WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. — Ashley Bruner came to Columbia and left as one of the best players of the Dawn Staley era. After her collegiate career ended in 2013, Bruner enjoyed a seven-year professional career overseas.
This past season, she joined the coaching staff for the Gray Collegiate Academy boys basketball team and that's when she realized coaching is what she was born to do.
On Wednesday, Bruner was named the new head girls basketball coach at Gray Collegiate Academy.
Basketball is part of the Bruner family as her brother Tommy won a state championship at Gray Collegiate Academy before signing with USC Upstate. Another brother, Jordan, spent three years at Yale before tranferring to Alabama where this past season he helped the Crimson Tide win the SEC regular season and tournament championships. Alabama made it to the NCAA Sweet 16 before losing to UCLA. Jordan says he will sign with an agent soon and starting training with the goal of landing on an NBA roster. However, he could follow in his older sister's footsteps and play professonally overseas.