HUNTINGTON -- It is a dream of young athletes to one day have their jerseys hanging in a Hall of Fame.
For Huntington High girls basketball standout Whitney Bays, she will get to live that dream for an entire year.
Bays' jersey was unveiled last weekend in the Ring of Honor display at the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn.
"I feel honored to have my jersey hanging with wonderful players," Bays said.
The Ring of Honor is a section of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame where jerseys of the nation's elite prep, college and professional basketball players are on display. The nominees are chosen in April and the jerseys are presented for the first time during the annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies, said Karen Tucker, director of basketball relations for the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
"We hang over 100 each year," Tucker said. "The list includes the most recent high school All-Americans, college All-Americans and WNBA All-Stars."
Tucker also said Bays was chosen from a large pool of athletes that included Gatorade, Parade and McDonald's All-Americans. Bays was the Gatorade West Virginia Player of the Year award recipient last season as a sophomore.
Huntington High girls basketball coach Lonnie Lucas said it's a new experience for him.
"I've had kids that make Gatorade All-American and stuff, but that's the first time I've had that honor for anyone," Lucas said. "When they called and asked for the jersey, that was a first for me."
For one year, Bays will have her jersey hanging in the same section of the Hall of Fame as some of the best players in the world including WNBA All-Stars Tameka Catchings, Swin Cash and Diana Taurasi.
However, one of the main attractions for Bays was knowing her jersey would be up with Candace Parker, a WNBA rookie for the Los Angeles Sparks who starred as a collegiate All-American for the national champion Tennessee Volunteers.
"She is one of my role models," Bays said. "I enjoy watching her play. She really motivates me to try and get myself better."
Bays said she tries to pattern her game after Parker's and statistics back that up. Like Parker, Bays was a threat in five different categories as a sophomore. She averaged 18 points, 13 rebounds, four steals, four assists and three blocks in leading the Highlanders to a state runner-up finish in Class AAA.
Better yet for Lucas, Bays has two more years at the prep level to hone her skills before heading to college.
"Her size and awareness on the court is big. She can play any position on the floor and that makes her tough to guard," Lucas said. "She can take it to the rim, pull up and shoot it, out-rebound everyone. She has everything and she's a good student."
Bays was joined by two other West Virginians in the Ring of Honor this year. Former Tennessee Vols star Alexis Hornbuckle, who was chosen as the No. 4 pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft by the Detroit Shock, and University of Connecticut guard Renee Montgomery also represent the Mountain State.
Hornbuckle was a star at Capital and South Charleston high schools before handing over the reigns to Montgomery, her teammate at South Charleston.
Now that both are on the collegiate level, Bays hopes to carry the torch for West Virginia as having some of the nation's elite prep players.
"I feel honored for that as well. I watched both of their games over the years and they are also my role models," Bays said.
"I'm proud to represent West Virginia and hopefully, I can give us a great name for women's basketball."
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