Spring Hill volleyball claims third straight SIAC title; Barron gives away turkeys in Mobile

Spring Hill College’s volleyball team captured its third consecutive Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship, sweeping Albany State University in three sets at the Rock Hill Sports & Events Center.

The Badgers built an early lead in the opening set and never let the Golden Rams close the gap, winning 25-17, 25-19 and 25-17. Senior middle hitter Kassandra Fairly powered the offense with 17 kills, while her sister Jessica Fairly distributed 36 assists. Spring Hill finished the match with a .185 attack percentage and limited Albany State to a negative hitting mark.

The victory punched the Badgers’ ticket to the NCAA Division II South Region Volleyball Championship, held Dec. 2-4 at the region’s top seed. Fairly was also named to the 2021 Academic All-District 5 team and ranks among the national leaders in hitting percentage.

Former Alabama standout and NFL player Mark Barron teamed with the Reese’s Senior Bowl to distribute roughly 1,500 turkeys to families in need over the holiday weekend. The effort centered on eight youth football games at the University of South Alabama’s Hancock Whitney Stadium, where more than 750 turkeys were handed out on Sunday alone, with additional giveaways planned for the Prichard community.

“We’re here to help people out, helping out families,” Barron said, adding that returning to his hometown to serve those in need has been among the most meaningful work of his career.

University of South Alabama men’s golf coach Ben Hannan announced that Swedish amateur Hugo Thyr has signed a national letter of intent to join the Jaguars for the 2022 fall season. Thyr, a three-time top-ranked player in his age group, has represented his country in international competition.

The Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Class of 2021 Hall of Fame includes three figures with Mobile-Baldwin County ties: former LeFlore and Bishop State basketball coach J.D. Shelwood, Foley High graduate and educator Larry DiChiara, and St. Paul’s football coach Jimmy Perry.

Barron’s 5th Annual Turkey Giveaway reached Prichard on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021, when he joined District 3 Councilman Derrick Griffin for a mobile food pantry at Prichard City Hall from 3 to 5 p.m. Feeding the Gulf Coast supplied a truckload of holiday food boxes along with turkeys, distributed first-come, first-served until supplies ran out.

The event ran as a drive-through: residents stayed in their vehicles and moved through the line as directed, with Prichard City Council members and volunteers loading groceries into each car to keep the line moving. Identification was required starting at 3 p.m.

About Mark Barron

Barron, a Mobile native who played at St. Paul’s Episcopal School, was part of Alabama’s 2009 and 2011 national championship teams before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted him seventh overall in 2012. The Reese’s Senior Bowl, his partner in the giveaway, is the college all-star game that has been played in Mobile each winter since 1951.