| EMCC Lady Lions reel in highly acclaimed basketball recruiting class for 2011-12 |
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.jpg "Image") EMCC women’s basketball coach Sharon Thompson and assistant coach Edwond Eddings have added seven newcomers to the Lady Lions’ 2011-12 hoops roster. Including five in-state high school products and a pair of out-of-state transfers, the Lady Lions’ 2011 recruiting class is headlined by reigning all-state forward Pashen Thompson of Southeast Lauderdale High School and former Dandy Dozen selection Jeraldine Campbell of Noxubee County High School. Chosen to the prestigious five-player 2010-11 All-State First Team, including all classifications, as accorded by The Clarion-Ledger newspaper, Thompson averaged 29.6 points and 15.1 rebounds per game this past season to help lead head coach Joe Miller’s 25-10 Lady Tigers to the semifinals of the 2011 Class 3A State Tournament. Also selected the Division 5-3A MVP as a senior, the 5-foot-11 Thompson capped her standout prep career by scoring 13 points in a winning effort during this year’s Mississippi-Alabama High School All-Star Game. Though she did not play organized basketball this past season, Campbell was tabbed as a preseason Dandy Dozen pick by The Clarion-Ledger prior to averaging 30.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.9 steals, 3.8 assists and 1.3 blocks per contest in 12 outings during an abbreviated junior campaign playing for head coach T.J. Billups’ 2009-10 Tigerettes. Campbell, a 5-foot-6 backcourt performer, previously averaged 28.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game as a sophomore. Also making the short trek from Macon’s Noxubee County High School to the Scooba campus will be Jasmine Little, who earned All-District 4-4A honors after leading the 17-12 Tigerettes in scoring (13.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.3 rpg) this past year. The 6-foot post player was also a two-time Class 4A state shot put champion for Noxubee County. The Lady Lions have also inked out-of-district forwards Dajah McCarty (5-9) out of Quitman High School and Petal’s Joy Grimsley (5-11). McCarty averaged 9.1 points and 9.0 rebounds an outing as a senior to collect All-District 5-4A accolades for head coach Mike Coleman’s 27-3 Lady Panthers, while Grimsley contributed 8.5 points and 10 boards per game as an All-Forrest County pick for head coach Tommy Edwards’ Lady Panthers of Petal High School. EMCC’s Thompson and assistant coach Edwond Eddings have also added a pair of transfer teammates from Northwest Florida State College in 5-foot-4 guard Alvida Clemons and 6-foot forward Asia Bragg. The tandem saw limited action a year ago on the Lady Rangers’ talent-laden 24-7 squad that claimed Florida Community College Activities Association state runner-up honors and earned a No. 8 NJCAA final ranking. Bragg, a Birmingham, Ala., native, was a member of four straight Class 4A state championship clubs for head coach Reggie Ware at Midfield High School and earned Class 4A All-Area 8 laurels as a senior. Clemons was previously a backcourt starter at prep powerhouse Trenton (N.J.) Catholic Academy during the 2008-09 campaign prior to graduating from Harriton High School within Pennsylvania’s Lower Merion School District. “We are extremely excited about this group of newcomers as a whole, especially when you can put two players on the floor that averaged 30 points in high school,” said EMCC’s Thompson, who will enter her seventh season at the Lady Lion helm and 11th season overall with the program. “This group will definitely be the most talented and skilled recruiting class we have had since I’ve been associated with this program.” A year ago, the Lady Lions were 15-10 overall and claimed their second regular-season division title in the last three years with a 9-3 league mark. The EMCC women have averaged 18 wins per year over the past three seasons, including an NJCAA Tournament appearance and Region 23 championship in 2008-09. “(Assistant) Coach (Edwond) Eddings does a great job with player development in making sure they are prepared for the duration of a long and grueling season,” Thompson added. “As a coaching staff, we are eager to get this group on campus to begin preparing for next season.” |
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| Last Updated ( Saturday, 04 June 2011 ) |
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