The idea behind the creation of the Journal Review County Chase was to spark up even more interest among all three Montgomery County schools when they compete against each other.
It has worked.
I see the tweets, and hear the comments after county contests. And it is greatly appreciated. We are thrilled that the athletes, coaches, and fans get as excited about county match-ups as we do.
For a second-straight school year Southmont is dominating the county chase. The Mounties lead the way with 36 points, while Crawfordsville is second at 22, and North Montgomery is third with 14.
The question is, can Southmont keep up record pace both at the county and sectional level?
In the fall, Southmont won county titles in boys’ tennis, girls’ golf, girls’ soccer, and volleyball — and followed with IHSAA sectional titles in each of those four sports.
The Mounties have already won county titles in wrestling and girls’ swimming this winter, and will play Crawfordsville at the end of January for a boys’ basketball county title — begin their quest for a girls’ basketball title at home against North Montgomery on Thursday, and host the county gymnastics meet on Feb. 24.
Looking ahead through the rest of the winter, and on to the spring, there is little doubt in my mind that Southmont will continue to have their way against county competition with a few exceptions.
This group of Mountie athletes has been a very special group to cover — especially the group of seniors.
Make sure to look for more coverage of these athletes through the first few months of 2020 as they continue to chase down history.
As far as more sectional titles is concerned, the jury is still out, but the outlook seems promising.
On paper the Mounties will enter the sectional in both girls’ swimming and wrestling as one of the favorite teams in each sport. Southmont has won 14 sectional titles in wrestling, with its last coming in 2016, while it’s been since 2001 since the Mounties won a girls’ swim sectional title. The girls’ basketball team will also search for their first sectional title since 2014.
In the spring Southmont will return eight of nine starters from a softball sectional title team last season, and be a favorite in the girls’ tennis sectional.
Southmont has never won more than five sectional titles in a school year, winning titles in girls’ cross country, volleyball, girls’ basketball, baseball, and girl’s track.
The Mounties are well on their way to shattering that record.
May the Southmont success continue.
Jared McMurry was born and raised in Montgomery County and is the Sports Editor of the Journal Review. He can be reached by email at jmcmurry@jrpress.com and by phone at 765-918-8656.
