Gonzalez, Ellis Named Gatorade State POTY
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – University of Miami track and field signees Samantha Gonzalez and Brittny Ellis were named the Gatorade Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year in their respective home states.
Gonzalez, a native of Carrolton, Texas, and Ellis, who hails from Gurnee, Ill., are among the 51 honorees for girls track & field. The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the track, distinguishes the recipient as their state’s best high school girls track & field athlete. Gonzalez and Ellis are finalists for the prestigious Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year award.
“I am very proud of Samantha and Brittny,” Miami director of track and field/cross country Amy Deem said. “They had an outstanding senior year. This award is a tribute to their hard work and dedication on the track, in the classroom and in the community. We are excited to have them as members of the Hurricane family.”
Gonzalez won the 300-meter intermediate hurdles in a state-record time of 40.81 seconds at the Class 5A state meet this spring. Gonzalez also finished third in the 100-meter high hurdles in 13.84. Her winning effort in the 300 hurdles ranked as the nation’s No. 2 performance among high school competitors in 2015 at the time of her selection and rates as 10th in U.S. prep history.
The 5-foot-8 senior has maintained a 3.57 GPA in the classroom. A member of her school’s yearbook staff and student newspaper, Gonzalez has volunteered locally on behalf of a children’s choir and a Vacation Bible School.
“Following in the footsteps of a state champion hurdler sister would be quite a daunting task for most, but she used her sister Melissa’s influence as motivation to become the top hurdler in the nation,” said Creekview coach Misti Springfield via press release. “She’s shown great drive and commitment to the sport for four years.”
Ellis won three individual Class 3A state championships this spring and led the Blue Devils to a second place finish as a team. Ellis became the first Class 3A runner in a decade to win the sprint triple, capturing the 100 with a time of 11.85 seconds, the 200 in 24.38 and the 400 in 54.19. She took sixth in the 400 at the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China in 2014.
The 5-foot-10 senior has maintained a weighted 4.40 GPA in the classroom. She has volunteered locally on behalf of Feed My Starving Children and Kindred Life Ministries, providing assistance for teen-aged mothers.
“What separates Brittny from the rest is her humility,” said Warren Township coach Ryan Dunn via press release. “Her attitude, sportsmanship and coachability make it easy for coaches, teammates and even rivals to like her.”
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 the Gatorade high school sports leadership team in partnership with USA TODAY High School Sports, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.
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