Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Preview

&nbsp; The Ohio Valley Conference consists of schools from Scioto, Lawrence and Gallia Counties.  It is comprised of Fairland Proctorville, Ironton, Coal Grove, Portsmouth, South Point, Chesapeake, Gallia Academy and Rock Hill High Schools. Here is how they are looking approaching the 2019-20 season. Ironton is a strong contender to win this years OVC Title, with Fairland, Coal Grove and South Point right there. 5 Players to watch: <strong>Lexi Arden</strong>, <strong>Emilee Whitt</strong>, <strong>Samantha Lafon</strong>, <strong>Harlie Lyons</strong>, <strong>Addi Dillow</strong> Fairland (19-6, 12-2) Co OVC Champions/Sectional Champions Players to watch: 2020’s Harlie Lyons and <strong>Jenna Stone</strong>, 2021<strong> Emma Marshall</strong> and 2023 <strong>Tomi Hinkle</strong> Fairland will have a “good mix of experience and youth. Coach Buchanan “We are excited about our young kids but have some kids who have played in big games”. Fairland should be in the mix as they are each year. Well Coached and plays hard on both ends of the floor. Coal Grove (19-6, 12-2) Co OVC Champions Players to watch: 2021 <strong>Addi Dillow</strong>, 2022 <strong>Kasey Murphy</strong> and <strong>Abbey Hicks</strong> Coach Roach says that he expects his “team to have good guard play. We need to figure out who is going to fill our post play”. In the 2018-19 season Coal Gove set the bar high and they will be right back in the fight this year. . South Point (17-6, 10-4) Sectional Champions Players to watch: 2020’s <strong>Emilee Carey, Emilee Whitt</strong> and <strong>Maddy Khounlavong</strong> South Point returns a lot of experience back with 4 seniors to lead the way, that will help make up for the loss of two Post players. Coach Adams sees a “5 guard lineup with those 4 seniors and junior” possibly this year to be aggressive and quick. South Point’s experience and Guard play will have them in a hunt for an OVC Title this year. Ironton (11-13, 9-5)) Players to watch: 2020 <strong>Lexi Arden, Riley Schreck</strong> and 2021 <strong>Samantha Lafon</strong> Ironton was hit with the injury bug last year but looks to rebound from last season. They have a talented roster led by SR Lexi Arden, a versatile player and add the inside play of Samantha Lafon to go with some good guard play makes Ironton a strong candidate to win the OVC this season. However, Coach Graham thinks “Fairland has won/shared the last 3 OVC Championships so “he” thinks the Championship goes through them”. Chesapeake (9-14, 6-8) Players to watch: 2021 <strong>Maddy Ward</strong> and 2022 <strong>Bake Anderson</strong> Coach Ball’s take on this years team is “will be young, small and play a little faster than they have in the past. May start 3 sophomores, a junior and senior.” Chesapeake will look to move up this year in the OVC. Portsmouth (8-14, 4-10) Players to watch: 2020’s <strong>Hannah Hughes, Ashanti Richardson</strong> and 2022<b> Nia Trinidad</b> Portsmouth is a team that continues to improve under Coach Amy Hughes and her staff. They play hard at the defensive end, and SR Hannah Hughes and Soph Nia Trinidad will give them a scoring punch on the offensive end. This year look for Portsmouth to continue to build on last years win total. Coach Hughes says her team is “working hard an have a big hole to fill, but looking to be competitive against most teams. Should be a fun year” Gallia Academy (6-17, 2-12) Players to watch: 2020 <strong>Alex Barnes</strong>, 2021 <strong>Brooklyn Hill, Maddy Petro</strong> and <strong>Koren Truance</strong> Gallia Academy will be a mix of experience and youth. They have two returning seniors from last year and SR Alex Barnes is coming off a knee injury. They will be looking to build on last seasons record and Coach Deel expects “stay healthy and stay in the mix”. Rock Hill (5-17, 1-13) Players to watch: 2020 <strong>Riley Morri</strong>s and <strong>Makayla Scott</strong> With new Head Coach Jerry Kidd at the helm, Rock Hill will be looking to expand on their 5 wins from the 2018-19 season. They will be looking for leadership from 5 returning seniors to help lead the way this season. .