Schools S

On The Mark

BY D. MARK MITCHELL

OHS Basketball Season Ends

OPELIKA —

The Opelika High School girls and boys basketball seasons ended with first round losses in their area tournaments.

The Lady Bulldogs’ (10-15) season ended after a 66-53 loss to Auburn in the first round of the area tournament in Phenix City. OHS was led on the offensive end by Naomi Whack's 22 points and Cherdi Daniels’ nine points. Head coach Blake Smalley played several freshmen and sophomores this season, which should help next year's team improve.

Opelika's varsity boys

Stayin’ Alive: Glenwood Seizes Second Chance Turns It Into State Championship

basketball team (9-12) ended its season after losing to Central (72-55) in the opening round of the area tournament last Thursday at the AHS gymnasium.

The Auburn girls and Central boys won their area tournament championships. The Central girls and Auburn boys advanced to the playoffs by finishing second in the area tournament.

OPELIKA WRESTLING

PLACES THIRD IN SOUTH

SUPER SECTIONAL

The OHS wrestling team finished third (165 points) last weekend at

BY NOAH GRIFFITH FOR THE OBSERVER

GLENWOOD —

The Glenwood boys basketball team asked for a shot at redemption, and that’s all it needed to win its first AISA 3A State Championship since 2017.

The Gators lost both of their regular-season matches with rival LeeScott Academy, and they split a pair of in-season

Opelika Boys Soccer in Full Swing

BY DANIEL LOCKE FOR THE OBSERVER

OPELIKA —

February is upon us, which means spring sports are starting to get underway in Lee County. The Opelika High School boys soccer team is among the teams that have already gotten their seasons underway. After earning a 10-8 record last year, the Bulldogs, under the leadership of head coach Derek Hovell, are looking to build on that with a solid showing in 2023.

Moving to 7A this year presents challenges, but this Bulldog team welcomes them. The schedule will be tougher than in past years, but the Bulldogs are excited to take on a fresh set of opponents.

Hovell said there are three new area games on the schedule that excite him most: Smiths Station, Central Phenix City and Auburn.

“We have to play those teams twice now because we moved up to 7A Area Four,” he explained.

“Those are obviously the games that you need to win to move on to the matches with Macon East Academy before losing a rematch with them in the Region Tournament,

See GLENWOOD, page B7 playoffs.”

The Bulldogs’ roster provides a good amount of experience because of the number of seniors that make up the team. According to Hovell, this has the potential to be a difference-maker for the Bulldogs.

“We have several really good seniors this year,” Hovell said. “Luke Roberts — he’s a guy that’s playing a little bit of midfield and defense at the same time.

Nathan Faison — he’s been in literally every position

See SOCCER, page B2