Southern Sports & Travel Player of the Year
Maggie Proffitt of Starkville Academy is the Southern Sports
& Travel Girl’s Player of the Year.
The 5’9” senior guard led Starkville Academy to a perfect
43-0 record and a second consecutive Overall Championship this season.
Proffitt led the Lady Vols in scoring with a 17.5 points per
game average on what many consider the best girls team in the 44 year history
of the MAIS but the shooting guard also displayed her skills in other aspects
of the game.
Proffitt, who scored double digits in 38 of Starkville’s 43
games, averaged 4.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.1 steals over the course of the
season. Her stats coupled with her shooting percentages made her a threat from
anywhere on the court.
The senior shot 54% from the field, 46% from beyond the
3-point line and converted on 83% on her free throws.
While Proffitt’s offensive stats were impressive, so too were
her season turnovers numbers. Remarkably Proffitt played in 12 games without a
turnover, 13 games with only 1 turnover and committed just 2 in the Overall
Tournament.
A transfer from Columbus High, Proffitt had no trouble
fitting in with head coach Glenn Schmidt’s scheme.
“Maggie fit in with our team perfectly,” said Starkville
head coach Glenn Schmidt. “We didn't change anything we did. She fit into our
system and adapted to the things we did. Her strengths are her offensive skills, shooting percentage
average and passing abilities and her desire to win. She has the knack of
making timely plays and feeding off of other players who are making them. She learned our defensive plan and became a big part of our help defense. She has worked on her game for years and will continue to improve. It's been a
pleasure to coach her.”
Proffitt, who signed with the
University of Central Arkansas early on in the season, displayed flashes of her ability to be dominant during the season and one such performance was in a 71-43
win over Jackson Prep in early February.
She scored a season high 35 points and handed out 8 assists
which was also a season best. More impressive was her hitting on 15 of 19 shots
from the field.
“When Maggie first came and talked to us during the summer Coach Schmidt asked her what her goals were
for her senior season,” said Starkville assistant coach Kayla Mosely. “Maggie
responded with "I want to win a state championship." I knew from that
moment Maggie would be the perfect fit with us because her goals and the goals
we had already set for ourselves coincided. Maggie fit right in with the girls
too, on and off the court. It didn’t take long at all to build the chemistry
they had. One thing that impresses me most about Maggie is the time she spends
on her game outside of our team practices. If we take days off, she doesn't.
She was always finding a gym to shoot in or an outside court to play a game on.
She doesn't do this because she's necessarily "training". She just
loves to play that much. It's fun to watch a kid enjoy the game so much. The Lady
Vols are very glad Maggie came to be a part of us and I feel very fortunate
that I got to coach such a good player and kid.”
“Ten
good questions for Maggie Proffitt”
How long did it take for you to mesh
with the other girls after transferring in from Columbus High?
“After transferring
from Columbus High it did not take long to mesh with the girls at all. I was
kind of unsure of what to expect coming in as a senior to a program that was
already very strong and had several talented players but as soon as we started
to practice and play together, I felt as though we had great chemistry and were
going to be a team that could do special things if we put our minds to it.”
What were your expectations of Starkville Academy
and Coach Schmidt?
“When I sat down
and met with Coach Schmidt prior to deciding where I would transfer the next
year, she told me that if I decided to come to Starkville Academy, it wasn't
going to be easy. I knew that I would have to work hard and that I was going to
have to give 100% in everything that I did. When I made the decision to attend
SA, I knew that I was going to be playing for a great coach and was going to
learn a lot to help further my game.”
How much fun was it playing this season
knowing early on that you would be playing at the University of Central
Arkansas?
“It was so much fun and definitely a relief knowing that I
will be playing basketball at the University of Central Arkansas. It definitely
took a lot of pressure off of me, knowing that I did not have to prove anything
to anyone. I could just take one game at a time and focus on playing the best I
could to help get the win for my team.”
What do you want to major in and what
field do you want to pursue?
“Right now, I am unsure of what I
want to major in and what field I want to pursue. If I had to decide today, I
believe I would want to major in kinesiology, and then after graduating from
Central Arkansas, attend physical therapy school.”
As this season went on how much pressure
was associated with going undefeated?
“I don't believe there was any
pressure when it came to being undefeated. Towards the beginning of the season I
don't think that any one of us ever thought that we would go the whole season
without losing a game. It just wasn't something that we talked about. When
tournament time came around, although we weren't really "allowed to talk
about it", I definitely think that it was in the back of our heads and was
motivation to help us finish the year strong. We as a team always talked about
how we had worked too hard and come too far to lose now.”
Who was the one person on the team that
made you laugh the most and why?
“It's very hard to choose just one
person, but if I had to choose I would have to say the one person on the team
that made me laugh the most was Sallie Kate Richardson. We always found a way
to make weight lifting or a tiring practice somewhat fun, even if we weren't
supposed to. Whether it was taking pictures before games, singing on the bus,
or dancing in the locker room, she definitely was always able to make me laugh.”
Who was the one player on the team you
wouldn't want to face as an opponent?
“One person that
I wouldn't want to face as an opponent is Alex McCafferty. Not only is she
probably 4 inches taller than me, but she could probably bench press me with
one hand. I have never seen a girl her age that is as strong as she and I would
not want to have to face her because she would most likely demolish me.”
How was your experience playing for
Coach Schmidt and what do you feel like you learned playing for her?
“I loved every
minute of playing for Coach Schmidt. Although it was tough, I definitely have
learned a lot and it has not only made me a better player, but a better person
as well. When transferring schools, I was looking for a very disciplined team
where I was going to learn the game. While playing for Coach Schmidt, that is
definitely what I got.”
What is the one moment or thing about
this season that you will always remember?
“The one moment
that I will always remember is winning the Overall State Championship. What
made this moment so memorable was that we were having to face Presbyterian
Christian School for the fourth time that year; coming off of a very close game
in the AAA State Semifinals where we were down to them by twelve late in the
fourth quarter. We knew that we were going to have to come out and play our
very best to beat them, and that's exactly what we did.”
What do you see yourself doing in ten
years?
“In ten years, I hopefully see myself having just graduated
from physical therapy school and working to further my career.”
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In determining the
Southern Sports & Travel Player of the Year twenty four coaches were
polled.
In the polling 73% selected Maggie Proffitt followed
by Anna Lea Little, Mackayla Dykes and Trista Magee.
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Sponsored by
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