MUS Sports News

Basketball Begins With Three Wins

Building on their 2004 state-tournament berth, the varsity basketball team has gotten off to a fine start, going 3-0 to begin the year.

The Owls showed just how potent they could be in their opening game as they scored early and often in posting an incredible 120-53 victory over Catholic last Tuesday night. MUS had six players land in double figures, led by Jay Martin's 29 points and Peter Zanca's 28 points and team-high 13 rebounds. The Owls shot 62.8% for the game and led by 35 points at the half as they set a school record for points. 

MUS followed up that win with a fine showing at the Turkey Shootout at Collierville over Thanksgiving break. 

First, the Owls battled host Collierville last Friday night. MUS jumped on the Dragons early and led 17-5 at the end of the first quarter. However, Collierville battled back and ultimately tied the game early in the third quarter at 24. But from there, the Owls went on a 27-6 run that put the game out of reach as MUS won, 56-46. Martin once again led the team in scoring with 19, and freshman Ferrakohn Hall added 18 points and 11 rebounds. 

The next evening MUS looked to stay perfect against an athletic Germantown squad. But early on, the Owls' string looked as if it would come to an end.

The Red Devils jumped out to a 16-2 lead and held a 31-17 advantage at the half as the Owls were outhustled and outplayed. But after having fallen behind by 20, 41-21, with under four minutes to go in the third quarter, MUS ended the quarter on a 16-0 run to cut the deficit to 4.

Then, in the fourth quarter, the Owls finally tied the game early but could never grab the lead. Germantown rebounded and once again gained control as they hit some shots down the stretch. The game looked out of reach after James Harvey had given Germantown a six-point lead with about a minute to play. But a Zanca basket and free throw cut the deficit to three.

In the last minute, the Red Devils missed two front ends of one-and-ones, the last one with 3.6 seconds remaining, to keep the Owls alive, and Martin took advantage. After the second miss, Martin took the outlet and launched about a 55-foot jumper that fell through as MUS forced the improbable overtime.

In the overtime, the Owls took an early lead and never relinquished it as they won, 59-56. For the third straight game, Martin led MUS in scoring with 13, while Hall and Elliott Cole each added 12. 

This week, MUS faces another three-game week as they play Millington at home and then travel to Nashville to battle MBA and Father Ryan this weekend. The Millington game tips at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday night.

Football Team Repeats As State Champs!

On a cold November night in Murfreesboro, the MUS varsity football team drove 86 yards in under four minutes to score and overcome a three-point deficit as the Owls claimed their third overall state title with a 31-27 exciting victory over Christian Brothers in the Blue Cross Bowl On Saturday, November 19. The victory not only avenged the previous heartbreaking loss to CBHS, but more importantly claimed for the Owls their second consecutive state title, an unprecedented feat for the school. 

The win culminated an outstanding season that saw MUS finish 11-1 for the second straight year and rouse the school community, from students to alumni, as school spirit continued to stay extremely high.

Heading into the game, coaches from both evenly-matched squads knew that the team that made the fewer mistakes would probably be the one to take home the trophy, and early on, Owl mishaps cost them dearly.

MUS started off slowly as the Purple Wave (10-2) showed that they were prepared for the vaunted Owl defense, which had not allowed any team to score more than 17 points all season.

Taking the opening kickoff, the Brothers gave it to their star running back, Mr. Football finalist Henry Harris, early and often, and he delivered. Harris accumulated 69 rushing yards on the initial drive as the Owls had difficulty bringing the elusive back down on the fast Middle-Tennessee-State-University turf. Breaking tackles throughout the possession, he ultimately culminated the 8-play, 74-yard drive with a 1-yard plunge to give the Purple Wave a 6-0 advantage. However, Austin Cardosi’s PAT was blocked by senior safety Donnie Malmo, keeping the deficit at six.

Needing to answer, the Owl offense showed they were just as prepared for the fine CBHS defense by reeling off an impressive 12-play, 80-yard drive. Using a steady combination of runs from sophomore Tyler Massey and completions from junior QB Michael Park, MUS moved the ball to the CBHS 3-yard line. From there, Massey, who tallied 61 rushing yards on 14 carries for the game, scored from 3 yards out to even the score. Chad Hazlehurst tacked on the PAT to give the Owls a 7-6 advantage with 2:50 remaining in the first quarter.

And the surprising first-half scoring fest had started.

CBHS came back with another score of their own as they reeled off a 9-play, 80-yard drive, capped off by a John Michael Skinner-to-Dejon Mack 23-yard touchdown pass. Skinner connected with Mack once again for a two-point conversion to give the Wave a 14-7 advantage with 10:40 left in the half.

