understand they offered him something that he couldn't afford to turn down for the betterment of himself and his family. I have to be happy for him in that respect."

"He had talked to us about the opportunity on numerous occasions throughout the past month," added Meridian athletic director Hilary Allen. "It is a coaching business and there are opportunities to advance and decisions you have to make with your family in mind. I think coach Rose made this decision with his family in mind. We are wishing him well and he has done a great job for MCC. The numbers that he has put up during the five years he was here were phenomenal."

MCC will look to fill the void left by Rose as quickly as possible according to Dr. Elliott.

"We have decided to conduct a regular job search on the position and we are going to be advertising for it immediately," said Elliott. "We are expecting to finish the application process by June 30. Thereafter, a search committee will scan those applications. They will then conduct interviews and ultimately make a recommendation to the administration on a new head coach.

"We've had a lineage of superlative coaches at MCC and my commitment is that we are going to continue that tradition and get a great coach for this program," added Elliott. "I want that for our players and our community."

According to Elliott, assistant coach Dillon Sudduth has been asked to take over the supervision of the program while the search is conducted.

"In the meantime we've asked Dillon to be responsible for maintaining close contact with our returning sophomores and incoming freshmen that we've signed already," noted Elliott. "We have also asked him to coordinate our State Games baseball activities and continue to recruit premiere players to the program as recruiting is finishing up. Those are the things we've asked him to focus on.

"Dillon is going to be welcomed to apply for the head coaching position and in any respect, whether he be the new head coach or continue as an assistant, we would hope that he would remain associated with the program. He has done a real good job for MCC."

Rocky Mountain high

Colorado drafts MCC’s Dickerson in Round 8
By Jamie Wachter / Sports Editor
The Meridian Star

MERIDIAN — After getting a phone call Monday, Corey Dickerson anticipated being drafted during Tuesday's portion of the Major League Baseball draft.

Still, when the Colorado Rockies pulled the trigger in the eighth round, it didn't change any of the excitement for the Meridian Community College star.

"They called me the day before and told me they had me slotted four through seven, so I was kind of expecting to go somewhere like that," Dickerson said after being chosen 260th overall. "I slipped to eight and they called me, and even before I was off the phone they had taken me.

"It was pretty exciting, and I just feel blessed because not too many Mississippi people get picked in the first 10 rounds."

The Rockies, though, were interested in the 6-foot-3 center fielder long before the draft began Monday. Colorado originally grabbed Dickerson last year in the 29th round. After returning to the Eagles and his raising his numbers across the board, his stock did the same.

"One thing Corey really got better at was defensively," Meridian assistant coach Dillon Sudduth said. "He came to us as a high school shortstop and we moved him to center field, and it was his first year out there last year. He had some growing pains, but the more he played the more he worked at it and the better he got. He's such a good athlete.

"And then the hitting, he just took that to another level. The more at-bats you get and as hard as he works, whether it's in the cage or in the weight room, your only choice is to get better.

"He improved his power numbers while decreasing his strikeouts, which is unbelievable. The kid had more home runs than strikeouts, that's crazy."

After hitting .381 with 15 home runs and 54 RBIs during his All-American freshman year in 2009, Dickerson paced the Meridian offense this past season to the tune of .459 with 21 home runs, 73 runs and 71 RBIs. The average is the third-highest in MCC history, while the home runs are the second-most in an Eagles' season.

"I just wanted to maintain, at least accomplish what I did last year," Dickerson said. "My goal was to do more than I did last year, but I wanted to at least get there and then exceed from there."

That approach paid off, as did Dickerson's devotion to work, according to Sudduth.

"The main thing about Corey that separates him is his work ethic," he said. "The kid is as talented or more talented than anybody on the field at the junior college level, and he outworks everybody. He works like he's the least talented, but he's got more talent than anybody I ever played with or coached, especially when it comes to swinging the bat.

"He plays the game the right way, really gets after it every day whether it's practice or games. That's going to translate good to the pro level because you're playing every day."

