By Emily Williams When the Vestavia Hills High School Thespian Troupe began to prepare for its competition performance at the Alabama Thespian Festival, theater teacher Jamie Stephenson and her students chose something challenging but fun. “We had just finished ‘I Never Saw Another Butterfly,’ which was an incredibly hard show,” Stephenson said. “It is about the children of … [Read more...]
Former Briarwood Coach Yancey Earns Place in Sports Hall of Fame by Focusing on Players as Well as Games
Briarwood Christian School former football coach Fred Yancey has been lauded as a man who put the growth of his athletes as people ahead of his goals for the teams he has coached. Not that his teams didn’t win; they did. Yancey led Briarwood teams to the state playoffs 26 years in a row and to championships three times. He is third all-time in Alabama for most wins at one … [Read more...]
McKinney Takes Mantle as Briarwood’s Ace Pitcher
By Rubin E. Grant The Briarwood Christian baseball team can thank the sister of Carson McKinney for him becoming the ace of the Lions’ pitching staff. McKinney orally committed to the University of Alabama when he was a freshman in high school and living in San Diego. His family decided to move to Birmingham so he could become familiar with the South before eventually … [Read more...]
Suspended streak: Spain Park’s Superb Softball Season Interrupted by Pandemic
By Rubin E. Grant Perhaps no high school team in the state was more disappointed to see the spring sports seasons suspended than the Spain Park softball team. The Jaguars are off to 21-0 start, ranked No. 1 in Class 7A and No. 4 nationally by USA Today, but their season has been interrupted because of the coronavirus pandemic. Hoover City Schools announced Saturday that … [Read more...]
2020 OTMJ All-OTM High School Girls Basketball Team: Driven Barker Turned In Dominating Performances in Spain Park’s Title Season
By Rubin E. Grant Several years ago, Spain Park girls basketball coach Mike Chase heard stories about a talented young player, so he went on a quest to see her play. He showed up at one Over the Mountain recreational league game after another, hoping to watch her. But she wasn’t playing in any of the games he attended. Finally, one night he asked someone where he could find … [Read more...]