MCC Softball Sweeps LBW

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles continued its great play Saturday by securing a sweep (11-5, 4-3) over Lurleen B. Wallace at Tommy McDonald Field. MCC improved to 10-13 overall with the sweep of LBW. MCC will return to action Sunday on the road at Shelton State beginning at 1p.m.

MCC 11

LBW 5

The Lady Eagles scored seven runs in the second inning and sent 11 hitters to the plate to cruise to the victory in the opening game. Devin Batson led the way for MCC with three hits, including a double and a triple. Coleigh Carnegie ended the game with three singles and a double, while Shumond Hughes added a pair of singles.

Kelsey Wilson picked up the pitching win on the mound for the Lady Eagles in Game One.

MCC 4

LBW 3

MCC secured the sweep by scoring four early runs and hang on for the one-run victory. The Lady Eagles scored in the first four innings and had to hold off Lurleen B. Wallace in the final inning to earn the sweep.

Batson led the way in the second game with a pair of base hits, while Mallory Lowe earned the pitching win for the Lady Eagles.

MCC Baseball Sweeps Baton Rouge

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles opened its Miss-Lou Conference series with Baton Rouge Community College Saturday by sweeping the Bears (9-0, 3-2) at Scaggs Field. MCC improved to 23-12 overall and 4-1 in Miss-Lou Conference action, while the BRCC dropped its overall record to 17-22 and 0-2 in league play. The two teams will conclude its series Sunday at 1 p.m. Freshman Brandon Smith is scheduled to draw the start on the mound for the Eagles in the finale.

MCC 9
BRCC 0

Kasey Hinton led the Eagles with four hits and drove in a pair of runs in the opening game for MCC. The Eagles finished the game with 12 hits and three players had at least two hits or more in the victory. Wade Wass continued his solid season by adding two hits and an RBI, while

Jonathan Youngblood had a pair of base hits in the shutout victory.

Wes Stokes tossed seven innings of shutout baseball for the Eagles, to go along with five strikeouts. Stokes threw his first complete game of the season for MCC and improved to 3-0 for the season. Baton Rouge finished the game with just four hits and were led at the plate by James Rachal and Matthew Willis with one hit apiece.

MCC 3
BRCC 2

Johnny Tolson drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the fifth inning on a squeeze bunt to propel the Eagles to the sweep of Baton Rouge. MCC only managed two hits in the second game, while the Bears ended the game with eight hits.

Michael Manley (5-2) earned the pitching win out of the bullpen for the Eagles by working the final three innings. Manley finished the game with four strikeouts and earned his third win out of the bullpen in his last three conference games.

Samuel Peterson and Wade Wass had the only hits for the Eagles in the dramatic victory. Rachal led the way for the Bears with a pair of base hits, while Tanner Sheets added two hits.

Wade Wass Named National Player of The Week

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles enjoyed a great opening weekend in Miss-Lou Conference play by taking a pair of wins over Delgado and one player has received national recognition for his offensive performance against the Dolphins. Sophomore catcher Wade Wass has been named the Division I Baseball National Player of The Week according to the NJCAA national office in Colorado Springs, CO.

“He (Wade) has been an example of leadership all year long,” said MCC head coach Chris Curry. “It’s the little things that he has done to make the players around him better that have made the difference. We’ll be looking for him to continue to lead us in conference play and in the postseason.”

Meridian benefitted from the offensive effort of Wass last week, winning two of their three games against Delgado. The Pensacola, FL native had a .600 (6-for-10) batting average and drew three walks. Wass belted homers in each game and finished off the week with four home runs. The Eagles also saw Wass record seven RBIs, while scoring four of his own. One of the home runs against Delgado was a game winning homer in the first game of the series which gave MCC a dramatic 9-8 victory in extra innings.

Wass currently leads the NJCAA in home runs with 15 and is also ranked third in the nation in RBI’s with 42. Wass has already signed to continue his career with the University of Alabama next season.

MCC (21-12, 2-1) is also ranked 29 this week in the latest NJCAA Division I Basbeall Poll and will return to Miss-Lou Conference action this weekend at Scaggs Field against Baton Rouge Community College. The series is scheduled to begin Saturday with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. and the series will conclude Sunday with a single game at 1 p.m.

MCC Golf Captures Lou Hart Invitational

The Meridian Community College golf team continued his superb play on the course by capturing its third tournament championship of the spring season Tuesday afternoon. The Eagles finished with a team score of 872 to hold off Darton College by four strokes to win the 4th Annual Lou Hart Invitational at Northwood Country Club. This marks the third tournament championship of the spring and six combined titles for the 2011-2012 season for the MCC golf team.

“I am extremely proud of the way we fought today to win this championship,” said MCC head golf coach Clinton Hales. “We didn’t play our best golf early in the day, but we battled to hold on for the win. This was a great field of teams and we are very honored to take home this championship today.”

Joe Sakulpolphaisan of Darton College took home the individual championship by firing a final round score of 70 and finished with a total score of 211 to earn a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Paul McClure of Faulkner State finished four strokes back in second place with a 211 to place a spot on the All-Tournament Team. T.J. Morgan of MCC also earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team by finishing in third place after firing a final round score of 72.

Alex Grannon and Dylan Brown of MCC rounded out the All-Tournament Team by scoring tournament totals of 217.

MCC will return to action April 2-3 at the Arkansas State Red Wolf Classic in Jonesboro, AR at Ridgepointe Country Club.

MCC Baseball Takes Series Over Delgado

From School Reports

Jonathan Youngblood delivered an RBI single in the bottom of the tenth inning to propel MCC to a dramatic 4-3 victory over Delgado to clinch its Miss-Lou Conference series with the Dolphins. MCC improved to 20-11 for the season and 2-1 in Miss-Lou Conference action, while Delgado fell to 18-8 and 1-2 in conference play.

