1. Starkville High School defeated Madison Central 43-40 in overtime to win the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 6A boys basketball state championship in Jackson. The Yellow Jackets (27-5) won their final 14 games. They also defeated the Jaguars, their Region 3 rival, in three of four meetings. It was the second state title under Greg Carter, who led the Yellow Jackets to the 2010 Class 5A championship.
2. New Hope High put together the area’s best baseball season. While many didn’t expect great things from the Trojans, they proved the naysayers wrong and advanced to a fourth-straight MHSAA Class 5A North State championship series. While falling 2-1 to region rival and eventual state champion Oxford in that series, the Trojans gave it their all, falling on a walk-off hit in Game 1 of the series before winning in the same fashion in Game 2. Coach Lee Boyd led New Hope (25-7) to the Class 5A state championships in 2014 and 2015.
3. Noxubee County repeated as MHSAA Class 4A state champions in football. While winning the school’s fourth football state championship — third under Tyrone Shorter — the Tigers (12-4) battled back from a 2-4 start by winning their final 10 games. In the state championship game, Noxubee County rolled over St. Stanislaus 44-23 in Oxford. Shorter also led the Tigers to the state championships in 2012 and 2014. However, it was the first time in program history for back-to-back championships.
4. Starkville High rolled to the MHSAA Class 6A state championship in football. Coach Ricky Woods took over a senior-laden squad and captured his seventh in-state championship. After a season-opening loss to Noxubee County, Starkville (14-1) won its final 14 games, including a 27-7 victory against Petal in the state championship game in Oxford. For Starkville, it was the first football state championship since 2012.
5. Starkville High returned to the Mississippi Coliseum for the first time since 1992 in girls basketball. Starkville (25-5) lost in the Class 5A semifinal round to Horn Lake 60-39 in Jackson. That loss snapped a 13-game winning streak. Led by center Kelsey Jones, Starkville coach Kristie Williams continued that success with an undefeated start to the 2015-16 season.
6. Coach Luther Riley has brought his state-championship pedigree to Lowndes County. Riley was named this summer as the new boys basketball coach at Columbus High. Riley previously coached at Alcorn State, but he made a name for himself while winning state championships at Jackson-area Provine High. Riley inherited several pieces from last season’s 22-5 squad and has already guided the Falcons to a stint at No. 1 in the rankings in his first season.
7. Many area football fans were surprised when Jamie Mitchell announced his resignation at Starkville High after five successful seasons as football coach. Mitchell guided Starkville to the 2012 Class 5A state championship. Two years later, Starkville was a favorite in Class 6A but suffered its first loss of the season in a North State championship bout with eventual state champion South Panola. Mitchell was replaced by Ricky Woods, who returned to Mississippi after a two-year stint in Tennessee. Woods is most widely known for guiding South Panola to four state championships.
8. For Columbus High, it was a season of firsts in football. The Falcons finished 8-4, which is the second-most wins in a season in program history. Coach Randal Montgomery’s second squad set a school record with six region wins. Columbus also qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2012 and earned a first-round playoff game at home for the first time. The season ended with a 56-42 loss to Clinton in the opening round of the Class 6A playoffs. However, a large group of seniors will look to go deeper in 2016.
9. Central Academy (19-14) fell in the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class A state championship series in fast-pitch softball. Central Academy beat Humphreys Academy at home in the series opener before dropping two games in Belzoni. Coach Sammy Lindsey’s squad fought through the losers’ bracket to compete for the state championship.
10. New Hope High School had a challenging summer as two successful coaches left their alma masters. Laura Lee Holman left the girls basketball and volleyball positions at the school to take over at North Pike High. Tabitha Beard resigned as the slow- and fast-pitch softball coach to take a coaching position at Tupelo High.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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