Whitley Rogers Named 2024-25 Arkansas Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Whitley Rogers of Little Rock Christian Academy has been named the 2024-25 Arkansas Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year, an honor that recognizes her dominant junior season and outstanding leadership on and off the court.

With this award, Rogers joins an elite lineage of Arkansas basketball standouts who have captured the Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year title over the past decade. From Christyn Williams to Jersey Wolfenbarger, these athletes have helped solidify Arkansas as one of the nation’s top producers of women’s basketball talent.

? Recent Arkansas Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year Winners

Anna Trusty (2023-24 | Greenwood High School)

Northwest Arkansas continues to shine in girls basketball, and Anna Trusty is a perfect example. During her senior season, she averaged 19.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 3.6 steals per game, leading Greenwood to its third straight 5A state championship and a 28-4 record.

Trusty graduated as Greenwood’s all-time leading scorer (1,963 points) and committed to the University of Arkansas–Fort Smith, where she made an immediate collegiate impact. As a freshman, she started 24 of 27 games, averaging 14.4 points and 5.5 rebounds, earning MIAA Freshman of the Year and All-MIAA Third Team honors.

Chloe Clardy (2022-23 & 2021-22 | Conway High School)

A rare back-to-back winner, Chloe Clardy dominated both her junior and senior seasons.

• Junior year: 23.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.6 APG, 3.4 SPG — Conway finished 29-1.

• Senior year: 24.8 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 4.0 APG, 3.2 SPG — Conway posted a 25-5 record and ranked 19th nationally (MaxPreps).

A 4-star ESPN HoopGurlz recruit, Clardy committed to Stanford University, where she continues to make strides — improving from 2.0 PPG as a freshman to 10.2 PPG as a sophomore while shooting 43.4% from the field and nearly 38% from three-point range.

Jersey Wolfenbarger (2020-21 & 2019-20 | Fort Smith Northside)

Standing tall at 6’6”, Wolfenbarger became one of Arkansas’ most decorated prep players.

• Junior year: 18.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 3.7 APG

• Senior year: 19.0 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 3.4 APG, 1.7 BPG — leading Northside to the 6A title game and earning McDonald’s All-American honors.

Ranked a Top-10 national recruit by ESPN, Wolfenbarger committed to the University of Arkansas, later transferring to LSU where she focused on interior play, shooting 63% from the field in her latest season.

Currently in the transfer portal, she remains one of the most intriguing prospects available in women’s college basketball.

Sasha Goforth (2018-19 | Fayetteville High School)

As a junior, Goforth averaged 16.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game, leading Fayetteville to the 6A semifinals and earning multiple All-State honors.

She went on to star at Oregon State, making the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team, before transferring home to Arkansas, where she started 32 games as a sophomore and recorded 66 blocks — fourth-most in school history.

After battling health challenges, Goforth transitioned into coaching, joining the Arkansas Razorbacks’ staff as a graduate assistant, continuing her impact on the game.

Christyn Williams (2017-18, 2016-17 & 2015-16 | Central Arkansas Christian)

A legend in Arkansas basketball, Christyn Williams is the only three-time Gatorade Player of the Year winner in state history.

During her senior year, she averaged 26.8 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.8 steals, leading CAC to a 36-1 record and earning both the Arkansas and National Gatorade Player of the Year awards — the first Arkansan to achieve that distinction.

At UConn, Williams started nearly every game across four seasons, averaging 14.2 points per game as a senior, and capturing the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award as the nation’s top shooting guard.

She later joined the Washington Mystics and Phoenix Mercury, and currently competes in Athletes Unlimited and internationally in Saudi Arabia.

Jordan Danberry (2014-15 & 2013-14 | Conway High School)

A two-time winner from Conway, Danberry was known for her elite defense and playmaking ability.

After a standout prep career, she played collegiately for Arkansas and later Mississippi State, where she earned spots on the All-SEC Second Team and SEC All-Defensive Team.

In 2023, Danberry made headlines internationally after recording a quadruple-double — 40 points, 12 rebounds, 13 assists, and 17 steals — in a professional game in Iceland. She has since averaged 25.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game, continuing her dominance overseas.

? Arkansas’ Legacy of Elite Girls Basketball Talent

From Christyn Williams’ national recognition to Whitley Rogers’ latest honor, Arkansas has continually produced some of the nation’s most accomplished high school basketball players. Each year’s Gatorade Player of the Year adds a new chapter to the state’s rich basketball story — one that reflects not only talent, but leadership, academic excellence, and community impact.

As Whitley Rogers enters her senior season, all eyes will be on Little Rock Christian Academy to see if she can bring home another state title — and perhaps follow in the footsteps of the Razorbacks and WNBA stars who paved the way before her.