Freshman Avery Stuart gains Athlete of the Week honors with his play against Saint James and MA over the past week. Stuart produced a double-double against MA with a 13 point, 12 rebound performance and led the team in rebounding over the two games. Stuart averaged 9.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game during the week. For the season, the freshman is second on the team in scoring and rebounding.
Lady Eagles Lose Physical Game to Samson
ACA (5-8) lost a closely fought contest to visiting Samson. The Lady Tigers led for the majority of the game, but the Eagles kept it close and the outcome remained in doubt throughout the clash. ACA was able to cut the lead to one point with 2:47 left in the game, but did not score again as Samson scored the last five points to secure the 40-34 victory. Michaelyn Manning scored 12 points to lead the offense with seven steals and four assists. Rose Costanza had seven points and Mary Hall added five points and seven rebounds.
The Lady Eagles play again next Friday as they visit Horseshoe Bend.
ACA Beaten by MA
ACA looked to avenge a pair of losses to MA from last week, but were unable to defeat the visiting Eagles. The Academy defeated both Alabama Christian teams Thursday night.
In the second game of the night, MA defeated ACA 72-64 in overtime. In a familiar pattern, Alabama Christian (3-7) started strong as they scored 24 first quarter points and took an eight point lead into the second quarter. MA closed the gap in the second quarter and trailed by just one point at halftime as ACA was held scoreless over the final 4:37 of the half. MA took the lead in the third quarter and ended the period with a six point advantage. With 1:43 remaining in the game, MA looked to have the game in hand, but Alabama Christian staged a furious comeback as K J Kendrick scored three baskets in the final 47.4 seconds of the game to force overtime. In overtime, the game turned into a free throw shooting contest with MA hitting 9 of its 10 free throws and ACA only hitting 3 of 8 from the foul line. The discrepancy at the free throw line helped MA secure the victory. Jalen Clark led the offense with 17 points and added seven rebounds and five assists. Avery Stuart scored 13 points with nine rebounds and three steals while Kendrick added 12 points with seven rebounds.
In the opener, the Lady Eagles (5-7) were overwhelmed by MA falling behind early and never able to recover. MA led by 17 at the half and went on to a 53-18 defeat of ACA. Michaelyn Manning led the team in scoring with eight points and Mary Hall added five more.
The Lady Eagles take on Sansom at home on Friday night.
Eagles Swept at Saint James
Alabama Christian took on one of its oldest rivals Tuesday night as they visited Saint James. The home standing Trojans won both games over the Eagles.
In the opener, the Lady Eagles shot a better percentage than Saint James from the field, but the Lady Trojans ability to connect from long distance and control the offensive boards was the difference in the game. ACA (5-6) trailed by one point, 20-21, at halftime while Mary Reagan Hilyer and Michaelyn Manning combined for 14 of the Lady Eagle’s 20 first half points. Saint James pulled away in the fourth quarter and beat ACA by ten points, 34-44. Manning led the Eagles in scoring with 15 points and added five rebounds on the night while Hilyer finished with nine points and five steals. Rose Costanza led the team in rebounds with seven.
In the boys contest, Alabama Christian (3-6) led after one quarter, 13-11. In the second quarter, ACA dealt with foul trouble and the Trojans took advantage outscoring the Eagles 21-6 in the quarter for a 32-19 lead at the half. The remainder of the game was relatively even, but the damage was done. Saint James won by a final score of 65-45. Braden Alford led the offense with 12 points while Jalen Clark scored nine points with six rebounds and four steals. Caden Perry and Avery Stuart each contributed six points. Hayes Hunt led the Eagles with seven rebounds.
Both squads host MA on Thursday night for their next game.
Swimmer Jalen McDade Named ACA Athlete of the Week
ACA’s one man swim team, Jalen McDade has been named Athlete of the Week. McDade competed in the 1A-5A Central Sectionals on Tuesday and qualified for the State meet in the 50 yard freestyle and 100 yard butterfly.
The junior swimmer finished third at State in the 1A-5A 50 yard freestyle with a personal best time of 22.72 after finishing fifth in the preliminary heat. McDade also competed in the 100 yard butterfly and finished tenth in the preliminary heat.
ACA Splits Two Games with Highland Home
Alabama Christian traveled to Highland Home Friday and came away with a win and a loss on the night. The Lady Eagles won a close game for the second night in a row with a 35-32 victory to even their record to 5-5. In the second game, ACA lost to to the Flying Squadron 60-67 and fell to 3-5 on the season.
