Ella Sorrels and Laura Swearengin of Durant High School have been selected as the Shamrock Bank Impact Athlete and Performing Arts Students of the month for January 2025.
Ella runs cross country and plays tennis and basketball. Only a sophomore, she has made a significant impact on the Lady
Lions hoops program during her short time with the varsity.
Starting as a freshman, Sorrels scored in double figures in 14 games and finished with a 10.6 points per game average. At the Bridge Creek tournament, she scored a career-high 28 points in leading Durant past class 6A Southmoore 57-39 in the first round.
She was named to the all-tournament team at Bridge Creek and also at the Madill Winter Classic during her rookie season.
This winter, Ella has picked up where she left off. Her season scoring average is 13.5 points per game and she has reached double figures in 11 of the teams 16 outings.
For the second year in a row, Sorrels was selected to the all tournament team at the Madill Winter Classic where she averaged 16 points during the Lady Lions run to the second place trophy.
“Ella’s the type of player that just soaks coaching up,” DHS girls coach Tony Robinson said. “She plays every possession with great intensity. She is a coach’s dream.”
A member of the Oklahoma Honor Society, Ella hopes to play college basketball and would love play at NCAA powerhouse South Carolina.
Ella’s parents are Logan Sorrels and Previn Erving . She has four siblings Vayah, Micah, Rihanna and Maddox.
Laura Swearengin is a highly decorated senior and a member of the “Pride of Durant band”, Jazz band, Mixed
choir and Show Choir.
Her list of accolades is long and is impressive.
She was a DHS drum major her junior and senior year and attended TMALA (Texoma Marching Arts & Leadership Academy) in July of 2023 and 2024. Swearengin was also honored as the Outstanding Drum Major and named champion of the Conducting Competition.
Laura has been selected to the OkMEA District Honor Choir for six years and the OkMEA State Honor Choir for seven years and received several solo and ensemble superior ratings along with participating in both SWACDA Regional Honor Choirs in 2022 in Little Rock, 
Arkansas and in 2024 in Denver, Colorado. While participating in the DHS Mixed Choir, Swearengin was chosen to perform at the OKMEA Winter Conference in 2023.
In addition, Laura has participated in the DHS “Broadway Lights,” the musical production of “Cinderella” and the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival where she has performed for ten years.
A member of the Oklahoma and National Honor Society, she also gives back to the community.
As a member of First United Methodist Church, her youth groups have done mission work such as packing boxes for veterans, Operation Christmas Child, packing items for UMCOR and serving food with Families Feeding Hope and Meals on Wheels. She also enjoys helping with the prom closet mission.
Swearengin auditioned and was accepted into the Oklahoma City University Wanda L. Bass School of Music where she will pursue a degree in Music Education.
Laura’s parents are Matt and Jennifer Swearengin.
Congratulations to Ella Sorrels and Laura Swearengin selected as the Shamrock Bank Impact Athlete and Performing Arts Students of the month for January 2025.
