Sanders, a 1981 graduate of Crestview High School, played college basketball and coached multiple sports, both boys and girls before moving into administration. He last coached basketball about 20 years ago when he led the Crestview Lady Bulldogs to the district championship.

Laurel Hill principal Lee Martello is excited to welcome Sanders to the Hobo family.

“We are so excited about bringing an experienced coach back to a program with lots of legacy and history in basketball,” she said. “We are super excited about the about the team Mr. Sanders is going bring.

“I was looking for someone who had experience in basketball and had a legacy in a program prior to Laurel Hill. When I heard Mr. Sanders’ interest, I was just super excited to bring in experience, leadership and values back to the program.”

Former Paxton star Demetrius Moore will be Sanders’ assistant coach and lead the middle school and junior varsity teams. Moore played college basketball at Northwest Florida State and Indiana State before playing professionally overseas.

Martello calls Sanders and Moore her Dynamic duo and is ready to see the success they bring to the program.

The return to coaching is a perfect fit for Sanders. He can concentrate on basketball in his semi-retirement. He’ll be able to scheme for the team and establish the relationships with his players and pour into their lives.

Sanders sees it as an opportunity to give something to Laurel Hill.

“Just before we (Sanders and his wife, Stephanie) retired we moved up to the Laurel Hill community,” said. “We wanted to integrate a become a part of the community a little bit. When Lee approached me about the position, it was something I thought about a lot, and I really wanted to try to get back into it and have a positive impact in these young kids’ lives.

“It happened pretty fast. I’m really excited about it.”

Sanders rolled off the names of the men and women that have made the tiny Laurel Hill gym their basketball and volleyball office. He counted the number of state titles and believes there is still a hunger and the base to have success at the small school.

“What better place could I get back into coaching,” he asked. “Nobody has as much success and tradition as Laurel Hill School and people don’t know about it. Eight state championships in basketball.

“Eleven overall state championships right here in the smallest school in Okaloosa County. Where could you go and coach and get back into that has had that kind of success?”

Sanders has met with team, and he sees players that can be successful right away.

“The guys just have to believe a little bit and work,” he said. “I think you are going to see the tradition and success is about to come back to Laurel Hill.”

Now in his early 60s, Sanders knows there is no promise of an ideal world or that he will coach for a certain number of years. He also understands why the players might be skeptical of another coach.

His goal is to coach long enough to win a state championship or at least to bring back the tradition.

Sanders is ready to get started with a rebirth in his coaching career as he goes about infusing life back into the once proud program.

“I think about Laurel Hill basketball kind of like myself and there are parallels,” he said. “Laurel Hill, in the last three years has won 14 basketball games.

“It’s like coach Sanders, we are old and down a little bit right now and we are a little bit out, but if Laurel Hill basketball was a stock you had better buy some it right now, because we are going to be on the rise.”

Andrica Durm-Williams, a former Lady Bulldog herself, has stepped into the interim role with hopes of securing the permanent job. Durm-Williams was focused on getting the team better as everyone waits to see if she will get the job or if it will go to someone else.

“The expectations I have for the girls are showing up and showing out,” she said. “They have to work hard. They have to put in the work to be able to get on that floor and play.

“So far this summer, all of them have been willing to work hard. I do know that some of the girls, when the other team gets up (ahead by several points), they kind of fall back a little bit.”

The way Durm-Williams manages that situation is to substitute everyone on the floor.  

“I have a whole second group to put in for them until they get their attitudes right or their basketball IQ back to where it needs to be in focus,” she said.

The most impressive thing Durm-Williams has noticed about the team is the desire the players have to win.

Jacorya Brown, who will play the point guard and two guard, wing Addison Wolf and post player Hayden Winn, who is a transfer, have made an impression on Durm-Williams. And there’s always Natalie Toney, who arguably will be the top player on the team.

Crestview played about 16 games this summer, and Durm-Williams said the Lady Bulldogs held their own. Crestview wrapped up the summer schedule against Navarre and Milton on June 27.

Now it’s just waiting to see if Durm-Williams gets the job. In the meantime, she will continue to do everything necessary to finish the summer strong.

“This next month we are looking at weightlifting and conditioning, just getting the girls in shape,” she said.

Toney admits she feels the weight of leadership, but she is determined to be the best player possible.

Interim Lady Bulldog coach Andrica Durm-Williams knows Toney is a player with rare talent.

“Natalie Toney is a very, very special player,” Durm-Williams said. “She knows what she wants. She knows how to execute. 

“She knows what she needs to do every time she steps on that court.”

