In its third decade of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in partnership with RISE Magazine, announced Andrea Nelson of Shadle Park High School as its 2007-08 Gatorade Washington State Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year, and Miles Unterreinner of Gig Harbor High School as its 2007-08 Gatorade Washington State Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year. Miles and Andrea become the first student-athlete to win the awards, since The Gatorade Company announced the addition of boys and gilrs cross country to the Wa State, Player of the Year program this past October.
The award, which recognizes not only athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the racecourse, distinguishes Andrea and Miles as the nation’s best high school cross country runners. A national advisory board comprised of sportswriters and sport-specific experts from around the country helped select athletes from more than 210,000 high school cross country runners nationwide.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by RISE Magazine, which works with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.
Former notable Gatorade National Players of the Year include:
· Reigning 200-meter world champion Allyson Felix
· 2007 Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning
· Two-time American League Most Valuable Player Alex Rodriguez
· NFL all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith
· WNBA all-time leading scorer and rebounder Lisa Leslie
· Softball gold medalist Cat Osterman
· Beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh
For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information and lists of past winners and future announcement dates, visit gatorade.com/playeroftheyear.