First Coast Media Day: Duval Senior Takeover

A lot of the Seniors present at this years Media Day have been here before as rising Sophomore and Juniors, but this year, their purpose and focus were different than before. These Seniors have been through the battles on the court and off the court. A lot of the Seniors played their last AAU season a few months ago and many have been fielding calls and contacts from college coaches. Some of the Seniors have already committed to a college, some are still making a decision that will affect their lives for the next four years. Some are still waiting for the call and some of the seniors have other plans. What ever the situation may be, the First Coast Seniors showed up and showed out at Media Day. They represented their schools and gave a clear insight to what this season will be like. In this article, we look at some of the Seniors in Duval county who participated in the “Senior” Takeover that unfolded at this year's Media Day.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4607.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795429" style="aspect-ratio:1.3333333333333333;width:279px;height:auto" /></figure>   The BK3 ( [player_tooltip player_id='248345' first='Clare' last='Coyle'], [player_tooltip player_id='217663' first='Sydney' last='Roundtree'], [player_tooltip player_id='248348' first='Riley' last='Talbert']) owned the floor at Media Day. What these three have accomplished so far in their high school career is very impressive and each of them has committed to a D-1 college. They are competitors and I imagine for them, the theme this year is likely “unfinished business” or something similar. Talbert is the glue that holds it all together. Coyle brings the power and relentless effort, and Roundtree brings the versatility and athleticism.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4584-crop-5712x3751-1698412075.jpeg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-795416" style="aspect-ratio:1.5238095238095237;width:274px;height:auto" /></figure>   Mandarin Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='349326' first='Nykeria' last='Thomas'] and [player_tooltip player_id='248287' first='Kiyana' last='Hunter'] showed up representing the Mustangs in a big way at Media Day and proudly wore their Gateway Conference Champion shirts to remind the room in a subtle manor that Mandarin is one of the teams to be reckoned with in Jacksonville FL. Thomas is the offensive force who can play all 5 positions and Hunter is the engine that makes the train run.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4445.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795522" style="aspect-ratio:1.3333333333333333;width:270px;height:auto" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='349325' first='Kennedy' last='Waymer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='374464' first='Ansley' last='Hicks'] were in the house and represented Paxon with a “full court press.” This duo is one of the top guard combinations in the city and Paxon under their leadership will be a team to be reckoned with this upcoming season. Waymer stresses defenses like no other with her ability to get to the rim, and Hicks is the playmaker who can get to the rim and score and dish the rock to teammates.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4474-1.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795615" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='248295' first='Claire' last='Coogan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='248346' first='Kendall' last='Shorstein'] came to Media Day game ready. These two can shoot with the best of them. Coogan runs the point and distributes and scores. Shorstein is a playmaker, but her job is to score and she is an aggressive three point shooter.     <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4553.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795626" /></figure>   Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='349274' first='Ella' last='Stakem'] and [player_tooltip player_id='248281' first='Hilary' last='Englert'] of Bolles brought [player_tooltip player_id='346820' first='Abby' last='Knauff'] (middle) along to “teach” her the Media Day ropes. Stakem lights it up from behind the arc with the smoothest shot around and Englert does all of the little things including rebounding, defending, and would drive the bus if she was asked to. That Junior they brought along might be pretty good and will be featured in the Juniors at Media Day story.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4626.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795667" /></figure>   Senior guards [player_tooltip player_id='495942' first='Asya' last='Jones'] and [player_tooltip player_id='687115' first='Melanni' last='McLeod'] attended the high school Media Day and they wanted to make sure that their message was clear. They are looking to raise the standard and wins at Bishop Snyder. Jones has lead Snyder in a lot of scoring categories every year and now she has added a three point shot to her tool box. McLeod will handle the point guard duties and play the tough defense.     <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4451.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795681" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='495957' first='Kayla' last='Massey'] will stress your defense out and foul out every player on your team. Don't let this photo fool you. She is ruthless on the court and she is ready to lead Ribault to a special season. Massey can shoot it, drive it to the rim, and score the ball.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/IMG_4612.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-795713" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='730176' first='Salyse' last='Dillihay'] was present at Media Day and the way she has played over the past few months it was good to see her in the building. Dillihay gets after it on both ends of the court and she continually works to get better. She will provide leadership to an Atlantic Coast team that could sneak up on some folks this upcoming season.   We will break the Senior Takeover article into three parts: Duval, Clay and Nassau combined, and St Johns county.

A lot of the Seniors present at this years Media Day have been here before as rising Sophomore and Juniors, but this year, their purpose and focus were different than before. These Seniors have been through the battles on the court and off the court. A lot of the Seniors played their last AAU season a few months ago and many have been fielding calls and contacts from college coaches. Some of the Seniors have already committed to a college, some are still making a decision that will affect their lives for the next four years. Some are still waiting for the call and some of the seniors have other plans. What ever the situation may be, the First Coast Seniors showed up and showed out at Media Day. They represented their schools and gave a clear insight to what this season will be like. In this article, we look at some of the Seniors in Duval county who participated in the “Senior” Takeover that unfolded at this year's Media Day.