One on one with ... Spring Garden's Ace Austin

Oct. 4—SPRING GARDEN — Ace Austin is a basketball ace, no doubt.

She has helped win a pair of state championships at Spring Garden, and made first-team all-state three times and second team once. She won the Class 1A girls basketball player of the year award last year as just a sophomore.

Austin has the basketball bloodlines. Her mother is Dana Bright Austin, who remains Jacksonville State's all-time leading women's basketball scorer. She is the former Jax State women's basketball head coach and now serves as an assistant coach for Ace's team.

Austin's aunt is Jana Bright McGinnis, who still leads Jax State's career assist list. McGinnis coaches Jax State's softball team.

Her father, Ricky Austin, has won seven state championships as Spring Garden's girls basketball coach. Ace is the youngest of three children, and her brothers, Riley (the oldest) and Cooper (the middle child), are former Spring Garden sports stars.

Her full name is Jaci Ace Austin, and she has said often that her parents got her middle name from former Tennessee point guard Kristen "Ace" Clement, who played on the Lady Vols' undefeated national championship team in 1998.

A 5-foot-7 point guard, Austin is getting plenty of attention from college coaches, including from Alabama and Mississippi State and, of course, Jacksonville State. (She says she enjoys hearing Jax State memories from her mom and aunt when they were in college.)

But as for Austin herself, the 17-year-old is so much more than basketball or volleyball, another sport in which she shines for Spring Garden.

She's a daughter, a sister, a cousin, a student, a friend, and a fairly typical teenager, except when she puts on a Spring Garden uniform and steps on the court. She said math and English are her hardest classes. Away from school, she's trying out new things. You might be surprised to know she's learning to play guitar, with Riley teaching her. She said she's learned how to play "Hey There, Delilah," a song by the Plain White T's.

Like many of us, she likes to shop online. She said clothes and shoes are the items she buys the most.

But, when speaking with reporters, she rarely gets asked about anything other than basketball and her family's history with the sport. That's why The Anniston Star wanted to interview Austin for our weekly 10 questions feature. What we found was a high school student who's overflowing with about as much personality as basketball ability.

She took time recently before lunch to field 10 questions from Anniston Star Senior Editor Mark Edwards.

Question: What's the best part and the worst part of having your parents as coaches?

Answer: The best part would be after a big win, being able to celebrate that win. The worst part? (laughs) I've learned from my brothers. Let's say that. I've learned what to do and what not to do. The worst part ... all coaches expect you to be your best, but as a parent coaching us, they hold you to an even higher standard.

Q: Who do you think you're more like, your dad or your mom?

A: Give me a minute on this one. (In the background, dad smiles and says, "No pressure. No wrong answers.") That's a hard question. In sports, I'd have to say my mom because of all the ways she said she played as an athlete. In life, I'd have to say my dad, for sure. The way we think in certain situations. We're a competitive family in anything, no matter what it is. Any competition, he wants to win, and I want to win. No matter what it is. On Sundays, me and my brothers may be cooking something, and my food will taste better than their food. When my dad might be cooking, he might say, "This isn't as good as last time; next time I'm going to make it even better."

Q: You're getting recruited by plenty of colleges. Do you have a favorite so far?

A: I do not have a favorite. I like having a relationship with a lot of coaches. I'm starting to go out and go on some more visits to compare a lot of places. There are certain coaches out there that I can tell have a whole different relationship with me. The way they talk to me and how they always want to make sure I'm doing good in volleyball, even though I'm not getting recruited in volleyball. They want to support me through everything I'm doing. Like, my older brother (Riley) has a kid (daughter Myla with wife Shaley), and coaches are texting me about the kid and wanting me to send them pictures. To me, when going through the recruiting process, having a relationship with the coach is important. When they're connected to you, it's important.

Q: When you and your teammates get together away from basketball and volleyball, what are some of the things you guys like to do?

A: Go hit golf is one thing. Go eat at Yamato's in Jacksonville, and go to Walmart right after. That's our thing.

Q: When you're not in a sports uniform, what's your typical outfit? What do you like to wear?

A: In the summer, I'm a shorts and tank top girl. Now, since it's getting cooler, sweatpants and a hoodie. That's what you normally see me walking around the house in.

Q: You have your driver's license. When you took your first driving lesson, who gave it to you and how did it go?

A: This is a funny one. My pop (her father's father), he passed away a number of years ago when I was in third grade. Me and Cooper were not in school, and we stayed with him. So one day, he said, "All right, we're going to go out to drive. Don't tell Granna, though." We were driving down the road. He had a stick shift, and I was sitting in his lap driving, and here came a cop right behind him. Pulled him over. Cooper fastened up his seat belt real fast. The cop asked, "What are you doing?" And, Pop said, "Just teaching this girl how to drive. She's going to need it in life." That's my one memory of learning how to drive.

Q: No matter how old you get, what's something you don't think you'll ever grow out of?

A: The way me and Cooper act, no matter what we're doing. We've always been the siblings that argue over every single thing, even whether a stop light was red or what color it was. And Riley was always the one who wanted to jump on my side. Cooper, he's the only person who knows how to push my buttons. I don't know how he does it, but he does. We will never grow out of that.

Q: What's the best piece of advice you've ever gotten from a teacher?

A: Our counselor (Tanya Ragan) would always come around and talk to us, and she would say, "Treat others the way you would like to be treated in life." I think that's some great advice I've been given. No matter who it is, treat them like you would like to be treated.

Q: If you could choose to live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

A: Right now, I love Spring Garden. Spring Garden ... how would you not want to live here? It's unique. One gas station, and it's the best gas station. Right now, this is the place I would prefer.

Q: If you tried out for American Idol, what song would you sing?

A: There's this one song that my dad has played at practice the past few days, and it seems like everybody in the gym sings it. It's "Shake It Off" by Taylor Swift. So, I think I would ace that one in American Idol. I really do. I would move onto the next round.

Senior Editor Mark Edwards: 256-235-3570. On Twitter: @MarkSportsStar.