| Wednesday, April 10, 2019 |
| Lemonade Day to be held all over Golden Triangle | |
 | More than 150 children in the Starkville area had the chance to stretch their entrepreneurial wings last year in the city's first-ever Lemonade Day, an event designed to teach kids up to sixth grade the basic skills for owning and operating a business. This year, program coordinator Jeffrey Rupp, director of outreach for Mississippi State University's Center for Entrepreneurship, is hoping for closer to 300 kids to participate from all over the Golden Triangle. Lemonade Day is a national event that began in 2007 to teach children financial and entrepreneurial skills. It will be held in Starkville, Columbus and West Point on June 1. Last year, it first came to Starkville through a collaboration between the Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach, Cadence Bank and local developer Mark Castleberry. "It exceeded all expectations," Rupp said. |
| How the catfish capital of the world was hit by an Asian fish flood | |
 | Jason "Bubba" Braswell flips a switch in the cab of his modified truck and pellets start spraying into an adjacent pond. The surface boils as young catfish race to collect the feed on his farm, just south of a little airstrip where brightly colored crop-dusters buzz in and out all day. Braswell loves raising the whiskered food fish here in the Mississippi delta, but scores of other catfish farmers weren't so lucky after the catfish bubble burst in the late 2000s. "Just about everybody went bust around here," said Braswell, 53, who left the catfish industry for a decade before returning to it a couple of years ago. "It was devastating to the area. It broke families apart." But in a region that has farmed the fish since the 1960s, Belzoni is not quite ready to relinquish its claim as "the catfish capital of the world". Mississippi had more than 111,000 acres of catfish ponds in 2002, nearly 60% of the nation's total, said Jimmy Avery, a catfish farming expert and Mississippi State University professor. The trouble began in the mid-2000s. |
| Starkville Walmart clear after bomb threat | |
| The Walmart in west Starkville is clear and open again after a bomb threat closed it for more than three hours Tuesday evening. Starkville Police Department got a report about the bomb threat at 4:51 p.m. Police Chief Frank Nichols said a customer found a note in the store that said a bomb was in the building and would be detonated in a specific time. While Nichols declined to release the time the note specified, he said police cleared the building and waited until after the specified time to begin a search. Police used bomb dogs, from Mississippi State University Police Department, Mississippi Highway Patrol and Columbus Air Force Base, to search the store. "During our investigation, we searched the store and there was nothing found that resembles a bomb, or a bomb, or any bomb-making materials," Nichols said. Police gave the all-clear at about 8 p.m. and the store reopened shortly after. |
| Oktibbeha supervisors name Shalonda Sykes justice court clerk | |
| Oktibbeha County Supervisors have named Shalonda Sykes the county's next justice court clerk. Supervisors voted unanimously to hire Sykes, one of four candidates who interviewed for the position, during a special-call meeting on Monday. They set her salary at $55,000. Sykes currently serves as the city of Starkville's Municipal Court administrator. She's worked with the city since 2005, when she started part-time with the court filing paperwork. She came on full time in 2006 as a deputy court clerk and was promoted to the court clerk in 2013. Sykes began serving as court administrator in 2017, when former court administrator Tony Rook left the position after winning the Oktibbeha County circuit clerk election. |
| Jaylen Barker gets life for Joseph Tillman murder | |
| Columbus resident Jaylen Barker received a life sentence in the Mississippi Department of Corrections Tuesday after pleading guilty to first degree murder for killing Mississippi State University student Joseph Tillman in Starkville two years ago. Barker, 22, was charged with capital murder in the case. He pleaded guilty Tuesday morning in Lowndes County Circuit Court. As a capital murder defendant, Barker was eligible for the death penalty, and District Attorney Scott Colom said his office was "absolutely" prepared to pursue it if the case went to trial. Colom said the cases for Barker's co-defendants, Syboris Pippins and Brandon Sherrod, who are charged with capital murder and accessory after the fact, respectively, are still pending. While Colom said he could not comment on their cases, he hoped Barker's plea would help to resolve them. |
| Waiting game for repairs on Blackjack Road | |
