From the neighborhood asphalt to the high school gym, Zariah Everett is all about basketball.

“For me, basketball is one of the only places where I can truly be myself. It’s like the one place where I can leave it all on the court,” Everett said.

This Williamsburg Preparatory School senior was handed her first ball at 6 years old, stepping onto the court with her brother and his friends, happy to take on the boys.

What You Need To Know

  • Zariah Everett has been playing basketball since she was 6 years old. Happily taking on the boys at her neighborhood court

  • Even after so many years of balling, Everett was certain about joining the Williamsburg Preparatory School team, but she's glad she did. Captaining a team that is focused on making sure everyone knows they're an important part

  • Everett also mentors students and joins important discussions in her extracurricular activity, My Sister's Keeper

“Where I live, there’s not many girls that play basketball,” Everett remarked, “so nine times out of ten I was playing with the boys. And when I did beat them, everyone would go crazy because a girl just crossed a boy. Like she just shot a three pointer in a boy’s face.”

But there was a moment when Everett considered giving it up.

“When I was in middle school I thought, I’m not gonna play basketball anymore,” she remembers. “I don’t know why I thought that. I came here, I saw the tryout flier, and I was like, let’s give it a try.”

Her teammates are happy she joined. With two years as captain under her belt, this varsity senior was also voted MVP. But her favorite part is building the team camaraderie.

“Basketball is where I feel comfortable, so as a team captain my job is to make everyone feel comfortable,” she said. “I just have to keep everyone together, let everyone know everything’s okay. It’s just a game at the end of the day. We have fun before we worry about the competitive part of it.”

Everett brings that same sense of community to everything she does, including one of her extracurricular activities; My Sister’s Keeper. Within this organization, she provides mentorship to younger members.

“She leads by example, not necessarily through her words,” Jared Bezzant, an English teacher at the school, said. “It’s her actions, whether on the court or in the hallways she’s just leading by being herself. There’s something authentic about her.”

This legacy of determination, leadership, and camaraderie is what this senior hopes to be remembered for.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing and overtime everything will fall into place and everything will be alright,” she said.

Zaria Everett is already taking multiple advanced placement courses preparing her for college next year. She hopes to one day be a cosmetic surgeon, but those who know her best say that no matter what she does, it’ll be a slam dunk.