MUS responded nicely once again. Facing a 3rd-and-10 from their own 35-yard line, Park hit Massey across the middle of the field, and Massey was able to shake defenders and rumble 65 yards to the CBHS 1-yard line. But from there, the Owls could not capitalize as penalties and other mistakes kept MUS out of the endzone. Having to settle for a  field-goal attempt, Hazlehurst connected from 21-yards out to end the 10-play, 76-yard drive and cut the deficit to 14-10 with 4:57 remaining in the half.

The Owl offense was not on the sideline for long after the field goal.

On the ensuing kickoff, CBHS’ Bevin Carpenter could not handle the kick, and MUS pounced on the muff to give the Owls great field position at the CBHS 17-yard line. From there, MUS was able to move the ball to the CBHS 2-yard line where Park sneaked in to put the Owls back on top. Hazlehurst’s extra-point gave the Owls a 17-14 lead to close the scoring for the wild first half.

At the half, the stat sheet revealed that what should have been a defensive showdown between two of the best defenses in the state had turned into a game for the offenses to shine. Both teams had accumulated 345 total net yards, just 50 yards off the total that both teams had amassed in their regular-season matchup.

With the lead and the ball to start the second half, the Owls looked to put some distance between themselves and the Wave, but CBHS would not allow it.

After CBHS had forced MUS to punt for only the second time of the night, the Purple Wave, starting at their own 32-yard line, went on a 5-play, 68-yard drive for another score. Using a 49-yard connection from Skinner to Desmond Roberts, CBHS moved the ball to the MUS 4-yard line. From there, Harris sprinted in for his second score of the night. Cardosi’s PAT was good to give the Wave a 21-17 lead with 9:38 remaining in the third.

But this time, the Owls had no answer to the score as they were forced to punt on their next two possessions, and CBHS took advantage. 

Following Drew Alston’s third punt of the half, a 40-yarder, the Wave went on yet another impressive drive, keeping the MUS defense off balance. Behind a strong rushing attack, CBHS moved the ball 62-yards to the MUS 1-yard line, where Skinner sneaked in to extend CBHS’s lead. Cardosi could not add the PAT, and the score remained 27-17 with 2:59 remaining in the third quarter.

After having been dominated for most of the third quarter, the Owls finally showed life as the quarter closed.

Using a balanced attack, MUS moved the ball into CBHS territory and were faced with a key 3rd-and-2. On that down, the MUS coaches showed their creativity to get the offense jump-started. Taking the snap, Park threw a lateral to the far sideline to Massey, who then lateraled back to Park. Park, looking as if he were going to run, then lured the defense up and rainbowed a pass to a wide-open Stephen Bowie in the end zone. Hazlehurst tacked on the PAT to cut the deficit to 27-24 with 11:19 remaining in the game.

Then, the defense needed to do its job to give the Owls a chance, and as they had all year, they stepped up and succeeded.

After CBHS had moved the ball to the MUS 15-yard line with a time-consuming drive, MUS were facing a critical situation as the Wave looked to put the game away. But Ben Stallworth intercepted a third-down, tipped pass from Skinner to give the ball back to the offense and give the Owls a chance at victory.

That interception set up the drama that followed as MUS had just under four minutes to go 86 yards and avenge what had happened to them just six weeks earlier against the Wave. With a crazed student section behind them, the MUS offense put together the magical drive.

Taking advantage of some costly Wave errors, including three CBHS penalties, the Owls converted two crucial fourth downs to keep the possession alive. Then, on the sixteenth play of the drive, Park, who was named the offensive MVP, hit his favorite target, senior Max Prokell, on a slant from 9 yards out to score and send the team, coaches, and fans into an uproar. The CBHS defense now knew exactly what the Owls had tasted in mid-October on Hull-Dobbs Field.   

Like any valiant team, the Wave tried to come back in the final 43 seconds, but defensive MVP Stallworth ended their hopes with another interception as time elapsed, sending the team into pandemonium.

With the win, MUS finishes at 11-1 for the second consecutive year and becomes only the second "Super 7" team to win back-to-back state titles since the league started in 1997, MBA being the other.   

Owls Return to State-Title Game

With the opportunity to accomplish something never done before in school history – playing in consecutive football state-title games – the varsity football team took advantage of the occasion and played just well enough to defeat the Baylor School, 24-17, last Friday night at Hull-Dobbs in the Division II, AAA state semifinals. With the win, the Owls advance to their second consecutive championship game, called the Blue Cross Bowl, on Saturday, November 19, in Murfreesboro.

MUS began very well following the opening kickoff. 