 | A smoother ride on Blackjack Road in Oktibbeha County is still a few years away. Supervisor Orlando Trainer says the county still needs to get the rights of way from "some" residents along the road before widening and repairs can start. He also says there is a lot of legal work that has to be completed before getting bids from contractors. He estimates all of this could take a few years. |
| Tate Reeves hits gubernatorial campaign trail in Tupelo | |
 | Sidestepping his Republican primary opponents, gubernatorial candidate Tate Reeves blasted "national liberal extremists" and focused fire on Democrat Jim Hood during a Tupelo campaign stop. The incumbent lieutenant governor, Reeves portrayed a general election battle between himself and the incumbent attorney general as inevitable, though both men face contested primaries. "I will tell you when the liberal extremists from Washington D.C. and both coasts come to Mississippi to try and impart their way of life on us I will say no," Reeves said Tuesday morning. "Jim Hood won't, but I will." Speaking to a crowd squeezed into the dining area of local convenience store Papa V's, Reeves reeled off talking points on flashpoint cultural issues, including abortion and gun control. |
| Governor candidate Tate Reeves talks Jim Hood, Trump, 'liberals,' teacher pay at rally | |
 | Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves held a campaign kickoff rally at his family's air conditioning business on Monday, and left no doubt about who he sees as his most formidable competition: Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood. Reeves has attracted two serious Republican challengers for the August primary, state Rep. Robert Foster and former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. Waller especially may be a difficult opponent for Reeves to defeat in four months. But in a speech before roughly 200 supporters at Climate Masters, he only mentioned Hood -- again and again and again. "Jim Hood won't, but I will," he said repeatedly, talking about boosting the state's economic outlook, backing the construction of a border wall, defending gun rights, reforming education and other issues. |
| 'I'm very proud today': The man behind Tate Reeves' rise to power | |
| For a moment on Monday evening, Terry Reeves stood alone and looked around the warehouse where his oldest son, Tate Reeves, had just officially kicked off his 2019 campaign for governor. The elder Reeves, a smile affixed to his face as he absorbed the scene, stood in the metal shop of his multimillion-dollar heating and air conditioning company he built, where his son had just taken the latest step in an otherwise unlikely political trajectory. Steel ducts and stacks of cardboard boxes containing Goodman and Amana air conditioners served as the backdrop of the makeshift stage where Reeves delivered his speech. The company was founded in 1975, its metal shop added in 2003. The shop wasn't the only thing Terry Reeves built that year, when he laid the foundation for his son's swift ascent to political power in his first campaign for statewide office. "I'm very proud today," Terry Reeves told Mississippi Today. |
| Divided Congress can't agree on fix for 'dangerous' Russian election meddling | |
 | Despite clear and compelling evidence of a Russian plot to disrupt the 2016 presidential election, partisanship has all but killed any chance that Congress will pass legislation to shore up election security before voters cast their ballots next year. Republicans and Democrats in Congress largely agree with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's finding that Russia tried to meddle in U.S. democracy --- and that foreign interference remains a serious threat. "Russia's ongoing efforts to interfere with our democracy are dangerous and disturbing," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, after Mueller finalized his investigation last month. But McConnell has made it clear that he's unlikely to allow the Senate to vote on any election-related legislation for the foreseeable future. The House is moving instead take up a more ambitious piece of legislation authored by Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat who chairs the House Committee on Homeland Security and served as co-Chair of a Task Force on Election Security last year. |
| UAW making new push at VW Chattanooga | |
| Five years after Tennessee political leaders resisted UAW efforts to unionize Volkswagen Chattanooga, plant workers have called for another union election. The United Auto Workers union lost its 2014 bid to represent autoworkers in the East Tennessee plant. This time, autoworkers sense a union-friendly White House, a new governor in Nashville and a rising desire on the plant floor for a voice in VW Chattanooga. "This was a decision made by the Chattanooga workers," said Brian Rothenberg, spokesman for the Detroit-based union. "The members have taken it into their own hands." A group of Chattanooga VW employees filed a petition Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board calling for the plant's production and maintenance workers to vote on April 29 and April 30. About 1,700 employees are eligible to vote. The new vote comes as the German automaker looks ahead at the electric vehicle market in the United States and future vehicles for the under-used Chattanooga plant. |
