Kyle Parmley
Hewitt-Trussville Basketball
Jacolby Thomas in a game last season.
BASKETBALL
Hewitt-Trussville
The Hewitt-Trussville basketball teams returned to action shortly after Christmas. The girls played a couple games in the BallN Prep Holiday Invitational, while the boys traveled to Fort Walton, Florida, for the Northwest Florida Shootout.
The Lady Huskies split their two games at Calera High School. On Dec. 26, the Lady Huskies routed Niceville (FL) 65-25, as Amiya Payne scored 24 points. The following day, Hewitt-Trussville suffered a narrow 52-49 loss to Pine Forest (FL).
On Dec. 27, the Hewitt boys picked up a 75-70 overtime victory over tournament host Choctawhatchee (FL). The following day, the Huskies earned a 63-62 win over Coral Park (FL) in the semifinals. Last Monday, the Huskies fell just shy of the tournament crown in a 74-72 loss to Tate (FL).
On Friday, the Homewood boys earned a 57-53 win over Hewitt-Trussville. PJ Davis led the way with 24 points for Homewood. Cam Glover and Brandan Copeland each paced Hewitt-Trussville with 14 points each, while Bo Barber scored 10 for the Patriots and Tyler Pickett chipped in nine points for the Huskies.
The Huskies pulled off a sweep of Madison Academy at home on Saturday. The Lady Huskies hung on for a 42-40 win, despite the Mustangs having three shots hit the rim in the closing seconds. Payne led the way with 20 points and Erica Jones added seven points. The boys team picked up a 70-57 win, behind 18 points each from Glover and Jacolby Thomas. Pickett scored 13 points and Copeland chipped in 10.
The Hewitt-Trussville girls are now 13-4 on the season and the boys are 8-11 overall. This week, the Huskies begin Class 7A, Area 6 play at Vestavia Hills on Tuesday and at home against Spain Park on Friday. On Saturday, the Huskies make the return trip to Madison Academy.
Clay-Chalkville
The Clay-Chalkville boys basketball team resumed play shortly after Christmas, playing in Plainview’s First State Bank Shootout. The Cougars began the tournament on Dec. 26 with a 57-46 loss to Buckhorn in a game that was closer than the final score indicated until the final few minutes. Donovan Shangase and Jaden Johnson each scored 12 points in the game. The following day, Clay-Chalkville fell to Decatur 51-38, before rebounding to beat Elkmont 62-48 on Dec. 28.
Clay-Chalkville and Oak Mountain squared off on Friday evening, with the teams splitting the boys and girls games. Clay’s girls won 48-41 behind a balanced scoring effort. Cheyenne Pearson led the team with 11 points, while Aukeivah Tellis and Tamyia Muse each added nine points. Abi Brown led all scorers with 25 points for Oak Mountain and Kathleen Matuszak scored eight points.
In the boys contest, Oak Mountain cruised to a 65-37 victory. Zane Nelson led all scorers with 18 points, with Noah Young scoring 13 points and Will Shaver adding 12. Wilder Evers also scored 11 points. Shangase led Clay-Chalkville with 12 points.
The Clay-Chalkville girls are now 9-7 overall and the boys are 9-9 on the season. This week, the Cougars host Pinson Valley on Tuesday in a Class 6A, Area 12 matchup. They will alos play host to Oxford on Friday.
Pinson Valley
The Pinson Valley basketball teams have been busy over the last two weeks. The boys and girls teams played once more before Christmas, hosting games on Dec. 23. The Lady Indians fell to Mountain Brook 58-30 and the boys knocked off Ramsay 80-73. For the boys, Kam Woods piled up 33 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Demarques Densmore added 17 points, five rebounds and two steals. JoJo James went for 15 points and seven rebounds. Cam Scott notched a double-double with 10 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks. BJ Diakite also provided the Indians with a “major spark” off the bench.
After Christmas, both teams traveled out of state. The boys played a couple games in the West Kentucky Hoops Classic in Princeton, Kentucky, while the girls traveled to Atlanta for the Battle in Buckhead.
On Dec. 27, the Lady Indians fell to May River (GA) 68-33. The following day, they played much better in a 48-42 loss to Battle Ground (TN). In the game, Courtney Whatley poured in 30 points, while AC Price and Makaila Clayton each added five points. Last Monday, Pinson suffered a narrow 59-55 loss to Denmark (GA). Whatley went for 22 points and three assists, Price notched 15 points and six rebounds, and Shameria Blocton scored 17 points.
Woods drained the game-winning 3-pointer to cap off a standout performance in the Pinson boys’ 84-82 win over North Little Rock (AR) on Dec. 27. Woods finished with 49 points on 11 3s, six rebounds, four assists, and three steals. GaQuincy McKinstry went for 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals.
The following day, the Indians earned another tight win, this one a 79-76 win over Holly Springs (MS). Woods tallied 31 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals. James piled up 20 points, four boards and two assists. McKinstry filled the stat sheet as well, with 19 points, five assists, five rebounds and three steals.
Last Tuesday, the Lady Indians suffered a 53-13 loss to Northridge.
The Pinson Valley boys are now 14-3 overall and the girls are 4-14 on the season. This week, the boys host Bessemer City on Monday, both teams travel to Clay-Chalkville for a Class 6A, Area 12 matchup on Tuesday, both teams host Pell City on Thursday in another area matchup and they play at Midfield on Saturday.
INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
The Hewitt-Trussville indoor track and field teams competed in the Ice Breaker Invitational last Saturday at the Birmingham CrossPlex. For the girls, Sophia Knox placed fifth in the 3,200-meter run, Kelsey Martin was third in the triple jump and Lea Townsend won the shot put competition with a throw of 38 feet, 9.5 inches. For the boys, Julian Collins was fourth in the 60-meter dash and third in the long jump, Alex Jones was second in the 800, Nathan Knox was second in the 1,600, Omari Kelly was fourth in the long jump and Syed Raza finished fifth in shot put.