In the opener, both teams struggled to get the offense clicking as ACA and Highland Home committed turnovers on seven of the first eight possessions of the game. The Lady Squadron found their rhythm first and held a 13-4 advantage after the first quarter. ACA began the second quarter with an 8-0 run to cut the Squadron lead to one. Michaelyn Manning sparked the offense as she scored six of the Eagle’s eight points in the quarter. Highland Home scored the last four points of the quarter and took a 17-12 lead at halftime. Alabama Christian turned up the defensive pressure in the second half and Highland Home responded by turning the ball over 12 times over the final two quarters. Sarah Johnson’s field goal with a minute remaining in the third quarter gave ACA a 21-20 lead. The basket was the last points of a 9-0 run that gave the Eagles the lead for good on the night. ACA built a nine point lead in the final quarter, but struggled closing out Highland Home at the end of the game. The Squadron pulled to within one point with 90 seconds remaining, but Alabama Christian held their opponent off and came home with the win. Sarah Johnson scored 10 points with three steals and Michaelyn Manning had 10 points also with eight steals and four assists. Rose Costanza added six points, six rebounds and three steals.
In the second varsity game of the evening, ACA had to contend with Highland Home’s freshman center and were unable to overcome his size and power in the paint. The Eagles kept the game close and even led 53-52 early in the fourth quarter. Highland Home outscored the Eagles 15-7 over the final five minutes of the game to secure the win. Jalen Clark had an outstanding performance as he scored a game high 28 points with eight rebounds and three steals. Caden Perry had 16 points with three rebounds. both Clark and Perry knocked down a trio of 3 pointers on the night. Avery Stuart added nine points and seven rebounds.
ACA faces off against Capital City Conference foe Saint James in their next contest Tuesday night.
Eagles Rebound with Wins Over Horseshoe Bend
Coming off losses on Tuesday, ACA’s boys and girls teams both defeated Horseshoe Bend Thursday night. The Lady Eagles improved to 4-5 with the victory and the boys moved to 3-4 with the win.
The Lady Eagles defeated Horseshoe Bend in a tightly contested game, 34-32. The Lady Generals led after one quarter and the lead changed hands multiple times on the night. Mary Reagan Hilyer hit the game winner for the Eagles with less than a minute to play. The defense had two stops in the final 30 seconds to seal the victory. Michaelyn Manning carried the offense in the first half as she scored 12 of the team’s 16 points. Manning finished the game with a game high 16 points while Hilyer added 10 points.
In the boys game, ACA beat a methodical Horseshoe Bend team, 59-35. The General’s offense struggled in the first quarter with three illegal screens called in the first eight minutes. The Eagles were too athletic for the Generals and outscored their opponent in every quarter. Caden Perry led all scorers with 20 points, including two 3 pointers, four rebounds and two blocks. Jalen Clark scored 13 points with five rebounds and three assists while Avery Stuart contributed 11 points and eight rebounds.
Alabama Christian travels to Highland Home Friday night for their next contest.
ACA Girls and Boys Teams Lose at MA
Alabama Christian’s girls and boys team both extended long losing streaks against MA on Tuesday night. The Lady Eagles lost their 12th straight to MA, a streak which dates back to January 2009. The boys last beat MA in November 2010 and have lost 11 consecutive games to the Eagles.
In the girls game, ACA lost to MA 18-56. Despite the lopsided score, the two teams shot close to the same percentage from the floor. MA attempted 23 more shots from the field and had 15 more free throw attempts to tip the scales in their favor. MA built a big lead in the first half and led 44-10 at halftime. Heather Ford led the team in scoring with seven points and was the only player to hit more than one shot from the field for the Lady Eagles. Mary Hall added three points with seven rebounds and two blocks.
In the boys game, ACA led after the first quarter for the fifth time in six games this season with a 15-7 advantage. However, MA outscored Alabama Christian 46-26 over the second and third quarters to seize control of the game. MA would go on to win the contest, 78-63. Jalen Clark recorded his second double-double of the year with a team leading 16 points and 10 rebounds with seven assists. Avery Stuart had 12 points and seven rebounds while Braden Alford added 12 points.
Both teams host Horseshoe Bend Thursday night in their next contest.
Jalen Clark Named ACA Athlete of the Week
Jalen Clark helped ACA split their two games in the Tallassee Thanksgiving Tournament to earn Athlete of the Week honors. Clark was named to the all tournament team as he led the Eagles in scoring, rebounds, steals and assists in the two game tournament. In the first game against Elmore County, Clark scored 12 points with six rebounds and a season best eight steals. in game two, Clark recorded a double double with ten points and ten rebounds along with five assists.
