Broncos Defeat Bulldogs

HOLLY POND-48

HANCEVILLE-22


It was the start they wanted, and what a start it was. Holly Pond beat Hanceville Friday night 48 22, to kick of the 2008 season. Holly Pond's Derrick Stancil ran for 134 yards with 3 touchdowns. Quarterback Wesley Graham and Pat Duke had two touchdowns with Tyler Chambers also picking a TD. Holly Pond will host the Susan Moore Bulldogs next Friday at Thomas-Michelfelder Field.

Broncos Fall in Jamboree

The Holly Pond Football team lost their jamboree game on Thursday night. The Pennington Tigers pulled away with the victory, 37-20 over the Broncos. The Tigers came out strong in the first half, and the varsity just couldn't respond in time. The JV played the second half and scored 2 touchdowns including a fumble recovery. The final score, 37-20, Pennington.

The middle school team had a different outcome however, they beat the Pennington Tigers in their first game of the season.

Now all attention turns to the first game of the regular varsity season, against Hanceville on Friday night. The game starts at 7:00 in Hanceville.

Volleyball Wins 1st Game

The Holly Pond Lady Broncos Volleyball team picked up their first win on Thursday. The Broncos beat Vinemont in 3 straight games, 25-13, 25-16, and 25-17. The JV also beat the Eagles. The season is now in full gear for the team; they play in the Douglas Tournament starting at 9:00 AM Saturday morning. The team will also be traveling to Tuscaloosa on September 26th to watch in-state rivals, Auburn and Alabama play. A great start for what many are expecting to be a great season for the volleyball team.

Lady Broncos Volleyball 2008

AUGUST
Date----Opponent----------------Team----Location------Time
21...........Fairview/West Point..........MS..........Fairview..........4:00
...............Vinemont.............................JV,V.........Vinemont........4:00
23...........Douglas Tournament.........MS,JV,V..Douglas...........TBA
25...........Cold Springs........................MS,JV,V...Home.............4:00
26............Fairview/Hanceville Tri...JV,V.........Home...............3:30
28.............Cullman/Vinemont...........MS...........Home...............4:00
.................Good Hope/Danville..........JV,V........Good Hope......4:00
30............Cullman Tournament........JV.............Cullman..........TBA
.................New Hope Tournament.....V..............New Hope......TBA
SEPTEMBER
2...............Harmony.............................MS...........Harmony.........5:00
..................Sardis/Brindlee Mt...........JV,V.........Home...............4:00
4...............Hanceville/Vinemont.........MS...........Hanceville.......4:00
..................West End...........................JV,V..........Home...............4:00
8.................Parkside............................MS.............Home.............4:00
9................West Point/Cold Springs...JV,V.........West Point.....3:30
11...............Cullman/? (Tri-match).....MS,JV,V...Cullman.........4:00
13..............Cullman Tournament........MS.............Cullman..........TBA
..................Brewer Tournament..........JV..............Brewer...........TBA
..................West End Tournament.....V..................West End.......TBA
15...............Parkside/West Point.......MS.............Parkside..........4:00
16...............Harmony/Fairview..........MS.............Home...............4:00
....................Sardis/? (Tri-match).......JV,V...........Sardis............4:00
18................Vinemont.........................MS...............Vinemont........4:00
.....................Susan Moore.................JV,V.............Home...............4:00
20...............Wallace Tournament......V..................Wallace State..TBA
22................Hanceville.....................V.....................Hanceville.......4:00
23................MS Co. Tournament...MS..................Good Hope.......TBA
.....................Susan Moore/Brindlee Mt.V.............Susan Moore...TBA
25................MS Tourn./JV Tourn....MS,V............Good Hope.......TBA
.....................New Hope/?...................V...................New Hope.........TBA
29...............County Tourn. 1st Round...V..............Good Hope.......TBA
OCTOBER
2..................County Tourn. 2nd Round.....V..........Good Hope........TBA
4..................Holly Pond Tournament...All teams work..Home.......TBA
6..................West End/Southside............V..............West End..........5:00
7..................New Hope/Good Hope.........V..............Home...............4:00
9...................Fairview/Cold Springs......V...............Fairview..........4:00
13.................Area Tournament
18..................Regional Tournament
23..................Sub State
29-30.............State Tournament

Coach's Corner- Sherry Chaney

It's midnight in downtown Cullman, while most are asleep, Coach Sherry Chaney is running. The elementary and middle school P.E. teacher was competing in the Cullman Midnight 5K run. She was doing something she loves, something she has an obvious passion for; running.

Now, Coach Chaney wants to share her love of running with athletes at Holly Pond. This year, Chaney has started the Holly Pond Cross Country team. Although individuals have competed in Cross Country before, (Jordan King's individual state championships in 2004 and 2005), this is the first varsity cross country team in Holly Pond High history. "I'm very excited, this is my passion now." said Chaney. The Cross Country team now has 11 varsity runners and 7 middle school runners. "I have a great group, we had our first practice on Monday." With their first meet just 2 weeks away, the team has hit the ground running, literally.

