NOTE: This is the fourth in a series recognizing Joey Pender (JHHS), Steve Treadway (JHHS), Lowell Mize (JHHS), Cynthia Loyd (JHHS), and Shelby Green (QHS), who were selected to be inducted into the Jackson Parish Sports Hall of Fame as the Class of 2026, along with Bill DeCou (Rundell Jr. High), who will receive the prestigious Meritorious Service Award. The induction banquet is scheduled for October 3rd in the Family Life Center at First Baptist Church in Jonesboro. This week: Cynthia Loyd Stampley

The picture above shows Cynthia Loyd Stampley holding her puppy. As an adult, the cute dog is one of the loves of her life, but there was a time when basketball was what she was most passionate about.

It was the “Queen of the Court” in Jackson Parish passion for the game and for her team to succeed that is the main reason the 1979 JHHS graduate is now a member of the Jackson Parish Sports Hall of Fame “Class of 2026.”

The Jonesboro-Hodge High School basketball enthusiasts who were around in the mid-to-late ’70s will always remember the lanky Lady Tiger adorned with her customary “pigtails” streaking down the court for basket after basket. It was her incredible athletic ability that led her to be the leading scorer for four straight years from 1975 – 1979 and JHHS to one of its best all-time team performances in LHSAA competition, which included three straight district titles and two straight state quarterfinal appearances.

As a freshman during the 1975-76 season, only the second since JHHS reinstated the program after decades of being non-existent, Stamply was the leading scorer for JHHS with a 14.0 points- per-game average. Three years later, she led JHHS by scoring 29.9 points per game, still the best all-time single-season scoring average in Lady Tiger history. When she ended her high school career, she finished with 2698 points, also still the best in JHHS girls basketball history.

She was very passionate about the game of basketball. That passion is shared today by Jackson Parish Hall of Fame board members, who are overjoyed that she will make the trip all the way from Minnesota, where she now resides, to be inducted into the local sports Hall of Fame.

H