Panola College
January 29, 2017 - Carthage, Texas – The Panola College men’s basketball team defeated Tyler Junior College here Saturday afternoon, 76-61. With the win, Panola raises their record to 14-7 and 6-4 in Region 14 play. “Plain and simple, this was a team win.” Stated Head Coach Grant McMillan. “It was fun to see our guys fly around tonight.” He added
The Ponies came out to a sluggish start finding themselves down 10-1. After a media timeout, a steady offensive attack found Panola take a 14 point lead 40-26. Panola took a Halftime lead of 10 with a score of 45-35. The second half saw more of the same as Tyler only came to within seven. 60-53 with just under 11 minutes remaining in the game. Tyler never came any close and Panola took the 15 point victory.
Leading the offensive charge was Eric McGill and KJ Byers who both tallied 17 Points. Byers also chased down 14 rebounds. Marlon Taylor came off the bench and recorded 10 rebounds. As a team, Panola recorded 49 rebounds and only had seven turnovers.
Panola will continue Region 14 play when they head to Kilgore College this upcoming Wednesday, February 1st. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM on the campus of Kilgore College.
Submitted by Adam Blaylock
January 26, 2017 - The Fillies have finished their first half of conference play with a big win over Paris Junior College. The Panola women's basketball team came out on top with an 80-51 road game victory. This result puts them at 6-4 in conference and 15-5 overall. This also marks one of the best conference starts in the last 10 years.
With a shaky first half, the Fillies found themselves down 2 heading into the locker room at 32-30. They had a scoring drought for almost 8 minutes until Sophomore Genesis Rivera scored a basket to get things going. The Dragons and Fillies would trade baskets until Paris' Leah Jossell hit her 4th 3 pointer to finish the half and take their lead.
In the second half of tonight's story, a new fire seemed to be sparked in the Fillies as they came out hot. The score would be tied up at twice in the third, once at 37, then again at 45 but once the Fillies passed that mark, they never looked back. The whole second half was nothing but the bottom of the net for the Fillies as they outscored Paris 50-19. "It was more of our game tonight. We finally seemed to click as a team again" stated Head Coach Eddie Kite. The girls shot 42% from the field, which is just under their season average of 44%, but looked more like a cohesive unit tonight.
Sophomore Genesis Rivera and Freshman Patience Okpe led the Fillies with 16 points apiece. Combined they also added 8 rebounds, 8 assists, and 5 steals. Sophomore Charlynn Perry and Freshman Ekaterina Karchevskaya both add 10 points in the win as well. The Fillies as a whole won the rebounding battle, bringing down 49.
The next game will be this Saturday, January 28th in A.J. Gymnasium against Jacksonville College at 2:00 p.m.
Submitted by Nalani Hernandez
January 26, 2017 - All classes are canceled due to a water pipe leak at the Panola College Shelby Regional Training Center (SRTC) in Center, TX today, Thursday, January 26, 2017
Classes will resume tomorrow, Friday, January 27th.
Submitted by Jessica Pace
January 26, 2017 Athens, Texas – The Panola College men’s basketball team fell to Trinity Valley here Wednesday Night, 99-56. The loss drops the Ponies record to 13-7 and 5-4 in region 14 play. “Effort was not an issue tonight.” Stated head coach Grant McMillan. “We failed to execute at certain times in the second half and it caught up to us.” He added.
Both teams had leads in the first half but Panola found themselves down by one at halftime, 40-39. Trinity Valley grew their lead to double digits in the second half but Panola cut the lead to less than six multiple times in the half. Panola was down 78-73 with just under 5:00 minutes remaining but could not get any closer.
Leading the way offensively was Devyn Wilson with 19 points. Keith Hayes and
KJ Byers came off the bench and both scored 14 points. Marlon Taylor and Tope Arikawe netted 10 points apiece. The Ponies shot 83 percent from the free throw line an made 11 three-pointers
Panola continues Region 14 play when they host Tyler Junior College this upcoming Saturday. Tip-off is set for 4:00 PM on the campus of Panola College.
Submitted by Adam Blaylock
January 25, 2017 - The Panola Ponies will take to the field for their opening game this weekend at Jim Reeves Memorial Field in Carthage, Tx.
The Ponies will host Baton Rouge Community College in a 3 gme series scheduled to begin Friday night with a single 9 inning game at 6 p.m. then a double header on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.
The Ponies and Coach Todd Shelton are excited about 2017 as they return 12 sophomores off of last years team that went 39-18. "We feel very confident going into the year with the returning lettermen and our recruiting class," stated Coach Shelton.
