By From Staff Reports (Contact) | Alabaster Reporter

Originally published 11:29 p.m., February 5, 2010
Updated 10:47 p.m., February 6, 2010

The Kingwood Christian School girls' basketball team won the Alabama Independent SchoolsAssociation Class 3A, Region 2 tournament championship Feb. 6 at Alabama Southern CommunityCollege in Monroeville.

Kingwood Christian 46, Bessemer Academy 31

Lauren Rozof led the Lions (17-6) with 24 points and 12 rebounds in the AISA Class 3A, Region 2championship game Feb. 6 at Alabama Southern Community College in Monroeville. Rozof, who also recorded three blocked shots, was named the Region 2 tournament most valuable player.

Katherine Stockman and Whitney Gillespie joined Rozof on the Region 2 all-tournament team.

The Lions advanced to the Class 3A Elite Eight Feb. 12 at Faulkner University in Montgomery, where Kingwood will face Glenwood Academy.

Kingwood Christian 39, Tuscaloosa Academy 30

Lauren Rozof led the Lions with 20 points and 14 rebounds in the semifinals of the AISA Class 3A,Region 2 tournament Feb. 5 at Alabama Southern Community College in Monroeville. Whitney Gillespie added 13 points.

Kingwood, which qualified for the Elite Eight tournament next week with the victory, will face Bessemer Academy in the Region 2 championship game Feb. 6 at 2 p.m.

Kingwood Christian 47, Morgan Academy 17

Lauren Rozof led the Lions with 21 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots in the quarterfinals of the AISA Class 3A, Region 2 tournament Feb. 4.

Dennis Palmer/For the Reporter

Published Monday, January 25, 2010

The Kingwood Christian School boys' basketball team won its first game with Lions' athletic directorand girls' basketball coach Johna Smith leading the team Jan. 22 in a 38-37 win over Morgan Academy in Selma.

In a game that seesawed back and forth all night, the visiting Lions barely survived a last-second bucket by Morgan’s Coal Brown to take a 38-37 victory. Brown drove inside with time running out and went up between three Lions’ defenders for the shot, but the referees ruled time had expired.

Smith, who also coached the Kingwood girls to victory against the Lady Senators, said she only asked her boys to do one thing – believe.

“We replaced our (boy’s) coach Tuesday night and I told them I needed them to be perfect and to just buy in,” she said. “I asked them to believe and not get out-hustled. We just did what we had to do to win.”

Brandon Bowen led Kingwood (2-11, 2-7 in AISA Class 3A, Region 2) with 12 points. Madison Webb added 11 points and Daniel Fillingim chipped in 10 points.

By Neal Wagner (Contact) | Alabaster Reporter

Published Monday, January 25, 2010

A group of Kingwood Christian School students will be raising money to benefit earthquake victims in Haiti Jan. 30.

Lisa Ledbetter’s fifth-grade class will be selling lemonade from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Jan. 30 at the Alabaster Food World store near the intersection of Alabama 119 and First Street Southwest.

The students will donate all money raised selling lemonade to help those affected by the Jan. 12 earthquake in southern Haiti, Ledbetter said.

The event will not be the students’ first experience raising money to benefit those in need, as the same class raised more than $700 to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina five years ago.

“The neat thing about it is that I used to teach first grade, and I had this same group of kids back then,” Ledbetter said. “They did a lemonade stand then, and raised over $700 in one day for the victims of Katrina.

“So when they heard about the earthquake, they said ‘Mrs. Ledbetter, can we do that again to help those people?’ Ledbetter added. “They’re really a caring, thoughtful group of kids.”