USA SOUTH HALL OF FAME FEATURE: Amy Cross

When Amy Cross ’97 received word in 2020 that she was selected to be inducted into the USA South Athletic Conference Hall of Fame, it came as a surprise. Then again, if Cross hopped in a time machine now and traveled back to tell the high school version of herself that she would become a three-sport collegiate student-athlete turned successful attorney, it might be an even bigger shock.

“I’ve been so blessed by everything through Averett University. This was just icing on the cake,” Cross said of her USA South Hall of Fame induction, which after a two-year delay will take place June 12. "I felt so blessed to be among the many great athletes and students and coaches to have been inducted in Averett’s Hall of Fame in 2010. That the league would feel that my accomplishments in sports merited this honor is very humbling — especially as you get older in life and you look back. There might be a lot of things I regret, but my time at Averett will never be one of them. I would do those four years again in a heartbeat.”

Basketball was what drew Cross to then-Averett College when she was looking at prospective colleges while in high school.

“I went to multiple camps and applied to multiple schools,” she recalled. “When I finally visited Averett’s campus and got to meet the basketball team and hung out with them for a weekend, I knew immediately that this was where I was going to go to school.”

Cross also planned to play softball as well at Averett, but after her first basketball season she decided to try tennis instead since she had played a little in high school. She talked to then-tennis coach and fellow Averett Athletics Hall of Famer Barbara Kushubar about joining the tennis team and after the first practice, she earned a spot.

“I never dreamed I would play college tennis,” Cross said. “My first year, I’ll tell you, I probably wasn’t good. Coach K was probably one of the best coaches I’ve had in my entire life. She’s one of the best people I’ve ever known in my entire life. I learned a lot about being a good person, a tennis player and a teammate from her.”

Fast-forward to the fall of Cross’ sophomore year and Averett was looking to create a women’s cross country team. Before she knew it, Cross was a three-sport student-athlete after being recruited to join the program for its inaugural season.

While athletics were a big part of her life, academics were even more important for Cross.

“My dad always said I had to get the job done in the classroom,” Cross remembered. “I was there as a scholarship student and I needed to earn that. I was so fortunate to become a Keesee Scholar while I was there to have even more financial assistance. My dad said that as much as I loved sports, I owed it to those people who had put money into those scholarships to do my absolute best.”

As it turned out, having to balance academics as a three-sport athlete was a blessing for Cross.

“The more tightly I had to have a schedule, the better I did,” Cross admitted. “Having three sports and having a full load of classes kept me on track. … It wasn’t easy but at the same time it kept me focused. I had really good professors who understood that a student-athlete had to find a certain amount of balance.”

During her time at Averett, Cross was a captain on the women’s basketball team, which notched its first-ever conference win during her freshman season. She helped the women’s tennis program win four consecutive conference titles and she was named to the all-conference team in singles in 1995 and in doubles in 1995, 1996 and 1997. She earned cross country all-conference honors in 1995 and 1996 while also helping the Cougars finish atop of the conference. Cross also made history as the first female runner in school history to win a race in 1994.

“I was a novice runner to begin with, but like with anything else, I just wanted to go out there and do my best and see what happened,” she said. “When I crossed the finish line and someone said, ‘You’re the first woman across the line’ and they handed me the No. 1 card, I didn't believe them because that surely couldn't be me. But I remember calling my dad and telling him that I just won a cross country meet. Some of those things that I got to share with him — especially now that he's not here — those are the things they can’t take away.”

To find that level of success in three sports in a feat in itself, but Cross did it while maintaining a 4.0 grade point average all four years throughout her time at Averett. As a result, she was twice named the USA South’s Don Scalf Award recipient, which is given to the league’s top male and female student-athlete annually. Cross is only one of three student-athletes in the history of the conference to receive the award multiple times.

While at Averett, Cross was majoring in English and journalism. Also the editor of Averett’s student newspaper, Cross had envisioned becoming a teacher. However, she had a change of heart and began to explore other potential careers with the help of professors such as Mike Hammond, Dr. David Hoffman and Dr. Betty Heard.

