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However, to repeat as 7A-West cham- pions, Fayetteville should again be chal- lenged by Van Buren, which returns one of the top guards in the league in Jamilyn Kinney. Kinney, a Belmont University pledge, helped the Lady Pointers reach the state semifinals and finish runner-up in the 7A-West with 15.2 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds per game. Van Buren coach Chris Bryant has to replace four starters, but said he "likes the kids we're playing," such as Ira Sandoval, Kayleigh Evans, Rylee Ryan and Jentry Meyers, who gained valuable experience filling in for an injured starter during the postseason. "Anytime you have the defending state champs in your conference, you're going to have to go through them," Bry- ant said. "But there are going to be sever- al really good teams in our league. We're going to have to stay healthy, have good fortune and get a break or two here and there, and be playing out best basketball going into February to have a chance to do something." Both Springdale teams should be competitive. Springdale Har-Ber lost to Conway in the first round of the playoffs and has a seasoned, guard-heavy group back led by seniors Maci Mains and Kris- lyn Smith. Springdale High lost to North Little Rock in the quarterfinals, but re- turns 10 of its top 11 players from a year ago, including all-conference perform- er Ashlyn Minchew and All-NWADG first-teamer Marquesha Davis. Davis, a 6-0 junior, averaged 15 points and nearly nine rebounds per game. Lady Red'Dogs coach Heather Hun- sucker said other teams to watch in the conference are Bentonville High, Ben- tonville West and Rogers High, which lost several key starters but has a strong group coming up from junior high. "I think there is not as much dispar- ity as there was last year when you had really strong 1-2 (in Fayetteville and Van Buren) and the rest of us were battling for those 3-6 spots," Hunsucker said. "Fayetteville has three D-1s and is really good again, but I don't think the rest of us are that far off. "It's really wide open and I think it's going to be a fun year for fans to watch because no one likes blowouts. You're going to see really good competition, night in and night out." Mike Capshaw can be reached at mcap- shaw@nwadg.com or on Twitter @NWACappy. 7A Girls v Continued from Page 29 FARM • HOME • LIABILITY 2209 North Henbest Drive Fayetteville 479-442-2612 w a s h i n g t o n i n s . n e t S E R V I N G A R K A N S A S S I N C E 1 9 2 2 Washington County Farmers Mutual I N S U R A N C E Company Sunday, November 5, 2017 31 2017 Northwest Arkansas Basketball 7A Girls High 5 SASHA GOFORTH FAYETTEVILLE 6-1 SO. All-NWADG Newcomer of the Year averaged team-high 13.1 points, 4.0 steals, 2.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game. YO'MYRIE MORRIS NORTH LITTLE ROCK 6-3 SR. Had team-high 18 points and game-high 13 rebounds in state championship game last season. JASMINE FRANKLIN FAYETTEVILLE 6-2 SR. All-NWADG Player of the Year averaged a double-double last season with 11.5 points and 10 rebounds per game. MARQUESHA DAVIS SPRINGDALE HIGH 6-0 JR. Averaged 15 points and 8.7 rebounds per game in leading her team to a state quarterfi - nals appearance. JAMILYN KINNEY VAN BUREN 5-7 SR. Led Lady Pointers to state semifinals with 15.2 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds per game. "It's really wide open and I think it's going to be a fun year for fans to watch because no one likes blowouts. You're going to see really good competition, night in and night out." Heather Hunsucker, Springdale High girls basketball coach