Simmons Superlatives

It’s been a long journey, but it’s time to finish off the Simmons Superlatives. I think I saved the best for last – the Best Teams in 2024-25 in high school.

It’s great to highlight athletes, coaches and moments (please go back and check out all the stories), but at the end of the day, I think most of us love sports because of the team aspect. Being a part of a team is special – it’s like inheriting a second family when it’s the right team.

Frankly, there aren’t a lot of bad teams in Warren County. But, for the purposes of this list, I’m looking to narrow down the top three. Success was usually the easiest deciding factor when choosing which groups rose to the top – winning still matters, after all.

Again, thanks so much to Security Federal Saving Bank and to everybody who has read the Simmons Superlatives. Being focused on the radio show(s) I do has probably limited my writing more than some people would like, but I enjoy getting to interact with everybody when they tell me their opinions on my lists and especially appreciate everybody who has reached out to say they love the lists.

The likes, the shares, the comments on social media – I’ve seen a lot of them and I truly do appreciate it.

OK, let’s get to the list.

WCHS girls tennis

Like I said in the opening, when it came down to doing the final rankings, success was ultimately how I ended up choosing the top groups. The Lady Pioneer tennis team distinguished itself from another top WCHS girls team in the spring in success with one important piece of hardware: a regular season district championship.

The Lady Pioneer tennis team went unbeaten throughout the season to win the District 7-AA title, going 9-0 to add to the school’s trophy case. Many of those wins were complete dominations – sweeping every set was not uncommon for the Lady Pioneers on the court.

In fact, two players (Izzy Pitts and Susanna Netherton) were perfect in sets during the regular season as a doubles pairing. Pitts, I believe, was also perfect in singles.

Winning every match took high levels of performances from top to bottom. Abby Graves set the tone as the No. 1 singles player, London Caten was one of many providing veteran leadership (and was a solid No. 2 player), Ranna Takahashi was a source of unlimited power with her penchant for hitting as hard as she could every swing and freshmen Natalie Payne and Anna Graves stepped up down the stretch as the team’s rotating No. 6 player (whether it was Payne playing singles or Graves teaming with Takahashi in doubles).

Their team chemistry was off the charts. You could tell the whole team – from the No. 1 player to the kids who only got to play in practice – liked each other. They loved rooting for each other and relished the success they achieved together.

Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the impact of new coach Hannah Belew. Sometimes the greatest compliment I can give coaches is “they didn’t screw it up.” That sounds backhanded, but it’s really not.

In coaching, when you have talented players and a great chance of success, you just don’t want to be the person who screws it up. Belew not only pushed all the right buttons with the lineup – keeping the team humming all year – she instilled a work ethic before the season started that lasted until the very last match of the season.

Belew wanted her kids to play hard on every single point. They did just that and a championship was their reward.

Boyd Lady Broncos basketball

The resume speaks for itself: 26 wins overall, TSIAA South regular season championship, a district tournament championship and TSIAA state runner-up. And the Lady Broncos were back-to-back when it came to the TSIAA titles – they won the same trophies in 2023-24.

This is always where I must add the disclaimer, I coach the team and know people are going to claim bias. And you’re welcome to say they only made the list because I coach there or because “they don’t play anybody.” Yes, I hear your slights. Luckily, I don’t care.

Here’s why: For years, I’ve heard so many people talk about finding ways for us to level the playing field for Warren County teams. People have clamored for building a new high school to drop classifications, drop out of regions all together (I’ve been a big proponent of that, admittedly) or try to push the TSSAA to stop dividing schools by enrollment and focus more on rural vs. city alignment.

Instead of trying to schedule down or stay content with (easier) wins, I’ve watched Boyd coach Tim Page do the opposite. Despite being the coach at the smallest school in the TSIAA (Yes, Boyd is the smallest school in EVERY game it plays every year), Page has pushed his scheduling to new levels every year.

Boyd routinely plays TSSAA schools (with varying success), goes out of state to play solid squads and has tried to avoid playing more and more conferences games (where it’s won 50 of its last 53 in four seasons) in hopes of playing more competitive teams for much of its schedule.

With floor general Cydney Jane Perry, TSIAA all-conference players Brooke Kesey and Macie Bush and TSIAA and NACA all-tournament selection Katie Bechtel returning, Boyd has a good shot at a 3-Peat and pushing Boyd’s win total under Page in six seasons to over 150 victories.

WCHS Flag Fooball

After the Best Moments, Best Coaches and Best Athletes superlatives, I’m not sure I have a ton more I can say about the Lady Pioneer flag football team. They are just a top-notch group who I believe set such a precedent for success and fun this spring that I believe kids for years are going to be lining up to be the next star on the gridiron for the Lady Pioneers.

The only thing that kept them from vaulting to the top of this list was being the lone group of the three to not win their division this season. And even then, Warren County was just one win short in the regular season in its first year ever playing the sport.

My prediction for the 2026 Simmons Superlatives: The WCHS Flag Football team is atop the list after making a run to the state tournament. The Lady Pioneers can be THAT good next year.

Congrats to all the Simmons Superlatives winners from 2024-25. I hope we can do this again next year!