COLUMBUS — Heritage Academy announced the hiring of a new head girls basketball coach

this week. Former student Maggie Proffitt will take over as head coach at the start of the 2025-26 school year, joining the Patriots from Petal High School. 

In addition to coaching basketball, Proffitt will teach junior high STEM. 

Former coach Moe Black is stepping up into school administration as athletic director after six years as head coach. 

“I’m super grateful for this opportunity at Petal, but God has a funny way of working,” Proffitt said. “The door opened up at Heritage to be home and close to family. I felt like I couldn’t pass it up. I’m so excited to be close to home and family and back where I started my education and basketball career.” 

Proffitt attended Heritage from kindergarten through middle school before moving to Columbus High to play for Coach Yvonne Hairston, who she called her “second mother” at the time, and then graduated as a senior at Starkville Academy. 

Proffitt was recruited to Central Arkansas out of Starkville Academy and started in all four years with the Sugar Bears. She led the team in scoring in each of her final three seasons and was a three-time All-Southland Conference player, winning the conference tournament MVP as a senior. 

Proffitt’s history as an accomplished player has helped her transition into coaching, being in and around the game since she was a child. She hopes to return the mentorship she picked up in Columbus and pass it on to the next generation. 

“It’s a big challenge but it’s an opportunity I’m excited about,” Proffitt said. “I think it’s going to be exciting because they have this perception of me, I played here and then played at the highest level. I’m excited to get started building those relationships and getting to know them on and off the court.”

After graduating in 2017, Proffitt moved into coaching as a graduate assistant at Louisiana Tech before moving to Ouachita Baptist University as an assistant coach. She then returned to her home state, where she served as an assistant at Mississippi College.

Proffitt moved to high school basketball in 2023, first coaching at Hartfield Academy and then Petal High School last season. 

She hopes to apply her experience at both levels in a way that positively impacts her players as both students and athletes. 

“Now that I’ve coached Division I and II, as well as private and public school basketball, you learn there are kids who want to play at the next level and those who just want to play for fun,” Proffitt said. “That’s all okay, it’s not so much about building basketball players but building successful young women. I hope they realize we’re going to work our butts off and compete to win games, but the bigger picture is to become successful women in the real world.”