Lawrence Central High School junior Jaylah Lampley couldn’t ask for a better coach or mother.
Lawrence Central’s head coach is, after all, her mother, Jannon Lampley.
“She played at Purdue and in the WNBA,” Jaylah said. “Everything I want to do in life, she has already had that experience. I’m very blessed she gets to teach me and give me advice along the way, so I become like her. Most of my life I’ve been modeling after her. I’ve followed in her footsteps. It’s amazing I get to succeed not only with my mother, but with my sister (Lola) as well.”
Jannon Lampley, whose maiden name is Roland, played for Purdue University from 1993-97, earning Big Ten Player of the Year honors in 1997. This is her second season as head coach after serving as associate head coach when Jaylah was a freshman.
Prior to the sectional opener Jan. 31, Jaylah, a 6-foot guard, was averaging 18.9 points and 6.0 rebounds per game for the Bears (23-1). She averaged 15.8 points as a sophomore and 16.2 points as a freshman. Lola, a sophomore, was averaging 10.9 points.
“To coach Jaylah and Lola has been a complete blessing,” Jannon said. “To help them achieve some of their goals and see them live out their on-court dreams has been nothing short of amazing. Sharing these moments with them has been an honor. None of us want the journey to end, but the joy from these moments and experiences are enough to last a lifetime.”
Jannon said Jaylah constantly works on her skill set and her body.
“She’s been a constant work in progress,” Jannon said. “However, I would say she has improved her leadership this season. She is well respected among her teammates and coaching staff from the standpoint of setting the expectations, which is essentially helping us build our culture and being held accountable and never getting complacent with winning games. I would also say that her overall confidence and maturity has improved. She’s always been a defender, rebounder, slasher, shooter, but she’s coming off a great summer where she performed well during the EYBL top AAU circuit.
“Her summer performance and development has certainly transferred on court in high school.”
Jaylah said the team’s mindset has been stronger this season. The Bears won the Marion County title for the first time in the girls program history.
“Everyone wants to win, and everyone wants to succeed,” Jaylah said. “We made a lot of accomplishments along the way. We have a great coaching staff. They were the ones to have the dream and mindset to pass down to the players.”
Jaylah, who is ranked No. 49 in the ESPN Class of 2025 recruiting rankings, has more than 20 NCAA Division I offers, including Purdue University, Indiana University, Ohio State University, University of Maryland, University of North Carolina, University of Louisville and West Virginia University.
Lola is ranked No. 18 in the Class of 2026 by ESPN.
(Photo by Black Rocket)
Favorite athlete: Maya Moore
Favorite subject: AP language and composition
Favorite genre: Rap or older soul music
Favorite vacation spot: Florida
