With three starters back from last season, the Madisonville-North Hopkins Lady Maroons will look to defend their 7th District championship from a year ago and try to become a contender in the 2nd Region.
But repeating in the district won’t be easy. In-county rival Hopkins County Central returns almost everyone from a team that bounced back from a loss to Madisonville in the district final to make it all the way to the 2nd Region championship game last year.
The Lady Maroons and Lady Storm figure to battle it out for district supremacy again this year.
The teams have met in the district title tilt each of the past four seasons, with each side winning twice.
Senior guard Riley Sword returns for Madisonville after leading last year’s team with 11.5 points a game. She averaged over two 3-pointers a game while shooting 35.7 percent from long range. That helped the Lady Maroons forge a 16-13 record.
Sword could emerge as one of the 2nd Region’s elite players this season.
Meanwhile, junior SaNya Carney netted 7.7 points a night while topping the team on the boards with 6.6 rebounds a contest.
Senior Bryanne Johnson also started last season, getting 5.3 points a game. Look for her role to increase at the offensive end this season.
Senior Bailey Bryant and sophomores Macy Wright and Taylor Nelson will also play key roles.
Also, keep an eye on freshman Chloe Baker.
Madisonville head coach Jeff Duvall promises an exciting season.
“We are gonna play fast and hard. We will be fun to watch with some returning players and a few new ones in the lineup.”
The Lady Maroons tip off the 2024-25 campaign on Monday, Dec. 2, when they host Union County at Maroon Gym.
PLAYER UNDER THE RADAR
Wright saw action in all 29 games last season and averaged 3 points a game for the Lady Maroons.
She will have the basketball in her hands more often this season and will likely play a key role in Madisonville’s success.
BIG GAMES
The No. 1 seed for the 7th District tournament will be important again this year, so Madisonville’s two regular-season matchups with Hopkins Central will be key.
The Lady Maroons will host the Lady Storm on Dec. 12 before making the short trip to Mortons Gap on Jan. 20.
The Madisonville docket also includes looks at 1st Region contenders Marshall County (Dec. 7), Calloway County (Jan. 17) and McCracken County (Feb. 21) along with 2nd Region front-runners Henderson County (Jan. 30) and Christian County (Dec. 10).
OUTLOOK
Duvall says the outlook for the Lady Maroons is simple. “Same as always, get better every day and compete for district and regional titles.”
Madisonville and Hopkins Central figure to be 1a and 1b in the 7th District again this season, but Duvall notes that “Caldwell will be better this year.”
The Lady Maroons could emerge as a dark horse in the region. But right now, Henderson County still looks like the regional favorite again while Christian County appears to be the top challenger.
