By By Will Bardwell / staff writer
June 18, 2004
A handful of Lauderdale and Jones County soccer standouts will get one more game out of the 2004 season this weekend.
The annual boys and girls soccer All-Star Games will kick off on Saturday at Hinds Community College in Raymond.
Six regional players, including two Meridian High School products, will compete in the game, which features one team from the north half of the state and another from the south half.
Sarah Denham and Kortney Harris will represent Meridian on the girls' North All-Star team. Megan Butler of Northeast Jones is the only other Lauderdale or Jones County player in the girls' North All-Star game.
West Jones placed three players in the All-Star games. Meghann Ainsworth and Amanda Pitts will play in the girls' game for the South, and Britt Barefoot will be on the boys' South All-Star team.
Barefoot will be trying to help the South boys' team hold on to a slim lead in the all-time series. The South All-Stars have a 8-6-5 record since 1985, when the game's format changed from East-West to North-South.
Denham, Harris and Butler have a traditional advantage with the girls' North team, which is 5-2-1.
Ainsworth and Pitts will have little trouble adjusting to the unfamiliar environment. West Jones coach Dennis Bohannon is one of the two coaches for the girls' South All-Stars.
Admission will cost $5 and will cover both contests. The girls' game, which will be played for the ninth straight year, will begin at 5 p.m. The 22nd annual boys' game will follow at approximately 7 p.m.