MCC jumped on the scoreboard first with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning to grab a 2-0 lead. Johnny Tolson reached base on a two-out single and Wade Wass followed with a thunderous two-run home run to give the Eagles the two-run lead. Wass now has 15 home runs for the season which leads the team and the NJCAA. The Eagles extended its lead in the bottom of the fourth inning to make the score 3-0. Former Meridian High standout Dallas Hannah led the inning off with a single and later scored on a base hit by Samuel Peterson to give MCC the three-run edge.

Delgado answered with a run in the top of the fourth inning to cut the MCC lead to 3-1. Sophomore Sean McMullen led the off with a solo home run over the wall in right field to bring the Dolphins to within two runs. The Dolphins continued to battle back and were able to tie the game at 3-3 in the eighth inning. Daniel Brockhoeft led the inning off with a double and later scored on a triple by Logan Jones to make the score 3-2 in favor of MCC. Brady Williamson was able to drive in Jones from third base moments later on an RBI groundout to tie the game at 3-3.

Both teams had several opportunities in the final inning, but MCC was able to close out the game in the bottom of the tenth inning. Hannah led the tenth inning off with a walk and advanced to second base moments later on a sacrifice bunt by Charles Morton to put a runner in scoring position for Meridian. Tyler Dixon followed by reaching base on an intentional walk and former West Lauderdale star Dustin James reached first base on walk to load the bases for Youngblood.

The Dolphins made a pitching change and called on Corey Thomas to try and silence the MCC rally, but Youngblood would give MCC the biggest hit of the weekend. Youngblood hit a sharp groundball just past the glove of second baseman Brady Williamson to score Hannah from third base to give the Eagles a 4-3 victory over its Miss-Lou Conference nemesis.

Michael Manley (3-2) picked up the pitching win in relief by working 2.2 innings and not allowing one run. Brandon Smith started on the mound for the Eagles and worked into the eighth inning and finished the game with nine strikeouts. The Eagles finished the game with 10 hits and

Delgado had nine hits in the final game of the weekend. Youngblood, Wass, and Peterson led the way with two hits apiece for Meridian. Hannah scored twice in the game and Morton added a double for the Eagles.

Jones led Delgado with three hits and Tony Fortier-Bensen added a pair of hits in the loss for Delgado.

MCC will return to action Tuesday on the road at Shelton State beginning at 2 p.m. The Eagles will return to Scaggs Field next weekend for another Miss-Lou Conference series against Baton Rouge Community College. The series with the Bears will begin Saturday with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. and the final game of the weekend will be Sunday at 1 p.m.

MCC Softball Splits With Hinds

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College softball team traveled to Hinds Community College on Saturday afternoon and came away with a doubleheader split (3-7, 4-1) against HCC. The Lady Eagles moved its overall record to 8-13 with the split against Hinds. MCC will return to action March 30 on the road at Shelton State beginning at 1 p.m.

Hinds 7

MCC 3

The Lady Eagles dropped in the opening game in the doubleheader despite a great day at the plate from sophomore Brooke Dew. The former Quitman standout ended the game with three hits for MCC, while Miranda Agee added a pair of hits in the loss.

Ashley Wilson suffered the pitching loss in the first game of the doubleheader for the Lady Eagles.

MCC 4

Hinds 1

MCC battled back in the top of the seventh inning from a 1-0 deficit to score four runs to salvage the split over Hinds. Shumond Hughes and Ashley Downing each had a pair of hits in the victory, while Ashley Edwards had a single and a double in the victory. Mallory Lowe took the pitching win on the mound in the second game for the Lady Eagles.

MCC Golf Ready To Host Lou Hart Invitational

From School Reports

The top ranked MCC golf team will host the 4th Annual Lou Hart Invitational Monday and Tuesday at Northwood Country Club. The event is named after former Mississippi legend and former MCC head coach, Lou Weddington Hart.

"It's a great to host our annual spring invitational to honor former head coach, Lou Hart,” said current MCC head golf coach Clinton Hales. “She meant so much to the MCC golf program and it's only fitting to hold this event at her home course of Northwood.”

The Eagles are fresh off their most impressive victory of the season after a come from behind win at the Ron Marshall Spring Fling in Scottsboro, AL last week. The Eagles outlasted 19 other teams to post their 5th victory of the season. The lineup this week will be headlined by Freshman sensation Dylan Brown, who has already captured two individual titles thus far on the season. Sophomore Jake Stirling will play in the 2 spot, while T.J. Morgan, Easton Key, and Alex Grannon will round out the starting five for MCC. The Eagles will also send a pair of Freshman in Gafford White and Tate Hughes, who will be playing as individuals.

"We hope to continue to play well this week. Sometimes it's hard to do that coming off of a big victory like we had last week, but we're going to give it our best and hopefully come out on top," added Hales.

Darton College, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Spring Hill College, Faulkner State CC, and Georgia Military College will round out the field. Play will begin with 36 holes on Monday and conclude with 18 holes on Tuesday.

Live updates can be found by following the Meridian CC golf team on twitter @MeridianCCGolf.

MCC Golf Ready To Host Lou Hart Invitational

From School Reports

The top ranked MCC golf team will host the 4th Annual Lou Hart Invitational Monday and Tuesday at Northwood Country Club. The event is named after former Mississippi legend and former MCC head coach, Lou Weddington Hart.

"It's a great to host our annual spring invitational to honor former head coach, Lou Hart,” said current MCC head golf coach Clinton Hales. “She meant so much to the MCC golf program and it's only fitting to hold this event at her home course of Northwood.”

