A fierce competitor on the volleyball court and a model student in the classroom, Paige Aaron Echols embodied everything that you’d hope to find in a student-athlete during her four years at Averett University. 

A member of this year’s Averett Athletics Hall of Fame class who is set to be inducted on Oct. 19, Echols said it’s a very humbling honor to know her name will be joining many other elite names in the exclusive club.

“It’s very surreal,” she said. “When you are in college, you’re not really thinking about that kind of stuff. You’re thinking about ‘How can I get to tomorrow?’ and ‘What time is practice today?’ or about what class assignments are due. It isn’t looking at it from the grand scheme of things. It’s nice to know those daily things that you do in and out get recognized in the long run. It really does pay off.”

Since graduating Averett in 2013, Echols has been teaching math at Chatham High School, her alma mater. She also coached volleyball for several years at Chatham, earning her district’s Coach of the Year award twice before stepping away from coaching to start her family. Whether it was with her players that she coached or with her students that she teaches, Echols is trying to pay it forward by helping them be prepared for life after high school.

“I’d tell my players almost every day that if I’d have known this when I was in high school, I feel like I would have been so much better,” Echols said. “I just wish that I would have known it. So here I am trying to give it to you, so please utilize it. I think they are definitely appreciative of that. … When I’m in the classroom with my kids now, I try to teach them why they need these things and how it’s not always ‘2+2=4’ but why do we need to know that and how we need to think about this problem. It’s not just numbers and solving equations. It’s critical thinking.”

Life skills such as time management and prioritizing have been beneficial to Echols as she balances teaching and parenting two young sons along with her husband Dustin. Those skills are two things the Danville native excelled in while balancing life as a student-athlete at Averett.

Few student-athletes can boast the accolades on Echols’ resume. She became Averett’s first two-time Academic All-America selection through the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), earning Second Team honors in 2011 before being named to the First Team as a senior in 2012. A four-time USA South Academic All-Conference honoree and a three-time academic all-state selection, Echols collected both Averett’s Female Student-Athlete of the Year (2011-12) and Frank R. Campbell Sportsmanship Award (2012-13) during her time, as well as the USA South’s prestigious Don Scalf Award, which honors the top female and male student-athletes in the league.

“I think that’s always a huge honor,” Averett volleyball head coach Danny Miller said. “When you can be selected as the top female student-athlete in your entire conference — something that’s voted on by other members of the conference — I think it’s a testament of who you are, what you’ve done and the impression you’ve made. When you look at how other awards are selected, you’re just looking at numbers. You don’t always know the person. But within your conference, I think they know the person and it’s pretty special when they want to vote for you.”

Echols believes that of all the honors she collected, she is most proud of the Scalf Award. 

“Since the Scalf Award encompasses multiple aspects — not just sports, not just academics — it’s more well-rounded,” she said. “It speaks to your character. I think that’s why that one means the most to me. You can always strive to do well with grades and strive to do well in sports, but for someone to give you an award for doing all those things well and being a good citizen and giving back to your community and things like that, I think that’s why it means the most.”

Echols was no slouch on the volleyball court, either. In 414 sets over 128 career matches, Echols tallied 1,771 digs for an average of 4.28 digs per set while playing libero. She averaged just under five digs per set as a senior. Additionally, she finished her career with 210 service aces and 111 assists. She earned USA South All-Conference recognition twice, making the Honorable Mention Team in 2010 and the Third Team in 2011. She also was selected to the USA South All-Tournament Team and the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State Second Team while earning USA South Defensive Player of the Week six times during her career.

Despite those many on-the-court accolades, Miller believes Echols should have added even more awards.

“She was never recognized appropriately. I can tell you that,” Miller said. “She should have been all-conference (as a senior) and the conference’s Libero of the Year. As far as athletics awards, it may not show up in official recognition but anyone who played with her will tell you what she meant to the team with what she did and how her leadership was impactful on and off the court.”

Fellow 2019 Averett Athletics Hall of Fame class member and former teammate Allison Sparks Williams agreed.

“I don’t think I’ve seen anyone work as hard as her on the back row, so to be able to go into the hall of fame in the same class as her is special,” Williams said.

Echols said she was initially shocked when she received the exciting news about being selected for hall of fame induction.

“It’s very humbling,” she said. “It’s hard to believe that just being a few years removed, that now I’m going to be up there with those names on that wall for decades to come.”