Jessica Anderson

One of the finest all-around female athletes in the history of the former Mayvlle Central School will be inducted into the Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame in 2025. Mayville merged with Chautauqua Central in 1996 to form Chautauqua Lake Central School.

Anderson was a standout athlete for the Golden Eagles from the time she was a 7th grader to her graduation in 1992, excelling in three sports – volleyball, basketball and softball.

During her four years as a starter on the volleyball team for Coach Penny Hite, she led Mayville to 3 Section VI titles, 2 Western Regional titles and the first two New York State Championships in 1990 and 1991. Jess was 1991 New York State Class C/D Player of the Year.

A 3-year starter for Coach Rick Anderson’s Mayville basketball team, Anderson scored over 700 points, grabbed over 600 boards and set school records for blocked shots and rebounds. She was a two-time D-3 All-Star and was a Post-Journal All-Star as a senior.

Jessica was a 6-year starter in center field for the Lady Golden Eagles softball squads. She batted over .600 in both her junior and senior years earning D-III All-star accolades and being named a Post-Journal All-Star.

She was named Mayville Central’s Female Athlete of the Year in both 1990-91 and 1991-92.

Anderson’s athletic prowess earned her a scholarship to NCAA Division-1 Niagara University where she was a 4 year starter in both volleyball and softball.

As a Purple Eagle volleyball player, she was the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year in 1992 and 1st Team All-MAAC the next three seasons, culminating with being named the MAAC All-Tournament Team and Player of the Year runner-up as a senior. She was the first player in NU history to record more than1,000 kills and graduated as the all-time NU record-holder in kills, blocks and hitting percentage.

On the softball diamond for Niagara, she consistently batted over .300 and was named to the 1997 MAAC All-Tournament Team as an outfielder.

She was presented the Kevin Mulkern Senior Athlete Award as the Most Outstanding Athlete in Niagara’s University Class of 1997.

In her first year of eligibility, Jess was elected to the NU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002.

After earning a degree in special education, Anderson entered the volleyball coaching ranks. First, was the head job at Niagara (1997-1998), then at Daemen College (1999-2002), initially as an assistant and later the head coach.

Next she was the head volleyball coach at North Tonawanda High School 2003-2017. She was the Niagara Frontier League Volleyball Chairperson for 15 years and served on the Section VI Volleyball Committee.

From 1996 to the present she has been a volunteer coach for Junior Olympics volleyball. She has coached the Cheetah VBC, the Niagara VBC and is currently coaching inner-city girls for the Nickel City VBC.

Jessica is a special education teacher at North Tonawanda High School and lives in Orchard Park.