Several members of Lake Oconee Academy’s basketball teams earned All-Region honors after the end of the season.
Three Titans received All-Region honors, and four Lady Titans were recognized on the postseason awards list.
Lake Oconee Academy’s boys landed one player on the All-Region team, as freshman Canon Mullen earned the honor. Mullen, a 6-foot-4 and 160-pound point guard, was the leading scorer for the Titans this year.
Mullen averaged around 17 points a game and recently earned his first college offer from TCU. However, the team will miss him next year, as his dad, Dan Mullen, was announced as the new head football coach at UNLV.
LOA boys’ head coach Josiah Rechenbach noted that Mullen made a significant impact on the program’s future.
“Canon was a high-level all-around player for us this year, who played with the maturity of an upperclassman,” Rechenbach said. “At this level, you don’t see many high-level shooters of his caliber, and he was also a very good rebounder. His work ethic and discipline are top-notch.”
The Titans also had seniors Torin Maddox and James Wright III earn All-Region honors.
Maddox, who averaged about 13 points a game, was named to the All-Offensive Team. Wright also made the All-Defensive Team.
“I’m really proud of both my seniors. They’re guys who are historical for the program and have put in a lot of energy, effort, and hard work over the last couple of years,” Rechenbach said. “So, I’m really blessed to have coached them and am proud of them. I know they’ll be successful in their future endeavors.”
Lake Oconee Academy’s girls had senior Briana Glave and junior Ansleigh Padgett named to the All-Region team. Glave and Padgett were the team’s top two scorers this year under head coach Savannah Soles.
“Briana made All-Region for us. That was a pretty unanimous selection across the board,” Soles said. “She was a kid that we asked to play point guard this year. Probably more of a true shooting guard, but she took on that point guard role. We couldn’t have been successful without her. … Ansleigh also made All-Region and was another unanimous selection. She’s the best shooter in our region, and there’s no doubt about that.”
Junior Beth Harris, along with Glave and Padgett, was another key scorer this year and represented the Lady Titans on the All-Offensive team. Senior Mary Claire McCommons also made the All-Defensive Team.
Soles acknowledged that Harris wasn’t just a threat from beyond the arc.
“Beth averaged double-digit points in our region games,” Soles said. “She became not just a three-point shooting threat but also more of a two-point threat, and that was huge for us down the stretch. Everybody expects us to shoot 3-pointers, and [Beth] was confident in dribbling in, making some layups, and then getting a lot of offensive rebounds put back up for us. We’re expecting her to be big for us when she’s a senior.”
Soles also highlighted how good McCommons was as a defender.
“[Her] recognition was well-deserved. She spearheaded the defense for us,” Soles said. “She replaced Jane [Monachello] this year and led the charge. She’s very vocal. She doesn’t speak a lot, but she did on the defensive end, making sure everybody was in the right position. She led us in steals and was our third-leading rebounder.”