All-Region 1-AA teams announcedAll-Region 1-AA teams announcedTHOMASVILLE — To the victor goes the spoils.

For the Region 1-AA champion Randolph-Clay Red Devils, that means being well-represented on the Times-Enterprise all-region team.

Joe Williams was selected as coach of the year and senior guard Dexter Ellington was named player of the year for the Red Devils, who placed three on the first team. Joining Ellington were fellow seniors De’Andre Johnson and Brian Thornton.

“Dexter is a very skilled basketball player,” said former Thomasville coach and current Randolph-Clay assistant Tyrone Kellogg. “He’s just knowledgeable of the game.”

Ellington and Johnson averaged 20 points a piece. Thomasville had the misfortune to see the two light up the Bulldogs’ defense in a 94-49 victory early in the season. Ellington had 24 points, and Johnson finished with 25, including six 3-pointers.

“He’s an extreme talent,” Thomasville coach Ben Tillman said. “As you know, he can shoot the basketball.

“He did a great job, and I think one of the things that helped him was that he had a good supporting cast and you couldn’t just focus on him. The team was so talented, there were several kids that could for 20-25 points each night and that gave him a lot of leeway to score as many points as he wanted because you couldn’t focus the defense around him.”

Williams guided the Red Devils to 28 straight victories before being upset by Dublin 80-79 in the state quarterfinals.

“It would be impressive for the rest of us,” said Albany coach Archie Chatmon, about Randolph-Clay’s unbeaten regular season. “It’s common place for (Williams). It’s old hat for him. He expects it.”

Added Tillman: “I think coach Williams deserves to be the coach of the year, and eventually, I really hope that he ends up in the high school Hall of Fame, because he really is the cornerstone of high school sports and a great model and person to follow.”

Williams also recorded his 1,000th victory during the regular season.

Joining the Red Devils’ trio on the first team are Cook senior Kelvin Martin and Thomasville senior Dunnell Webb. Webb averaged 23 points and nine rebounds in leading the Bulldogs to the state playoffs, while Martin was selected as the player of the year by the coaches and was nominated for the McDonald’s All-American game.

On the girls side, Randolph-Clay was awarded for a terrific season, that included 26 wins and a trip to the final four.

“They play with a purpose,” Mitchell County coach Kenneth Harris said. “Every year, they get the girls to play hard.”

Sophomore Destiny Mitchell was named player of the year, and Jennifer Acree was selected as coach of the year.

The Red Devils went through region play unbeaten, led by Mitchell’s spectacular play. She averaged 23 points and pulled down eight rebounds a game.

“She’s a sophomore, but she has definitely played beyond a sophomore role,” Acree said. “She played extremely well for us and picked it up even more in the playoffs.”

Mitchell was Randolph-Clay’s leading scorer in all but one game this year.

Assisting Mitchell in scoring for Randolph-Clay was senior Precious Peak. Peak averaged 16 points and eight rebounds.

Thomasville freshman Carmenonique Dawson was a first-team all-region selection after averaging 14 points per game. Mitchell County guard Jasmine Vaughn and Fitzgerald forward Porsche Lampkin round out the first team. Vaughn tallied 10 points per game, while Lampkin scored 15 points and eight boards per contest.