First Presbyterian Christian Academy had their home opener Monday night against the Lady and Men Minutemen of Glennville Christian Academy.
The men’s varsity squad continued their wins with a solid 82-62 victory, giving them a 4-1 record as they prepare for their first regional GISA 2-A battle against Twiggs Academy on Dec. 14 at Jeffersonville.
The men and women’s junior varsity squad did not fare as well, each being handed a loss. But the women’s JV squad held their ground and fought back, defensively, not knowing they were playing against Glenville’s women’s varsity team.
Although that did not erase the loss, it did lift their spirits and their confidence in being able to hang tough with a more experienced opponent.

Men’s junior varsity
FPCA 48, Glenville Christian
Academy 56
The younger men Highlanders fought hard against a strong offense of the Minutemen. But the Minutemen kept one step ahead with the rebounds and the scoring, giving them the eight-point lead that edged the Highlanders’ out of a victory.
After the loss, junior varsity head coach David Linderman reflected on what his team needs to do to improve.
“We have to work on our rebounds and finishing the ball,” he said. “It seems like we came out flat in the first half. With the holidays, we didn’t practice for about a week. But it’s back to action and our main focus is to work on the rebounds.”
Linderman said he was especially proud of Rickey Gilliard’s performance on the courts.
“He is only in the sixth grade and has a lot of upside already,” Linderman said. “He is getting playtime on a JV team. If he were in public school, he would not be allowed to play until seventh grade. He was not intimidated by anyone or anything Monday night and this is only his second game,” he said.

Top scorers
Mike Farrior 23 points
Kyle Weinerth 18 points
Rickey Gillard 8 Points
Jose Martinez 2 points
William Haas 1 point

Men’s varsity
FPCA 81, GCA 62
With Mike Brown once again dominating the three-point shot, the Highlanders went ahead quickly and maintained the lead throughout the game against the Minutemen Monday night.
The biggest threat from the Minutemen came from their guard, number 23, who, at 5’3,” connected on a series of three-point shots and later drew a technical foul of which he was 3 of 4 at the line.
“I didn’t really like the way we played the first half,” men’s varsity head coach Darrell West said. “But in the second half, we settled down and played the way we normally play. We need to make better decisions with the ball as we prepare for our first regional game. We will work on some passing drills to reduce the amount of turnovers,” he said.

Top scorers
Josh Rodgers 19 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Mike Brown 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists
Joey Bell 15 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block
AJ Ansley 12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals four blocks
Terrance (TA) Alston 7 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Hakeem Golden 6 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
Tim Ashmen- 5 rebounds, 1 steal
Sunny Patel 5 points  
Preyen Patel 2 points

Women’s JV
FPCA 31, GCA 50
A 19-point deficit in most games would seem like a solid defeat, but give the Lady Highlanders credit as their JV team battled it out against an experienced Glennville varsity squad.
Catherine Scaggs led the baskets, keeping the team within contention. Players, such as Andrea Bell, Leitia Leiataua and Asyria Daniels, fought to maintain a defensive stop to the Lady Minutemen’s’ scoring opportunities.
“Andrea Bell had a great game,” the Lady Highlander head coach, Rosby Fraiser, said. “She had great rebounds and kept us in the game. Tonight all our Ladies had an opportunity to play.
“Again, we are in the learning stage so everyone had an opportunity to go in. I’m very proud of Scaggs. She is one of our leaders and led the scores at the basket. She played the whole game and kept everybody in line and in focus. “Daniels and Leiataua both did well in the game,” Fraiser said. “The one area I felt we had difficulty with was our lay ups. As you know, that is the easiest shot to sink and we had trouble making that shot.
“Playing against a varsity team is a great educational tool. It helps them develop and learn. I didn’t tell them they were a varsity team until after the game, therefore they were really proud of themselves.
“I’m proud of them. Yes there are some things we need to work on but my hats off to them. We kept coming strong,” she said.

Top scorers
Catherine Scaggs 16 points, led the lady squad
Leitia Leiataua 8 points, strong defensive game with steals
Asyria Daniels 4 points strong on lay ups, assists and charging the net
Andrea Bell 2 points, strong on defensive stands and steals
Sam Haas 2 points

The men Highlanders hit the courts on Dec. 14 against Twiggs Academy. The men and women’s JV and varsity squads will return home Dec. 18 to challenge the Citizen’s Christian Academy. The women’s JV starts at 4 p.m. followed by the men’s JV and then varsity games. All FPCA home games are at the St. James Sports Center.