Kaleigh Clemons
McKenzie Ethridge
Aryn Sanders
Taylor Kelly
Abbi Mabry
Lennex WalkerSix of the Chattanooga area's most accomplished female high school athletes have been named finalists for this year's Times Free Press Best of Preps Scrappy Moore Award.
The six finalists for female athlete of the year are Baylor's Kaleigh Clemons, Signal Mountain's McKenzie Ethridge and Aryn Sanders, Calhoun's Taylor Kelly, Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe's Abbi Mabry and Arts & Sciences' Lennex Walker.
The winner will be revealed at Monday's annual Best of Preps banquet, where Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz will help honor the area's top athletes and coaches. Doors will open at 6 p.m. for the 6:30 dinner.
Although only a junior this past season, Clemons is already a three-year starter for the Lady Red Raiders basketball team and became the program's first Miss Basketball state award winner, averaging 13.4 points, 7.1 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game. She helped Baylor reach the Division II-AA state tournament semifinals.
After the disappointment of last year's foot injury that cost her the chance to compete in the state track and field meet, Ethridge returned to claim state titles in the 100- and 200-meter dashes and anchored the first-place 4x100 relay team that posted the fastest girls' time for all classifications. For her career, the junior already has four individual state titles, helped three relay teams take state titles and led the Lady Eagles to back-to-back team championships.
Sanders led the area with 24.3 points per game in basketball and added 4.9 steals as well. The junior was all-district and all-region in volleyball and in track and field, she qualified for the state pentathlon in helping the Lady Eagles claim the team title.
Kelly, a senior infielder, was named Georgia's Class AAA softball player of the year and has signed a scholarship to continue her career with Mississippi State. She batted .500 with 13 home runs, 10 doubles, 71 RBIs and 51 runs scored and led the Lady Yellow Jackets to the 2014 state championship.
Mabry was a three-year starter in two sports and LFO's co-valedictorian, and she earned Best of Preps recognition in both basketball and soccer. She helped the Lady Warriors soccer team reach the Class AAA state quarterfinals, scoring 38 goals and adding 25 assists.
Only a sophomore, Walker won the TSSAA state title in the Class A/AA triple jump and finished second in the state pentathlon, 100-meter hurdles, 300-meter hurdles and long jump, qualifying in the state-maximum five events. She was also voted district player of the year in basketball, helping the Lady Patriots to a 20-win season.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293.