Pontotoc High School
Encyclopedia
Sports
Pontotoc High School is currently active in 15 varsity sports and play as "The Warriors." Varsity sports include BaseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, Basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, Bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, Cross Country Running
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, Football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, Golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, Powerlifting
Powerlifting
Powerlifting is a strength sport. It resembles the sport of Olympic weightlifting, as both disciplines involve lifting weights in three attempts. Powerlifting evolved from a sport known as 'odd lifts' which followed the same three attempt format but used a wide variety of events akin to Strongman...
, Soccer, Softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, Tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, Track and Field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, and Volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. The school also participates in Band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
, Cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
, and Dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
competitions.
Basketball
Both the Warriors and Lady Warriors have a history of success at division, north half, and state levels of competition. The Warriors are coached by Jon Ginn, and the Lady Warriors are coached by Bill Russell.The 2009-2010 Warriors were the first boys team in Pontotoc history to make it to the 3rd round of the North Half tournament, the first to win North Half,and the first to go to the State Tournament in Jackson, Mississippi. The boys also hosted the North Half for the first time in school history. Pontotoc beat Louisville in the first round 71-47. In the second round they beat Lewisburg 72-58 to make history and go to the third round for the first time in history. The Warriors made more history with a 74-64 win over Greenwood to send them to the North Half championship and to the state tournament. In the North Half championship the Warriors beat Center Hill 61-56 and were crowned North Half champs. The Warriors historic run was ended when St. Stanislaus beat them 65-39 in the first round of State.
Football
The Warrior football team competes in Mississippi's Division 1-4A. The Warriors are coached by Charlie Dampeer.Tennis
The 2008 Pontotoc Warriors qualified two girls for the state tournament - Katherine Downing and Frankie Turner. The defeated Feliciy Flesher and Erin Dyer of Oxford to win the State Championship. The Warrior and Lady Warrior tennis teams are coached by Kevin Morrow.Bowling
Pontotoc's bowling team, a relatively new sport at PHS, is already garnering attention around the state as the boys bowling team won Mississippi's Class I title in 2009. The bowling teams are coached by Edgar Sorto. The Boys Bowling Team also came in 4th, at the 2010 State Championship, and they were the only 4A team that made it to State.Cross Country
The girls and boys cross country teams, coached by Mike Bain, a Mississippi coaching legend, have a long history of success at the division and state level. Most recently, the Lady Warrior cross country team won the 2007 4A state championship. And the girls and boys teams won the 2009 State Championship.Cheerleading
Pontotoc High School's cheerleading squad consists of sixteen girls who compete for the spots each year in an extremely competitive tryout week. In 2008, the Warrior Cheerleaders won the State 4A Small Division state championship. They also took home the Academic Award, stating that they had the highest GPA of ALL squads in Mississippi from 1A-5A.Band
Though the sports at Pontotoc High School garner attention and praise from around the state, Pontotoc High School's most respected and successful program is the Pontotoc Warrior Band Program. Mr. Vance Wiggington, is the director of bands at Pontotoc High School. Assistant directors of bands are Mrs. Sarah Todd and Mr. Richie Watson.Marching Band
The Pontotoc Warrior Marching band consists of around 140 members, including drum majors, color guard members, marching percussion, marching winds, and a sideline percussion ensemble. The Warrior Marching Band is known throughout the state for its outstanding musical and marching abilities.| Year | Theme | Repertoire | State Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Chick Corea: The Romantic Warrior" | 6 | |||
| 2009 | "Black and Blue: A Symphonic Jazz Suite" | Awayday / Rhapsody in Blue / Sevens / Blue Shades | 4 | |
| 2008 | "West Side Story" | Prologue / Overture / Mambo / Somewhere / America / Tonight | 2 | |
| 2007 | "Spanish Dreamscapes: Fire, Passion, and Fury" | La Mezquita de Cordoba | 3 | |
| 2006 | "Sunset Boulevard" | Sunset Boulevard film score | 6 | |
| 2005 | "Gladiator" | 7 |