By Stephen Dawkins | Assistant Managing Editor

Three teams on Thursday advanced to their respective championship games in the Chilton County Basketball Tournament.

Verbena’s girls, Jemison’s boys and Maplesville’s junior varsity won and now await the winners of Friday’s games to see who they will play Saturday.

Hands up: Jemison’s Shayna Robinson, left, is defended by Verbena’s Jameshia Green on Thursday.

The varsity squads—both of which were top seeds in their divisions—won easily.

Jemison’s boys topped Thorsby, 84-47, behind 22 points from Jeremiah Gates and 20 points from Trey Bryant.

Aaron Thornton had 16 points for No. 5 seed Thorsby, and teammate Parker Bryan had 15 points.

The Panthers on Saturday will play the winner of Friday’s Maplesville-Chilton County game.

Verbena’s girls defeated Jemison, 46-30.

The Red Devils raced to a 12-4 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back, thanks largely to Marqueska Deramus’ 29 points.

Shayna Robinson led No. 5 seed JHS with 13 points.

Verbena on Saturday plays the winner of Friday’s Thorsby-Maplesville game.

The first significant upset of the Chilton County Basketball Tournament was No. 4 seed Maplesville’s junior varsity 38-36 win over No. 1 seed Jemison on Thursday.

The Panthers were trying for their third consecutive county title.

Jemison held a slight lead throughout the first half, but Devonta Morrow drained two free throws with just over 1 minute left to play to break a late tie and produce the final score.

Jemison committed a couple of costly turnovers with chances to tie the game, but Maplesville had its chances, too, missing four free throws late that could have clinched the game and prevented Jemison’s last-second shot attempt from being for overtime.

Morrow led all scorers with 17 points. Jemison’s John Underwood had 11 points.

Maplesville will play the winner of Friday’s Chilton County-Verbena game at 4 p.m. Saturday for the county championship.

By JUSTIN AVERETTE / Managing Editor

Family members and friends of Alex Moore are establishing a scholarship in her honor.

The Alex Moore Memorial Scholarship will be awarded later this year to a senior at Jemison High School.

Alex Moore would have graduated from JHS this May, but she died from suicide in May 2010. Classmates came forth after her death to say Moore was bullied constantly at school.

Jill Moore, Alex’s mom, hopes the scholarship can be awarded annually.

Contributions to the scholarship can be made at Regions Bank branches – Alex Moore Memorial Scholarship.

They can also be mailed to 3381 County Road 48, Jemison, AL 35085. Checks should be made out to Alex Moore Memorial Scholarship.

By JUSTIN AVERETTE / Managing Editor

A $500 grant will go toward adding trees at Thorsby’s Sam Bentley Park.

Mayor Dearl Hilyer announced the grant at Monday night’s council meeting. The funds come from Alabama Power Company’s Good Roots program.

In other business, the council took the following actions:

•Voted to accept Bryce Circle subdivision into the town.

•Moved the council’s next scheduled meeting to Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. The meeting was moved from Jan. 16 because of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The Jemison City Council approved a liquor license for Sue’s Mart, a package store in Jemison, in a public hearing Jan. 2, according to minutes from City Clerk Sheila Hogge.

Mayor Eddie Reed said he had received no new information regarding ownership of Pine Hill Cemetery, but it is still on the court docket.

Reed thanked Councilwoman Faye King and participants who helped make soldier Donny Eslinger’s homecoming reception on Dec. 22 a success.

In new business, the council:

•Amended an ordinance concerning wrecker contracts.

•Approved a letter from the city of Jemison on behalf of Minooka Park to the Alabama Department of Transportation granting permission to place a Trailblazer sign on County Road 42 and U.S. Highway 31.

•Approved the purchase of new tracks for the city’s paving machine for $3,000.

•Approved changing a library position to part-time (20 hours) and hiring Tammie McGriff at $10 per hour with no benefits.

•Approved changing a custodial position to full-time. The pay rate would be $10 per hour. This position will first be posted within the current city employees. If the position is not filled, the city will offer a public posting.

•Approved Police Chief Shane Fulmer’s presentation of Chris Warren for the Reserve program.

Editor’s note: Below is a compilation of the top North Chilton sports stories of 2011.

JANUARY

Thorsby girls win county tournament title

Thorsby’s girls basketball team has established a dynasty in the Chilton County Basketball Tournament.

The Rebels’ 40-27 win over Verbena gave them their second county title in the past four seasons, and THS made the championship game in both of the other seasons.

