GAINESVILLE (March 4) — The nine individual class finalists for the 2017 Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Basketball and Girls’ Basketball Coach of the Year have been announced following balloting by a statewide panel of high school girls’ basketball coaches and prep media members.
Every finalist was the leading vote-getter in their classification, making each one the Player of the Year or Coach of the Year in their class. The two winners will be announced following a final round of balloting by coaches and media.
Here are the nine finalists for the Miss Basketball Award. Area winners in bold.
Natalia Pineda, Junior, Guard, Ferguson (Miami), Class 9A Player of the Year
Led team to the state championship game by averaging 19.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
LaDazhia Williams, Senior, Center, Lakewood Ranch (Bradenton), Class 8A Player of the Year
The South Carolina signee averaged 19.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 2.1 steals per game in leading her team to a 25-4 record and a district championship.
Destanni Henderson, Junior, Guard, Ft. Myers, Class 7A Player of the Year
Led her team to its second straight state title by averaging 17.7 points, 4.4 assists and 4.0 steals, including 18 points, five rebounds, five assists, six steals and three blocks in the championship game.
Rennia Davis, Senior, Guard, Ribault (Jacksonville), Class 6A Player of the Year
The University of Tennessee signee and McDonald’s All-American led her team to its second straight state title by averaging 26.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 steals per game.
Sophia Poveda, Senior, Guard, Westminster Christian (Miami), Class 5A Player of the Year
Averaged 23.5 points as a senior, including a single-game best of 44 points, and finished with more than 1,200 career points. Has committed to play volleyball at Stonehill College.
Channise Lewis, Senior, Guard, Miami Country Day, Class 4A Player of the Year
The University of Illinois signee led her squad to its fourth straight state title, averaging 18.0 points, 7.1 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 5.2 steals per game.
Dominique Jeffrey, Senior, Forward/Center, FAMU (Tallahassee), Class 3A Player of the Year
Led her school to its third straight state title by averaging 13.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Has signed to play college basketball at Appalachian State University.
Megan Rampersad, Junior, Guard, Grandview Prep (Boca Raton), Class 2A Player of the Year
Led her team to the Class 2A state title by averaging 18.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
Teiyahna Hutchinson, Junior, Guard, Port St. Joe, Class 1A Player of the Year
Averaged 20.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 5.7 steals per game in leading her team to a 22-7 record and a spot in the regional finals.
Following are the nine finalists for the Girls’ Basketball Coach of the Year:
Nhu Nguyen, Boca Raton, Class 9A Coach of the Year
In his sixth year at the helm, Nguyen led his squad to a 26-6 record and the Class 9A state championship after finishing as the Class 8A runnerup in 2016. His overall record is 134-42.
Johnnie Lawson, Winter Haven, Class 8A Coach of the Year
Lawson led his team to a 27-4 record and its second straight state championship. In his nine years at Winter Haven he has compiled a 204-54 record with seven Final Four appearances.
Chad Terrell, Ft. Myers, Class 7A Coach of the Year
In his second year as the varsity girls head coach, Terrell led the Green Wave to a 25-4 record and the school’s second straight state championship. His two-year record is 52-9.
Sheila Seymore-Pennick, Ribault (Jacksonville), Class 6A Coach of the Year
Seymore-Pennick led the Trojans to a 26-3 record and their fourth state championship in the past five years. In 13 years, she has compiled a 317-63 record with four state titles and eight Final Four appearances.
Robert Moultrie, Jones (Orlando), Class 5A Coach of the Year
In his fourth year as head coach, Moultrie led Jones to a 24-7 record and the Class 5A state title. He has a career record of 83-30.
Ochiel Swaby, Miami Country Day, Class 4A Coach of the Year
In his 13th year at MCDS, Swaby guided the Spartans to a 28-1 record and their fourth straight state championship. His overall record is 288-81 with four state titles and a fifth trip to the Final Four.
Ericka Cromartie, FAMU (Tallahassee), Class 3A Coach of the Year
Cromartie led the Rattlers to a 25-9 record and their third straight state championship. In her three years at the school, she has posted a 76-13 record and back-to-back-to-back state titles.
Ian Clarke, Grandview Prep, Class 2A Coach of the Year
After taking over the head job midway through the 2015-16 season and leading his team to the Final Four, Clarke won the 2017 state title with an 18-8 record in his first full season as a head coach.
Richard Hampton, Wildwood, Class 1A Coach of the Year
In his 13th year at Wildwood, Hampton compiled a 24-6 record and won his first state title. He has an overall record of 228-144, with two state runnerup finishes (1994 and 2015).
