NATCHEZ — If there’s one thing Adams County Christian School girls basketball coach Melanie Hall stresses, it’s grades.

And ACCS junior Jessica Reynolds said Hall would go out of her way to make sure her players are on top of their schoolwork.

Reynolds, one of Hall’s best students, said she started playing basketball her sophomore year, and hasn’t regretted the decision to join the Lady Rebels’ squad.

“I love the sport, and I love Coach Hall,” Reynolds said. “With her, it’s not just about basketball, but God. We’re so lucky to have her as a coach. She doesn’t ever really get mad, she just explains it and breaks it down for you whenever you do something wrong.”

Hall also makes it a point of emphasis to make sure her players understand what’s being taught in class.

“Grades are a big thing with her,” Reynolds said. “We have to show her our grades whenever we get a report card or progress report, and we have to keep up with our homework, because you can’t play sports without good grades.

“She tries to help us as much as possible. There were a few girls in the locker room the other day that said they were having trouble in one particular class, and she said she would get up and go to tutoring (with them) if it would help.”

Reynolds said her parents, Melissa and Chris McGraw, also stress the importance of schoolwork.

“They stay on me about grades, because I want to go into the medical field (after I graduate), and you need to have good grades for that,” Reynolds said.

And good grades often comes with a price, Reynolds said, though she also said it was worth it.

“I’ve been staying up until 1 or 2 in the morning on some nights to get my homework done,” she said. “But I love basketball, so it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make. I also get a lot of the work done in study hall.”

Reynolds said she started playing basketball in 10th grade after her stepfather, Chris McGraw, started coaching football and basketball as an assistant for ACCS.

“He helps me out a lot,” Reynolds said of McGraw. “He doesn’t help the girls as much (with practice), so most of the work I do with him is at home. He helps with my shooting, he teaches me different moves and teaches me different ways to fight off screens, stuff like that.”

Reynolds said McGraw also helps teach the press to the Lady Rebels.

“It’s kind of complicated, because sometimes we switch (coverages), but we’re good at switching and playing defense,” Reynolds said. “It works well; we get a lot of steals off of (the press).”

If there’s one things Hall stresses to her players, it’s defense, Reynolds said.

“When you’re doing good things on defense, you can get into the passing lanes and get steals,” she said. “A lot of our offense comes from our defense.”

Reynolds also plays softball, cheerleads and runs track for ACCS. She said she’s going to try tennis in the spring, too. If she had to pick a hardest class, it would be Nikki Freeman’s Biology II class, she said.

“Her tests kill me,” Reynolds said.