Dimond’s Alissa Pili named US prep athlete of the year by Max Prep Sports

Dimond High's Alissa Pili, a star of multiple sports who won state championships in basketball, volleyball and track during the 2017-18 school year, is the Max Prep Sports female athlete of the year.

Previous winners of the award include swimmer Missy Franklin, a five-time Olympic gold medalist, and basketball players Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, who all went on to play in the WNBA.

It's the first time an Alaskan — boy or girl — has won the top award from Max Prep Sports, a website that covers high school athletics across the country.

"It's cool to help put Alaska on the map," Pili told the website. "There's a lot of talent up here that goes unnoticed. People underestimate us."

A strong and agile athlete who stands 5-foot-11, Pili will enter her senior year as a nine-time state champion.

She has earned three state titles in volleyball and three in the shot put. After two runner-up showings at the state basketball tournament, Pili helped the Lynx claim the Class 4A state title last season. She owns one state title in the discus and one in wrestling.

Basketball is her best sport. She's a two-time Alaska Gatorade Player of the Year and was a Max Prep Sports All-America selection last season.

In the championship game of the state basketball tournament, she racked up 22 points and 20 rebounds to lead Dimond past two-time champion Wasilla. Earlier in the season, she was named the MVP of the West Coast Jamboree's diamond division after leading the Lynx to victories over a pair of Bay Area teams.

According to Max Preps Sports, Pili has received Division I college basketball offers from BYU, Butler, Colorado State, Hawaii, St. Mary's and Washington State.