ON THE MARK
D. MARK MITCHELL
Opelika school students returned from Christmas break on Wednesday after having over two weeks off for the holiday.
The wrestling team participated in the “Oxford Invitational” at Oxford High School last week. Although the team finished second, Head Coach Jim Davis was proud of his team’s effort.
The following is a summary of who scored points for the Bulldog grapplers:
– Brady Campbell went 5-0 and was the 138-pound champion
– Landon Willis was 5-0 and the 160-pound Champion
– Jack Pritchard was 5-0 and the 195-pound Champion
– Brayden Wilson was 4-1 and the 126-pound runner-up
– Micah Smith went 4-1, finishing second in the 132-pound class
– John Ambrocio placed third in the 113-pound class
– And Kyle Epperson placed third in the 220-pound weight class.
The following Bulldogs were medalist and scored points for Opelika:
– Ari Brogdon placed fifth at heavyweight
– Harrison Renfroe placed fifth at 145-pound class
– And Tommie Johnson placed fifth at 182-pound class.
OHS wrestlers will participate in the Tallassee Duals at Tallassee High School on Jan. 7 and 8.
BASKETBALL
The OHS girls’ basketball team played in the Columbus High Tournament (Georgia) last week. Coach Blake Smalley’s team lost to three good teams — Pleasent Grove (61-55), Baker (43-46) and Central Tuscaloosa (34-31).
Haley Sanders led the OHS on offense against Pleasent Grove, scoring a game high 25 points. Ashanti Thomas added 10 points.
Erica Mathews scored 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds against Baker, while Sanders added 12 points.
Sanders scored 13 points against Central Tuscaloosa.
Opelika travelled to Auburn on Monday, losing 56-34 in the AHS gym. OHS and AHS were tied 20-20 at halftime, but the Lady Tigers outscored OHS 26-14 in the second half to earn the win. Mathews scored a game high 13 points for the Lady Dogs.
Opelika’s boys’ basketball team lost to rival Auburn, 68-59, in the AHS gym on Monday. The Tigers jumped out to a 17-3 lead early in the first quarter. The Bulldogs rallied in the second half thanks to Stephen Knight’s 16 points, Knox Chase’s 15 points and Landon Lee’s 11 points.
The two teams host Eufaula in area play on Friday in the Mainstreet gym on the OHS campus. Varsity girls start at 6 p.m., boys to follow.
INDOOR TRACK
The OHS indoor track team travels to Birmingham this weekend for its first indoor meet of the season. The Bulldogs participate in the “ICE BREAKER” Invitational at the Crossplex. Unfortunately, the Birmingham Crossplex is the only venue in Alabama to host indoor track meets. OHS is trying to repeat as state champs after winning the 2021 Indoor State Championship.
D. Mark Mitchell is the sports director at iHeartMedia, host of “On the Mark” Fox Sports the Game 910-1310, co-chair of the Auburn-Opelika Sports Council, chairman of the Super 7 and Dixie Boys Baseball state director.