It is championship week in the MSAHA, which means all the speculation comes to a head. Who are the top dogs? Who is surging and who is fading? No matter the year or the level of the top seed, the boys’ divisions are always suspenseful, even when the top seed ends up with the trophy. In this year’s 18U girls’ division, it seems as if it will be a battle for second place.
The Laurel Lady Hawks have just completed their third straight year as the top seed with an undefeated conference record. This year has been the most dominant of all three with their closest conference game being a 24-point victory over the PCA Paladins on the road without top post player, Moriah Pierce.
Though the Lady Hawks have been dominant over the last three seasons, they are not the defending champions. It is the Paladins who took the crown last season after injuries ravaged Laurel’s roster, leaving them with young players having to take the court. This year’s Lady Hawk team brought back everyone healthy and has remained that way over the course of the season.
With the Lady Hawks coming into the tournament as strong as ever, the other five teams have had to find their way in matchups amongst themselves. The Meridian Flyers were expected to struggle coming into the season after losing Emily Sherman from last year’s team. Though the Flyers have had their struggles, they have found ways to win in two games over Muddy River and a tight one with Scott County. They hold onto the #4 spot.
The Muddy River Counselors had never won a conference game going into the season and started this season 0-7 in conference including two close heartbreaking losses to Meridian and PCA before finally getting over the hump at home against the previously undefeated Hattiesburg team. The Counselors went on to defeat the Scott County Flames on the road as well. They sit at the #6 seed as they dropped the tie-breaker with Scott County.
The Scott County Flames came into this season with a loaded team. They had additions of Addie Davis and Kamryn Higdon to an already solid team from last season. After three weeks and the departures of Higdon and the three Crenshaw sisters, the Flames were left depleted. They have continued to fight but have not won a conference game since their Nov. 2 win over the Muddy River Counselors. They sit at the #5 seed but find a difficult road ahead moving forward.
The Hattiesburg Forerunners were the #4 seed last season and fell short of Championship Saturday by one game last season. This season started off well for the Forerunners with a 4-0 start in conference until a shocker in Raymond occurred when they lost on the road to the Muddy River Counselors. Ever since that loss, the Forerunners have gone 1-4 in conference, losing two to the PCA Paladins and the Laurel Lady Hawks. Though they are on a skid, they did backload their schedule. They hold the #3 seed.
The PCA Paladins have won all of their conference games outside of their matchups with Laurel. Their closest conference win was a 29-24 victory over Meridian at home. They are the defending champions, but in no way are they considered the favorites. Since last season, the Paladins have lost four of their five starters and their coach, who passed away in September. They hold on to the #2 seed in the conference.
The first round matchups will first be the #4 Meridian Flyers and the #5 Scott County Flames. Meridian is heavily favored to win this game as they are surging after getting a big win over the SWLA Knights at the district tournament. Scott County has been unable to find rhythm since early in the season. The winner of that game will move on to face the Laurel Lady Hawks. The second matchup of the first round will be the #3 Hattiesburg Forerunners and the #6 Muddy River Counselors. Hattiesburg is a slight favorite in this one but it is hard to tell since the Counselors beat them last time. The first time the teams met, the Forerunners blew them out 50-22, while the Counselors pulled off the upset the second time, 33-25. The game will be played at Hattiesburg’s home gym, an edge that may prove critical down the stretch.
The 18UG bracket seems to have a clear favorite and likely winner. But the path to Championship Saturday should be quite interesting. Stay tuned on the TSJW Network.
