1,000 point scorer from Peebles signs to become a Lion –

Story and photo by Mark Carpenter – 

The exodus of Adams County student/athletes to the next level continued last week when Peebles High School standout Camron Gordley took the next step, signing his letter of intent to continue his basketball career at Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati. The official signing took place appropriately in the PHS gymnasium on Friday, June 2 before family, friends teammates, and coaches.
The signing to continue his career at the next level was the culmination of an outstanding career as an Indian for Gordley, who played four years of varsity ball and will see his name on the wall at the school for posterity as he eclipsed the 1,000 point mark for his career during the 2016-17 campaign. As a senior, he averaged a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds on a Peebles team that finished 17-6 overall. It can be said that Gordley comes from good stock as his father Yancy Gordley and grandfather Mark McClanahan were both pretty fair competitors on the hardwood themselves.
“Some of the players from Peebles that had gone to the Mount before kind of got me connections, said Gordley. “I just started talking to their coaches and they saw me play, and I started getting mail and phone calls. I went on a visit to the campus and I fell in love with it down there.”
“I like that the campus is close to the city but not right downtown so I am away from all that, but if I want to go downtown, I’m right there. I loved the coaching staff at the Mount and they win and I like to win.”
“I have to thank my grandparents and my Mom and Dad for helping get me to this point,” Gordley continued. “Dad helped me fall in love with basketball and Coach (Josh) Arey has especially guided me all the way.”
For Peebles head coach Josh Arey, it is always with a sense of pride that he continues to send players to the next level, just an indication of the strength of his Indians program.
“Camron is just an unbelievable kid with a tremendous work ethic,” said Coach Arey. “He’s a tremendous character kid and you love to see kids like that come through your program as a role model for our younger kids as to what hard work can do. When he was younger, he was just an inside player and he worked on his shot and turned into a multi-faceted threat where he could go out to 19 feet from the basket and still play. I think he will have a great career at Mount St. Joseph.”
“I have no doubt that Camron will be successful just because of his work ethic. He’s going to put in all the time he needs to put in to do well and help the team and I guarantee you one thing-they won’t have anyone that works harder than Camron does.”
The Lions are a member of the NCAA’s Division III Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference and under head coach Toby Carrigan have steadily improved, breaking the 20-win plateau for the first time in school history last season. The campus is located in the Delhi section of the city.
While at the Mount, Gordley plans on studying Accounting, with the goal of eventually becoming a CPA.