FROM STAFF REPORTS

January 2007 was a memorable month in Shelby County.

As the second half of basketball began, the county had its share of last second victories, including three in-county rivalries. Greg Brown broke a nearly 40-year scoring record at the University of Montevallo. Coosa Valley’s junior varsity captured the first of what was many state titles to come from county sports teams.

With this Year in Review, the Shelby County Reporter looks back month-by-month on the news stories and images that defined the year.

Join us as we recall the triumphs and tragedies, successes and failures that were 2007.

This is part one of a 12-part series that will run online through Jan. 1

Warriors win thriller, down Pelham

Thompson boy’s basketball started the New Year with a 76-75 overtime victory at Pelham Jan. 4. Laderreous Kelley’s rebound and basket off a missed 3-point basket by Siddeeq Cooper gave the Warriors the lead with 10 seconds on the clock. Cooper in turn stole the ball from the Panthers in the final seconds to secure the win, pushing Thompson to 2-0 in AHSAA Class 6A, Area 10.

Calera buzzer beater stings Vincent

The Calera Eagles boy’s basketball team stole one on the road Jan. 12 as Damarcus Dowdell drained a 3-point shot at the buzzer to defeat the Vincent Yellow Jackets 73-71.

Neck and neck, the Eagles and the Jackets came down the final stretch, knotted up at 70-70 with 36.5 second remaining.

After a missed free throw by the Yellow Jackets, the Eagles raced down the court with 5.1 seconds to nail a jumper at the top of the key as the horn sounded.

Kyle Nichols led the way for the Eagles with 17 points while Brian Watts and Koderius Lacey chipped in 14.

The man of the night, Damarcus Dowdell put up 10 points of his own.

UM’s Brown sets scoring record

Greg Brown unloaded a new single-game school scoring record 43 points for the University of Montevallo in a 98-86 victory over the State University of West Georgia on Jan. 13. His 15-of-20 performance from the floor and seven 3-point baskets pushed him past Bill Roundtree’s 1968-69 record of 41 points.

Oak Mtn. silences Jaguars’ roar

For 13 weeks, Michael Nordyke looked forward to a chance to get revenge for Spain Park’s 31-27 football win over Oak Mountain.

He got it Jan. 12 with the game-winning shot for Oak Mountain’s 45-43 overtime upset over the sixth-ranked Jaguars.

With Spain Park controlling the clock and hoping for one final attempt at breaking a 43-43 tie for the win, Nordyke executed Coach Jerry North’s call for a half court trap by closing Josh Maggett’s passing lane and picked off a pass.

After an OMHS time out, Nordyke hit a leaning jumper from the free throw line to win the game with 1.6 seconds on the clock.

Lady Warriors capture area title

Thompson’s Chasity Herron’s play in the final minute of the third quarter helped lead the Lady Warriors to an area title-clinching 67-59 victory over Pelham Jan. 19.

Holding a slim, 38-37 margin, Herron grabbed a defensive rebound and took the ball up the floor for two points. On the next Panther’s possession, Herron secured a steal, drove down and scored again to make it a five-point game, 44-37 at the end of 24 minutes of play.

The victory took ninth-ranked Thompson to 19-4 on the season and 5-0 in Class 6A, Area 10, clinching the regular season area title – only their third area title in the past 10 years.

Coosa Valley wins JV state title

Coosa Valley Academy completed their season Jan. 20 with the same confidence they carried throughout, as they capped a perfect season with an AISA state championship in girls’ junior varsity basketball.

The 11-0 Rebels, swept through their competition at the AISA Junior High Invitational, defeating Crenshaw Christian 29-10 and Autauga Academy 20-15 for the Class 1A championship.

Tyger Paris led CVA in the title game with seven points, nine rebounds and five steals on her way to being named the tournament MVP. Emma Bliss joined Paris on the All-Tournament team.

Chelsea STING ’98 wins 3v3 world championship

The Chelsea STING ’98 soccer team celebrated winning the Kick-It Cup after finishing first in the U-7 Kick-It 3v3 Soccer Shootout World Championship at Disney World on January 15. The STING finished 25-0 on the season and outscored their opponents 63-22 through eight matches on the weekend. Team members were Tyler Thomas, Tristan Sulser, Gordon Goodall, Dagen White, Kennedy Davis,

Brandon Servania, assistant coach Buddy Goodall and head coach Ken Servania