Zyanna Walker of Heights was named the Gatorade Player of the Year. Walker is the first Gatorade Kansas Girls Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Heights.

The senior guard averaged 25.7 points, 8.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 5.1 steals through 21 games, while leading the Falcons to an 18-3 record.

As a sophomore, she was an all-state selection, but missed all of last season due to a knee injury. Walker is ranked as the nation’s No. 38 prospect in the Class of 2022 by ESPN.

Gatorade has a long-standing history of serving athlete communities and understands how sports instill valuable lifelong skills on and off the court.

Through Gatorade’s “Play it Forward” platform, Walker has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national organization of their choosing that helps young athletes realize the benefits of playing sports.

Walker is also eligible to submit a short video explaining why the organization they chose is deserving of one of twelve $10,000 spotlight grants, which will be announced throughout the year.

To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than $3.5 million across more than 1,300 organizations.