DISTRICT 1 AAA 2008-2009

[tricitiessportsfan]

I was unable to make it to Sullivan South tonight for the jamboree, be interested to see the press write ups in the morning.

 

Roll Tribe.

[toughnut]

Update people, update!! /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" />

[tricitiessportsfan]

Scores:

Sullivan South 11, Sullivan East 7 (1 8:00 minute quarter)

Science Hill 42, Volunteer 20 (2 8:00 minute quarters)

Tennessee High 30, Sullivan Central 17 (2 8:00 minute quarters)

Dobyns Bennett 10, Sullivan South 9 (1 8:00 minute quarter)

 

From tricitiessports.com:

 

Dobyns-Bennett Near-Unanimous Pick to Win Big 9 Girls' Title

By Ron Bliss

TriCitiesSports.com

November 11, 2008

 

KINGSPORT -- The Dobyns-Bennett Lady Indians, who have what coach Roger France terms as "potentially" his best team ever, fell one vote short of being a unanimous pick Tuesday night by coaches attending Big 9 Media Night at Sullivan South High School.

 

Eight coaches picked the Lady Indians with one opting for Tennessee High, which has won the regular-season title the last two years. Science Hill, which won the District I tournament last year, was picked third, followed by Sullivan Central, Sullivan South, David Crockett and Sullivan East who tied for sixth, Daniel Boone and Volunteer.

 

"To win it, we will have to avoid injuries and get lucky,'' said France. "We can be pretty good, but we are not very good right now.''

 

The reason is some of his key players have been playing fall sports and have been ultra-successful. Tori Head led the soccer team to the state tournament and a third-place finish, while Megan Devine led the volleyball team to a third-place finish in Murfreesboro. Head figures to be the starting point guard and Devine a key inside player.

 

The Lady Indians should be led by post players Blaine Frohlich, who had an outstanding summer in AAU ball and played on a team that made it to the National AAU tournament in Florida and finished ninth there. The team, Nautilus Express, also won a big tournament in Atlanta and that drew interest from major college coaches Frohlich and other players on the teams.

 

She is one of six Big 9 players who were members of that team. Others are Tennessee High's Danielle Montgomery, who will sign with UMass on Friday; Sullivan Central's Whitney Moody, who has an offer from Carson-Newman; Sullivan South's Makensey Campbell, who is just a sophomore; D-B sophomore Juli Osborne; and Volunteer junior Laiken Gilliam.

 

Frohlich, Montgomery, Campbell and Moody are members of the TriCitiesSports.com preseason All-Big 9 team with Montgomery the preseason Player of the Year. Johneshia Good of Science Hill is the fifth member of the team.

 

"There are more good individual players in the league this year than any year I can remember,'' said France.

 

Others of note include newcomer of the year Jennifer Edwards of David Crockett, who transferred from Unicoi County. The 6-2 senior post player scored 15 of Crockett's 30 points in a 30-14 jamboree victory over Daniel Boone.

 

"She will make more impact on Crockett than any player will make on any other team,'' predicted Science Hill coach Darrell Barnwell.

 

 

Here are the Coaches' Picks and the TriCitiesSports.com preseason team:

 

Place,Team, Firsts, Points

1. Dobyns-Bennett (8), 80

2. Science Hill, 67

3. Tennessee High (1), 64

4. Sullivan Central, 51

5. Sullivan South, 41

6. David Crockett, 29

6. Sullivan East, 29

8. Daniel Boone, 21

9. Volunteer, 17

 

TriCitiesSports.com Pre-season All Big 9

F -- Whitney Moody, 5-9 Sr., Sullivan Central

F -- Mackensey Campbell, 6-1 So., Sullivan South

C -- Blaine Frohlich, 6-1 Jr., Dobyns-Bennett

G -- Danielle Montgomery, 5-8 Sr., Tennessee High

G -- Johneshia Good, 5-6 Sr., Science Hill

 

Player of the Year: Danielle Montgomery, Tennessee High

Newcomer of the Year: Jennifer Edwards, David Crockett

 

Here is a look at Big 9 teams, in the order in which the coaches picked them.