| Off-bottom aquaculture diversifies oyster farming | |
 | It's a new way to harvest oysters, and it involves farming on the water. Off-bottom aquaculture is a developmental way to harvest oysters sponsored by the Department of Marine Resources and funded through the Restore Act. It brings oysters from the Mississippi Sound straight to the dinner table. "We are training individuals on how to raise oysters with the off-bottom method," said Jason Rider, who works as a DMR oyster extension agent. "What that means is we're taking oysters and raising them in baskets and cages at the water's surface." Than Nguyen is one of the first oyster farmers to try the off-bottom method. He brings out baskets with baby oysters to put in the water, then pulls out the baskets with the grown oysters. "These oysters are better quality, it's a more complete oyster, it's much cleaner, and I just want to do something new," Nguyen said. It's new, but not a replacement for old-school oystering. |
| Waffle House coming to Oxford? Mayor leading the charge | |
| It's unclear whether mayor Robyn Tannehill likes her hash browns covered, smothered or chunked, but it is clear that she wants a Waffle House in Oxford. On Monday, the hashtag #WaffleHouseinOxfordMS was trending worldwide due to the public outpouring for the diner-style chain to add a location within Lafayette County. The movement appears to have begun when Ole Miss law professor David W. Case (@dwcase) made notion he would attempt to get a Waffle House to Oxford when mayor Tannehill recently followed him on Twitter. Since then, with Tannehill and Case leading the charge, the community has gone all in. That includes some help from the Oxford Police Department, Visit Oxford, Ole Miss coaches and more. |
| New graduate school dean at UM plans to increase departmental relations | |
 | The University of Mississippi recently hired Annette Kluck as the new dean of the Graduate School, which currently has over 2,100 students enrolled across master's and doctoral programs, and she has plans to foster relationships between departments on campus. "The graduate school is a place where we can combine resources to figure out how (can) we deepen and expand the ways we support students," she said. "As a psychologist, we think a lot about relationships, and relationships matter. And that's certainly an area of my leadership style -- I think the relationships matter almost more than anything." Kluck believes that increasing diversity in graduate enrollment depends on the university supporting and increasing currently offered programs. Kluck also said that, by continuing to offer new degrees and research opportunities across various fields, the university will be able to attract a more diverse group of students from across the country. |
| Explorer who discovered Titanic wreckage to give presentation at USM | |
 | The man best known for discovering the wreckage of the RMS Titanic will speak at University of Southern Mississippi next week. Famed underwater archaeologist and oceanographer Robert Ballard will be the special guest presented for the spring semester's final University Forum. Ballard discovered and explored the sunken Titanic in 1985. The famous and ill-fated passenger liner colliding with an iceberg on April 14, 1912, on its maiden voyage across the North Atlantic. More than 1,500 passengers lost their lives. "Bob Ballard is a modern-day adventurer, an undersea Indiana Jones, whose explorations remind us that we should not ignore the part of history that lies at the bottom of the ocean," said Dr. Andrew Haley, director of USM's University Forum. Ballard will present "Finding the Titanic and Other Tales of the Sea" on Tuesday, April 16, at 6:30 p.m. in the Mannoni Performing Arts Center on USM's Hattiesburg campus. |
| Black spring break: Why visitors come back to Biloxi despite feeling unwelcome | |
 | It's that time of year again -- when young adults from across the country come to Biloxi to have a good time and let loose. Black spring break, also known as Biloxi Black Beach Weekend, also known as Mississippi Gulf Coast Spring Break, is back this weekend. Even though Boosie Badazz called for a boycott of the event, returning spring breakers and newcomers say the rapper won't stop them from having fun. And neither will signs that the city isn't welcoming them with open arms. Last year, visitors complained of increased police presence, stores in Edgewater Mall closing for the weekend, and restaurants charging automatic gratuity. Despite sometimes feeling unwelcome, spring breakers keep coming back year after year. So the question is, why? The Sun Herald talked to new and repeat visitors who plan on attending this year's events. |
