foothills basketball winter 2010-11 teaser

WINTER 2010-11 EDITION 3

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

STARTING LINE-UP4 Letter From The Publisher Welcome to the debut edition of Foothills Basketball magazine

6 Leading Off A Starmount alum plays for an NAIA national champion ... Area players ink with college programs ... Starmount, Ashe, West Stokes and North Wilkes ready to crash Forsyth holiday tourneys ... Bishop’s Megan Buckland will be a Tar Heel.

12 Around The World After a stint with the Lakers summer league team, Elkin graduate Tyler Sanborn signs with a Spanish professional franchise for the 2010-11 season.

14 Rewind: Drive For Five Rewarded Bishop sophomores help stars win fifth state championship.

16 Foothills Elite Eight Ranking the top boys and girls basketball teams from the Northwest 1A/2A and Mountain Valley 1A/2A conferences.

18 Mountain Valley 1A/2A Boys Preview There is no shortage of experience found among conference contenders like Forbush, Starmount, Wilkes Central, Ashe County and North Wilkes.

28 Mountain Valley 1A/2A Girls Preview Ashe County girls color the first year of the new-look conference purple. Can the favored Huskies win the league again?

38 Northwest 1A/2A Boys Preview Anyone can beat anyone else in this ultra-competitive boys conference. The league features three schools that have won state championships since 2002.

48 Northwest 1A/2A Girls Preview Bishop McGuinness has won the last five state championships at the 1A level, but conference teams have gained ground on the Villains.

58 Team Schedules & Rosters Found out who your team plays next and which players are on the floor.

62 The Next Level A list of area players now competing at the college or professional level.

Photo by Eric LuskROYAL TREATMENT: East Wilkes won 17 games and advanced to the third round of the 1A playoffs last winter with the help of then-freshman point guard Erin Royal. The Cardinals look to be among the MVAC contenders again.

Winter 2010-11 * Vol. 1, Issue 1

Eric LuskPublisher & Editor

Pam LuskBusiness Manager

Starr PoplinAdvertising Sales

On The CoverMAIN PHOTO

Avery Ravit (Forbush) shoots over Jake Barr (Starmount)

LEFT SIDE, TOP TO BOTTOM:1. Mariah McVey (Ashe County)

2. Danielle Williams (Mount Airy) and Alisha Whittington (Wilkes

Central).3. Sam Lane (Elkin) and Bradley

Lewis (Surry Central)4. Sammi Goldsmith (Bishop)

ContributorsNeil Brown, creative arts

Jimmy Kuhn, photographerTom Keller, News & RecordRobert Coon, photographer

Dave Walters, Guilford College

Foothills Basketball is apublication of Lusk Media,

126 Valleybrook Drive, Elkin, NC 28621

All rights reserved

6 FOOTHILLS BASKETBALL WINTER 2010-11 EDITION 7

SIGNING DAY SPECIAL

Photo by Eric LuskSTORM WARNING: North Wilkes senior Storm Clonch recently signed a letter of intent to play for Binghamton University in New York.

Foothills players ink with college programsA select group of Foothills basketball seniors won’t be fin-

ished with competitive hoops after the 2010-11 season, sign-ing in November to continue their careers at the college level.

Ashe County senior Mallary Clay, the reigning Mountain Valley 1A/2A girls player of the year, has inked with Cataw-ba. Starmount senior Kelli Bonner signed with Wingate. The two standouts, who have faced off the past two years in the MVAC, will be rivals at the college level as well. Catawba and Wingate play in the Division II South Atlantic Conference.

North Wilkes standout Storm Clonch will head north for his college career. The all-conference senior signed with Binghamton University, which is located in New York. The Bearcats play in the Division I America East Conference.

“I’ve worked my entire life to sign this paper,” Clonch wrote on his Facebook page the day before he signed his letter of intent.

Mount Airy’s Taylor Hiatt signed with Brevard. Bishop Mc-Guinness senior Megan Buckland will join the ACC in 2011-12. She signed with the UNC Tar Heels. (See related story in this magazine on page 10).

LEADING OFF

NATIONAL CHAMPStarmount alum helps St. Francis (Indiana) during an improbable NAIA title run

Ferdinand Morales-Soto, who helped Starmount reach the 2A state championship game in 2007, was part of a national cham-pionship experience at an NAIA school last winter.

Morales-Soto earned the Hustle Award after helping the Uni-versity of St. Francis (Indiana) capture the NAIA Division II national title back in March. The Fort Wayne, Indiana school was a No. 15 seed and upset top-seeded Walsh (Ohio) in the

championship game, 67-66. That contest featured five ties and 20 lead changes.

Morales-Soto scored 10 points and had seven rebounds in the title game. He provided the win-ning assist in the final minute with St. Francis trailing 66-65. After a missed Walsh shot, Mo-rales-Soto picked up a loose ball and fed teammate Qadr Owens for a layup.

“Q tipped me the ball and the man guarding me flew by, so I had an open passing lane and whipped the ball to Q for the easy layup,” Morales-Soto told reporters after the contest. “It’s a play you just make, you don’t have time to think about it, it’s instinctive.