 

1. Dobyns-Bennett: Head, Holly France, Devine and Frohlich are returning staters. Team captain Olivia Blair is the only player not back off a team that finished 20-10. Head has started at point guard the last two years. She is all-state in soccer and brings speed to the basketball floor. Sophomores Osborne and Mackenzie Lilly will battle with seniors Alex Clark and Allie Harville. "We have the best depth we've had,'' said France. "We'll dress 15 players and play 11. The key for us will be consistency. We had a good summer and played in camps in Shelbyville and in Kentucky and Blaine and Juli had a good summer with the AAU team. Our schedule is tougher this year. We are playing in the Greeneville tournament against a team from California. That should help get us ready for the post season.'' D-B opens its season in the Chop House Classic in Knoxville on Nov. 24.

 

2. Science Hill: Darrell Barnwell's team got hot toward the end of the season last year and won the District I tournament and advanced to the Region I-AAA tournament before being eliminated. The Lady Hilltoppers lost their leading scorer in Jordan Douglas, but return Good, Jaimee Hill -- whose return from injury sparked a late-season surge, and Danica Collins. Good averaged 12.5 ppg last year and leads Science Hill's fast-paced attack. Sophomores Haley Hensley and Christy Goodman figure to win the other starting jobs. "Our style is different from D-B's in that we want to run up and down the floor,'' said Barnwell. "We have a very good district this year, from top to bottom, and have made strides on catching up with District 2.'' Science Hill will open Nov. 20 in a Hall of Fame Game at home against Knox Bearden.

 

3. Tennessee High: The team will be built around Montgomery, but new head coach Barry Wade -- who was on the staff last year -- also returns starters Sarah Baker, a 5-8 senior, and Sara Wysor, a 5-4 senior. Montgomery averaged 17 ppg and three steals per outing last year. Senior Cheyenne Thornsberry, who is 6-1, gives the Lady Vikings some size in the middle and figures to start at the post. Elizabeth Vance, a 5-2 senior, will likely start at point guard in place of the departed Nikita Jones. Junior Kimberly Wood is a candidate to start at the wing. Senior Erica Grinnell, sophomores Rachel Huneycutt and Blakeley Burleson, junior Ice Brown and senior Ashton Keen are others who should be in the rotation. "The league is as good as it's been,'' said Wade, "and we hope to be in the mix. We're still not where we need to be, but I think we're getting there.'' Tennessee High opens Thursday, Nov. 20 in a scrimmage against Gate City at home.

 

4. Sullivan Central: Moody, a 5-9 senior, is the straw that stirs Central, but she has help with returning starters Erika Blizard, a 5-9 junior wing; 5-8 senior post Breean Sabo; and 5-1 point guard Brittany Fields.

All started last year. Moody averaged 18 ppg. Jacqueline Kestner, a 5-9 sophomore, played a lot last year and is a candidate to fill the fifth starting spot, along with senior Sara Belcher, juniors Emily Jones and Stacie Hobbs and freshman Madi Phillipie, who is a bright newcomer with a lot of speed. "We need to be more consistent,'' said coach Gary Surcey. "We would be the top teams in the league, then lose to a team below us in the standings. Rebounding will be a challenge for us because we don't have a lot of size.'' Central opens

at home against Cocke County in a Hall of Fame game on Nov. 21.

 

5. Sullivan South: Campbell, who is one of the league's top athletes, leads the Lady Rebels who took one of the biggest graduation hits of any area team. They lost Player of the Year Natalie Pickwell, who signed with East Tennessee State, and Samantha Williams, who signed with Georgia Southern. "Both are expected to get playing time as freshmen,'' said coach Josh Tate. "That's all you can ask when you got to programs like they did.'' Campbell is a 6-1 sophomore, while returning starter Grace Collins is a 5-10 senior and point guard Ashley Johnson is back after averaging between six and seven points a game last year. Campbell led among the returnees with 11 ppg. Collins average 6 ppg and was a force on the boards. Lauren Latture, a 5-10 junior, should also help inside along with 6-1 junior Kim Johnson. Sophomore Tyria Hutchins, 5-8, should start at the two guard. "We have to replace 36 points a game, but I still think we might surprise some people,'' said Tate. South hosts Sullivan North in its opener on Nov. 25.

