Princeton alumna guard Mariah Hart helped to lead the Lady Panthers to 24 wins during the 2024-25 season. Photo by Jerry Winfrey / C&S Media
By David Wolman
The Class of 2025 at Princeton High School wanted to finish their high school career in a positive manner while mentoring underclassmen that are expected to be a part of the future for their respective teams.
The Princeton Herald is proud to introduce a yearly series that looks back at the contributions of Princeton’s senior class.
Anthony Ramirez, Boys Soccer
Princeton won just two district games in its first season in Class 6A, but the defense gave the Panthers a fighter’s chance.
One player who played a key role in limiting 16 of the 20 opponents that Princeton played to two goals or less was Ramirez.
Named to the All-District 6-6A first team, Ramirez, a defender, helped to lead the Panthers to a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Plano East on Jan. 14 and a shootout victory against Allen on Jan. 28.
Daniel Tyutyunnik, Powerlifting
Tyutyunnik had another memorable season in powerlifting.
He lifted a total weight of 1,895 pounds between the squat (780 pounds), bench press (535) and the deadlift (615) at the Texas High School Powerlifting Association Division I state meet, earning him second place in the 220-pound division.
Delaney Murphy, Girls Soccer
There were many times this season when parents with players from opposing teams would approach Princeton head girls soccer coach Ryan Gerfers in the parking lot after the conclusion of a game, telling him “how amazing she is” and that “they’ve never seen a better keeper.”
Although Princeton didn’t win a game this year, Murphy gave the Lady Panthers a chance to win every time she stepped onto the field. And she faced no shortage of shots on goal, making at least 10 saves in every game this season. For her ability to make save after save, including against players that have won state championships, she was named the District 6-6A goalkeeper of the year and later earned a spot on the Texas Soccer Coaches Association Class 6A All-Region I-6A second team.
Jadyn Walton, Softball
Walton mentored a young Princeton team that had six freshmen receive playing time.
One of the top offensive threats for the Lady Panthers, Walton finished second on the squad in batting average (.344) and hits (21) to accompany two doubles, two triples, two home runs and 14 RBI.
Walton was also a threat on the basepath, having finished 14 of 15 in stolen base attempts in her final season donning a Lady Panthers uniform. Defensively, she committed three errors in 26 games.
Jakeylen Perkins, Football
Whether it was a kick/punt returner, wide receiver, running back or free safety, Perkins was the ultimate Swiss Army knife for the Panthers.
Perkins, an East Central University signee, returned 18 kickoffs for 525 yards, returned two punts for six yards, defended one pass, rushed for 270 yards and four rushing scores and caught 60 passes for 709 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns during his senior season. He was named to the All-District 6-6A second team at wide receiver.
James McGill, Baseball
McGill excelled as the ace of the Panthers’ pitching staff, keeping Princeton in many games with his right arm. In seven appearances during district play, he struck out 30 and surrendered 26 runs in 38 innings.
Named to the All-District 6-6A second team, McGill, a Hendrix College signee, was named the team’s pitcher of the year at the spring sports banquet in May.
His brother, Logan, a University of the Ozarks signee in football, was named to the All-District 6-6A second team for his play at center.
JeVaughn Martin Jr., Boys Basketball
Martin Jr. provided scoring and a paint presence on defense for the Panthers.
Named to the All-District 6-6A second team, he averaged 15.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game with 80 blocked shots. Martin scored 35 points in a 65-52 loss to McKinney Boyd on Feb. 4. He finished his high school career as Princeton’s all-time leader in blocked shots.
Kingston Williams, Track and Field
One year after Williams endured heartbreak at the regional meet—tripped over a hurdle in the 300-meter hurdles final and scratched on all three attempts in the long jump – the Baylor University signee atoned for those mistakes in a big way.
Williams won the Region I-6A title in the 300-meter hurdles, finishing in a new school-record time of 37.24 seconds, and placed second in the long jump with a leap of 23 feet. At the Class 6A state meet in Austin, he placed fifth in the long jump and fifth in the 300-meter hurdles.
Madisyn Robertson, Volleyball
One of the team’s most experienced players, Robertson finished her high school career as a three-year starter at setter.
As a senior, she was named to the All-District 6-6A first team after she logged 39 kills, 422 assists, 182 digs and 29 service aces.
Mariah Hart, Girls Basketball
Princeton leaned on the experience, ball handling and scoring of Hart, a University of New Orleans signee, to finish with a 24-11 record in its first season in Class 6A, a second-place finish in District 6-6A and a fifth consecutive playoff appearance.
Named to the All-District 6A first team, Hart scored 20 points in her last regular season game in high school – a 60-44 come-from-behind win over McKinney Boyd – and 11 in a narrow 58-51 loss against state-ranked Denton Braswell in bi-district.
Terrayah McCoy, Girls Basketball/Track and Field
McCoy, an East Texas A&M Commerce signee in women’s basketball, was a great three-level scorer and a reliable rim protector, with the latter earning the 5-foot-9 forward District 6-6A defensive player of the year.
McCoy was also a standout for Princeton’s track and field team, broke her own school record in the girls’ high jump by jumping 5 feet, 10 inches. She won the Region I-6A title after clearing 5 feet, 10 inches and went on to earn sixth place in the state meet with a clearance of 5 feet, 4 inches.
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