“Man, this is unbelievable. We did it with our defense, playing hard as we could and making stops.”

Two members of Starmount’s 2007 state runner-up squad are now playing college basketball. Victor Davila is a junior with Virginia Tech’s program.

Photo courtesy St. Francis athleticsHUSTLE AWARD: Former Star-mount standout Ferdinand Morales-Soto had the biggest assist of the season in the title game.

50 Years ago this winter...North Wilkes will honor a special part of

its boys basketball history this seasonThe Vikings plan to recognize the 50-

year anniversary of its 1961 state cham-pionship team at a home game this winter.

North Wilkes won its only state title in the sport by beating Southern Alamance 41-36 in the Class 2A championship. The game was played in Winston-Salem.


A handful of Foothills teams will try to crash the party at a couple of Forsyth County’s biggest holiday basketball tourna-ments this December.

Boys teams from Ashe County, West Stokes and North Wil-kes have been invited, along with Lexington, to join 12 Forsyth schools for an expanded Frank Spencer Holiday Classic on Dec. 27-29.

Girls squads from Ashe County and Starmount will join a dozen Forsyth schools in the annual Mary Garber Holiday Clas-sic on Dec. 18-22.

The two tournaments are the top drawing high school hoops showcases in Forsyth County each year. Both are undergoing

changes for 2010, though.The Spencer Classic will

use a two-bracket format that will produce a pair of cham-pions — something that has been done in the past when out-of-state teams were invit-ed. All 11 of Forsyth’s public high schools will compete in the 2010 event along with Forsyth Country Day and the four out-of-county squads.

Early-round games will be played at Mount Tabor and East Forsyth, while the semifinals and championship contests will be staged at Joel Coliseum.

Reagan won last year’s Spencer tournament by top-ping Winston-Salem Prep, while Mount Tabor took the championship in 2008 and 2007.

North Surry is a past win-ner, earning the tournament crown in both 1982 and

1985. The first Spencer Classic was held in 1974. Spencer was a former sports editor for the Winston-Salem Journal.

Ashe County, under coach Marc Payne, played in the Spencer in 2008, reaching the semifinals.

The Mary Garber Classic has been a girls hoops mainstay in Forsyth County since 1989. Starmount played in the last two Garber tourneys, beat Carver 52-47 in the third-place game a year ago and taking fourth-place in 2008.

The Garber tournament will move from its usual pre-Thanks-giving slot to the week before Christmas this year.

LEADING OFF

HEADING TO FORSYTH FOR THE HOLIDAYSAshe, West Stokes & North Wilkes playing in Spencer tourney; Ashe, Starmount invited to Garber

Photo by Eric LuskHOLIDAY HOOPS: Kelli Bonner, a senior from Starmount, has made the all-tournament team the past two years at the Mary Garber Holiday Classic.

As with the Spencer, the 11 Forsyth public high schools will participate, along with Forsyth Country Day. Starmount was the only out-of-county team invited in 2008 and 2009 but will be joined by conference rival Ashe in this year’s event. The Hus-kies are the reigning Mountain Valley 1A/2A Conference cham-pions.

Most, and possibly all, of the Garber tournament games will be played at Atkins High School. The Garber Classic is hosted by the Winston-Salem Sportsmen Club. Garber was an award-winning sports journalist for the Twin City Sentinel and Win-ston-Salem Journal newspapers for more than half a century.

Starmount guard Kelli Bonner, a senior this year, is a two-time all-tournament player from the Garber events.

Brackets for the Spencer and Garber tournaments will be re-leased closer to tournament time.

Photo by Eric LuskDOWN THE MOUNTAIN: Ashe County played in the Frank Spencer tourney in 2008. Bryson Payne (above) and the Huskies have been invited back for this December’s event.

8 FOOTHILLS BASKETBALL


FOOTHILLS ELITE EIGHT2010-11 preseason basketball power rankings

GIRLS1. Bishop McGuinness VillainsIt’s hard to bet against a five-time state champion that returns the bulk of its team from last season, including reigning conference MVP Megan Buckland.

2. Ashe County HuskiesCoach Laura Foster’s program has posted a 50-4 re-cord the past two seasons. The Huskies also return a conference MVP, Catawba-bound guard Mallary Clay.

3. Mount Airy Granite BearsThe Bears, who beat Bishop three times last winter, graduated their top scorer (Ellie Case) and a couple of other solid contributors. But there is enough coming back to make this group dangerous in the Northwest.

4. North Surry GreyhoundsCoach Shane Slate has built a 2A power in two sports, volleyball and hoops. The Greyhounds have won 39 basketball games the past two seasons and bring most of their lineup back.

5. East Surry CardinalsKeri Fulp earned all-conference honors last season as a freshman. She could be in the player of the year mix this year, which would put East Surry in the conference title conversation. 6. Wilkes Central EaglesThe only team to really play Ashe County close last season in league play has enough back to generate a lot of energy for this winter.

