evophoto 10 Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 From the Carroll News - http://www.thecarrollnews.com It’s unusual to see a team go 15-0 against other district foes, yet only place two players on the all-district team. But that was the case for Carroll County in 2009 after the Cavaliers went undefeated in the Southwest District and SWD Tournament. One of the biggest reasons behind Carroll’s lack of all-district players may have been the team’s striking balance. Other than first-team selection Kayla Goins, who averaged 15.1 points per game, no other Cavalier scored more than seven points per game. Throughout the season, seven different Carroll players scored in double figures at some time during the season. “I think that is definitely our balance because we have Cydnie (Cornell) averaging 5.5 points a game and she is our fifth- or sixth-leading scorer,†Carroll County head coach Marc Motley said. “We had Audrey Dickens, Lindsey Martin and others right there with them in every category. That is what made us so good. We were so difficult to guard with so many that could score on any different night.†And while the balance argument is a legitimate one, the case for Player of the Year is a little harder to understand. Despite leading the Cavaliers in scoring, rebounds (9.9 per game), and steals (4.4 per game), and finishing second on the team in assists (3.3 a contest), Goins was passed over in SWD Player of the Year voting in favor of Tazewell’s Kelsey Sutherland. Goins had higher numbers than Sutherland across the board except in scoring, as the Tazewell junior averaged 17 points per game. Aside from that, Carroll County beat Tazewell three times this season with Goins outscoring Sutherland 66-46 head-to-head in those contests, including 26 points each in the last two contests between the teams. Not to mention Carroll’s records of 17-9, 12-0 compared to Tazewell’s mark of 7-14 overall and 5-7 in the district. Carroll County head coach Marc Motley, who was named SWD Coach of the Year, said the vote could have been a product of Goins’ limited playing time in a few district games. “Lower level teams in our district don’t vote for her because she didn’t play many minutes against them. She didn’t play the second half against Grundy or Richlands,†Motley said. “There is no use letting her stay out there and possibly get hurt just to get points.†At 5-foot-7, Goins also played much bigger than her size, coming one-tenth of a rebound shy of averaging a double-double. She also had a habit of making clutch plays and free throws in the biggest situations, not to mention her defense. Motley called Goins’ 4.4 steals per game “unbelievable.†“She made plays when plays needed to be made. I think too much emphasis is put in these district meetings on numbers. The problem is you have teams in our district playing each over scoring 60, 70 and 80 points. One team scored over 50 on us,†Motley said. “They don’t look at the defensive end to determine who the better players are. But what do you do? She plays defense and scores when she has to.†Representing Carroll County on the All-SWD second-team is center Kaitlan Viars. A 5-10 junior, Viars placed second on the team in scoring and rebounding with 6.9 points and 6 rebounds per contest. She shot 47 percent from the field and added one assist and 1.2 steals per game. More importantly, she was Carroll’s only inside presence after the graduation of Hailie Lineberry and Emily Rippey last season. “She’s a kid that didn’t see a whole lot of minutes last year because we had good size. Coming into the year she was the only size we had, period. It was important for her to step up and be a leader in the post,†Motley said. “She passed all my expectations. I am so pleased with the effort she gave all year long. She improved so much from a year ago. If she does it again next year, the sky’s the limit for her. Junior point guard Cydnie Cornell received honorable mention accolades after averaging 5.5 points per game and a team-high 4.6 assists per outing. She also finished second on the squad with 2.8 steals per game. Cornell’s importance to the team in 2008-2009 can’t be measured in numbers, however. “Cydnie started the majority of the games last year and split time with Jessi Watts. We knew coming in she was going to have to run the offense for us and get us set,†Motley said. “I think the people that watch us don’t realize when she’s not on the floor, we have a difficult time scoring. She doesn’t necessarily score, but she sets people up to score. We won one of five games without her this year, so it’s important for her to be on the floor for us.†Another attribute that makes Cornell stand out is her toughness. Motley said Cornell played at about 85 percent for the last 19 games of the season as she needed knee surgery, which she is scheduled to have this month. With nine players back from this season’s Region IV semifinalist team, expectations will be high for the Cavaliers in 2009-2010. “I’m very excited. We’ve got our top six scorers back from this year. We’ve got just about all of our offense back and all of our defense,†Motley said. “We’ll miss the ones that graduate, but the ones who get another year under their belt will be better. The thing is everybody we played is young, too. Nobody had many seniors.†All-Southwest District Coach of the Year — Marc Motley Player of the Year - Kelsey Sutherland, Tazewell, Jr First-team Kayla Goins, Jr, Carroll County Maggie Jones, Sr., Graham Chelsea Gallinger, Jr., Graham Lauren Wilson, Jr. Abingdon Second-Team Brittney Muncey, Tazewell Katelyn Mitchell, Tazewell Holly Bowman, Grundy Samantha Mitchell, Abingdon Kaitlan Viars, Carroll Cassie Ringstaff, Richlands Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evophoto 10 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 Wow... still can't believe that Kayla was passed over as player of the year... what a joke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8ball 10 Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 I think Goins is a very good ball player - but I do think Sutherland is also very good - and very talented. There are seven coaches in the SWD each get one vote - they voted at Carroll County High School - with the AD from Carroll holding this meeting. Each coach can nominate players from their team for POY and or first/second team honors - and then it is the coaches responsibility to provide the supporting documentation for those players - There is no doubt that Sutherland would start on any team in the SWD either at the point guard position or at the shooting guard spot - she can both handle the ball very good and she can shoot as well as anyone in the SWD. I think Goins does better on the defensive side but we all know that defensive stats are not always kept up with or hit the papers [although I love defensive players]. Sutherland was the leading scorer in the district. I was somewhat surprised that there was not a tie for POY and have co-players of the year - but I can't say that Sutherland did not deserve this honor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
futbolking 766 Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 Maybe Carroll's coach didn't make a good enough case for his players at the district meeting. The coaches have to nominate players and state their case, then everybody votes. A lot of times, the coaches of the other teams aren't that familiar with the names of the kids on the other teams, unless the coach speaks up at the meeting and explains who they are...their stats for the year, what they have done on and off of the court at school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evophoto 10 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2009 this says it all... Goins had higher numbers than Sutherland across the board except in scoring, as the Tazewell junior averaged 17 points per game (Kayla averaged 15). Aside from that, Carroll County beat Tazewell three times this season with Goins outscoring Sutherland 66-46 head-to-head in those contests, including 26 points each in the last two contests between the teams. Not to mention Carroll’s records of 17-9, 12-0 compared to Tazewell’s mark of 7-14 overall and 5-7 in the district. Maybe Carroll's coach didn't make a good enough case for his players at the district meeting. The coaches have to nominate players and state their case, then everybody votes. A lot of times, the coaches of the other teams aren't that familiar with the names of the kids on the other teams, unless the coach speaks up at the meeting and explains who they are...their stats for the year, what they have done on and off of the court at school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMen22 10 Report Share Posted March 12, 2009 this says it all... Goins had higher numbers than Sutherland across the board except in scoring, as the Tazewell junior averaged 17 points per game (Kayla averaged 15). Aside from that, Carroll County beat Tazewell three times this season with Goins outscoring Sutherland 66-46 head-to-head in those contests, including 26 points each in the last two contests between the teams. Not to mention Carroll’s records of 17-9, 12-0 compared to Tazewell’s mark of 7-14 overall and 5-7 in the district. The coaches think different congrats Kelsey on player of the year and congrats Katelyn on second team Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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