This past season, the PCA Paladins and the Laurel Knighthawks squared off for the MSAHA Title for the second straight season. Between the two teams, there are six seniors graduating. Five of them come from the Laurel Knighthawks and one from the Paladins. But this is not where the most major changes will occur. There will be changes from the top down starting with the head coaches.
Already widely known, the Laurel Knighthawks will be without their head coach of the last three seasons Cliff Jenkins. He walked away in a decision announced before the season’s end. Jenkins’ youngest son, Caleb Jenkins, graduated this year, marking a clear transition point for him. As mentioned earlier, the Knighthawks will be moving into the new season with five seniors graduating. Four of the Knighthawks’ five starters are gone heading into the 2022-23 season. This leaves the Knighthawks with an uphill battle for the upcoming year.
Kai Welch is the only starter to remain, but that is a very solid player to keep as he finished No. 2 on the 2022 All-Conference list. In addition to Welch, Laurel will have to lean on their players from the 16U squad of last year. This was a 16U squad that captured the No. 4 seed in the regular season but finished fifth in the playoffs after losing to the Hattiesburg Forerunners on a last second buzzer beater by Keller Russell ending their rocky season that was riddled with injury. Still, this is a team with talent, particularly with bigs, such as Brayden Dry and Skylar Haden. Caleb Blankenship is a talented guard who will most likely have to step in and play big 18U minutes this next year at the point guard slot. Senior Ollie Hammonds will also need to step up big for the Knighthawks.
Ben Flynt will step in as the new head coach for the Lauel Knighthawks. He served as assistant coach this past season and his son Jack Flynt was an exceptional player who helped lead Laurel to the 2021 MSAHA Title. Coach Flynt will look to continue the success of the back-to-back champion Knighthawk organization.
Moving our attention to the PCA Paladins, that is a different story. This past season, the Paladins captured the No. 1 seed in the MSAHA for the second straight year. Though they rallied to capture the 16UB championship over the Muddy River Counselors, the Paladins could not quite overcome the Laurel Knighthawks for the 18UB Title. However, the Paladins had only one senior, Seth Conner. Conner was an impact player for the Paladins, but one player is not five that Laurel is losing. After the 2022 playoffs, the Paladins were a runaway favorite for the 2023 MSAHA Title.
But now a monkey wrench has been thrown into it. Coach Chris Ericksen is leaving the PCA Paladins along with his son Colyn, who was voted No. 4 in MSAHA, will not be with the Paladins either. Colyn Ericksen will be playing for the Wolverines of Northlake Christian School in Covington, LA. This changes the outlook for the PCA Paladins. They are also still awaiting recovery from Caden Comenge, who is coming back from shoulder surgery. PCA would still be considered the favorites to win their first MSAHA 18UB Title, but it looks like a tighter field. Stepping in to coach the Paladins will be Brian Comenge, who served as assistant coach for the team. Eric Singletary will also continue his role on the bench as an assistant coach.
The Paladins still have a majority of their 16U championship squad though. They will have Drew Boggs and Hank Peace, who have plenty of 18U experience and were also key figures on the 16U championship team. Tate Boggs, who will be a Junior, is an excellent defender and hard driver and will be returning as well. Timothy Singletary is a shooter who came up big in the 16U Title game and he will be returning. The Paladins will also be looking forward to the return of Caden Comenge, who is expected to return by December. This keeps the PCA Paladins in their spot as the favorites until further notice.
Cliff Jenkins and Chris Ericksen have been the two coaches left for 18UB on Championship Saturday for the past two seasons. However the 2023 Championship Saturday unfolds, neither one of these coaches will be involved, and that will be a new look.
