By Steve Williams
Neighboring counties may envy the talent that Knox County has this season.
Webb’s Green and White Lady Spartans may very well pick up where they left off last year when they hoisted the Gold Ball in Division II-AA.
Much of their talent returns, starting with this season’s Knoxville Focus / Coaches’ Player of the Year Meeyah Green, Webb’s senior point guard.
Green, a Clemson signee and again a Miss Basketball finalist, had another good year for Coach Greg Hernandez as she averaged 14 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2 steals.
Teammate Kyndall Mays also gives Webb a physical presence under the boards as she averaged 13 points and 9.6 rebounds.
While the 1-2 punch of Green and Mays is a lot to deal with, Knox County also has more.
Natalya Hodge of Bearden is again this season’s top scorer in Knox County by far, averaging 27.1 points. A 4-star point guard and again a Miss Basketball finalist like Green, Natalya has signed with the University of Missouri.
Knox County also has two other college signees this season, with Grace Christian’s Nya Burns going to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and Farragut’s KJ McNealy headed to Grand Canyon University.
South-Doyle’s Payton Rollins has a Division 1 offer, but the junior still has one year left with the Lady Kees. The physical point guard averaged 20.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and three steals this season.
CAK junior point guard Lexi Hammock also earned a spot on the first team as she averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 3.1 steals.
Having one of its best seasons in years under Coach Lebrandon Marie, Central had two players to land on the first team in senior Avery Brewer and up-and-coming Malia Moore, who averaged 18 points and eight rebounds. Brewer, the veteran on the squad, averaged 15 points and five boards.
Last but not least, Concord Christian’s Emory Thomas also took a spot on the first team. The 5-7 sophomore guard averaged 16.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.2 steals in a season that saw her claim Player of the Year honors in Division II-A District 1.
“Emory is the engine of our team … She plays with toughness and leadership that sets the tone for our group,” said Coach Brad Cochran, whose Lady Lions have been coming on strong.
The Second Team also had some players who deserved extra recognition, starting with Gibbs’ 5-10 Rebekah Spierdowis.
“She battled a quad injury and an ankle injury, yet still averaged a double-double as a freshman,” said Coach Kendell McGill.
Fulton’s 5-9 Sha’ Nary Cobb averaged 13.4 rebounds and three blocked shots as a sophomore.
“Catholic freshman Emery Haws has had an outstanding season leading our team from the point guard position,” said Coach Micah Scheetz. “Her current season averages include 17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists per game.
“Notably, Emery is only 19 points away from reaching her 1,000th career high school point. Early this season, she also set a new school record for the most points in a single game, scoring 52 points against McMinn County, which included eight 3-pointers.”