THS shows support for breast cancer awareness

Thorsby’s girls basketball team defeated Maplesville, 45-33, but the focus on Jan. 31 seemed to be an opponent common to not just players from both teams but to people across the world: the fight against breast cancer.

A portion of the proceeds from the game was to be donated to the Bruno Cancer Center at St. Vincent’s hospital in Birmingham.

Also, several Thorsby students walked the perimeter of the court with boxes for donations.

The idea for the school’s first Breast Cancer Awareness Night came from these girls, a group of fourth and third graders, calling themselves the “Sweet Girls,” who decided they wanted to do something to promote a cause that has touched them already in their young lives.

MARCH

McGehee leads Jemison basketball turnarounds

Turning around a basketball program in one season is remarkable.

Stacy McGehee turned around two basketball programs in two years.

The Clanton Advertiser’s basketball coach of the year led Jemison’s boys basketball team from a winless season in 2008-09 to seven wins in McGehee’s first year, in 2009-10, and a winning record, 14-13, in 2010-11.

McGehee said he has been told by people close to the program that it was Jemison’s boys first winning season since the mid-1980s.

McGehee took control of the girls team this season, leading that set of Panthers to an 11-13 record one year after posting only four wins.

APRIL

Rebels boys, girls win weightlifting titles

Thorsby’s boys weightlifting team won the Class 2A state championship for the second consecutive year on April 2, and their girls counterparts won the 1A-2A championship.

THS had four male athletes win individual state titles: Kalup Nunn, Jonathan Spivey, Kip Cleckley and Colton Castleberry.

The Rebels boys and girls combined to finish second as a team in the 1A-6A competition, behind only a 5A school.

Thorsby’s Carroll tosses perfect game

Thorsby’s Cody Carroll is one of the best pitchers in the state’s 2A classification, and he had extra motivation during an April 8 game against Isabella.

The result: Carroll pitched the first perfect game—no hits or walks allowed—of his varsity career as the fourth-ranked Rebels clinched their third consecutive area championship with a 16-0, five-inning win.

Carroll struck out nine of the 15 batters he faced. Only two Isabella hitters, Andrew Smith and Trey Calfee, got the ball out of the infield. Both lifted fly balls to right fielder Jace Maddox in the third inning.

JHS archery team makes Nationals

In only its first year of existence, the Jemison High School archery team will compete on the National Archery in the Schools Program’s biggest stage.

The JHS archers—ranked in the top 5 in the state—qualified in the high school division for NASP Nationals on May 13-14 in Louisville, Ky., by posting their best score of the season at a state competition.

MAY

JHS athletes help tornado victims

The Jemison softball team planned a trip to watch the sixth-ranked University of Alabama softball squad host Kentucky, but the April tornadoes forced the cancellation of the game and thus the trip.

Instead, the Panthers decided to help tornado victims by collecting needed supplies and then dropping them off in Tuscaloosa.

Jemison boys tennis team finishes third in state

Jemison’s boys tennis team finished third in the Class 4A state tournament, matching the program’s best performance in Coach Benton Morton’s 10 years. JHS also finished third in the 2007 state tournament.

Jake Long was the state runner up in the No. 6 singles position, and teammate Andrew Morton made it to the semifinals. Long and Morton also reached the semifinals as the No. 2 doubles team. Thompson and Nick Long reached the semifinals in the No. 3 doubles position.

Archie wins fifth state track championship

Thorsby’s Sade’ Archie won her fifth state track and field championship, on May 7.

Archie won in the 100-meter dash, which she ran in 12.96 seconds.

Archie has won the 100 three consecutive years; she also has won two titles in the 200-meter dash.

Archie finished fourth in the 200-meter dash in 2011

Thorsby’s historic season comes to end

Thorsby baseball’s historic season ended May 14 with a 14-3, five-inning loss against Leroy in the Class 2A state semifinals.

The Rebels lost both games of the best-of-three series but were unashamed of the effort they gave in their first-ever semifinal appearance.

Host Thorsby fought back from a 12-run deficit in Game 1 on May 13 to force an extra inning before Leroy won, 19-14. And THS trailed just 6-3 in the bottom of the third inning of Game 2 before it was suspended because of weather and impending darkness.

JUNE

Thorsby pair receives top baseball honors

Jason Price enjoyed a breakout season in 2011, the result of a year of experience and an offseason spent in his personal batting cage.

And Price’s emergence was perhaps the most significant reason behind the Thorsby baseball team advancing to the semifinal round of the state playoffs for the first time in school history.

