High School Sports: Laurel Prep Roundup

Mariah Hankton sat in a conference room on the second floor at St. Vincent Pallotti High in Laurel last fall. She was surrounded by her parents and others in the room, including athletics director Steve Walker, head girls coach Josh Pratt and other school administrators.

A senior, Hankton signed a letter-of-intent to play Division II college basketball at Southern Connecticut State. The irony is that Hankton, a point guard, had never played in a regular-season game for Pallotti when she signed with the college.

A resident of Upper Marlboro, Hankton attended school at Bishop McNamara in Forestville and Princeton Day in Lanham before she enrolled at the private school in downtown Laurel. It appears that the move has gone well, as Hankton has been a sparkplug this season for the Panthers.

"It is exciting for me to be part of this team and try to win a championship," she said.

This is the first season for Pallotti in the A division of the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland (IAAM) and Pratt, in his second season, feels the move from the B league to the A level will help to attract top players to the school.

Hankton took part in the Senior Night game on Wednesday as Pallotti hosted The Severn School of Anne Arundel County. She had seven points as the Panthers won, 41-31, and improved to 12-10 overall and 6-7 in league play.

"I thought Mariah played well. She has steadily gotten better," Pratt told Laurel Patch on Thursday. "If I had her another year with her she would be a much better player because she would know the system better. She will be a better college player than high school player since will have four years with the same coach. She has a great mom and dad who support her."

Hankton was impressive in a home game on Feb. 2 against Seton Keough, one of the top-ranked teams in the Baltimore area. She had 16 points and the Panthers had a chance to pull the upset at the end of regulation, but a call went against Pallotti. Seton Keough went on to post the win in overtime, 57-51.

"I think she will do well in college," said Jackie Boswell, the Seton Keough head coach. "She distributes the ball well." Hankton said she also looked into attending Mount St. Mary's, New Haven and Central Connecticut before deciding on Southern Connecticut, which won 10 of its first 23 games this season. The head coach is Meghan Brown, a former player at St. John's who was at the Pallotti game on Wednesday to see Hankton, according to Pratt.

Pratt said Hankton attended McNamara as a freshman and sophomore and then Princeton Day as a junior. Pratt said he was contacted by Hankton's mother after Princeton Day shut down its girls basketball program. 

The Panthers end regular-season play Thursday (Feb. 11) against St. Frances. With a win Pallotti will secure fourth place in the standings and host St. Frances on Feb. 15 in the playoffs. With a loss Pallotti would play Feb. 15 at St. Frances, Pratt said.

 Laurel High swimming in county meet

The Laurel High swim teams will compete on Saturday (Feb. 12) in the Prince George's championships starting at 2 p.m. at Fairland Aquatic Center in West Laurel. The favorites for boys and girls are traditional powers Eleanor Roosevelt and Bowie.

Both Laurel teams improved to 12-2 this season with wins on Feb. 5 against Gwynn Park and Suitland. Top swimmers for the Laurel girls were  Jade Hill, Emily Yeagley and Meredith Passmore.

The top Laurel boys were David Carmen, Ryan Pauling, Cameron Ott, Will Hoover and Correy Blake. Carmen said Bowie and Roosevelt should be the teams to beat.

"So far they were the only two teams that really gave us a problem," Carmen told Laurel Patch on Wednesday. "We feel we have a good chance of going in there and being very competitive."

Laurel High boys basketball downs High Point

The Laurel High boys basketball team beat High Point, 58-57, in overtime on Tuesday as Carlos Horne, a transfer from Largo, had 13 points. Laurel is slated to host Suitland on Feb. 10 while the Laurel girls are at Suitland the same day. The Laurel girls are at Northwestern on Feb. 11 while the Spartans host Northwestern the same day.

Pallotti boys basketball falls

The Pallotti boys basketball team lost, 66-48, on Wednesday despite 12 points and eight rebounds from Aubrey Williams. The Panthers are 15-13 overall and 9-10 in MIAA league play, head coach Shae Johnson said Thursday. Pallotti will play its regular-season finale on Friday against Boys' Latin and with a win will guarantee a playoff spot, Johnson said.

Local grads with college teams in hoops

There are several graduates of Laurel and Pallotti high schools with college basketball teams this winter. Laurel High product Marche Pearson is a freshman at St. Mary's of southern Maryland and she came off the bench in 19 of the first 21 games and averaged 9.7 minutes and 3.3 points per outing.

Leslie Addy, from Pallotti, played three minutes off the bench Saturday for Bethany of West Virginia in a win against Grove City. Addy played in 18 of the first 21 games and averaged 6.6 minutes and 1.6 points for Bethany, which was 15-6 overall.

Laurel High grads Milade Lola-Charles and Chris Tolson are juniors with the men's team at Hampton. Lola-Charles played in 20 of the first 22 games and averaged 7.3 minutes and 0.7 points per contest. Tolson, a guard, came off the bench in 16 of the first 22 games and averaged 15.6 minutes and 4.1 points per contest. Tolson had six points and two assists off the bench Saturday in a win against South Carolina State as Hampton improved to 18-5 and 8-2 in the MEAC.