
The accolades just keep coming in for Bell County sophomore Maci Morris. The 13th Region coaches have named the 6-foot guard the region’s player of the year.
“She’s very deserving of this award. She’s a key part of our team and our program and she has been for a couple of years now,” said Bell County coach David Teague. “Maci puts a lot of time and work into it and she’s always the focus of the other teams. She has to battle through a lot of double-teams and other things but she’s been able to continue to put up numbers.”
Morris averaged 21.2 points and 8.3 rebounds in leading the Lady Cats to 27-6 record along with their first 52nd District championship since 2006 and their first appearance in the regional championship game since 1996. Morris was the MVP of the district tournament and made the region’s all-tournament team after averaging over 25 points in Bell’s three games in that tourney.
There aren’t many legitmate Division I prospects that come out of the 13th Region, but Morris — Bell County’s all-time leading scorer, male or female — has already been drawing the attention of some big-time programs.
“I get a lot of people contacting me about her. She gets a lot of attention from what she’s done playing high school ball as well as AAU ball,” Teague added. “She’s got a bright future ahead of her and one of these days she’s going to have to make a hard decision about where she wants to play in college. She’s definitely a Division I player.”
Morris received a total of 389 points in the voting by the region’s coaches. Clay County senior forward Cheyenne Madden (18.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg) was second with 368 points and Whitley County junior guard Brandi Smith (19.4 ppg) third with 353.
Lynn Camp’s Richard Jones was named the 13th Region coach of the year after guiding his Lady Wildcats to the best season in school history. Lynn Camp went 23-10 and made the finals of the 13th Region All “A” as well as the 51st District Tournament.
Morris wasn’t the only local player recognized on the all-region teams. Bell teammates Morgan Garnett, a junior guard, and Jess Sanders, a sophomore point guard, both were named to the second team along with Middlesboro 7th-grader Blair Green (14.4 points per game) and Pineville junior forward Devin Enix (15.8 points, 7.5 rebounds per game).
In addition, several local girls qualified for the Academic All-Region Team, which is made up of seniors with a grade point average of 3.5 or higher. Those include Bell County’s Paige Robbins; Middlesboro’s Carissa Padgett, Taylor Moyers and Kelsie Hensley; and Pineville’s Annalee Adams.
Here’s are the complete All-Region teams:
Girls 13th Region Coaches Association 2012-2013 All-Region
(points from coaches voting in parentheses)
First Team
Maci Morris (So.) – Bell Co. (389)
Cheyenne Madden (Sr.) – Clay Co. (368)
Brandi Smith (Jr.) – Whitley Co. (353)
Taylor Arthur (Sr.) – South Laurel (326)
Miranda Wilson (Jr.) – Corbin (322)
Morgan Chesnut (Sr.) – Clay Co. (318)
Brooklyn Massingill (Fr.) – Harlan Co. (315)
Jenna Mills (Sr.) – Knox Central (310)
Kara Erslan (Jr.) – Barbourville (262)
Kayla Wilson (Jr.) – Corbin (236)
Second Team
Sarah Evans (Sr.) – Harlan Co. (235)
Morgan Garnett (Jr.) – Bell Co. (223)
Jourdan Ledford (Jr.) – Harlan (213)
Kayla Smith (Sr.) – Lynn Camp (212)
Maria Johnson (Jr.) – Whitley Co. (210)
Jessica Sanders (So.) – Bell Co. (188)
Blair Green (7th) – Middlesboro (186)
Devin Enix (Jr.) – Pineville (183)
Kelsey Erslan (Jr.) – Barbourville (173)
Bethany Powers (Sr.) – Whitley Co. (164)
Third Team
TaLaura Mathis (Fr.) – Clay Co. (129)
Sara Robinson (Jr.) – Clay Co. (99)
Cassi Shippy (Sr.) – Knox Central (98)
Kate Stittums (Jr.) – Harlan Co. (97)
Kandace Graig (Jr.) – Whitley Co. (93)
Amber Mills (Jr.) – Barbourville (87)
Carissa Conlin (Sr.) – Williamsburg (82)
Jordan Brock (8th) – Harlan (79)
Emily Clonce (Sr.) – South Laurel (60)
Cassandra Johnson (Sr.) – South Laurel (49)
Coach of the Year: Richard Jones – Lynn Camp
Player of the Year: Maci Morris (So.) – Bell Co.
Senior Academic All-Region:
Paige Robbins – Bell Co.
Carissa Padgett – Middlesboro
Taylor Moyers – Middlesboro
Kelsie Hensley – Middlesboro
Annalee Adams – Pineville
Sarah Evans – Harlan Co.
Shauntae Lewis – Harlan Co.
Madison Cornett – Harlan Co.
Keisha Mimes – Harlan Co.
Kelly Cox - Harlan
Jenna Mills – Knox Central
Cassi Shippy – Knox Central
Kristin Fothergill – Corbin
Ashley Wyatt – North Laurel
Brooke Carpenter – North Laurel
Taylor Arthur – South Laurel
Emily Clonce – South Laurel
Cassandra Johnson – South Laurel
Audrey Ash – Williamsburg
Sabrina Sizemore – Whitley Co.
Bethany Powers – Whitley Co.






