Hall of Fame honors dozen student-athletes
By TOMMY PRIDDY, P-I Sports Editor One of
the Paris-Henry County Sports Hall of Fame’s proudest traditions is the
honoring of Henry County student athletes.
A male and female student athlete from each of the school’s that sponsor
sports teams in the Henry County School System and Paris Special School
District will receive the Hall of Fame’s student honors at a banquet set at
6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Paris Convention Center on East Wood Street.
HCHS
• Skylar Haley — A 4.0 student at HCHS, Haley is a lifelong sports
participant. He played football and basketball at both Inman and as a
freshman at Grove.
He saw varsity action in baseball, football and basketball all four years at
HCHS. An All-State performer as a defensive back in football, Haley also
contributed to the Patriot offense as a receiver. Three Patriot squads that
Haley was a member of advanced to the semifinals of the Class 4A playoffs.
Haley has pitched and been a starting infielder for the Patriot baseball
team for four years. In basketball, he played both guard and forward for the
Patriots.
He accepted a scholarship earlier this year to study and play football at
Lambuth University in Jackson. He also plans to play baseball for the
Eagles.
Haley received the Hall of Fame student award as a freshman at Grove. He is
a member of many clubs at HCHS including the National Honor Society.
He is the son of Ron and Teresa Haley.
• Katy Beth Glover — Honors have rained down on Glover during her high
school career for her prowess on the golf course. She accepted a scholarship
to study and play golf at Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville
last fall.
She is a four-time member of the All-District 10-AAA team and three times
was chosen for the All-Region 5-AAA squad. She was Class AAA All-State pick
in 2008. She placed 12th in the Class AAA state golf tournament last fall.
Glover was named the Jackson Sun’s West Tennessee Female Player of the Year
in 2009. Last year, she was invited and played in the Vinny Pro-Celebrity
Golf Tournament hosted by Vince Gill near Nashville.
She is a member of many clubs and organizations at HCHS including Patriot
Pals where she mentors first-graders at Lakewood. She was selected by the
HCHS faculty as a Girls State representative.
She is the daughter of Wyatt and Kathy Glover.
Grove
• Ryan Belasic — Honor roll student Belasic got to taste football at both
city and county schools. He played as a seventh-grader at Inman and then
moved to Lakewood to play as an eighth-grader on the offensive and defensive
lines.
Last fall, he was lineman on the Grove freshmen squad that posted 5-1
record.
Belasic is involved with youth work at New Harmony Baptist Church. He helps
with cleanup at Covenant Ranch and litter pickup around the community. He
likes to visit and play games with elderly people at the local nursing
homes.
He has received several academic awards while in school. He has received the
United States Achievement Academy All-American Scholar and National English
Merit Scholar awards.
Belasic is the son of Kathleen and Rodney Belasic.
• Hannah McFadden — If you are looking for McFadden, you might try the
basketball court or softball field.
An All-River Conference basketball performer and starter in softball at
Lakewood School for two seasons, McFadden started at center on the Grove
freshman basketball team last fall. She was named the team’s Best Offensive
Player.
She enjoys playing travel softball but also plays the piano while
participating in ballet, tap and jazz dancing. She likes to take photographs
and enjoys being a model.
McFadden carries a 4.0 grade-point average in honors classes. She is in the
student council and part of several school clubs. She plans to attend the
University of Tennessee at Knoxville with a major in education and minor in
architecture and design.
She is the daughter of Mark and Suzi McFadden.
Harrelson
• Drake Walker — Walker was a member of Harrelson teams that won River
Conference championships in both football and basketball this past season.
He is a three-year member of the Hawks’ basketball team, played football two
years and soccer one year.
He played baseball on the Tennessee Terror travel team that won the USSSA
Global Sports World Series in 2009.
As a 9-year-old, he placed third in the nation in the NFL’s Punt, Pass and
Kick competition. He won the Tennessee Titans’ regional competition two
years later.
Walker has been on the Harrelson academic team for three years and as a
seventh-grader attended Top 10 banquet.
He is the son of Chris and Melissa Walker.
• Emily Leonard — Softball is the love Leonard’s life. She also plays
basketball at Harrelson and has taken ballet and tap lessons.
She was an All-River Conference pick in softball at Harrelson. She began
playing softball in the Kentucky Lake Girls’ Softball League at age 7 where
she was an All-Star selection. Leonard has played on the West Tennessee
Diamonds fastpitch team for past five years.
Active in church youth groups, Leonard works hard to maintain good grades in
school.
She is the daughter of Tim and Lisa Leonard.
Henry
• Michael Etheridge — Etheridge comes from a sports-loving family. He has
played basketball and football for two years at Henry. He made the All-River
Conference Tournament team in basketball in 2008 and 2009. He concentrated
on football last fall.
He started playing basketball in the Paris-Henry County Basketball League
and played football in the Henry County Youth Football League. He played on
league champions in both sports.
Etheridge is past band member at Henry.
He is the son of Mary Etheridge and nephew of Billy and Evelyn Etheridge.
• Whitney Rawls — Rawls has played basketball and softball since she was 5
years old.
This past year she played basketball, softball and soccer as an
eighth-grader at Henry. She has been an All-River Conference selection in
each of these sports.
She played in the Paris-Henry County Basketball and Kentucky Lake Girls’
Softball League prior to middle school. She also has played for the Paris
Blazers travel basketball squad and Paris Thunder girls’ softball team.
Rawls is a three-year honor student and school ambassador. She enjoys
gymnastics along with her other sports.
She is the daughter of Mark and Tina Rawls.
Lakewood
• Justin Ramos — Ramos was an All-River Conference performer in both
basketball and football this year at Lakewood.
He began playing organized sports at age 4. He has played in the Paris
Soccer Club for five years, the Paris-Henry County Basketball League for six
years and youth baseball for six years. He also played four years in the
Henry County Youth Football League.
In baseball, in played for the Tennessee Terrors travel team
He received the Lakewood academic award in the sixth and seventh grades and
is part of the Lakewood Academic team.
Ramos is the son of Mike Ramos and Melissa Hollingsworth.
• Kelli Jackson — Jackson has played basketball and softball for three years
at Lakewood while earning All-Conference honors in both sports. She also
worked as a manager for the Eagles’ football team.
She has played travel softball for six years with the Paris Lady Thunder and
the Tennessee Pride of Huntingdon.
Jackson is a member of several school clubs at Lakewood and is active in
4-H. She shows lambs at the Henry County Fair where she has won awards for
record keeping, largest carcass and Henry County born and bred.
She is the daughter of Mark and Lisa Jackson. Her maternal grandmother is
Paris-Henry County Sports Hall of Fame inductee Lucrecia King.
Inman
• Ashton Cate — Cate has been an integral part of West Tennessee Sectional
Championship teams in football and basketball at Inman in the past two
seasons. The Bulldogs have won two football and one basketball title during
that time.
Coaches praise Cate for his work ethic, determination, leadership and
attitude.
He is a member of several school clubs including the Inman strings program
and is a mentor for sixth-grade students.
He is the son of Tom and Becky Cate.
• Rachel Ayers — Ayers is a strong student as well as key contributor for
the Inman Lady Bulldogs basketball and soccer teams. The Lady Bulldogs
basketball team went 10-5 in 2009-10 while the Inman girls’ soccer team was
undefeated while she was a seventh-grader.
She is involved in the Inman Watchdog program and outside school is involved
with the Olympic Development program.
Ayers is the daughter of Steve and Teresa Ayers and Danny and Andrea Tucker. |
