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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

One of the most memorable girls basketball campaigns in recent history is in the books after a litany of historic moments and incredible turnarounds.

While Chelsea grabbed headlines with its first trip to the state championship game, the Hornets were far from the only quality team in the county. Shelby County, Calera, Helena and Westminster OM all quickly put last year’s bad memories to bed with memorable playoff runs, including an area title and Sweet 16 for the Wildcats.

Briarwood also left its mark on Class 5A with a run to the Elite Eight, Thompson made its grand return to the postseason under first-year coach Madison Pierce and Vincent also kept its season going with another trip to sub-regionals.

With so many talented players on each team, the race for the All-County Team was as tight as it has been in recent years. This year’s selected players have all more than earned their place among the top players from Shelby County’s AHSAA basketball teams.

Without further ado, here are the selections for the 2024-25 All-County Team for girls basketball:

 

First Team

Guard: Tee King, junior, Pelham. After multiple years of sharing the scoring load with Karma Wynn, King stepped up as the dominant scoring threat the Panthers needed. She averaged 19.3 points, a county-high 4.8 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game with 70 total steals while shooting 38 percent from the field, securing her first spot on the All-State First Team in the process.

Guard: Kenna’D Buie, seventh grader, Shelby County. Buie isn’t even out of middle school yet but burst onto the scene to fuel Shelby County’s run to the area title and Sweet 16. The All-State Second Team selection averaged a county-high 19.8 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while securing 98 steals and doing it all against much older and more experienced players.

Forward: Haley Trotter, senior, Chelsea. Now a two-time Shelby County Player of the Year in addition to an Alabama All-Star, North-South All-Star and All-State First Team selection, Trotter leaves Chelsea as one of the most decorated and talented players ever. The Shelton State signee is now the school’s all-time leader in rebounds after averaging 17.7 points, nine rebounds and 2.1 assists per game on the road to the state championship game.

Forward: Emma Kerley, junior, Briarwood Christian. Kerley continues to be a dominant force for the Lions as she became the program’s all-time leading scorer and helped her team make a historic Elite Eight run. The All-State Third Team pick averaged 14.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game in addition to 64 total blocks and 45 total steals, demonstrating her complete skillset that allows her to impact the game from anywhere on the court.

Center: Ja’Kalynn McGinnis, senior, Vincent. McGinnis closed her career with another consistently-dominant campaign, once again averaging a double-double with 14.6 points and a county-high 13.7 rebounds along with 2.6 assists per game, 63 total steals and 47 total blocks. The All-State Honorable Mention led the Jackets to another trip to the playoffs before taking her talents to Talladega College.

 

Second Team

Guard: Morgan Arnold, sophomore, Shelby County. Arnold was the other half of the Wildcats’ electrifying backcourt as she averaged 14.4 points, four rebounds and 1.5 assists per game while racking up 85 steals during Shelby County’s incredible turnaround.

Guard: Olivia Pryor, sophomore, Chelsea. A true two-way guard, Pryor began growing into her high potential as both the orchestrator of the Hornets offense and one of the key pieces of their press defense. As a result, the sophomore totaled the second-most steals in the county with 105 while averaging 8.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game in her third year as a starter.

Guard: Caroline Kester, junior, Oak Mountain. Kester remains one of the most dangerous catch-and-shoot players in the entire region, and she stepped up in a big way for a very young Oak Mountain team. She averaged 12.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 30 percent from the field and 73 percent from the free throw line.

Forward: Caroline Brown, junior, Chelsea. It’s tough to find a bigger workhorse in the area than Brown. She worked all around the court on offense to average 11.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game while shooting 44 percent, and she created numerous transition opportunities with her 76 steals on the press.

Forward: Sydney Coney, sophomore, Thompson. Coney filled a big hole down low for the Warriors this season and flourished as one of the team’s key contributors. As just a sophomore, she averaged 15.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and an assist per game to finish with nearly a double-double per game against Class 7A competition.

 

Third Team

Guard: Destinee Ealy, senior, Thompson. In her lone season with the Warriors, Ealy quickly left her mark as an electrifying scoring threat who could step up in big ways on offense when Thompson needed her to. She ended the year averaging 12.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and an assist per game and racked up 52 steals as the Warriors made their return to the postseason.

Guard: Ann Tatum Baker, junior, Briarwood Christian. Baker crossed the 1,000-point threshold for her career in 2025, which is just another testament to how key of a scoring presence she is while anchoring the Lions backcourt. She finished with an average of 10 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game and shot 34 percent from the field and 80 percent at the free throw line, the second-highest total in the county, and she secured 70 steals on the defensive end.

Guard: Ava Leonard, eighth grader, Spain Park. Leonard has grown into an instrumental part of the Jags offense even as just a middle schooler. She shot 39 percent from the field while averaging 9.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game and securing 75 steals.

Forward: Amari Grant, junior, Helena. Grant was a wrecking ball in the post as she played an instrumental role in the Huskies’ turnaround and run to the playoffs. She finished with 10.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game as well as 32 blocks while earning her second-straight All-Area selection.

Forward: Kora Johnson, junior, Calera. Johnson averaged 12.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game and finished with 68 total steals as she led the way on both ends of the floor for the Eagles as they turned around last year’s misfortunes into a playoff berth.

 

Honorable Mention: Maddison Green, Calera. Jakalynn Johnson, Calera. Sadie Schwallie, Chelsea. Isabel Heintz, Helena. Jaterrica Moody, Helena. Mallory Rhodes, Helena. Hannah Satterfield, Helena. Ally Barfield, Pelham. Hannah Bankston, Pelham. Tori Flournoy, Spain Park. Kaylee Fenderson, Thompson. Kayla Russell, Thompson. Kinsley Perkins, Vincent. MaKayla Perkins, Vincent.