1 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Cameron Khleif sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
2 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson, Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Bowling balls of varying weights and colors line the gutters during the AHSAA State Championship at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
3 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Jacob Heidrich reacts after throwing a strike in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
4 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Brandon Stiffler sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
5 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Brandon Stiffler sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
6 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Jake Booth reacts in excitement after throwing a strike in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
7 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Jacob Heidrich sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
8 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Cameron Khleif reacts after throwing a strike in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
9 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Mark Bearden gets ready to send the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
10 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Joe Renfro sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
11 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Brandon Stiffler high-fives Jabcob Heidrich in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
12 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Jake Booth reacts during an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
13 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Jake Booth sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
14 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Joe Renfro high-fives his teammates in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
15 of 15
Photo by Erin Nelson Starnes Media
AHSAA Bowling
Oak Mountain’s Brandon Stiffler sends the ball down the lane in an AHSAA State Championship semifinal match between Oak Mountain and Sparkman at Oak Mountain Lanes on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Photo by Erin Nelson
Over the course of the year, 280 Living will keep you up to date on the various local high school athletic teams. For previous weekly updates, click here.
BASKETBALL
Briarwood
The Briarwood basketball teams began play last week on Tuesday with a Class 5A, Area 8 matchup against Woodlawn. The Lady Lions earned a 48-38 win behind 19 points from Maddie Vaughn. Bennett Shaw scored 11 and Caroline Mays added 10 to join Vaughn in double digits. The boys team fell to Woodlawn 64-47.
The Lions made a road trip to Benjamin Russell on Thursday night. The girls team pulled out a dramatic 51-50 win in overtime. Three Lady Lions scored in double figures, with Mays leading the way with 15 points, Shaw going for 14 and Vaughn finishing with 13 points. The boys lost 79-74.
On Friday, the roles were reversed, as the Lady Lions fell and the boys team won against area foe John Carroll. Briarwood’s girls dropped a 43-29 decision and the boys earned a 53-40 win.
The Briarwood girls are now 14-7 and finished 3-3 in area play. The boys are 14-8 overall and went 2-4 in area. This week, the Lions host Moody on Tuesday and travel to Calera on Thursday to wrap up the regular season.
Chelsea
The Chelsea basketball teams returned to Class 6A, Area 8 play Tuesday at home against Calera. The Lady Hornets picked up a 51-39 win over the Eagles with a balanced scoring effort. Jordan Parker led the way with 10 points, with Sophia Brown adding nine points and Mackenzie Titus scoring eight points. The boys team fell to Calera 61-53 in overtime. Bryant Royster led the Hornets with 12 points in the loss, while Jacob Tierney and Caleb Moore chipped in 11 points each.
Chelsea finished up area play on Friday night against Helena. The Lady Hornets earned a 40-30 win, with Ellen Fleming’s 12 points leading the way. Sydney Schwallie scored 11 points and Parker added nine. Brooklyn Oden led Helena with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The Chelsea boys suffered a narrow 65-60 defeat. Moore posted a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrew Messier and Tierney each added 13 points.
The results were the same for the Hornets on Saturday, as they hosted Thompson. The girls team picked up a 55-42 victory, as Titus led the charge with 17 points and Fleming added 10. The boys were defeated 59-45. Jordan Thomas scored 11 points and Moore added eight.
The Chelsea girls are now 21-5 overall and finished 5-1 in area play to win Area 8. The boys are 11-16 and finished 2-4 in area play. This week, the Hornets host Oak Mountain on Tuesday and travel to Tuscaloosa County on Thursday to conclude regular season play.
Oak Mountain
The Oak Mountain basketball teams were in action last Tuesday evening against Tuscaloosa County, and the Eagles earned the sweep in Class 7A, Area 5 play. The Lady Eagles picked up a 37-27 win in a defensive struggle, followed the boys team getting a 41-32 victory. Zane Nelson went for 15 points to lead the way.
On Friday night, the Eagles finished up area play at home against Thompson. The Lady Eagles earned a 56-38 win in a sluggish game that featured 54 total fouls between the two teams. Hannah Edwards has returned from injury and led the team with 12 points in the contest. Riley Sullivan scored 11 points and Abi Brown added nine points. The boys knocked off the Warriors 64-61 in exciting fashion to clinch the area title. Nelson paced all scorers with 22 points and Will Shaver added 19 points. Chaney Johnson led Thompson with 16 points.
The Oak Mountain boys are now 17-8 overall and finished 5-1 in area play. The girls are 9-15 and finished area play 4-2. This week, the Eagles are at Chelsea on Tuesday and host Helena on Friday to conclude the regular season.
BOWLING
The Oak Mountain boys bowling team finished the season with a remarkable run. At last week’s state tournament, held Thursday and Friday at Oak Mountain Lanes, the Eagles made a run to the semifinals. Play on Thursday determined seeding for Friday’s bracket play. Oak Mountain’s Joe Renfro bowled a game-high 284 and finished sixth overall on Thursday, posting a 656 over three games. Jake Booth, Jacob Heidrich, Cameron Khleif and Brandon Stiffler logged scores for the Eagles as well. Oak Mountain earned the No. 7 seed after Thursday’s action.
On Friday, the Eagles began the day with a 1,504-1,446 win over No. 10 Mary G. Montgomery. In the second round, Oak Mountain defeated No. 15 East Limestone, which upset No. 2 and defending state champion Vestavia Hills in the first round, 1,462-1,366. In the semifinals, Sparkman knocked off Oak Mountain 1,422-1,280.
Be sure to check out the photo slideshow at the top of the post for a look at the Eagles' state tournament run. A full photo gallery can be found here.
WRESTLING
Last Thursday, the Chelsea wrestling team split a quad-match. The Hornets blew past Hueytown 66-17 but fell to McAdory 38-14. Over the weekend, the Hornets finished third as a team in the Mountain Brook Invitational.
The Oak Mountain wrestling team fell to Thompson 65-4 in the Class 7A duals semifinals last Wednesday. Thompson went on to defeat Vestavia Hills on Friday in the finals.
TRACK AND FIELD
The Briarwood track and field teams competed in the Martin Luther King Indoor Classic at the Birmingham CrossPlex last Monday. For the girls, Bella Doss placed 10th in the 800-meter run, while Adrienne Goolsby finished ninth in the 1,600 and 11th in the 3,200. The girls 4x800 relay team placed eighth and Ansley Murphy was seventh in the pole vault. For the boys, Trent Malloy and Joseph Bell were third and fourth in the 1,600. Bell also placed 10th in the 3,200. Nicholas Robson came home eighth in the 60-meter hurdles and Gabe Margene was seventh in the high jump. The boys 4x800 relay team was second and the 4x200 finished seventh.
Chelsea was also at the Martin Luther King Indoor Classic. Teanna Cason won the 3,200-meter run with a time of 11:43.58. She also placed sixth in the 1,600. Miles Brush was the top performer for the boys team, as he came across eighth in the 3,200.
Oak Mountain had several participants as well. Evie Bell placed ninth in the 800, Walker Cole was fourth in the 3,200 and Harrison Dimick finished third in the shot put.
— What else would you like to see mentioned? For any suggestions, feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnespublishing.com.
