Mikayla Blakes ’24 Named USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year

The accolades just keep coming for Mikayla Blakes ’24, who was recently named the 2025 USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year.

A sophomore at Vanderbilt, Blakes earned the honor following a standout debut on the international stage. She helped lead Team USA to a gold medal at the 2025 USA Women’s AmeriCup, earning tournament MVP honors after averaging a team-high 14 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. Her performance in the championship game against Brazil was one for the record books, as she scored a USA AmeriCup record 27 points in a 92–84 victory.

Presented annually to the top American female basketball performer during international competition, the award places Blakes among elite company. Previous recipients include Lisa Leslie, Chamique Holdsclaw, and Breanna Stewart, all of whom received the honor while playing college basketball.

Blakes has continued to impress at Vanderbilt as well. This season, she has helped lead the Commodores to an undefeated start and a top-five national ranking in both major polls, the program’s highest ranking in nearly 25 years. Earlier this year, she became the fastest player in program history to reach 1,000 career points, accomplishing the milestone in just 42 games. She was also named the USBWA Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Year and the SEC Freshman of the Year for the 2024–25 season.

Congratulations to Mikayla for her success on both the national and international stage!