On the mound the Ponies return 6 pitchers from last year's team: All Conference Pitcher Logan Bailey, of Hallsville TX, pitched 43 innings with a 5.02 ERA and was also 3-2 on the season., Cayne Ueckert, of Jasper, TX, pitched 39 innings last year with a 4.3 ERA and was 3-2 on the year. Cole Clinton, of Carthage, TX, pitched 20 innings with a 3.15 ERA and had a record of 3-0. Colton Brasher, of Hallsville, TX, saw 28 innings with a 3-0 record and a 3.53 ERA; Taylor Tomlin, of Center, TX, added 21.1 innings with a record of 2-1; and Erik Key pitched 20.1 innings with a record of 2-1 also, and Kyle Rogers returns this year as a pitcher, last year he was behind the plate as a catcher.
At the plate the Ponies return 4 starters and 2 other returners with a lot of experience: All Conference Freshman Player of the Year, Colby Price, leftfielder from Nederland, TX, had a .373 avg last year with 11 HR, 15 doubles, and 44 RBIs; All Conference firstbaseman, Logan Bailey, of Hallsville, TX, had batting avg. of .342 with 10 HR, 16 doubles, and 50 RBI's; Other starters returning are shortstop Chandler Morris, of The Woodlands, TX,, and outfielder, Andrew Pace,of Beaumont, TX. Other returners include: infielder, Cal Smith, of Keller, TX, and infielder, Cameron Jacobs, of Shreveport, LA.
The Ponies have 3 weekends in a row with 3 game series coming up with Baton Rouge, Vernon College, then Coastal Bend College before they go on the road. You can catch the Ponies this year on GameChanger for updated live game stats and conference games will be broadcast on KGAS Radio.
Submitted by Don Clinton
January 23, 2017 - The Fillies didn't seem to be themselves as they started off with only 12 points and were only up by 1 point in the first quarter. They average 18 from the jump this season. The rest of the way would light up for Panola as they started to connect on more shots down the stretch.
With some silly turnovers and bad ball control, the Fillies found themselves down 2-0. However that would be BPCC's largest and only lead over the Fillies. After a quick quarter, the Fillies got their minds right and connected on a basket from Sophomore Denasia Watson to tie it up. From there the Fillies and Cav's would trade a few baskets with Panola always ahead by 1 or 2.
In the third, Freshman Stefany Lourenco went 3-4 from the 3 point line and helped push the Fillies up by as much as 20. She would finish the night as the Fillies leading scorer with 15. Freshman Patience Okpe followed through with 14 points and Sophomore Tameal Jones came off the bench to add her 9. Sophomore Denasia Watson added a new career high in rebounds as she came away with 11.
The Fillies will continue their season on the January 25th at Paris Junior College at 5:30 p.m.
Submitted by Nalani Hernandez, Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
January 21, 2017 - Carthage, TX – The Panola College men’s basketball team defeated Navarro College here Saturday afternoon, 76-61. The victory propels Panola’s record to 13-6 and 5-3 in Region 14 play. “There were multiple people that stepped up tonight. It was just the way the game went in the first half and our guys responded.” Head Coach Grant McMillan stated. “It was good to see our guys fly around on the defensive end.”
Panola gradually pulled away in the first half taking a 12 point lead 29-17 with just under 6:00 minutes remaining in the first half. Navarro responded with a quick run and found themselves down 35-31 headed into halftime. After trading baskets to start the second half, back-to-back three point plays by Marlon Taylor and KJ Byers saw Panola’s lead grow back to double-digits. Navarro never threatened the rest of the way.
Marlon Taylor led the way offensively for the Ponies recording a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Tope Arikawe also recorded a double-double netting 13 points and chasing down 11 rebounds. Eric McGill came off the bench and scored 12 points. As a team Panola recorded 40 rebounds and shot 85 percent from the free throw line.
The Ponies continue Region 14 play when they head to nationally ranked Trinity Valley this upcoming Wednesday, January 25th. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM on the campus of Trinity Valley Community College.
Submitted by Adam Blaylock
January 20, 2017 - Beginning with the home games scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4, basketball halftime shows will feature performances by the Panola College Twirlers.