7. AlleghanyThe Trojans return four starters and seven players in all from a team that won 15 games a year ago (including victories against Wilkes Central and East Wilkes). Kennedy Gambill is a prolific scorer.

8. Starmount RamsA talented freshman class will join a prolific scoring guard (Kelli Bonner) as the Rams battle for an upper division finish in the MVAC.

Knocking on the doorEast Wilkes finished strong last season, winning a pair of exciting playoff games ... North Stokes returns Jodie Lemons (17.0 ppg) off a 15-win team...

BOYS1. Forbush FalconsA huge senior class, four returning starters, a proven system and a Cameron Crazy type home-court advan-tage make the Falcons a formidable force.

2. Winston-Salem PrepGeorge McClinton is one of the top prospects in the state of North Carolina. Prep has been one of the best 1A programs the past few years.

3. West Stokes WildcatsMultiple Northwest 1A/2A coaches believe the ’Cats have the ingredients to upstage Prep and win the conference. Senior guard Jacob Nunn hit 43 percent of his 3-pointers last season.

4. North Surry GreyhoundsNew head coach Travis Gammons inherits a deep team with multiple scoring options. One league coach believes the Greyhounds are the team to beat in the league.

5. Starmount RamsCoach Jeffery Hague’s team beat everyone in the MVAC last season at least once and made a run to the tourney title game. Barely missing out on the playoffs might be the motivation the Rams need.

6. Wilkes Central EaglesTrae Alexander ran all over the MVAC during foot-ball season. Alexander and teammates like Kawan Newkirk should have the Eagles in the hunt for top honors in the basketball conference as well.

7. North Wilkes VikingsDespite some turmoil in the off-season over losing a popular coach, the Vikes have the ingredients for another special hoops season.

8. East SurryThe Cardinals, who won two state playoff games a year ago, will build around four seniors and a junior.

Knocking on the doorAshe County graduated MVAC MVP Greyson Wells but has reloaded and should not be overlooked ... Surry Central returns a talented point guard in Ethan Wilmoth ... Alleghany has one of the top athletes in the MVAC in Julian McNeil ... Bishop McGuinness is young but could be a team to watch by playoff time.


CONFERENCE PREVIEWS

Mountain Valley 1A/2ABOYS BASKETBALL

NO SHORTAGE OFEXPERIENCE

FOUND HEREContending teams like Forbush,

Starmount, North Wilkes and Wilkes Central have plenty of veterans

By ERIC LUSKFoothills Basketball Editor

Forbush and Starmount have been sports rivals since the two Yadkin County schools opened in the same year more than four decades ago. Yet last season was believed to be the first time the Falcons and Rams played against each other for a conference tourna-

ment championship in boys basketball.The much anticipated showdown certainly proved worth

the wait, and then some.With the Starmount gym packed wall-to-wall and lots on

the line for both squads, Forbush’s Mahlon Matthews sank an off-balance shot in the lane with less than five seconds remaining for the 60-58 triumph. Starmount could have sto-len the No. 2 state playoff seed from the Mountain Valley Conference away from the Falcons but couldn’t hold a 56-50 lead down the stretch.

Forbush instead went as the No. 2 team, while the Rams saw their season come to an end.

“I’ve never played in a game like this,” Matthews said af-terward. “This is the most people I’ve ever seen in my life. I was nervous. It was crazy.”

CONFERENCE PREVIEWS

Mountain Valley 1A/2ABOYS BASKETBALL

Conference CallCoaches of the Mountain Valley rank their league

1. Forbush Falcons (2A)2. Starmount Rams (2A)3. Wilkes Central Eagles (2A)4. Ashe County Huskies (2A)5. North Wilkes Vikings (1A)6. Alleghany Trojans (1A)7. Elkin Buckin’ Elks (1A)8. East Wilkes Cardinals (1A)9. West Wilkes Blackhawks (1A)

Starting FiveRanking the top players in the league

In no particular order

G Michael Scott (Forbush) Sr.G Julian McNeil (Alleghany) Sr.C Cody Eller (Forbush) Sr.F Kewan Newkirk (Wilkes Central) Sr.F Storm Clonch (North Wilkes) Sr.

Honorable MentionJake Barr (Starmount), Bryson Payne (Ashe), Sam Lane (Elkin), Trae Alexander (Wilkes Cen-tral), Dylan Pardue (Starmount), Timmy John-son (North Wilkes), Avery Ravit (Forbush), Garth Bailey (North Wilkes), Chris Hudspeth (Elkin).

Photo by Eric LuskTwo of the top post players from the MVAC go head-to-head in last year’s conference tourna-ment, Forbush’s Cody Eller (left) and North Wilkes’ Storm Clonch.


1. FORBUSH FALCONSHead Coach: Jon HugginsAssistants: Jeff Weisner (JV head coach), Anthony Marler, Bradley Shore and James Everette.2009-10 Record: 20-10 overall, 11-5 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Winning the conference tournament championship, playing in the finals of the Statesville Record & Landmark tournamentThree Players To Watch: Michael Scott (G, Sr.) ... Cody Eller (C, Sr.) ... Avery Ravit (G/F, Sr.)Coach Huggins says: “We have the largest senior class that I have seen here in my 12 years with the program. We will depend on each senior for lead-ership and experience. We need to fix some bad habits, stay healthy, and play much better defense, but we are excited about the coming season.”

