| Remember When? —OC hoops trio, Tornado player take talents to next level | | Posted: Thursday, April 12, 2012 7:00 pm
| Remember when takes a look back at the local stories from the files of The Messenger that took place 1, 5, 10, 20 and 30 years ago.
30 Years Ago
Apr. 14 — Obion Central scored six runs in the first and went on to beat Union City 11-3 in prep baseball. Bobby Isbell homered and drove in three runs for the Rebels, who got a strong pitching performance from John Robert McCullough. Ronald Ward went deep for UC, finishing with two hits and all three Tornado RBIs.
Apr. 16 — The Union City boys’ tennis program won its 20th straight match over a span of two seasons with a 10-0 romp over Milan. The tandem of Brent Burton and Bobby Davies was impressive in both singles and doubles play, while Scott Critchlow won at the No. 3 seed in singles play and teamed with Kevin Schumacher in doubles for another victory. UC improved to 9-0 on the season. The Lady Tornadoes posted a shutout, too, winning 9-0 to better their mark to 8-1-1.
20 Years Ago
Apr. 13 — Three Obion Central basketball players signed college scholarships after completing solid prep careers with the Rebel program. Kristy Petty, who averaged 12 ppg for Bobby Hauser’s OC girls, inked with Jackson State Community College, while Chuck Parks (13 ppg) and Shane DePriest (11 ppg) were headed to College of the Ozarks after leading the Rebs to a 27-6 finish in their senior campaign. A day later, Eddie Williams, a member of Union City’s Class 2A state championship team, signed on with Dyersburg State Community College.
Apr. 17 — South Fulton remained perfect in six District 14A games and improved to 9-1 overall with a 9-6 baseball victory over Trenton. Matt Gore hit his third home run of the spring and drove in four runs while also picking up the pitching win. Rex Ruddle came on in the seventh to notch the save. Keith Kitchen and Joe Hagan had two hits apiece for the victorious Red Devils.
10 Years Ago
Apr. 16 — The Union City Middle School soccer team improved to 4-1-2 after a pair of lopsided triumphs over Huntingdon. Among those scoring goals for the Tornadoes in the two runaway triumphs were John Graham, Ben Wilkes, Will Reese, Brooks Taylor, Tommy Gossett, Katie Keathley, Lucas Flood, Phillip Vernon and Brandon Burke.
Apr. 18 — Tennessee Titans defensive end Kevin Carter headlined a visit to Union City by the team’s annual caravan and signed autographs for several hundreds of fans at the UCHS multi-purpose building. Titans radio play-by-play man Mike Keith and game-day host Larry Stone were also part of the entourage to visit with both youths and adults. The Titans — just two years removed from their a Super Bowl appearance — were coming off a disappointing 7-9 season.
5 Years Ago
Apr. 13 — The all-time leading scorer in the five-on-five era of Union City High School girls’ basketball, DeBrisha Robinson, signed scholarship papers with Columbia State Community College. Robinson averaged 16.5 ppg during her four-year UC career and helped the Lady Twisters to the program’s first district championship in more than 50 years.
Apr. 18 — Craig Lowrance and Corey Anne Youree both put on dazzling pitching displays for Union City. Lowrance retired the first 13 batters he faced and finished with 10 strikeouts and a one-hitter in a 10-0 shutout of South Fulton. Lowrance improved to 7-1 and helped himself by going 3-for-3 at the plate with three RBIs and three runs scored. Youree sat down the first 20 Gleason hitters before her perfect game was spoiled with two outs in the seventh by the Lady Bulldogs’ only hit. Youree ended up with five strikeouts in a 3-0 victory.
1 Year Ago
Apr. 14 — UT Martin’s Jason James was given a four-year contract extension to remain as the Skyhawks men’s basketball coach. The 33-year-old James, who’d earlier served seven seasons as an assistant, was the second-youngest Division I coach in the country and piloted a UTM program that tripled (12) its win total from his first season in charge despite starting three freshmen. The Skyhawks upset Tennessee State in the first round of the OVC Tournament.
Apr. 15 — The Union City Middle School boys’ track team set five new school records while running away with the team championship in a tri-meet with Dyersburg and Northview. Kane Taylor (shot put and discus), Donte Simpson (400 meter run), Carlos Easley (800 meters) and Cesar Landeros (mile run) were among those to set new school marks for the Tornadoes. Kealie Reaves won both the 100 and 200 meter races for the UC girls. Published in The Messenger 4.12.12 | | | | |
