Talented Southeast Iowa makes for talented all-GTNS team

While this year?s Golden Triangle News Service girls? basketball team only has one all-state player on the roster, it does have a number of amazing players.

This year?s all-GTNS squad boasts the state?s leader in free-throw attempts, the top shot-blocker in Class 3A, one of the top 3-point shooters in the state, and much more.

New London senior Ciara Allen, a first-team Class 1A all-state selection by the Iowa Girls? Coaches Association and a third-team all-state pick by the Iowa Newspaper Association, was selected as the captain of the all-GTNS small-school squad. Allen averaged 13.9 points per game and led the Tigers through the regular season and the regional playoffs undefeated. New London earned a berth in the state tournament, where it suffered its first loss of the year to the eventual state champion, AGWSR.

Allen totaled 347 points, shot 32 percent from beyond the 3-point arc despite being the main target for opposing defenses. She also recorded 78 assists and 56 steals on the season.

Cardinal head coach Kevin Patterson was named the all-GTNS small-school Coach of the Year. In his inaugural season as a head coach, Patterson inherited a team that had won three games in 2007-08, but bucked a losing trend at Cardinal and guided the group to a 16-win season and a fourth-place finish in the highly competitive Southeast Iowa Super Conference South Division.

As successful as the regular season was for the program in Eldon, Patterson?s squad showed noticeable improvement and posted its biggest win of the year in a regional quarterfinal game against Harmony. After beating Holy Trinity in their first-round game, Cardinal stepped up and took down the 11th-ranked Rockets, a team that had beaten them twice in the regular season by a double-digit average. With only two seniors on the roster, the Comets? run ended in the regional semifinal against then-undefeated and eventual state tournament qualifier New London.

New London senior Maggie Miller joins Allen on the small-school squad. Miller provided the inside threat for the Tigers, averaging 9.6 points per game while shooting 50.7 percent from the floor. Miller?s presence in the paint stood out the most during New London?s tournament run, when she was one of the most clutch players in the Tigers? lineup, averaging 14.5 points per game. Miller?s biggest benefit to the Tigers came from defense. She pulled down 204 rebounds (7.8 per game), recorded 45 steals and swatted away 29 shots.

Cardinal senior Sarah Yeager, with her ability to play all five positions ? and play them well ? was a major force behind the Comets? resurgence. From ripping down rebounds down low to driving from the perimeter, Yeager took the Comets on her back for much of the 2008-09 season. She led Cardinal in five statistical categories, including points (14.4 per game) rebounds (182), assists (96), steals (48) and free throws (153-for-234). In fact, Yeager took more trips to the stripe than any other player in Iowa this season.

Yeager saved her best performances for the postseason, as she neared a triple-double with 19 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists in Cardinal?s one-point regional quarterfinal upset of No. 11 Harmony.

After playing Mid-Prairie twice this season, Washington head coach Phil Long approached Golden Hawk senior Missy Hershberger to tell her he thought she might be the best all-around player in southeast Iowa. And he may have been spot on.

Hershberger, a first team all-Cedar Valley Conference selection and an all-district selection, nearly averaged a double-double with 16.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. She ranked third in the CVC in scoring and second in rebounding. Hershberger also broke the school?s career rebounding record this season, and finished with 738 for her career.

But she also did other things you wouldn?t expect out of a power forward, such as handle and distribute the ball, as she ranked 12th in the conference with 41 assists. And she used her quickness to come up with 53 steals, sixth in the league.

Pekin senior Mary Maeder assumed the role of outside assassin for the Panthers this year, and hit 57.4 percent (35-for-61) of her 3-point attempts on the year. It was one of the best 3-point percentages in the state. But while the three-ball was her main weapon, Maeder also got it done inside the arc, leading the Panthers in scoring with 10.4 points per game. As one of only two seniors on the team, Maeder was called upon to lead the team in non-statistical ways as well, and she helped Pekin to a third-place finish in the SEISC North Division.

Highland sophomore Anna Sweeting, one of the top rebounders in the state, rounds out the small-school squad. Sweeting pulled down 285 boards, the 11th-most in Iowa this season. Her average of 13.6 per game ranked seventh in the state. Sweeting, an all-district selection, also averaged 14.3 points per game on 55.9 percent shooting, and she came up with 47 steals and blocked 13 shots.

When the Southeast Conference coaches voted on their all-conference teams at the conclusion of the regular season, the coaches selected Mt. Pleasant?s Melanie Phipps as over Washington junior Cassey Sobaski for the league?s Most Valuable Player award, even though Sobaski led the SEC in scoring (16.5 points per game), 3-pointers made (45), and had the league?s highest free-throw percentage (74.6 percent). She also ranked second in the conference in steals (53) and was third in assists (45).

But Sobaski had only averaged seven points per game in two losses to Keokuk during the regular season, and Chiefs head coach Mike Davis argued against Sobaski for MVP because ?big players step up in big games,? he said.

But Sobaski stepped up in the Demons? three biggest games of the season, averaging 21.3 points in her team?s three regional games to lead Washington to its first regional final since 2002. Because of her outstanding regular season and postseason performances, Sobaski was named the captain of the all-GTNS large-school squad for the second-straight year.

Mt. Pleasant head coach Rob McLeland is also making a repeat appearance as the large-school Coach of the Year. McLeland led the Panthers to a 14-8 record and a second-place finish in the SEC this season. He put together a balanced team that often kept opponents from being able to key in on a single player, and allowed the Panthers to spread the ball around. In McLeland?s three years as coach, Mt. Pleasant has a 37-28 record and has improved its number of wins in each season since he took over.

Three of McLeland?s players found a spot on the large-school squad.

Melanie Phipps was an obvious choice. The SEC?s MVP averaged 12.5 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this year for the Panthers, and really picked up her performances after the Christmas break. The senior ended up with 618 career rebounds, making her the top rebounder in school history by more than 100 boards. She also finished as the ninth-highest scorer in school history with 643 career points.

Mt. Pleasant senior Janel Barnes was another offensive threat for the Panthers this season, averaging 9.6 points per game and shooting 40.4 percent from the floor. She also led the Panthers from the perimeter, connecting on 36 of her 98 3-point attempts. The second team all-SEC selection also picked up 42 assists and 38 steals on the season.

Freshman Taylor Shull made a big impact for Mt. Pleasant this season, not just by cracking the varsity lineup as a freshman, but also by being one of the leading playmakers on the team. Shull, a unanimous first team all-conference selection, averaged 9.8 points per game and led the Panthers in both assists (88) and steals (43) this season. She may have had her best game in Mt. Pleasant?s season-ending loss to Washington in the regional quarterfinals, as she was the only Panther who could score consistently and finished with 16 points.

Fairfield senior Maryn Fulton is no stranger to all-GTNS teams. She is making her second appearance on the basketball squad, has been selected to the all-GTNS volleyball team three times, and was named the captain last fall. Fulton ended a dynamite Trojan career with an equally stellar senior season leading Fairfield in several categories this season, including points per game (10.5), rebounds (183) and blocks. The 6-foot-1 center was a dominating presence in the paint, blocking 81 shots (3.7 per game) this season, which ranked her tops among all Class 3A players.

For complete story, read the Thursday, March 19, 2009 Fairfield Ledger.