Pete Papahronis moving from boys to girls basketball at Guthrie
BY RYAN ABER
raber@opubco.com
Pete Papahronis, who coached Guthrie to back-to-back boys state championships in 2008 and 2009, is moving over to coach girls basketball at the school.
Guthrie will start a search for a new boys coach immediately, a release form the school said.
The boys went 17-11 this season, making the semifinals of the 5A tournament.
Papahronis coached Guthrie’s boys for nine seasons, leading the Bluejays to five state tournament appearances.
Papahronis takes over for Terry Carris, who resigned earlier this year after five years in his latest stint at Guthrie.
Carris had taken the Bluejays to the 1985 and 1986 state tournaments during his first stint at Guthrie.
Girls basketball: Douglass’ Te’era Williams gets release from Grambling State
Douglass basketball standout Te'era Williams, left, and her mother, Lenora Love, right. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN
Douglass’ Te’era Williams got a release from her Grambling State letter of intent after all.
Grambling State athletic director Percy Caldwell reversed the previous denial and informed Williams and her mother, Lenora Love, in an email Friday morning.
Last week, the Douglass basketball standout was denied the release she requested after coach Donnita Rogers was fired in March.
Williams signed with Grambling State in November. After her release was denied, Williams began visiting junior colleges. She wouldn’t have needed a release to play at the junior-college level.
But if she wanted to begin her NCAA Division I hoops career at any other school besides Grambling State in the fall, she needed the release she was granted Friday.
Now, Williams is left hoping that a Division I school still has a scholarship available for her. She said last month she was interested in Oklahoma State, Tulsa and Wichita State.
Williams was The Oklahoman’s Little All-City Player of the Year after averaging 27.3 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and seven steals per game as a senior, when she led Douglass to its first state tournament appearance in 20 years.
Girls basketball: Millwood’s Quira Demery signs with Tennessee Tech
Millwood's Quira Demery, right, will play college basketball at Tennessee Tech,. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN
Millwood senior basketball standout Quira Demery signed with Tennessee Tech, which plays NCAA Division I basketball in the Ohio Valley Conference, on Thursday.
Demery led Millwood to the Class 3A state championship as a senior, averaging15.9 points per game through the season.
In the state tournament, Demery averaged 16.7 points, including a 21-point, 11-rebound performance in the Falcons’ title-game win over Prague.
Demery’s performance helped Millwood snap a three-year streak of runner-up finishes.
Ryan Spangler leaving Gonzaga, plans visit to OU
Former Bridge Creek star Ryan Spangler, The Oklahoman's 2011 Super 5 Player of the Year, was granted his release from Gonzaga and plans to visit OU this weekend.
Former Bridge Creek star Ryan Spangler has been released from his scholarship at Gonzaga and will visit Oklahoma this weekend, he said.
The Spokane Spokesman-Review reported that Spangler had been granted his release on Wednesday with hopes of transferring closer to home. Spangler said he had informed a few schools of his release, including OU, Tulsa, Oral Roberts and Arkansas.
“I just feel like I needed to be closer to my family,” said Spangler, The Oklahoman’s Super 5 Player of the Year in 2011. “OU is my first stop. I’m going to fly in Friday to visit OU, then fly out Sunday. I’ve heard a lot of good things about coach (Lon) Kruger and his staff. They have two scholarships open, and they seem pretty excited to talk with me.”
Spangler, a 6-foot-8, 232-pound forward, appeared in 22 games as a true freshman last season, averaging 2.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in a reserve role.
He had one of his better games with four points and eight boards in the NCAA Tournament win over West Virginia. He would be required to sit out next season at a Division I program, and would have three years of eligibility remaining.
“I just look at that as a positive,” he said. “It’s just a year for me to get better and mature.
“I felt like I had a great freshman year, and I got way better. I wish I could have played more, but that’s just part of it when you’re a freshman.”
