Jametta Bland, Auburn High School
Jametta Bland excelled in both basketball and softball at Auburn High School. She was a three-time NIC-10 All-Conference basketball player and earned second team All-Conference honors in softball for the Knights. She finished her career at Auburn as the RPS 205 all-time leading scorer in girls basketball and is still the No. 3 all-time scorer in RPS 205 history.

After competing with the Knights, Bland went on to play Division I basketball for Austin Peay State University. She graduated with a degree in criminal justice and entered the military in 1995.
Bland is currently a Command Sergeant Major. Her awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal; The Meritorious Service Medal; The Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal; Army Good Conduct Medal; National Defense Service Medal, among others, in addition to the 2018 Meritorious Joint Women’s Excellence in Leadership Meritorious Service Award.

In 2015, Bland told the Rockford Register Star, “I know that basketball, and just team sports in general, helped make me who I am. I give my coaches and my teammates a lot of credit for molding me. … I’ve come a long way since those days playing basketball at Auburn. And serving my country is the best decision I’ve ever made.”