The Kentucky "Miss Basketball" honor recognizes the top female high school basketball player in the state of Kentucky. Due to Kentucky's status as a culturally rich basketball state, Miss Basketball winners are highly coveted student athletes by colleges throughout the United States. Originally, there was only a “Kentucky Mr. Basketball” from 1954 to 1975, until 1976 when they created an award for women as well. The reward is presented by The Kentucky Lions Eye Foundation and is given to senior players that have shown exceptional basketball skills.[citation needed] In the past 45 years, all but one of these players has gone on to play basketball in college. Four of them were drafted into the WNBA.
Award winners edit
| Year | Player | High School | College | WNBA Draft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Donna Murphy | Newport | Morehead State | |
| 1977 | Geri Grigsby | McDowell | Kentucky | |
| 1978 | Irene Moore | Breathitt County | ||
| 1979 | Beth Wilkerson | Paris | Old Dominion | |
| 1980 | Lisa Collins | Laurel County | Kentucky | |
| 1981 | Lillie Mason | Olmstead High | Western Kentucky | |
| 1982 | Connie Goins | Franklin Co./Western Hills | Duke | |
| 1983 | Clemette Haskins | Warren Central | Western Kentucky | |
| 1984 | Carol Parker | Marshall County | Paducah Community College | |
| 1985 | Bridgette Combs | Whitesburg | Western Kentucky | |
| 1986 | Kris Miller | Owensboro Catholic | Kentucky | |
| 1987 | Mary Taylor | Marshall County | Western Kentucky | |
| 1988 | Kim Pehlke | Louisville Doss | Western Kentucky | |
| 1989 | Lisa Harrison | Louisville Southern | Tennessee | 1999 WNBA draft: 3rd Rnd, 34th overall by the Phoenix Mercury |
| 1990 | Kim Mays | Knox Central | Eastern Kentucky | |
| 1991 | Ida Bowen | Sheldon Clark | Western Kentucky | |
| 1992 | Becky McKinley | Bullitt East | Kentucky | |
| 1993 | Brandi Ashby | Webster County | Hawaiʻi/Western Kentucky | |
| 1994 | Laurie Townsend | Apollo | Western Kentucky | |
| 1995 | Ukari Figgs | Scott County | Purdue | 1999 WNBA draft: 3rd Rnd, 28th overall by the Los Angeles Sparks |
| 1996 | Jaime Walz | Ft. Thomas Highlands | Western Kentucky | |
| 1997 | Rachel Byars | Union County | Western Kentucky/ Boston College | |
| 1998 | Beth Vice | Montgomery County | Alabama | |
| 1999 | Jody Sizemore | Leslie County | Morehead State | |
| 2000 | Jenni Benningfield | Assumption | Vanderbilt | |
| 2001 | Katie Schweggman | Bishop Brossart | Miami (OH) | |
| 2002 | Erica Hallman | Holmes | Kansas | |
| 2003 | Megen Gearhart | West Carter | Morehead State | |
| 2004 | Crystal Kelly | Sacred Heart | Western Kentucky | 2008 WNBA draft: 3rd Rnd, 31st overall by the Houston Comets |
| 2005 | Carly Ormerod | Sacred Heart | Kentucky | |
| 2006 | Arnika Brown | Christian County | Kentucky/St. Catharine/Western Kentucky | |
| 2007 | Rebecca Gray | Scott County | North Carolina/Kentucky/Union College | |
| 2008 | Tia Gibbs | Butler Traditional | Vanderbilt/Louisville | |
| 2009 | A'dia Mathies | Louisville Iroquois | Kentucky | 2013 WNBA draft: 1st Rnd, 10th overall by the Los Angeles Sparks |
| 2010 | Sarah Beth Barnette | Lexington Christian Academy | Kentucky/Virginia | |
| 2011 | Sara Hammond | Rockcastle County | Louisville | |
| 2012 | Sydney Moss | Boone County | Florida/Thomas More College | |
| 2013 | Makayla Epps | Marion County | Kentucky | |
| 2014 | Ivy Brown | LaRue County | Western Kentucky | |
| 2015 | Maci Morris | Bell County | Kentucky | |
| 2016 | Erin Boley | Elizabethtown | Notre Dame/Oregon | |
| 2017 | Lindsey Duvall | Bullitt East | Louisville/Northern Kentucky | |
| 2018 | Seygan Robins | Mercer County | Louisville/UT Martin | |
| 2019 | Savannah Wheeler | Boyd County | Marshall | |
| 2020 | Maddie Scherr | Ryle High School | Oregon/ Kentucky | |
| 2021 | Brooklyn Miles | Franklin County | Tennessee | |
| 2022 | Amiya Jenkins | Anderson County | University of Kentucky | |
| 2023 | Haven Ford | Rowan County | Murray State University | |
| 2024 | Trinity Rowe | Pikeville | Southern Mississippi |
See also edit
References edit
Miss Kentucky Basketball History. A Kentucky Tradition Since 1954. (2021, April 21). https://mrandmisskybasketball.com/miss-kentucky-basketball-history/.
  | This article related to sports in Kentucky is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This basketball-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |