CHICAGO (March 20, 2025)— In its 40th year of honoring the nation’s most elite High School athletes, Gatorade today announced Nate Ament of Highland School is the 2024-25 Gatorade Virginia Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

Ament is the first Gatorade Virginia Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Highland School.

Gatorade Player of the Year is the top honor in High School Sports, celebrating the nation’s best high school athletes for their success on the court, in the classroom and in the community.

The award distinguishes Ament as Virginia's best High School boys basketball player and he joins an impressive group of alumni that spans CEO's, coaches and star athletes such as Karl-Anthony Towns (2012-13 & 2013-14, St. Joseph High School, N.J.), Jayson Tatum (2013-14, 2014-15 & 2015-16, Chaminade College Preparatory School, Mo.) and Cooper Flagg (2023-24, Montverde Academy, Fl.).

At the time of his selection, the 6-foot-10, 190-pound senior forward had led the Hawks to a 39-6 record and a berth in the upcoming Throne National Championships.

Ament averaged 18.9 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 blocks through 45 games, leading Highland to the Virginia Independent School Athletic Association Division I state championship. A McDonald’s All-American Game selection and a member of Team USA for the Nike Hoop Summit, he is ranked as the nation’s No. 4 recruit in the Class of 2025 by Rivals.com.

Ament has volunteered locally as a youth basketball coach and referee. “I’ve been doing this an awfully long time and I’m not sure in my 20-plus years of covering Virginia High School basketball that we’ve had a more complete forward in terms of skill-set, touch, court savvy and ability to impact a game,” said Matthew Hatfield, Publisher of VirginiaPreps.com.

“Nate Ament has steadily improved from season to season to a point where I fully expect him to make an immediate splash on the college level with a great opportunity to become a potential lottery pick.”

In the classroom Ament has maintained an A average. He remains undecided upon a collegiate destination.

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states across 12 different High School sports – football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field – and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport.

The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.

Ament joins recent Gatorade Virginia Boys Basketball Players of the Year Darren Harris (2023-24, Paul VI High School), DeShawn Harris-Smith (2022-23, Paul VI Catholic High School), Chris Livingston (2021-22, Oak Hill Academy) and Trevor Keels (2020-21, Paul VI Catholic High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.

As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant to donate to a social impact partner. To date, the Gatorade Player of the Year program has provided more than $5.6 million in grants to winners across more than 2,000 organizations.

*** To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade, Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY and X(Twitter) at x.com/Gatorade. ***