The Eagles are fresh off their most impressive victory of the season after a come from behind win at the Ron Marshall Spring Fling in Scottsboro, AL last week. The Eagles outlasted 19 other teams to post their 5th victory of the season. The lineup this week will be headlined by Freshman sensation Dylan Brown, who has already captured two individual titles thus far on the season. Sophomore Jake Stirling will play in the 2 spot, while T.J. Morgan, Easton Key, and Alex Grannon will round out the starting five for MCC. The Eagles will also send a pair of Freshman in Gafford White and Tate Hughes, who will be playing as individuals.

"We hope to continue to play well this week. Sometimes it's hard to do that coming off of a big victory like we had last week, but we're going to give it our best and hopefully come out on top," added Hales.

Darton College, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Spring Hill College, Faulkner State CC, and Georgia Military College will round out the field. Play will begin with 36 holes on Monday and conclude with 18 holes on Tuesday.

Live updates can be found by following the Meridian CC golf team on twitter @MeridianCCGolf.

MCC Baseball Splits With Delgado

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles opened its three-game Miss-Lou Conference series with Delgado Community College on Saturday at Scaggs Field with good news and bad news. The Eagles took a dramatic victory in the opening game of its doubleheader with the Dolphins by a final score of 9-8, but dropped the second game in the twin bill by a final of 12-7. MCC moved its overall record to 19-11 with the split and Delgado is now 18-7 after action on Saturday. The final game of the three-game series will begin Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

MCC 9

Delgado 8

Wade Wass delivered a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to give MCC a comeback victory in the first game of the doubleheader. Wass finished the game with two home runs to bring his total for the season to 13 after the completion of the first game. Jonathan Youngblood led the Eagles three hits and scored one run for MCC. Gabe Woods added a solo home run in the victory for MCC and that was his second of the season. Kasey Hinton and Johnny Tolson each added two hits, while former Meridian High standout Dallas Hannah chipped in with a base hit.

MCC finished with 13 hits and Delgado had 15 hits in the first game of the doubleheader. Daniel Brockhoeft led the Dolphins with three hits, while Sean McMullen had a pair of hits for Delgado. Michael Manley earned the pitching win for the Eagles by working one inning out of the bullpen.

Delgado 12

MCC 7

The Dolphins scored seven runs in the final two innings to salvage a split with MCC. McMullen led the charge in the game for Delgado with three hits and four runs. Angelo Bruno had six RBI’s in the game for Delgado on three base hits. Delgado finished the game with 13 hits and the Eagles finished with the same hit total in the second game of the doubleheader. Youngblood led the Eagles with two hits, including two RBI’s, while Wass added a solo home run late in the game to give him 14 for the season which leads the NJCAA.

Brandon Hallford took the loss out of the bullpen for MCC and Pierce Liberta went the distance to earn the pitching win for the Dolphins.

MCC Eliminated From National Tournament

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles had its season come to a sudden end Thursday afternoon in the consolation bracket of the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Tournament in Salina, KS. The Lady Eagles fell to Otero Junior College (CO) by a final score of 48-42 to conclude its magical postseason run. The Lady Eagles had only reached the national tournament for the fourth time in school history and closed the season with a 22-12 record.

“It was obliviously a great experience for our players to be a part of the national tournament,” said MCC head coach Hilary Allen. “This is of course an experience that these young women will remember for the rest of their lives.”

The two teams exchanged the lead on five different occasions in the opening half and there were two ties in the first half. Both schools had troubles shooting the basketball in the first half and turnovers became a factor for both squads.

The Lady Eagles shot 29 percent from the field in the first half, while the Lady Rattlers shot only 21 percent from the floor. Otero ended the half with five turnovers and MCC ended the half with six turnovers. The Lady Eagles were able to produce seven points off of the five miscues by Otero. Kia Morris and Chasity Kearney each led the Lady Eagles with six points at halftime.

Taylor Rock led the Lady Rattlers with six points at the break and four of those points came from behind the three-point line. Otero took its first lead of the second half on a 10-0 run to take a 37-30 lead with 8:01 left in the game.

Tonjie Milde led the scoring run with six points and Rock added four points. Norianna Haynes and Chasity Kearney each hit a basket moments later to silence the run and make the score 37-34 with 6:47 left in the game. The baskets for MCC were the first made baskets since the 12:23 mark in the second half.

MCC closed the gap to within one point with under two minutes to play, but the Lady Rattlers were able to drain to a pair of clutch baskets late to secure the victory. Rock hit a long three-point basket from the left wing and Aubry Boehme hit a layup inside to give Otero enough momentum to hold on for the victory.

“We played a great first half in both games in the tournament,” added Allen. “We just couldn’t make shots fall in the second half of each game and that made the difference.”

Both teams finished the game by shooting 27 percent from the floor, but the Lady Rattlers did most of its damage from long range with seven three-point baskets. Otero was drained five three-point baskets in the second half and two in the final two minutes of the game.

Kearney led the Lady Eagles with 14 points and Haynes finished her career at Meridian with nine points. Rock led Otero with 10 points and Boehme added seven in the victory for the Lady Rattlers. Otero will advance to play Southwestern Illinois Community College on Friday beginning at noon.

Lady Eagles Fall In Opening Round

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles entered the first round of the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Tournament in Salina, KS against Hutchinson Community College (KS) looking to score a huge upset over the number two seeded team in the field. The Lady Eagles were unable to accomplish its dreams of an upset over the undefeated Lady Blue Dragons and fell 75-42. Hutchinson improved to 34-0 with the opening round win and MCC dropped its overall record to 22-11.

The Lady Eagles will look to stay alive in the tournament with an elimination game against Otero Junior College (CO) on Thursday morning at the Bicentennial Center at 10 a.m. Otero lost its opening round game to Walters State Community College (TN) by a final score of 61-51.

