Download

Paris Junior College Dragons
▶ Unranked PJC storms through national tournament
▶ First national basketball championship for PJC
▶ Students, fans, alumni turn out to celebrate victory
2005 NJCAA Champs
PJC 70, Moberly 61 Saturday, March 26, 2005 Hutchinson, Kansas
Foy honored by both tourney, NABC
Roderick Earls tournament’s MVP; Alexander Starr wins Sportsmanship Award
Earls and Michael Battle named to the All-Tournament team
The Paris Junior College Dragns
swept through a tough fourame
schedule that included sixth
nked College of Southern Idaho
d 16th ranked Moberly (Mo.)
rea Community College to win the
JCAA Division I national men’s
asketball title March 26.
This national championship is a
ilestone in the history of Paris Juior
College, which was established
1924. PJC has won dozens of
nference and state titles through
e years, but has claimed only one
ther national championship. The
ragon baseball team brought home
e NJCAA Division I Championip
in 1959.
The Dragons (28-9) were
nranked going into the national
urnament after defeating No.
ranked San Jacinto College to
in the NJCAA Region XIV state
urnament in Lufkin. The Dragons
efeated Moberly 70-61 in the finals
Hutchinson, Kan., to claim its
rst ever national basketball title.
“It was just a great and excitg
season,” said PJC Coach Bill
oy. “This team had a mission, and
eir goal was to win the national
ampionship. I’m proud of them,
d pleased that the team, Coach
nright and I could bring the naonal
title home to Paris and PJC.”
Paris Junior College had been
the national tournament one
ther time, in 1959. That Dragon
am brought home the fourth-place
ophy.
Several officials of the National
nior College Athletic Associatournament
fans, complimented the
Dragons on their unselfish play and
composure during the tournament.
“Their depth and their willingness
to share the scoring opportunities
was an obvious plus for Paris,” one
observer said in a telephone conversation.
Even though they came to Paris
Junior College from many parts of
the country, they seemed to have
the same attitude on the court - to
win. They all came out of successful
high school programs.
Alexander Starr came from Kimball
High School in Dallas. Lamar
Searight is from Pontiac Central
High School in Michigan. Donnell
Franklyn played at Roosevelt High
School in Gary, Ind. Rickey Quarles
is from Shreveport’s Southwood
High School. Charles Stoker is a
Desoto High School product, while
Michael Battle played at Southern
Maryland Christian Academy in
Waldorf.
Brian Burrell is a product of
Nacogdoches High School, while
Tyler Best played for Lafayertte
(Ind.) Central Catholic High School.
Rod Earls played at Parkview High
School in Little Rock, Ark., while
Bobby Joshua came to Paris from
Everman High School.
Coach Foy said during the
season that this 2004-2005 team has
from Hutchinson, but Earls was
named Most Valuable Player of the
tournament, while Starr received
the Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach of
the Tournament. Earls and Michael
Battle were named to the All-Tournament
team.
This book is designed to congratulate
and recognize this 2004-
2005 men’s basketball team and to
reflect on their accomplishments
during the season.
We hope the following media
stories and photographs will provide
a lasting account of the National
Champions.The Paris Junior College
Dragons swept through a tough
four-game schedule that included
sixth ranked College of Southern
Idaho and 16th ranked Moberly
(Mo.) Area Community College to
win the NJCAA Division I national
men’s basketball title March 26.
This national championship is a
milestone in the history of Paris Junior
College, which was established
in 1924. PJC has won dozens of
conference and state titles through
the years, but has claimed only one
other national championship. The
“It was just a great and exciting
season,” said PJC Coach Bill
Foy. “This team had a mission, and
their goal was to win the national
championship. I’m proud of them,
and pleased that the team, Coach
Enright and I could bring the national
title home to Paris and PJC.”
Paris Junior College had been
to the national tournament one
other time, in 1959. That Dragon
team brought home the fourth-place
trophy.
Several officials of the National
Junior College Athletic Association,
as well as longtime NJCAA
tournament fans, complimented the
Dragons on their unselfish play and
composure during the tournament.
“Their depth and their willingness
to share the scoring opportunities
was an obvious plus for Paris,” one
observer said in a telephone conversation.
Even though they came to Paris
Junior College from many parts of
the country, they seemed to have
the same attitude on the court - to
win. They all came out of successfu
high school programs.
See Next Alexander Page Starr ➥ came from Kim
ball High School in Dallas. Lamar
Searight is from Pontiac Central
A Commemorative Look Back At The
Dragon baseball team brought home
the NJCAA Division I Championship
in 1959.
High School in Michigan. Donnell
The Dragons (28-9) were Franklyn played at Roosevelt High
unranked going into the national School in Gary, Ind. Rickey Quarles
Dragons’ Division I Championship
10 stars. “This group of young men is from Shreveport’s Southwood
play as a team,” Foy said. “That’s
how they played, and that’s how
they won the national title - through
1 ranked San Jacinto College to
win the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament in Lufkin. The Dragons
High School. Charles Stoker is a
Desoto High School product, while
Michael Battle played at Southern
Dragons National Championship Recognition Banquet
teamwork.”
defeated Moberly 70-61 in the finals Maryland Christian Academy in
Saturday, The May Dragons 7, 2005 not only • McLemore brought in Hutchinson, Student Kan., Center to claim its Ballroom Waldorf.

