‘She’s elite.’ Rock Hill’s Chloe Hudson shines on and off the court

Chloe Hudson is South Carolina’s top scorer and 3-point shooter in girls’ high school basketball , but that’s just part of her game.

The Rock Hill senior initially took up basketball in her church league of 3- and 4-year-olds, and she’s been passionate about it ever since. She also regularly plays soccer and tennis, while always keeping herself very involved in the community at Oakland Baptist Church.

Already a three-time girls’ basketball all-region selection, Hudson’s leadership is special for the Bearcats. Her on-court success is huge — including 337 made 3-pointers, the most in Rock Hill girls’ or boys’ basketball history — while she’s been orchestrating various outreach initiatives within the team.

“It’s been a really good thing for the program,” Hudson said. “We do community work. We go see people. We’ll go interact with elementary schools, help out with their P.E. classes and after-school programs. And it’s just it’s helped a lot of people in this program find out, maybe even what they want to do with their life. I know some people want to go into those type of jobs, but it’s been a good thing for us to get outside the court and learn more about each other.

“We’ll go over to different elementary schools and they’ll run up to you and to be like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s the Rock Hill High girls’ basketball team.’ They’ll know you. They might even know your name. And they’ll be like, ‘I want to play like you when I grow up.’ It’s just a really good feeling. You don’t know how many people actually know you and how much effect that you have on them.”

‘Defined as more than just an athlete’

Long after making her athletic start in “biddy basketball,” Hudson has been volunteering at the church’s ministry center on Saturdays.

Hudson, who currently averages a Palmetto State-best 28 points per game, has eclipsed 1,500 career points, 600 rebounds, 300 made 3-pointers and 200 steals throughout her career — including a school-record 11 triples in a single game — and has led the state in 3-pointers in each of the past two seasons.

She’s a standout student academically, boasting a 4.3 GPA in AP and honors courses. She serves on the leadership council in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, as well as being a member of both the National Honor Society and National Beta Club, and logs weekly community service hours.

“It’s always been important to Chloe to participate in all kinds of different things and be defined as more than just an athlete,” Hudson’s father, Scott, said. “So she is an athlete, and she’s a great athlete, but she’s a lot more than that. And no matter what she decides to do, she’s going to have a great foundation for whatever it is, because she hasn’t siloed herself into any one thing.”

A growing leadership presence

Hudson’s passion is entirely “Chloe-driven,” according to her mother, Amy.

While she initially dropped competitive club soccer to avoid needing to be in two places at once, Hudson has been going from season-to-season with basketball, soccer and tennis — and continues having success in each of them. A natural athlete, these sports have been great for cross-training, as the nature of using her hands in basketball and working with her feet in soccer have complimented each other well.

The Bearcats’ program has offered a strong sense of togetherness where excellent leadership has been modeled long before Hudson’s arrival. Their sisterhood is special, and her family is proud to represent Rock Hill.

“It’s Chloe-driven,” Amy Hudson said. “And now captains of these various teams that she plays on, whether it’s soccer, tennis or basketball, the younger ones are looking up to you, and you’re now getting to model that. That is a learned skill. Yes, people have innate leadership qualities, but really, being a leader, you’ve got to practice it. These coaches have given her opportunity to do that and shown her how to do it the right way. And we’re very grateful for that.”

She holds basketball offers from North Greenville and Francis Marion universities.

‘One of the best athletes who ever played at this school’

Hudson was always outside growing up.

Using skills across different sports as a high school student-athlete has helped Hudson as a person even more than how it’s benefitted her athletic career. She considers how she understands aspects of basketball, for instance, that she’ll incorporate into her soccer and tennis routines.

She’s always been competitive and driven to win, but fostering community is always equally important. Sports are everything, and following individual athletes closely has helped her consider what to revolve her game around, just as much as watching for her own enjoyment.

Rock Hill head coach Kenny Orr has always been a proponent of community service. The team gets together numerous times throughout the year, especially during the summer, bonding through various outreach activities, and Hudson is always at the center of it.

“Not enough words in the dictionary to explain how (Hudson) affects not only the game but the school,” Orr said. “She’s going to leave here as one of the best athletes who ever played at this school, regardless of the sport. She’s going to leave here as one of the most decorated kids at Rock Hill High School. And that speaks for who she is. People don’t see the countless hours of her in the gym, shooting, shooting with me. They don’t see when everybody else is going home. She’s doing other little things. So what? That’s what I just like about it, and that’s what I think is going to carry on beyond everything. And another thing that kind of bothers me, everybody always wonders, like, is she really that good? And then they see how good she is when they get on the court, they see the type of player that she is, they go back, shaking their head.

“This past weekend we played, and the coach walked up to me and said, ‘Hey, Coach, she’s elite. Nobody should have to answer that question.’ Her being Chloe is what’s important to me.”