Cleveland’s Lauren Hurst Named State’s Gatorade Volleyball Player of the Year For Third Straight Year
(gatorade press release) CHICAGO (January 9, 2025) — In its 40th year of honoring the nation’s most elite high school athletes, Gatorade
today announced Lauren Hurst of Cleveland High School is the 2024-25 Gatorade Tennessee Volleyball Player of
the Year. Hurst is the first Gatorade Tennessee Volleyball Player of the Year to be chosen from Cleveland High
School.
Gatorade Player of the Year is the top honor in high school sports, celebrating the nation’s best high school
athletes for their success on the court, in the classroom and in the community. The award distinguishes Hurst as
Tennessee’s best high school volleyball player and she joins an impressive group of alumni that spans CEOs,
coaches and star athletes such as April Ross (1999-00, Newport Harbor High School, Ca.), Kerri Walsh Jennings
(1995-96, Archbishop Mitty High School, Ca.) and Ayden Ames (2023-24, Prosper High School, Texas).
The state’s two-time returning Gatorade Player of the Year, the 6-foot-3 senior outside hitter amassed 678 kills and
320 digs this past season, leading the Blue Raiders (32-12) to the Class AAA sectional final. Hurst also recorded 81
service aces, 72 assists and 34 blocks while posting a .491 kill percentage and a .352 hitting percentage at net. One
of the top high school basketball players in the country as well, she concluded her prep volleyball career with a
state-record 2,607 kills.
Hurst has volunteered locally as a youth volleyball and basketball coach and she has donated her time as part of
multiple community service initiatives through her church. “Lauren is an incredible asset to Cleveland High
School’s volleyball team,” said Abby Stroh, head coach of Walker Valley High School. “She is very diverse in her
ability to hit from all around the court (has) impressive serve-receive and serving abilities.”
Hurst has maintained a 3.76 GPA in the classroom. She has signed a written letter of athletic aid to play volleyball
and basketball at the University of Tennessee this fall.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of
the 50 states across 12 different high school sports – football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and
girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field – and awards one National
Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection
Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and
determine the state winners in each sport.
Three-time winner Hurst joins recent Gatorade Tennessee Volleyball Players of the Year Devyn Dunn (2021-22,
Knoxville Catholic High School) and Shaye Eggleston (2020-21, Brentwood High School), among the state’s list of
former award winners.
As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant
to donate to a social impact partner. To date, the Gatorade Player of the Year program has provided more than $5.6
million in grants to winners across more than 2,000 organizations.
