Fillmore Freshman Emalyn “Emi” Mucher, pictured, is named League MVP
by Bill Collmer, Sun Senior Sports Writer
The Allegany County Athletic Association recently announce their League All-Stars for the 2025-2026 Basketball season.
Freshman Emalyn Mucher from Fillmore was named League MVP, after a breakout eighth grade season that saw her earn All-State honors in Class D. Mucher improved even more in her freshman season, she averaged 19.0 pointers per game, 6.4 rebounds, 5.5 Assists, 4.5 Steals. She made 50 3-pointers shooting 35%, she scored a season high 33 points in a win over Andover-Whitesville and had a Quadruple double in a win over Campbell-Savona with 18 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists & 10 Steals.
“The thing that makes Emalyn so special, outside of her tremendous physical ability, are all the intangibles. She’s our hardest worker, our best teammate and our biggest energy generator. She’s also got an extremely high basketball IQ. When you add those with her on court talent, the result is a pretty special player,” Fillmore Tom Parks said.
“I believe Emi has a high ceiling because she is simply never satisfied. She’s the type of person who believes that satisfied athletes don’t always improve. She’s always chasing the next step and understands that the higher the mountain, the tougher the climb. I think that hunger to be one of the best drives her, so yes, I think we’re only seeing the beginning of what she can do. I also feel that as she continues to grow physically, that’s when you’re really going to see the next phase of her evolution,” Parks added.
With Mucher only being a freshman with three more seasons and 60-70 more games to play, could she graduate as the greatest girl’s basketball player in Fillmore history?
“She’s headed down a path with potential to be one of the all-time greats here at Fillmore, but she’s very grounded. She stays in the present and just focuses on the here and now and what she can do to help her team win. Sometimes that means scoring 30 and sometimes that means dishing out 12 assists or focusing on defense. I think for Emi, just putting in the work to be the best she can be currently is what matters most to her. She’s got a very mature mindset for a 14-year-old kid. The all-time stats and historical stuff will sort themselves out on their own,” Parks said.
Mucher’s Senior teammates from Fillmore Mattie McCumiskey and Morghyn Ross were both named All-Stars. McCumiskey averaged 12.1 Points per game and Ross averaged 11.9 PPG.
“Mattie McCumiskey has been on the team for foour years and has been our glue piece for the last two seasons. Mattie is just a blue-collar type of player. She doesn’t do anything flashy, but you look up and she has 17 points and 14 rebounds. We really relied on her experience and leadership in many close games this season. One of the biggest reasons we have had sustained success after graduating our entire starting lineup two years ago was Mattie’s presence and leadership.” Parks said
“Morghyn came to us as a junior transfer from Scio-Friendship and I wish I could have coached her for her entire basketball career. She hit so many big shots for us this season and became one of our biggest perimeter weapons. Obviously, a lot of attention went to Emi on the defensive end and Morghyn would make teams pay if they left her open,” Parks said.
With three seniors graduating Fillmore will look a bit different next season.
“On paper, next season will look a lot different and our seniors are going to be difficult to replace. I think the girls we have back are ready to assume bigger roles and step up. The emergence of Mylee Miller towards the last quarter of the season really made our team complete. I think that’s a player who is ready for a larger workload. Kelsie Songster and Lily Sisson are two others that are going to have big opportunities as well. We have some JV players that will be joining us and will be asked to contribute right away. I think there may be an adjustment process, and we may have to change the way we play somewhat. We know Emi is going to be asked to carry us at times while we figure things out. I know she and the team will be ready for the challenge!” Parks concluded.
Cuba-Rushford-Bolivar-Richburg earned the No.1 Seed in Class B2 and reached the Class B2 Sectional Championship game losing to LeRoy 50-42 in overtime. They were led this season by a pair of Sophomores and a senior who were all named to the All-Star team. Sophomore Lily Tompkins led the team in Scoring averaging 11.4 points per game along with 7.0 Rebounds. Sophomore Lilly Farwell averaged 10.0 PPG and 6.9 Rebounds. Senior Aubrey Williams averaged 7.8 points and 4.8 per game.
Andover-Whitesville teammates Stella Bledsoe and Olivia Waters were both selected All-Stars. Bledsoe a sophomore led the team in scoring with 14.7 PPG, Waters a Senior averaged 12.5 PPG.
Genesee-Valley-Belfast had two players selected All-Stars; Junior Bayleigh Tallman (15.0 PPG & 11.0 RPG) and Sophomore Leah Burrows averaged 10.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.
With several underclassmen returning next season, there’s lots of reasons to be excited about Girls Basketball in Allegany County next season.
