Two recent graduates of Valley Vista High School and stars on the Monsoon’s 6A state title team each added a major statewide award on their way to Division I college basketball careers.

Forward Marisa Davis earned the 2020-21 Gatorade Arizona Girls Basketball Player of the Year award May 27. Davis is the second Gatorade Arizona player of the year to be chosen from Valley Vista, following Taylor Chavez, who won in 2018.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Davis as Arizona’s best high school girls basketball player.

Now she is a finalist for the Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year award to be announced later in June.

The 6-foot-1 senior forward and guard led the Monsoon to a 17-1 record and the Class 6A state championship this past season. Davis averaged 17.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game. A two-time First Team All-Arizona selection, she was also the Class 6A Player of the Year and the West Valley Preps Player of the Year.

Davis has volunteered locally on behalf of a food bank, the Special Olympics and a program that cares for rescue horses.

Through Gatorade’s cause marketing platform “Play it Forward,” Davis has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national youth sports organization of their choosing. Davis is also eligible to submit a 30-second video explaining why the organization they chose is deserving of one of twelve $10,000 spotlight grants, which will be announced throughout the year.

Davis has maintained a 3.61 GPA in the classroom. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on scholarship at the University of Washington this fall.
Also in May, Valley Vista forward Madison Magee was named the 6A Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year by the Arizona Interscholastic Association.

Magee carried a 4.71 weighted GPA into the spring semester of her senior year and also was a member of the Sports360AZ All-Academic girls basketball first team.

Last summer Magee committed to play Division I basketball for William and Mary University in Williamsburg, Va. She averaged 12.4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.