Donettes basketball to host River City Classic

DONIPHAN — The Doniphan Donettes basketball team will look to enhance its competition for next season with the addition of its new basketball tournament.

The Donettes will host the inaugural River City Classic, a new eight-team girls basketball tournament consisting of some of the best teams in the area. The tournament will be at Doniphan High School from Dec. 2-7 and is sponsored by River City Coffee & Tea.

After coming off a trailblazing season, Adam Epps, Donettes head coach and Doniphan’s athletic director, plans to keep the momentum going for the program by implementing a new showcase for promoting girls basketball in the community.

“We’ve been wanting to play in some different tournaments for a while and I thought it would be great if we did our own,” Epps said. “We look to have some solid competition. Sometimes we play in tournaments where there are only a few good teams, and we want to bring several good teams to the Doniphan area.

“Our community loves basketball, and we know they will be there to support it. This tournament will give us a chance to promote girls basketball and give these teams a platform to compete against some of the best.”

Epps said having Gary Featherston, the owner of River City Coffee & Tea, as the premier sponsor for the tournament was a great opportunity, and the connection played a role in the name of the tournament.

As of now, the participating teams include Alton, Neelyville, Portageville, Liberty, Kelly and Miller Career Academy.

Epps said the tournament will be livestreamed with Current River Broadcasting, and it’s a good chance to get these girls seen and promoted. The Doniphan gym also will get a few new updates before the tipoff to the new season with the addition of a new gym floor, which Epps is excited to get.

“It’s nice that we are getting a brand new floor next year,” Epps said. “We’re going all out for this tournament. Besides the high competition, we’re giving out T-shirts, and there will be an all-tournament team. Overall, it’s going to be a good event, and I’m really excited about it.”

Before the Donettes step onto the court next season, Epps said the team will be busy this summer as they participate in a few camps and tournaments as an opportunity for team building. With the new gym floor being added, the Donettes will practice in the middle school gym for the summer.

The Donettes’ summer schedule will consist of going to Kansas City for a big college showcase that they were invited to by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association and also will participate in a tournament in Branson.

“A lot of times in summer, it’s more about growing our bond as a team,” Epps said. “We’re going to hit the gym really hard this summer, and we’re going to figure out what we need to correct. The great thing about the summer is that we have a lot of time to fine-tune those mistakes from last year. Hopefully, by the time the season starts, we’ll be ready to go.”