Mrs. Chaney's love for running was evident this spring when she started the Holly Pond Bronco Stampede 5K. With a big number of Broncos running both young and old, Chaney was extremely impressed by the community's excitement for running. "That was a big success. We're going to continue it next year." It has always been said that running is an uncontainable passion, and as the team starts it's inaugural season, that passion will hopefully lead to victory.

2008 Bronco Varsity Football Schedule

Aug.29..........Hanceville..........Away
Sep.5.............Susan Moore.....Home
Sep.12...........Crossville...........Away
Sep.19...........Sardis.................Home
Sep.26...........Fairview............Away
Oct.3..............Pisgah...............Home
Oct.10...........New Hope........Away
Oct.17............Sylvania...........Home
Oct.24...........Brindlee Mt......Away
Oct.30...........Cold Springs.....Home

Coach's Corner, April Hays

There is a message on this year’s volleyball team shirt. It says, “When we all work together, we all win together.” Head coach April Hays thinks there is something behind that phrase. Something that will guide her team to success in the upcoming season. “We really want to play as a team.” said Hays in a recent interview.

Coach Hays sees promise in this years team and has expectations. “We have all our starters returning.” The volleyball team has been one of the only teams that didn’t suffer from last year’s large senior class. Coach Hays says the seniors girls are excited about the upcoming season. The Holly Pond Lady Broncos have completed two summer team camp tournaments. A Middle Tennessee University Volleyball camp was recently held at Good Hope. The Broncos also competed in the Wallace State Camp, defeating Laurence County, Madison County, and Springville. Holly Pond will be competing in a new area this season, playing teams like Susan Moore, Sardis, and Brindlee Mountain. “The area will be easier, but that doesn’t take away from our schedule”

But don’t be mistaken, the girls at Holly Pond haven’t taken the summer off. “We’ve done conditioning all summer in conjunction with Coach Adams. By the first game, our girls are used to the heat.” says Coach Hays. Practice began last week for the varsity volleyball team; which brings us back to the team shirt. The work began days ago and hopefully, the wins will be in the days ahead.

Coach's Corner, Steve Miller

It’s 10:00 A.M. at Thomas-Michifielder Field and the football players from Holly Pond High School unite for pictures. Uniting, that’s something that head coach Steve Miller wants his team to do but without the flash of a camera. “We really have two main goals this season: One is to practice everyday and to get better; the other is to become a team and to unite.” Miller hopes that he can accomplish the latter goal by practicing the first.

Steve Miller’s love for competition is evident by his persona. “I want to be the best in everything”, has become a common phrase from Miller; who’s going on his 2nd year as head football coach. His love for Holly Pond, family, and above all, God. is obvious from a simple conversation. While he coaches football; he also aims to build character in young men through the sport. Millers says that by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ you can get through anything.

As for his football team, the coach has high expectations. “ Our offensive line is our strong suite.We’ll have four returning players on our line so we diffidently have that going for us.” When asked about key returning players Miller mentioned fullback Pat Duke and seniors Chris Pugh and Chris Cahoon. After the spring game, the football staff had reason for excitement. When Steve Miller took the head coaching position; he barely had enough players to scrimmage. Miller stated that he wanted to get as many athletes on the football team as possible. The coach’s hopes were meet when spring training arrived. Before the summer started, Holly Pond had 58 players on the team. “We still expect to dress 50 plus players this season.”

Holly Pond will be playing in a new region this fall; 3A region 6. Coach Miller is optimistic about the Broncos chances in its new region; “I like the new region. If we can stay healthy, we can be competatative in this region.” The Holly Pond Broncos will most defiantly face challenges this season. The expectations Steve Miller has for his team will be meet by the results they produce. But no one ever said that results came in scores or stats. If all of the players meet the coach’s expectations; we’ll have a few more responsible adults and this season will be deemed a success; regardless of the final tally.

Welcome Back

First of all, a new video has been released.



The first day of school is just around the corner and the athletes of Holly Pond are preparing for their upcoming seasons; before classes even begin. The long, dog days of Alabama heat will endure for at least a few more weeks; but that won’t stop the fall sports season from beginning. The Bronco Blog began last fall and really didn’t start soon enough to effectively cover football and volleyball, but now as a new sports season gets underway; expectations are sure to rise as the Bronco Blog leads you right up to football, volleyball, and the cross country seasons.

Like every year, expectations have become the norm. New sports facilities like the long-awaited softball field could come this year. The football team could finally win a playoff game. Heck, we could win a state championship this year. (I said COULD). But above the expectations we set; success may not come in a score or a record. Expectations may not be met at a championship game in Birmingham. Success may happen on the practice field on a hot afternoon, or in the gym when only a few see it. Success may come in sweat, tears, and hours. Success may just be seen by a coach. To me, success is not measured by a victory; it is measured by your desire and heart in practice; by your dedication to the team, by your pride and love of this school.

While most fans honor the triumphant moments in sports; I hope some will now realize that those moments don’t always come on Friday nights or before home crowds. This group of Broncos could be victorious; but hopefully they’ll be successful. It’ll be my honor to bring you their stories in the coming year.

One final note: In the week ahead, The Bronco Blog's Coach's Corner Interviews will be released. Coach Steve Miller will be first on Tuesday.