Stinnett: Fans treated to greatness

By TONY STINNETT

The end of an era in Cannon County girls basketball was realized when Lionette great Abbey Sissom played her final game in the TSSAA Girls State Tournament last week.

Sissom capped her career with 2,606 points - second all-time at Cannon County - and Class AA Miss Basketball.
Those numbers are not what define Sissom.

Humility, being a team player and being great when everyone expected it, most tried to stop it and, yet, she still delivered.

Funny how both Sissom and former standout Julie Powell (who is Cannon County’s all-time leading scorer with 2,894 points) are regarded as team players yet they took more shots and scored more points than any other Lionette to ever play the game in any era.

It is most likely because teammates realized they were playing with a special player. They only come around every so often.

Fans certainly realized how blessed they were to be entertained by a player who competed with class and grace during a sensational four-year career.

Sissom helped lead the Lionettes to three state tournaments and 117 wins in four seasons. She racked up many individual accolades along the way, including being named a three-time Miss Basketball Finalist.

Fans certainly will miss Sissom’s performances. District 8-AA coaches will not.

Odds are Powell’s 2,894 point total will never be broken. Sissom’s 2,606 likely will not be surpassed either.
Lionettes fans have been fortunate to see many good players through the years.

Powell and Sissom were two of the great ones. Numbers reveal it but their legacy assures it.
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(Tony Stinnett is sports editor for The Cannon Courier. He is a three-time Tennessee Sports Writer of the Year.)