Hailey Van Lith Is Sports Illustrated Swimsuit's April 2025 Digital Cover Model

The TCU point guard is capping off her college career on a high note.

More Hailey Van Lith. More Hailey Van Lith Content . Read the Cover Story. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1743979619/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr6mj40ve115xdknjp.jpg. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1743979619/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr6mj40vwmkpwmbc4r.jpg. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1744042868/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr8gwecw8zc42tpzxh.jpg. View the Full Gallery

Since the moment she was able to shoot, it was obvious that Hailey Van Lith was going to be an exemplary athlete. She trained with her dad and was mentored by basketball legend Kobe Bryant. And despite standing on the shorter end for a basketball player at 5'9", when it came time to step onto the court at the University of Louisville her freshman year in 2020, Hailey Van Lith made a lasting impression that has continued to today.

Hailey Van Lith April Digital Cover / Taylor Ballantyne/Sports Illustrated

With fast feet and a steady head on her shoulders, the now 23-year-old has navigated the college basketball world with ease and purpose, which is why she is April’s SI Swimsuit Digital Cover Star presented by Batiste and photographed in Fort Worth, Texas.

As Van Lith or as she has become known by fans and the masses as HVL is gearing up for the WNBA Draft, all eyes will be watching to see where the Washington native goes next. She is also one of the top five most followed NCAA March Madness players on Instagram with 1.3 million followers (of which four are women!).

Her career thus far has proven that she will go the distance for her game. After leaving Louisville, she transferred to Louisiana State University to play under Kim Mulkey and alongside Angel Reese and Flau’Jae Johnson. Realizing it wasn’t quite the right fit with the type of style game she likes to play, she is finishing her collegiate career as a fifth year at Texas Christian University, a decision that surprised many. Leaving LSU—one of the most high-profile women’s basketball programs in the country—to TCU—a team that had been the worst in the Big 12 just two years before, going 1-17.

“I am a loyal person, and I think some people laugh at me when I say that, because they're like, ‘You’ve transferred twice,’” she shares. “Loyalty begins with honoring yourself before you can truly honor other people. I think that sometimes my career puts ideas in people's heads that I'm an individual [first and foremost], and that's not the case.”

She is now the first player in NCAA history, men’s or women’s, to have appeared in the Elite Eight round of the March Madness tournament five times, capping off a 2025 season in which she was named the Big 12 Player of the Year. HVL helped lead the TCU Horned Frogs to their first appearance in the tournament since 2010.

Her story is just beginning, and she is marking it with this April 2025 Digital Cover. In the shoot that took place around Fort Worth, Texas, HVL wore several bathing suits by Vitamin A Swim, WeWoreWhat, Saint Laurent and LSPAC.

More Hailey Van Lith Content . https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1743979619/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr6mj40ve115xdknjp.jpg. View the Full Gallery. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1743979619/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr6mj40vwmkpwmbc4r.jpg. More Hailey Van Lith. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1744042868/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01jr8gwecw8zc42tpzxh.jpg. Read the Cover Story