When Stephany Raines took over the head coaching job for the Upson-Lee girls basketball team two years ago, she was glad to be home.
And now she is coaching Upson-Lee through an undefeated season -- and after the newest polls were released this week -- to the No. 1 ranking in the Class 3A top 10.
“This is surreal,” Raines said. “It is such a blessing to be able to come back to Thomaston and show the girls that they are bigger than Thomaston, because I was a person who did it. I grew up in this small town all my life and went on to get a D-1 scholarship at Mercer.”
The status as No. 1 team in the class is familiar to Raines. In 1988, she was the starting senior point guard at Upson High School, before R.E. Lee and Upson became one, and helped lead the team to victory in the 2A title game, the school’s only girls state championship.
Raines coached at Mercer, then Georgia State for 10 years and had stints coaching at SCAD and for the Virgin Island National Team.
“Just to have the opportunity to come back and try to have a positive impact and to let the girls know that they can do it, too, that’s exciting,” she said.
The girls are several years removed from watching the Upson-Lee boys program win 4A titles in 2017 and 2018. Could it be their turn?
“Their goal is a state championship,” Raines said, bluntly. “We had a fairly good team last year, and we have some of them back. This year, from Day 1, we decided we want to win a championship, and that has been our goal.”
The Knights are 14-0 and the only undefeated top-10 team in the classification. Upson-Lee is 9-0 in Region 2-3A and has a commanding lead in the standings, with Americus-Sumter and Jackson at 6-3 and tied for the league’s No. 2/No. 3 seeds.
“I’m so proud of these girls,” Raines said. “I really am proud of where we are, while we are by no means satisfied.”
Four seniors are scoring double-figures to lead the Knights – Jakera Ellerbee (17 points, 12 rebounds), Alonzea Montgomery (13 points, six assists), Tyla Zellner (12 points, six rebounds) and Ja’Khia Parker (11 points, nine rebounds).
And while the No. 1 ranking might be a target for some, the Knights are appreciative ... with the understanding there remains a lot of work to do.
“I just love the humbleness in them,” Raines said. “They don’t really get caught up in the hype. People have been talking and congratulating them, and the girls say thanks, they appreciate it. But their goal is a championship. Because if we take a step back, we might mess up and they might regret something. But they are focused.”
When Upson-Lee defeated No. 10 Americus-Sumter, the defending 4A state champions last season, in early December, 61-46, Raines let on that it was a big victory. The team had other thoughts.
“I was really excited about the win,” Raines said. “But the girls saw that and said, ‘Yeah, that’s a good win, but we will get excited when we win the championship.’’'
Upson-Lee hosts Central-Macon Tuesday before back-to-back games against Mary Persons on Thursday and Saturday.
Top 10 rankings for 3A
Boys
1. Sandy Creek (14-4)
2. Hart County (13-3)
3. Windsor Forest (6-2)
4. Johnson-Savannah (11-1)
5. Salem (8-4)
6. Cross Creek (9-4)
7. Carver-Atlanta (8-3)
8. Sonoraville (16-1)
9. LaFayette (12-1)
10. Hephzibah (7-2)
Girls
1. Upson-Lee (14-0)
2. Cross Creek (7-2)
3. Johnson-Savannah (8-2)
4. Lumpkin County (15-4)
5. Sonoraville (13-4)
6. Coahulla Creek (15-2)
7. Greater Atlanta Christian (5-4)
8. Beach (8-3)
9. Westminster (5-1)
10. Americus-Sumter (9-3)
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