 

6. David Crockett: The addition of Edwards inside should take pressure on senior Lauren Murr, a 5-8 wing player who led the team in scoring last year. Jessica Burgner, a 5-8 senior, and Madison Farmer, a 5-6 senior, are other returning starters. Abby Gladden, a 5-8 senior, should be the other starter. "The girls have had a year to get used to my system,'' said second-year coach Jamey Anderson, "and that should help. They understand me better and I know better what they can do and that should help.'' The Lady Pioneers open next Thursday in a Hall of Fame game against West Greene.

 

6. Sullivan East: Michael Forrester has four starters back led by Kelsey Trivett, who averaged 10 ppg last year. Other returning starters are Sarah Barham, who averaged 8 points and 6 rebounds; Lindsey Loudermilk, who averaged 7.5 points and 7 rebounds and Rachel Hamilton. Size and rebounding are not problems; taking care of the ball is. "That will be a key for us,'' said Forrester. "We have to be able to handle the pressure.'' Junior Callie McGrew will step in and start at point guard.

 

8. Daniel Boone: Tim Campbell has no starters back and he says everyone should be picking his team last in the league because of that. But as one coach notes: "They still have Tim Campbell as coach and you have to take that into consideration.'' Said Campbell: "It will be a different experience for us. Every team in the league is better, except for us. These kids are working hard, but we lost seven of our top nine players. How much success we have will depend on how much we improve as the season goes on.'' Brooke Barnard, Courtney Baskett and Raven Wilson are the players with the most experience and should start, along with sophomore Kim Cox and freshman Natalie Sheffey. Barnard is a junior and Baskett and Wilson are sophomores. "We have just one senior on the team and one junior. The rest are freshmen and sophomores,'' said Campbell. Sophomore Brittany Johnson, at 5-10, is the team's tallest player and will also start some. Boone opens against Cumberland County at home in a Hall of Fame game next Friday.

 

9. Volunteer: Jerry Myers comes in to take over the program following the retirement from coaching of Dennis Anderson. The Lady Falcons won just two games last year, but hope to improve this year with the return of Shanque Price, who averaged 10 ppg last year, junior center Laiken Gilliam and senior Mackenzie Draine. Draine is questionable, however, with a back problem. Kelly Walker, a 5-10 senior, should compete for a starting job with 5-6 senior Mykala Porter, 5-6 sophomore Katie McFarland and 5-11 sophomore Jessie O'Dell. Freshman Ashley Lindholm, whose older brother Chucky played at both Volunteer and Twin Springs, figures to see regular playing time off the bench. "We have a lot of depth and that's something they lacked last year,'' said Myers, who previous coached at Lee High School in Virginia. "We have nine kids who should play a lot. We hope to move up in the league.'' They will open against Sullivan North in a Hall of Fame game on Friday, Nov. 21.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

From tricitiessports.com

 

D-B, SH, THS, DC and South Win Girls' Jamboree Games

By Jimmy Moore

TriCitiesSports.com

November 11, 2008

 

Jamboree Photo Gallery

 

KINGSPORT, Tenn. ??“ Tuesday night??™s Big Nine Conference Jamboree at Sullivan South gave the girls??™ coaches the opportunity to work out some kinks and showcase their roster before the team??™s respective partisan fans.

 

Each coach made sure every player on their bench got playing time in the abbreviated contest and there were no significant injuries.