Price is The Clanton Advertiser’s Baseball Player of the Year, and his coach, Ab Argent, is the Coach of the Year.

Argent was also named the Class 2A Coach of the Year by the Alabama Sports Writers Association, while Price and senior pitcher Cody Carroll were both named to the All-State Baseball Team.

Bowden named new Jemison football coach

Merritt Bowden has made many coaching stops. But his next one is to lead the school he graduated from.

Bowden will be Jemison’s next football coach, replacing Brad Abbott, who gave up the position after seven seasons.

Bowden, a 1987 JHS graduate, comes to Jemison from Oak Mountain, where he has coached the past two years, most recently serving as assistant head coach, defensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coach.

Bowden led the Panthers to a 6-4 record, including a season opening win over rival Chilton County, in his first year as coach.

JULY

North Chilton youth baseball team wins state title

The North Chilton Orioles 11-and-under youth baseball team did what no other team in its league has done: win the Dizzy Dean Baseball State Championship.

The Orioles—made up of teams from Jemison, Thorsby and West End—entered the state tournament in Cullman on July 6 as a No. 1 seed after defeating Chelsea 7-6 in the District 12 regional tournament. They went through the state tournament undefeated, besting Walker County, 18-0; Huffman, 9-6; East Walker, 12-10; and Albertville, 13-10, on their way to a rematch in the finals with Chelsea.

AUGUST

Panthers win rivalry game

Every time Chilton County thought it had a chance, Jemison’s Javae Swindle showed the capacity crowd at Panther Stadium otherwise.

Swindle ran for 268 yards and two touchdowns—and set up two other scores—as JHS topped rival CCHS, 29-13, in both teams’ season openers on Aug. 25.

SEPTEMBER

CCA Patriots pick up first-ever win

Chilton Christian Academy’s 6-man football team christened its field with a win against Faith Christian in the Patriots’ first-ever home game on Sept. 2.

The Patriots, a first-year program, lost their season opener to Trinity in Oxford on Aug. 19, but they bounced back to defeat the Faith Christian Lions 58-12 in their second game of the season.

NOVEMBER

Patriots win first-ever six-man state championship

On Nov. 4, the Chilton Christian Academy Patriots walked off R. Jerry Morris Memorial Ball Field in Hueytown as state champions.

Chilton Christian beat Marion Academy, 58-50, in the inaugural Christian Football Association championship game—in a thrilling contest that set the bar high for future title games.

DECEMBER

Swindle named football player of year

Jemison senior running back Javae Swindle was named The Clanton Advertiser’s Football Player of the Year after a season in which he rushed for 1,443 yards and 19 touchdowns in nine games, bringing his three-year total to 4,503 yards and 57 touchdowns.

The Panthers finished with a 6-4 record in coach Merritt Bowden’s first season but failed to qualify for the playoffs.

The Officer of the Year Award that Jemison Police Chief Shane Fulmer presented to Officer Riley Barnett on Dec. 21 held even more meaning than in previous years.

This was the first year Fulmer presented the annual award as the Officer Donald “Josh” Newman Officer of the Year Award.

Newman was a Jemison police officer who died while responding to a car accident at the beginning of his shift the night of March 5. He was 30 years old and had been with the department since 2008.

Fulmer said each Officer of the Year is selected based upon nominations submitted by police officers and city personnel in order to “let the ones he works around all the time have a say in who they feel has (gone) above and beyond, all around, in showing their professionalism and dedication to the work and to the citizens and the people in the department.”

“He (Barnett) received a majority of the votes,” Fulmer said. “He’s still fairly new to the profession but has come a long way since we hired him. He’s a great officer.”

Fulmer gave Barnett his award at the police department’s annual Christmas dinner Dec. 21.

He also presented Newman’s widow, Tracy, and 4-year-old son, Jace, with a commemorative plaque and a United States flag that flew over the U.S. Capitol in honor of Newman, along with a certificate of authenticity he received from the U.S. Capitol Police.

According to Fulmer, Newman told his wife at the 2010 Christmas dinner that one of his goals for the next year was to earn the Officer of the Year Award through hard work and a job well done.

From now on, Newman’s name will always be associated with the award he so avidly sought.

“We’ve got a good group of officers,” Fulmer said. “They all work hard and do a great job. Officer Barnett did go above and beyond. We have received several calls commending his service from citizens.”

Cheers erupted from family and friends of Jemison’s Donny Eslinger as he emerged from the concourse at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport on Dec. 22.

