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Ravenswood’s Riley Heatherington named LKC Player of the Year

Ravenswood senior Riley Heatherington, pictured here during the Class A state championship game against Notre Dame, was named the Little Kanawha Conference’s Player of the Year. Photo by Jay W. Bennett.

PARKERSBURG — Little Kanawha Conference boys basketball champion Ravenswood High School landed the Player of the Year in University of Charleston-bound Riley Heatherington.

Heatherington, who is the eighth LKC POY for the Red Devils, helped the Jackson County program reach the Class A state championship game and also knock off Gilmer County for the conference title.

“I couldn’t be more tickled,” said RHS head coach Mick Price, who was named the LKC COY and watched Heatherington end his Red Devil career with senior season averages of 20 points, 9.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals a game to go along with registering 26 blocks, shooting 58 percent from the field and 77 percent at the foul line. “He’s made leaps and bounds each year. A lot of people say he’s not very strong, but he is strong and he does play strong.

“He’s kind of got that body like Kevin Durant. He doesn’t have the same type of Greek mythology body like other guys have like LeBron. I think Riley is kind of like that. He could go into Gold’s Gym 10 hours a day and he’s never going to look like that. He is strong and he will get stronger as his body matures with age.”

Heatherington was the only three-peat honoree on the all-LKC first unit.

LKC POY runner-up Trey Shuff of Gilmer County, who averaged 20.2 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks per game, was one of four repeat first-team all-LKC selections by league coaches.

Heatherington’s teammate Isaiah Morgan, Parkersburg Catholic’s Logan Plummer and Roane County’s Kaleb Greathouse, who averaged 15 points and a dozen caroms, were the others. Morgan averaged 14.9 points, 6.6 boards, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals an outing to go along with 63 made triples. He also shot 52 percent from the field and 87 percent at the free-throw line. Plummer ended his prep career for the Crusaders with averages of 15.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.9 steals.

St. Marys teammates Sam Kincaid (22.4 ppg, 67 made 3s, 72 percent foul shooter) and Will Billeter, who averaged a double-double, also were part of the 12-member first team. Billeter filled up the stat sheet by averaging 16.4 ppg, 11.7 rpg, 4.1 apg and 2.9 spg while shooting 48 percent from the floor as SMHS was elminated in the postseason by Wheeling Central in a regional co-final.

Also nabbing first-team honors were Williamstown’s Isaac Brown (18.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.5 spg), Doddridge County’s Hunter Riffle (9.0 ppg, 6.1 apg, 3.8 rpg, 3.4 spg), Calhoun County’s Zack Yanero (14.8 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 1.9 apg, 36 blocks), Webster County’s Dalton Gray and Braxton County’s Tayton Stout.

The all-LKC second team featured a baker’s dozen and that included Ravenswood teammates Stephen Dawson and Jayden Rhodes. Gilmer County, which reached the Class A state tournament before bowing out to eventual champion Notre Dame in the quarterfinals, had second team picks thanks to Noah Aviles and Carter Springer.

Parkersburg Catholic, which lost in the regional co-final against Huntington St. Joe, also had a pair of second team selections in Cade Ullman and AJ Collins.

The remainder of the all-LKC second unit featured Tyler Consolidated’s Jace Reed, Wirt County’s Drew Adams, Williamstown’s Josh Folwell, Doddridge County’s Tanner Lett, Webster County’s Dorian Groggs, Roane County’s Cole Ashley and Clay County’s Isaac Workman.

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