“I had just absolutely decided I was going to be a lobbyist,” she said. “I was going to go into public policy using my English and journalism degree.”

While back home during the summer, she was studying to take her GREs when she ran into a childhood friend who was an attorney.

“He's like, ‘Why are you taking your GREs? Just go to law school. You could do public policy, but you can do so much more,’” Cross said. “I did a little research and I went and talked to my career counselor at Averett. She's like, ‘Are you sure you want to do that? That's like out of left field that you want to go and be a lawyer.’ And she said, ‘I don't know that you'd be really good at it. You know, you have to argue with people.’ The minute she said, ‘you wouldn't be good at it,’ I was like, ‘Challenge accepted.’”

Cross took the LSATs and started applying to law schools. After she graduated Averett, she attended law school at Regent University.

“And here I am, over 20 years later,” Cross said. “I've been a prosecutor for over 20 years and I’ve done a decade of federal work, and I'm getting ready return to state work. It's been a ride.”

Cross is presently a special assistant United States attorney where in federal court she prosecutes complex drug and gang cases and violent crimes. This fall, she will return to state practice after more than a decade. She’ll be running a team as a deputy commonwealth attorney while prosecuting the same things — drugs, guns, gangs and murder cases.

“The one thing that I've always loved about my job — and I did a little bit of private practice — is that you get to help people,” Cross said.

And her time as an Averett student-athlete certainly helped her success in the courtroom. 

“What I did at Averett being parts of teams and with like tennis or cross country still having to function on your own while still being a part of a larger group has transitioned well into the practice of law,” Cross said. “You stand up in front of a court by yourself, but you have a team of people who helped get you there, whether that's your agents, your officers, your support staff in the office or even your co-counsel. You have to learn to trust yourself and your decisions.”

When not in court, Cross balances time with her two kids. Her 15-year-old daughter Amelia is a soccer goalie and her 13-year-old son Logan is a black belt in karate.

“They keep me running all the time,” she said. “So that that balance is the hardest, especially now that my time with them is limited. They're going to be going away to college here in the next couple of years.”

When Cross was inducted into the Averett Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010, her kids were too young to remember. She is excited they will be able to experience her USA South Hall of Fame induction.

“To have your kids see that you can accomplish things through hard work — even when you don't realize people are watching or that they appreciate that hard work,” Cross said. “This is 25 years-plus later. I think that says something. They can hear it from me that hard work pays off, but then being able to be with me this time and understand it and to see the people and hear not just my story and what I've done, but all of the inductees from 2020, 2021 and Kelly (Gregory) in the 2022 class. Their stories are all so different, but they're all so accomplished. It'll be a precious memory to have and to be able to share with them at this particular time in our lives together.”

Cross is also thankful for so many others — teammates, coaches, professors, friends and fans — who have been a part of her journey.

“I think that's one thing about Averett that unless someone goes there, they just don't understand that it really is a family there,” Cross said. “I know for without a doubt that but for those individuals, I would not be receiving these honors. And not only that, I just wouldn't be the person that I am. That's what I think makes Averitt particularly great. They have the best of the best.”

Cross recalled that when her dad passed away in September 2015, Kushubar drove the nearly eight hours round trip to be there for the funeral.

Cross’ dad, Bill, was certainly her biggest fan and supporter. One of her favorite memories was from one of her final cross country races at Averett, where her dad was there to support her and cheer her on at the end.

“To get to the finish line of the race was uphill — like 100 yards uphill — before you turned and went to the finish line. And my dad was standing at the top of the hill,” she said.

Those memories and more from her time at Averett continue to live on in a scrapbook that her dad gave her for her graduation present. It features everything from photos, to newspaper clippings to other memories — including the No. 1 card she received when she won that first cross country race — from her entire Averett career. And come Sunday, Cross’ legacy will live on as well as a member of the USA South’s Hall of Fame.