A four-year starter on varsity, West made an immediate impact the second he stepped in the lineup. His first year, in 2017-18, he was an honorable-mention choice for the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Division 2 East all-stars, and his accolades only grew from there. He made the CCAA Division 2 East first team in just his sophomore year, and he repeated that his junior and senior years. West was also a New York State Sportswriters Association Class D All-State honorable-mention choice following his sophomore year.

In addition, West this year joined an exclusive club at Forestville. He’s one of only seven players in the history of Forestville basketball, including both boys and girls, to join the 1,000-point club, which is one of the biggest hurdles he’s had to overcome during his time at Forestville.

“I used to not be that great of a shooter,” West said. “I became dedicated to getting my shot down. I kept bringing my feet in, and my hand would go out, but we focused on keeping everything straight. My coaches helped a lot.”

West’s work and dedication did not just extend to his own play. Forestville coach Jon Feniello said that West’s leadership, in addition to his play on the court, made him a coach’s dream type of player.

Javier West

“He’s really good at working with the younger kids,” Feniello said. “You can see his leadership and dedication at making the program the best it can be.”

On the court, he was quite the player as well. In addition to scoring 1,000 points in his career, West also averaged around five steals a game for his last two seasons, and his effort on the defensive end is part of the reason his offense has been so consistent.

“He’s been a very solid point guard,” Feniello said. “He’s very aggressive defensively, and he really does a good job of looking up the court in transition. It’s how we got a lot of points, especially last year.”

“He’s quick at getting the ball out and finding an open teammate or basket,” Feniello added.

Though the results for West’s senior season weren’t where he wanted them to be, the team was not devoid of success in his career. During West’s sophomore season, the Hornets made a run to the Section VI Class D finals at Jamestown Community College before losing a tight one to the Panama Panthers. West played well in that game, scoring 15 points, and the next year, the Hornets fell again in the Class D semifinals to the Sherman Wildcats. The experiences of making it to Jamestown CC for the playoffs, including making a bit of a run, are some of West’s favorite memories.

“JCC was amazing,” West said.

But the thing West will miss the most is more simple than that.

“I miss just running,” West said. “We used to go on the line a lot. You don’t realize how much you miss it until you don’t have it. We didn’t run a lot this year, it’s good for keeping in shape.”

West, who will now take his athletic talents to the football field playing for the Silver Creek/Forestville Black Knights, said that he’s happy with how his basketball career ended up.

“I’m very happy,” West said. “Especially with COVID this year. I want to thank everyone, my coaches, my teammates, my family and everyone who helped me throughout the years.”

As West reaches the end of his career at Forestville, the four-year starter, honor roll member, and 1,000-point scorer sets his sights on a business degree from Onondaga Community College.