Lady Warhawks aim to soar with fast-paced style

Fourth-year head coach Adam Carlton said Mount Vernon-Enola has taken the right step every year, having gone from finishing in the semifinals to making it to the state finals. He said that, hopefully, with the experience the program has gained from last year, the Lady Warhawks can return to the finals and win the title. “We have a great group of young players and seniors who play well together,” Carlton said. “Our goal is to go one more step further than last year. “We have great senior leadership and kids who are hungry to get started. It will be an exciting year.” Returning this year are senior guards Gracie Raby, Alaina Ellis and Taylor Keathley. Raby, who was all-state last year, signed with Henderson State University in Arkadelphia at the beginning of October. “Alaina shoots it really well and has to double as our post player, just because of our length,” Carlton said. “We are a little bit different, so she’s going in there a little bit, in the middle of our defense. “She is going from being a guard on our defense to being our middle girl on defense.” Keathley started last year but worked primarily as the sixth man two years ago. The coach said she does a good job and is a good shooter. Sophomore Kenlie Raby, Gracie’s younger sister, is “our most physical player,” Carlton said. Raby is part of a junior high class that won conference and district championships last year and finished with 24 wins, the coach said. At the perimeter are junior Alaina Ellis and her sister Alyse, a sophomore. “Alyse came off the bench last year in the state tournament, and she shoots really well,” Carlton said. “She had four or five 3s in one quarter in the state tournament last year. “She will help us stretch the game out a little bit.” Mount Vernon-Enola lost senior Kyndal Hardy to graduation. She now plays for Crowder College in Neosho, Missouri. The coach said that after losing Hardy, the Lady Warhawks will move to a more fast-paced style of play. “We are probably more athletic across the board that way,” Carlton said. The Lady Warhawks finished runnerup in the spring, losing to Wonderview in the state finals. The coach said they played Wonderview five times last year and lost all five times. “We lost to three schools last year,” Carlton said. “All nine of our losses were to three schools. “Rural Special, Wonderview, West Side and Concord are all in our conference. Our conference has probably five of the top-10 teams in the state. All nine teams in our conference have a chance to beat each other.” The coach said the team’s overall depth will be one of its biggest strengths and that 10 of his 11 players have started in games over the past two years, whether at the junior high or the senior high level. “I think I could go about eight or nine deep and not lose much,” Carlton said. “Our group this year is a mix of experience and youth. “We will start three seniors, a junior and a sophomore. We have depth coming off the bench with some kids who got playing time last year in the state tournament. “We have a great group of sophomores who can, hopefully, come in and help us.”