| UGA student plans to integrate sign language and audiology | |
 | Elizabeth Medlock's grandfather left a lasting impact on her life. And her career path. In 2016, Medlock, a then-finance major, learned about her grandfather's visit to the audiologist at a local clinic. "I didn't even know what audiology was three years ago," she said. She learned about the hearing tests and how they fitted him for his hearing aid. The science intrigued her. Coincidentally, Medlock enrolled in an American Sign Language class in the College of Education at the University of Georgia that next semester. She knew people who used the language and loved the idea of being able to communicate with the deaf community. Little did she know that her dream career was at the intersection of these two life events. Medlock credits her professors and mentors at UGA for helping her land a coveted spot in the audiology program at the University of Louisville, one of only 74 audiology programs in the country. |
| U. of Tennessee unveils Smokey statues on Knoxville campus | |
 | Visitors to the University of Tennessee-Knoxville will be seeing a lot more of their favorite dog, Smokey, on campus. The university will unveil 10 statues of the bluetick hound, one for each dog that has been the mascot. Statutes will be placed around campus, everywhere from the UT Gardens to the Student Union Pedestrian Bridge. A map of all the statue locations is available on UT's website. The idea for the statues came from Student Government Association members "who wanted a statue designed and erected on campus to honor Smokey," according to a release from UT. "We're proud of our campus traditions, and this seemed like a unique and exciting way to celebrate one of our longest-running traditions," said Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Jeff Maples. |
| SC House passes rideshare bill after U. of South Carolina student's death, despite Uber's concerns | |
 | The S.C. House on Tuesday voted to require Uber and Lyft drivers to display illuminated signs that make them easier to identify, less than a week after a University of South Carolina student was killed after she mistook the wrong car for her Uber. The House passed the bill 99-1 over the objections of Uber, a national rideshare company that says the illuminated signs -- which can be purchased cheaply online -- could actually heighten the risk of imposter drivers. The bill also has drawn skepticism from national rideshare safety experts. "It doesn't make a difference if you're not paying attention," said Lauren Fix, a New York-based automotive expert who says riders can only guarantee their safety by verifying the driver's name, license plate number and car model matches their pickup. "I could buy one of those (illuminated signs) online at Amazon for $5. A bad person knows how to beat the system. That's the problem." The bill, H. 4380, soon will head to the state Senate, where Uber is sure to lobby to change or defeat it. Read more here: https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/article228743994.html#storylink=cpy |
| Former CIA operative shares experiences in agency, career-changing leak with Texas A&M audience | |
 | Former Central Intelligence Agency operative Valerie Plame shared with a packed crowd at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center on Monday the moment her "entire life changed" in 2003, when she found out she had been identified by name in a Washington Post column, compromising her identity. Plame said it "felt like a punch in the gut" when her then-husband, former ambassador Joseph Wilson, dropped a newspaper on their bed on July 14, 2003, and said, "Well, he did it." Columnist Robert Novak had revealed her identity in his column, effectively ending her covert career. "I looked at the column, and I immediately knew there are moments in your life where you know everything going forward is different than what has ever gone before." In her remarks given on the Texas A&M University campus, Plame discussed her recruitment by the CIA, her work in the agency and the leak that made her a household name. As a covert operations officer, Plame said she recruited spies on behalf of the CIA and worked to prevent terrorists and rogue nation-states from acquiring nuclear weapons capabilities. |
| AAUP study finds small gains in faculty salaries, offset by inflation | |