"I really want to compliment our team on playing so hard in the first half," said MCC head coach Hilary Allen. "We give them (Hutchinson) a lot of credit because they played an outstanding 40 minutes of basketball."

Hutchinson opened the game by outscoring the Lady Eagles 13-4, but MCC was able to bounce back to close the gap. Chasity Kearney drained a pair of jump shots for the Lady Eagles to make the score 13-8 with 15:12 left in the first half.

The Lady Blue Dragons silenced the Lady Eagles moments later to go on a 9-0 scoring run to extend its lead to 22-8 with 12:23 left in the first half. Hutchison built its largest lead of the first half by taking a 31-15 lead with 8:29 left in the half. Chelsea Small and Jackie Patterson combined for 10 points over the next five minutes. MCC started to slowly creep back into the game with 4:22 remaining to cut the lead to 33-29.

The 14-2 run was led by Gelese Lampton, who scored a pair of three-point baskets, while Kearney added a three-point bucket. Hutchison was able to fight off the Lady Eagles and hang on to a 36-29 lead at halftime.

MCC ended the first half by shooting 33 percent from the floor by draining 12 baskets on 36 attempts. Hutchison ended the half by shooting 31 percent from the floor, but the Lady Blue Dragons had the huge edge in the rebounding department by grabbing 35 total rebounds. MCC only managed 22 total rebounds in the opening half and the Lady Eagles went scoreless from the free throw line on six attempts.

Kearney and Lampton led the Lady Eagles with nine points apiece at the end of the first half, while Norianna Haynes ended the half with seven points. Small and Patterson led the way for the Lady Blue Dragons with nine points apiece.

Hutchison came out of the locker room and scored the first 12 points of the half to take a 48-29 lead with 14:18 left in the game.

The Lady Blue Dragons never let the Lady Eagles draw any closer and cruised to the 75-42 victory over MCC. MCC shot only 15 percent in the second half and finished the game by shooting 25 percent from the floor. Hutchinson had the largest advantage in the game on rebounds over the Lady Eagles 58-33 and the Lady Blue Dragons ended the game by shooting 35 percent. Hutchinson scored most of its points in the paint by outscoring MCC 36-8. MCC was led by Haynes with 11 points and six rebounds, while Kearney ended the game with nine points and six rebounds.

Lampton scored eight points in the loss, while Deanna Bolton added five points off the bench. Patterson led Hutchison with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Small finished the game with 13 points.

MCC Arrives For National Tournament

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles arrived in Salina, KS late Sunday afternoon in preparation for the opening round of the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Tournament that begins on Tuesday at the Bicentennial Center.

The Lady Eagles advanced to the tournament last Saturday by winning the Region 23 Tournament Championship over Itawamba Community College by a final score of 73-69 in Clinton, MS at Mississippi College.

The appearance for MCC in the national tournament is the first trip to Kansas for the Lady Eagles since 1999 and the first under the direction of head coach Hilary Allen. Meridian (22-10) will open the tournament Tuesday night against Hutchinson Community College (KS) and the game is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. The tournament field is highlighted by two undefeated teams as both Hutchinson and Trinity Valley Community College (TX) enter the field with a combined 55-0 record. The tournament will begin March 20 and concludes with the crowning of a national champion on March 24.

The Lady Eagles are the number 15 seed and will face the number two seeded Hutchinson Lady Blue Dragons. Hutchinson (33-0) defeated Independence College 43-41 to capture its regional championship.

All 26 games of the tournament can be seen live on NJCAA TV, powered by iHigh.com (www.njcaatv.ihigh.com). Fans can also watch the games on their iPhone, iPad, and Android devices by visiting the iHigh mobile site at m.ihigh.com.The games will also be presented on KSAL radio in Salina, KS. The live audio and play-by-play for the tournament broadcasts will stream online at www.ksallink.com.

The Lady Eagles are scheduled to practice at 9:30 Monday morning at the Bicentennial Center and MCC will take part in a pre-tournament banquet Monday night at 6:30.

MCC Golf Captures Spring Fling Title

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College golf team captured its second tournament championship of the spring season on Saturday by scoring a final round team score of 278 (-22) to win the 11th Annual Ron Marshall Spring Fling Tournament in Scottsboro, AL. The Eagles defeated Dartion College by nine strokes to claim the tournament championship.

The Eagles also had three players finish in the top three and two of those players had to settle the tournament title on a playoff hole. Dylan Brown defeated Jake Sterling on a playoff hole to win the individual title for the Eagles by firing a final round score of 68. T.J. Morgan ended the tournament by firing a 70. Former Lamar standout Easton Key scored a final round 71, while Gafford White scored an 86.

The Eagles are currently ranked number one in the recent NJCAA Division I golf poll and have now won seven tournaments so far in the fall and spring seasons. MCC will return to action March 26-27 by hosting the Lou Hart Invitatioinal at Northwood Country Club.

MCC Baseball Blows Past Mineral Area

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles continued its winning ways Thursday afternoon by taking a convincing 13-1 run rule victory over Mineral Area College (MO) at Scaggs Field. MCC improved to 18-10 overall with the victory and extended its current winning streak to seven games. Meridian will now have over a week off to prepare for the start of the conference portion of its schedule. MCC will welcome Delgado Community College to Scaggs Field March 24-25 for a Miss-Lou Conference weekend series against the Dolphins. The series will begin March 24 with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. and the final game of the weekend will be March 25 beginning at 1 p.m.

