Belgreen flashback

By Staff
Lady Bulldogs own only state title in school history
Kim West
BELGREEN – It's been six years since the Class 1A Belgreen girls basketball team defeated Spring Garden 68-53 to win the school's only state championship.
Freshman center Kala Trapp Darwin, who tore her ACL against Red Bay late in the season but still played in the playoffs, said fans still remember that season.
"Sometimes people still recognize me just because I played basketball at Belgreen," said Darwin, who now lives with her U.S. Army husband in Savannah, Ga. "People will share a story about that season or ask me about winning the state championship."
Anna Billingham, who played both basketball and softball at Judson College, was only an eighth grader when she realized Belgreen had a shot at winning it all.
"We knew we could win state ever since I was in eighth grade because during that year we won every tournament we played in," said Billingham, a starting guard and forward for the Lady Bulldogs who now works as a child case manager for Marion and Winston counties. "When we got to the varsity, we knew each other so well. We played together, worked hard and made our dreams come true."
The Belgreen playing rotation also included senior reserve guards Ashley Clement and Lucy Allen, junior guard Robin Harris, junior post Becky McVicker Montgomery, junior guard Robin Harris and senior point guard Kellie Parrish, the state tournament MVP who lettered at the University of North Alabama.
On the sidelines, Belgreen was led by current Russellville girls coach James Bostick, who had previously won two state titles at Class 2A Red Bay.
Bostick, who emphasized defensive pressure and full-court conditioning, guided the Lady Bulldogs to a 27-7 record during the 2001-02 season, including two wins over Hatton, the Class 2A state champions that year.
"We all loved Coach Bostick, and we all wanted to do well for him," said Parrish, a P.E. teacher who coached the Belgreen junior girls basketball team last season. "He came to Belgreen my eighth grade year and we all looked at him like a father figure because he's one of the nicest people you'll ever know. It makes a good team when you love your coach and respect him."
Bostick said the team succeeded because of the players' willingness to accept their roles.
"They were a very special team and every one of those players knew what each person could do and accepted her role," Bostick said. "That was one of the most dedicated groups of kids I've coached. They all contributed and we had lots of leadership on the floor.
"I think they were destined to win a championship because they had it in their hearts and minds that they would win."