Countdown to tipoff: Compton, Williams ready to lead Palmyra in final go-around together

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PALMYRA, Mo. — Kelsey Stuart noticed it right away.

Put Clare Williams and Sydney Compton together on a basketball court and there’s a special connection.

“It’s honestly a feeling that is difficult to describe,” said Stuart, who is entering her second season as the Palmyra girls basketball coach. “It’s what every coach hopes for. I want to say magical, but I feel weird saying that.”

Magical may be a good adjective for that connection, but telepathic may be the most accurate.

“We were doing this drill, and we were both doing the exact same thing every single time,” Compton said. “I was like, ‘Clare, we literally have twin telepathy right now.’”

That telepathy stems from a decade of playing basketball together. Their hoops journeys began in second grade when they joined a team coached by Clare’s father, Tony Williams.

In sixth grade, they moved on to the Missouri Storm, then Williams joined the Missouri Phenom AAU team in eighth grade. Compton teamed up with Williams on the Phenom the following season, and they have remained together on that team ever since.

Williams and Compton, now the lone seniors on the Palmyra squad, will embark on one final season together this winter.

“Going apart after this year is going to be tough,” Williams said. “That last game we play together is going to be really sad.”

Compton will head across the Mississippi River next fall to continue her basketball career at Quincy University, while Williams will take her talents to Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kan.

“I’m definitely going to miss Clare a lot,” Compton said. “She’s my point guard, and it’s going to be hard to get that connection with anybody else, but I know she’s going to do great things at Ottawa. It’s a sad but happy ending.”

Those times spent watching games, doing homework or going out to eat together may have to be reserved for Facetime more often than either would like.

“It wasn’t by choice,” Williams said of going to different colleges. “It’s just how we connected with coaches. She found (QU) as her home, and I found a home that I like, too.”

Stuart is grateful to have the best friend duo on the court in the Flower City for one more season. Williams runs the show at point guard.

“She’s definitely our tempo-maker,” Stuart said. “Every coach hopes for a player like Clare. She handles the ball really well, she sees the floor really well. She pushes the ball up the floor, which is my style of play. She has a lot of grit, too. I love that I have a player like Clare.”

Compton, a two-time state qualifier in the 100-meter hurdles, translates that athleticism on the track seamlessly to the hardwood.

“She’s a freak athlete,” Stuart said. “I tell her that all the time. It’s one of those blessings. It’s just amazing to watch her.”

It’s not just Compton’s athleticism that impresses Stuart, though.

“To go along with that is her strength,” Stuart said. “She’s packed on the muscle since I’ve been here. She’s put a lot of hours into the weight room over the summer and throughout the year. Also, her reaction time really makes her stand out over everyone else. Her quick feet, her ability to jump. That’s where she gets a lot of her points, by jumping up for those rebounds and putting it back.”

The Panthers, who graduated six seniors from the 2023 team and only return three other varsity players, will rely heavily on Williams and Compton to vie for their first district title since 2016.

“It’s definitely going to take a lot of grit and confidence in not only myself but in Clare and the rest of the girls,” Compton said. “We all know we can do it. It’s just a matter of how much grit we have.”