Friends' hail Phillips' strength, kindness

Stephanie Phillips, a beloved coach in the Ozarks, died on a summer Saturday night. My colleague, Michael Stacy, and I heard the end was near on a Friday afternoon and canceled our plans for the weekend to stay by our apartment complex. Because she was terminally ill, we had a lot of the legwork done already. When we received the news, we hunkered down in his apartment and made the tough phone calls. We were the source for information and rememberances, set up a tribute page for later in the week and solicited response from the community, which was well received. We shared a first-place award from the Missouri Associated Press Managing Editors for our work. Published July 12, 2010.

Joe Atkisson said the secret to the success of the Kickapoo High School girls' basketball team over the years was not great talent and certainly not luck.

It was its tough, fair and loving leader.

From observing and practicing against the Lady Chiefs as a member of the scout team, Atkisson saw firsthand the interaction Phillips had with her players.

"She handled each girl differently," said Atkisson, who graduated from Kickapoo in the spring. "We had players that were good, but the coach made the team. She was very driven and wanted to win, but she also was very caring."

Calm before the recruiting storm

Big-time recruit in Springfield. Published: Aug. 8, 2010.

Major-college football prospects often spend their summers flying around the country meeting with coaches and working out at university football camps to boost their stock on the recruiting trail.

But Dorial Green-Beckham, a potential five-star football recruit following a monster sophomore year at Hillcrest High School -- All-Ozarks in football and basketball, state champion in basketball and gold medalist in the 100 meters and triple jump at the state track meet -- had what John Beckham, his adoptive father and coach, called "a fairly boring summer."

Save for a high school football team camp, a travel-team basketball tournament in Arkansas and a trip to Florida with the family, Green-Beckham stayed primarily in southwest Missouri.

"I ran and all that; hung out and went up to school to catch a couple balls," Green-Beckham said last week. "I was working on my hands and catching the ball.

"But I mostly just stayed here and worked on all the things here."

Who's coaching your kids?

Published May 15, 2010.

Watching her 5-year-old son participate in a Tot Ball practice last week, Brandi Cline said she feels her boys are safe playing sports for the Republic Parks and Recreation Department.

But the Republic resident expressed concern about the organization's lack of background checks for volunteer coaches.

Cline watched her son and 11 others play tee-ball with 11 adults on the field helping the 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds with guidance.

"I'm surprised about that," Cline said after learning the city does not check its prospective coaches. "I just assumed they all did that."

A year after his death, Patrick Clegg on minds of friends, family

Photo by Nathan Papes / News-Leader; Published April 18, 2010.

One year after tragedy struck in the mid-Missouri Army town, Waynesville has returned to normal.

Even in Mary Clegg's lively house in nearby St. Robert, there still are people of all ages buzzing around most days.

Most of her grieving over the death of her 16-year-old son, Patrick, is done alone.

Several times a week, Mary Clegg spends time at Patrick's grave in Sunset Memorial Estates Cemetery to feel close to him.

Prep golfers missing too much school

This is one of my first columns published in the Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader. Published on April 12, 2010.

Everyone has regrets about high school.

But one I hear often is not taking advantage of the prep golf scam.

Think about it: If you can make the team, there are many rounds of daily free golf to be had in the spring during the offseasons of football and basketball.

What could be better, I've heard many wise wistful men ask.

Boy, would they really regret not teeing it up in this area.

Combing through the spring schedules, I noticed an extra perk for our young golfers.
They very nearly become part-time students.

Lexington native shows write stuff to lead at MSU

Note: The folks in Lexington actually did a great job showing this article on a web page here. Published May 8, 2009.

His Michigan State Spartans football team made a New Year's Day bowl game; his men's basketball team made a magical NCAA Tournament run.

Even his Croswell-Lexington Pioneers made their deepest run in the high school football state playoffs this fall.

Mediate, Achatz seek more than PGA title

Note: Localizing a big event. Without many Michigan ties to the field of the PGA Championship in 2008 at Oakland Hills, we had to resort to writing about the caddies. Achatz is a great guy and I also hooked him up with my friend Jamie Samuelsen for a radio interview on WDFN-1130 AM. Published Aug. 7, 2008.

BLOOMFIELD TWP. -- Rocco Mediate has dreams of making his first Ryder Cup team.

His caddie, St. Clair's Matt Achatz, feels like he's already living his own dream.

The pair is hoping for a strong weekend in one of golf most prestigious events so they can qualify for another of golf's most prestigious events.

The upcoming Ryder Cup looms and Mediate is right in the thick of things, hoping to fill one of 12 spots on the American team in the international event.