MCC enjoyed a great day at the plate with 17 hits and had nine players with at least one hit in the game. Jonathan Youngblood, Gabe Woods, and Charles Morton each led the way for the Eagles with three hits. Woods connected on his first home run of the season, while catcher Wade Wass collected his eleventh home run of the season in the fifth inning. The Eagles broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning with seven runs to take an 8-1 lead over the Cardinals. Woods and Wass had home runs in the inning, while Samuel Peterson added a two-run double in the seven-run inning. Peterson finished the game with a pair of doubles for the Eagles. MCC put the game away for good with five more runs in the sixth inning to run away with the 13-1 run rule win. Brian Donohoe had an RBI single in the five-run inning, while Tyler Dixon chipped in with a two-run single.

Michael Manley (2-2) earned the pitching win out of the bullpen for the Eagles by working three scoreless innings, to go along with three strikeouts. The only bright spot on the day for Mineral Area (10-8) was a solo home run by Brad Matson in the first inning which gave the Cardinals its only lead of the game. Mineral Area finished the game with three hits.

MCC Lady Eagles Are Kansas Bound

From School Reports & The Meridian Star

For the first time in the Hilary Allen era, the Meridian Community College Eagles are headed to Salina, Kan., site of the NJCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. Chasity Kearney scored 24 points as the Eagles defeated the Itawamba Community College Eagles 73-69 in the championship game of the Women's Region 23 Tournament held at Mississippi College's A. E. Wood Coliseum Saturday. Norianna Haynes scored 17 points and ReRe Stinner added 11 points for the Eagles (22-10).

"At this level, this is what you work for, "MCC coach Hilary Allen said. "You want moments like this and the feeling of winning a championship."

The game started out close as both teams looked to get started early. Down 16-15, the Eagles went on a small run to take a 22-16 lead. The two teams continued to trade baskets, however, MCC increased the lead to 10 late in the first half. The Eagles went into the locker room leading 40-32 at the half. The story of the first half was Kearney. The sophomore scored 20 points in the opening 20 minutes and grabbed nine rebounds.

"I knew I had to step up my game because we were playing for a championship," Kearney said. "I was able to get some open looks and knocked them down."

MCC opened the second half by scoring the game's first four points to increase the lead to 14, 46-32. However, ICC was able to fight their way back as MCC went four minutes without a made basket.

The Indians cut the lead to six on a lay-up by Shay Bonner and the game took more of a back and forth approach as both teams ran up and down the floor. A driving lay-up by ReRe Stinner gave MCC a 48-40 lead but ICC scored the next four to trail 48-44 with 13:30 left in the contest.

That's when Haynes came alive.

Only scoring two points in the first half, Haynes erupted in the second half. The Northeast Lauderdale product scored 12 points in the final 20 minutes to pace MCC. Whether it was a basket from the baseline or a free throw, whenever a big play was needed, Haynes made it.

"Those two (Haynes and Kearney) stepped up big for us tonight. Chasity in the first and Anna in teh second half," Allen said. "They knew how it felt to walk out there and accept that runners-up trophy last year. They were determined no to let it happen again."

Haynes and Kearney both said there was pressure on them in the game. However, it was expected.

"I knew I had to come out and play hard," Haynes said. "If i don't play hard, i feel like i let my team down."There was perssure on us for sure," Kearney said. "However, we knew we could overcome it and lead out team."

Only up 50-48, Haynes hit a three-pointer to push the lead back out to five, 53-48. ICC responded and tied the game at 53 on a free throw by Vaschatita Bonner. Haynes put MCC back up, 55-53, on a floater in the lane but ICC reponded with two lay-ups by LaPrecious Naylon to take the lead 57-55 with six minutes left in the game. Naylon finished the game with 32 points, 20 in the second half.

"LaPrecious is one of those players that give you everything she has when she's out on that floor," Gray said. "She's a warrior out there.

The Eagles ended the game shooting 43-percent from the floor (28 for 65) while ICC was 39 percent from the floor (27 for 70). The key stat was three point shooting. The Indians shot just 1 for 17 from behind the three-point stripe while MCC was not much better (4 for 23). "We couldn't hit shots from the outside. That was our Achilles heel tonight," ICC Coach Nancy Gray said. "My top two three-point shooters couldn't hit from the outside.

"Give Meridian credit, they forced us to drive the ball and get lay-ups instead of threes," Gray added.

As it had yesterday, this game would come down to free throws. The Eagles made eight of their last 12 free throws to protect the fragile lead. Haynes made one of two free throws to give MCC a 73-69 lead with 12 seconds. ICC had a chance a three-pointer by Shay Bonner clanked off the front rim, Kearney grabbed the rebound and the Eagles stormed the court as the buzzer sounded. In the locker room, and emotional Allen addressed his team

"After every win, we tell each other 'Good Win'," Allen said. "This one is special because this one is a championship win."

Meridian improved to 22-10 with the win while Itawamba dropped to 26-3. The loss to MCC was the Indians first loss to a team from the state of Mississippi. Allen said he didn't know who their opponent would be but it didn't matter.

"I dont know what I'm going to do five minutes from now," a smiling Allen said. "But I do know this, we are champions."

MCC Walks Away With Win Over Shelton State

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles scored a run with the bases loaded in the bottom of the tenth inning to walk away with a 7-6 victory over Shelton State on Tuesday night at Scaggs Field. Dustin James drew the bases loaded walk in the tenth inning to score Dallas Hannah from third base to seal the victory for MCC. Meridian (17-10) has now won six straight games and its last three wins have come in the final at-bat.

Hannah led the charge for MCC with four hits in the game and Gabe Woods added a pair of hits, to go along with a pair of RBI’s. Wade Wass added an RBI double in the victory for the green and white. The Eagles finished the game with 13 hits and Shelton State had eight hits in the loss.

Josh Lee picked up the pitching win out of the bullpen for the Eagles by working 2 1/3 innings and collecting three strikeouts.

MCC will return to action on Thursday at Scaggs Field against Mineral Area (MO.) and the game time has not yet been determined.