One of the things Durm-Williams appreciates the most about Toney’s style of play is her relentlessness.

“Nat is one of a kind,” Durm-Williams said. “Her style is very aggressive, which I like. She’s not afraid to attack.

Sometimes when she attacks, she’s successful. Sometimes she’s fouled. And sometimes she is wild and not in control, but at the same time, she can get back on defense and do what she needs to on defense.” 

Durm-Williams said the biggest thing Toney needs to work on is her court vision.

“Nat needs to read the floor better so when she drives, she can see who is open,” she said. “Other than that, she just needs to work on getting the layups in.”

Toney is working hard on her shooting and ball handling as she drives to the basket.

She said it’s been difficult at times this summer with former coach Connor Williams taking a college job and waiting to see if Durm-Williams will get the job.

“It’s been kind of rough because we don’t know who our actual coach is going to be,” Toney said. “We may just have to throw things together (for the upcoming season) at the last second.”

Toney thinks the Lady Bulldogs have the players to be a very good team. If she’s correct, Crestview has a chance to accomplish Toney’s big goal. 

“I hope we can win another district championship,” she said. “I want to get another one under my belt before I leave. We just have to work together and work really hard.” 

The Gators finished their summer workouts last week, and Martin likes what he saw from the team.

“The summer drills have gone really good,” he said. “We’ve responded to a lot of challenges, and we’ve run the gauntlet this summer. We’ve played a lot of 5A, 6A and 7A schools and a handful of AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) teams.

“We’ve learned a lot about our team this summer. They played hard when a challenge was in front of them. Whenever I challenged them to do something, they responded with a lot of effort, which showed on the court.”

Martin described the team as a bunch of gym rats that were constantly asking him to unlock the gym, so they could shoot or play pickup games. He said they were in the gym five or six hours a day.

Baker will be somewhat undersized this year with the tallest player just a shade over six-feet-tall.

The lack of size doesn’t mean there aren’t athletes on the team. Martin will use that athleticism to Baker’s advantage.

“We want to win games on the defensive end,” he said. “We want to be fast and athletic. We want to get up and down the floor. 

“Thirty-two minutes of chaos is what we want.”

Martin mentioned some players that should have key roles.

Peyton Ellis is arguably the best athlete on the team, and Colton Stidham will play on the inside.

“Riley Renfro is a very tough-nosed kid,” Martin said. “Cole Hardin is a great shooter and has a lot of length. Owen Broom has length and is a good shooter.

“Josh Bethel is one of the best athletes we have. He’s a quick guard, and he can get into the paint any time he wants.”

Martin saw what the team was made of at a Florida State camp.

“We were rising to the challenge,” Martin said. “We lost two games over there, but we fought and had the coaches coming to us and saying this was the hardest anyone had played them all summer, and we should be fine.”

That’s not to say coach Greg Watson’s cupboard is completely bare. He likes what he’s seen from the team three weeks into summer drills.

“It’s been good,” Watson said. “It’s tough losing a lot of guys that have been with me a long time. Makhi played varsity all four years.

“Josiah and A.J. had played for three years. We lost a bunch of guys, a bunch of key quality guys. But we have enough coming back and our JV (junior varsity) team was really good last year so we have a chance to be pretty good.”

Watson is pleased with the willingness of the players to put in the work. He believes the Bulldogs will be deeper, but they still have to learn what it takes to be successful.

“We have to get tougher, especially defensively.” He said. “We don’t have a lot of size. We are the smallest team every single night.

“We have to do those tough things like dive on the floor, take a charge, boxing out and getting the extra rebound. When we get to that point, that’s when we will be our best.”

Senior point guard Lorenzo Blackwell will be the leader of the team. But he won’t have to do it alone.

Braylon Phillips and Devin Davis saw plenty of varsity playing time last season.

“Braylon’s coming back and he’s a really good defender for us,” Watson said. “He plays football as well. He’s going to be a big-time guy for us.

“Devin Davis, who played some last year, is going to be a key guy for us. He’s a guy that can really score. He’s gotten a lot better defensively.”

Jeremiah Blackwell, Lorenzo’s brother, Jre Bufford and Marcus Chatman are young guys that will need to step up.

“Jre Bufford is a big-time energy guy” Watson said. “He plays his butt off, and I expect him to have a big year. Marcus Chatman is another guy coming from JV and he can really play and really score.”

Scoring shouldn’t be a problem for the younger players moving to the varsity. But scoring is only part of the game.

“The thing about all those guys moving up is they are all talented and can all score, but they just have to get better defensively,” Watson said. “I’m not worried about that, that’s every year. He goes with the territory.