After a defensive stand, the Owls (10-1) forced a punt by Baylor (7-5) that gave MUS good field position. Then, from their own 46, the Owls used a 20-yard completion from QB Michael Park to WR Stephen Bowie and a strong rushing attack to advance the ball to the Raiders 15-yard line. From there, Park, who finished with 185 passing yards and 48 rushing yards, scrambled in behind an array of huge blocks to score, culminating the 7-play drive. Chad Hazlehurst tacked on the PAT to give the hosts the 7-0 lead only 4:58 into the game.

However, the bigger Baylor team proved that they were ready for the Owls by responding with an 8-play, 80-yard scoring drive of their own.

QB Cody Romans completed passes of 23 and 12 yards, and RB Kevin Cooper dashed for two 16-yard runs to get deep into Owl territory. From the 9-yard line, Romans found Sidney Tarver in the corner of the end zone for their first score of the game. Devin Mathis’s extra-point was good to even the score at 7.

The MUS offense responded with a nice scoring drive of their own.

Using a balanced attack, MUS converted five first downs to move into the Baylor territory. Then, after Whit Cox had moved the Owls to the Baylor 1-yard line, Park sneaked in from there for his second rushing score of the night. Hazlehurst tacked on the PAT to give the Owls a 14-7 lead to close an 11-play, 80-yard drive that ended the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the surprising scoring fest continued as Baylor answered the Owls’ score.

Taking over at their own 20, the Red Raiders went 80 yards on 10 plays, culminated by Cooper’s 1-yard scoring plunge with 8:42 remaining in the half.  Mathis tacked on the extra point to tie the game again at 14-14.

But then the defenses began to settle down and started to contain the offenses.

First, Baylor slowed down the Owls and forced a Drew-Alston punt, giving the Red Raiders good field position at their own 40-yard line. From there, Romans led the offense to the Owls 17-yard line, but the staunch MUS defense, which surprisingly had been kept off balance all night, stepped up and forced a Baylor field-goal attempt.  Mathis nailed the 34-yarder to cap off a 13-play, 43-yard drive and give the Red Raiders a 17-14 advantage.

Knowing that the offense needed momentum heading into halftime, Park completed passes of 19, 28, 11, and 20 yards on the ensuing drive to put the Owls into field-goal position. Then, as the half expired, Hazlehurst nailed a 39-yarder that would have been good from 45 yards to even the score at 17-17.

Heading into halftime, the Owls knew that they had to improve defensively, having given up 213 first-half yards, in order to return to the state-championship game. Baylor’s 17 points were more than the defense had given up all year in any game, and Roman’s 78% completion rate was much too high for Coach Bubba Burr and the defensive coaches.

And as they have all year, the MUS defense responded.

After having been forced to punt on their opening drive of the half, the Owls stepped up strongly on defense by forcing a huge turnover. After Romans and Cooper had moved the ball into Owl territory, the MUS defense had had enough as senior Donnie Malmo, playing in his last home game, came up with an amazing jump-ball interception that made the home crowd roar.

With all the momentum resulting from the Malmo interception, the offense was able to move the ball 93 yards on 13 plays and score as Park tallied his third rushing score of the night, this time on a 1-yard sneak, with 2:20 left in the quarter. Hazlehurst’s PAT was good to give the Owls a 24-17 advantage.

The score proved to be enough as the defense became very salty and never gave Baylor another chance. Romans tried to keep the visitors in the game with his arm, but he could rarely escape the staunch defensive front of MUS, lead by senior and Mr. Football finalist Mason George, senior Andrew Cabigao, and junior Buck Towner. The Owl defense held the Red Raiders to only 56 total yards, and the offense refused to turn the ball over and give the Raiders momentum.

As time expired, almost all of the student body rushed onto the field to greet the victorious Owls and congratulate them on the great win as both team and fans were responsible for this great win and the success of the season.

In the Blue Cross Bowl, the Owls face cross-town rival CBHS, the lone team to beat the Owls this season. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. at MTSU.

George Named Mr. Football Finalist

Senior noseguard Mason George was named a finalist for the 2005 American General Mr. Football Award as the Division II, AAA Lineman of the Year in an announcement made Thursday, November 10, in Nashville. 

George, one of three team captains who leads the squad in sacks with 13 and tackles-for-loss with 20 and has recorded 58 total tackles, currently fourth on the team, anchors a defense that allows only 6.5 points per game.

His dominant season has helped the Owls advance to the Blue Cross Bowl as they will battle rival Christian Brothers Saturday, November 19, in Murfreesboro.

George joins Jacques McClendon of Baylor and Chris Mosby of Christian Brothers as finalists for this prestigious award, to be presented at a luncheon at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville on November 28.