After missing the first two games due to injury, the junior guard has averaged 10 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals over the past three games, which leads the squad in all four categories.
Lady Eagles Finish Second in Tallassee Thanksgiving Tournament
Alabama Christian met Catholic in the championship game of the Tallassee Tournament again this year, but were unable to repeat as champions as the Lady Knights defeated ACA, 48-32. ACA scored 16 points in a high scoring first quarter, but managed only 16 more over the final three quarters. Despite the lack of offense, the contest was close until the end of the third quarter when Catholic scored the final five points of the period to take a 38-27 lead to the fourth. The Lady Knights extended the lead in the final quarter to win the contest by 16 points. Michaelyn Manning led the offense with eight points while Rose Costanza, Heather Ford and Sarah Johnson each scored six points.
In the first game of the tournament ACA defeated Elmore County 43-31 to advance to the finals. The Eagles started cold, connecting on only one field goal in the first quarter, but only trailed by one point heading into the second. ACA shot close to 40% from the field for the rest of the game and outscored the Panthers in every quarter. Mary Hall led all scorers with 15 points and tallied 12 rebounds. Michaelyn Manning added 11 points with three rebounds and three assists. Hall and Manning were both named to the all tournament team.
The boys team also split their two games in Tallassee, losing to Elmore County, 47-49, on Monday afternoon and defeating BTW convincingly, 67-29, on Tuesday. The Eagles controlled the contest against Elmore County for three quarters, but allowed an 11-0 run from the Panthers to tie the game with 4:00 left in the game. Elmore County scored the winning basket with 2.5 seconds on the clock for the two point victory. Braden Alford led the Eagles in scoring with 14 points with Jalen Clark and Caden Perry each scoring 12 points.
Game two of the tournament, on Tuesday, the Eagles were matched up for the second time this year against BTW. The Yellow Jackets defeated ACA in their first meeting and the Eagles exacted a measure of revenge with a 67-29 throttling of their opponent. Alabama Christian led 35-22 at the half and proceeded to shut BTW down in the second half as they outscored the Jackets 34-7 over the final two quarters. Avery Stuart paced the offense with 18 points. Jalen Clark scored ten points and Hayes Hunt added nine points in the contest. Clark was named to the all tournament team for the boys.
Both the boys and girls will have the rest of the week off and will return next Tuesday to face MA.
Mary Hall Named ACA Athlete of the Week
Mary Hall’s season ended in injury last year, but she has bounced back this season as one of the Lady Eagle’s top performers. The lone senior starter helped ACA split their two games this week and earned her Atlete of the Week honors. Hall scored seven points with ten rebounds and seven steals in a win against BTW and had 16 points and 15 rebounds, both season highs for the team, in a losing effort to J F Shields. Hall leads the Lady Eagles in rebounds (8.0) and blocks (0.8) so far this season and is second in scoring (7.4).
ACA Boys and Girls Both Defeated by J F Shields
Alabama Christian traveled to Beatrice, AL to take on J F Shields Friday night. Both teams had their chances to come away with a victory, but were unable to overcome the Panthers.
The boys game was close throughout the first half with neither team leading by more than five points. Jalen Clark scored the last basket before the half and the Eagles took a 30-28 lead at the intermission. The second half started with J F Shields outscoring ACA 10-3 in a little over a minute which caused Coach Scott Galloway to call a timeout to try to stop the momentum, The Panthers continued to play well and outscored ACA 20-9 in the quarter to take control of the game and went on to win, 61-48. The Eagles were led in scoring by Avery Stuart who came off the bench to score ten points with eight rebounds. Jalen Clark added nine points with seven assists and four rebounds while Caden Perry scored nine points with four rebounds.
The Lady Eagles lost to J F Shields 45-46 in a closely contested game. The lead changed hands several times during the game and ACA had seven chances over the final 1:44 of the game to tie or take the lead, but were unable to make the crucial score. Senior Mary Hall led the team with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Katie Chappell had a breakout performance with 12 points, 11 rebounds and three steals and Michaelyn Manning added ten points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals.
Both teams will play in the Thanksgiving tournament in Tallassee on Monday and Tuesday next week.
Eagles Split with BTW in Home Opener
Alabama Christian opened play on their home court Tuesday night as they hosted Booker T. Washington. BTW was designated the home team due to their lack of a gym to play their games in.
The Lady Eagles (2-3) beat BTW 39-20 in a slow paced game that was plagued with 33 total fouls called. ACA doubled up the Yellow Jackets in the first half and took a 20-10 lead into the locker room. ACA blanked BTW in the third quarter to stretch the lead to 31-10. Michaelyn Manning led all scorers with 14 points while Mary Reagan Hilyer added eight points. Mary Hall contributed seven points.
