Adena’s Emma Garrison earns SVC POY award, all-league teams released

Derrick Webb, Staff Writer

Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.

FRANKFORT — For the first time in 10 years, the SVC’s Player of the Year resides at Adena High School.

Junior Emma Garrison has become the school’s first player to earn that right since Jenny Grigsby did so during the 2012-13 season.

Garrison led her teammates to a 17-5 record this winter and a 12-2 mark inside SVC action while averaging a league-leading 16.7 points per game alongside 6.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists.

Unioto’s Jeff Miller has been named the league’s Coach of the Year, his fourth such honor and first since 2019-20, after helping his Shermans navigate through a 22-0 regular season and a 14-0 mark inside the conference.

Joining Garrison with first-team all-conference honors is Unioto’s Milee Smith and Amaris Betts, Southeastern’s Gabby Pernell and Piketon’s Natalie Cooper.

Smith, a freshman, did a bit of everything, averaging 13.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists each night while Betts led the Shermans in scoring with 14.8 points per game and hit a league-high 52 3-point field goals. Meanwhile, Pernell posted 13.5 points while hitting 41 triples and Cooper averaged a near double-double, producing 11.8 points and 9.2 rebounds — a league-high.

Paint Valley senior Averi McFadden, Huntington junior Emma Hinshaw, Piketon senior Jazz Lamerson, Paint Valley senior Kendall Dye and Westfall sophomore Paige Weiss make up the five second-team all-SVC selections.

Earning third-team all-league honors were Adena’s Sydney Ater and Kiera Williams, Unioto’s Alexis Book and Amelia Uhrig, and Huntington’s Allie Baker.

Honorable mention selections were as follows: Adena’s Kamryn Sowers and Caelan Miner, Huntington’s Nora Moore and Kaci Carroll, Paint Valley’s Karris Dye and Bella Stauffer, Piketon’s Kennedy Jenkins and Addie Johnson, Southeastern’s Grace Wireman and Reese Ruckel, Unioto’s Maggie Holbert and Addison Mohan, Westfall’s Alyssa Wyman and Adrian Moehl, and Zane Trace’s Avery Johnson and Chloe Heshiser.

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