2. STARMOUNT RAMSHead Coach: Jeffery HagueAssistants: Rocky Horton, Michael Dodson and Ricky Cook2009-10 Record: 13-12 overall, 10-6 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Earning at least one win against every other MVAC team and finishing as the conference tournament runner-upThree Players To Watch: Jake Barr (SF, Sr.) ... Dylan Pardue (SG, Sr.) ... M.J. Bryant (C, Sr.)Coach Hague says: “Our overall experience and athleticism is what excites me most about this up-coming season. I think the experience of our players will be extremely important because most every one of our players will have at least two to three years of varsity experience.”

3. WILKES CENTRAL EAGLESHead Coach: Matt HagamanAssistants: Perry Snipes (varsity assistant), Greg Davenport (JV coach, varsity assistant)2009-10 Record: 15-8 overall, 11-5 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Beating conference co-champions North Wilkes and Ashe County within a week of each other, earning the conference’s No. 3 seed for the state playoffsPlayers To Watch: Kawan Newkirk (F, Sr.) ... Trae Alexander (G/F, Sr.) ... Christian Triplett (F/C, Jr.)Coach Hagaman says: “There are a lot of great things going on right now at Wilkes Central with athletics ... We’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got a lot of things to work on. But I believe our kids are up to the challenge.”

4. ASHE COUNTY HUSKIESHead Coach: Marc PayneAssistants: Dwight Furches, Scott Grubb (JV head coach), Wesley Rousseau (freshman coach)2009-10 Record: 16-8 overall, 13-3 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Winning the conference regular season co-championship, having the player of the year in the conference (Greyson Wells) and earning the JV conference championshipThree Players To Watch: Bryson Payne (wing/post, Sr.) ... Matt Nichols (PG, Sr.) ... Dylan Carter (wing, Sr.)Coach Payne says: “Ashe County has won 100 games over the past four years. We have won or shared the last two MVC championships. We do expect the 2010-11 team to compete night in and night out.”

5. NORTH WILKES VIKINGSHead Coach: Marty BehrensAssistants: Mark Shumate (varsity assistant), Gil Maxwell (JV coach)2009-10 Record: 22-6 overall, 13-3 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Sharing the conference regular-season championship with Ashe County, advancing to the regional semifinals with two 1A playoff victoriesThree Players To Watch: Storm Clonch (F, Sr.) ... Timmy Johnson (G, Sr.) ... Garth Bailey (G, Sr.)Coach Behrens says: “We will be a senior/junior dominated team with four guys who have a ton of varsity experience ... We have a lot of talent, but we need to build everyone’s confidence and be sure that everyone is playing for the team not themselves.”

6. ALLEGHANY TROJANSHead Coach: Tommy McKnightAssistants: Scottie Greene, Chris Brady2009-10 Record: 4-18 overall, 4-12 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Beating Wilkes Central at Wilkes Central, beating Elkin twice, putting Julian McNeil on the all-conference team for the second year in a row.Three Players To Watch: Julian McNeil (F, Sr.) ... Jeremy Mabe (G, Jr.) ... Trey Edwards (F/C, Jr.)Coach McKnight says: “We have more depth with this group. We are more athletic and longer this year. Julian (McNeil) is our go-to guy. He is coming off a knee injury, so it will be crucial to keep him healthy.”

Last year’s grand finale to the conference campaign also served to set the stage for this season. From all appearances, Yadkin County could be a boys hoops hotbed once again.

In a poll of the league’s coaches before the season, Forbush emerged as the favorite to win the MVAC 1A/2A, with Star-mount picked as the No. 2 team.

Obviously, league rivals like Ashe County and North Wilkes (which shared the regular season championship a year ago), Wilkes Central and others will have a lot to say about things. But the Yadkin factor can’t be overlooked.

“We talked about this before, but just what this county has in the way of basketball,” Forbush coach Jon Huggins

said after his team collected the MVAC tourney trophy. “What a heck of a game. It was a great championship.”

The Falcons likely get the nod as preseason MVAC favorite based on what is coming back — four starters and eight players in all who suited up during last year’s 20-win campaign.

A pair of all-conference and all-district players head-line the list of returnees.

Guard Michael Scott was voted the conference tourna-ment MVP following For-bush’s run to the post-season title. For the season, Scott averaged 18.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.5 steals per game.

Eller became a monster in the post last winter, making for a great compliment to the

Falcons’ perimeter game. He averaged 10.1 points and 5.2 re-bounds a game a year ago.

The other six returning players include guards Matthews, Brice Merritt and Kevin Westrich, combo guards/forwards Avery Ravit and Weston Parks and forward Matthew Cain. All are seniors.

“We have the largest senior class that I have seen here in my 12 years with the program,” said Huggins, who is beginning his third year as head coach. “We will depend on each senior for leadership and experience.”