In the boys game, ACA started quickly and took a 15-8 lead at the end of the first quarter. BTW hit their stride in the second quarter and the Eagles defense had no answer for the Yellow Jackets. BTW outscored ACA 47-31 over the second and third quarters. The Eagles made a run late in the game and cut the score to 63-66, but in the end BTW made the plays they needed to secure the victory. Alabama Christian (1-1) lost by a score of 63-68. KJ Kendrick led the Eagles with 15 points and Caden Perry scored 12 points. A trio of Eagles, Braden Alford, Mason Kimbro and Avery Stuart each added eight points.
Both ACA teams travel to J F Shields Friday night for their next game.
ACA Opens Season at St James Tip Off Classic
The new look Lady Eagles opened the season with three games at the St. James Tip Off Classic, winning one of the three contests. ACA returns only one starter from last year’s squad and only three current players saw significant time last year. The Eagles defeated Prattville and lost to Pell City and Loachapoaka over the two day event.
ACA opened the season Friday afternoon with a 29-56 loss to Pell City. The Lady Eagles looked nervous to start the game and fell behind early as the Lady Panthers scored the first 18 points of the game. For the remainder of the game, Pell City only outscored ACA 38-29, but the Eagles had already dug too deep a hole for themselves. Rose Costanza scored the first bucket of the season midway through the first quarter to start the scoring for the Lady Eagles. Michaelyn Manning led the offense with ten points and four rebounds. Sarah Johnson added seven points with three rebounds while Rose Costanza had six points and four rebounds.
On Saturday morning, game two of the weekend against Prattville had an unusual start as ACA was assessed a technical foul for a scorebook violation. The Lady Lions hit one of the two free throws to start play with a 1-0 iead. With two minutes left to go in the first quarter, ACA turned up the heat on defense by pressing Prattville and scored the final nine points of the period. During the run, Katie Chappell scored a basket and made her free throw to complete a three point play that gave ACA an 11-10 lead. The Eagles would not trail for the rest of the contest and won by a sore of 53-42. Michaelyn Manning and Sarah Johnson led the offense as Manning scored 14 points and Johnson had 13 points with seven rebounds, six assists and six steals. Katie Chappell added nine points and six rebounds.
In the final game of the weekend, ACA opened the game with cold shooting, as they missed their first 14 shots of the game. Despite the struggle to score the ball, the Eagles only trailed Loachapoaka 2-7 at the end of the first quarter. Both offenses scuffled on the afternoon as each team shot less than 25% from the field and combined for just 44 points, as the Indians prevailed 30-14. Michaelyn Manning had four points to lead the Eagle offense while Rose Costanza and Mary Hall each had three points.
Eagles Open Season with Road Win Over Thorsby
Alabama Christian visited Thorsby Friday night and defeated the Rebels 57-50 in the first game of the season. Coach Scott Galloway was pleased with the way his Eagles neutralized the size of Thorsby with their work in the transition game. Avery Stuart scored nine consecutive points in the second quarter to help stretch the lead to 11 which gave ACA a little breathing room. The Eagles took a 31-20 into the locker room at the half. Alabama Christian played even in the second half with Thorsby to win by seven points. In his first varsity game, Stuart scored 19 points to lead the team in scoring along with Braden Alford. Caden Perry scored nine points and had a team high six rebounds.
ACA’s (1-0) next game is Tuesday at home against Booker T Washington.
Kyndall Foley Named ACA Athlete of the Week for Second Time
Kyndall Foley earned her second Athlete of the Week in her senior season with a Top 10 finish at the 4A State Championship in Oakville on Saturday. Foley finished ninth with a career best time of 20:35.73. The performance was the third fastest in school history, only 9.8 seconds off the school record. Foley was one of only two runners, boys or girls, that ran in every race this season. Her ninth place finish was her sixth Top 10 finish of her career, second most in program history.
Kyndall Foley Caps Career with Top 10 Finish at State
Kyndall Foley ended her senior season with a 9th place finish at the 4A State Championship in Oakville. Foley recorded a personal best time of 20:35.73, the third fastest time in school history, on the day. The senior owns four of the ten fastest times in program history and her 9th place finish was the sixth Top 10 finish of her career. Marlo Duggan placed 78th with a season best time of 23:24.41.
In the boys division, Connor Strowbridge turned in a time of 19:28.18 to finish 111th out of 169 racers. Lane Kilpatrick finished 119th with a time of 19:31.35. Both runners produced season best times in the last race of the year.
