2007 Award Winners

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift”- Pre

True Captain’s Award- Jon DeGrave- Jon is the second winner of the true captain’s award, and has proven that through hard work and determination you can achieve the highest expectation of yourself. Jon was chosen for his tireless work ethic in the classroom, at home and on the track, Jon currently has a 4.2 GPA and is one of the first state qualifiers in school history and had the best overall attendance on the team., he is an example of how to prepare you for competition and how to practice at the highest level. His most distinguishing characteristic’s is his love for his family and his devotion to his teammates. Jon will continue to improve and has set enormous goals for himself that include placing at the state in next May in Charleston; Jon joins Josh Beckman as a True Captain’s award winner.

Walter Payton Award- Marcus Williams- If you ever watch a practice that takes place at Lakes Community High you will see a lot of things including joking around, military cadences and warming up as entire team. It is really the only time we, as coaches have to interact with the entire team; it is also a great place to see leadership, hard work, and dedication on display. Marcus Williams stands out on a daily basis; he never stops giving his full effort, he is a humble yet fierce competitor who displays great work ethic on the track day in and day out. Marcus joins Captain Lorenzo Gomez becoming the second winner of the award; both are members of the school record 4 x 100 meter record and have been a huge part in the team’s success. While Lorenzo will be missed the coaching staff knows that Marcus will continue the same passion and effort as Lorenzo. Marcus has also been chosen as a captain for next’s year team.

“Pre Award”- Bill McGrath- Track and field is a team sport, sure there are critics who don’t believe it is and those people who will tell you that one individual can win the state meet but when it really comes down to it you are only as good as your weakest link. The distance crew was asked to do some difficult things this season and on each occasion the distance crew found a way to get it done. Bill McGrath was chosen as the Pre Award winner because he never sacrifices the gift, he was the most consistent runner in the most difficult race on the track (3200), as a coaching staff we knew that Bill would always hit his mark or improve. Bill truly gave his best everyday. “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift”- Steve Prefontaine- Greatest Distance Runner in American History-

Point Machine Award- Andrew Stein- For the second straight season Andrew Stein will be taking home the point machine award. Andrew finished the season with 125 points besting his previous record by 11 points, he was able to score points at every single meet this season, and is a major part of the teams success this season, he was asked to put the team before himself and he did so without questioning anybody. Triple Jump, Long Jump, Hurdles, Relays and everything else in-between, his consistency is the mark of a good track and field athlete. He is a nice weapon to have when you’re trying to put together line-ups for dual meets and invitational’s. Andrew currently holds records in the triple jump, 4 x 100 and the 4 x 200 relays, not to mention a host of Frosh-Soph records. Andrew has one goal for next season to continue the same regular season success and find himself running and jumping at the state meet in May, and with his work ethic he will achieve his goals.