Macy McClain knows all too well how overwhelming and difficult the college recruitment process can be for high school athletes.

Dreams turned into a reality Thursday night for five former high school and prep stars from the Valley, as they heard their names called in the 2022 NBA Draft.

Tre Brown grew up waiting on the day he would be able to compete with his older stepbrothers.

It’s the premier high school athletics event in Arizona.

Jeremiah “JJ” Newcombe’s rise to becoming a playmaker for the Casteel High School football team doesn’t come as much of surprise to anyone, including himself.

Tommy Prassas doesn’t receive the same attention as some of his teammates on Basha’s defense.

American Leadership Academy - Queen Creek established itself as a 3A power early in the football program’s existence.

There’s hardly ever been a moment that was too big for Higley High School sophomore quarterback Jamar Malone.

Laurie Martin was a tennis icon in Arizona.

Dylan Raiola’s time as quarterback in football has been limited. He only started playing the position two years ago under former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna at Burleson High School in Texas.

High school football programs from all over the East Valley and state have begun the transition from spring to summer, with team workouts on a near daily basis and various 7 on 7 and big man tournaments.

Former Chaparral star football player Davonte’ Neal, who held assistant coaching positions with Dobson and Higley high schools before joining the staff at Idaho State, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

 The cliché that each athletic program is a family, especially at the high school level, takes on a more literal tone at Gilbert High School.

After a long week of preliminaries, the track and field state championships concluded on Saturday with 19 track events across four divisions.

Hamilton felt down and out in the quarterfinals when it lost by a run to a Queen Creek team that got hot at the right time.

Griffin Schureman still thinks about Queen Creek’s two losses to East Valley power Chandler on a daily basis.

Bob Martínez was a trailblazer for baseball in Chandler. He helped establish Chandler Youth Baseball. He played his high school ball for the Wolves and went to two state title games during his career.

Dylan Raiola has only been playing quarterback for two seasons, both of which came at Burleson High School in Texas. But that hasn’t stopped the 6-foot-3, 225-pound new Chandler gunslinger from quickly rising to the top of major Division I college recruitment boards across the country.

For someone who doesn’t like the sun or dust and gets frustrated when a jolly rancher wrapper is on the ground, Highland baseball head coach Erik Kehoe is unquestionably a seamless fit for the program.

Athletic trainers are often the forgotten about in any successful sports program, especially at the high school level.

The expansive growth of the southeast Valley has created opportunities for administrators, coaches and athletes alike to put their own stamp on an athletic program.

DJ Davidson was built for the National Football League.

Adonis Watt doesn’t think of himself as an inspiration to young athletes.

Red Mountain’s goal for the 2022 baseball season was to test itself in non-region play.

Football has become a way of life for Hamilton sophomore Catarina “CC” Maccagnano.