ACA Defeated in Playoff Thriller
The Alabama Christian football team gave Hillcrest-Evergreen all they could handle Friday night, but in the end the Jaguars were able to hold off the Eagles, 28-21. The Eagles took the lead with 3:11 remaining in the game, but were unable to stop Hillcrest from responding with the game winning score with less than a minute to play. Several times during the game, ACA could have given up against the more talented Jaguar squad, but instead fought to the very end.
The big play Jaguars struck quickly to open the game and scored in just four plays to take a 7-0 lead. Despite no functioning play clock, the Eagles slowed the pace of the game to keep the explosive Hillcrest offense on the sidelines. ACA’s first drive lasted 11 plays and ate up 5:39 of the first quarter clock. Although the drive ended with a missed field goal, the tone for the game was established.
Midway through the second quarter the Eagles scored on a seven play 51 yard drive to tie the game. The drive was a mixture of runs and passes and ended on an eight yard touchdown pass from Jalen Clark to Preston Hicks. Clark would finish the night completing 12 passes on 18 attempts for 113 yards and one touchdown. Hillcrest responded in only three plays with a touchdown to take a 14-7 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, Alabama Christian continued to shorten the game, but were unable to put points on the board. The Eagles held the ball for almost nine minutes in the quarter. However, the Jaguar offense struck quickly late in the quarter using three plays to take a 20-7 lead heading to the fourth quarter.
ACA cut the lead to six points with a touchdown midway through the final quarter. The key play of the drive was a 37 yard run up the middle by Jalen Clark on a 4th and 3 on the 40 yard line. Three plays later, Clark punched it in to make the score 14-20. The offense needed the ball back and the defense gave it to them as Hillcrest punted the ball after three plays. With 6:17 remaining in the game, ACA’s go ahead drive began. On 3rd and 13, Preston Hicks caught a pass from a deflection and raced 53 yards to the Jaguar 15 yard line. The catch was Hicks’ eighth of the game covering 79 yards and the second quarter touchdown. With momentum on the Eagle’s side, Jalen Clark scored his second touchdown of the night to give ACA the lead, 21-20. Clark rushed for 160 yards on 32 carries, the fourth most carries in school history, and two touchdowns in the game. Hillcrest scored the winning touchdown with 46.7 seconds left in the game to advance to the second round next week.
Miller McCarthy led the defense with six tackles while Otasowie Dion added five tackles.Bryan Farrington, Khalil Jackson and Jack Thomas each recorded four tackles and a sack.
Jack Thomas Named ACA Athlete of the Week
Despite only playing one half of football Friday night, Jack Thomas recorded ten total tackles and had one and a half sacks to lead the Eagle defense against Weaver. With Miller McCarthy sitting out against the Wildcats, Thomas shouldered more of the load on defense and responded with a stellar performance. The junior linebacker leads the team in tackles on the season with 89.
ACA Finishes Regular Season with Blowout of Weaver
Alabama Christian dominated the Weaver Wildcats Friday night in a 52-0 rout. Coach Sanford was able to play his reserves in the second half and rest key starters as the Eagles prepare for the playoffs. ACA finished the regular season winning five of their last six games.
The night started with the defense giving up two first downs with penalties, but ACA would regroup and not allow another first down for the remainder of the half. The defense pressured the Wildcat quarterback seemingly every time he dropped back to pass and recorded three sacks in the first half. the Eagles added an interception in the second half to help keep Weaver scoreless. The defense was led by Jack Thomas with nine tackles and one and a half sacks. Sanders Manning had six tackles while Donovan Emerson, McLeod Missildine and Preston Perry each contributed five tackles.
The offense scored on all five possessions of the first half. Corey Landers paced the offense with 120 yards in the half on eight carries with two touchdowns. Landers delivered the play of the night with a 42 yard touchdown run as he broke tackles and refused to go down late in the second quarter. The freshman back finished the night with 133 yards on nine carries with two touchdowns.
The reserves continued the strong play in the second half as they scored touchdowns on all three possessions. Noah Silmon paced the offense over the final two quarters with eight rushes for 82 yards and a touchdown. Silmon led the Eagles in rushing on the night with 170 yards gained on 13 attempts and two touchdowns. Hayes Hunt passed to Grant Sutton for a seven yard touchdown in the third quarter, which was a first for each player. Hunt also caught his first career touchdown pass in the first half. The biggest cheer of the night might have been on the game’s final score as senior Preston Perry ran for a 10 yard touchdown.
ACA (6-4) will take on Hillcrest-Evergreen in the first round of the playoffs next Friday night.