The daughter of Brunswick High football coaching legend John Willis, Maria Mangram had a long shadow cast over her athletic career before she had ever dribbled a ball.
Now in her 13th season as the head coach of the Pirates’ girls basketball team, Mangram has solidified her own legacy at BHS.
This past Saturday, Brunswick rallied back from a fourth quarter deficit to beat Lowndes 61-57 and give Mangram her 250th victory as a coach, each win coming while at the helm of her high school alumni.
“For me, it’s deeper than just being a coach here because I am an alumni, and I was in the womb when my dad moved here,” Mangram said of the milestone. “I definitely bleed blue and gold, and I’m just excited to be leading my alumni, taking them to the next level. As far as the girls, they were really excited, and they worked real hard to get the victory.”
Brunswick went into halftime leading by 10, but a 12-0 Lowndes run to close the third left the Pirates on the wrong end of a four-point deficit entering the final period.
The Pirates scored nine straight at one point in the quarter to go back on top, but a late Vikings 3-pointer gave Lowndes a 56-55 advantage with fewer than two minutes remaining. However, Brunswick would score the next five points to seal the victory.
Shané Jackson had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks for the Pirates in the win, Shamya Flanders added 14 points, seven rebounds and five steals, and Ramsey chipped in 10 points on 2-of-3 shooting from behind the arc.
After the game, Mangram walked into the locker room to a celebration from her players as Brunswick improved to 22-1 on the season, including 10-1 in region play.
“It was exciting,” Mangram said. “At first, I think they kind of forgot, they really didn’t have an idea that it was 250, but it was exciting. It was exciting for our program, and just exciting just for us period.”
The Brunswick High head coach has more insight on the program’s history than most, having played her prep basketball with the Pirates from 1995-99, scoring more than 1,000 points before going on to star for Fort Valley State University, where she was part of the only Wildcat team to win four straight SIAC championships.
With an eye towards playing professionally, Mangram had her career cut short due to an ACL injury she suffered during an intramural game. But when one door closes, another opens.
Mangram returned to Brunswick in 2005 to work as an assistant under Nadine Thomas before taking over the reigns herself a few years later. Since Mangram was promoted to head coach, the Pirates have won an average of 19.2 games per season, including a 30-3 campaign that saw the program advance to the state semifinals.
The Pirates appear to be gearing up for another deep playoff run this season.
Brunswick travels to Statesboro on Tuesday for a contest that will determine the top seed and host of the Region 2-6A Tournament. The Pirates routed the Blue Devils 68-38 in the teams’ first meeting at Brunswick Square Garden on Jan. 14, but Statesboro is a perfect 7-0 at home this season.
“We know it’s hard to win in Statesboro, but I still believe in my girls, I still believe in our program, and I think we’ll be fine,” Mangram said.