Heritage soccer player Fields atones for what she considered lack of effort

Consider the apology accepted.

Krisi Boren is only in her second year as girls soccer coach at Heritage Academy, but she has been around soccer and student-athletes long enough to have seen plenty of things.

Boren faced something after her team’s season-opening victory against Marshall Academy she didn’t expect.

After the game, freshman forward Tori Fields apologized to Boren for not giving her best effort.

The apology was unsolicited and caught Boren off guard.

Dixson to conduct an MMA seminar in Columbus

John Dixson is a pioneer.

Dixson, 43, can remember the “dark” days when nearly anything went in Mixed Martial Arts.

Bare knuckles, groin shots, elbows, no time-limit matches — you name it and Dixson probably has seen it and dished it out in more than 13 years of competition around the world.

Looking back to the origins of MMA, Dixson is surprised the sport has grown so quickly in a relatively short amount of time.

High school football teams tune up for season in jamborees

Nearly all the coaches contacted Saturday night were pleased with their teams’ performances Friday night in jamboree/scrimmage action across the state.

Some, like Immanuel first-year Shawn Gates, might have gotten a little hoarse from all of the excitement.

But many of the coaches and teams won’t have a lot of time to spend fine-tuning things. The majority of Mississippi High School Activities Association schools in the area will play classic games Friday, while Mississippi Association of Independent Schools also will kick off the season Friday.

New Hope softball team set to begin defense of state title

The New Hope High School slow-pitch softball team is going to have a little bit of everything this season.

The Lady Trojans are young and inexperienced at several positions.

Coach Tabitha Beard’s team also has an assortment of “older” players who have been with the program for two to three years and who are used to advancing deep into the playoffs and competing for state titles.

Last season was no exception.

Lackeys set goals to make playoffs

FULTON — Evan Lackey wants to help the Itawamba Community College football team get back to the playoffs.

One year after playing at ICC, Anthony Lackey, Evan’s brother, wants to help his new team at Kentucky Wesleyan reach the same goal.

Evan Lackey will begin that journey at 5 p.m. today when ICC plays Copiah-Lincoln in a scrimmage at Lambert Stadium.

The game action will be the first for the former Amory High School standout, who has impressed the coaches in the past few months.

Starkville Academy softball pitcher Haynes finds her groove

STARKVILLE — A year ago, Lyndsey Haynes was trying to find her groove.

A torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee forced her to wear a brace that affected her delivery.

The injury also left the right-handed pitcher on the Starkville Academy fastpitch softball team wondering whether she would regain her form.

But last weekend Haynes showed she has found her groove again.

Hazelwood’s excitement carries over to MSU volleyball players

STARKVILLE — Jenny Hazelwood’s excitement is contagious.

It took only one hour in the team’s first meeting Thursday for the new Mississippi State volleyball coach to get her players fired up.

That energy carried over to the court Friday when the team opened its preseason with a pair of practices.

“She is 100 percent invested in our program,” senior setter Dorey Gray said Friday. “She is so good at inspiring us and knowing when to say the right things to us.”

Heritage Academy soccer team ready for challenge

The championship feeling still lingers in Krisi Boren’s mind.

A year ago, the Heritage Academy girls soccer team had a season to remember, falling to River Oaks (Monroe, La.) in its first appearance in a Mississippi Private School Association (now MAIS) state title match.

The landscape will be different this season for the Lady Patriots.

Heritage Academy, which finished 11-4 last season, will move from Division II to Division I this season. The transition means tougher divisional games against the likes of Starkville Academy, Pillow Academy,Washington School, and Magnolia Heights.

CHS boys basketball players sign with East Central C.C.

Josh Carothers and Kendall Jackson have learned to trust Sammy Smith.

The Columbus High School boys basketball players believed their coach when he said he would do his best to find them a college where they could continue their careers.

The only thing Smith asked his players to do was to stay patient and to believe.

The wait ended Wednesday afternoon.

New coach believes in potential of MSU volleyball

STARKVILLE — Jenny Hazelwood knows how to surprise people.

In coaching stops at Centenary College (La.) and at Austin Peay, the former Mississippi State volleyball player has exceeded expectations and helped her programs reach new levels of success.

Hazelwood believes she can follow that same formula at MSU.

Atkins pitches Heritage softball team past Hebron Christian

There’s something to be said for sure-handedness.

For Heritage Academy’s Kristyn Atkins, all it took Tuesday was a rosin bag to help her feel more comfortable.

The senior pitcher used rosin to keep her right hand dry en route to a complete-game three-hitter in an 8-1 victory against Hebron Christian.

Atkins (1-1) struck out four, walked one, and never was in any serious trouble.

Starkville Academy uses small ball to beat Oak Hill

STARKVILLE —Randy Haynes likes robust boxscores.

The Starkville Academy fast-pitch softball coach would prefer to have his players swing away and pile up the doubles, triples, or home runs.

Sometimes, though, you need to switch gears.

Camp in Caledonia helps soccer grow

CALEDONIA — Andi Franklin and Michael Eade hope their work as soccer ambassadors helps the United States produce World Cup caliber talent.

Franklin and Eade joined Matthew Foster and Rachel Smythe in Caledonia last week as coaches with the Challenger Sports British Soccer Camp.

Butler will demand more from Patriots

Brad Butler knows the Heritage Academy football program can accomplish big things.

He was a member of the football team’s coaching staff in 2005 when it advanced to the Class AAA Division II title game.

Now it’s Butler’s job to help the Patriots get back to that level.

EMCC football ranked No. 6; All-Americans named

Buddy Stephens can’t find enough adjectives to describe how excited he is to begin the 2009 season.

There apparently are plenty of people throughout the country who share Stephens’ excitement.

Heritage Academy softball looks to build on success

The 2008 season was just the first step for the Heritage Academy fast-pitch softball season.

The Lady Patriots made history last season, advancing to the North South State Tournament for the first time.

With many of the key players from that team back this season, Heritage Academy coach Ginny Lowery is confident Heritage Academy can build on last season and begin to build a tradition.

Central Academy wants to build on slow-pitch title

MACON — One title isn’t enough for the Central Academy softball program.

In May, the Lady Vikings ended a drought when they defeated Kemper Academy to win the Class A Mississippi Private School Association slow-pitch state title.

Former Bulldog Bowen signs with Reds

Mississippi State is losing one of its pitchers to professional baseball.

Right-hander Ricky Bowen will skip his senior season with the Bulldogs and has signed with the Cincinnati Reds. He reported to the Billings (Montana) Mustangs of the Pioneer League on Monday.

Alabama puts end of last year behind and moves forward

HOOVER, Ala. — Nick Saban isn’t one to offer excuses.

The University of Alabama coach praised quarterback Tim Tebow, coach Urban Meyer, and the rest of the Florida Gators for playing a great game in the 2008 Southeastern Conference Championship game.

Saban didn’t blame his team’s loss to Utah in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2, 2009, to a “blinking light” otherwise known as offensive lineman Andre Smith.

Instead, the third-year coach preferred Thursday to talk about how his “blue-collar team” was going to continue to try to “do the job” as best as possible to get back to Atlanta to win a SEC title and compete for a national championship.

Ole Miss not satisfied afte having success last season

HOOVER, Ala. — Remarkable is one way to describe the tone of Houston Nutt’s appearances the past two years at Southeastern Conference Media Days.

The veteran coach, who led the University of Arkansas to three SEC Western Division titles and eight bowl games in 10 seasons, inherited an Ole Miss program that couldn’t go any lower.

The Rebels won only three SEC games in three seasons under Ed Orgeron and were desperate to have something to care about in the fall.

My how things changed last season.