University of Connecticut Athletics
Bueckers Named 2019-2020 Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year
7/24/2020 12:15:00 PM | Women's Basketball
CHICAGO - Incoming UConn women's basketball freshman Paige Bueckers was selected as the 2019-20 Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year, as announced by The Gatorade Company Friday.
The No. 1-ranked recruit in her class, Bueckers is a 2020 McDonald's, SLAM and Jordan Brand Classic All-American. Buckers earned the 2020 Naismith Prep Player of the Year Award and Morgan Wootten Player of the Year Award.
Bueckers was named Gatorade's Minnesota Player of the Year in 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20. She was named the 2019-20 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year in March.
UConn has had nine previous Gatorade National Girls Basketball Players of the Year: Tamika Williams (1997-98), Ann Strother (2001-02), Tina Charles (2005-06), Maya Moore (2006-07), Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (2010-11), Breanna Stewart (2011-12), Katie Lou Samuelson (2014-15), Megan Walker (2016-17) and Christyn Williams (2017-18).
Charles, Moore and Stewart also went on to be named the Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year.
The Gatorade Player of the Year award was established in 1985 to recognize the nation's most elite high school student-athletes for their athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character.
Bueckers averaged 21.0 points, 9.2 assists, 5.2 steals and 5.1 rebounds per game for Hopkins high school in Minnetonka, Minn., as a senior, guiding her team to a 30-0 record and the Class AAAA state championship game, which was canceled due to coronavirus. Bueckers was also named Most Valuable Player for the gold medal-winning USA Basketball U19 Women's World Cup Team.
Bueckers organized her own series of youth basketball clinics, "Buckets With Bueckers," which offers free admission to players in Minnesota and Montana, while raising funds for local charities via donations and corporate sponsorships. An invited speaker and honorary guest at Lucy Laney grade school in North Minneapolis, she has also donated her time volunteering as a reader at the Hopkins Public Library.