Ravit can attack the basket or hurt teams with his outside shot, which Huggins says has improved in the off-season. Cain is a three-point specialist who also can play above the rim.

“Mahlon’s entry passes into the post did not go unnoticed last season,” Huggins said. “He has gotten stronger in the off-season and we are anxious to see his role increase with the team.”

Parks might be the Falcons’ top lockdown defensive player and has shown improvement on offense. Merritt is a solid ball-handler. Westrich has shown a better shooting touch.

Josh Beverly, a junior, saw spot time with the varsity last season and should contribute more this go-around.

“He was perhaps the most rounded player for the JV team last season,” Huggins said. “We are counting on him to pro-vide the same aggressiveness that he showed last season.”

The key to another magical season could be in the team’s defensive improvement.

“Last year, we often tried to outscore people,” Huggins said. “We have to create a sense of urgency on defense and a sense of pride in making it difficult for our opponent to do what they want to do.”

Forbush’s sixth-man student section — which filled nearly half of Starmount’s gym for that title game last February — could be an important intangible.

“We feel our student section is the best in the conference, and word has it they are even holding tryouts,” Huggins said. “We are ready to begin.”

Starmount is just as eager to get the new season started, es-pecially after just missing on a playoff berth a year ago.

Many predicted the Rams would slide into conference al-so-ran status following the graduation of a couple of stellar classes of players, including standouts like Victor Davila, Cody Spicer, Chris Cowles, Ferdinand Morales-Soto and Matt Brown.

But it hasn’t taken long for coach Jeffery Hague, entering his third year as the head coach, to return the Rams to confer-ence relevancy.

Starmount went 10-6 in the MVAC a year ago and might have been the best 2A team in the state not to make the play-offs (they were edged out by 11-5 Wilkes Central for the No. 3 slot).

The Rams beat every other team in the conference at least once, including Ashe County in the tournament semifinals

Photo by Eric LuskCOUNTY CLASH: Starmount’s Jake Barr drives against Forbush’s Matthew Cain last winter in East Bend. The Rams and Falcons each won on the other’s home floor during the 2009-10 season.

Photo by Eric LuskGREAT SCOTT: Michael Scott earned conference tournament MVP status last season for Forbush.


7. ELKIN BUCKIN’ ELKSHead Coach: Clarence EdwardsAssistants: Richie Lomax, Chaise Swisher and Ben Gentry2009-10 Record: 5-18 overall, 5-11 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Beat Starmount 57-47 in Boonville early in the season ... sweeping rival East Wilkes ... Beating Alleghany early in the yearThree Players To Watch: Sam Lane (F, So.) ... Chris Hudspeth (G, So.) ... Frank Miller (G/F, So.)Coach Edwards says: “I look forward to surprising a lot of people. But most of all, I look forward to another opportunity for my staff and I to pour into a great group of kids. Our strengths this year are teamwork, strong desire, we will defend, and we will rebound. And we will do this with a song in our hearts.”

8. EAST WILKES CARDINALSHead Coach: Justin CallAssistants: Bradley Hayes (JV head coach), Travis Chipman (JV and varsity assistant), Jim Logan (var-sity assistant)2009-10 Record: 1-21 overall, 1-15 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Beating Alleghany in Sparta during the last week of the season, pushing Surry Central in both meetings, playing Starmount to the wire in Boonville.Three Players To Watch: Caleb Shoupe (G, Sr.), McKinley White (F, Sr,), Dillon Cabe (F, Jr.)Coach Call says: “Our main goal is to improve every day at every position. We are really emphasizing fundamentals and getting better with every drill.”

9. WEST WILKES BLACKHAWKSHead Coach: Michael WoodruffAssistants: Marvin Cantrell, Richard Canter, Clark McIntyre2009-10 Record: 6-20 overall, 4-12 MVACTop 2009-10 Highlights: Winning three out of the last four conference games, qualifying for the state playoffsThree Players To Watch: Lucas Stinson (F, Sr.) ... Andrew Marley (G, Sr.) ... Kinston Broome (C, Sr.)Coach Woodruff says: “We are working extremely hard on bringing back the winning attitude to West Wilkes basketball. We are teaching the boys hard work and discipline will take you a long way on and off the court. We want our players to be respectable young men on the court and in the classroom.”

(Forbush beat North Wilkes that same night).Like Forbush, Starmount returns four starters from a year

ago. Ten players in all are back. Seniors Jake Barr and Dylan Pardue are coming off all-

conference seasons. Barr also was all-conference as a sopho-more (and most know about his stellar football career, which included quarterbacking the Rams to an 11-0 regular season record this past fall).

“Jake will be asked to do a lot of things, including guarding the other team’s best player and putting up big numbers on the offensive side,” Hague said. “Jake provides great leadership ability.”

Pardue is a true marksman from three-point range. He’s tall

and long, and could present match-up problems for opposing two guards.

“He is a good shooter who has worked hard to develop other aspects of his game,” Hague said.