Page 1

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game See on Thursday, Next Page March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 3

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 4

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
See Next Page
Should they lose, they would
Page 5

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 6

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should See they Next lose, Page they would
Page 7

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 8

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt See Community Next Page College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 9

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 10

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt See Community Next Page College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 11

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 12

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 13

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
See Next Page
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 14

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 15

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt See Community Next Page College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 16

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week,
lege Coach
they always
of the Year.
came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores
finals
from
in that
those
city.
teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular
NABC.
season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
The National Association
per
of
game,
Basketball
and has
Coaches
blocked
has
32
named Paris Junior College
shots
Coach
this
Bill
season.
Foy Junior
Joshua
Col-
has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
Foy, who led the Dragons
rank
to the
second
NJCAA
behind
Division
Starr.
I
national championship this season,
“This
received
team has
the
been
award
a pleasure
to coach,”
at NABC’s All College Basketball Awards
Foy
ceremony
said. “They
on
April 3 in St. Louis. The event
have
was
won
held
50
during
games
the
(26-7
NCAA
last
year) in their two years and
The All College Basketball
have
Awards
represented
night recognized
PJC well,
Foy, along with the NCAA
both
Coach
on
of
and
the
off
Year,
the
College
basketball
Player of the Year, Defensive
court.
Player
I am
of
proud
the year,
of
Offensive
them and
Player of the year and other
predict
national
they
awards,
will continue
according
to
to
be
successful at a four-year institution.”
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, has compiled
a 203-118 record during his ten-year
The Dragon
tenure
team
at Paris
roster includes:
Junior College. The last seven years at PJC have been
exceptional. His teams have advanced
Alexander
to
Starr,
the finals
6-4,
of
Soph.,
the
“I knew
NJCAA
we would
Region
make
XIV
it
state
-
tournament
Dallas; Lamar
finals
Searight,
five years
6-1,
I just didn’t
while
know
compiling
when,”
a 162-69
Foy
record.
Soph,
He
Pontiac,
and assistant
MI; Donnell
coach
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission. IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2,
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
Soph,
Page 17
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through isville, Kentucky a four-game won schedule the title. in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho (Texas). and sixteenth-ranked
A&M
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
Foy named NABC JC Coach of the Year
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Brad Enright watched this k2004-2005 Paris team Junior run College up a 28-9 Dragons
record, the most wins ever in a season are returning by a PJC to team. the NJCAA national
basketball a four game tournament in
The unranked Dragons swept through
schedule in Hutchinson (KS) that included Hutchison, sixth Kan. ranked
College of Southern Idaho and sixteenth The ranked Dragons Moberly (24-9) defeated
Area Community College (MO), which the nation’s they defeated No. 270-
team, San
61 in the tournament finals to win the Jacinto NJCAA College, title. in the finals of
PJC is the first unranked team to the win NJCAA the national Region XIV tournament
College to earn of their Lou-
first trip to
championship since 1996 when Sullivan
the national finals since 1959.
Foy received his bachelor’s degree Paris from Junior Indiana College University
and his Masters in Education NJCAA from Prairie Region View VI champion
will face
Pratt Community College KS
He began his coaching career in (19-15) public schools, in the opening where round
he spent four years. He then spent at one 1:45 year p.m. at Southern Wednesday, March
Methodist University, two years at 23. Blinn College (TX),
one year at Union College (KY), and A five victory years at over Lee Pratt would
College Lamar (TX) Searight before scored coming 18 to Paris. send Foy them has into two daughters,
points, 7-year-old while Rod Sidney Earls and 5-year-old and ship Bailey. bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
the champion-
Alexander Starr each added game on Thursday, March 24.
10 points in the victory over Should they lose, they would

