Sophomore Brynn McGaughy receives offers from top schools

COLFAX — There is a rising star in the sport of girls basketball, Brynn McGaughy.

McGaughy, a sophomore at Colfax High School, is an unknown gem to many throughout the country, coming from a small-town with a population of less than 3,000, but that is rapidly changing.

She is set to graduate with the class of 2025. She still has two full seasons of high school ball left, and is currently competing in her second-to-last AAU circuit run, where she plays for Meta Hoops 17U 3SSB girls program out of Boise, Idaho.

Since she is still two years from graduating, the current ESPN rankings for her class end at 25, where she is not on that list, safe to say, however, that by the time she finishes her high school season in 2023, she will be on that list.

McGaughy has started with local recognition as she quickly received offers from: Montana State, University of Portland, San Francisco, Gonzaga, Idaho, Eastern Washington, and the biggest as of then, Washington State.

“It feels good, all the hard work is paying off,” McGaughy said about getting major recognition early.

After her quick flurry of local offers, other PAC-12 schools took notice. She currently holds offers from: University of Oregon, Arizona State, Colorado, University of Utah, Cal, UCLA, Oregon State University, USC, and most recently and biggest yet, the Stanford Cardinal. The only PAC-12 schools yet to have been confirmed to offer McGaughy are the Washington Huskies and Arizona Wildcats.

With the offer announcement from Stanford coming April 25, that set off a whirlwind of east-coast and other schools outside the Pacific Northwest. She received an offer from West Virginia the next day, then announced May 2 that she was offered by the Michigan Wolverines. Her most recent offer is May 7, which was Texas A&M.

“It’s really cool, I’m really excited that big time schools see a potential in me,” McGaughy said.

For context, when the women’s NCAA basketball regular season ended in March of this year, Stanford was ranked fifth-best in the nation. The Utah Utes were ranked No. eight, Gonzaga was ranked 16, UCLA 17, Michigan 18, Colorado 20, and WSU 22.

McGaughy’s two seasons at Colfax high school so far have been nothing short of spectacular. Her freshman season she helped lead her team to a 16-2 overall record, including going 7-0 in conference play. The Bulldogs two losses on the season were early on in the season against non-league opponent Liberty in overtime, and against Warden in the 2B State Championship Final. McGaughy was averaging over 22 points and 15 rebounds a game in the tournament, she would however, foul out in the state championship game against Warden.

Last season, McGaughy was hungrier than ever, leading the Bulldogs to a perfect 28-0 season, capped off with a 2B State title against Okanogan. They defeated Warden in the semifinal game.

McGaughy has been working this off season every day to help improve her game to receive more nation recognition, which she is sure to achieve in the coming months.

“I’m in the gym every day getting reps in to prepare myself. During the high school season it’s all about building and growing,” McGaughy said.

With all of her offers she has on the table, McGaughy will have a tough decision in a couple of years as to where she wants to spend her time at, however, the decision could be made easier if she gets offered from certain schools on her dream list.

“My Dream school is Uconn, they have a good past and have got girls to the WNBA. I also like North Carolina and Tennessee, they’re really good programs.

With junior season on the horizon, McGaughy is growing closer to attending a university to play basketball and complete her studies, but she is devoted to her sport.

“You have to put your heart into basketball. Get in the gym. If you want something, you have to go get it, devote yourself to it.

McGaughy is ready to train on the AAU circuit for the 2023 summer before getting ready to defend the 2B State title with Colfax High School starting in November of 2023.