Last season: 14-9, 6-8 MECKA (5th place, lost first round of 4A playoffs)
Returning players: 5
Returning starters: 2
Coach: Lamont Johnson (1st season)

KANNAPOLIS — New coach Lamont Johnson was at Northwest Cabarrus last season, and the short-handed Trojan girls were winless.
Johnson has already coached two wins this season, although it remains to be seen how well the Wonders will fare in the MECKA without do-everything guard Aitana Grant.
A.L. Brown was a good team last year under coach Mike Wolford (14-9, including two wins over SPC champ South Rowan) but still only won six of 14 games in a competitive league. The Wonders split with four of their MECKA opponents and swept Vance. They were swept by Hough and Hopewell, although all four games were tight and two were decided by a single point.
The biggest loss was Grant, an athletic, all-league guard who scored and defended and was clutch at the end of games.
Leading the returners are three seniors — No. 2 scorer Kyla Downs, quick point guard Shemya Stanback and aggressive forward Mariah Howard.
Also returning are junior Kelly Chrismon and senior Cresha Irving. Those two will be counted on for rebounds and defense.
The key new faces appear to be sophomore guard Akeena Maxwell and junior guard Nikki Lyerly. The tallest player on the roster will be junior center Adjahne Dandridge.
The team’s strength will be quickness. Stanback, Lyerly and Maxwell can get up and down Brown’s college-sized floor in a hurry. They’re going to force some turnovers.
The worries are that the Wonders aren’t big (especially for 4A competition) and they’re not likely to shoot 3-pointers effectively. They’re going to see a lot of zones.
Johnson coached some decent teams at Lexington (2A Central Carolina Conference) that had similar talent to what he has now. He’ll make the most of his team’s quickness and the Wonders will try to turn turnovers into layups.

Players to watch:
Kyla Downs, Sr. — She doesn’t look fast, but she’s got exceptional body control and she can take and make shots on the move. She’s a smart player. She’s more of a scorer than a pure shooter, and the Wonders will need 15 points every night from her.
Mariah Howard, Sr. — She gets after it. Very aggressive on the boards and on defense, but she’s got to stay out of foul trouble. The Wonders need her on the floor.
Shemya Stanback, Sr. — She’s got the sort of quickness and speed you can’t teach. She’s a true, pass-first point guard, but she’s also going to have to score some if the Wonders are going to win games.