Small School Spotlight: St. Maries

<p>The Lumberjacks finished the 2019-20 season in third-place at the state championships for the 2A level. St. Maries put together a great season with an overall record of 19-6 and a 4-0 record in conference under head coach, Bryan Chase. The Lumberjacks have more than enough potential to make another run at the state title as they only graduated one senior from last year’s team and will use their experience and chemistry to beat opponents. After finishing in third place in the state last season, I believe that the Lumberjacks will have more than enough talent to make another deep run at state due to their young and experienced roster. Continue reading for a handful of players to watch for St. Maries in the upcoming season.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="919709" first="Eli" last="Gibson"], 2021:</strong> One of the best players for St. Maries last season, Gibson will look to lead the Lumberjacks in 2020-21 in a lot of statistical categories. Last season, Eli was one of the top scorers for St. Maries and will look to increase his scoring productivity this season to help the Lumberjacks succeed. Gibson is a great guard who can score from anywhere on the court. He can shoot the ball well from outside, finishes well around the hoop, and has the ability to knockdown a pull-up jumper if the opportunity presents itself. As Gibson carries more of the scoring weight for the Lumberjacks this season, he will have the ball in his hands more often and will also look to increase his assist ratio throughout the season.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="919715" first="Brett" last="Stancil"], 2021: </strong>Brett is a knockdown shooter for the Lumberjacks and will look to lead St. Maries in shooting percentage this season. In last year’s district title game, Stancil went 6-10 from three and finished the night with 20 points. He has the ability to get hot in a hurry and stay hot throughout the game. It is rare to see Brett have a game with less than a handful of triples made and his ability to shoot the ball at high percentage draws lots of attention from opposing defenses. This season, Stancil will look to increase his percentages again while leading the Lumberjacks on offense as they compete for their shot at a state title in the 2A.</p>