Herman is fastest to 1,000 for Grace

Five other boys’ players have scored more than 1,000 points in their Grace Academy basketball careers, but none reached that milestone faster than Golden Eagles sophomore Brandon Herman.

In his second season of varsity basketball, Herman surpassed the mark with a 21-point performance against Whitwell in the first round of the Region 3-A tournament.

“I think it’s a big accomplishment for a sophomore to be able to score that many points,” Grace coach Jon Mattheiss said. “And he has a very good shooting percentage, too. He’s very aggressive to the basket, and Brandon can score inside and out. He’s a very well-rounded guard, and it was huge for us to have somebody who could do both. A lot of kids can do one but not the other.”

Herman scored more than 400 points for the Golden Eagles as a freshman and was their leading scorer this season. He averaged 20.5 points per game, including a career-high 33 in the District 5-A championship game.

“I told him at the end of the season that if he improves as much from his sophomore to junior year as he did from his freshman to sophomore year, there’s no telling what he could end up doing,” Mattheiss said.

Mount Juliet mission

Mount Juliet softball coach Kacey Pedigo and her returning players from last year are about to embark on a mission eastward to try to exorcise some softball demons.

Mount Juliet has finished second to Soddy-Daisy in the state tournament at Murfreesboro each of the last two seasons. Coach Clifford Kirk’s Lady Trojans are one of three teams from the Chattanooga area it plans to play over a two-day period next week.

The Lady Golden Bears, who return everyone except pitcher Kenzie Roark and catcher Karli Rush, have a game scheduled at 2007 Division II champion GPS on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. They have games scheduled against Soddy-Daisy and Ooltewah at 4 and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

“It’s our spring break, and I still haven’t gotten over the Soddy-Daisy hump yet,” Pedigo said. “I want to go face Clifford early and see what he’s got. Of course, Ooltewah has a strong team, and GPS has a strong team. That’s the only way you’re going to get better.”

Marion marathon

Marion County will be hosting a fundraising softball-a-thon at its new facility in Jasper. Because of cold weather concerns, the event has been changed from its original date Saturday to Sunday.

The Lady Warriors and county rival South Pittsburg are going to play a 100-inning game beginning at 2:30 p.m. EST. Money will be raised through sponsors’ pledges, much like a walk-a-thon but measured by innings instead of miles.

First-year Marion coach Thomas Long said the game will feature some shortcuts, such as free substitution and 15 outs recorded before changing sides. He expects play will last about four hours. There’s also one other big time-saver.

“The batter gets one pitch from a pitching machine,” Long said. “If it’s not a base hit it’s an out, whether you foul it, miss it or whatever. You’ve got to swing because it’s going to be over the plate. Of course we’re going to crank it up pretty good to begin with.”

Penland Tip-Off co-MVP

Gordon Lee senior Kori Penland is one of several area basketball players who were honored by the Northwest Georgia Tip-Off Club at its Team of the Year banquet.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga signee shared high school girls’ MVP honors with Model’s Kiara Smith. Other girls’ team-of-the-year members included Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe’s Natalie Collins, Dade County’s Lauren Grisham, Dalton’s Liz Coffey, LaFayette’s Keri O’Neal, Northwest Whitfield’s Bethany McArthur and Trion’s Brittany White.

Boys’ team members included Dade County’s Tommy Grisham, Dalton’s Lemond Searles, Gordon Lee’s Grayson Chambers, LaFayette’s Diaunte McSears, Northwest Whitfield’s Blake Gash and Trion’s Justin Gentry.