Coyer Earns Statewide Player of the Year Honor

Caroline Coyer earned the elite distinction as Virginia's Gatorade Player of the Year for her efforts on the basketball court this year.

The award is the latest in a string of milestones this season for Oakton High's 5'10" Villanova-bound senior. Earlier this season, Coyer , , and earned the distinction as Player of the Year both in the and the .

Entering the VHSL state tournament's final four, Coyer averaged 14.3 points, 5.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 3.6 steals. She has scored 443 points this season and 1,556 points and recorded 584 assists in her career. She joins fellow Cougar Jasmine Thomas as one of two AAA players ever to reach 1,500 points and 500 assists.

She maintains a 3.67 GPA.

Thomas, who now plays for the WNBA's Washington Mystics, was also named Gatorade Player of the Year in 2007.

"Caroline Coyer is a great team player, but don’t get me wrong, when she’s on the floor running the point it’s obvious who’s in charge," T.J. Dade, head coach at Robinson Secondary School, said to ESPNHS. “She is an extension of her coach on the floor. She gets her teammates involved and makes everyone around her better."

The selection process for the honor is based on three criteria: athletic prowess, high academic achievement and exemplary personal character.

Coyer and the Oakton Cougars (29-0) will face Princess Anne High School in the state championship at 7 p.m. today at the Siegel Center in Richmond.