Most Valuable Performance SENIOR LED FARMINGTON GIRLS TO STATE TITLE

FARMINGTON — The fiesty competitor in Makenna Vanzant rubs off on Farmington’s state championship girls basketball team especially when 2020 Class 4A State Tournament MVP does something sensational.

For example, Vanzant blocked 3 shots against Pocahontas during Farmington’s 65-48 Class 4A State quarterfinal win on March 5. According to teammate Trinity Johnson, daughter of coach Brad Johnson, the whole bench fixates on Vanzant’s exploits and her teammates on the floor with her draw inspiration when she makes a defensive stop.

“She gets our bench fired up and everybody just gets fired up for the game,” Trinity Johnson said. “Whenever she blocks shots like that we all just act like she’s never done it before.”

From the whoops and hollers opposing fans might be lulled into a false impression, but defense remains an under- rated part of Vanzant’s game. She has been successfully challenging and blocking shots since improving in that aspect as a second-year starter in her sophomore season of 20162017.

Vanzant improved from 5 blocks as a freshman to 17 as a sophomore. She added 16 her junior year and tacked on a career high 20 as a senior to finish with 58 total, not bad for a point-guard.

In the second quarter Pocahontas senior guard Kate Sorg came away with a loose ball with players from both teams colliding and falling. Sorg took one dribble right to get away from the traffic, but Vanzant rejected the shot and hauled in the rebound. She drove the length of the court and laid the ball in stretching Farmington’s lead to 28-15.

“That’s unbelievable, she’s a two- way player offensively and defensively,” Brad Johnson said. “She does so many things. She plays well on a lot of different levels. She can beat you in a lot of different ways. That’s a weapon when you got a kid who can do that on the defensive end, push it in transition and offensively create for herself or somebody else, special, special kid.”

Vanzant did everything she could to win a state championship for Farmington even when that meant erasing a shot. Despite her aggressiveness Vanzant rarely fouled out. Instinctively she seemed to know when to plant her feet and take a charge and when to contest a shot.

During Regional play Farmington turned the ball over against Pea Ridge, but Vanzant blocked Aidan Dayberry’s shot out- ofbounds robbing the Lady Blackhawks of a fast-break layup during a 56-33 semifinal win on Feb. 28. That effort impresses Trinity Johnson.

“Sometimes I don’t know how she gets up there to block those shots, but she does and it amazes me every time that she does it, I’m just like, ‘Oh,’” Trinity Johnson said.

Vanzant mixed it up involving herself in every aspect of the game causing her coach to declare her efficiency rating was off the charts against Pocahontas.

Her deadly free throw shooting ( 13- of-15) helped Farmington go 27-for-30 as a team in beating Batesville in the Class 4A State semifinals on March 7. The Lady Cardinals didn’t have a field goal in the last three minutes yet extended a 10-point lead in a 76-64 victory that ultimately decided the state championship for Farmington with the covid-19 pandemic causing the state finals not to be played. The Arkansas Activities Associationdesignated Farmington and Star City, which won 55-53 over Pulaski Academy in the other semifinal, as co-champions.

Vanzant averaged 16.4 points and 5.4 assists per- game in leading the Lady Cardinals to a 32- 3 season highlighted by a 4A-1 Conference championship, District tournament title, A North Regional championship and State 4A championship.

Opponents weary of trying to defend Vanzant are glad she’s graduating after four years of varsity basketball and some have said so.

“That ’ s the greatest compliment you can get and I’m very blessed that I get all these compliments and it’s crazy that I’m finally leaving,” Makenna said.

In November she signed with Central Missouri where she will rejoin former high school teammate, Madisyn Pense, to continue her career at the college level. She goes out with a sense of satisfaction despite the initial disappointment of not getting to play in Bank OZK Arena in the state finals.

“Through all the adversity that we’ve all been through and through all the hard work that we put in it really just comes to a final and we’re all very blessed even though we didn’t get to play it. It’s an honor to be able to get to go that far,” Vanzant said. “I’m very proud of that.”

Farmington fans are still savoring the memories.

MARK HUMPHREY ENTERPRISE-LEADER Farmington senior Makeanna Vanzant was recently named MVP of the Class 4A State girls basketball tournament with Farmington designated as state co-champions when the state finals were canceled. A public celebration has yet to be held due schools remaining closed to on-site instruction while the nation deals with covid-19.