The Varsity Letters is back from a sun-soaked vacation and preparing the Observer-Reporter Baseball and Softball All-District teams as well as the player of the year stories in both sports in addition to the year-end Athletes of the Year.
Out of curiosity, I'm wondering which athletes readers believe deserve these recognitions.
Any suggestions?
14 comments:
Without question...Charles Murphy!
Murph, Zebrasky, and Mike Hull should be up there.
Hull is my pick
Set CM rushing record
Qualified for states in wrestling
Tore it up on the daimond
Dan Conley on all state football team and winning the PIAA AA wrestling title. He put himself in an elite class this year.
I think your player of the year should be the Canon-Mac Baseball team. Every week a different player would step up to win a game. Because Canon-Mac had so many good players they relied on each other every week. When one player was not hitting well, another one would step up and fill the void. Every player contributed to the state title!
I think athlete of the year should go to Mike Hull. He excelled in three sports. That is quite unusual in this day and age. In football he led the wpial in rushing. He qualified for the state wrestling tournament. He helped the baseball team win a state title. Pretty impressive!
The four people mentioned so far were nominated for Boys Athlete of the Year. All were worthy candidates and I think we made a great choice.
As of now, the only people who know who it is are the O-R staff and the boys and girls selections.
Quick correction on Hull, he did not lead the WPIAL in rushing but he did lead all Class AAAA backs in yards during the regular season.
Thank you for the correction. I forgot to mention what a impressive linebacker he was. Maybe you can give the stats on how many tackles he had during the season. I think he broke a school record?
tie?
No disrespect to Conley because he had a year to remember, but i still believe the nod belongs to Mike Hull.
I consider Hull's gridiron performance to be a bit more impressive than Conley's. Hull leads CM from a 1 win season to a playoff birth. Hull set a school record and led the WPIAL AAAA in rushing. His presence was more than felt on the defensive side of the ball and it seemed like he was a part of every tackle.
While Conley did win a AA State championship in wrestling, i believe it was Mike Hull, Canon-McMillan dec. Dan Conley, Burgettstown, 5-2 in the Washington Co, tournament.
Mike Hull then played a huge role in CM's State Championship team. He had an OBP of around .470 and stole more than 20 bases. Hull's fielding in CF was just as impressive. His ability to track down balls that few in high school can was a huge asset to the CM pitching staff.
I think it is pretty rare to see a young man achieve so much in 3 sports.
Brian, Can't agree with you on the football one after seeing each player at least twice this year.
Both players were awesome. I'd say Hull is slightly better right now but Conley was conference MVP in a conference that included Steel Valley, South Fayette, South Park and Seton-La Salle. That's a strong Class AA conference.
Plus, Burgettstown went from one win to seven wins with only 30 players. The reason? Conley dominated. Most Class A teams have more than 30 players.
Clearly, it's apples and oranges. Would Hull have been conference MVP if he played at South Fayette? Probably, but we'll never know.
Hull is easily one of the best football players in this area and, if he keeps it up, he'll be a two-time athlete of the year honoree by the time he leaves Canonsburg.
Conley was also one of the best as well. Both are in my top five from the past year.
As for the wrestling, it's simple. Conley won a state championship. We cannot fault him for wrestling Class AA. He has a gold medal, just like the C-M baseball team.
You can't diminish one's accomplishments based on the size of the school.
That said, I'll never say who I gave my first-place vote to. The staff, as a whole, gave Conley the nod. He deserves it. He had a great year.
A lot of guys had a great year. It was, by far, the toughest vote we've had since I started this in 2000.
Ah, I have made no such promise that I will not reveal who Mike voted for No. 1.
I accept bribes.
The best thing about Mike Hull is getting to watch him the next two years.
Congratulations to Dan Conley! Athlete of the year is fun. This year it is debatable. It is great to have these talented high school athletes to watch. I don't understand how Mike Hull who played three sports would not get the award. If Mike Hull is a slightly better football player,[ which Mike Kovak said] beat Dan in wrestling [which is an individual sport] and won the gold in baseball[playing a third sport]why wouldn't the third sport be heavily considered? Or did Dan play a third sport?
Dan Conley deserved the OR athlete of the year. I also believe the pub given to him by this blog and the OR in general put him on the all state team.
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