Alexis Hess-Fleetwood

There aren’t a lot of freshmen getting scholarship offers from Ohio State. Alexis Hess, however, wasn’t your typical ninth-grader. She averaged 15 points per game for Fleetwood and connected on 43 three-pointers. After her sophomore season, Hess was selected to the all-state team. The 6’1 guard reached 1,000 points during her junior campaign. She received about 25 Division I offers before deciding to commit to Kansas State. The Wildcats improved from (9-18) in 2020-21 to (20-13) last season. Hess believes the future is bright in Manhattan, a city with a population of just 55,000. She prefers the small college town environment and thinks she can get playing time right away. “I feel like I could make an impact. They recruited me for my versatility to be at the 2, 3, or 4 [positions] which really shows that it could give you more options to play,” said Hess. She emphasized how much her family has supported her, including eight hour road trips to Ohio to practice with her AAU team. Hess added, “They’ve pushed me through my ups and downs with my knee surgery. They’ve always been there for me. They always had my best interests at heart.” Hess underwent left knee surgery in the summer of 2021. It didn’t slow her down last season when she was the second-leading scorer in Berks County. Hess averaged 19 points and sank 40 triples. She was named first-team all-state in Class 5A. Hess poured in a career-high 34 points against Hamburg in late January. She’s looking forward to her senior season with the Tigers. “I’m expecting big things. I’m really excited for the upcoming girls. I’m here to have fun, to better everyone else” said Hess. She mentioned that reaching 1,000 points last season will reduce her stress this year. Hess is focusing on her leadership and communication skills, as well as improving her quickness. Fleetwood finished (11-10) a season ago. The Tigers ended up third in Division 3 and missed the county playoffs. The semifinals and championship game are held at Santander Arena in Reading. Hess hasn’t had the opportunity to play there yet. She replied, “It’s been a dream since I was in 9th grade. That’s something I’ve always been shooting for because that’s a big stage. I’m really pushing to get there this year.” Hess will enter the upcoming season with 1,034 career points and 116 three-pointers. Her favorite professional players are Kevin Durant and Candace Parker. When she’s not playing basketball, Hess enjoys watching ‘MasterChef’ and ‘Stranger Things’. Her favorite subjects are math and science. We talked about her favorite teachers at Fleetwood. Hess also revealed her favorite foods. She joked that some of her choices aren’t exactly healthy, but she spends plenty of time burning calories on the court.