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Girls basketball: Douglass’ Te’era Williams denied release by Grambling State
Douglass' Te'era Williams was the Little All-City Player of the Year after leading the Trojans to their first state tournament in 20 years. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN
Douglass senior basketball standout Te’era Williams was denied a release from her letter of intent by Grambling State, her mother said.
Williams, who signed with Grambling State in November, requested the release in March after coach Donnita Rogers was fired. Lenora Love, Williams’ mother, said they are appealing Grambling’s denial but are also looking at junior colleges as a backup plan, starting with a Tuesday visit to Carl Albert State College in Poteau.
Williams wouldn’t need a release from Grambling to play at a junior college, and could transfer anywhere after one year.
Williams was The Oklahoman’s Little All-City Player of the Year after averaging 27.3 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and seven steals per game as a senior, when she led Douglass to its first state tournament appearance in 20 years.
Londaryl Perry blog series Part 5: The state of Perry’s family today
Londaryl Perry teaches his history class at Northeast Academy. PHOTO BY DOUG HOKE, THE OKLAHOMAN
This is the final post in a five-part blog series, continuing the life story of Northeast girls basketball coach Londaryl Perry, The Oklahoman’s Little All-City Coach of the Year.
Perry was profiled in Tuesday’s newspaper, but his life story is too fascinating to be held to one story. This blog post will focus on Perry’s military career. Here is the full blog schedule:
Tuesday: Perry’s basketball career
Wednesday: More on Perry’s mother and two brothers
Thursday: Perry’s first coaching job
Friday: Perry’s military career
Saturday: The state of Perry’s family today
****************************************************
At age 34, Londaryl Perry received word that another uncle had died because of drugs.
His uncle James, who had no insurance and had been a drug addict for most of his life, didn’t have an overdose. The drugs just finally took a toll on his body.
“This particular uncle, even though he was on drugs, he was probably the happiest druggie and alcoholic you’d ever meet,” Perry said. “He was always happy and he was going to make you smile.”
Perry was in Iraq for the second time, this time as a civilian contractor, when his cousin told him about James’ death.
The family was scrambling around, trying to find a way to pay for funeral and burial costs. They had decided to cremate him and not have a funeral because they didn’t have enough money.
Perry told his cousin to get with a funeral service and tell him how much it costs. He offered to pay for everything, on the condition that a letter he wrote would be read at the funeral.
The family agreed, and Perry wrote a letter pleading for his family to change. Getting off drugs was part of it, but Perry also wanted his family to be closer.
Now that Perry is back in Oklahoma City, he makes sure they live up to it. Every family holiday is spent at Perry’s home, with around 40 people there each time — including Perry’s mother.
She claims to be clean, but no one is really sure whether to believe her or not. She lives with one of Perry’s younger brothers.
“She’s 53, but she’s 21 in her head,” said Jermey Perry, Londaryl’s youngest brother who is 25 now.
“She doesn’t like talking about (the past). She knows she did wrong.”
Londaryl describes his relationship with his mother as “cordial.”
“We have conversations,” he said. “We speak, but it’s just different (than a normal mother-son relationship).
“If she’s not on drugs, what did she do to get off them? I don’t know. Because the whole time I was raising my brothers, she was still on them.
“I don’t know what her motivation was or is to get off drugs. … It’s fortunate that she’s still alive because of how long she was on drugs.”
But still, Perry said there is no bitterness about how he was treated as a child. He still wants his family to be close, and that’s why he tries to get everyone together on holidays.
“We try to get our family together because our family is not close-knit,” Perry said. “We try to have those times where we come together and try to enjoy each other.”
Edmond North’s boys basketball team loses another coach
EDMOND — The seniors on next year’s Edmond North boys basketball team will play for their fourth coach.
Quinn Wooldridge, who was hired last summer, resigned to become head coach at Southwestern Christian University in Bethany. Wooldridge will replace Mark Arthur, the school’s athletic director who has been basketball coach for 20 years.
