MAYFLOWER EAGLES

LITTLE ROCK — BOYS

Conference: 3A-5

Coach: Brent Stallings, 27th season

Assistant coach: None

Last year’s record: 4-13 overall, 3-11 in con

ference play

Returning starters: Jordan Dycus, 6-0 senior

guard, 12 ppg; Demetris Lasker, 6-0 senior

forward

Best inside players: Lasker is a good shot

blocker and rebounder, Stallings said. “Of

fensively, he’s more of a trash-basket guy,

but he’s probably easily the best athlete on

the team,” he said. Juniors Nathan Malone

(6-6, 185) and Jacob Raney (6-1, 250) got

quite a bit of playing time at the end of last

season. “I expect both of them to contrib

ute a lot this year,” Stallings said.

Best outside players: Dycus had a couple of

games where he scored 30 points last year,

and Stallings hopes to see more of that this

season. He said he expected Logan Pickel, a

6-1, 140-pound junior, to continue to grow

throughout the year, and could be 6-3 or 6-4

by the end of the season. He said Justin Taylor, a 5-9 junior, and Alex Williams, a 5-10 junior, should contribute.

Strengths of team: Stallings said his Eagles had good attitudes, worked hard and were coachable.

Weaknesses of team: Even though several Eagles saw some work as sophomores last year, Stallings said experience would be a weakness.

Games to watch: Defending state champion Arkansas Baptist is in the same conference with Mayflower, and Stallings said those Eagles would be extremely good again. “If I wasn’t partial, I would want to see that game,” Stallings said. “They may be picked to win it again.” Toughest opponent: Arkansas Baptist. Stallings said Jessieville and Fountain Lake were also good last year, but they graduated a lot. “Almost everybody in our conference lost a lot of players,” he said. “The only team that didn’t lose a whole lot was Baptist, and they also had a good junior high season.”GIRLS Conference: 3A-5 Coach: David Frizzell, third season Assistant coach: Joey Moon Last year’s record: 0-19 Returning starters: Kerri Fortson, 6-0 senior post, nine ppg, six rpg; Olivia Gray, 5-10 junior forward, 10 ppg Best inside players: Besides Fortson and Gray, Frizzell said the Lady Eagles would count on a couple of sophomores inside: the 5-8 Katie Johnson and 5-9 Haley Hensley.

Best outside players: Frizzell said Gray, Mayflower’s best shooter, would swing from the inside to the outside, but several sophomores and a senior exchange student should also make their mark outside. Lujza Burianova, a 5-7 senior from Slovakia, is a true point guard, he said. Sophomores expected to contribute early are 5-6 Erica Croft, 5-7 Julie Evans and 5-4 Misty Bowden.

How will you match/exceed/fall short of your success from last year? The Lady Eagles have taken their lumps the last several years, but their fortunes might be turning.

Frizzell’s junior high team last year finished 14-6 and runner-up in the conference and in the district tournament. Eight sophomores should help the senior high this year.

Strengths of team: The Lady Eagles have some size. “Point guard will be a strength,”Frizzell said.

Weaknesses of team: Outside shooting Games to watch: With Mayflower’s lack of success in recent years, Frizzell said it had been hard to have real rivals. “We’re just trying to take it one game at a time and win that one,” he said. “If it turns into a rivalry, that’s great.” Toughest opponent: Jessieville, which went deep into the playoffs last year.

College prospects: Despite its history, Mayflower could send some players to the next level, depending on how well they play this year. Frizzell said Burianova could get some looks at the point.

In a nutshell: Frizzell said he expected several players to contribute off the bench this season.

EAGLES SCHEDULE

Nov. 12 ...................................... @ Pottsville

Nov. 23 .......................................@ Bigelow

Dec. 1 ............................................ Perryville

Dec. 4 ..................................@ Fountain Lake

Dec. 8 ..................................... Magnet Cove

Dec. 11 ........................... @ Arkansas Baptist

Dec. 15 ............................................Bigelow

Dec. 18 ...................................... @ Perryville

Jan. 5 ........................................... Glen Rose

Jan. 8 ............................................@ Bauxite

Jan. 12 ...........................................Jessieville

Jan. 15 .......................@ Episcopal Collegiate

Jan. 19 .................................... Fountain Lake

Jan. 22 ................................ @ Magnet Cove

Jan. 26 ................................ Arkansas Baptist

Jan. 29 ..................................... @ Glen Rose

Feb. 2 ..............................................Bauxite

Feb. 5 ........................................@ Jessieville

Feb. 9 .......................... Episcopal Collegiate

Feb. 12 ......................... @ Conway Christian