MCC Baseball Set For Huge Weekend Series

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles are set for a huge weekend series with the Pirates of Pensacola State College this weekend at Scaggs Field. The Eagles will enter the weekend with a 13-10 overall record, while the Pirates will bring a 16-7 record to Scaggs Field. The series will begin with a single game Saturday at 6 p.m. and the series will conclude with a doubleheader Sunday at 1 p.m.

MCC will play Pensacola riding a huge amount of momentum after sweeping Faulkner State (11-1, 10-2) in a road doubleheader on Wednesday, while the Pirates have won four of its last five games. Pensacola swept Baton Rouge Community College (4-0, 2-0) earlier in the week and have also won two of three games over Delgado Community College earlier in the season. Baton Rouge and Delgado are both members of the Miss-Lou Conference with MCC.

The Eagles will bring a team batting average of .279 into the series and MCC is led by sophomore catcher Wade Wass. The Pensacola native is currently leading the team in home runs (9), batting average (.405), RBI's (26), and runs scored (26). Wass is also tied with Johnny Tolson for the team lead in hits (30) and doubles (8).

Wass is currently tied for the lead in the NJCAA in home runs with Cody Leichman of Wabash Valley and Garrett Yost of Lamar Community College.

Pensacola will also bring one of the leaders in stolen bases to Scaggs Field this weekend. Fred Ratcliff leads the NJCAA in stolen bases with 26 steals in 26 attempts this season which is a 90 percent average. The Pirates also have one of the top home run hitters in the country, as Gavin Patton will come into the series with six home runs which is among the top five in the nation. Patton is also ranked third in the country in RBI's with 32.

The Eagles have also been very dangerous on the base paths throughout the season as Jonathan Youngblood and Kasey Hinton are among the top ten in stolen bases in the NJCAA. Youngblood has swiped 16 bases and Hinton has collected 13 steals this season.

The Eagles will also play a pair of games of homes games during spring break against Shelton State and Mineral Area. MCC will play Shelton State on March 13 at 6 p.m. and the Eagles will square off against Mineral Area on March 15 at 1 p.m.

MCC Golf Set For Spring Fling

From School Reports

The number one ranked Meridian Community College golf team will look to capture their fifth tournament championship of the season as they prepare to compete in the 11th Annual Ron Marshall Spring Fling March 15-17 at Goose Pond Plantation in Scottsboro, AL. The 54 hole event will consist of 18 holes each of the three days. Sophomore Easton Key will lead the Eagles playing in the number one spot.

“Easton has been our most consistent golfer all season and for us to have a chance to win this event, we’ll have to have a good tournament out of him,” MCC head coach Clinton Hales said.

Key will be followed by Freshman T.J. Morgan, who earned All-Tournament Team honors at MCC’s last event, the Faulkner State Spring Invitational. The next two spots will be filled by Jake Stirling and Dylan Brown, while the fifth spot belongs to Meridian native and former Northeast Lauderdale standout, Gafford White.

“We’ll have to play our best to win this event,” said Hales. “This is one of the best fields we will face all year with top ten schools like Darton College , Central Alabama CC, and Division II power John A. Logan CC. We’ve never won this event, so we look forward to the challenge of competing against some of the best teams in the nation.”

A total of 20 teams will participate in the tournament which is being played at the Colony Course at Goose Pond Plantation, which sits on the banks of the Tennessee River’s Lake Guntersville.

Follow the Eagles with live scoring updates on twitter: @MeridianCCGolf

MCC Lady Eagles Defeat JCJC At Region 23 Tournament

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles were looking to win its season series against the Lady Bobcats of Jones County Junior and MCC dominated the game from start to finish. MCC got a solid performance from sophomore Chasity Kearney and superb defense to come away with a 92-70 victory over JCJC in the quarterfinal round of the Region 23 Tournament at A.E. Wood Coliseum on the campus of Mississippi College Wednesday afternoon.

The two teams met twice during the regular with each school winning one game, but the Lady Eagles won the all-important game during the postseason. The Lady Bobcats defeated MCC at Graham Gymnasium in December by a final score of 84-72 and MCC returned the favor later in the season by taking a road victory over Jones by a final score of 81-68.

The Lady Bobcats built a 27-19 lead with 10:34 left in the first half, but MCC went on an impressive 19-4 scoring run to take a 38-31 lead with 4:59 left in the half. Chasity Kearney and Gelese Lampton each had four points in the scoring run, while Norianna Haynes added four points and a pair of steals on defense for the Lady Eagles. MCC (20-10) continued to carry the momentum for the rest of the first half and take a 50-37 lead over the Lady Bobcats at halftime.

Kearney was the thorn in the side of Jones in the first half as the sophomore ended the first half with 27 points and 16 rebounds, to go along with three steals and one block.

The Lady Eagles built a lead by at least 20 points or more on two different occasions in the second half to cruise to the quarterfinal victory over the Lady Bobcats.

Kearney had one of her biggest offensive games of the season to lead the way for the Lady Eagles with 39 points and 22 rebounds. Haynes finished the game with 12 points and Lampton had a great shooting day for MCC with 10 points.

The Lady Eagles will now advance to the semi-final round of the Region 23 Tournament to face Co-Lin Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. The Lady Wolves defeated Baton Rouge 61-53 to advance to the semi-final round to square off against Meridian.

MCC Baseball Sweeps Doubleheader At Faulkner State

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles rebounded on Wednesday and took an impressive doubleheader sweep (11-1, 10-2) over Faulkner State Community College in baseball action. The Sun Chiefs defeated the Eagles earlier in the season by a final of 6-3 during the Rush Invitational at Scaggs Field. The Eagles improved to 13-10 with the sweep over Faulkner State. MCC will return to action Friday to open a three-game series against Pensacola State College at Scaggs Field. The series will begin Friday with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. and the final game of the series is scheduled for Saturday at noon.

