Conroe’s two seniors had different paths to Friday night and their special ceremony prior to the game against Willis.
Alisa Sneed is Conroe born-and-raised, a four-year varsity letterwinner, a three-sport varsity star and captain of the Tigers basketball team.
Saterria Poehlein is a transfer to Conroe who made varsity this year, provides some hustle minutes off the bench most games and tries to be as supportive as possible by working hard at practice and supporting her teammates.
Sneed has had her shine as the point guard every game, causing havoc as a solid passer, defender and can score it when needed. She did all those things in a 57-38 win over the Wildkats.
Poehlein, however, had her most memorable night on the varsity as she made her first start.
The backup guard scored a varsity career-high 10 points, netted the first five Tiger points of the game and knocked down a pair of 3-pointers.
“It felt good,” Poehlein said. “I felt really confident going in the game and starting. I feel like I can shoot and just felt confident with my shots going in tonight.”
Sneed, meanwhile, totaled all five of her points in the first half and spent most of the game as a facilitator of her teammates and aggravator of the opposition.
In a pregame ceremony, Poehlein and Sneed were both introduced to the crowd for their respective final home games. Both were welcomed arm-in-arm with family members to the floor and presented a framed photo commemorating their careers and a small bouquet of flowers.
For Sneed, it was a bit of a surreal moment and a motivator to come out strong against the Wildkats.
“You just kind of have to perform a bit,” Sneed said. “You know, everybody’s looking at us, like ‘Oh, this is the seniors.”
It’s a bit of a tradition for head coach Tamisha Houston to show seniors love on this night. Not all seniors get to start in her program, but this night was all theirs.
“I like to give them an opportunity to start, especially if they’ve never started,” Houston explained. “I want to give them an opportunity, especially on senior night, to hear their name called and be able to go through the tunnel. I think it’s something special that I think everybody should have a chance to experience. I try to do it regardless of how big of a game it is. If they’re here and they’re going through practice every day, they have to be capable of starting a game.”
Poehlein had a steal and a layup and knocked down her first of two 3s in the opening minutes.
“She’s been a spark for us off the bench,” Houston said. “I just joked with her that she showed me that she should have been starting and playing the whole time.”
Poehlein added another drive to the hoop minutes into the third quarter and knocked down her second 3-pointer in the fourth quarter as the Tigers continued to pull away to the important District 13-6A win which kept playoff hopes alive.
“I know the energy she brings and I know she’s always going to hustle, so that wasn’t a surprise” Houston said of Poehlein. “Her knocking down those 3s were kind of a surprise for me, but it worked. She got us going and it was good to see everybody so excited for her.”
Poehlein started her high school basketball career at Lake Creek before moving to Conroe.
“I came here my sophomore year,” Poehlein explained. “My junior year, I tried out and made JV. I started on JV. Then I got moved up on varsity for the last four games. Now I’m on varsity this year.”
Coming into Friday night, Poehlein had 12 total points on the season, so the senior nearly doubled that.
Quite often Poehlein gets her minutes at the end of quarters. She’s relied on to get stops and maybe use a foul or two, if necessary, while those on the depth chart ahead of her rest up.
Prior to the Willis game, Poehlein had 18 steals, 13 rebounds and nine assists on the season.
“When I’m on the bench, my energy is up and I get it going,” Poehlein said. “When I’m on the court, I feel like sometimes I slack. But then I get it in and get courage.”
Poehlein plans to study nursing at either Lamar or Sam Houston State.
As for Sneed, she is one of the top softball recruits in the country and signed with the Texas Longhorns back in November. She plans to study civil engineering.
Although basketball isn’t her No. 1 sport, Sneed has given her all for the Tigers over four years.
This year, Sneed has totaled 198 points (second on the team) and 128 rebounds. She leads with over 100 steals and over 85 assists.
“She finished strong and went out on a good note,” Houston said of Sneed’s career. “I think for her, it meant something to get back to the playoffs again. It meant something for her to play well for her team. I think she really took pride in that.”
Sneed said she was excited about getting past her senior year and going to college for softball. She has more recently taken on more of a sentimental approach.
“I’ve always kind of wanted to get senior year over with and get out of high school,” Sneed said. “Now it’s like, ‘dang..it’s almost over’.”
Sneed and Poehlein are also teammates on the Conroe track and field team.
Conroe seniors Saterria Poehlein (11) and Alisa Sneed (3). (SportCast Media photos)