 | Salaries for full-time faculty members are 2 percent higher this academic year than last, according to new data from the American Association of University Professors Faculty Compensation Survey. Adjusted for 1.9 percent inflation, however, faculty salaries "barely budged," AAUP says in a preliminary analysis of those data. That's been the case for the last three years. Inside Higher Ed's database, at the above link, is searchable by institutions and years. These findings are similar to those in a recent report from CUPA-HR saying that median faculty salaries rose about 1.7 percent this year over last, not adjusted for inflation. Beyond the overall trends highlighted in AAUP's analysis, readers each year are curious to know which institutions pay their professors the most. As always, location matters. Professors on both coasts are paid consistently more than their colleagues elsewhere. |
| In Many States, Higher Education Has Been Left Behind Since the Recession | |
 | In 11 states, higher-education appropriations have not recovered at all from the worst years of the Great Recession, according to an annual report released on Tuesday by the association of State Higher Education Executive Officers. Nationally, said the 2018 "State Higher Education Finance" report, state appropriations per student remained essentially flat from the 2017 to 2018 fiscal years. "Following five straight years of growth in state support, there was nearly no national change in state and local per-student support for higher education after adjusting for inflation," the study found. Tuition revenue, which had risen in all but two of the past 25 years, also remained flat compared with the previous fiscal year, the report said. |
| After an Education Dept. Investigation, a Med School Will Stop Considering Race in Admissions | |
| The Texas Tech University Health Science Center has signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education that prohibits the School of Medicine from considering race in making admissions decisions. Texas Tech is the most recent institution to stop the practice at a time of heightened scrutiny from the courts and conservative activists. The agreement, which was first reported on Tuesday by The Wall Street Journal, was reached in February. If the medical school ever plans to go back to considering race in admissions, it must provide the Education Department with an explanation of why it intends to do so. The deal brings a longstanding investigation to a close. The Trump administration has weighed in on other cases involving colleges' affirmative-action policies. |
| Lori Loughlin, 15 others indicted on new charges in college admissions scandal | |
 | Actress Lori Loughlin and 15 other parents implicated in the college admissions scandal have been indicted on charges of money laundering and fraud conspiracy, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. The indictments came one day after 13 parents and one coach said they would plead guilty in the far-reaching scheme. The indictments unsealed Tuesday do not preclude deals for the holdouts. But unlike the parents who agreed to plead guilty a day earlier, members of the group indicted Tuesday -- which also includes Loughlin's husband, designer J. Mossimo Giannulli, financier Douglas Hodge and Hot Pockets heiress Michelle Janavs -- now face two charges: fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. Actress Felicity Huffman said Monday that she would plead guilty to one charge of fraud conspiracy and apologized to her daughter, saying she had "betrayed" her "in a misguided and profoundly wrong way." |
| Contract Cheating: Colleges Crack Down On Ghostwritten Essays | |
 | As the recent college admissions scandal is shedding light on how parents are cheating and bribing their children's way into college, schools are also focusing on how some students may be cheating their way through college. Concern is growing about a burgeoning online market for ghostwritten essays that students can turn in as their own work. And schools are trying new tools to catch it. It's not hard to understand the temptation for students. The pressure is enormous, the stakes are high and, for some, writing at a college level is a huge leap. "It breaks my heart that this is where we're at," sighs Ashley Finley, senior adviser to the president for the Association of American Colleges and Universities. She says campuses are abuzz about how to curb the rise in what they call contract cheating. Several essay mills declined or didn't respond to requests to be interviewed by NPR. |
| Immigration: 'Country's full' but U.S. farm, construction labor shortages persist | |
