University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Getting to Know the 2017-18 Lady Eagles: Shonte Hailes
8/2/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss â€" Shonte Hailes, much like her classmate Respect Leaphart, was thrown into the refiners' fire her freshman year. Hailes was going to see a lot of touches with only one other ball dominant guard on the team. The sophomore appeared in every game her freshman campaign and started 29 of them. She also registered points on the stat sheet every game except three.
"It was hard at first, but with the help of my teammates and coaching staff it got easier," Hailes said. "They broke things down for me into smaller pieces and after a few games it became natural to me."
The Quitman, Miss. native showed that, though young, she came to Southern Miss to ball out. In a four game stretch she scored 19 points against Northern Kentucky in the last game of the Puerto Rico Classic, 27 points at LA Tech, 12 points at UTSA and 10 points at UTEP. Against the Miners she also dished out 10 assists, notching her first career double-double.
Hailes dished out 111 assists on the year, the fourth most by any freshman in a single-season, but she isn't only focused on sharing the ball this season. After losing key leadership and scoring, Hailes wants to fill those roles.
"I'm working on improving my leadership and scoring, since Brittanny Dinkins left," Hailes said. "I'm used to being in the position of needing to be lifted, but now it's my turn to lift my teammates. I have to pick up that role and lift them up."
Tickets for the upcoming season can be purchased online at SouthernMissTickets.com, or by calling the Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-844-TICK (8425) as well as visiting the Pat Ferlise Ticket Center.
