MaxPreps 2015-16 Female High School Athlete of the Year: Mikayla Pivec

Video: MaxPreps 2015-16 Female Athlete of the Year Mikayla Pivec
Seattle-area senior was a standout in cross country, basketball and track and field for Lynnwood High School.

Joining past winners like Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin, distance phenom Jordan Hasay and Texas sisters Chiney and Nneka Ogwumike, Mikayla Pivec of Lynnwood (Bothell, Wash.) has been named the MaxPreps 2015-16 Female High School Athlete of the Year.

Pivec starred in cross country, basketball and track and field at Lynnwood – about 20 miles north of Seattle. She will continue her athletic career next year as a member of the Oregon State basketball team, which is coming off a trip to the Final Four.

"Looking back on my four-year high school journey, I can wholeheartedly state that I am very proud of what I was able to accomplish individually and what I was able to contribute toward my teams' successes while participating in team sports," Pivec told MaxPreps.

An athlete for all seasons, Pivec began the 2015-16 year by placing eighth at the Class 3A state cross country championship.



The seventh-place finisher? That would be younger sister Malia, a junior who will have bragging rights for life over our Female Athlete of the Year. During the winter, Pivec took to the hardwood and averaged 21.7 points, 14.2 rebounds, 4.4 steals and 4.1 assists per contest. The Royals were 25-0 and ranked No. 15 nationally by MaxPreps heading into the 3A semifinals.

After winning a basketball state title at Lynnwood as a junior, Pivec’s senior season didn’t quite end as planned with a 73-60 loss to nationally-ranked Bellevue.

A day after that heartbreaking loss, Pivec completed her hoops career by tallying a game-high 23 points, 17 rebounds and six assists in a 64-27 blowout win over Kamiakin to obtain the third-place trophy.

The accolades rolled in after the season, including a spot on the MaxPreps All-American Team and her second consecutive Washington Gatorade Player of the Year award.

The 5-foot-9 guard finished as Lynnwood’s all-time leader in points (1,799), rebounds (1,429), assists (364) and steals (350). A few months later, Pivec bounced back with a heroic performance at the 3A track and field championships.

Leading Lynnwood to a team title, Pivec won the individual crown in the javelin, placed fourth in the 1,600 meters (4:57.31), fourth in the 800 meters (2:14.56) and ran the opening leg for a second place 4x400 relay team.



Pivec’s heave of 147-0 in the javelin was a Top 20 mark nationally this spring, according to DyeStat.

The Seattle-area star became the first female athlete in state history to toss a javelin 140-plus feet and run a sub-five minute 1,600 meters at the same meet.

Pivec was also a member of Lynnwood’s 4x400 championship relay team as a junior, bringing the total to four state titles in two different sports during her illustrious high school career.

Other finalists for MaxPreps 2015-16 Female High School Athlete of the Year included basketball and softball star Ashlee Swindle of Curry (Jasper, Ala.), basketball National POY Sabrina Ionescu of Miramonte (Orinda, Calif.), 44-time track and field state champion Gabrielle Jennings of First Baptist Christian (Slidell, La.) and basketball/volleyball standout Lauren Cox of Flower Mound (Texas).

Past MaxPreps Female High School Athletes of the Year
2013-14 – Ariana Washington, Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.): Track and field
2012-13 – Missy Franklin, Regis Jesuit (Aurora, Colo.): Swimming
2011-12 – Missy Franklin, Regis Jesuit (Aurora, Colo.): Swimming
2010-11 – Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.): Basketball
2009-10 – Chiney Ogwumike, Cy-Fair (Cypress, Texas): Basketball, volleyball
2008-09 – Jordan Hasay, Mission Prep (San Luis Obispo, Calif.): Cross country, track and field
2007-08 – Nneka Ogwumike, Cy-Fair (Cypress, Texas): Basketball, volleyball