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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

VESTAVIA HILLS – The Pelham Panthers will be looking for a new leader for their girls basketball program as Crosby Morrison is heading across town to take over for a Class 7A power.

Morrison was officially approved as the Vestavia Hills head girls basketball coach at a Vestavia Hills City Schools Board of Education Meeting on Monday, May 19.

Morrison leaves Pelham after seven seasons at the helm of the girls basketball program that she completely turned around in her time at PHS.

After the Panthers failed to win more than eight games in the five seasons before her arrival, she led them to a 21-7 record and a trip to the Class 6A playoffs in 2019-20, just her second season at the helm.

Pelham has not had a losing season since her first season in 2018-19, securing four-straight area titles from 2021 to 2024 and making the playoffs for five-straight seasons from 2020 to 2024.

That run was highlighted by a trip to the Final Four in 2022, the first in program history. The Panthers also reached the Elite Eight in 2023 and 2024 and the Sweet 16 in 2021 in addition to the semifinal run in 2022.

The streak ended in 2025 after a 16-12 campaign closed in the area semifinals against Helena after the Panthers were forced to rebuild after the departure of former Shelby County Player of the Year finalist Karma Wynn in 2024 and multi-time county Player of the Year Laci Gogan in 2023.

Morrison was named the Shelby County Coach of the Year in 2022 and shared the award with Briarwood’s Lorie Kerley in 2023. She was also named to the North All-Stars coaching staff for the 2023 North-South All-Star Game, which she won.

Before arriving at Pelham, Morrison served as the head varsity coach for Baldwin County for two seasons and head JV coach at Cleburne County for a season after starting her varsity coaching career as an assistant for one year at Oxford.

Morrison will now take over from John David Smelser, who served for six seasons as the Rebels head girls basketball coach. Smelser left to take an assistant coaching job for Homewood’s varsity boys basketball team under Elijah Garrison, who just finished his first season at the helm.

After helming rebuilds for much of her career, Morrison will look to continue a winning track record that Vestavia Hills built under Smelser, including six-straight trips to the playoffs, three berths in the Elite Eight and a state championship game appearance in 2022.