Joe's Take: You can't spell team player without Hundred's Peters

When Hundred asked Ashlynn Peters for more of everything against Parkersburg Christian, she answered the call.     Over and over again, she provided what the Hornets needed.   A trey here? Check.   Some gentle encouragement to a nervous teammate? Done.   Another trey or 3 there? No problem.   A loud reminder to her more inexperienced teammates in the fourth quarter from the bench? You bet.     Anything and everything came naturally and flowed out of her like she'd been doing it all for most of this season, which of course she has. However, all of those plays against the Knights came with another benefit - As the Hornets were missing one team leader Summer Morris, basically, they found out Peters always was ready to go. In simple terms, you couldn't spell team player without her name.   “It was great, all five of us juniors we mesh pretty well together,” said Hundred player Roxie Higgins. “It was really nice to have her step up.”   No doubt.     “I noticed she was nervous staying behind the line and I was trying to help her stand behind the line and get the ball in,” Peters said. Turns out she was right. “I usually get nervous when I am on the court that I am going to get hurt or hurt somebody else,” Morgan said. But she didn't injure herself or anyone else, in fact, she inbounded the ball perfectly and as if karma itself were watching the game, Peters was rewarded.   Having established her confidence behind the arc, she tried another one after the Knights won a jump ball. Guess what? It was true once more! Yet, the shot also could have made her a little overconfident – Next came a lesson in court awareness. With the chance for yet another 3, she lined up her shot but forgot her opponents weren't content with just watching her score. The Knights' Jubille Minney reminded her of that when she swooped in and blocked the shot. Still, Peters took the lesson to heart. After her teammates recovered the blocked shot, Peters found herself open for another trey. This time she scanned her surroundings before launching another make and extending the lead again.   No doubt, especially given the valuable energy she brought to the court.   Not only did she step up, but she kept the energy up once she stretched the lead to five with a deep trey. She happily canned another 3 moments later after the Knights dared her to shoot, again. Shortly after the scoring opportunity, she had the chance to show her maturity and instincts to be a great leader as she helped Ryleigh Morgan inbound the ball.   Even on the bench with the game in hand in the second quarter, she never stopped learning, watching, and observing. Her eyes stayed on the court, her voice occasionally erupted from her mouth, and her teammates took heed each and every time. After her rest, she showed her willingness and maturity to get the ball to the hot hand of Higgins. Her teammate went on a scoring spree, but each basket ended with a smile and a high five from Peters. How can you not be impressed with her willingness to lead and observe?   After her break, she remained the point guard as others expanded the lead until her defense got the call in the third quarter. She swatted aside a shot, before assisting [player_tooltip player_id='1110755' first='Kylee' last='Morris'] on a shot she missed, but rebounded and put back in. Though the shot was initially missed, the move and act worked wonders as it helped the Hornet's short bench gain much-needed game minutes and experience.   She struck for a final time with her booming voice as the game stood over. On a fast break, she shouted at her teammate Morris to look for her outlet options on the fast break. “I just couldn't help it. I just had to at that point, it was the leader coming out in me,” Peters said. The result of the outburst? Morris raised her head and looked for her teammates. Though nothing came of the pass, the intended result of the shout happened and helped Hundred prepare for down the road.   Overall, it was a night the Hornets and Peters won't soon forget.   While the Hornets went on to easily win the game, the group trying to get back to the regional final now knows they have another weapon to be counted on when they face Cameron and Doddridge County in the sectional and regional tournaments. She'll do whatever it takes, too.   Contact Joe Albright at <a href="mailto:josephpalbright3@gmail.com">josephpalbright3@gmail.com</a>.

When Hundred asked Ashlynn Peters for more of everything against Parkersburg Christian, she answered the call.