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 18

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 19

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 20

It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
move into the consolation
bracket and play at 2:30 p.m. on
Thursday. Semifinal games will
be played on Friday and finals
in both brackets on Saturday.
“We finally made it,” Dragon
Coach Bill Foy said following
the game played in Lufkin.
“We’ve knocked on the door so
many times - and now we have
finally ended the drought.”
It has been a frustrating several
years for Foy and his Dragon
teams. They have played
their way into the championship
game of the Region XIV (South
and East Texas) tournament
five of the last seven years. Until
last week, they always came
up the bridesmaid.
During those seven years,
Foy’s teams have compiled a
155-71 record and the last 10
sophomores from those teams
have gone on to play Division
I basketball.
This year’s team finished
third in the conference during
the regular season behind San
Jacinto and Lon Morris College,
respectively, but found a
way to rise to the top in tournament
play.
“I knew we would make it -
I just didn’t know when,” Foy
said. “This team had the confidence,
and was on a mission.
They got the job done against
some very strong competition.”
Players like Alexander Starr
(6-4) of Dallas Kimball, Bobby
Joshua (6-6) of Everman
and Charles Stoker Jr. (6-4) of
Desoto brought talent and post
season tournament experience
to the Dragons.
Joshua and Stoker played on
their high school state championship
teams, while Starr’s
Kimball Knights were runnerups
for the state title.
Joining them on the Dragon
team are leading scorer Lamar
Searight of Pontiac Michigan,
Brian Burrell of Nacogdoches
(the only freshman on the
team), Roderick Earls of Little
Rock, Arkansas; Ricky Quarles
of Shreveport, Donnell Franklyn
of Gary, Indiana; Michael
Battle of Waldorf, Maryland
and Tyler Best of Lafayette, Indiana.
The Dragons, who play
strong defensive basketball,
have held their opponents to a
conference leading 68.3 points
per game this season, while averaging
74.9 points.
Searight averaged 11 points
per game, but following close
behind were Starr with nine
points, and Joshua, Earls,
Burrell, Battle and Franklyn
with eight or better. Starr leads
the team in rebounds with 6.5
per game, and has blocked 32
shots this season. Joshua has
pulled down 170 rebounds to
rank second behind Starr.
“This team has been a pleasure
to coach,” Foy said. “They
have won 50 games (26-7 last
year) in their two years and
have represented PJC well,
both on and off the basketball
court. I am proud of them and
predict they will continue to be
successful at a four-year institution.”
The Dragon team roster includes:
Alexander Starr, 6-4, Soph.,
Dallas; Lamar Searight, 6-1,
Soph, Pontiac, MI; Donnell
Franklyn, 6-6, Soph., Gary,
IN; Rickey Quarles, 6-2, Soph,
Shreveport; Charles Stoker Jr.,
6-4, Soph, Desoto; Michael
Battle, 6-4, Soph, Waldorf, MD;
Brian Burrell, 6-3, FR, Nacogdoches;
Tyler Best, 6-9, Soph,
Lafayette, IN; Roderick Earls,
6-2, Soph, Little Rock, AR and
Bobby Joshua, 6-6, Soph, Everman.
The National Association of
Basketball Coaches has named
Paris Junior College Coach Bill
Foy Junior College Coach of
the Year.
Foy, who led the Dragons to
