Laker girls net All-League awards

Four North Tahoe girls basketball players earned Northern 2A All-League recognition for their play during the Lakers’ inaugural season in the league.

Juniors Kelly Hester and Sydney Courcier were voted by coaches to the All-League first team, and Junior Brit Johnson was voted to the second team and senior Kacie Conn received honorable mention.

Hester, a 5-foot-8 point guard, is about as athletic as they come, boasting a 26-inch vertical leap that also helped her excel in volleyball this past season.

The co-team captain led North Tahoe in scoring and assists, averaging 11.9 points and 3.3 assists, while amassing 107 field goals, 286 points and 111 rebounds. She also led the team with 65 steals in 24 games and 30 blocked shots.

“Kelly Hester I believe has the entire package,” said North Tahoe coach Scott Conn. “She has speed, agility, excellent technical defense and she can hit the outside jumper. I could play her at any position and know she’d deliver.”

Conn said in his opinion, Hester would have been the third-best choice for league MVP behind Battle Mountain’s Jordan Waugh and Pershing County’s MacKenzie Hodges, who were voted co-MVPs.

Courcier, a junior shooting guard, averaged 7.5 points per game, scored 180 points, had 48 steals and blocked 18 shots.

“She was probably the most improved player on the team this year,” Conn said. “Sydney has always had great offensive skills, but she really picked up her defensive game this year.”

A quick defender, Courcier also is skilled on the offensive end, with the ability to use either hand and the competence to keep defenders honest with a solid mid-range shot.

Johnson, also a junior, is the Lakers’ best pure shooter, Conn said. She led the team in 3-pointers, making 21 on 30 percent shooting from behind the arc, and scored 217 points.

“She’s absolutely an offensive force,” her coach said. “In the second half of the season, I was very, very pleased with her ability to pump fake, drive to the hoop, get contact and still make the bucket.

“She has the finest technical shot that you’ll ever see anywhere in the league. When she’s on you can’t stop her.”

Kacie Conn, the only senior to make All-League, was the Lakers’ second-leading rebounder with 114 total and 6.3 per game. The co-team captain established herself as the go-to defender, whose job was to shut down the opposition’s leading scorer.

“Coach Brad Hester and I believe she’s the best defender in the league,” Scott Conn said. “Whoever was the other team’s best player, that’s who I put Kacie on.”

Despite missing close to 10 games early in the season with an ankle injury, Kacie Conn grabbed 114 rebounds ” second-most on the team ” and had 25 steals and 13 blocked shots.

Most Valuable Player

Player School Grade

Jordan Waugh Battle Mountain 10

MacKenzie Hodges Pershing County 12

Coach of the year:

Mike Fitzgerald Mineral County

First team

Kendra Koskin Whittell 12

Kelly Hester North Tahoe 11

Kalee Dorman Battle Mountain 12

Courtney Baker Mineral County 12

Heather Gibson Pershing County 12

Sydney Courcier North Tahoe 11

Second team

Amber Piper Silver Stage 10

Kayla Brinkerhoff Pershing County 11

Tierney McKool Whittell 11

Alyssa Tremain Battle Mountain 12

Brit Johnson North Tahoe 11

Alysia Villareal Mineral County 12

Shayla Westwick Pershing County 11

Honorable mention

Isabel Concha-Foley Whittell 10

Brittney Makara Whittell 12

Amanda Maraluch Battle Mountain 11

Kacie Conn North Tahoe 12

Michelle Montez Pershing County 10

Mariah Gramolini Silver Stage 10

Megan McConnell Mineral County 12

Josi Ragland Battle Mountain 12

Sarah Brinkerhoff Pershing County 9