Wooldridge was a men’s basketball assistant at Oklahoma City University before taking the Edmond North job, and was previously McAlester’s head coach from 2003-2005.
Edmond North athletic director Tom Snider said Wooldridge’s departure is disappointing because the boys basketball program, which was 5-18 this season, needs stability.
“(Before he was hired), one of the main things we talked about was getting stability with this program,” Snider said. “But, life happens, as they say.”
Snider said he hopes to have a new coach hired before the May school board meeting, and that long-term stability will again be one of the main criteria in making a hire.
“It was hard to go down there and tell those kids that this has happened again,” Snider said. “The kids were really disappointed.”
Londaryl Perry blog series Part 4: Perry’s military career
Northeast girls coach Londaryl Perry went to Iraq twice. PHOTO BY DOUG HOKE, THE OKLAHOMAN
This is Part 4 in a five-part blog series, continuing the life story of Northeast girls basketball coach Londaryl Perry, The Oklahoman’s Little All-City Coach of the Year.
Perry was profiledled in Tuesday’s newspaper, but his life story is too fascinating to be held to one story. This blog post will focus on Perry’s military career. Here is the full blog schedule:
Tuesday: Perry’s basketball career
Wednesday: More on Perry’s mother and two brothers
Thursday: Perry’s first coaching job
Friday: Perry’s military career
Saturday: The state of Perry’s family today
****************************************************
At age 28, Londaryl Perry joined the Army.
Perry had been an assistant coach at Putnam City West since he graduated from Central Oklahoma, but the student loan debt he was carrying became too much.
He was sent to Iraq in October 2003 — seven months after the war there began.
Perry was stationed at the Baghdad International Airport and worked with secure, encrypted telecommunications.
“We were getting bombed every. Single. Night,” Perry said of his time at the airport. “It became like clockwork; we’d get bombed somewhere around midnight, and then again between 5 and 6 in the morning.”
Fortunately, Perry didn’t lose any friends in Iraq.
After his tour in Iraq was completed, he stayed in the Army until 2007. Much of his time was spent playing for a military basketball team.
His last day in the Army was President’s Day in 2007. Almost immediately after that, he became a private military contractor, and returned to Iraq about seven months later.
“It was very different, being a civilian contractor vs. being a soldier,” Perry said. “Both experiences were very rewarding.”
As a contractor, Perry was responsible for putting Electronic countermeasures (ECMs) on vehicles, which send out radio pules and jam radio signals to stop insurgent’s bombs.
He said his job as a civilian contractor was “a little more rewarding,” because he knows he saved the lives of American military personnel. He worked more with the Marines and the Navy during his second trip to Iraq.
“We had a lot of instances where it was proven to have worked,” Perry said of the ECMs.
He spent a little over a year in Iraq the second time before he returned home to both reunite with his family and get back into coaching, which he missed.
OCA Girls All-State teams announced
The Oklahoma Coaches Association released its girls All-State teams Thursday. The OCA girls games will be played July 25 at the Mabee Center. The small school game starts at 7 p.m. with the large school game at 8:30 p.m.
