Season Underway Today

The girls' hoops season opens today for the seven middle school programs, now including first-year Explorer K-8.
Last season Powell nearly ran the table, going 11-1 to claim the county championship. Challenger finished second in the county tournament after handing the Lady Panthers their only loss in the regular season.
However both teams have seen several of their top players move on to high school, making this year's season outlook less certain.
Powell no longer has the services of Mariah Byrd or twin sisters Ja'Nay and Je'Nel Yore. Still, last year's junior varsity squad went 7-3, providing hope for continued success.
The Lady Navigators must replace Tori Hattaway and Carey Bossey, looking to players such as 2007 JV standouts Syclair Jones and Natalia Carabello, as well as out-of-state transfer Erin Moynihan.
"It's always nice to win a county championship, especially when you were runners-up last year," Challenger Head Coach Roe Foley said. "We're hoping to win games, improve during the season and not just become better basketball players but better athletes.
"...I think most of them (the county's teams) graduated their solid players.  So it may be an even slate."
Like Powell, the Challenger JV went 7-3 last year. Parrott's JV went 9-1 in 2007, the lone loss coming in the final game versus Challenger, 16-12.