MCC 11

Faulkner State 1

The Eagles got a huge day at the plate in the opening game of the doubleheader from Johnny Tolson and Wade Wass to earn the run rule victory. Tolson finished the game with a pair of doubles and Wass ended the game with a pair of hits, including a double for the Eagles. Samuel Peterson (1-1) earned the pitching victory for the Eagles by working four innings and collecting four strikeouts. Former Lamar standout Witt Haggard worked the final inning in relief on the mound for MCC and gave up no runs.

MCC 10

Faulkner State 2

Meridian preserved the sweep over the Sun Chiefs in the second game and got a solid pitching performance. Nick Helmstetter (1-0) earned the pitching win for the Eagles and allowed one run, while collecting one strikeout. Austin Greer worked three innings out of the bullpen and Blake Barrow pitched in the final inning for the Eagles. Wass led the way in the second game with a solo home run and Charles Morton had great performance at the plate with two doubles. Gabe Woods also had three hits in the sweep over Faulkner State.

MCC Lady Eagles Set For Region 23 Tournament

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles enter the 2012 Region 23 Basketball Tournament full of confidence. The Lady Eagles dominated the Miss-Lou Conference again with an 8-1 record and a three-game lead over second place Baton Rouge, the team feels like they are playing their best basketball of the season.

“That was by design,” said MCC head coach Hilary Allen. “We scheduled the best teams we could find early in the season and we took some lumps, but it made us a better team. I feel we are peaking at just the right time.”

The Lady Eagles are peaking at the right time of the season and are ranked number 12 in the nation in scoring average. The Lady Eagles are averaging 85.3 points per game since their 13-point victory at Jones County Junior Colleg on January 19.

“That game started us off on an amazing streak of 12 victories out of 13 games to push our record to 19-10 for the season,” said Allen. “We feel like we can play with anybody in the region.”

Most of those victories for the Lady Eagles were away from Graham Gymnasium and this is another aspect that gives the Lady Eagles confidence. Two of those victories were at Mississippi College. The Lady Eagles scored 60 points in the second half against Shreveport in the Mississippi College Coliseum and scored 52 points in the first half at Baton Rouge.

“Both of those gyms are quite bigger than Graham Gymnasium,” said Allen. “However, that extra space does not seem to bother our shooters.”

The Miss-Lou Conference plays their neutral site games at Mississippi College and several of the sophomores on the team feel like it is their home away from home. The Lady Eagles played two regular season games at Mississippi College last season and two this season, as well as three games in the Region 23 Tournament last season.

“This will be my eighth game at Mississippi College,” said MCC guard Norianna Haynes. “We feel real comfortable in that coliseum atmosphere.”

Haynes, an All-American Honorable Mention player from Northeast Lauderdale High School, should feel comfortable there. Haynes is averaging 23.7 points per game in the Mississippi College Coliseum during her collegiate career, including 12 points in overtime last year against East Mississippi in the semifinal game of the tournament. Another reason for extreme confidence is the play of sophomore forward Chasity Kearney. Kearney, during the last five games, has scored 26, 32, 33, 30 and 24 points in the five victories. Kearney is currently ranked eighth in the nation in scoring with a 19.3 average.

“Chasity has such great hands,” said Allen. “She grabs several offensive rebounds per game and catches every pass thrown her way. She is phenomenal around the basket.”

The guard play has also improved this season for the Lady Eagles. Freshmen Gelese Lampton and ReRe Stinner share the point guard responsibilities for MCC and they are a great combination.

“The shooting ability of Gelese and the speed of ReRe make it impossible for the other team to match up with them,” said Allen.

When most people think of the winning tradition and the past teams coached by Hilary Allen, rarely does anyone think of defense. The fast-paced, high- powered offense easily overshadows the hustle on the defensive end of the floor. Coach Allen is taking his eighth straight team to the Region 23 tournament and that is the longest current streak of any team in the region. This will also be his tenth team in 12 years at the helm of the MCC Lady Eagles to make the trip to Clinton.
The defensive hustle may be the key to the Region 23 Championship this year and Kia Morris starts at forward for MCC to bring that tough defensive presence to the floor. Morris will always guard the other team’s best player and takes pride in her defensive assignment on the floor.

“Kia loves defense and it keeps her on the floor,” said Allen. “She will defend the point guard or the post. It doesn’t matter to her.”

The second unit also loves to play defense. The Lady Eagles play full-court pressure defense for 40 minutes, but the heat really gets turned up when the second unit enters the game. Deanna Bolton, CalNitra White, Ashtin McNichols, Malaka Johnson and Keionna Gines take that pressure defense and turn it into full-court denial defense.

“The purpose of this unit is to wear down the other team,” said Allen. “They hustle their tails off and this keeps the first unit fresh for later in the game.”

The Lady Eagles play against Jones County on Wednesday at 1:00 at Mississippi College in the first round of the Region 23 Tournament.

“The young ladies feel this is their time to shine,” said Allen.

MCC Softball Swept By Bishop State

From School Reports

MCC dropped a doubleheader to Bishop State (0-3, 7-17) on Friday afternoon at Tommy McDonald Field. The Lady Eagles dropped its overall record to 3-12 after the sweep by Bishop State and the two teams will meet again on Wednesday in Mobile, AL. The games were originally scheduled for February 28, but heavy rain caused the games to be moved to March 7 at Bishop State. The doubleheader is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

“We just weren’t mentally ready to play today,” said MCC head softball coach Robert Eakins. “We need to get into practice tomorrow (Tuesday) and work on our mental approach to the game before we travel to play on Wednesday.”