Panola College had Twirlers in the 90’s but it “kind of fizzled out,” according to team sponsor Kimberly Ferguson. Ferguson suggested the return of the twirling group, and her energy and enthusiasm has made it happen. Ferguson began her own twirling career in the Carthage school system beginning in the sixth grade. She twirled all through high school, and, after graduation, she tried out and was selected to become an SFA Twirl-o-Jack. After completing her bachelor’s degree, she continues to practice and has started teaching twirling.
The program was reintroduced primarily due to the lack of any Panola College Spirit Teams. In addition to simply performing, the twirlers will serve as a sort of ambassador for Panola College, participating in parades and other local events, giving them the opportunity to hone their networking skills.
Tryouts were held in late fall and resulted in four candidates making the team. The team consists of Head Twirler Malory Sims, Head Assistant Amanda Zahn, Sophomore Isabella Flesher and Freshman MaKayla Baker.
Malory Sims was active as a twirler in Center High School, serving as head twirler for two years. She has six years of twirling experience, and is currently in the music program and is a Health Science Major.
Amanda Zahn was active as a twirler in Tatum High School and has a total of seven years of twirling experience. She is a General Studies Major.
Sophomore Isabella Flesher is from Henderson and learned to twirl under the tutelage of Paige Keitt at Precision Twirl. She is currently enrolled in the Drama program and has five years of twirling experience.
Freshman MaKayla Baker from Timpson has a total of eight years in experience twirling. She is currently enrolled in the Associate Degree Nursing Program.
The twirlers will attend practices and performances, with practices not to exceed 10 hours a week. Twirlers must maintain a minimum GPA requirement of 2.0. Performances to both pre-recorded music as well as band performances are planned. Their first performance is scheduled for halftime at the home basketball games on Saturday, Feb. 4.
Although the window of opportunity to join the team for this semester has closed, aspiring hopefuls can prepare for next year’s tryouts that will be held sometime in May.
By Pablo Valdez, Pony Express Staff
January 20, 2017 - Panola College’s M.P. Baker Library will host Black History Month: An American History with special speaker David Hudson on Tuesday, February 7, 2017 in the Murphy-Payne Community Room of the M.P. Baker Library. Hudson will present a lecture over the history of Black History Month in America, its purpose, and its relevance in a modern context.
Mr. Hudson is an aspiring historian, Panola College alumnus, and a University of Houston graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He is also a member of Phi Theta Kappa and Phi Alpha Theta honor societies. Propelled by an insatiable desire to critically examine historical narratives, he is actively seeking and applying to graduate programs in pursuit of academic tenure as a professor of history.
Mr. Hudson is an avid reader whose interests span, but are not limited to, the study of: African-American History, African History, African Literature, Atlantic World Studies, Comparative Religions, Post-Colonial Independence Movements, Post-Colonial Literature, South American History, and U.S. History. He enjoys travel, reading, public speaking, and sharing what he has learned with all who are interested. Mr. Hudson currently resides in East Texas.
The lecture is free and open to the public beginning at 12:15pm and lasting approximately 30 minutes. Lunch will be provided for the first 50 attendees. For additional information, please call 903-693-2052 or email cferguson@panola.edu.
January 19, 2017 - Wednesday night’s game was nothing less than exciting. The Fillies came out victorious over Kilgore College, 72-68. "I really like how this team competes each game. These young ladies are really developing a strong mentality of battling every game. They are learning how to overcome adversity every night in the strongest conference in the country," stated Head Coach Eddie Kite.
The Fillies played a tight game against the Rangers as they held on until the very end to keep their lead and finish the game out. The first half was all Panola as they headed into the locker room up 26-41. The Fillies had seemed to have the edge up on the Rangers, but Kilgore had not given up hope.
The second half was all Kilgore as they would go and outscore the Fillies 42-31, but it wasn't enough. It would be tied up at 66 with just under one minute left in the game but a quick drive and kick from Freshman Patience Okpe to Freshman Daria Eremeeva would put the Fillies back up two. The Rangers tried to get back but trips to the free throw line kept the Fillies in the lead and victorious as time expired.
Eremeeva lead the Fillies with 15 points on the night and added 5 key rebounds. Sophomore Charlynn Perry added 14 points to the win, shooting 3-7 from behind the 3 point line.
When asked how the Fillies will be doing against the rest of the conference, Coach Kite added "If they continue to work this hard every night, this team will be tough to deal with at the conference tournament". And he's right. With tonight’s win, the Fillies are now 5th in Region XIV standings. The top 8 teams go to the tournament conference.
The next game will be this Saturday at 2:00 pm in A.J. Gymnasium against BPCC.
Submitted by Nalani Hernandez
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