Needing history lesson, Hamilton Heights Christian Academy Lady Hawks visit South Carolina

Hawks soar

2015-16 Hamilton Heights girls’ basketball players with scholarship offers (year represents recruiting class):2016› G Akia Harris, Committed to Tennessee Tech› G Jamee Ward, North Florida› F Juliet Esadah, Southern Miss2017› G Amber Hunt, East Carolina2018› G Jazmine Massengill, South Carolina› G Elizabeth Balagun, South Carolina2020› G Treasure Hunt, South Carolina

Hamilton Heights Christian Academy sophomore Jazmine Massengill needed a quick history lesson.

She and seven other Lady Hawks basketball players were making their way to Columbia for an unofficial visit at the University of South Carolina earlier this month.

"Everybody was really excited to meet Dawn Staley, and I'm like, 'I know she's the coach, but who is she?'" joked Massengill, who also knew that Staley's team was ranked No. 2 in the nation.

Massengil quickly learned her lesson: Staley is a Hall of Famer and one of the best players in WNBA history.

Massengill knows more about Staley these days after being one of three Hamilton Heights players to earn a special meeting with the three-time Olympian in her office following South Carolina's 83-58 win over Missouri on Jan. 10. She offered Massengill, sophomore Elizabeth Balagun and eighth-grader Treasure Hunt scholarships to play at South Carolina, which has made strides in Staley's eight seasons leading the program.

"The girls' eyes got big, and their jaws dropped a little, but they kept their cool," Hamilton Heights coach Keisha Hunt said. "We waited until we were out of eyeshot and earshot to jump up and down."

The Gamecocks, who have been ranked second behind Connecticut since the preseason, improved to 15-0 overall and 3-0 in the Southeastern Conference that night. They were 17-0 and 5-0 going into Thursday night's Southeastern Conference game at Auburn.

Coach Hunt has had 17 of her players accept college scholarship offers during her seven years on the sideline. The 2015-16 team has seven players who have been offered Division I scholarships.

"It's life-changing for the girls," she said. "We're an independent school, so we have the freedom of being all over the country to play, and we want to play as many games as possible."

This season's Lady Hawks are 15-3 and ranked No. 26 in the espnW power rankings.

"Our team goal is to be in the top 25 in the nation," Massengill said. "We're almost there."

The trio of players Staley has asked to play for her have been playing together for the Tennessee Xtreme, a Chattanooga-based select team, for years.

They take basketball very seriously.

They have to at Hamilton Heights.

"We start in September and go until the season is over," said Coach Hunt, whose team works with a personal trainer at D-1 Sports. "Girls who want to play in college come to us."

The next step for the trio is to continue their recruiting process. Massengill already has visited Auburn. Coach Hunt will continue receiving calls from Staley, members of her staff and members of coaching staffs from across the country about girls on her team.

"If we still had old-fashioned phone bills, mine would be through the roof," Coach Hunt said. "In my contact list, there are about 50 coaches who have called me about girls on this team."

Three of them could be playing for South Carolina in a few years.

Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him on Twitter @UchiyamaCTFP.

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