 

Dobyns-Bennett, the coaches??™ pre-season pick to win the conference, slipped by host Sullivan South 10-9 in the final eight-minute period. The Lady Rebels had turned back Sullivan East 11-7 in the night??™s opening eight-minute period.

 

The middle two contests went two quarters each with Science Hill, who was picked to finish second behind the Lady Indians, defeating Volunteer 42-20 while defending champion Tennessee High turned back Sullivan Central 30-17.

 

D-B head coach Roger France said the big thing for his Lady Indians was that they did not show anybody anything significantly and they did not get anyone hurt.

 

???We??™re way behind,??? said France. ???We finally got our soccer players and volleyball players back. We??™ve had two or three practices with everybody there. I??™m not making any excuses, we??™ll get there.

 

???We think we are good but we are not very good right now. We think we??™re going to be good being picked to win the league but that doesn??™t give us any right to boast.

 

???They are not going to give you a trophy for being picked number one; you??™ve got to prove it on the court every night. It??™s going to be a tough league. There are some great players and some good teams.???

 

Makenzie Lilly??™s three-point basket was tops for the Lady Indians. A pair of freshmen, Megan Fuller and Melody Evans, also had three points each for the Lady Rebels.

 

Josh Tate, the host team??™s head coach, who faces the task of replacing Natalie Pickwell and Samantha Williams, who averaged 36 points between them last year, said he was pretty well pleased with his team??™s play.

 

???We played pretty hard defensively and got on the floor for loose balls,??? said Tate. ???Offensively, all that stuff will come. Defensively, you need to get that done early.

 

???We lost a lot of points last year. We??™re not going to make up 36 points but if we can make up some of those points and try to play better defense, it may be less of a loss.???

 

Lady Patriot head coach Michael Forrester said when his last five was on the floor against Sullivan South??™s first five they did not fare too well but he was relatively pleased with his projected starters??™ play.

 

???When we were playing our people that are going to be playing (most of the time), we played real well,??? said Forrester. ???But you can??™t tell in a Jamboree. But this is a chance to get everybody on the floor and get rid of some of the nervousness.???

 

Callie McGrew and Angel Trent had three points each for the Lady Patriots.

 

When Daniel Boone and David Crockett squared off, it was a match-up for bragging rights in Washington County and the Lady Pioneers got a huge boost from transfer student Jennifer Edwards (15 points), the night??™s leading scorer, to better the Lady Blazers. Lauren Murr added eight points for Crockett.

 

Crockett head coach Jamey Anderson said Edwards was a welcome addition to his squad to compliment returning senior Lauren Murr, last year??™s leading scorer.

 

???Jennifer has brought some height and a little more inside play which will free up Lauren a little more,??? said Anderson. ???It was a moral thing for our girls (tonight). The last two or three years we??™ve really struggled. To come out and play the way we played I think is more of a mental thing for us.???

 

Lady Trailblazer head coach Tim Campbell said Crockett is a great team, especially with Murr and Edwards leading the way. They have impressed him enough to pick the Lady Pioneers to finish in the top four of the conference final standings.

 

???That??™s two fantastic players and when you put them on the same side of the court, I don??™t know how you guard them,??? said Campbell. ???We sure couldn??™t.

 

???This was a good experience for some of our young kids. I think they finally breathed after the first quarter was over. For the better teams this (Jamboree) is a nuisance, for us it??™s a great chance to learn and get better. It??™s a good day for everybody.???

 

Tennessee High??™s first-year head coach Barry Wade, who replaces long-time Lady Viking head coach Kim Bright, said his team had a good day of practice in Viking Hall for the first time in a while and noted the Jamboree was for the kids but he saw areas to address in practice Wednesday.

 

???We??™re going to go to work on rebounding,??? said Wade. ???I didn??™t think we rebounded very well tonight and we had the two biggest girls on the floor most of the night.

 

???They??™ll do a good job for us. We just need to get a little more physical. We??™ve changed some things offensively so we??™re a little slow developing. Tonight, we didn??™t press and do some of the things we??™ll probably do during the season.???