“Between now and November we just have to work on defense and getting tougher.” 

Blackwell walked away from the gridiron after his sophomore season to concentrate solely on basketball. Now a senior, he hasn’t looked back.

“I don’t regret it at all,” Blackwell said of his decision to quit football. “I feel like it’s helped me become a way better basketball player and I’m happy with my decision.”

With the graduation of Makhi Jones, A.J. Johnson and Josiah Klauser, it is Blackwell who will be counted on to lead the Bulldogs when the 2024-25 season starts in November.

“I feel like I have to step up more,” he said. “But we had some players that came up off the JV that are pretty good.

“I feel like we will be a good team as long as everybody plays their right roles.”

Bulldog coach Greg Watson expects the team to follow Blackwell’s lead.

“He’s been around,” Watson said. “He’s a very intelligent kid. And he cares.

“Other people respect him because of how hard he works and how hard he works in the classroom. He is a great kid at basketball, in the classroom and off the court. And the other kids look up to that kind of person.”

Blackwell embraces the leadership role and continues to work on every aspect of his game.

“I’m trying to have more confidence in myself,” he said. “I’m working on scoring the ball more and being a better leader because my teammates are younger.”

Watson stresses a pressure defense that can be difficult for young players to embrace. Blackwell sees it as just a matter of setting your mind to it.

“It’s all about wanting it,” he said. “It shouldn’t be that hard at all. We have guys that are scrappy, and we all want to hustle.

“I think we are going to be a good defensive team.”

Watson can’t say enough good things about Blackwell.

“He’s just a kid that you love to coach, and you respect,” he said. “I expect him to be a leader for us. He’s a communicator out there, which is what we need and I’m expecting him to have a big year.”

Former Gator player Chad Martin will serve as the interim coach this summer until a replacement is announced. Martin is expected to be a candidate for the job.

Baker athletic director John Carlisle said the search for a new coach will start soon as he and principal Mike Martello, a former Gator boys basketball coach, establish the criteria for the search.

Carlisle said there is no rush to hire a new coach, but the plan is to have the new coach named by the start of the school year in August.

“Chad has all coach Zessin’s plans for the schedule, workouts and summer camps,” Carlisle said. “He’ll oversee the team until we hire the next coach.”

Zessin is the older brother of former longtime Laurel Hill boys basketball coach Kent Zessin. Kent stepped away from coaching a few years ago due to health concerns.

Crestview led 18-3 at the end of the first quarter and never looked back on the way to an 84-57 win.

Bulldog coach Greg Watson had nothing but good things to say about the way Crestview played.

“I’m extremely satisfied with how well we played, especially the first half when we scored 45,” he said. “We were close to 90 points. And it was the way we were playing too.

“We weren’t just making shots,” Watson continued. “We were moving the ball crisp and hitting the open man. We were playing good strong defense.”

A.J. Johnson hit a 3-point basket for the first score of the game with 6:42 left in the first quarter to give the Bulldogs a lead that was never seriously challenged. Makhi Jones scored on an offensive rebound at the 5:05 mark in the opening period to put Crestview up 5-0 three minutes into the game.

Crestview was just getting started. Navarre hit a free throw with 4:33 left in the quarter for the first Raider point of the night.

The Bulldogs closed out the first quarter on a 13-2 run.

Jones hit a 3-pointer followed by back-to-back buckets by Braylon Phillips and Crestview was off and running. Jones scored four more points and Johnson added a basket to counter a field goal by the Raiders.

Navarre produced a little more offense in the second quarter with 12 points. The 15 first-half points by the Raiders were matched by 15 from Jones, who finished with 22.

Josiah Klauser got into the scoring column for Crestview in the second quarter with five points as Crestview led 45-15 at the half.

Navarre cut Crestview’s lead to 21 points with 4:48 in the third quarter, but a 3-pointer by Jones pushed the Bulldog advantage back to 24.

Lazarius Parks scored the next three Bulldog baskets. Brayden Jones and Jacob Moulton scored in the last two minutes of the quarter as Moulton bagged a 3-point basket.

Crestview led 63-36 at the start of the fourth quarter and the 27 points would be the final margin of victory for the Bulldogs.

Watson said that’s the way he envisioned the Bulldogs playing all season.

“They play pressure defense, but we just passed the ball so well in the first half that we got open shots and made them,” he said. “It’s a big difference when you make shots as far as your energy level and when you make plays.

“They are tough. They are way better than they looked out there. We just played well tonight,” Watson added.

Eleven Bulldogs scored, including 22 points from Klauser had 22 points, matching Makhi Jones’ total.