the NJCAA Division I national
championship this season, will
receive the award at NABC’s
All College Basketball Awards
ceremony Sunday. April 3, in
St. Louis, Mo. The event is being
held during the NCAA finals
in that city.
The All College Basketball
Awards night will recognize
Foy, along with the NCAA
Coach of the Year, College
Player of the Year, Defensive
Player of the year, Offensive
Player of the year and other
national awards, according to
NABC.
Foy, a native of Fort Wayne,
Ind., has compiled a 203-118
record during his 10-year tenure
at Paris Junior College. The
last seven years at PJC have
been exceptional. His teams
have advanced to the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV state
tournament five years while
compiling a 162-69 record.
This year’s sophomore-laden
team that won the NJCAA national
title March 26 has compiled
a 54-16 record over the
last two seasons.
The unranked Dragons swept
through a four-game schedule in
Hutchinson. Kan., that included
sixth-ranked College of Southern
Idaho and sixteenth-ranked
Moberly (Mo.) Area Community
College, which they defeated
70-61 in the tournament finals
to win the NJCAA title.
Lamar Searight scored 18
points, while Rod Earls and
Alexander Starr each added
10 points in the victory over
Moberly.
Leading by 2 points, 29-27,
at halftime, the Dragons went
on a 6-0 run to begin the second
half, but Moberly came back to
take a 44-41 lead with 9:33 left
in the game. But Earls and Mile
Battle led a 9-2 Dragon run and
helped stretch a Paris lead to
64-55 with just over a minute
left in the game.
Searight hit six of eight free
throws down the stretch to ice
the victory for the Dragons.
Earls, from Little Rock, Ark.,
was named MVP of the tournament,
while Starr received the
Charles Fesher Sportsmanship
Award. Foy was named Coach
of the Tournament. Earls, Starr
and Battle were named to the
All-Tournament team.
The national title is the first
for the PJC Dragons in basketball.
PJC made it to the nationals
in 1959 and came home with
the fourth place trophy.
“It feels great (winning the
title) because very few coaches
get to end their season by winning
a national championship,”
Foy said.
PJC is the first unranked team
to win the national championship
since 1996 when Sullivan
College of Louisville, Ky., won
the title.
It has been 46 years since
their last appearance, but the
Paris Junior College Dragons
are returning to the NJCAA national
basketball tournament in
Hutchison, Kan.
The Dragons (24-9) defeated
the nation’s No. 2 team, San
Jacinto College, in the finals of
the NJCAA Region XIV tournament
to earn their first trip to
the national finals since 1959.
Paris Junior College will face
NJCAA Region VI champion
Pratt Community College KS
(19-15) in the opening round
at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, March
23.
A victory over Pratt would
send them into the championship
bracket and an 8:30 p.m.
game on Thursday, March 24.
Should they lose, they would
Page 21

2005 NJCAA Champion Dragons
BACK ROW (L-R): Assistant Coach Brad Enright, Albert Reese, Alexander Starr, Donnell Franklyn, Tyler Best, Bobby Joshua, Charles Stoker Jr., Brian Burrell, Joel Green, Head Coach Bill Foy
FRONT ROW (L-R): Student Assistant Tyler Easthouse, Michael Battle, Roderick Earls, Rickey Quarles, Lamar Searight, Student Assistant Patrick Thompson