ALL-STAR SPORTS WEEK: PCA's Jones breaks mold as two-sport star
Hannah Jones is the first athlete to participate in two different all-star games this week. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
PRATTVILLE -- Basketball or volleyball?
Thankfully, Prattville Christian Academy junior Hannah Jones never had to make that choice.
When Alabama All-Stars Sports Week was launched in 1997, high school athletes from throughout the state were invited to the Capital City to participate. All-star games were held at Paterson Field (baseball), Lagoon Park (softball), AUM (boys’ and girls’ basketball) and Cramton Bowl (football) initially, adding Emory Folmar Soccer Complex a year later when soccer was added. It moved to Huntsville in 2005 as downtown renovation eliminated the Montgomery Civic Center -- site of the annual high school coaching convention -- and returned in 2011 to hold the first sporting event in the newly renovated Cramton Bowl.
The first athlete to participate in multiple all-star events was Springville High’s Avery House, who was selected to play on the North boys’ basketball team in 2000, then selected to participate in the only sport that involved seniors -- football -- the following year. Because players arrived at the beginning of the week and practiced for at least a day with their squads, any player selected for more than one sport had to choose one and drop the other.
That all changed with the coronavirus pandemic. The all-star games were canceled in 2020 and when they resumed in 2021, local universities refused to house the athletes, forcing high school officials to bring in the athletes on the day of the event. That allows Jones to become the first athlete to participate in multiple sports in the same year, playing basketball on Tuesday and volleyball on Thursday.
“I’m honestly grateful, Jesus blessing me and everybody on my side -- my teammates, my family,” she said. “I’m just happy to have this opportunity and being able to showcase my skills in both sports.”
Jones is a standout performer in both sports, a dominating outside hitter in volleyball and a physical presence in the paint in basketball.
“I think she’s one of the five best players in the state in volleyball and one of the five best players in the state in basketball,” Prattville Christian basketball coach Jason Roberson said. “You can be dominant in both sports. I love that Hannah uses her God-given gifts and abilities to play both. Some people would focus on what they thought they were going to play in college or what they thought they loved the most. With us being a small school, Hannah really helps us out by being our best player in volleyball and basketball.”
Jones has already gotten her first taste of all-star action in volleyball when the South team held a practice session earlier this month.
“That was exciting, getting to play with (Catholic’s) Lennon (McAnnally), my old teammate, and seeing everybody else that I’m familiar with from going to camps,” she said.
The volleyball match will wrap up All-Stars Sports Week on Thursday. Despite the strong showing of volleyball in south Alabama, particularly in the Capital City and Mobile, the North has a 14-9 advantage in the all-star series. PCA coach Kaylon Cantrell believes the South, and in particular her best athlete, can hold her own in the competition.
“I think she can dominate wherever we put her on the court,” Cantrell said. “If I needed her to be a setter, she could do it and she’d be the best setter on the team. I’m excited for her to be (an) outside (hitter) for us, just from what I’ve seen at camp. But she’ll probably move around, swing to the middle some and to the right side.
“She puts in the work. I nominated her (for the all-star game) but to me, in my mind, it was a no-brainer that she would be selected to the team because of her skill level.”
In basketball, she is one of a quartet of local stars in the game, joining Trinity’s Emma Kate Smith, KK Hall of St. James and her post teammate, CoCo Thomas.
“I think it makes it special, having my teammate alongside,” Jones said.
Roberson admits he was pleasantly surprised when the 15-player roster was released and it included both Jones and Thomas.
“I think there are times as a coach where you nominate players and you’re crossing your fingers, you know it might be a long shot,” Roberson said. “But I had no doubt in my mind Hannah was going to make the basketball team. She’s one of the best players in the state. She’s a really big reason we’ve won the last two state championships. Without her, that doesn’t happen.
“She averaged 17 points and 11 rebounds a game on a very good team that won the state championship. You’re not going to keep that out of the North-South game. CoCo also had an unbelievable year. She averaged a double-double as well. It’s tough for anybody to get two players in but in my heart and my mind I knew CoCo was deserving.”
The South all-stars have often been competitive but rarely victorious, losing 21 of the previous 24 meetings.
“I feel like the North has a lot of talent, but I feel like people don’t really recognize South players,” Jones said. “So I’m going to go out there and push as hard as I can and try to prove a point. I want to win in both (events). That’s the one thing I’m excited for.”
Roberson believes the girls’ basketball game on Tuesday night will be competitive and is excited to see how Jones and Thomas, dominant in the 3A ranks the past two seasons, will compete against a North squad that includes seven 6A-7A players.
“I’m not predicting the South is going to win, but I think it’ll be competitive because a lot of the girls on the South team might be from smaller schools but they’ve played really good competition,” Roberson said. “We (PCA) have played great competition and been successful, Trinity has played great competition and been super successful -- Emma Kate can play with anybody in the state -- and St. James (with KK Hall) and coach (Katie) Barton play unbelievable competition. So I think these girls are a little more suited to play some of these athletes from the bigger schools up north.”
For Jones, it is more than just a game. She has dominated two sports the last couple of years, generating some college interest in both volleyball and basketball. The all-star game gives her a chance to gauge her ability against a great lineup.
“I’m still not decided on which one I want to play or if I may even want to play both,” she said. “I know there’s a lot of talented people on the North team so it’s going to push me, for sure.”
ALABAMA ALL-STARS SPORTS WEEK
Monday schedule
Boys and girls golf, Arrowhead Country Club, 10 a.m.
Baseball, Riverwalk Stadium, 4 p.m.
Tuesday schedule
Girls cross country, Gateway Park, 7:30 a.m.
Boys cross country, Gateway Park, 8 a.m.
Boys and girls tennis, Lagoon Park, 5 p.m.
Girls basketball, Multiplex, 5 p.m.
Boys basketball, Multiplex, 6:45 p.m.
Wednesday schedule
Softball, Lagoon Park, 4 p.m.
Girls soccer, Emory Folmar Soccer Complex, 5 p.m.
Boys soccer, Emory Folmar Soccer Complex, 7 p.m.
Thursday schedule
Volleyball, Multiplex, 4 p.m.