| Syndicated columnist Sid Salter writes: During a briefing on immigration and border security in Calexico, Calif., last week, President Donald Trump held fast to his steady contention that the U.S. immigration system was overburdened as he continued to push for a Southern border wall and tighter security to combat illegal border crossings. "There is indeed an emergency on our southern border," Trump said at the briefing. "It's a colossal surge and it's overwhelming our immigration system, and we can't let that happen. ... We can't take you anymore. We can't take you. Our country is full." What isn't full at this point is a ready supply of agriculture and construction industry labor. ... Trump's immigration rhetoric aside, the agriculture and construction industry labor shortages are all too real and the only likely source of ready workers to do these jobs are immigrant laborers. These jobs are jobs that native-born Americans have for whatever reason refused to accept. |
SPORTS
| Diamond Dogs hosting South Alabama tonight | |
| It's Game of Thrones Night at Dudy Noble Field as No. 6 Mississippi State looks for another midweek conquest. The Diamond Dogs (27-6) are 10-0 in midweek action and welcome South Alabama for a 6:30 start. Tonight will mark the 75th meeting between the two teams with MSU owning a 47-37 lead in the overall series and a 27-13 advantage in Starkville. The Bulldogs and Jaguars last played in the 2017 Hattiesburg Regional, each winning once against the other. Junior left-handed pitcher Jack Eagan (1-0, 4.61 ERA) will make his first start for State while USA counters with senior righty Patrick McBride (0-1, 5.40). |
| Who has impressed Mississippi State defensive coordinator Bob Shoop during spring football | |
| Three of Mississippi State's defensive starters from last year's record-setting team could be chosen in the first round of the NFL Draft later this month. Defensive coordinator Bob Shoop is faced with a reloading process when it comes to figuring out who can replace the likes of Montez Sweat, Jeffery Simmons and Johnathan Abram. Shoop knows 2019's depth chart will be "different," but he's fine with that. "It is what is it is," Shoop said. "That's the business that we're in." Starting with the defensive line, where seniors Chauncey Rivers, Lee Autry and Fletcher Adams along with juniors Marquiss Spencer and Kobe Jones should be the most important players, there's a red-shirt freshman who Shoop said has been noticeably making an impact. It's Jalen Crummedy of Oak Grove High School. |
| Mississippi State's Cameron Dantzler aims to be among nation's top corners | |
| Cameron Dantzler had an impressive redshirt freshman season and was even better as a sophomore, starting all 13 games for Mississippi State. Now a junior, Dantzler has dedicated himself to becoming one of the best cornerbacks in college football. "I feel like one of the best corners in the country," Dantzler said. "I just have to prove that this season and show everybody that I am the best cornerback in the country." While Dantzler is confident is his own abilities, he has the backing of a position coach who knows a thing or two about being an elite cornerback. Terrell Buckley is a former Thorpe Award winner, first-round draft pick and college football hall of famer. He spent 13 years in the NFL and won a Super Bowl with the New England Patriots. |
| Mississippi State spring football: Competition revs up kicking and punting games | |
| Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead is generally subdued on the practice field. Physically, he's not hard to spot. Moorhead's patented white MSU visor towers above even some of his players as the former quarterback stands roughly 6-foot-5. But during last Saturday's scrimmage he was rather fiery. Sophomore Scott Goodman lined up for a mock extra point following a 15-yard Alec Murphy touchdown run. Goodman swung his leg through but pushed the ball left, missing the mark. "You're a kickoff specialist and can't make an extra point?" Moorhead yelled. "Kick that again!" Goodman obliged, narrowly making the ensuing kick just inside the right upright. "Did he make it?" Moorhead posited to his players and coaches. "Yeah," echoed a voice somewhere along the field. "Good job!" Moorehead responded. As spring practices near their close, kicking and punting competitions are revving up. |
| Will QB Dak Prescott become NFL's highest-paid player or sign a team-friendly deal? | |
| It was after midnight during a party to celebrate Cowboys owner Jerry Jones' induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame the night before Super Bowl Super Bowl LI in Houston. The atmosphere was understandably jovial and festive and everyone associated with the Cowboys past and present who were in Houston came through to offer congrats to Jones. Quarterback Dak Prescott, who had just been named the NFL's rookie of the year after fashioning the finest first season of any signal-caller in NFL history, was there glad-handing and hobnobbing. A giddy and bubbly team executive leaned over and said of Prescott, "we are going to make him the highest-paid player in NFL." As a fourth-round pick in 2016, Prescott was underpaid by starting quarterback standards let alone that of a franchise quarterback. Heading into his fourth season, Prescott has not necessarily repeated the exploits of his rookie season, but he is the undisputed face and leader of the franchise. And the Cowboys are ready and prepared to give Prescott the contract extension that he deserves. |
