By Lee Davis By any measure, 2017 was a golden season for Over the Mountain baseball. Briarwood, Homewood and Oak Mountain produced outstanding seasons. Vestavia Hills had a strong April-May push that nearly put it in the Class 7A championship finals, and Hoover brought home the big blue trophy, emblematic of the 2017 state title. As a result, the 2017 All-Over the Mountain … [Read more...]
The Island of the Blue Trophies: Area Teams Dominated Sports in 2016-17
By Lee Davis This story has been written so many times that it’s almost become a cliché, and here it is again: Over the Mountain schools dominated statewide athletic competition in the 2016-17 academic year. But that’s just the hometown sportswriter building up the hometown teams, isn’t it? Actually, it’s just the fact. Area schools earned championships in 2016-17 in sports … [Read more...]
Some Kind of Comeback: Hoover Rallies to Win 7A Baseball Crown
By Lee Davis After the first game of the Class 7A baseball championship at Montgomery’s Paterson Field, the Hoover Bucs looked finished. They had fallen to a strong Auburn team 9-6 in the first game and had to sweep Saturday’s series against the Tigers to claim the title, and everyone knows that beating a good team twice in one day is a difficult task. One positive for … [Read more...]
Winning Jags: Spain Park Girl Golfers Win State Title
By Lee Davis After its last title in 2009, the Spain Park girls golf team had found the state championship trophy to be as elusive as the Academy Award was for Bob Hope. The drought for the legendary entertainer never ended. But the Lady Jags’ drought came to an end May 17 at the Robert Trent Jones Grand National Golf Course in Opelika. Shooting a two-day round of 445, Spain … [Read more...]
Caroline’s King: Homewood’s Lawrence Wins State Heptathlon Title
By Lee Davis Caroline Lawrence entered the 2017 Alabama High School Athletic Association Girls Heptathlon competition with a lot of confidence. The Homewood senior’s confidence was justified. She had finished third in the heptathlon a year ago and had excelled in many of the competition’s seven events during the outdoor track and field season. “I had already competed in the … [Read more...]