Lifelong friends and former classmates raised “Donny Strong” signs in the air in a long-awaited reunion with their soldier who survived critical injuries in Afghanistan this year.

Eslinger conveyed mixed emotions about the hero’s homecoming he received Thursday.

“Overwhelmed right now, but as soon as I get home, I’m going to lay down in my bed,” Eslinger said. “Then I’ll be home.”

His first visit to Chilton County since September will extend through New Year’s. After that, he and his mother, Mary Sazera, will return to Tampa to prepare for his final surgery in Washington D.C., tentatively scheduled for mid-January.

Despite everything he has endured the past three months, Eslinger expressed no hesitations about going back into combat with his fellow infantrymen if given the chance.

“I would go back right now,” he said.

Eslinger is non-deployable now, but he still has the option of pursuing a career in the United States military.

He said he also plans to go to college and perhaps become a contractor.

For now, he is content to spend Christmas with his family and, in his spare time, go through the seven footlockers sitting in his bedroom, filled with all of his personal belongings from overseas.

Sazera said an empty potato chip bag was among his items—evidence that the Army left nothing out.

“He can’t wait to go through it,” Sazera said, laughing.

By Stephen Dawkins | Assistant Managing Editor

Jemison’s boys basketball team pulled away from Maplesville in the second quarter Monday for a 62-35 win.

The home victory was a nice way for JHS to end the first half of the season. Jemison won its first six games but then lost two in a row.

Now, they head into the holiday break with some confidence and momentum.

The Panthers (7-2) led 14-7 after one quarter, but visiting MHS was within striking distance until Jemison’s Austin Lovette scored five consecutive points—including a three-pointer—to close the second half

The Red Devils (3-4) never threatened in the second half of the game at Jemison’s Alton Cobb Gymnasium.

Jemison’s Tre Bryant and Eddie Hubbard shared honors of leading scorer with 13 points each.

Bryant also had three assists.

Jeremiah Gates chipped in 12 points and five rebounds.

Anthony Johnson led Maplesville with 12 points.

Family and friends of PFC Donny Eslinger, 20, of Jemison will receive a priceless gift on Thursday, Dec. 22 as Eslinger returns to his hometown for the holidays.

His plane is scheduled to land at the Birmingham Shuttlesworth International Airport at noon on Thursday, and anyone wishing to welcome him home is invited to bring American flags and  line up from Exit 219 toward Jemison at 1 p.m. for his expected time of arrival between 1:15 and 1:30 p.m.

This visit will mark the first time Eslinger has set foot on Chilton County soil since he left in September to finish his first tour of duty for the United States Army in Afghanistan.

Eslinger’s tour overseas was cut short, however, when a surprise batch of rocket-propelled grenades from Afghan troops overtook his unit’s base and left him critically wounded.

Eslinger’s road to recovery has carried him from Afghanistan, to Germany, to Maryland and finally to Tampa, Fla., where he is undergoing rehabilitation for a traumatic brain injury caused by the grenades.

President Barack Obama awarded Eslinger his Purple Heart on Oct. 10 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland.

Mary Sazera, Eslinger’s mother, has stayed by her son’s side every step of the way and has provided her network of family, friends and supporters with regular updates.

In her Dec. 17 Facebook post about Eslinger’s holiday visit, Sazera said, “The best ‘thank you’ I can give to all of you who have prayed for us and supported us along this journey will walk off the plane with me next Thursday at 12:30 p.m. in Birmingham.”

Sazera said they will be home through New Year’s and hope to be in Washington, D.C. in mid-January for a final surgery, after which Eslinger will be back in Tampa for several months to continue rehab and wait for the Army’s decision about his future in its ranks.

In an effort to help recruit new students, LeCroy Career/Tech Center’s construction class didn’t take a seat—they built one.

Building Construction instructor Jason Sosa and his students built an Adirondack chair that is a 300 percent scale version of the Adirondacks they typically build to reflect “Thinking Big with Career Tech,” the theme behind recruitment for next year.

The center is entering the giant chair in a SkillsUSA state competition.

“It’s been kind of viral I guess you could say,” said LeCroy Director Tommy Glasscock. “People are coming out and taking pictures. We intend on getting it in our national magazine.”

Sosa said anyone who donates $50 to the program will receive a one-third scale version (normal size) of the giant Adirondack until the chairs run out.

“We have eight remaining, so if you would like one, please visit the Career Tech Center at the first of the week,” Sosa said.

LeCroy Career/Tech Center is located at 2829 Fourth Ave. N. in Clanton.