By: Maira Ramos
The annual Leo B. Murphy Athletic Awards were scheduled for May 30 in the large gym. The Athletes of the Year, Bill Bebout award, Ned McIver Scholar Athlete award, Jim Ferguson award, Team Sportsmanship award, and Leo B. Murphy awards were to be presented. The following information was provided by Athletic Director Jeff Lamb and is accurate as of press time.
The Athlete of the Year awards are presented to male and female athletes at every grade level who has achieved high athletic standards. The awards may be presented only to athletes who competed in two or more sports for the school year. They also must have been the most valuable player (MVP), an outstanding athlete winner, or a first or second team all league selection. The Freshman Athletes of the Year are Xavier Lecours and Naomi Lacuzong. The Sophomore Athletes of the Year are John Vogel and Kaelina Harris. The Junior Athletes of the Year are Aneterea Lealao, Mannat Gill, and Naran Nathan. The Senior Athletes of the Year are Jacob Gutierrez, Romina Garcia, and Justin Barnachea.
The Bill Bebout award is presented to junior male and female athletes who exhibited hard work and dedication in their sport. The Bill Bebout award winners are Soloman Kang, Brandon Ortiz, and Melissa Nunes.
The Ned McIver Scholar Athlete award is presented to a senior athlete who had the highest grade point average during their entire high school career. They also must have participated in athletics for three years at MHS, and have earned at least four varsity blocks. The Ned McIver Scholar Athlete award winners are Jonathan Lai and Claudia Wang.
The Jim Ferguson award is presented to a male and female athlete of any grade level who showed outstanding athletic achievement in a season or single contest for the school year. The Jim Ferguson award winners are Max Gonzales and Kristine Ngo.
The Leo B. Murphy award is presented to a graduating male and female athlete who exemplified over their high school career, high standards of achievement in athletics and in their classes. They also must have showed good character. The candidates for this award are nominated by an MHS coach, but the winners are chosen based on a point system. The athletes who have the most points based on their accomplishments and previous awards are given this award. In addition to the award, they will receive Trojan Lifetime passes, which gives them free admission to all MHS home athletic games. The Leo B. Murphy award winners are Justin Scrempos and Skylar Pitre.
Additional awards were also given for volunteers to the athletics program. Two Volunteer of the Year awards were presented to Sandy Scrempos and Larry McDonald. The Volunteer Coach of the Year award was presented to Coach Chad Cerveiro. Coach Jerry Diaz was given a plaque of appreciation for serving as MHS’s volunteer baseball coach for 18 years.