~ The suspended boys coach lends a hand to the girls program.
A familiar face was on the sidelines Thursday night when the Scott County Central girls basketball team was in action in the Class 1 district championship match at Oran.
David Heeb, the school's athetlic director, assisted Semona Penrod during the game but he didn't stay around for the trophy ceremony.
Heeb, who coached the Scott County boys to a district title last season, is serving a suspension handed down by the Missouri State High School Activities Association that prohibits him from coaching or attending boys basketball games in the second semester of this season.
Penrod said Heeb, who could not be reached Saturday, has assisted on and off during the season.
"He does what assistants do," she said. "He helps and makes suggestions."
Heeb has two state championships from his five-year stint at Bell City while Penrod has clicked off a number of district titles at Scott County.
That's just part of the school's coaching brainpower, with Ronnie Cookson replacing Heeb this season and Lennies McFerren in his first year at principal. Cookson guided Scott County Central to 12 state titles from 1967 to 1992 while McFerren led Charleston and New Madrid County to a combines nine titles.
"When you have the coaching staff we have, it's good to have any one of them on the bench," Penrod said. "There's a lot of power there. Coach McFerren has done a lot just talking to the kids and keeping them fired up.
"It's definitely a different atmosphere this year. It's very exciting, like old times."
Ritter signs
Scott City senior Kacie Ritter recently signed with Jefferson College in Hillsboro to play volleyball next season.
Ritter helped lead the Rams to consecutive district titles under coach Carl Ritter Jr., Kacie's father. Scott City reached the quarterfinals this past season before falling to Crystal City 25-21, 25-21.
Jefferson College finished 31-10 last year and won its 30th straight conference title. Notre Dame graduate Amanda Essner was a member of the team this past season.
Eagle Ridge all-state
Eagle Ridge's boys basketball team set a school record with 14 wins this past season, finishing fourth at the Missouri Christian School Athletics Association state tournament.
Ben Douglass earned first-team all-state honors and Aaron Shell made the second team from the Eagles.
Mississippi Valley All-conference
Three teams had two first-team members to pace the all-Mississippi Valley Conference selections.
Alex Jauch and Clay Obergoenner, both seniors, made the first team from conference-champion Saxony Lutheran. The Crusaders went 7-0 in conference play and defeated Chaffee in the conference tournament finals.
Chaffee juniors Andy Hendrix and Jerrod Steger also made the first team. Leopold also had two first-teamers with sophomore Darren VanGennip and senior Eric Fluchel.
Delta senior Nathan Stroder, Meadow Heights junior Tyler Wagner, Oak Ridge freshman Garrett Light and Zalma junior Justin Lemons rounded out the first team.
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