HAMPTON, VA (WTKR)- How did Jiana Price end up on the basketball court? She followed the road already paved by her three older siblings.
"When all of my siblings started to play, I just wanted to be like them and play, too," she recalled.
Prior to her arrival to high school, Jiana had a front row seat to plenty of memorable basketball moments. She watched her sister, Jaida, lead the Crabbers to a state title in 2020 and that stuck with her. Now she's the latest Price to come through the program, but head coach Shanda Bailey notices some differences between the two siblings.
"They're night and day, actually. Her sister was one of our best defenders," Bailey said. "Gigi (Jiana's nickname) is looking to score. Defense? What is that. Offense, she's going to give it to you."
"I just wanted to be just like her," Jiana said of her sister. "I always dreamed of being in the championship and I just wanted to be like her."
Gigi just turned 15 years old, but while she might be the baby on the roster, she certainly doesn't play like it. Look no further than last Friday's state semifinal with Hampton down 15 points to Monacan early in the third quarter and needing a spark.
"I wanted to do as much as I could, try to shoot as much as I can, try to get the ball into the post, just try to do everything that I can," she noted about her approach.
"She's coming out and she's trying to score it herself," added Bailey. "She's trying to take somebody to the basket. She's aggressive."
When the buzzer sounded, the freshman had helped the Crabbers back to pick up a double-digit win and keep their season alive. She scored 10 points as Hampton punched its ticket to the state title game.
"I was very, very happy," she remembered. "I was about to cry. It was everything just going through my mind and I was like 'oh my gosh, I can't believe we did this.'"
As a freshman, she got the chance to get her state championship ring. Unfortunately for Hampton, the Crabbers fell in Friday's state title game to Woodgrove, 68-58. However, she's set a strong foundation she can build on when she returns for her sophomore season.
If you have a nominee for Student-Athlete of the Week, just send an email to marc.davis@wtkr.com.
