Stories from Friday, December 5, 2014

Forrest did not take care of the basketball in Tuesday night's District 9-A home opener versus Eagleville, turning the ball over a myriad of times to the Eagles, who seemed to take advantage of every Rockets' miscue on their way to a 49-35 win. "The most frustrating part of the night was when we were able to set up our half-court defense, they didn't score on us very often," said Forrest head coach Wes Hobbs. "The largest majority of their points came from easy baskets or transition threes after turnovers. Holding a team to 49 points when we had 20-plus turnovers and shot very poorly in the first half is an accomplishment to build on, but we will never be satisfied with the overall performance tonight."

It never sat well with Forrest head coach Jeremy Jean, losing to Eagleville in Chapel Hill last year and his Lady Rockets made things right on Tuesday when they came away with a 60-51 win over the Lady Eagles in their District 9A home opener. "Eagleville is always a tough game for us, with them being just down the road it adds something special to that game," said Jean. "And with them beating us on our home floor last year, I think made us play a little tight. I told the girls the same thing I say before every game, it's the biggest game of the year. The biggest game of the year is the one you are about to play."

Coming off an impressive 53-52 victory over defending Class AA state champ Jackson South Side at the Rumble on the Ridge in Forrest City, Arkansas two days earlier, the Marshall County Tigers appeared to be brimming with confidence on Monday night when they thrashed the Lincoln County Falcons 74-42 on the road. The Tigers (3-4) pounced on their prey early and jumped out to a 37-17 lead in the first half before outscoring Lincoln County 37-25 over the final two quarters to claim their third straight win over the Falcons (0-5).

The Forrest wrestling squad continued their hot start to the season Monday night in Chapel Hill as the Rockets swept Greenbrier and Battle Ground Academy (BGA) to improve to 6-1 on the year. Forrest opened with a 51-27 triumph over Greenbrier, avenging their lone loss of the season and the match started in style as Austin "Georgia" Geeting went all three rounds before taking a tough 4-0 decision over Austin Cook in the 145-pound weight class.

Lincoln County (2-3) recorded their ninth straight victory over the Marshall County Tigerettes (1-6) on Monday night when they defeated MCHS 53-26 in Fayetteville. The Lady Falcons disposed of Marshall County in relatively easy fashion and built a 27-12 lead in the first half before opening up a 48-19 advantage at the end of the third quarter en route to claiming their second win of the season.

After losing a hard fought 40-39 game against a strong New Prospect team the previous evening, the Cornersville Middle School Lady Bulldogs (7-6) suffered their second straight setback on Tuesday night when they dropped a 33-27 decision to Ethridge Elementary School at home. Ethridge had narrowly defeated Cornersville 22-21 in the previous encounter on Nov. 4, but the Lady Bulldogs appeared they would avenge that loss after rallying from a nine-point second half deficit to take a 24-23 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

The Cornersville Middle School Bulldogs (6-6) recorded their most impressive victory of the season on Monday night by going on the road and defeating the New Prospect Tigers 58-46. Although the Lady Bulldogs (7-5) put up a tough fight in the opening game of the evening, they lost to New Prospect for the second time this season when they dropped a heart breaking 40-39 decision to the Lady Tigers.

Coming off a big win over New Prospect the previous night, the Cornersville Middle School Bulldogs (6-7) came crashing back down to earth on Tuesday evening when they lost 39-20 to Ethridge Elementary School at home. Having defeated Cornersville handily in their first meeting on Nov. 4, Ethridge built a 20-11 lead in the first half of Tuesday's contest before outscoring the Bulldogs 17-9 over the final two quarters to complete the sweep of CMS.

Howard Eugene "Gene" Wright, 86, of Fayetteville, passed away Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014, at Huntsville Hospital. He was born on June 7, 1928, in College Grove, to the late Andrew Dillehunt Wright and Emma Sue Chrisman Wright. He was a truck driver, a veteran of the United States Army, and a member of the Park City Baptist Church...

Frances Barcheers, 93, of Lewisburg, died Monday, Dec. 1, 2014, in Nashville. Mrs. Barcheers was born in Marshall County and was a daughter of the late Marion Claude and Annie Mary Joyce Smithson. She, along with her husband Edd, were the owners and operators of the former Edd's Café in Lewisburg. Later, Mrs. Frances worked for Cosmolab, Inc. of Lewisburg from which she retired after 20 years of service...

Annie Ruth Farler, 80, of Lewisburg, died Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014, in NHC Oakwood Healthcare. Ms. Farler was a native of Wilson County, and daughter of the late Reps and Annie Ruth Trusty Farler. She was a retired accountant and member of the Church of Christ...

Dr. Ponder Laray Rector, 55, local dentist and resident of Columbia, died unexpectedly Monday, Dec. 1, 2014, in Maury County. The Nashville native was the son of Peggy Smith Rector of Columbia and the late Ponder C. Rector. He was a graduate of Columbia Central High School, Freed Hardeman University, Memphis State University, and received his dental degree from West Virginia University Dental School. ...

By Ivory Riner Staff Writer Black Friday has always been mine and my mother's favorite time of year. We have attended the sales for as long as I can remember. Since then we have stood in line for discounted laptops, cameras, jeans, and video games. The first year I went, we were in line to buy my brother a portable PlayStation. ...

By Karen Hall Editor "We need a person (on the committee) from the hotel-motel industry," said Chairman Seth Warf when the Economic and Community Development/Tourism committee met in late November. "We're one member shy." The ECD/Tourism budget is funded from the hotel/motel tax, so it is only right that the industry should have a member on the committee. The place was previously filled by Millie Miller Williams, owner of the Celebration Inn...

By Karen Hall Editor Volunteer firefighters were kept busy over the holiday, responding to two serious fires. The call to the first one came about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 26. It was an empty house on Ostella Road, opposite the Five Points Fire Hall...

By Karen Hall Editor One of Sheriff Billy Lamb's jobs is to run the jail, and when he has problems, he brings them to the attention of the law enforcement committee. "I appreciate anything you all do to help us," said Lamb when the committee met this week. "My duty is to bring it to your attention."...