 

Sophomore Blakely Burleson led the Lady Vikings with nine points while senior Danielle Montgomery chipped in with five.

 

Gary Surcey, Sullivan Central??™s head coach, said it was a night to get all players playing time before a few more fans than are normally at their scrimmages.

 

???You??™ve got officials in a game-type setting and it makes you do the little things right,??? said Surcey. ???We covered all the bases. We didn??™t shoot very well, but it??™s early.???

 

Erika Blizard led the Lady Cougars with six points while Jacqueline Kestner and Whitney Moody chipped in with four points each.

 

Johneshia Good (11) and Lauren Arp (9) led the Lady Hilltoppers of head coach Darrell Barnwell who said the night offers an opportunity to continue to bring his younger players up to speed.

 

???We??™ve got to use this as a scrimmage-type situation to help our team get better,??? said Barnwell. ???We played 12 kids. At some point we??™re going to have to rely on some of these sophomores and even some of our juniors that will be their first varsity experience.???

 

Volunteer first-year head coach Jerry Myers, who were led by Shanque Price with 12 points, said the Lady Hilltoppers are definitely a good team.

 

???We got our feet wet for sure,??? said Myers. ???We got everybody in the game and got to see some things. They played hard but were a little nervous and missed some easy shots.???

[tricitiessportsfan]

Does Dobyns Bennett have any scrimmages scheduled before their season opener in the Chop House Classic @ Knox Central in two weeks?

[TommyMan37604]

Hall of Fame games coming up. Anyone want to talk about that? Why are we so quite this year. Its finally basketball time. Lets get the gossip flowing.

[TommyMan37604]

Just checking to see if people are still alive or what? No one is really talking! Lets hear something about the hall of fame games coming up this week.

[TommyMan37604]

Keepin us on the front page!

[bucdaddio]

Disappointed to read in the JC Press b-ball preview, that Jasmine Foster decided not to play this year for Science Hill...her presence under the boards will be sorely missed on The Hill.

 

Also surprised to see the press had Boone picked as 5th or so, and Crockett next to last. Crockett will be a major player this season, I think.

[supertoe]

Disappointed to read in the JC Press b-ball preview, that Jasmine Foster decided not to play this year for Science Hill...her presence under the boards will be sorely missed on The Hill.

 

Also surprised to see the press had Boone picked as 5th or so, and Crockett next to last. Crockett will be a major player this season, I think.

 

With the addition of Edwards to compliment Murr, I agree that Crockett will be a factor this season. Boone's pick may have been a little generous. I think the race will come down to D-B or TN high.

[theknack]

Disappointed to read in the JC Press b-ball preview, that Jasmine Foster decided not to play this year for Science Hill...her presence under the boards will be sorely missed on The Hill.

 

Also surprised to see the press had Boone picked as 5th or so, and Crockett next to last. Crockett will be a major player this season, I think.

 

No Foster probably means SH cannot win the district. It was going to be a battle with DB anyway and now they don't have any muscle to shove around multiple DB big girls.

 

Is Central really as bad as they looked in the jamboree? With a post and Murr, Crockett will finish no lower than 6th.

 

Top 3: DB, SH, Central

Middle: THS, Crockett, South

Bottom: East, Boone, Volunteer

[TommyMan37604]

WOW, watched SHHS play this weekend. Something is wrong. They do not look like the teams from the past couple of years. Thought DB played well against Cocke Co. they just do not match up well against them.

[pancon]

No Foster probably means SH cannot win the district. It was going to be a battle with DB anyway and now they don't have any muscle to shove around multiple DB big girls.

 

Is Central really as bad as they looked in the jamboree? With a post and Murr, Crockett will finish no lower than 6th.

 

Top 3: DB, SH, Central

Middle: THS, Crockett, South

Bottom: East, Boone, Volunteer

 

 

 

Central....Many ask why? Middle of the pack, year in year out, Chemistry...or...Coaching...or what...?

...sorry just my 2 cents.