| Bulldogs await tonight's WNBA Draft | |
| For the second straight year, Mississippi State is expected to have someone selected in the WNBA Draft. Victoria Vivians was selected eighth overall by the Indiana Fever last year and Teaira McCowan is expected to also be a top 10 pick in tonight's WNBA Draft. Like Vivians, McCowan will also attend the draft in New York which begins at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2. McCowan is projected to be the top overall draft choice of the Los Vegas Aces and teammate Anriel Howard is expected to be picked at No. 11 by the Atlanta Dream in the Associated Press' mock draft. |
| Mississippi State's Teaira McCowan named finalist for Honda Sport Award | |
 | Mississippi State senior center Teaira McCowan is one of four finalists for the Honda Sport Award in Women's Basketball, the Collegiate Women Sports Awards has announced. McCowan is also among 12 players who will be attending Wednesday's WNBA Draft in New York. McCowan led Mississippi State in scoring and rebounding, averaging 18.4 points and 13.5 rebounds per game this season while shooting 66.2 percent from the field. Her percentage ranked fourth in the nation this year and is an MSU single-season record. She posted 31 double-doubles, breaking her own MSU single-season record, which was third nationally. McCowan finished the year with 662 points which was 23rd in the nation and tied for ninth in school history. |
| Former Bulldog Ally McDonald ties for 6th in LPGA | |
| The dive into the water will have to wait another year for Ally McDonald. But a sixth-place finish Sunday in the ANA Inspiration women's golf tournament at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage was almost just as special. McDonald, a former golfer at Mississippi State University, posted a career-best finish in the first women's major tournament of the year. The winner, Ko Jin-young of South Korea, obliged with the traditional dive into a pond near the 18th green after the tournament ended. That might be a scene McDonald will see one day. "One of my major goals this year was to compete better in our majors," said McDonald, a Mississippi native from Fulton who was named to the All-SEC Team three times while at MSU. McDonald was atop the field after shooting a 4-under-par 68 on Thursday. |
| Old Waverly preparing for U.S. Women's Amateur tournament | |
| Old Waverly Golf Club is gearing up to host one of the largest events in women's golf this year. The West Point club will host the 2019 U.S. Women's Amateur tournament from Aug. 5-11. Old Waverly Chief Operating Officer Wilkes Bryan told the Starkville Rotary Club on Monday the Women's Amateur is the largest and most prestigious women's golf tournament in the world. Chris Jester, director of golf for Old Waverly, said the U.S. Women's Amateur tournament was founded in 1895 and was one of the first three major amateur championships the U.S. Golf Association created. Jester said the tournament is important for a number of reasons. It helps to grow the game of golf, and women's golf in particular, in Mississippi. In doing so, he said, it also provides exposure for the Golden Triangle. "We're going to have some 20 hours of televised coverage on FoxSports," he said. "Any attention we can bring on our area is a good thing. That's not to mention the economic impact. We're having 156 competitors and some 100 USGA officials, but you're having families and friends who are all staying in our hotels, eating at our restaurants, getting gas -- it's a huge economic impact on our area and that means a lot to us." |
| Jim Boone resigns at Delta State to become coach at Arkansas-Fort Smith | |
| Delta State University will be in search for a new coach to lead its men's basketball program. Jim Boone, who has been the Statesmen head coach for the past seven years, resigned to take the head men's basketball coaching position at University of Arkansas-Fort Smith Tuesday. The Lions of Arkansas-Fort Smith compete in the Heartland Conference. Boone, who has been a head basketball coach on the collegiate level for 33 years, was grateful for his time at DSU. In a statement released by DSU, DSU athletic director Mike Kinnison said, "I want to thank coach Boone for his service to Delta State and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors." Kinnison said he and his staff have begun the search for a new coach. "We have a rich tradition of excellence in men's basketball here at Delta State, and we will move quickly to identify the right candidate to lead our program into the future," Kinnison added. |
| Record-setting night for Alabama baseball | |
