Central Valley High School basketball standout Brynn McGaughy named McDonald’s All-American

The square commons area at the heart of Central Valley High School looked more like a coliseum than a cafeteria Wednesday morning as the undefeated girls basketball team and standout star were honored.

The pep band blared, cobalt cheer poms shimmied, and teens crowded over the second-story balcony as the school gathered to wish the Bears well in the State 4A tournament in the Tacoma Dome this weekend. The charter bus trekking the team over the Cascades was waiting just outside the building.

The event was equal parts pep rally and send off and awards ceremony, as senior Brynn McGaughy received a commemorative jersey denoting her as a 2025 McDonald’s All-American.

“It really is an honor, and I’m just so excited,” McGaughy said.

The 6-foot-2 Greater Spokane League MVP, who ESPN considers to be the No. 21 recruit in the nation, is the ninth Washingtonian girl to earn the distinction, and the first from the Greater Spokane League since University High graduate Angie Bjorklund in 2007.

Being named an All-American is considered one of the highest honors in prep sports. Only 24 girls and 24 boys are selected each year to participate in an East vs. West-style all-star game. The rosters are selected by a national coalition of the game’s top analysts, prep scouts, media and coaches, and proceeds from the game they play, associated dunk and 3-point contests and halftime show attendance benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities, according to a news release from the company.

The 2025 All-American Game will be played at the Barclays Center in New York on April 1, and will be broadcast on ESPN2 beginning at 3:30 p.m.

Bears head coach Jason Wilson said McGaughy’s accomplishments are an example to Spokane Valley’s youths of the heights they can reach if they set their minds to it.

It helps to be tall and coordinated, but it takes dedication and intent to become as talented as she is, he said.

“It shows kids in the area, whether they’re in the building, or younger kids, like ‘Hey, if I work hard, I can accomplish some really good things,’ ” Wilson said.

McGaughy said she’s familiar with a lot of the girls on the All-American roster, either as prior teammates or opponents in games and tournaments over the years.

“A lot of these girls I’ve already played with, or I know of, and I just think so highly of all of them,” McGaughy said. “To get to compete with and against the best competition is a blessing.”

Basketball, as it always is, will be the focus of the trip to New York, McGaughy said. The pragmatic forward talks about her craft with the same degree of professionalism as any top athlete.

“With some of her accolades and stuff, it’d be easy to be kind of conceited or cocky or things like that,” Williams said. “But she’s very much not that way. She’s very levelheaded. A team player – almost too much.”

McGaughy let it slip she’s more than a little excited to see hip-hop artist GloRilla perform at halftime. She may be an all-star, but she’s also still a high school student.

Wednesday provided a unique opportunity for McGaughy to soak in aspects of the high school experience she’s missed out on since transferring from Colfax at the start of the year. McGaughy has been completing her senior year online, said Robin Barnhart, assistant principal of athletics and activities for Central Valley.

McGaughy said it’s been a relatively easy transition, due largely to her new teammates. She’s grateful for the support she’s received not only from those within the school’s gymnasium, but the broader Spokane Valley community, she said.

“The girls are just so nice, and they work super hard,” McGaughy said. “And I like to say I can adjust to any situation.”

Before the excitement of the All-American Game, McGaughy has her sights set on a state championship.

The No. 1-ranked Bears will face the winner of Seattle’s Roosevelt and Kennewick at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, in what will be a quarterfinal matchup.

If they successfully bring home the hardware, it would be the Bears’ seventh state championship, and first since a defeat of Woodinville in 2020.

McGaughy said she and her teammates are hoping to uphold the program’s storied legacy, and the legacies of those who helped establish the team as a perennial competitor, including Central Valley and Stanford University alumni Lexie and Lacie Hull, or former Gonzaga Bulldog Kate Bousley, who’s now a math teacher and assistant basketball coach for the school.

“We’re gonna take it one game at a time and be very thoughtful with our process,” McGaughy said. “And just being grateful for where we’re at.”

Editor’s note: This article was updated to correct the last name of Central Valley High School girls basketball coach Jason Wilson.