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Columbia forward Jolena Gardner is the LCR’s Girls Basketball Player of the Year. (MANDI SLOAN/Special to the Reporter)
If you’ve spoken with Columbia coach Anthony Perry over the past three seasons, there’s one player in particular he’s always said has the potential to take his team to another level.
That player is forward Jolena Gardner. And this season, she began to prove him right.
Gardner was a double-double machine this year for the Tigers, posting 12 of them while leading her team in scoring. Her final averages for the year were team highs of 11.5 points, nine rebounds, 4.3 steals and 1.9 blocks per game, and she also dished out 2.2 assists a night.
Those numbers led Columbia to an 14-11 record and just short of a playoff berth in one of the toughest regions in the state. They’ve also earned her the honor of Lake City Reporter Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
But as impressive as her junior campaign was, which also saw her take on more of a leadership role while helping the Tigers bounce back from two straight sub-.500 campaigns, Gardner says she still could’ve done more.
“I feel like could’ve done a lot more for my team this season but there’s always room for improvement to get better,” Gardner said.
What does that entail?
“My effort, trying harder to win,” Gardner said.
Gardner’s drive to do so was evident to Perry this season. Not only did she become more consistent on both ends of the floor, but she also took on more responsibility, even playing the role as a point forward at times.
With Gardner being such a mismatch for opposing defenses, Perry often put the ball in her hands to run the offense. In a lot of cases, Gardner either found her shot or was able to find a teammate for an open look.
And when those shots went up, Gardner was always crashing for boards looking for rebounds.
“This year she was dominant on the court like we knew she could have,” Perry said. “She was our leader this year among the double-doubles, and that just shows how dominant she could be. That’s what I would frame her season as this year — just being dominant.”
Perry, as well as assistant coach Erica Mayo, have pushed Gardner to reach her potential since her freshman year. They’ve believed she has a high ceiling as a basketball player, possibly as high as reaching Division I college ball.
It’s a reason the two coaches have been tough on her through the past three seasons. They’ve known she can be the best player on the floor night in and night out, which is something Gardner has embraced.
“They’ve told me I can be good, and I have potential,” Gardner said. “They believe in me. I feel like they really believe in me. If it would be the last play in the game and they needed a shot, or they need a score, that’s how much they believe in me.
“They’ve really set the standard for how they want the program to be. For me to just see how they lead really motivates me to keep going.”
Perry also points out that Gardner has begun to realize that time is short to accomplish the goals she’s set out for herself. That includes not just winning games, but also signing to play college basketball, with teams such as Wake Forest and Indiana State currently showing interest.
That’s motivated her as well.
“I think she knows as an upperclassman now that her time is running out,” Perry said, “and the sense of urgency as far as her personal goals, like getting a scholarship, and also being able to carry the torch for the team and take that weight on her shoulders. I think she sees that it’s now or never.”
There’s one more motivating factor moving forward for Gardner — making the playoffs. That’s something the Tigers haven’t done now for three straight seasons after making it the prior three.
Gardner and company certainly did enough to end that drought this season. Columbia finished with a final state rating of 7.384, which would’ve been good enough to make the playoffs in any of the other three regions in Class 5A. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Region 1-5A was loaded, with the top eight teams in the standings all finishing with a rating above 12.
“It was frustrating, really frustrating because I know we’re better than what people see,” Gardner said.
The ingredients are there to return to the playoffs next season. Gardner will be one of three seniors alongside guards Eriel Baker and Aysha Broxey, and that trio will also be aided by rising junior Mariah Cox and rising sophomore Zuri Hollie, who emerged as key scorers for the Tigers this past year.
With that core five in place, Gardner hopes her senior campaign will finally end with a deep playoff run.
“You have a better chance at getting to the playoffs with more than one talent,” Gardner said. “We all have our difference ways of winning, Ayesha can shoot, Eriel is a good drive, I can get rebounds. We’ve just got to help each other get there.
“We’ve just got to keep our heads up and don’t give up.”
ALL-AREA TEAM
G: Eriel Baker
Columbia, junior
Led the area with 3.2 assists per game while also averaging 7.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.1 steals for the 14-11 Tigers.
G: Mariah Cox
Columbia, sophomore
Averaged 9.1 points 3.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 4.1 steals as a high-motor player for the Tigers.
G: Zuri Hollie
Columbia, freshman
Burst on to the scene for the Tigers, averaging 9.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 2.7 steals.
G: Ayesha Broxey
Columbia, junior
Did it for the Tigers on both ends of the floor, averaging 10.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 3.4 steals.
F: Jolena Gardner
Columbia, junior
The LCR’s Player of the Year averaged area-bests of nine rebounds, 4.3 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while also leading the Tigers in scoring at 11.5 points. As Columbia’s point forward, she also averaged 2.2 assists.
F: Isreal Hart
Fort White, junior
Was a big bright spot in a tough season for the Indians, leading the area in scoring with 16.7 points per game.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Anthony Perry, Columbia
Led the Tigers to a 14-11 record in one of the toughest regions in the state. Columbia finished with a 7.384 state rating, which was by far the highest in the area. It also would’ve put the Tigers in the playoffs in any of the other regions in Class 5A, but they finished ranked 11th in a stacked Region 1-5A where the top eight teams all had ratings above 12.
HONORABLE MENTION: Lafayette: Kiley Beach, Jada Copeland, Havyn Richardson; Suwannee: Shadavia Jones, Kiera Jelks, Janeah Mitchell