 | A season-high 19 hits, including nine home runs, powered Alabama baseball to a 21-2 victory over Samford on Tuesday night at Joe Lee Griffin Stadium. The Crimson Tide's midweek win improves UA's overall record to 23-11. "It was just one of those nights, and luckily it was a good night for us," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. Alabama will now travel to Starkville for a weekend series against fifth-ranked Mississippi State. The Tide and Bulldogs are slated for a 6:30 p.m. CT first pitch on Friday followed by a pair of 3 p.m. starts on both Saturday and Sunday. Fans can watch the first two games on SEC Network+ with the series finale airing nationally on SEC Network. |
| Phillip Fulmer says new Lady Vols coach Kellie Harper 'proven to be a winner' | |
| Tennessee plucked from its program's history to find its next women's basketball coach. The Lady Vols announced Missouri State coach Kellie Harper as its new coach on Tuesday. She received a five-year deal worth $750,000 annually. Harper, 41, is a native of Sparta, Tennessee. She played for Pat Summitt and was the point guard for the Lady Vols' three-peat of national championships from 1996-98. "I'm excited to have Kellie as our new women's basketball coach," athletic director Phillip Fulmer said in a news release. "She is a Lady Vol through and through. Her love of the game, her care and love for her players, and her loyalty to UT all came through during the interview process." Harper has gone through ups and downs throughout her 15-year head coaching career. Her stock has perhaps never been higher than it is now after she led Missouri State to its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2001 and fourth in program history. |
| LSU baseball falls to Southern for 1st time since 2005; Mainieri: 'It's hard to figure out' | |
 | As Southern pitcher Eli Finney walked off the field for the final time Tuesday night, his teammates spilled out of their dugout. The fans cheered. One person held up a phone, recording the moment. Finney shut down No. 8 LSU at Lee-Hines Field, leading the Jaguars to a 7-2 win, their first over the Tigers since 2005. Southern, which lost by 13 runs when these teams last played, beat LSU for the third time in the 56-game history between the teams. Finney took a bid for a no-hitter into the seventh inning. "From the second inning on, I would get random adrenaline chills in the dugout, behind the mound, between pitches," Finney said. "It was really exciting." Southern improved to 18-15, while LSU (23-11) dropped its third midweek game this season. When it all ended, Southern celebrated while LSU knocked the dirt off its cleats. "I've had big moments," Finney said, "but this one ranks above any other moment in my life." |
| 2019 Masters Par-3 Contest set for Wednesday | |
| Augusta National's big course gives up the spotlight today for its shorter and younger sibling. The Par-3 Course measures 1,060 yards and plays to a par of 27, and it will play host to the annual Par-3 Contest this afternoon. Alister MacKenzie proposed an "approach and putt" course, no more than 500 yards long, when he was building the course with Bobby Jones in the early 1930s. But the club couldn't afford it at the time, and the idea was scrapped. Nearly 30 years later, Augusta National co-founder Clifford Roberts resurrected the idea and enlisted George Cobb as the principal architect. Cobb, a Savannah, Ga., native credited with designing nearly 100 golf courses, is best known for his courses along the South Carolina coast. The course was built in 1958, and the Par-3 Contest began in 1960. Since the event's beginning in 1960, no player has won the Par-3 Contest and then gone on to win the green jacket in the same year. |
| The Most Unwelcome Fan in Patrick Reed's Gallery: His Father | |
 | As Patrick Reed surveyed his second shot, he seemed to have a dozen worries on his mind. Which way was the wind blowing? Where on the green should he land his ball? Would the fans in his peripheral vision stop moving? In a sport where the ball is still and the mind is active, and where distractions from unruly fans, bad bounces or sudden gusts of wind abound, focus can be difficult to maintain. But during the first round of the 2018 Tour Championship in Atlanta, it became nearly impossible. Reed took one last look at his target and what he saw nearly made his head go haywire. Why was his estranged father standing behind the green? No one on the PGA Tour these days has his powers of concentration tested as much as Reed, whose sometimes brash personality generates intense reaction among his peers and the public alike. Yet easily the worst distraction that Reed faces any week, but especially this one, when he will defend the Masters title he won last year, is the possibility that at any moment he will look up and come face-to-face with the most painful chapter of his life. |
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