Montevallo Athletics, Montevallo Youth Football, Montevallo schools, and the Montevallo Athletic Club hosted their annual Bulldog Day on Saturday August 16. Traditionally, Bulldog Day has been a kick-off event to celebrate the beginning of another fall sports season in Montevallo, but this year’s event was expanded to include multiple sports representing all seasons.

The event was held at Theron Fisher Stadium, home to Montevallo High School and Montevallo Middle School football and soccer events, as well as Montevallo Youth Football. But with the expansion of the event to include multiple sports, Bulldog Day became an event that included activities at Orr Park and Montevallo High School’s Dement Gymnasium.

At Orr Park, MHS alumni baseball and softball games were held, as well as a co-ed softball game. At Dement Gymnasium, MHS and MMS Basketball hosted a 3-on-3 basketball tournament. Both venues and the multiple events drew relatively large crowds of both participants and spectators.

Just down the road at Theron Fisher Stadium, multiple events and activities were held throughout the day. A community yard sale started the day, followed by a series of sporting events, recognitions, and performances to highlight Montevallo’s finest. There were rides and games for children, as well as concessions and snacks. The events included a community soccer game, introductions of Montevallo sports teams, Montevallo Youth Football team scrimmages, performances by MHS and MMS Cheerleaders, and a performance by the Montevallo High School Marching Band, The Troubadours.

“Bulldog Day 2014 was a tremendous success, not because of the money that was raised, but because it helped bring the Montevallo community closer together,” said MHS Principal, Dr. Wesley Hester. “Many groups came together to plan and make this event happen, and quite successfully at that. A special appreciation goes to our Athletics Director Trey Simpson for initiating this idea a few months ago and driving the idea forward into reality. The coaching staffs at MHS, MMS, and Montevallo Youth Football have worked hard to pull this together, and our Montevallo Athletics Club, led by Coty Jones, has been a phenomenal resource of support, service, and leadership throughout the event’s planning and coordination. This is yet another indication of how our community comes together for the benefit of our children and the programs that support their growth and success.”

Montevallo High School head coaches, Andrew Zow, Trey Simpson, Greg Dickinson, and Tena Niven echoed Hester’s thoughts on the success of the combined Bulldog Day event.

“Montevallo Athletics and the community stepped up to the plate once again this summer with our annual Bulldog Day,” added Andrew Zow, head football coach.  “We were blessed with a beautiful day and our future Bulldogs will have a brighter future because of the support from our community. There were coaches, players, former players, and parents from all levels of football, soccer, basketball, baseball, and softball showing pride in our stadium and around the city of Montevallo.”

Zow said the goal of the event was to have as much fun as possible and he believes they succeeded!

“We had inflatables and games on the fields and tournaments in the gym all day,” Zow said. “Once again I feel we are headed in the right direction and we will make a difference in our athletic programs. We are one, we are united, WE ARE MONTEVALLO.  Go Bulldogs!”

“The Montevallo Athletic Department is extremely pleased with this year’s outcome of our annual Bulldog Day,” said Trey Simpson, Head Baseball Coach and Athletics Director. “It allowed us to reveal our new logo, raise funds to support our programs, and recognize our student athletes from all levels. We were excited to show off the improvements to our football stadium, our schools, and to both the high school baseball and softball fields. Our facilities have improved dramatically in a short amount of time and we are going to continue to commit to provide the best environment for our student athletes.  A lot of hard work went into this event and we would like to thank, our parents, our schools, our community, our county, our city, and the Montevallo Athletic Club for all they have done.”

“Bulldog Day was a great success! It was awesome seeing the whole community come out to support the Bulldogs,” said Greg Dickinson, head basketball coach. “There was a great turnout for the 3-on-3 basketball tournament. I was very pleased to see that we had about 20 teams participating in the tournament. Other events during the day were alumni volleyball, baseball, and softball, soccer, food vendors, and inflatables for the kids. I really enjoyed the event and can’t wait to do it again next year!”

“I believe Bulldog Day was a huge success for our community,” added Tena Niven, Head Coach for volleyball and girls’ basketball. “We had many alumni and friends take part in the activities of the day, and then later that night we recognized our students for their hard work preparing for the upcoming football and volleyball seasons.  It is always great to see the Montevallo family come together and take pride in our accomplishments.”