By: Scott Nickerson
Elmore Autauga News
The Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a multitude of different winter sports teams from Billingsley, Marbury, and Prattville High School on Tuesday morning and afternoon.
“Winter Sports Media Day is a great opportunity to highlight the hard work and dedication of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff,” said Jerome Barrington, Autauga County Schools’ Special Programs Director. “This event is about more than just the games, it’s about celebrating the sense of community and pride that comes with representing our schools.”
Prattville Athletic Director Blake Boren, Marbury Athletic Director Brent Sowell, and Billingsley Athletic Director Lanny Jones were all in attendance at the event watching their coaches and student athletes speak about the upcoming season.
“As a proud sponsor, we believe it’s important to celebrate the dedication and accomplishments of student-athletes,” commented Bob Gipson, the Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Membership Director. “Events like this provide a platform for our community’s young people to be recognized for their athletic abilities, but more importantly, the leadership, discipline, and teamwork they demonstrate every day.”
The morning session started with Billingsley boys’ basketball, girls’ basketball, and indoor track. They were followed by Marbury boys’ and girls’ basketball and Marbury bowling. The afternoon session featured the Prattville boys’ and girls’ basketball team, the Prattville wrestling team, and the Prattville bowling team. Below are a few of the quotes of different coaches previewing their upcoming seasons:
Billingsley Boys Basketball Coach: “We’re excited to be back and excited to get the season going. We’re looking forward to the challenge of this year.”
Billingsley Indoor Track: “It requires a lot of student leadership. In practice they’re divided up and we’re running from one place to another. The sprinters are waiting to hear what their training is for the day while the distance runners are running. I’m screaming times at the distance runners while the sprinters are running their sprints, and the throwers are off somewhere hopefully not knocking out a window of the school building. But at a meet, the athletes really take charge. They know how to highlight the heat sheet. The older kids tell the younger kids to make sure they’re in the right heat and lane. It takes a lot of student leadership to make it all work.”
Marbury Boys Basketball Coach Turner: “It’s going to be a fun product. We have three away games to start the season. November 20 is our first home game and we get the opportunity to play the team that eliminated us last season.
Marbury Girls Basketball Coach: “These girls have been working hard all summer. There are some great athletes. We’re young, but I think we’ll be okay. Yesterday was our first real practice but we only had half a team because the other half was with flag football and they’re doing great this year and are in the playoffs.”
Marbury Bowling Coach Brett Johnson: “We’re excited about this year’s team. Our wonderful principal, was the bowling coach, and I kind of took over the reigns when he became the principal. Not only was he the bowling coach but he was the 2022 bowling coach of the year. So I have big shoes to fill.”
Prattville Girls Basketball Coach Erica DuBois: “This team is very close knit. It’s a beautiful thing. You don’t see that often. And it’s genuine. I love the fact that they have each other’s back. If they don’t do it for me they’re going to do it for each other. Anyone that’s been around our program, they know what our summer time looks like. They know the long hours and type of work they put in.”
Prattville Boys Basketball Coach Letwan Hall: “We have eight seniors. We have a lot of guys that have played a lot of basketball. But then we have this youth movement as well. I’m excited just for practice. We got wars. Football just got released and yesterday was an absolute war. Our goal from Day 1 is to go get that blue map. We’re not going to leave without it. On March 7 we will be celebrating.
Prattville Wrestling Coach Thomas: “Last year finishing 20th, that’s not where we want to be. I want to put Prattville wrestling back on the map where it belongs, so we’re look at Top 10 or Top 5 finish. We’re wrestling 9 out of the 10 teams ranked in the top 10 pre-season. And we’re looking at qualifying for the State Duals for the first time this year, and we’re looking to try and bring a blue map home.