Large East
Taylor Cooper, Shawnee
U’Knique Gaines, Tulsa East Central
Jodi Glover, Fort Gibson
Devaughn Gray, Tulsa Washington
Lashanda Green McAlester
Kelsee Grovey, Shawnee
Madison Mercado, Sapulpa
Lanesha Middleton, Stillwater
Caitlyn Spurgeon, Vinita
Miranda Taylor, Claremore
Coaches: Carl Treat, Stillwater; Matt Sweeney, Oologah
Large West
Kylie Boggess, Piedmont
Ashley Clark, Midwest City
Alie Decker, Edmond Memorial
Daisha Gonzaque, Edmond Santa Fe
Rasheeda Kabba, Westmoore
Toni Smith, Del City
Kati Sullivan, Anadarko
Courtney Walker, Edmond Santa Fe
Antoinet Webster, Western Heights
Te’era Williams, Douglass
Coaches: Jeff Mahoney, Elgin; Dandy Peeler, Edmond Memorial
Small East
Courtney Backward, Salina
Kelsey Barnwell, Kansas
Megan Brown, Howe
Hayley Bryan, Copan
Courtney Cowan, Kansas
Pete Douglas, Oktaha
Charitee Evans, Red Oak
Shanna Harrison, Adair
Kenzie Solberg, Chandler
Brooke Watkins, Prague
Coaches: Brandon Lindly, Wright City; Mike Buntin, Verdigris
Small West
Jamie Brown, Chattanooga
Lexie Brown, Hammon
Casi Cornell, Thomas
Kori Fast, Fairview
Jordan Garner, Amber-Pocasset
Bailey McBride, Chattanooga
Lacey Paulk, Washington
Katelyn Richardson, Calumet
Jordynn Van Pelt, Snyder
Shayla Williams, Northeast
Coaches: Cherie Myers, Okarche; Kirk Harris, Marlow
Londaryl Perry blog series Part 3: Perry’s first coaching job
Northeast coach Londaryl Perry's first coaching job was at Putnam City West under Mike Nunley. PHOTO BY DOUG HOKE, THE OKLAHOMAN
This is Part 3 in a five-part blog series, continuing the life story of Northeast girls basketball coach Londaryl Perry, The Oklahoman’s Little All-City Coach of the Year.
Perry was profiled in Tuesday’s newspaper, but his life story is too fascinating to be held to one story. This blog post will focus on his first coaching job, when he was an assistant boys coach at Putnam City West under Mike Nunley. Here is the full blog schedule:
Tuesday: Perry’s basketball career
Wednesday: More on Perry’s mother and two brothers
Thursday: Perry’s first coaching job
Friday: Perry’s military career
Saturday: The state of Perry’s family today
****************************************************
At age 24, Londaryl Perry got his first coaching job.
He became a boys assistant coach under Mike Nunley at his alma mater, Putnam City West.
Nunley became another important friend and mentor for Perry.
“When I first spoke with Mike, I just had a feeling that this man is somebody special,” Perry said.
For his part, Nunley knew pretty quick that Perry was a natural coach.
“What he had was a passion for teaching kids the game of basketball,” said Nunley, now the athletic director for Edmond Public Schools.
Nunley remembers that kids were drawn to Perry, and just generally wanted to be around him. Perry still has that appeal to kids today at Northeast, where he regularly gets hugs as he walks through the school halls.
But what really impressed Nunley was Perry’s attitude.
“Early on, we had a parent meeting,” Nunley said. “Someone was unhappy.”
Nunley remembers Perry looking at him and putting his hand out, palm side up.
“Coach Nunley, most people are looking for a handout,” Perry told him before twisting his hand.
“I’m looking for a handshake.”
That outlook was especially impressive considering Perry’s difficult background.
“He had every right to not be a positive member of society,” Nunley said. “There was nothing. But he never used it as a crutch or an excuse.”
Perry said Nunley taught him patience, and also gave him the opportunity to learn how to be a coach.
“Sometimes, he would just walk out of practice and let me take over,” Perry said. “He would put me there to take control and get the feeling of being a coach.”
Nunley remains a mentor for Perry today. Early in this — his first — season with the Northeast girls, he called Nunley when he had trouble getting through to his team.
The girls weren’t responding to Perry’s aggressive approach; Nunley said Perry was so good at basketball, that he sometimes struggled to communicate with those who weren’t as talented.
“The game was so easy to him,” Nunley said. “He was Russell Westbrook before Russell Westbrook.”
But he also had to learn that girls sometimes need a different sort of leadership.
“I told him he needed to treat all of those girls as if they were his daughters,” Nunley said.
Once he started looking at it from that perspective, things improved.
“I can not talk to Mike for several months, and when I do it’s a great conversation,” Perry said. “He’s a great man and mentor.”