Bishop State 3
MCC 0

The opening game saw Bishop State score three unearned runs to take the 3-0 victory over the Lady Eagles. MCC only managed three hits in the contest, with Brooke Dew, Coleigh Carnegie, and Heather Reed leading the way for MCC.

Bishop State only collected five hits in the win, but eight errors led to the three unearned runs in the game. Kelsey Wilson took the loss on the mound for the Lady Eagles.

Bishop State 17
MCC 7

The Lady Eagles took an early 6-0 after two innings of play, but Bishop State would mount a tremendous comeback to take the sweep over MCC. Bishop State scored seven runs in the top of the fourth inning with two outs to take a 7-6 lead over the Lady Eagles. Bishop State added 10 more runs over the next two inning to secure the sweep by a final score of 17-7.

MCC managed 11 hits in the game as Devin Boston and Jessica Edwards led the way with three hits apiece. Shumond Hughes added two hits in the setback for the Lady Eagles.

MCC Baseball Falls To Ellsworth CC

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles dropped its final game of the weekend to Ellsworth Community College by a final score of 9-7. The Eagles dropped its overall record to 11-10 with the loss and MCC lost two of three games to finish the weekend. The Eagles will return to action Wednesday for a doubleheader at Faulkner State beginning at 1 p.m. MCC will return to Scaggs Field next weekend for a three-game series with Pensacola State College beginning on Friday at 4 p.m. The Eagles will finish the series with the Buccaneers on Saturday with a doubleheader at noon.

MCC finished the game with 14 hits and the Panthers ended the game with 11 hits. Wade Wass led the charge for the Eagles by driving in three runs on two hits, including his eighth home run of the season that came in the third inning for MCC. Jake Ratz led the way for Ellsworth with a two-run home run and Patrick Riewer added a two-run homer in the road win for Ellsworth (4-1).

MCC Baseball Splits Pair With NW Florida

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Eagles closed out its weekend set with Northwest Florida by splitting a pair of games with the Raiders on Saturday. MCC won the opening game over the Raiders by a final score of 4-2 and dropped the second game on Saturday by a final of 6-5 in 13 innings. MCC moved its overall record for the season to 11-9 and will return to action Sunday against Ellsworth Community College.

MCC 4
NW Florida 2

The Eagles closed out its suspended game with the Raiders from Friday by taking the two-run decision. MCC led NW Florida 3-2 on Friday and the game was suspended due to heavy rain and concluded on Saturday afternoon. Brandon Smith picked up the pitching win in the game by working 5 2/3 innings in relief to earn his first win of the season. Gabe Woods led MCC at the plate with an RBI single in the fifth inning and Johnny Tolson added an RBI single in the victory.

NW Florida 6
MCC 5

The Raiders scored a run on a balk by MCC in the thirteenth inning to escape with a one-run victory in the second game of the day. MCC tied the game at 5-5 in the bottom of the ninth on an RBI double by Tolson, but the Raiders were able to slide past the Eagles. Josh Lee (1-1) took the pitching loss for the Eagles and worked 4 1/3 innings in relief of Andrew Chesteen who worked into the ninth inning.

MCC Softball Sweeps Marion Military

From School Reports

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles swept a pair of one-run games (4-3, 9-8) from Marion Military Institute at Tommy McDonald Field on Thursday evening to up their record to 3-10 for the 2012 season. MCC will return to action Saturday at Marion Military Institute for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. The Lady Eagles will return to Tommy McDonald Field next Monday against Bishop State in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.

MCC 4
Marion Military 3

The Lady Eagles held off a late rally from Marion Military in the opening game of the doubleheader to grab the one-run victory. MCC took a 1-0 lead after Heather Reed singled home Devin Batson in the bottom of the first inning. Coleigh Carnegie opened the home half of the second inning with an infield single. Carnegie scored two outs later on a triple by Brooke Dew to give MCC a 2-0 lead. Batson followed up with a single to score Dew moments later and extend the lead for MCC to 3-0. Ashley Downing rounded out the scoring by driving a double to left to score Batson from first to stretch MCC to a 4-0 lead after two innings. After giving up two runs in the third and one in the fourth, MCC held on for the 4-3 victory. Kelsey Wilson (2-5) picked up the win on the mound for MCC. The Lady Eagles picked up 9 hits in the contest. Devin Batson and Brooke Dew (double) lead the way collecting two hits each. Coleigh Carnegie, Ashley Downing (double), Jessica Edwards, Shumond Hughes, and Heather Reed all collected hits in the contest.

MCC 9
Marion Military 8

MCC took an early 4-0 lead after one inning in game two and took a dramatic victory in extra innings over Marion Military to earn the sweep. Carnegie led the Lady Eagles to a 4-0 lead with a two-out single that plated a pair of runs as MCC built a 4-0 lead in the first inning. Marion Military bounced back to score three runs in the top of the second to make the score 4-3 after two innings. MCC scored three in the bottom of the fifth only to see the visitors to score three in the top of the sixth to make the score 7-6. The game was sent into extra innings after Marion plated a run to tie the game (7-7) and MCC failed to score after seven innings.

In the eighth, with the international tiebreaker rules in effect, Marion Military scored a run in the top of the inning to make the score 8-7. In the bottom of the inning Shareda Brown, running at second base, took third base on an infield bunt single by Jade Osborne. Kelsey Wilson drove the run in for MCC on a fielder’s choice that allowed Brown to score after an errant throw by the infielder. Brooke Dew followed with the game winning single to center to score Osborne giving MCC the doubleheader sweep 9-8. Wilson (3-5) picked up the win on the mound. Jade Osborne picked up two hits to lead the way for MCC, who had 11 hits in the contest. Batson, Carnegie, Dew, Downing, Edwards, and Wilson all added singles.