February 13, 2013

Rollin Tigers wheelchair basketball takes on intramural team

Hinds Community College intramural basketball players will take on the Rollin Tigers, a wheelchair basketball team, in the second annual match-up on the Raymond Campus. The game, which is free…
BY: Cathy Hayden

Hinds Community College intramural basketball players will take on the Rollin Tigers, a wheelchair basketball team, in the second annual match-up on the Raymond Campus.

The game, which is free and open to the public, is at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21 at Mayo Field House Gym. Plans are for the Rollin Tigers to return later this spring for a softball game.

Antonio Wright, a Hinds alumnus and former Eagles football player, plays on the Rollin Tigers and will speak at halftime.

He founded MACE – Metro Area Community Empowerment Foundation – ­to assist individuals with spinal cord injuries and provide youth character building through mentorship, community involvement and goal formation. MACE helps people with spinal cord injuries reach their maximum level of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual function through fitness and sports. The Rollin Tigers Wheelchair Sports and Recreation Team is one of the MACE programs.

Wright attended Hardy Middle school and Provine High School where he was an outstanding football player.  He furthered his education and passion for football at Hinds Community College where he played on the 1994 championship football team, then attended Jackson State University.

On Feb. 2, 1997, he was in a motor vehicle accident that paralyzed him from the waist down.