THRALL – A trio of girls was honored as all-state selections in their respective sports this past week with Thrall senior Raelynn Johnson, junior Avery Koonce and junior Melaina Grissom.
RAELYNN JOHNSON
Johnson was an outstanding
player for the Tigerettes during the 2023 softball season and the senior was selected to the Texas Girls Coaches Association All-State Softball Team.
As an offensive leader and standout first baseman for Thrall, Johnson batted a whopping 0.486 with 36 hits, 34 runs scored, 31 runs batted in, 15 doubles, four home runs and two triples.
Johnson will take her game to the next level as she is set to play softball collegiately at Arlington Baptist University and pursue a business degree.
AVERY KOONCE & MELAINA GRISSOM
Koonce and Grissom were stars for Thrall track and field in 2023 and their efforts were rewarded as the duo of juniors was named to the Texas High School Coaches Association 2A Girls Track Super Elite Team.
In the 100-meter dash at the 2A state meet on May 12 in Austin, Koonce was the runner-up with a great time of 12.12 seconds. She also placed highly at state in the pole vault as her mark of 10 feet 6 inches finished fourth but was right on the heels of third place.
Competing in the triple jump as the 2A Region 4 champion, Grissom placed eighth at the state meet in a very competitive field for 2023. She was just a few inches from being as high as fourth place in the event.
Grissom and Koonce were part of the Thrall girls’ 4x100meter relay team, along with sophomore Kassandra Jackson and freshman Nevaeh Irvin, which finished in sixth place at the state meet with a time of 49.38 seconds.
