Senior Amaya Kelly leads the Lady Mustangs by example -- playing with intensity while becoming the program's all-time scorer. Photos by Peter Day
Peter Day, LVUSD Social Media
It started before the Winter break when senior guard/forward Amaya Kelly broke Krystian Otwell’s (Class of 2020) all-time scoring record of 585 points. Currently the multi-sport athlete (and Lucerne Valley High School ASB president) has around 700 points and counting.
Next on the Lady Mustang’s record-setting season, will be when veteran head coach Brandon Barkley, who also serves as the school’s athletic director, gets his 150th career win. Currently Coach Barkley's record is 147-101, just three wins away from the historic 150th.
He should get the 150th -- if all goes as expected -- on Friday, January 30th when the Lady Mustangs host PAL Academy. But first the team needs to beat Lakeview this Friday (which the team beat 44-7 earlier in the season), and ACE on Tuesday, which appears to be forfeiting. The Lady Mustangs defeated PAL 45-2 earlier this season.
Currently the Lady Mustangs' league game winning streak is at 44 straight league games. After the Lakeview game tomorrow, that streak should grow to 45.
The 2025-26 season has been one for the record books for the Lady Mustangs, and the team’s driving force is Amaya Kelly who is averaging 10.6 points per game. She leads in steals and is second on the team in rebounds.
“Amaya is a resilient player,” Coach Barkley said. “She's not as flashy as some others, but she just is there under the backboard. In practices, she sees the court better than I've ever seen.”
As dominant as Amaya Kelly is, she definitely isn’t alone on the court. Center-forward junior Jasmine Pepper often controls the boards and leads the team in rebounds with 7.5 per game average. She also leads the team in blocks, free throw percentage, and is third in field goals per game.
Senior center-forward Vivyanna Alvarado is team’s second-leading scorer and is third in blocks per game. Senior guard-forward Yoselin Trujillo leads in steals per game and third in rebounds. Her younger sister, guard Yacquelin Trujillo, only a freshman, leads the Lady Mustangs in assists per game and is second in blocks per game.
Amaya Kelly fights for a loose ball during a key game vs. the Excelsior Eagles.
But there’s more.
Senior Briana Torres is second in assists, third in steals and third in 3-point percentage. Sophomore AnnaLea Lattin leads the team in 3-point percentage and its third in free throw percentage. Another freshman standout, center-forward Kinzie Rollins is the highest in rebounds per game.
Also making an impact are Lynsey Johnson, Anelsi Nuñez, Makayla McGill, Eileen Davalos, Angelica Sanchez, Rileigh Rollins, and Kyleigh Rodrigues.
“They're looking so good,” Coach Barkley said earlier in the season. “My starters should be really, really good.”
Coach Barkley credits Coach Charles Ledbetter for playing an especially key role. Last season Coach Ledbetter stepped into the head coach position while Coach Barkley hosted two foreign exchange students, including German student-athlete Audrey Mross, who was one of the Lady Mustangs’ top performers on the basketball court. Mross led the team with 10.9 point per game average. Per California Interscholastic Federation (C.I.F.) rules, that meant as a host Coach Barkley couldn’t formally serve as head coach. So coach Ledbetter stepped into the head coach role during the season, keeping the Lady Mustangs’ League winning streak alive. This season Coach Ledbetter is back in the assistant seat with Ashley Davalos (LVHS Class of 2016) also serving as an assistant coach.
The Lady Mustangs celebrate a victory.
Sports is interwoven in the fabric of the Barkley family. Brandon Barkley’s father is also a high school coach and his sister Shelby Barkley was a water polo standout at Riverside Poly High School, continuing her athletics at Virginia Military Institute where she was named to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference All-Conference First Team. In fact, Shelby holds the record for career goals at VMI. “I learned a lot of my stuff from my dad,” Barkley said. Barkley’s mother is a retired teacher. “She went back to school after all of us kids were gone” and obtained her degree and teaching credential.
Coach Barkley, who also serves as math teacher, lives in Apple Valley with his wife Tara, son Grayson and daughter Ensley. Both children are developing into young athletes with Grayson favoring baseball. Daughter Ensley loves all things pink.
Coach Barkley credits the district’s inclusion of its sixth-grade athletes on middle school teams for making a huge difference. The move was made several years ago and benefits both the players and the teams.
MUSTANGS’ DEFENSE IS KEY
Smothering defense is the signature of teams coached by Coach Barkley, and the 2025-26 team is no different.
“We have one of the best defenses I've had in a long time,” Barkley said.
That was most evident during the team’s biggest game so far in the season. The Lady Mustangs hosted Excelsior Charter in a thriller on January 9, defeating the Eagles in a score of 42-38. Once again, solid defense was the difference. The Lady Mustangs are scheduled to face the Eagles one more time this season at Excelsior on February 3. The last scheduled regular season game is Feb. 4 when Lucerne Valley hosts Big Bear.
The Lady Mustangs officially clinched a playoff spot and will be heading to the CIF Southern Section playoffs for the 7th straight year after beating the Victor Valley Christian Royals 49-31 on Tuesday, January 20th.
As of January 21, the Mustangs are 8-0 in the Agape League and 13-10 overall.