Read the TSSAA press release here on George's outstanding honor.

Cross Country Claims Second at State

The MUS varsity cross-country team completed its season last Saturday, November 5, in Nashville as they finished second at the state meet, held at the Percy Warner Steeplechase Course.

The Owls were led by two seniors, Donald McClure and Hunter Adams, as the duo claimed third and fourth overall respectively, finishing behind winner Alex Harris of University School of Nashville.

MUS finished with 76 points, 23 points behind champion McCallie, which had five runners place in the top-15. 

With high temperatures and gusty winds, the overall times were slower, but the Owls still competed hard to claim the runner-up spot, their highest state finish since 1996.

The state meet ended an outstanding 2005 campaign for MUS as the team lost to only three teams all season.  The year saw the Owls win the Frank Horton, the county championships, and the region meet as they maintained their status as one of the premier running programs in the area. 

MUS Baseball Announces 2006 Schedule

With the Diamond Owls coming off a year in which they won 24 games and finished runner-up in regular-season league play, Head Coach Marc MacMillan '92 has announced the 2006 schedule featuring 15 home games including the Metro Invitational Tournament (MIT), Pepsi Challenge, and five Division II league games. 

"I am excited about our schedule, and the opportunities we have to continue to play against quality programs," said Coach MacMillan, who is entering his seventh season as the Owls' head coach. "Our division play continues to improve and present tougher competition each year. On top of that, our non-divisional games offer great tests for us to improve throughout the year against programs rich in tradition and talent.”

The Diamond Owls will open their season against Millington High School on March 15 in the Metro Invitational Tournament hosted by MUS and Christian Brothers High School (CBHS). The Owls will also play Desoto Central High School and The McCallie School (2005 D2 State Qualifier) as part of the MIT before opening league play at CBHS on March 20. 

The Scenic City Classic in Chattanooga will begin March 23 and will run through March 25. This 16-team tournament pits the Owls against Knoxville’s Farragut High School, 2003-2004 AAA State Champs and 2005 State Qualifier, in their opening round. This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools. The tournament field will also include Evangelical Christian School (2005 D2 State Quarter Finalist), Nashville’s Overton High School (2005 AAA State Runner-up), Father Ryan High School (2005 D2 State Quarter Finalist), McCallie, and Riverdale High School (2005 AAA State Quarter Finalist) to name a few. According to Coach MacMillan, "Chris Richardson at McCallie has done a great job by putting together in my opinion one of the top tournaments in the state.”

After returning from Chattanooga, the Diamond Owls will face divisional opponent St. Benedict at Auburndale followed by a non-district game against Ridgeway High School on April 1.

The Diamond Owls then will participate in the fourteenth annual USA Classic April 5-8 held at USA Stadium and CBHS. This will mark the first time MUS has competed in this prestigious tournament. As with the Scenic City Classic, the USA Classic hosts a strong field of 16 teams that include such schools as CBHS (2005 D2 State Champs), Collierville High School (2005 AAA State Qualifier), ECS, Houston High School (2005 AAA State Champs and #43 ranked team in the country by Baseball America), Northwest Rankin High School (2005 MS 5A State Champs and #21 ranked team in the country by Baseball America), Olive Branch High School (2005 MS Final 8), Riverdale, Oklahoma’s Shawnee High School (2005 5A State Quarter Finalist), and Kentucky’s Trinity High School (2005 5th Third State Semi Finalist).  MUS will open play against 2005 AAA Regional Semi Finalist Hendersonville High School. "The USA Classic is another premier tournament in the state, and Buster Kelso at CBHS continues to put together a competitive field. We are very excited at the opportunity to be a part of it," said Coach MacMillan.

Prior to the start of the 2006 Pepsi Challenge, which will be held from April 13-15, the Diamond Owls will step back into league play against Briarcrest Christian School (2005 D2 State Qualifier) on April 11. As part of the Pepsi Challenge, the Owls will host Jackson Christian School, White Station High School, and Covington High School (2004 AA State Runner-up and 2005 State Qualifier). Other schools participating will include Cordova High School and ECS. 

The Diamond Owls wrap up their regular season with nine out of their last eleven games against Division II opponents ECS (April 18 and May 5), CBHS (April 21), Tipton-Rosemark Academy (April 22), St. Benedict (April 25), Harding Academy (April 27-28), and Briarcrest (May 4). During this time, the Owls will make visits to both Jackson Christian and Collierville.

“Our goal is to play a schedule that provides our players with the necessary preparation for divisional, regional, and state play,” Coach MacMillan shared. “This schedule presents a great challenge as we have some holes to fill, and it will allow our players the opportunity to grow each time they set foot on the field.”