Hargrove highlights AP All-State Team

Du Quoin's Heape named to 3rd team

By Spyder Dann

mdann@dailyregister.com

Area athletes racked up the awards this past week as Christopher's Amiah Hargrove led the charge for mantle hardware.

The 6-foot-2 sophomore forward from Christopher was the second top vote getter in the Class 1A Associated Press All-State Team and returns to the First Team as a repeat performer after being named last season as a freshman.

Hargrove help lead Christopher to a 26-4 Sweet 16 appearance in the postseason before losing to Goreville at the Sesser-Valier 1A Sectional championship.

Hargrove went over the 1,000th point mark this season and averaged 24.7 points per game to go along with 11.4 rebounds, 3.1 steals, 2.2 blocks and 1.3 assists.

Other numbers for Hargrove included a 48.7 field goal percentage, 35.3% from behind the arc and 82% from the free throw line.

The Bearcats were back-to-back Black Diamond Conference West champions and Hargrove was named All-Tournament MVP at both the Du Quoin Tip-Off Classic and the Benton Christmas Classic.

In two years, Hargrove has scored 1,008 points in 41 games (24.6 pig), 441 rebounds, 123 steals, 94 blocks and a 36-5 record, while going unbeaten at home.

Currently, Hargrove has Division 1 hoop offers from Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, St. Louis, and Missouri State and has spoken to Oregon, Louisville, Wisconsin, Missouri, Marquette, DePaul and SEMO.

In Class 2A, Carterville's Alecia Doyle was named to the AP Second Team and was joined on the list by her sister Amayah Doyle on the Honorable Mention Team.

Benton's Ensley Tedeschi was also named to the Class 2A Honorable Mention Team, which included Nashville's Alyssa Cole and Chester's Alyssa Seymour.

Alecia Doyle has already signed with SEMO and was an AP All-State First Team member last season. She averaged 17 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals for a 27-6 Elite Eight supersectional qualifier that tied for ninth in the final AP state poll.

Amayah Doyle is a 5-10 sophomore forward that averaged 16 points, seven rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals.

Tedeschi, the 6-1 junior point guard for Benton, is a 3-time AP All-State Honorable Mention member and averaged 15.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 assists for a Rangerette ballclub that went 24-5 overall, while winning the SIRR Ohio Conference and 2A Regional winners.

Tedeschi was All-Tournament at Nashville and the Benton Christmas Classic.

Cole leaves Nashville as the school's all-Time leading career scorer with 1,557 points. She averaged 18.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.0 steals for a 21-9 sectional qualifier.

She shot 53.7 percent from the field, 40.5 percent from the 3-point ranger and 90.4 percent from the free throw line. Cole is the school's single-season and career leader in free throws made and will attend Parkland College next season.

Alyssa Seymour is Chester's all-time leading rebounds (843), shattering a mark set in 1997 with a single-season record 386 this season. She averaged a double-double of 16.5 points, 13.3 rebounds for a 14-16 team and posted 24 double-doubles in 30 games (26 with 10 or more rebounds, 11 with 15 or more boards).

In Class 3A, Marion's Jerzy Bittle, who set the school's single-season scoring record (564) to zoom past the 1,000 point career mark was named to the AP 3A Honorable Mention Team.

Bittle was a one-girl wrecking squad, averaging 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.2 steals and 2.8 assists for a 16-14 Wildcat ball club.

Bittle averaged 21 points over the final five games and was shootout MVP at Breese Central and the Marion Harley Davidson Black Diamond.

Tedeschi was named to the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Class 2A All-State 2nd Team, joining other locals like the Doyle sisters and Nashville's Cole, who were named to the 1st Team.

Fairfield's Rylee Edwards and Du Quoin's Lauren Heape were named to the 3rd Team. Heape was her team's leading scorer, averaging 11.5 points a game, and the leading free throw shooter making 64.4% of her attempts (67 of 104). Heape finished with 15 games of 10 points or more, including three games with over 20 with a season-high 22 against Trico on Jan. 24. She was named to both the Tip-Off Classic and the Benton Christmas Classic All-Tournament teams.

• Spyder Dann covers prep and college sports for the Southern Illinois LOCAL Media Group. Follow him on Twitter: @spydieshooter.