Wirt’s Hughes off to Bethany for hoops
ELIZABETH — Wirt County guard Cori Hughes has decided to go from the Tigers’ orange and black to the green and white of the Bethany College Bison, who compete in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference as an NCAA Division III member.
A four-year starter for the Tigers, Hughes averaged better than 17 points a game this winter as a senior. She played for her father Mike Hughes this year and also canned 67 3-pointers on better than 34 percent shooting from long range to go along with averages of 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.7 steals per game.
“At Wirt County I have to do a lot on the floor and try to control most things,” said Hughes, who will play under the tutelage of second-year Bethany head coach Brian Sansom. “They are going to use my shooting ability more.
“I’m going into my freshman year undecided (on a major). I’m not really sure what I want to do yet.”
Although the Tigers weren’t able to win a sectional title or make the state tournament during Hughes’ career, she finished with 911 total points and all but 106 of those came during her final two years.
She was a two-time Class A all-state honorable mention selection and also was a repeat all-Little Kanawha Conference second-team member this past winter.
“I have seen their team play a few times and the style they play in. I just like how they play and their coach is really nice,” Hughes added. “We’ve gotten to know him and he’s come to our games.
“Bethany was like the first college to really reach out to me about basketball and when I went and visited it seemed like the right place that I wanted to go.”
Hughes, who checked in with a 3.9 GPA last semester, said she got on the Bison radar “when we went to a college exposure tournament in Columbus and they emailed me and I responded and that’s kind of how it went.
“I was on the edge for a while because I didn’t know if I wanted to play in college, but once we started going to GBA (Girls Basketball Association) when we played this summer a girl (Buckhannon-Upshur’s Makayla Reynolds) who played with us is now committed to go there. I kind of know her and I met the team when I went up for my visit.”
While admitting she still has “a lot to work on personally,” Hughes is excited about the opportunity and the chance to “be able to focus on my shooting and my scoring ability and being able to create other shots for other players.
“Obviously, I’m upset that I’m never going to be able to play for Wirt County or my dad again, but I’m very excited to see what happens at Bethany.”
Hughes also wanted to thank coaches Jeff Smith, Jessica Theys, Brett Cowdery and Joe Crislip for their help in her development as a player.
“Right now, I just want to go up there and keep up with my school work and as the season comes figure out how to balance those and try to do well,” Hughes said.