The Marion Lady Patriots finished 20-11 last season and earned a trip to the state tournament after finishing second in an always brutal 5A East conference. Head coach Shunda Johnson and her staff lost some players to graduation and transfer, so they will need some players to step into bigger roles this season to get back to the postseason. Junior Summer Morgan is the lone returning starter from last season. The combo guard / small forward has speed, quickness and the ability to handle the ball. Morgan will play inside out for Coach Johnson this season after averaging nine points 5.5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2.3 steals a year ago. Jordyn Wilkerson has started some each of the last two seasons, but has suffered injuries in both seasons, only playing 16 games last season. The senior point guard averaged four points, three assists, and three rebounds in those games and will need to stay healthy for the Lady Patriots to be successful. Senior guard LaNiya Crayton will be counted on to be a consistent perimeter scorer as well as play solid defense for Coach Johnson. Junior guard Maliya Stallings will be a secondary ball handler for the Lady Patriots, as well as a perimeter scorer. Freshman Cortlyn Brown will move up to the high school level in hopes of making an impact. Brown will play inside and outside for Coach Johnson and will utilize her guard skills to attack off the dribble. Coach Johnson will look to build some depth early in the season, but says playing good defense, being patient in the half-court offense, and executing plays are keys to her team’ s success. The Marion Lady Patriots should be in the mix in the 5A East once again and battle for one of the spots in the state tournament. If they build some depth in the early season, they could be tough come January and February. Look for the Lady Patriots to make some noise in March.
Sammie Lewis and the Marion Patriots enjoyed a 26-7 season last year, claiming the 5A East conference title and making it to the state semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Benton. Marion has four returning starters and expectations are high on the banks of the Mississippi. Chandler Randle earned All-State honors averaging 12 points and 5.6 rebounds a night last year. The senior guard returns as a three level scorer and great defender who has a really high motor. Jackson Black and Jalen Neal also return after All-Conference campaigns a season ago. Black is a great finisher, good post defender, and can knock down open jumpers. Coach Lewis calls him a " glue guy.” Neal is a strong, physical three level scorer who averaged eight points and four rebounds a game. Coach Lewis says he guards and rebounds well above his size. Point guard Dexter Higgins is back to run the offense. Higgins averaged six points and four assists for the Patriots last season. Coach Lewis says Higgins gets his squad going, is a really good passer, and sets the tempo for the game. Junior Korbin Littlejohn is a dual threat guard that can play the 1 or 2 position. Litltejohn is a good shooter with great pace and dubbed as another glue guy. Classmate Karlal Hyland is a high energy guard that can knock down the open look. Fellow juniors Daevion Bailey and Jaylon Ford are looking to contribute as well. Bailey is a knock down shooter, and Ford is a good rebounder and finisher around the rim. Senior Jamari Bruin is long and athletic, effects shots at the rim, and finishes on the other end. Coach Lewis feels there are a few things his team needs to do to continue this successful run.“ Our keys to success will be consistency and handling adversity,” Coach said.“ This group plays hard and they play together. Keeping them bought in and keeping the brotherhood will be key. We are going to have to shoot the ball better offensively, defend the basketball and get out in transition to be successful.” The Marion Patriots will be one of the favorites in the tough 5A East, and they hope to take that next step to Hot Springs in
Coach Chris Pilz returns for his second season to lead the Pocahontas Redskins. The Redskins went 16-14 last season and are looking to improve on that and get back to the regional tournament. Coach Pilz has some experience returning along with some guys that didn’ t play last season that he feels will provide him more depth to play 9-10 players a night. Seniors Mason Priest and Payne Swann are back to provide leadership for the Skins. Both played big minutes and contributed last season. Junior Jared Mitchell returns inside after some big scoring nights last year. Mitchell is physical inside, but has been working on improving his outside touch. Classmate Jaxson Woods is a deep shooting guard that has worked on driving the ball and finding open teammates. Noah Baltz returns to Pocahontas from Jonesboro and provides the Redskins with another scoring threat. Parker Radcliff and Carter Couch should help provide depth for Coach Pilz. Couch is a high character kid with a big body presence inside that returns after not playing last season. Coach Pilz sees a lot of improvement from last year’ s Pocahontas team.“ We will be able to space the floor and shoot it a lot better, but it will come down to can we limit our turnovers and offensive rebound the basketball,” he said.“ We will play multiple defenses and try to turn you over.” Coach Pilz has also challenged his team in the non-conference to get ready for a balanced and deep 4A-3 conference. Look for the Pocahontas Redskins to improve on last season’ s conference record and have an opportunity to make it to the regional tournament in February.
The Pocahontas Lady Redskins finished last season 7-18, and Coach Ali Brooks will rely on a young group of Lady Redskins after losing five seniors to graduation.“ We are a young team,” Coach Brooks said.“ We have no seniors, three juniors, and six sophomores. We are looking to play fast and force turnovers in the full court. We will have to stay out of foul trouble.“ Junior forward Jacalyn Chester is the lone returning starter from a year ago. Chester is long and physical and shoots the ball well for a post player. Sophomore guards Aubrey Coffey, Sydney Percifull, Brayleigh Carter are expected to fill big roles. All three have strong ball handling skills, shoot the ball well, and are physical on defense.“ We are looking to Coffey and Percifull for scoring and ball handling, while Brayleigh Carter will be our defensive motor,” Coach Brooks said of her sophomore perimeter trio. Another sophomore looking to make an impact is post player Adrienne Mahan. Mahan is strong, aggressive, and plays well with back to the rim or facing up. Coach Brooks says Mahan is not afraid of contact inside. Pocahontas may need some early season games to gain the experience they will need to compete in the 4A-3. The talent level should then rise for the Pocahontas Lady Redskins to be ready for the conference slate after the New Year. As they build toward the future, look for the Lady Redskins to be ready to compete and be in the mix for a regional tournament berth at the end of the season.