Stories from Sunday, February 13, 2011

Carrying a six-point advantage into the second half, the Webb defense went into lockdown mode, holding visiting St. Andrew-Sewanee scoreless in the third period and cruised to a 50-33 victory in the opening round of the East/Middle Region tournament...

Cham Cham Quao provided a lackluster Webb offense with 25 points to keep the Feet season alive as they inched past visiting St. Andrew's-Sewanee 36-34 in the opening round of the East/Middle Region tournament on Friday evening. "SAS's defense really affected us, and we struggled offensively," Webb coach Jeff Mitchell said. "We just didn't have good ball movement. We didn't attack. We just played tight."...

COLUMBIA -- Shelbyville Central pulled away in the fourth quarter to claim a 55-40 win over host Columbia in a District 8AAA matchup on Friday night. The Eaglettes (11-13, 6-3 8-AAA) closed out their district regular season schedule at Lawrence County on Saturday afternoon and will play their last regular season game on Monday for Senior Night against Riverdale at 6:30...

COLUMBIA -- Shelbyville Central picked up a huge District 8-AAA win on the road with a 62-56 victory at Columbia on Friday night. The win guarantees the Eagles at least a tie for second in the district with Tullahoma. Shelbyville (11-13, 5-4 8-AAA) played at district-leading Lawrence County on Saturday. A win would give the Eagles sole possession of second place and the No. 2 seed along with an opening round bye in the upcoming district tournament later this week...

If there's one thing that's certain during times of uncertainty, it's roses. "You might expect (sales) to be down, but it's income tax time and so people have a little extra money in their pockets," said Brenna Jones, owner of Creative Touch Florist in Shelbyville. "People have done without all year and on Valentine's Day they say, 'We're gonna go all out and knock it to them (their significant other).'"...

The Tennessee Court of Appeals has overturned a 2009 chancellor's ruling that reinstated Bedford County Sheriff Randall Boyce to peace officer certification, which allowed him to run for reelection last year. But the sheriff said he will appeal the ruling, saying the matter was "new legal ground."...

I am sure you have seen that eye catching little black box with the blinking red or green light that summons all your attention as you make your way down the grocery store aisle. We call this the "Blinkie Machine." Before I really understood the "Bargain Behind the Blinkie," my trip to the store would go something like this:...

Back in the 70s, when I was a Bible college student in Southern California, I made a trip to Tijuana, Mexico with a group of classmates. We went to visit an orphanage run by a Mexican minister and his wife. Many of the children that were living in this establishment had been abandoned on the streets of the city or were dropped off at the gates of the compound. Their parents felt like they could no longer care for their children so they just left them...

You know how you can know something in your head, but not really know it in your heart? Like -- you know your kids are going to grow up and move away and leave the nest empty and you will have to spend all your time with that strange guy on the other side of the morning newspaper who makes strange noises when he sleeps at night...

It had been a few years since I had seen my friend's daughter, Maddie. The quiet and somewhat bashful little blonde had changed quite a bit over the last few years. Smart kids always make me feel so refreshed about the world in which we live. Smart kids who are also thoughtful? Great. Interviewing smart and thoughtful kids who are so unfiltered about their thoughts, unlike adults? Priceless...

Being 16 is a tough age no matter who you are. Conflict with parents, boys, school, weight, sex ... all tough topics and sources of drama for the teenage girl. But imagine being 16 and having a health problem so scary that made you fear telling anyone ... even your mom...

HUNTLAND -- Seventh-seeded Community knew it would take its best effort to take down second-seeded Forrest in the opening round of the District 9-A tournament on Friday night. Going scoreless the first five minutes and falling behind 8-0 didn't help the Viqueen upset bid. That gap was widened in the second half and the Lady Rockets prevailed 62-33...

HUNTLAND -- A second-quarter rally by fifth-seeded Huntland lifted it past fourth-seeded Cascade in a 50-34 upset win in the first round of District 9-A tournament action Friday night. After claiming both regular season contests, the Lady Champions looked to be on their win to victory No. 3 over the Lady Hornets as every member of the starting five scored in the first quarter as they took a 13-11 lead...

Shelbyville's city council is refusing to hold a meeting with the county commission because members are afraid the topic of trash may come up, the county mayor said Thursday. City officials say the council is not yet prepared to meet on the issue at this time...

Bedford County's cost for solid waste disposal could become second only to the county's education budget if Shelbyville does away with garbage pickup, the solid waste authority was warned Thursday. And the county mayor warned that the increased costs could mean increased taxes...