MACA Basketball season coming to a close

Boys Varsity: Back Row L - R: Nathan DeCarlo, Phillip Kight, Joey Danek, Zach Norton, Aaron Matthews, Stewart Harbin. Front Row: Peter Danek, Joe DiBenedetto, Nick Sciales, Cameron Murphy, Patch DeFoor and Abe Kiernan

The 2007-2008 season of Mountain Area Christian Academy basketball is coming to a close. The MACA Lions have had a very successful season this year and they look forward to the approaching playoffs this coming weekend. The MACA Lions are part of the Georgia Association of Christian Schools - GCAA. The top eight teams in the state are in the playoffs this weekend to determine who will go to Albany, Ga., to play for the championship. Our Varsity boys have only lost one conference game this season, and the Varsity girls are undefeated in their conference games. The JV boys have lost only one game in their division. The JV girls have played very well in their games also.

For more information about the playoff games being held this Thursday and Friday (Jan. 31 and Feb. 1), please call the school office at 706-374-6222. Times are to be announced.

Boys JV Team Back Row L-R: Thomas Shamblin, Matt Price, Peter Danek, Cameron Murphy, Nick Sciales, Ethan Banner, Abe Kiernan and Daniel Bryan. Front Row: Rhett McCombs, Asa Matthews, Will Harbin, Michael Savage and Matthew Bryan.

The MACA Varsity Lions will be losing three seniors after this season - Joe DiBenedetto, Phillip Knight and Zach Norton. This is Joe's second year playing basketball and Zach's first season with MACA. Phillip has been playing three years.

The team includes four juniors: Aaron Matthews, Stewart Harbin, Patch Defoor and Joey Danek. The rest of the Varsity is made up of 9th graders: Nathan DeCarlo, Abe Kiernan, Peter Danek, Nick Sciales and Cameron Murphy. The coaches are Daryl Allison and Drew Phillips. These men have done a fine job of getting the team ready for going all the way to the state championship. This is the first year they have coached at MACA and they are helping the boys to reach their potential.

Our Lady Lions Varsity team will be losing one senior, Rebecca DeCarlo. She is an integral part of the team and will be sorely missed. There are two juniors on the team: Rebekah Simonds and Hillary Knight; three sophomores: Abby Powell, Korah McCray and Gabby Camp. The teams two 9th graders are: Terah Hooper and Kayla Bowers. The team also included three 8th grade girls: Ali Kight, Ally Norton and Sara Dobbins. The Lady Lions are coached by Karen Matthews. We are cheering for the Lady Lions as they have their shot at going to State.

Girls Varsity Back Row L - R: Gabby Camp, Korah McCray. Middle Row: Hillary Knight, Kayla Bowers & Rebekah Simonds. Front Row: Abby Powell, Rebecca DeCarlo & Terah Hooper.

The Junior Varsity teams are made up of 6th - 9th graders. Our JV boys were coached by Luis Viera, with some assistance from Drew Phillips. Our JV girls were coached by Wes Knight, a first year teacher at MACA. Both teams show a lot of promise in the upcoming years.

The beauty of playing a sport in a small school is the chance you are given to really learn and develop as a player. Many kids are not given a chance when they have to have try-outs and cuts from a team. Smaller teams also give more playing time; this helps in learning teamwork and building self-confidence. MACA is a great environment for this learning experience. Another benefit is being taught/coached in a Christian setting. We strive to have coaches that will set a Godly example in words and deeds (on and off the court). Children are led by example and this is very important at MACA.

Girls JV Back Row: Coach Wes Kight. Mid Row: Sara Dobbins, Victoria Williams, Sophie McCray & Ally Norton. Front Row: Lauren Stanley, Ali Kight and Alex Kiernan.