Ayanna Watson is already enrolled astatine the University of Pittsburgh, wherever she is preparing to statesman her freshman twelvemonth of assemblage women’s volleyball.
But precocious she was backmost location successful Las Vegas astatine Bishop Gorman for graduation. She went done the gym and saw her sanction connected the partition for her designation arsenic the state’s champion volleyball subordinate and authorities title banners.
“Seeing my sanction successful the gym again is benignant of surreal due to the fact that I was like, ‘Wow, I truly did bash each that stuff,’” Watson said.
Watson near her people arsenic 1 of the top precocious schoolhouse volleyball players successful Nevada history. She led the authorities with 568 kills, which made her the state’s all-time person successful vocation kills with 2,195.
Watson was named the Gatorade authorities subordinate of the twelvemonth for the 3rd time, and was the 5A Southern Region subordinate of the twelvemonth portion starring the Gaels to a 33-8 grounds and their third consecutive 5A authorities championship.
For her record-breaking performance, she was named the Nevada Preps Girls Athlete of the Year.
“She is humble. She’s grateful. She’s a bully kid,” Gorman girls volleyball manager Gregg Nunley said during the season. “A batch of (the large girls volleyball players) cognize they’re good. A batch of them aren’t precise coachable, but Ayanna is. She’s a saccharine miss disconnected the court, but connected the tribunal she’s a ace pugnacious competitor.”
‘Really satisfying’
Watson’s elder run started successful Indonesia, wherever she missed Gorman’s archetypal fewer games portion playing with USA Volleyball astatine the FIVB Women’s U21 World Championship. At the commencement of the play successful the autumn of 2025, Watson was 389 kills distant from mounting the state’s all-time mark, unbeknown to Watson.
“It was comic due to the fact that I had nary idea,” Watson said. “It’s besides comic successful a consciousness due to the fact that it conscionable gave maine much of a necktie backmost to Vegas and Gorman. I don’t foresee myself ever surviving present again, my bosom is ever going to beryllium here. I truly americium gladsome I got to acceptable that record, particularly with the radical of radical I got to bash that with due to the fact that I couldn’t person done it without them.”
Watson acceptable the caller authorities grounds during a three-set expanse astatine Foothill connected Sept. 29, erstwhile Watson recorded 21 kills.
“I was confused erstwhile everybody stopped for similar 5 minutes (during the game),” Watson recalled. “‘Why are we clapping? What is going on?’”
Watson wasn’t conscionable ascendant against Nevada opponents. She recorded a season-high 35 kills to assistance the Gaels bushed Mater Dei (California), past ranked No. 4 nationally, successful 4 sets connected Sept. 18. The Gaels astir got a game-winning ace connected lucifer point, but the shot ended up staying successful play, which allowed Watson to get the game-winning kill.
“Even erstwhile I ticker the video back, I get chills,” Watson said. “ … I knew I was going to get set. The full gym knew I was going to get acceptable and past I called for the shot and I scored and we won and it was similar a ‘Yeah, we did that,’ benignant of happening due to the fact that we mislaid (to Mater Dei) the twelvemonth before. It was truly satisfying to beryllium capable to bash that this past year.”
‘Not losing’
As a senior, Watson was 2nd successful the authorities with a .422 hitting percent and added 304 digs. Gorman went undefeated against Nevada opponents and swept Coronado successful 3 sets to triumph the 5A rubric connected Nov. 9, down a 25-kill show from Watson.
“That was decidedly satisfying to triumph again due to the fact that I had told my team, ‘We’re not losing. We cannot spell retired with a loss. This can’t beryllium the past clip radical spot america due to the fact that that was our chance,’” Watson said.
Watson said arsenic a elder captain, she wanted to beryllium a much vocal person and beryllium a “shoulder to thin on” for her younger Gorman teammates.
“Our team, astir of the seniors were starters,” Watson said. “We each conscionable agreed that we couldn’t fto that beryllium our past tally unneurotic and person it travel retired arsenic a loss. We each conscionable locked in, came unneurotic and they’re each my champion friends. I inactive speech to astir of them astir each day, truthful it was truly bully to beryllium capable to triumph with them.”
Watson is the daughter of erstwhile Gorman boys hoops prima C.J. Watson, who spent 10 seasons successful the NBA. C.J. won 2 authorities titles astatine Gorman (2000 and 2002) and was a two-time Gatorade authorities subordinate of the year.
Ayanna credited her begetter for preparing her for the assemblage recruiting process and what it takes to execute astatine a precocious level portion successful college. And C.J’s 2 Gatorade subordinate of the twelvemonth honors proved to beryllium information for his daughter.
“He motivated maine successful a contention consciousness due to the fact that helium got Gatorade subordinate of the twelvemonth twice,” Ayanna Watson said. “I told him I was going to bushed him and I did. That was a truly bully feeling for maine and helium told maine aft I did it that helium was truly arrogant of maine and wanted maine to beryllium amended than him.”
Contact Alex Wright astatine awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 connected X.
English (US)·