Sports Editor

Sub-Region play begins tonight for high school basketball

teams across the state. Everything up to this point has been a preview

of what is to come. The McIntosh Lady Chiefs look to be one of

the stronger teams in region 4-AAAA. They have played

exceptionally well in their holiday tournaments, facing the top ranked team in

the country, Butler, Ala., over the christmas break. The Lady

Chiefs lost the game but they know that they can compete on that

level. The Lady Chiefs rely heavily on their athleticism, speed and

the three-pointer. If you start falling behind to McIntosh, you

may never catch up. McIntosh travels to Lovejoy on Tuesday night.

The Fayette County Lady Tigers have some big players

who have a habit of coming up big when it is needed most.

Senior Jessica Pritchett leads the team in the post and it appears she is

molding her sister, Carrie and sophomore Kara Davis in her image

as well. Becca Grizzard and Abby Snauewaert contol the tempo

of the game from the guard positions and if they are shooting well,

the Tigers can beat anybody. They took second place in the

Fayette Shoot-out last week. The Lady Tigers will face Stockbridge

at Stockbridge High School on Tuesday night.

Sandy Creek is coming along for Coach Doug Crane but

there are still miles to go before they sleep...so to speak. The

Patriots have been working on their fundamentals and positive things

are happening. Freshmen Jessica Demooney and Maya

Hughes have shown a lot of poise and maturity in their play of

late. Ashley Lott is playing well in the post position, scoring early

and making a number of rebounds. The Patriots get better with

every game and their defensive pressure has caused a number of

turnovers. Sandy Creek will continue to gel as the season

progresses and may be a thorn in some team's side when the tournament

rolls around. Sandy Creek travels to Jonesboro on Tuesday night

and plays four games in seven days.

The Starr's Mill Panthers are off to a decent start this

season, despite the fact that there are no seniors on the team and this

is their first season of varsity play ever. Jamie Vining is leading

the Lady Panthers as a point guard and C.C. Shipmon, a transfer

from Sandy Creek, is getting her share of points and rebounds as well.

It will be a difficult season for Starr's Mill but they are not shirking

away from the tough competition. In the end, they will be a better

team based on the srength of their opponents. The Panthers travel

to Woodward Academy for a battle on Friday night and then play

host to Jonesboro on Saturday night.

As for the boys, the Starr's Mill Panthers are coming along

well. The team is led in scoring by Brandon Alexander, who is

averaging 15 points and seven rebounds over the last three

games. The Panthers will need to play aggressive and unafraid if

they are to be successful this season.

Sandy Creek is a very young but talented team. L.T.Lockett

is an exceptional ball handler and shooter. Lockett's best

attribute however is his skill at finding his teammates. Coach Rick

Francis believes Lockett will only get better. There is not one

opponent that Sandy Creek fears more than any other. Confidence can

often be the most integral part of success. The Patriots can be

explosive but they have also fallen flat several times, causing them to

fall behind and lose games. Sandy Creek will mature as a team

and Lockett will mature into a leader that will take the Patriots deep

in years to come.

The Fayette County Tigers have been their own toughest

competition this season. One night they will shoot the lights out

and bury teams by dozens of points, the next night they will have

every ball hit the rim and bounce out. William Moore and

Andrew Doggendorf are both stepping up their play and becoming

more aggressive defensively and as shooters. Coach Keith

Louthan believes that his team has been very balanced scoring and

has been good at beating the pressure. The Tigers must contest their

opponents vision however, and they must cut down on their

turnovers. The Tigers face Stockbridge on Tuesday, as they prepare to

host the McIntosh Chiefs on Friday night.

As for the McIntosh Chiefs, they just keep rolling

along. Michael Patrick and Jim Hanchett have got Chiefs fans super

excited for sub-region play. Patrick is averaging 21 points and

five rebounds a game this year and his play with Hanchett is

inspiring. The Chiefs shoot well, they defend well and they play

together well. McIntosh, like every team in 4-AAAA, will have to

go through Griffin to reach the state tournament. The Chiefs have

been preparing for that inevitable showdown all season. After a four

game road trip that will take the Chiefs through Griffin, they will enjoy

a seven game home stand a week before the regional tournament.

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