Banner year
By Staff
18 local teams make postseason appearances, three individuals win state championships
Kim West
The 2007-08 season was a banner year for Franklin County teams as 18 teams advanced to the postseason, eight teams won area, region or section championships and three individuals won state titles.
Vina freshman runner Emily Davidson brought home three state titles in Class 1A track, while Russellville seniors John Tyler Hardin and T.J. Drake won the No. 3 doubles championship.
The fourth-ranked Red Bay football team matched a school record with a 13-1 record, finished the regular season 10-0, won the Class 2A, Region 8 championship and advanced to the state semifinals, while No. 8 Russellville defeated rivals Deshler and Florence, finished 10-2 and made it to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs.
In basketball, the No. 2 Russellville boys basketball team set a school record for wins (32-1), finished the regular season undefeated, won the Class 5A, Area 16 regular-season and tournament titles and appeared in the state championship game. The No. 5 Red Bay girls won their tenth straight county championship, claimed the Class 2A, Area 16 title and made their first Northwest Regional appearance in five years, while the Belgreen girls won the Class 1A, Area 16 championship and the Fayette Lions Club tournament title.
In baseball, No. 8 Russellville (35-14) wonClass 5A, Area 16 and advanced to state quarterfinals for the second straight season, while eighth-ranked Phil Campbell (25-13) won the county title and made it to the third round of the playoffs.
In softball, Tharptown (20-13) claimed the school's first county championship and playoff appearance, while Red Bay (21-12) won the Class 2A, Area 16 title and made its first-ever playoff appearance. No. 8 Belgreen (17-12) finished second in Class 1A, Area 16 and advanced to the first round of the playoffs.
In golf, the Russellville boys finished third at the Class 5A sectionals and qualified for sub-state, while the Red Bay boys won the Class 2A, Section 2 title and finished sixth overall at the Class 1A-2A state golf tournament.
In tennis, the Russellville boys won their third straight Section 6 title and finished third at state, while Red Bay won its third consecutive Section 4 championship and competed at state.
In track, the Vina boys and girls, Red Bay boys and Belgreen girls each qualified for the Class 1A-3A state track meet. The Vina girls (third) and Belgreen girls (sixth) placed in the Top 5, while the Red Bay boys and girls teams swept the county track meet. The Lady Bulldogs also qualified for the state cross-country meet.
This past year also marked the debut of the new Belgreen and Tharptown gyms, Russellville football coach Doug Goodwin, Belgreen baseball coach Dustin Pounders and the Tharptown football stadium, while the 2008-09 season will include the first year of playoff eligibility for Tharptown football and the debut of Phil Campbell football coach Michael Parker.