Senior M.J. Bryant — a bull-dozer of a fullback and line-backer on the Starmount gridiron — will patrol the paint dur-ing the hoops season. He can score inside as well as control the boards.

“I feel like we have several players who could have a break-out year,” Hague said. “We need to have a breakout year for us to accomplish our goals. I think our speed and depth will be major strengths this season. Our biggest concern will be our interior play because we don’t have a lot of height or size inside.”

If there is one upside to Starmount’s early exit from the football playoffs, it’s that multi-sport stars like Barr and Bry-ant should be able to find their basketball legs more quickly.

One league coach believes the Rams will be the team to beat by late January and February. “They are athletic and physi-

cal and looked really good this summer at camps,” the coach said.

The first Starmount-Forbush meeting will be a pre-Christ-mas treat, coming Friday, Dec. 17 in East Bend. Expect the gym to be packed on all sides long before the varsity boys teams tip it off.

The Rams will tangle with Wilkes Central three days before its first meeting with Forbush.

The Eagles return two of their top scorers, athletic forward Kewan Newkirk and guard Trae Alexander.

Newkirk averaged about 12 points per game. It was a rare night when he didn’t reach double figures.

Alexander, who helped Wilkes Central’s football team reach the third round of the 2AA state playoffs this fall, aver-aged 10 points per game on the hardwood a year ago.

Alexander hadn’t yet returned to the hoops squad when this magazine went to press but his absence in the early season should allow others valuable minutes in practice and in the early games.

“There is a lot to work on but we’re off to a good start with good kids,” coach Matt Hagaman said.

The big loss for the Eagles will be in the middle, where 6-5 Kirk Mitchell, roamed. Mitchell provided about 10.5 points per game last season.

Junior Christian Triplett could provide help in that de-partment. He can score and he can grab valuable rebounds to keep offensive possessions alive. “He does a lot of things that don’t show up in the box score,” Hagaman said. “He’s great at boxing out. He can be everywhere around the bas-ket.”

Senior Tyler Updike and juniors Jashon Lindon and Armin Omanovic provide depth to the backcourt. Freshman Austin Staley was practicing with the varsity during the early season before the football players returned. Staley is another guard.

Don’t expect defending regular season champions Ashe County and North Wilkes to let go of their grip on the MVAC trophy without a fight.

Ashe returns three starters from a year ago, including se-nior wing/post Bryson Payne, who averaged 12.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

Payne was all-conference, all-MVAC tournament and third team all-district.

Point guard Matt Nichols and wing Dylan Carter also are back. Neither were huge scorers last year but provided steady play overall and were good defenders (each swiped more than 40 steals).

“Matt and Dylan both battled injuries last season that caused them to miss games. I am expecting Bryson, Matt and Dylan to have good senior seasons.”

Like Forbush, Ashe has a plethora of 12th-graders. Point guard/wing Joe Weaver, wing Chris Hamby and post Zach Richardson all return from last year’s varsity. Weaver started a couple of games.

Head coach Marc Payne, who has 532 career wins counting his time at Ashe, Watauga and Beaver Creek high schools, will pull up four juniors and two sophomores from last year’s conference championship JV squad.

Sam Gammons, Andrew Lopp and Nehemiah Stafford are guards. Eli Gambill is a combo wing/post player. Zeb Rich-ardson and Tyler Stuart each play down low.

The big shoes to fill were left by 2010 conference player of the year Greyson Wells, who graduated. Still, Coach Payne and the Huskies have big goals for this winter.

“Our expectations are to compete for a Mountain Val-ley championship,” Payne said.. “It’s going to be a very tough league this season. Forbush, Starmount, Wilkes Central and North Wilkes all return key players and their leading rebounders, leading scorers, point guards and post players. There are no easy games.”

And that goes for teams that must face the Huskies this season, especially in West Jef-ferson. Ashe County has won 100 games the past four years, coach Payne said.

“We have won or shared the last two MVC champion-ships,” the coach said. “We do expect the 2010-11 team to compete night-in and night-out.”

It’s been a rough cycle for most North Wilkes sports teams, but the boys basketball squad has been a beacon for the school the past few seasons.

The Vikings finished 22-6 a year ago and matched Ashe County with a 13-3 conference mark. There is a new coach in charge of the program, Marty Behrens, but plenty of famil-iar players in the lineup. Five players return, including four starters.

Four seniors help lead the way. Storm Clonch, who might have the best basketball name in

the Foothills region, recently signed with Binghamton Uni-versity, a Division I program in New York. He plays forward and can get above the rim on a fastbreak.

“He can jump out of the gym and is a great scorer,” Behrens said. “He has improved his outside shot this summer to add to his weapons.”

Guard Timmy Johnson is one of the team’s floor leaders

NOT SO FASTForbush and Starmount may be the preseason favorites to win the conference, according to MVAC coaches. But Dylan Cart-er and the Ashe County Huskies are the reigning co-champions, along with North Wilkes. Ashe won’t give up its trophy without a fight.

“We have won or shared the last two MVC championships,” Ashe coach Marc Payne says. “We do expect the 2010-11 team to compete night-in and night-out.”

