ELLINGTON — Abbi Harper is, without a doubt, the most popular member of the Ellington girls basketball team with the elementary students.
That was on display Thursday afternoon at a pep rally for the Whippets before they left for Springfield and the MSHSAA Class 2 Show-Me Showdown.
“Are we going to see Abbi?” one young student asked their teacher from the gym bleachers before the ceremony began.
Harper, a senior, passes out the super snack at the elementary school.
“I get to see them every day,” the senior said. “I love them all. They literally make my day.”
Harper, Gretchen Hackworth, Laura Gore, Kaylee King, Dylan Price, Ella Morton, Sadie Lloyd, Abby Bass, Mickayla Campbell, Lylah Morton, the team’s managers and coaches are looking to bring home a state championship for a second straight year and the third time in school history.
The Whippets play at 10 a.m. Friday in the semifinal against St. Paul Lutheran of Concordia at the JQH Arena in Springfield. The winner advances to the championship at 2 p.m. Saturday while the loser plays at 10 a.m. at the Hammons Student Center for third place.
Ellington is 24-4 this season, having won four playoff games by an average of 19 points.
When the Whippets beat New Haven 43-29 with a fourth-quarter push Saturday in Sikeston, the entire side of the gym was filled with orange-clad fans.
Hime, who was the baseball coach in 2019 when Ellington won the state title, said the whole town shut down to watch the Whippets.
“If you want to rob this place, now is the time because I promise there’s a bunch of people leaving now and Friday night it’s going to be evern better,” Hime said.
Said Hackworth, “It’s definitely exciting to see everyone here supporting us because everyone’s like one big family.”
The pep rally featured the entire student body of the district while the junior high and high school students lined the edge of the court for a scavenger hunt game. Each player was given a list of features that described a student they had to find and collect in a conga-line style snake as they made their way around the court.
“Most of the kids in our school know at least everybody in the high school if not most of the middle school kids,” Hime said. “Our teachers know every kid’s name here so it’s a special environment.”
Ellington has a high school enrollment of 116 students.
The pep rally also featured a relay race with students and teachers. Hime, the MC, had the crowd guessing which player was voted most likely to foul out (Hackworth), who had the best laugh (Ella Morton), who was funniest (King) and worst dancer (a tie between Harper and Lylah Morton).
“It makes everything a lot more relaxing,” Gore said of the fun.
Gore said her favorite part was finding out the hidden talents of some of her teammates. Harper imitated deer snorts while it was learned that one player can write with their toes and another can dance on a moving horse. Price, however, couldn’t be coaxed into doing what Hime described as a “weird crawl thing.”
The cheerleading squad performed before everybody headed out to the front of the school where the team loaded up bus No. 11 decorated for the team.
A highway patrol truck led the way with lights and sirens.
The team’s 22nd bus ride to a game this season started through town, past waving fans and signs lining Walnut Street urging the Whippets to bring home a few more wins and another title.
“We usually have a lot of fun on the bus,” Gore said. “We play games on our phones together and it’s a lot of fun.”