Now, Dickerson has to decide whether to sign with the Rockies or to continue his career with Mississippi State, where he signed during the fall. That is a process Dickerson said he and his parents will begin later this week or next week. For now, though, he is still just enjoying the ride.

"I'm just taking it all in," Dickerson said. "They're supposed to call later this week and we'll negotiate. Me and my parents have to decide what's best for me, and what's the right road for me to take.

"It's a feeling you can't hardly describe. You've always to do it since you were in high school and little league and stuff. I just feel grateful because everybody around me wishes they had the chance and I have the chance. It's exciting.."



Beckwith picked in Round 21

Dickerson's former MCC teammate William Beckwith was picked in the 21st round by the Atlanta Braves. After earning All-District and All-Region honors with the Eagles in 2008, Beckwith played at George C. Wallace Community College this year.

MCC Softball adds two players

Meridian Community College softball coach, Robert Eakins, announced the signing of two local softball players Wednesday afternoon.

Courtney Walker of Butler, AL and Kelsey Wilson of Meridian, MS inked with the Lady Eagle softball program.

Walker comes to MCC from Choctaw County High School where she played catcher.

“Courtney has a tremendous passion for the game and we look forward to using her energy to help the rest of our team stay motivated. She has a great work ethic and we look forward to developing into a team leader,” said Eakins.

Wilson comes to MCC from Russell Christian Academy where she played several positions. She helped lead Russell Christian to the playoffs the past few seasons, her oldest sister (Andrea) played for MCC in 2007-2009.

“Although she can play several positions her contribution to our program will be pitching,” added Eakins.

“We are in the rebuilding process here in making the adjustment back to NJCAA Div I completion. These two ladies are great students and come from sound families. I am looking forward to them making their presence known in our program and helping us back to our normal winning ways.”

MCC Tennis Inks New Players

(MERIDIAN) - Meridian Community College tennis program added four players for the upcoming season on Tuesday afternoon at a ceremony held on campus.

MCC head men’s and women’s tennis coach, Wanda McPhail, announced the signing of Elizabeth Case, Kris Kolb, Zach Marroy and Cecilly Monsour to the MCC program.

Case was a senior at Meridian High School this past season. She was a standout player for the Wildcats and played for Coach Kevin Gillette.

Kolb was a senior at East Webster High School in 2010 where he won the AA No. 1 Boy’s Doubles State Championships.

Marroy played at Assumption High School in Louisiana where he was an All State selection, named District MVP and State semi-finalist.

Monsour was State Runner-up for Brandon High School this past season.

Ten MCC athletes named Academic All America, Three Distinguished

The Meridian Community College athletic department had ten of its student-athletes named to the 2010 National Junior College Athletic Association Academic All-American Team.

MCC athletic director, Hilary Allen confirmed Tuesday that the following MCC student-athletes were selected NJCAA Academic All-American:

From men’s tennis- Andres Cepede, Brandyn Laundry, and Jeremy Purdum; from women’s soccer- Lindsey Honsinger, Sarah Scarbrough, and Mary Beth Weber; from baseball- Chase Jordan; from men’s golf- Cory Williamson; from men’s soccer- Craige Dixon; and from softball- Andrea Fulton.

Academic All-America must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.60 or better on a 4.0 scale for 45 semester hours or 60 quarter hours. Distinguished Academic All-America must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.80 or better on a 4.0 scale for 45 semester hours or 60 quarter hours.

Cepede, Laundry and Scarbrough received Distinguished Academic All-American status; while Dixon, Fulton, Honsinger, Jordan, Purdum, Weber, and Williamson received Academic All-American.

The list of NJCAA Academic All-Americans will be released to each college with certificates for the award winners. The Academic All-America team members will also listed in the JUCO Review, the official publication of the NJCAA.

This academic year marks the fifth consecutive year that MCC has had four or more of its athletes nominated for NJCAA Academic All America.