ITEM PHOTO BY KATIE MORRISON
From right – Jeylly Medrano, Paris Wilkey, Chenysse Hill, Tyarah Horton, Soneta Srey.
By KATIE MORRISON
LYNN — The Lynn Classical girls’ basketball team held its annual banquet at Old Tyme Italian Cuisine in Lynn on Wednesday night.
The highlight of the evening was when seniors Shannon Magner, Chenysse Hill and Christina Behen delivered heartfelt speeches and thank-yous to their family, coaches and teammates, as a final send-off from the program.
Rams’ coach Tom Sawyer thanked the seniors for their “energy, dedication and all of the laughs” they provided throughout their careers.
“The three seniors have greatly impacted this program, and they will be truly missed,” Sawyer said.
Magner was forced to miss her entire senior season due to an ACL tear, but was lauded by her coaches and teammates for how she handled the devastating injury with grace.
“This season started tough,” said Sawyer, referring to Magner’s injury. “Shannon had dedicated herself to basketball like she never had before. She’s everything a student-athlete should be. I told the team that she wouldn’t want us not to play, and that she’d die to be out there, and I think it served as motivation for us.”
“She couldn’t have set a better example for the team,” added assistant coach Helen Ridley. “She led the team with a smile every day.”
Magner thanked her teammates for her four years in the program, and for respecting her and allowing her to lead as a captain, despite her inability to play. She also encouraged them to cherish every day in the Ram uniform, since no one ever knows when their last game will be.
“This injury helped me find myself as a person, not just an athlete,” Magner said, holding back tears. “I found my strengths and weaknesses, and learned not to take anything for granted. As much as the injury broke my heart, it broke my parents’ hearts more. I’m so thankful for them, they’re my heroes.”
Magner, who was presented with the academic achievement award, also reminisced about the day she and Hill found out they’d made the varsity team as freshmen.
“I’ll always remember us jumping and hugging each other,” she said.
Hill, another four-year varsity player, was a NEC All-Star this season, and led the Rams to a first-round playoff victory.
“I love you all, and I wish I could have one more year with this team,” said an emotional Hill, who said the younger girls on the team were like little sisters she never had. “There have been so many memories I’ll never forget. We’re like one big family.”
Hill was presented with the Lady Ram award for her fierceness and competitiveness on the court.
Behen, who was presented with a coaches’ award, was unsure at the beginning of the season if she even wanted to play basketball her senior year. But after a talk with Sawyer, she decided to stick it out.
“I wasn’t sure if my heart was in it,” she said. “But I’m so glad I played, because it was my best season yet.”
Behen urged the younger players to “never put down the ball, and to take every opportunity your coaches give you,” and said she’d “remember this season for the rest of (her) life.”
Sophomore Jeylly Medrano was presented with a coaches award, and junior Soneta Srey was named most improved player.
Paris Wilkey, who led the team in scoring, recording 16 games in double figures and scoring a season-high 31 points against Revere, was named the Offensive Player of the Year.
Sawyer recounted the many highlights from the Rams’ season, which ended with a loss to No. 1-seed Lowell in the quarterfinals of the Division 1 North tournament.
Sawyer said that after the game, Lowell’s coach approached him to tell him that the Rams “played the game the right way.”
“That’s the greatest compliment a coach can receive,” Sawyer said.