VALDOSTA –– Lowndes High School introduced Antonia Tookes as its new girls basketball head coach on Thursday.

Coming over from Pelham High School, Tookes takes over following the departure of coach Brittany Bell, who left for another position this offseason. A 19-year coaching veteran, Tookes inherits a Vikettes program that finished 20-7 this past season en route to a Region 1-7A championship.

Tookes spent the last eight years at Pelham, where she guided the Hornets to five region championships and a state championship in 2016-17. After getting a tour of the facilities on Thursday by Lowndes athletic director Randy McPherson, Tookes discussed what sold her on the position.

“The process was, they just walked me around and told me about the facility as far as it being one of the best facilities in the state,” Tookes said. “Of course, this is one of the largest classifications and I’m coming from a 1A school––that was kind of an intriguing factor.”

Tookes won 163 games over her last six seasons with the Hornets, including a 27-3 campaign last season––an average of 27.1 wins per year. During her 2016-17 state championship season, Tookes’ Hornets bulldozed through the regular season en route to a 30-1 mark and finishing on an 18-game winning streak.

In hiring Tookes, McPherson sees an opportunity to keep the Vikettes trending upward in the aftermath of Bell’s departure. In five seasons under the former Valdosta State standout, the Vikettes went 85-53, including 23 region victories.

“Her record speaks for itself,” McPherson said of Tookes. “That was one of the things about Coach that led myself, the principal and superintendent to go after her. Her work ethic, the discipline she has with her team, the character––she’s definitely a winner and we look for her to be very successful here and to be here for a long time.”

The opportunity to contend and win a state championship in Class-7A, Tookes says, is a challenge she welcomes with open arms.

“In (McPherson’s) words, he wanted somebody in here that would push the girls to the next level, that had already won a state championship because they’ve won several regions and they just wanted to try to get over the hump and maybe have a chance to win the state,” Tookes said. “And with my career right now, I’ve won a lot of region championships myself and only one state championship at Pelham and I would love to win another state championship especially on this level of basketball because this is next to college.”

During her collegiate career, Tookes played basketball and softball at Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Fla. before earning a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University in Irvine, Calif.

After college, Tookes describes her move into coaching as “a great transition”. Tookes began her coaching career as an assistant under current coach Keith Ellis at Camden County, her alma mater. After 10 years at Camden, Tookes had a two-year stint as an assistant at Coffee before finally getting her shot as a head coach at Pelham.

As a coach, Tookes admittedly draws much of her inspiration and style from legendary Tennessee Volunteers coach Pat Summitt. When asked if she’s a yeller on the sidelines, Tookes’ personality shines through.

“Obviously, you don’t know me [laughing],” Tookes said. “I am a fiery coach. My idol is the late Pat Summitt. I love her and some people say I have her stare. I don’t know but you’ll see my energy on the sideline. I love the game of basketball and I give it everything I have while I’m coaching. Sometimes I’m soaking wet after a game. I just love it and you’ll see that type of energy on the sidelines.”

In terms of her coaching philosophy, Tookes says her success comes down to three keys: Discipline, trust and relationships.

“First of all, you’ve got to have discipline,” Tookes said. “You’ve got to have trust and you’ve got to build relationships with these kids as well as your staff. I think if we do that, with the caliber of kids we have here, we should be OK.”

On the floor, Tookes intends to bring her defense-first style to the Vikettes, who also hung their hats on defense under Bell.

Last season, the Hornets averaged 62.9 points per game while the defense held opponents to just 33.4 points per game. During the Hornets’ state title run, they held teams to just under 29 points per game and averaged 67.2 points per game.

“(Lowndes) is already a winning program and I just want to add to it,” Tookes said. I’m a defensive-minded coach. I think defense wins championships and that’s my M.O. Most coaches that know me know my teams are gonna play really hard and we’re gonna play really hard for 32 minutes.

“We’re going to play defense and defense usually wins games. We’re gonna trap, we’re gonna get after it 94 feet for 32 minutes.”

Coming from a smaller 1A school, Tookes points out the size of the Lowndes campus as the biggest difference from what she was accustomed to at Pelham. After coaching against 7A schools in non-region battles over the years, Tookes embraces the responsibility of being tasked with leading the Vikettes to the promised land.

“It’s just a lot bigger,” Tookes said. “This school is huge. That’s the only thing––I’ve coached against 7A schools at Pelham and had some success, had some losses so being in this region and, every night, it’s going to be a challenge for me and I like challenges. That’ll make me better as a coach and as a person as well because we’re gonna have some ups and downs along the way.”

McPherson added: “Our kids are ready to go, I’m sure. They’re used to working hard, they know what it takes to be successful and that’s what Coach Tookes is all about and I think her and I will work well together.”