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Before the season, Anna Freeman looked toward the rafters at East Davidson's gym and surveyed all the banners commemorating the triumphs of the school's sports teams.

The one for girls basketball looked empty. The Eagles had never reached the state championship game.

"That's where ours is going," Freeman thought.

You can call her prophetic because she helped lead the Eagles to their first state title. You can also call her player of the year because she edged two Division I-bound seniors -- Grimsley's Trumae Lucas and Page's Jasmine Gill -- in the News & Record's annual survey of area coaches.

"She took charge more this year than in the past," Eagles coach Terry Allmon said. "She's had that capability all along, but she is so unselfish and wants to get everybody involved."

Freeman led the Eagles in every major statistical category this season, averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds, 4.5 assists, three blocks and two steals a game. A junior who can play all five positions, she is the two-time Central Carolina 2-A player of the year, the county player of the year, a second-team all-state selection and the target of considerable Division I interest.

And she does it all with a humility that Allmon marvels at.

"She is a team player," Allmon said. "Her teammates rely on her and vice versa."

That was most apparent in the championship game against Graham. Freeman earned the most valuable player award with 18 points and 12 rebounds, but two assists made the biggest difference in the 62-59 victory.

East Davidson trailed by six in the waning minutes when Freeman found Stacy Hicks for a 3-pointer that cut the deficit in half. Moments later, she penetrated and kicked out to Alyssa Cutshaw, whose 3-pointer gave East Davidson the lead for good.

In the parking lot afterward, Freeman and Cutshaw, who have been playing together for the better part of a decade, toasted with a pair of 2-liter Dr Peppers.

"It had been so long since we had a soft drink," Freeman said. "I was chugging."

Freeman's older sister, Katie, just finished her junior season at Greensboro College, and the driveway games between the two of them helped start Anna's career.

Before that, "I was a little bit girly," Anna said.

But it wasn't long before the competitor in her won out. Even as a kid, Freeman was the most intense player on the court.

"I was mad we couldn't double-team," Freeman said. "When they'd blow the whistle, I'd still want the ball."

"She's always had that look in her eye," said Billy Freeman, Anna's father and childhood coach.

"It's a gotta-win kind of thing," Anna said.

Perhaps it's too soon to start looking ahead, but the Eagles' starting five will still be around next season. So will that banner at the gym.

"There's space for one more," Freeman said.