Photo by Eric LuskNORTHERN LIGHTS: The boys basketball team has been one of the top per-formers at North Wilkes the past few seasons. Garth Bailey and the Vikes have big dreams for 2010-11 as well, including leading the way among the 1A schools.


and has great basketball smarts.“He makes great decisions in the open court and can really

shoot the three-pointer,” Behrens said. “He excels at pene-trating and finishing around the basket.”

Like Clonch, Johnson earned all-conference honors a year ago.

Senior Garth Bailey will play alongside Johnson at guard. Behrens called the honorable mention all-conference performer fearless. “His out-side shot has improved and he is relentless in taking it to the hoop,” the coach said.

Senior Allen Johnson played a sixth-man role last season. The multi-faceted forward was named all-county a year ago.

Ryan Walsh, a junior forward, moves up from the JV squad. He could grab some key varsity minutes if his improvement curve continues. “He can explode around the rim, finish in close and runs the floor extremely well for a kid his size,” Beh-rens said. “He will be one of our better re-bounders and shot-blockers.”

Building team chemistry and confidence after a rocky off-season, which saw popu-

lar head coach Tommy Johnson removed from the North Wil-kes staff, will be crucial.

Behrens is new to the Vikings but not new to high school coaching. He’s been in the business for 15 years, including stops at Florida high schools.

If everything comes to together, the Vikings could be the class of the 1A portion of the conference by season’s end.

“The amount of returning talent we have along with the fact that it is all new for me has me looking forward to the season,” Behrens said. “We also have a terrific group of JV players moving up to add to the returners from last year. We want to finish the season playing our best basketball and to make a deep run into the playoffs.”

Alleghany could be the toughest challenger to North Wil-kes’ aim to reign among the 1A conference schools.

The Trojans won just four games a year ago but return some of the top athletes in the conference.

Senior Julian McNeil, who stands 6-foot-4, has averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds per game over the past two sea-sons. He earned all-conference honors both years.

Juniors Jeremy Mabe and Jacob McKnight also can fill up the cup. Both are three-point specialists, said coach Tommy McKnight said, who has been at the Sparta school for 17 years.

The starting five could include 6-4 junior Trey Edwards and freshman point guard Austin Easter. Edwards was a JV stand-out a year ago.

“We have more depth with this group,” McKnight said. “We are more athletic and longer this year. Julian is our go-to guy. He is coming off a knee injury, so it will be crucial to keep him healthy.”

Elkin will feature one of the youngest teams in what is oth-erwise a veteran conference.

Coach Clarence Edwards returns only three players with significant varsity minutes — senior Grayson Kimrey and sophomores Sam Lane and Chris Hudspeth.

Lane and Hudspeth both started much of 2009-10, with Lane picking up all-conference honors after averaging about 10 points and seven rebounds per game. He also led the Elks in blocked shots — an amazing feat considering Lane was outsized most nights on defense.

He could move out to the wing more this season if other post options emerge.

“Sam is very tenacious. He goes hard all the time,” Ed-wards said. “He is very skilled on the block and was our most effective post player last year. He takes pride in playing de-fense and is an aggressive rebounder.”

Edwards gave the reins of the offense to Hudspeth last year, and the ninth-grader showed the poise and leadership of a high school veteran. Elkin needs another big year from its point guard to get back to the 1A playoffs.

“Chris is an exceptional athlete. He is a good on-the-ball defender, rebounds well and has strong ball-handling skills,” Ed-wards said. “Chris also shoots the ball well with the ability to drive to the basket and finish, or distribute the ball. We expect his scoring to increase this year.”

Kimrey is another guard, who can both shoot from long range or drive-and-dish. “He is probably our most athletic player this year,” Edwards said.

Frank Miller, a sophomore, saw some floor time in the post-season a year ago. He was a JV leader until moving up and can contribute at guard and forward.

Byron Alberto, Hayden Snow and McKinley Garris also could see significant minutes this season. Alberto is a solid shooter, ball-handler and defender. Snow and Garris will play on the block.

“Hayden is a hardnosed post player who goes hard to the offensive glass,” Edwards said. “He’s a little rough around the edges, but his tenacity makes up for any lack of skill. McKinley Garris has game changing potential. He can score both on the block and has a sweet midrange jumper. In order for us to be successful they will both have to be focused.

“There are other players that we will also look toward for good minutes, and we hope to have a couple of surprises in the post.”

East Wilkes and West Wilkes will look to climb up the con-ference ladder this season after taking their lumps a year ago.

East won just once last winter — a 59-46 decision at Al-leghany on Feb. 12 — but the Cardinals were a tough out many nights. They pushed 2A Surry Central to the wire a couple of times and played Starmount close in Boonville un-til the closing minutes.

Coach Justin Call will build his fifth team as head coach around a solid group of upperclassmen.

East Wilkes should have better size with forwards McKin-ley White and Dillon Cabe, and center Cody Chapman all standing at 6-foot-3.

