By Staff
Star Tracking …
July 29, 2001
It's been a very good summer on the state's golf courses for Lou Hart. Teamed with Pam Posey, Hart added another championship Saturday as they won the annual Northwood Country Club Ladies Invitational scramble with a one-hole playoff victory over the mother-daughter team of Margaret and Amy Carver. Both teams shot six under par 66 in regulation. It didn't take long into sudden death to settle the issue as Hart and Posey got down in two for par from the back fringe on the first playoff hole while the Carvers were unable to get up and down from the left side of the green near the bunker on No. 1.
Meridian's two state championship Dixie Youth teams took to the baseball diamond Saturday in an attempt to win a World Series. The Meridian Pre-Majors, which claimed the state title in Laurel, knocked off Alabama 6-5 in the first round of the World Series being played in Florence, S.C. In Charleston, S.C., the Meridian Majors were to have played Saturday, but rain forced the game to today.
July 29, 1997
The Meridian Dizzy Dean 9-10-year-old All-Stars, coached by Derrick Roberts and Robert Harris, keep rolling along in World Series play at Athens, Tenn. The All-Stars won twice Monday to run their record to 5-1 in the tournament and advance to the semifinals. In game one, Meridian blasted Rome, Ga., 13-4. Marcus Boyd got the win on the mound with help from Dennis Hearn (6 strikeouts) and Chris Harris. In game two, Meridian downed Park West, Ala., 10-4. Boyd hit a grand slam to lead the offensive attack. Kedrick Martin got the pitching win.
The Milwaukee Brewers turned their first triple play since May 15, 1979 in the fourth inning of the second game of a twi-night doubleheader against Toronto on Monday. Joel Adamson had given up singles to Ed Sprague and Benito Santiago, the first two batters he faced. Alex Gonzalez hit Adamson's first pitch down the third baseman Jeff Cirillo. Cirillo stepped on third and fired to second baseman Mark Loretta for the second out. Loretta fired a strike to first, getting Gonzalez by a step. It was the fourth triple play the Blue Jays have hit into in their 21-year history.
July 29, 1992
BARCELONA, Spain Forget that it's the Olympics. Put aside National pride. This U.S.-Cuba baseball series is just a good old-fashioned, in-your-face rivalry. They throw at each other. Step on each other's feet. Celebrate homers with raised arms. Talk a little trash from the dugout. It continues when the tournament's only two unbeaten teams meet for their round-robing game. The United States beat Italy 10-0 Tuesday and Cuba hit three homers in an 8-2 rout of Japan, its third lopsided win.
Ryan Satcher
Sports Faces …
Dexter McCleon
With the opening of the St. Louis Rams training camp, Meridian native Dexter McCleon faces a battle to retain his starting cornerback position with the defending NFC Champions.
Last February in the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots, McCleon was beaten on a touchdown pass near the end of the first half. The score gave the Patriots a 14-3 lead. New England went on to post a 20-17 upset over the heavily favored Rams.
McCleon spent the second half of the game as the Rams' nickel back.
McCleon has started 51 games for the Rams since joining the club out of Clemson. But for the six-year pro to stay in the starter's role, he must hold off Dre Bly.
According to Athlon's NFL Preview, McCleon will be pushed hard by Bly. This season is also big for McCleon because the final year of his contract escalates to over $3 million in 2003.
Jeff Byrd