Lamar plays for fallen teammate

LAMAR — Ashlynn Barnes is still a big part of the Lady Warriors basketball program. Her teammates make sure of that.

Barnes was killed in a January car accident, but her spirit and memory are still very much a part of Lamar’s team, as the Lady Warriors are set to take on Salem at 6 p.m. today in the Class 3A state championship at Bank OZK Arena in Hot Springs.

Last week, Lamar was able to showcase its sparkling arena and community pride by hosting the Class 3A state tournament. The school was chosen to host the tournament in early January.

With the devastating death of Barnes, a 16-year-old junior guard, the event became more than just basketball games for Lamar.

“It’s been special to showcase our school and honor her,” Lamar girls basketball Coach Brandon Schluterman said early last week. “With our girls team, our expectation was to get back to the finals. We wanted to give them the best situation to do that. If hosting state and doing all the work was the best situation for the kids, we wanted to make it happen. It’s been extra special because of the circumstances.”

Playing for Barnes, the Lady Warriors overcame three big challenges to reach the championship game with impressive wins against perennial power Melbourne, McGehee and defending state champion Bergman. Lamar also did it with leading scorer Kori Sanders out with an injury.

Barnes wore No. 15, and with the help of teammates and staff, that uniform jersey is still on the bench and will be today when the Lady Warriors try to win the program’s first state title since 1991.

The state tournament program featured a full page of pictures of Barnes, her smiling face with friends and family. Barnes is still listed on the team’s roster, too.

“We love her and miss her a lot obviously,” Lamar senior guard Morgan Cochran said after a second-round victory. “She really helped us in the state tournament last year on the bench. This year we really want to play well and finish strong for her. It means more this year.”

At the end of a long season, teams sometimes lose their focus, Schluterman said. That has not been the case for this Lamar team that has played with a special purpose for their fallen teammate.

“Other coaches know this, but you know at this time of the year if kids want to keep playing or not,” Schluterman said. “Sometimes you can see that on the court and in practice. It’s a long season. But this team has four seniors who want to keep playing. They’ve made that quite clear to everyone. They’ve had 20 reasons to fold. But this group loves the game and playing for their school.”

January 17, the night of Barnes’ passing, is one Schluterman said he will never forget. At home and still in his game clothes just hours after Lamar beat Mayflower 60-41 at home, he got the news no parent or coach ever wants to get.

Schluterman’s wife, who is an administrator at the school, received a call from the principal. Then there were calls from the police, then calls from Barnes’ mom. Before he could get to the hospital, she had already passed away. Schluterman learned of it from a text message when he was in the hospital’s parking lot.

He thought back to earlier that evening during the team prayer after the game when Barnes was right beside him.

“Maybe for the first time ever that night, I held Ashlynn’s hand just because that’s where she was in the locker room during the prayer,” Schluterman said. “The emotions were very raw. You go from winning a great game against a rival to then feeling absolutely numb and gathering back here at the gym with all your kids.

“There’s not a textbook on what to say either. You just endure it together.”

The Lady Warriors have had to deal with other tragic events in their lives. The recent passing of teachers Amanda Harrison, Melissa Edwards and gym janitor Leland Nordin, all impacted the team because they were supporters of the program.

“These kids have been through so much tragedy,” Schluterman said. “The way they have handled it has been very tough. They just go with it. They’ve learned how to grieve and tell stories together. That’s pretty crazy for 16- and 17-year-old kids. We’ve had three funeral services right on our court with this group. You know they have memories of that, but they keep going, which has been remarkable.

“This is a very special group.”

“This year we really want to play well and finish strong for her. It means more this year.”

Lamar senior guard Morgan Cochran on Ashlynn Barnes