Crenshaw Christian Academy is off to a good start in the 2008-09 season as the varsity boys defeated Springwood Academy 73-34 in region play on Nov. 25.

Jake Hataway led the Cougars with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while senior Davis Layton drove in 17 points and grabbed 3 steals. Newcomer Eric Van Beek added 16 points and had 8 assists, and senior Jake Page chipped in 9 points and racked up 15 rebounds. Belgium newcomer Jelle Vermeyen added four blocks and 10 rebounds for the night.

“We played really well with a bunch of new guys who were working together for the first time on the court,” CCA head coach Michael Malpass said. “We’re going to be looking for a lot of good things to happen this year.”

In addition to some new players on the Cougar bench, CCA will also see a move up from 1A to 2A.

“We’ll pretty much be playing the same teams, but our region play will be a little different,” Malpass said.

Last year, the Cougars had a 5-3 region record and were second in the region behind Abbeville Christian. They lost in the first round of the playoffs to Autaugaville Academy, who went on to win the AISA 1A state championship.

The CCA Lady Cougars lost to Springwood Academy 37-22, as did the JV girls, 20-15. For the JV girls, Rachel Tatom scored 4 points and added 3 assists, while Kaitlyn Faulk led the Cougars with 8 points and 8 rebounds. Jasmine Wise also chipped in 3 points.

The CCA JV boys’ also chalked up a loss to Springwood, 24-10. Rann Smyth led the Cougars with 6 points and 7 rebounds, while Chase Johnson added 3 points, and Austin Brown pulled down 9 rebounds.

The CCA boys’ assistant coaches are Mike Jones, Josh Phillips, and Will Tate.

The CCA girls’ coaches are Chris Peterson, Lee Biela, Tyler Hill, and Holly Turner.

CCA will travel to Autauga Friday, Dec. 5, for region play.