The Cards really missed the athletic White last season. He didn’t play much because of an injured knee. East seemed to have an added spark when he did make it on the floor.

“In limited time, he averaged 5.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game,” Call said. “He has the potential to have a really good season this year, both offensively and defensively play-ing the four and five spots for us.”

Cabe transferred to East Wilkes from Franklin High. He brings a toughness to the Cardinals’ lineup and has a nose for the ball. He can slash to the basket for points and knows how to hit the glass.

Chapman may be the most improved of the big men on the roster, Call said. “Cody is the type of player that works hard

Photo by Eric LuskLOOKING UP IN SPARTA: With the return of two-time all-conference performer Julian McNeil, Alleghany could be much improved this winter. Photo by Eric Lusk

FAST LANE: Elkin’s Sam Lane earned all-conference honors as a freshman. He’ll be one of the Buckin’ Elks’ key players once again this winter.

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on every play and makes the type of plays that are needed to win ball games,” the coach said.

East Wilkes could have a deep rotation on the perimeter. Seven players — six seniors and one junior — will battle for minutes at guard and small forward.

Caleb Shoupe led the Cards in assists and steals a year ago. He’ll be one of the team’s floor leaders once he makes his way back from an injury sustained during football, Call said.

Dylan Cook is a great distributor and on-the-ball defender, Call said. Jordan Stamper, an all-conference soccer player, has good range on his shot and has good size for a wing player at 6-2.

Steven Gregory, the quarterback for East during the football season, is more of a defensive specialist in hoops. He brings intensity and the ability to create with the drive.

Dakota Cabe, Trendon Harris and Grant Tharpe round out the list. Cabe and Harris are both seniors. Dakota Cabe also trans-ferred from Franklin. Harris is one of the quickest players on the team. Tharpe is a junior with a zone-busting outside shot.

“Our team has worked harder this off-season than in years past,” Call said. “They had a good team camp this summer and seem to have the right attitude coming in to the season. The strengths of this team will be its unselfishness and the depth in the backcourt. Our numbers in the backcourt will allow us to pressure a little more on the defensive end.”

The Cardinals know the climb will be tough to contend in the MVAC. Their main goal is getting better with every drill, Call said.

“If we can continue to worry about improving our team and ourselves as individuals then our goals of making the playoffs will follow,” the coach said. “Our main focus though is us. We are only going to worry about our team.”

West Wilkes is hoping to build off a strong finish to last win-ter. The Blackhawks won three of their last four conference games and earned a spot in the 1A playoffs.

Coach Michael Woodruff returns seven members. Senior guard Andrew Marley and senior forward Lucas Stinson both started. Marley is the Blackhawks’ best out-side shooter, Woodruff said. Stinson could be the team’s leading scorer this winter.

“We need Lucas Stinson to be huge for us on the offensive end,” the coach said.

Four other 12th-graders could be in the mix for playing time. Phil Eller and Luke Foster play guard. Foster has great quick-ness, Woodruff said, and makes great cuts to the basket. Kinston Brooke is a center with a solid shot. Andrew Adams plays forward, and the Hawks need his rebounding prow-ess.

Six juniors and a sophomore round out the starting roster.

Junior Seth Absher, junior Chase Vogt and sophomore Josh Phipps fill out the back-court. Absher is a solid defender and can penetrate well with the ball. Vogt is another defensive specialist with good quickness. “Phipps has a good shot, works hard and is going to be an asset for us,” Woodruff said.

2009-10 Rewind: Mountain Valley 1A/2A Boys All-Conference

Boys Player of the Year: Greyson Wells (Ashe County)

Boys Coach of the Year: Marc Payne (Ashe County)All-Conference: Trae Alexander, Kirk Mitchell,

Kawan Newkirk (Wilkes Central); Jake Barr, Dylan Par-due (Starmount); Micah Bryan (East Wilkes); Storm Clonch, Timmy Johnson, Ty Johnson (North Wilkes); Bryson Payne, Greyson Wells (Ashe County); Cody Eller, Michael Scott (Forbush); Sam Lane (Elkin); Julian Mc-Neil (Alleghany).

Honorable Mention: Ethan Absher (West Wilkes); M.J. Bryant, Garrett Johnson (Starmount); Cory Roten (Ashe County); Jarred Cornette (East Wilkes); Jermaine Hayes (Elkin); Chase Miller (Wilkes Central); Avery Ravitt (Forbush); Mark Ruppard (Alleghany)

Junior forwards Garrett Hamby and Josh Greer will be looked upon for rebounding and hustle around the basket. Fellow ju-nior Jeremy Parks is another forward with good court aware-ness and shooting skills.

Junioe Quenton Shepherd will man the center position. He’s another hard-working rebounder.

Woodruff said his 2010-11 Blackhawks have a lot of heart and a willingness to give their all. “We are working extremely hard on bringing back the winning attitude to West Wilkes bas-ketball,” Woodruff said. “We are teaching the boys hard work and discipline will take you a long way on and off the court. We want our players to be respectable young men on the court and in the classroom.” q

foothills basketball winter 2010-11 teaser

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