Hartman Captain of AA All-State Third Team

Cottrill, Ashley, Mullins first team AA All-State
by Derek Taylor
Daily Mail sportswriter

Ravenswood High senior Dusty Mullins wasn't rattled by his team's 18-5 deficit in the first quarter of the State Tournament championship game.

Playing in his last high school basketball game before moving on to the program at Glenville State next year, Mullins collected himself, his teammates and his team's fans to lead a comeback against Wyoming East that nearly gave the Red Devils their second Class AA boys basketball title in three years on March 15.

Ultimately that comeback fell short and Wyoming East escaped with a 50-48 win, giving that school its second straight championship. But it was Mullins' resolve and positive force that remained one of the 95th annual State Tournament's lasting images.

He didn't get frustrated. He didn't complain and he didn't quit. Instead, Mullins did everything expected of the 2007-08 Class AA All-State captain as chosen by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.

"Dusty has always been a young man who has cared very much for the people that surround him,'' veteran Ravenswood Coach Mick Price said. "He's been a real coach's dream. He's worked hard and is passionate about the game but at the same time he has a sense of the big picture of life.

"I want him to be able to show that to other kids,'' Price said. "It's just as important to lose with dignity and honor as it is to win.''

Mullins didn't lose too often during his time at Ravenswood. The 6-foot senior finished his career as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,902 points while also claiming the school's career 3-point field goal record with 331.

Mullins averaged 19.8 points as a senior and is the lone repeat selection on the All-State team. Ravenswood finished the season with a 25-2 record.

The remainder of the first team is composed of Wyoming East's one-two punch of senior Cory Willard and junior Gentry Shrewsbury, Poca sophomore Noah Cottrill, Bluefield senior Ansel Ponder, Logan junior Jonathan Bevins, Summers County senior Andrew Gunnoe and Winfield senior Caleb Ashley.

Price said the stacked field of talented Class AA teams and players was well represented in the list.

"I thought double-A was a tough field at the State Tournament and it was a great field for the fans,'' Price said. "There were a lot of great double-A teams this year. We beat a really good one in the regional final, Winfield. Our region was very tough.''

Of the eight first-team selections, five played in the State Tournament. Cottrill and Ashley played for teams in Ravenswood's Region 5 bracket.

Willard and Shrewsbury formed an inseparable commodity for the Warriors in Wyoming East's run to a second-straight Class AA championship. The team's repeat title marked the first time a Class AA had won back-to-back championships since Bluefield in the 1995 and 1996 seasons.

Willard, Wyoming East's sharp-shooting 6-0 guard, averaged 20 points and led all players in the state with 110 3-point field goals. His 11 3-pointers in the team's second game of the year were also a state high.

Shrewsbury, a 6-foot-3 junior forward, led the Warriors with a 20.7-point scoring average and averaged 11 rebounds.

"Willard started in the Hoops Classic (in December) against Poca and just never quit all year,'' Price said of Willard's 11 3-point goal performance in December. "Willard and Shrewsbury led that team back to where they needed to get. Once you're there anything can happen.''

Cottrill had a phenomenal year just months after giving a verbal commitment to play at West Virginia University. Rated as the No. 34 sophomore prospect in the nation by Hoop Scoop, the 6-foot-2 Cottrill averaged 30.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 2.5 steals. He was the state's second-leading scorer in 2008.

Ponder led the Beavers with an 18.2-point scoring average after earning All-State honors during Bluefield's state championship football season. The 6-foot-3 Ponder and Bluefield reached the Class AA semifinals before falling to Ravenswood.

Gunnoe had the highest-scoring single game of any player in the state last season when he scored 50 for Summers County against Liberty Raleigh in a 113-47 win on Dec. 18. The 6-foot-5 senior averaged 23.4 points and 11.3 rebounds.

Bevins, a 6-foot-7 pivot who averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game, also led his team to the semifinals. The Wildcats were eliminated by Wyoming East.

Winfield's Ashley was the state's seventh-leading scorer as a senior. The 6-foot-3 forward averaged 20.8 points in the Generals' final year among Class AA competition.

Winfield and Logan move to Class AAA at the start of the 2008-09 school year.

Weir senior guard Pete Brogdon was named captain of the second team after averaging 18.5 points. Junior forward Preston Hartman of Keyser was the third team captain. Hartman also averaged 18.5 points.