By Rubin E. GrantThere was never any doubt Hoover senior Sydney Durban would become a volleyball player.Her mother, Michelle Durban, played at Indiana, coached at the high school and collegiate level and now works in the Samford athletics department.Her sister, Aly Durban, who is four years older, was a star player at Hoover and played a year at Samford before … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. GrantIt’s called Camp Mac.Nestled in the towering pines of the Talladega National Forest near Mount Cheaha in what was once a Civilian Conservation Corps camp, Camp Mac since 1948 has been a place where children can participate in a variety of activities, have fun, learn and experience nature’s beauty. A few weeks before the 1974 high school … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. GrantSteve Newton didn’t have any plans to become a referee when he was a graduate student at Auburn University.But that all changed when one of his civil engineering professors asked him if he liked football.Of course, Newton answered yes, and what followed changed the course of his life.The professor told Newton he would be officiating high school … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. GrantJustin Kisor wasn’t just dealing with heat this summer but also a whirlwind.That’s how he described what his life has been like since early April, when he was named Spain Park’s new volleyball coach.Kisor spent almost four months traveling back and forth between Hoover and Fort Payne, where he had been head volleyball coach the past four years, … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. GrantMattie Gardner is in uncharted territory as she enters her fourth season as Mountain Brook’s volleyball coach.With the graduations of Hannah and Paige Paran and Mae Mae and Annie Lacey, the Spartans don’t have any twins on their roster. They do have two sisters, Ava Ruth Borland, a junior right side hitter, and Naomi Borland, a freshman outside … [Read more...]