South Georgia - In The Game High School Sports Magazine

Some athletes are drawn to the spotlight, while others shy away from the extra attention. And some seem impervious to being the center of attention. Such is the case with Valdosta Middle School eighth grader Stormm Phillips.

Though just fourteen years old, her budding athletic career has been anything but typical. A three-sport athlete who excels at whatever task she chooses, Stormm has already garnered the attention of her future high school coaches and a few prominent college programs.

“She’s a phenomenal athlete. She’s the whole package – student, athlete, and leader,” says her coach, Brianne Holt.

According to her mother, Swandolyn Phillips-Bryant, a teacher at Valdosta Middle, Stormm began playing basketball when she was eight years old. She focused on basketball until she reached middle school, when she also took up track and softball.

When Swandolyn saw Stormm play the first time six years ago, she knew almost immediately that she was going to be a very good player. “I didn’t get to see many of her games. I was working and going to school. But her coach, Darrell Foster, was a neighbor and he kept telling me I needed to see her play. When I was finally able to go to a game, I saw what he was talking about,” remembers Swandolyn.

Stormm was good – too good, even. She always covered the ball when the opposing team tried to bring it in. Every time the ball came on the court, she would get the steal and put it up for two points. Stormm was so proficient at her position that the referees finally asked her coach to place her at half-court simply to give her opponents a chance to get the ball in play. “The other team just couldn’t compete,” says Swandolyn.

Stormm’s abilities opened up opportunities for her to play on teams with older girls. When she was about ten years old, there weren’t enough players to field a league in that age group. So Stormm played with the thirteen and fourteen year olds. Her coach let her run the point and she held her own quite well.

That would become a theme for her as she grew older. Stormm played with the sixth grade team at Valdosta Middle as a sixth grader and she won the Most Valuable Player award that year. The next year, her coach wanted her on the seventh grade team. However, someone else had their eyes on Stormm – the eighth grade coach. After a meeting with Swandolyn, Stormm joined the eighth grade team.

Immediately, she was called upon to be a leader – something she didn’t find altogether comforting. “I wasn’t always comfortable telling the older girls what to do. But my coach told me I had to step up and be a leader. That was a very big lesson for me,” admits Stormm.

Age is secondary to ability. After a short period of time on the floor with Stormm, her teammates quickly grew to respect her. “She stepped up her game and earned their respect,” says her mother.

This year, Valdosta Middle’s eighth grade team went 14-0 and won the championship. In the process, Stormm averaged 25.6 points per game and earned another MVP trophy, playing mainly as a point guard or shooting guard.

Her middle school basketball career also includes some playing time with the varsity girls. When Stormm was a seventh grader, Valdosta Middle had played a summer league game in Douglas. The middle school players were still in the stands when the varsity team took the court later that day. Coffee’s girls had an advantage on Valdosta when head coach Julie McCutcheon looked in the stands and called for Stormm. Coach McCutcheon wanted her on the floor. Swandolyn remembers that Storm was a little shocked that she was being called to play, but she put on a uniform and jumped in the game. According to Swandolyn, Stormm helped spark a 16 point turnaround that ended with a Valdosta victory.

People have always paid attention to Stormm when she takes the court. Lately, that attention has grown. The pressure and expectations can be difficult for someone her age to bear. But Stormm has managed to keep things in perspective and not let the spotlight take her away from her number one priority, which is to simply have fun playing the game. “I’m not cocky. I let other people brag for me. I appreciate the attention but I don’t crave the spotlight. I want to be a team player and just play basketball. I just try to go with the flow,” she says.

Stormm can thank her mother for that kind of outlook. “My main objective is to keep her grounded. She’s not arrogant. I want to make sure she stays grounded and keeps God first. He gave her the ability to play,” says Swandolyn.

“Nobody forces her to play. She plays because she loves the game. Her mother is very supportive but not pushy. She’s an awesome woman and has struck the perfect balance with Stormm,” says Coach Holt.

Recently, Stormm began playing AAU ball with the Valdosta Flash, which later became the Valdosta Lady Pride. The AAU circuit has given her another opportunity to show her talents to scouts and coaches across the country. Last year in South Carolina, Stormm did just that when she poured in 35 points during one game – 73 percent of her team’s 48 total points.

Despite that kind of scoring ability, Stormm considers herself a defensive player first. Remember those early days when Stormm wouldn’t let her opponents in-bound the ball? She still enjoys wreaking havoc on defense. “It’s a challenge to keep the other team from scoring. I want the ball back. I enjoy boxing out and getting rebounds,” she says.

Stormm is just now hitting her growth spurt and many believe she could end up at 6’ 1” as a high school player. The thought of what kind of player she could develop into has varsity coaches giddy with anticipation. And while it’s easy to simply focus on Stormm’s basketball abilities, there’s another sport that is almost as near and dear to her heart: Track.

Stormm grew up racing older boys in her family. She says she usually won, which led them to make excuses. “They would get mad and say they slipped or gave me a head start,” she remembers, laughing.

Track season has started and at the time of this writing, Valdosta Middle has competed in one meet. The team finished sixth with 36 points. Stormm accounted for 30 of those points.

Her events vary, but she competed in the high jump, discus, 4x100 relay and 200 meters in the first meet. Stormm knows how to sit back and pace herself. She understands that going through the first half of the race as the fastest doesn’t necessarily get you across the finish line first. She runs her race and stays close, then makes her move at the end. It’s a strategy that has already paid off for her this season with a win in that first meet in the 200 meters.

“She’s only competed in the high jump twice, and she won first place on her second attempt. She won first in all her events in the first meet,” says Coach Holt.

Basketball and track take up the winter and spring. That leaves Stormm’s fall open – until she decided to play softball. She was utilized primarily as a catcher but says she probably won’t pursue softball in high school. Which is interesting, if for no other reason than despite her lack of interest in softball (compared to basketball and track), she was still the best player on the team, according to Coach Holt.

Of course athletics go hand in hand with academics, and Stormm has the classroom side of things handled quite nicely. She’s a straight-A student, never having made a B. “I tell myself I’m playing sports to help me keep my grades up. Doing my best comes naturally to me. I understand that sports may not last forever and I want something to fall back on,” she says.

Her mother believes sports and academics feed off each other. Stormm is a better student because of athletics, and she’s a better athlete because of her academics. “She likes to study, but playing sports makes her concentrate more. She knows she has to keep her grades up to play sports,” says Swandolyn. “I never have to say anything to her about her grades. She does it all herself.”

So where will all this lead? Both Stormm and her family are looking down the road at scholarship possibilities, but not so much so that she cannot enjoy playing at the middle school level. “Sometimes I feel like I’m growing up too fast. Playing sports used to be about having fun. I want to make sure it stays that way,” says Stormm.

Right now, her family is supporting her and providing the avenues for her to develop as both an athlete and a student. If she continues to work hard and keep the spotlight at an arm’s distance, the rest will take care of itself.

In addition to sports and school, Stormm is very active in the Crossing Jordan Baptist Church youth choir and step team.

“She knows how to use the talents she has. She’s very coachable and self-motivated, and will be a Division I player for sure,” says Coach Holt. •