By Thomas Sellers Jr.
Playing three sports at an elite level, being a high achieving student and even winning the 2020 Millington Star Female Athlete of the Year will gain you recognition.
But it is still surprising for the girl from California that the student body at Munford High School knows her and proudly claims her as a Cougar great.
“I will miss the family feel I have with the whole school,” Maiya said May 6 in the Munford Gymnasium. “It’s like I can go around and people say hi to me and I don’t even know who they are. It’s so weird.”
A few of those students joined teachers, coaches, family and friends for Reed’s signing to Walters State Community College to play basketball.
“Crazy… basketball is my main focus,” Reed acknowledged. “I’ve always known that. At first I wasn’t OK with just playing basketball. But I prayed on it a lot. And the next day I saw a lot of signs that it was going to be OK just to play basketball. After visiting there I knew it was the place for me.”
Before Reed made the decision to become a Lady Senator and head out to Morristown, she was trying to get a package deal with basketball and soccer. While at Munford Reed has excelled in those sports and track as well.
Since her days at Munford Middle School and then Coach Nic Buford putting the basketball in her hands, Reed has gone on to perform for Cougar coaches Stan Jamesck, Bernard Ivie, Thomas Walters, Pearl Andrews and Lady Cougars Basketball Coach Steve Poindexter.
“Anytime you have a student athlete that has a goal and it’s always great when they reach it,” Poindexter said. “What’s special about here, there are a lot of student athletes who say I want to play whatever sport it is. She had a full understand of what work was needed between saying I want this and signing. I had a front seat in watching her work into this opportunity.”
At home Maiya received counseling about her college future from her older sisters, younger brothers, her father Jesse via the phone and her mother Sonja in person.
“I think it was the coach really wanting Maiya,” Sonya recalled. “She saw it during the summer how much Walters wanted her. The coach’s consistency and wanting to see her develop more there before heading to a four-year school. That won over Maiya I think.”
Sonja noted soccer might be on the back-burner but the love of the sport still burns within her daughter.
“She didn’t want to let it go,” she acknowledged. “But no JUCO Division I would let her play both. Coach Robert Luttrell at Dyersburg is one who tried. He really wanted her but the basketball coach didn’t show interest in her. She’s a hard worker and this a good day for us.”
Missing the day was her father Jesse serving the United States in the Navy. Being away several months at a time, Poindexter was one of the father figures to step up in Maiya’s life.
“It’s been an awesome experience for me,” he said. “I feel good but it’s bittersweet. Obviously I am losing a great leader but at the same time she’s moving on and she’s ready to move on. She’s prepared for tough situations. She fully aware of what it means to earn success and work yourself into a successful situation. I am just proud of her.”
Walters State interim head coach Jasmin Coleman is going to get a well-rounded and accomplished athlete in her program.
In track Reed is a part of a record breaking relay team and sprinter. In soccer, she was a leading scorer the last three years while maturing overall.
“Definitely I will miss the running and the different feel,” Reed said. “It taught me a lot to help me deal with basketball. From body control to how to deal with anger because I got thrown out of a lot of games.”
By the time basketball rolled around each year, Reed had her attitude under control and prepared to lead her young team.
“Coach P for one has helped me so much, more than people will ever know,” Reed noted. “My team I am going to miss them a lot. Basketball is not their main focus but they did a lot of stuff for me because they knew it meant a lot to me.”
Poindexter said Reed meant a lot his teams because she is a team-player who sacrifice her time and body for the Lady Cougars.
“We talk about toughness all the time,” he said. “For our team when we talk about toughness we talk about a person who can consistently do their job. What I am going to remember about her, obviously she’s a great leader and worker.
“But you’re talking about somebody the last three years who has been our leading scorer,” Poindexter added. “But she’s always been our leader in charges taken. You might not see that very often.”
Poindexter said Reed’s name will be near the top of the list of all-time charge taken in Munford history. The Reed name will always be a part of the Munford Athletics History Book.
“I am glad I can do it and I do have some brothers who will come up here and play sports too,” Maiya said. “Mainly I did it for my dad. I wish he was here but I always prayed and mention him before every game. And I wrote his name on my shoes.”
Sonja said Maiya was always motivated to make the Reed name meaningful for her dad. In the process Maiya gained entire new family.
“I am just very thankful for Munford as a whole,” she said. “They all played a big role in this and they don’t even it.”
Sonja said the Reed name has more chapters to write at Munford but as for the monicor Maiya Reed, that story is just beginning too.
“In two years she’ll be ending her time at Walters State and she’ll be going on to a top D-I school in the NCAA,” the proud mother concluded. “Then I see her in the WNBA. Anything Maiya sets her mind to, she will do. We’ve only seen the beginning of Maiya Reed.”
