limits. She doesn’t want anything
sugarcoated.
“Sometimes you don’t always
like putting in the work, but the
results are really fun. And that’s
what kept me going and kept me
hungry: the success,” Van Lith
says. “We do still do that, we do it
every night. It’s just increased in
intensity.”
Now, the late-night training
session is often Van Lith’s third (or
more) for the day. When not in the
gym, she’s serious about recovery.
She makes good use of an air com-
pression leg massager at home
and takes ice baths.
She still watches film of the
greats in hopes of adding some-
thing new to her bag. Right now,
Van Lith looks up to another point
guard who thrives in the big mo-
ment and also wears No. 11.
“Michael Jordan is the GOAT,
but the GOAT right now is Kyrie
Irving,” she says. “He’s crazy, and
he has the most drip in the game,
and I love him.”
On the women’s side, Van Lith
is drawn to Diana Taurasi. Not only
does Taurasi have championships
on every level, but DT is a legend-
ary competitor. That same desire
to rip out her opponent’s heart is
readily apparent when you watch
Van Lith play.
“She’s hilarious and the most
competitive person,” Van Lith says.
“I think that we’re kind of similar in
that she has this fire inside of her,
and she’ll talk during games and
she lets you know what’s up.”T
ODAY, HAILEY
Van Lith is one of the
most recognizable high
school hoopers in the
country. But it wasn’t
long ago that she felt
like she wasn’t getting the same
attention as some of her peers.
Sure, Van Lith was ranked among
the top players in the country, but
she was still being covered like
an under-the-radar hooper from a
small town in the PNW.
She knew she was destined
for more. To stay focused, she
would often recall the Bible pas-finished, already fine-tuning and
preparing for her final chance at a
title. She took no time off to rest.
How could she rest when the job
is still unfinished? Between AAU
ball, playing for the USA Basket-
ball national and 3x3 teams, Van
Lith will barely have a chance
to catch her breath during the
offseason.
She’s narrowed down a list
of top programs vying for her
commitment. After taking some
official visits, Van Lith is planning
on making her decision this fall.
“Maybe sooner, you never know,”
she adds.
Van Lith has dreams of becom-
ing a first-round pick and creating a
legacy in the WNBA. But ulti-
mately, her mission is to continue
to grow and evolve the women’s
game. And she’s doing it the only
way she knows how.
“My generation of [hoopers] is a
little more saucy. We’re evolving to
the boys—we want to score and we
want all those flashy plays,” she
says. “We’re elevating it. And we’re
making them give us attention. And
I’m going to do my best to make
girls’ basketball look good and play
to the best of my ability.” Ssage, 1 Peter 5:6, which reads, “Humble yourselves,
therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you
up in due time.”
She read the verse over and over last summer while
playing thousands of miles away from home with the
U17 USA Basketball squad. The weeks spent in Belar-
us and neighboring countries tested her patience and
fortitude. But she stayed the course. In due time.
“Until this year, I was under the radar. I wasn’t really
popular. I was ranked fairly high, but I wasn’t known
across the nation like I am now,” Van Lith says. “That
[passage] just spoke to me because I wasn’t getting
this attention, and I wasn’t being seen as equal to
these other girls just because I wasn’t out there yet.”
Now with the cameras firmly pointed in her
direction, the way she approaches the game hasn’t
changed. And neither has her underdog mentality.
Having surpassed the 2,000-point mark as a junior,
Van Lith is on pace to become the all-time leading
girls’ scorer in Washington state history. Of course,
setting the scoring record would be nice, but if her
season doesn’t end with a state title, all the individual
accomplishments won’t mean a thing.
So far, a high school title has alluded Van Lith and
her Bulldog team. Cashmere has fallen just short in all
three of her seasons. After finishing third in the Class
1A playoffs last March, Van Lith will stop at nothing
until she’s holding the trophy next spring.
“I know what it feels like, especially to lose the big
one at the end,” she says. “But it gives me a reason to
go to the gym the next day and get better. So I would
say it keeps me hungry.”
Van Lith was right back in the gym after the season“MY STYLE
OF PLAY IS A
LITTLE SAUCY.
IT’S SAUCY
BUT SERIOUS.
IT’S BUSINESS
FOR ME OUT
THERE.”
THE FUTURE ISSUE
ROB MCENANEY30 SLAMONLINE.COM