Athlete Spotlight

While most of their peers wanted to rip the wrapping from gifts on Christmas morning, Greenbrier High School basketball players Justina Mason and Janay Moore wanted to rip off some jump shots during a practice.

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"I love to play games, but I love to practice," senior center Mason said.

"I kept trying to get coach (Garrett Black) to let us practice, but he said, 'You need a break and to spend time with your families,' " said Moore, a senior all-purpose guard. "We could have practiced for an hour and then spent the rest of the day with our families."

Before the first-round matchup of the Firehouse Subs Classic on Thursday, Moore was averaging 10 points and 4.7 assists per game.

During Thursday's game against Jefferson County, she posted 19 points to lead her team to a 54-49 victory.

Mason leads the Lady Wolfpack in rebounds with seven per game.

"Both of them have such a great energy that we as an entire team feed off of," Black said of Mason and Moore. "They're always there to give somebody a pat on the back and tell them they did a great job."

Both the 17-year-olds first took up basketball in the fourth grade.

"My dad played basketball, and I used to love to watch him play," Moore said. "That's what got me interested in it."

At 5-foot-10, with her shoes on, Mason said her height brought her to the game.

"I was always tall for my age," she said. "My friends and family were the ones telling me I should play basketball."

Though family brought them to the sport, family is also what they said they found.

"We're like a family," Mason said of her teammates. "We'd do anything for each other."

The thrill of competition also excites them.

The Lady Wolfpack long have been a basketball powerhouse in the area. The girls said they feel like everyone is gunning for them.

"It can be tough," Moore said. "Everyone going against us feels like the underdog trying to prove something.

"But that's why we love it. We love showing them that we're the team to beat."