Top 15 rising sophomores in Gibson County for the 2024-25 school year

By Michael Odom | July 23, 2024 |

South Gibson’s Jade Reed (23) goes up for a shot against Obion County in the District 13-3A high school basketball consolation game at Crockett County on Feb. 20, 2024.

With the 2024-25 school year approaching, we have looked back at the top 15 rising seniors and rising juniors in high school athletics in Gibson County.

Today, we look at the top 15 rising sophomores, meaning these players made an impact as a freshman:

1. Jade Reed (South Gibson girls basketball) – Reed stepped in as a freshman and earned a starting spot for Catie Embrey’s Lady Hornets, which made it to the Class 3A state semifinals. She averaged 8.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.0 steals, while shooting 58 percent from the field. She is a good bat for the South Gibson softball team also.

2. Darion Taylor (Humboldt boys basketball) – Taylor had a breakout year for West Carroll as he was the team’s leading scorer. He helped the War Eagles to the Region 7-1A quarterfinals as he averaged 19.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 2.7 assists.

3. Kendall McLemore (Humboldt girls basketball) – McLemore played a key role in the revitalization of the Lady Vikings’ program as they reached the Region 7-1A semifinals. She averaged 14.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.6 steals.

4. Alexis Wilson (Peabody softball) – Wilson did about everything for the Lady Tide as they finished fourth in District 14-2A. She batted .444 with 15 extra-base hits including five home runs, 32 RBI, 25 runs and eight stolen bases to go with a 0.967 fielding percentage and six wins as pitcher with 57 strikeouts.

5. Zac Fowler (West Carroll football) – Fowler stepped in at quarterback and led the War Eagles to a second-place finish in Region 6-1A. He completed 65-of-112 passes for 913 yards and eight touchdowns, while running the ball 27 times for 341 yards and five touchdowns.

6. Marleigh Chicantek (South Gibson girls golf) – Chictantek had a strong freshman season as she averaged an 80.5 through four rounds of postseason play. She shot an 82 in the District 14-AA tournament, 79 in the Region 7-AA tournament and a 161 (79-82) at the state tournament.

7. Tieanna Adkisson (Milan basketball, volleyball, track & field) – Adkisson earned notoriety in each of the three sports she played as a freshman. She played well at middle hitter for the volleyball team that reached the Class A state tournament for the first time. She averaged 4.5 points and 7.5 rebounds for the basketball team. And she competed in the Class A sub-sectional in track in four events. She finished ninth in the long jump with a distance of 12-05.00 and 11th in the 200-meter dash with a time of 28.69, and she also ran a leg on the 4×100 that finished sixth and the 4×200 that finished second.

8. Haylee Barnett (Peabody softball) – Barnett was consistent in her rookie season with the Lady Tide as they finished fourth in District 14-2A. She batted .476 with one home run, 23 RBI, 37 runs and 10 stolen bases to go with a 0.925 fielding percentage and four wins as pitcher with 47 strikeouts.

9. Austin Crone (South Gibson boys soccer) – Crone played some quality minutes for the Hornets last season. He played in the midfield, helping South Gibson push forward on offense.

10. Carson Kelley (Milan football) – Kelley performed well with the junior varsity team last year. But over the summer he has started to get more time with the varsity, catching some big passes in the recent 7-on-7 scrimmages.

11. Addyson Doyle (South Gibson cross country, basketball) – Once Doyle has rehabbed her knee from a torn ACL late in the basketball season, she is looking to have a strong sophomore year. She brings intensity on the basketball court, and she finished 20th in the Region 7 A-AA meet with a time of 23:20.66.

12. Lila Duncan (South Gibson girls track & field) – Duncan had a great first spring season for the Lady Hornets. She competed in the Class AA sectional meet at Lakeland Prep in two events finishing sixth in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 18.78 and sixth in the 300-meter hurdles finishing with a time of 55.66.

13. Paislee Walls (Peabody girls basketball) – Walls got quality minutes for the Lady Tide last season in the post. She got into the rotation early in the season and got more minutes as the season progressed.

14. Andrea Criswell (Gibson County softball) – Criswell stepped into the circle and helped the Lady Pioneers reach the Region 7-2A semifinals before losing to Riverside. She went 6-2 with 48 strikeouts. She also had one triple and eight doubles batting.

15. Anna Fawcett (South Gibson girls soccer) – Fawcett stepped into a starting role as a freshman and helped the Lady Hornets reach the Class AA semifinals. She played defense all season for South Gibson.