Junior Parris Atkins, the only returning starter for the Bryant Lady Hornets in 2020-21, was named all-State and all-State Tournament recently.
The Lady Hornets also had three sophomores, Natalie Edmonson, Lauren Lain and Emileigh Muse and a freshman, Brilynn Findley, earn all-conference honors.
Bryant finished 13-11 on the season, making the 6A State Tournament as the fifth seed from the 6A-Central Conference after having to make up several games in the last 10 days of the season after they had been postponed due to COVID-19 issues.
Atkins averaged 16.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.6 steals a game. She had a season high 32 points and 14 rebounds against Little Rock Central.
“Parris had as much growth from her sophomore year to her junior year as any player that we have had in a while,” said Lady Hornets coach Brad Matthews. “Her ability to get to the rim was really special. Her consistency throughout the year helped us throughout the season. Her defense and rebounding also was at a really high level.”
Edmonson averaged 7.5 points per game including a season-high 20 points against North Little Rock when she was 6 of 8 from 3-point range.
“Natalie had a solid sophomore year,” said Matthews. “She is a really good shooter but also does a great job for us defensively.”
Lain averaged 7.1 points per game and 6.2 rebounds. Her season-high was 21 points in a win over Mount St. Mary Academy. She had a season-high 12 rebounds against Marion.
“Lauren brings a lot of positives to our team,” commented Matthews. “She consistently plays with a really high motor. Her effort and desire to win is really high.”
Muse scored 19 points in Bryant’s win over Benton, hitting 5 of 10 3-pointers. She averaged 8.3 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
“Emileigh had a very good season,” Matthews noted. “Her rebounding got more and more consistent as the season went on.”
Findley stepped in at point guard as a freshman and averaged 7.9 points and 3.9 assists per game with a season-high 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists against the State champion Fort Smith Northside Lady Bears.
“Brilynn did a great job playing point guard for us,” said Matthews. “As a freshman playing in our league, she got more and more comfortable playing against great competition.”
