ANNUAL SPORTS AWARD FINALISTS ANNOUNCED
The Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame Annual Sports Awards Finalists are…
PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Anquan Boldin , Arizona Cardinals
This past season, Anquan recorded 75 catches for 1,027 yards in Arizona playing for the Cardinals. He had 4 touchdowns and averaged 3 carries a game and 10 yards on every carry. He is a Pahokee High School alumnus and a former Florida State Seminole.
Devin Hester, Chicago Bears
This past year, rookie Devin Hester led his team to the Super Bowl with his record-setting performance as a defensive back for the Chicago Bears. He set his first NFL record with 6 touchdown returns in single season and ran back 3 punt return touchdowns for 600 yards. He also tied the longest play in NFL history with a missed field goal return for 108 yards. Hester led the league with 2 kickoff return touchdowns in 3 games as a kickoff specialist and is the 6th person with 2 touchdown kick return in a single game. Finishing second in the NFL with an average of 12.8yards a return, Hester earned the title of NFL Special Teams Player of the Week three times, was the NFC’s Player of the Month for December; and finished the season as the 2nd leading scorer for Bears. He also waschosen for the 2007 Probowl. Hester first got his start playing in Riviera Beach, and continued on at Suncoast High School. Hester signed with the University of Miami in 2003.
Karrie Webb, LPGA
Webb is second on LPGA money list with $2,095,113 in 21 starts, winning five, including Kraft Nabisco, a major championship. She is second in Player of Year points, fourth in scoring average, greens in regulation and total eagles.
AMATEUR ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Omar Haugabook, Troy University
QB Omar Haugabook, out of Belle Glade, FL, led Troy (8-5) to Sun Belt Conference title and a 41-17 win over Rice in New Orleans Bowl. In the first 12 games he was 227-for-365 passing for a total of 2,184 yards, 17 touchdowns, 16 interceptions. In the New Orleans Bowl, Haugabook went 14-for-28 with 217 yards for 4 touchdowns. A multi faceted player, Omar ran for 92 yards and one touchdown earning the title of Sun Belt Player of Year and New Orleans Bowl MVP. He was a graduate of Glades Central High School where he was the 2003 Player of The Year for the Palm Beach County Sports Commission.
Erlana Larkins, UNC Chapel Hill
Erlana started every game for 33-2 University of North Carolina as sophomore, averaging 13.8 points and 7.2 rebounds. She was Captain of the USA team in under-20 tournament in Mexico City, averaging 8.6 points and 4.2 rebounds and led her team to the goldmedal. Some of her accomplishments include All-ACC, All-ACC Tournament, AP All-American honorable mention, and Final Four All-Tournament honors. She played locally at the Benjamin School in North Palm Beach.
Ramie Mohlman, Wrestling
A Singer Island native, Ramie won the World Cup of sombo wrestling held in Nice, France, in December which was the first win by an American since 1984. He won a silver medal in World Championship sombo wrestling this past November in Antalya, Turkey, both at 121 pounds. Mohlman was unable to compete after freshman year at Eastern Michigan University in 1981, until open heart surgery in 1989 and later returned to competition in 2003. This 44 year old is a graphic arts teacher and former wrestling and cross country coach at Palm Beach Lakes High School and has been a Palm Beach County resident for 20 years.
HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Lecia Brown, Suncoast HS, Track and Volleyball
Lecia won her fourth straight 2A 400M, placed second in 100M and third in 200M and took home 8 career gold medals and 12 medals overall at the state track and field competition. She missed the Palm Beach County championships to give a speech on the effects of protein in the nucleus on asthma patients at the International Biogenius Challenge in Chicago. Lecia earned Academic All-Area honors her senior year at Suncoast High and is currently playing volleyball at the University of Louisville.
Brooks Koepka, Cardinal Newman HS, Golf
Koepka’s victories on the green in 2006 include: FHSAA state, regional and district winner, first Palm Beach County golfer to win FSHAA since 1981 and only the fifth ever to do so. He shot 75-66 at state and is a Palm Beach County Golf Association Nicklaus Junior and local qualifying medalist for the Palm Beach County Amateur at the Amateur Junior Golf Association event in Dothan, Ala.He has had many top 10 finishes in junior and amateur golf while currently a student at Cardinal Newman High School.
Brandon Pendergrass, Royal Palm Beach HS, Football
Brandon Pendergrass, a running back out of Royal Palm Beach High School, was the 2006 Lou Groza High School Player of the Year and ran for 1,221 yards accumulating 18 touchdowns.
HIGH SCHOOL COACH OF THE YEAR
Leroy Foster, Pahokee HS, Football
Coach Foster led his team to the state championship for Division 2B beating Ocala Trinity Catholic in the finals, 25-11. Coach Foster coached his team to 14-0 finish, the first perfect season in Blue Devil football history.
Randy Jackson, Palm Beach Gardens HS, Softball
Softball coach, Randy Jackson, entering his fifth season with the Gators has a 117-14 record at Palm Beach Gardens High School. He won his second straight District 9-6A title, beating Spruce Creek in the finals 3-1. The Lady Gators finished 30-2 for the season,playing against other regional powerhouses such as Palm Beach Central and Park Vista.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Chancellor Dugan, Florida Atlantic University, Women's Basketball
The Florida Atlantic University women’s basketball team, led by Coach Dugan, won the Atlantic Sun Conference for the first time and made their first appearance in the NCAA, losing in the first round to LSU 72-48 for 20-11 record.
Shaun Pendleton, Lynn University, Men's Soccer
Pendleton has put Lynn University on the national map and percentage-wise, is the NCAA Division II all-time winningest men’s soccer coach. His record at Lynn U. is a remarkable 263-37-11 while his career record is 290-48-12.In his last 15 seasons, Pendleton has averaged 17.6 wins per season and has only lost four or more games four times.
OUTSTANDING SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR
Roger Dean Stadium, Baseball
Roger Dean Stadium has been the spring training headquarters for two major league baseball teams since 1998, the 2006 World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals and the 2003 Florida Marlins. It is also the home for the Jupiter Hammerheads and Palm Beach Cardinals during summer Florida State League season. Roger Dean Stadium hosts many other professional, amateur, high school and youth baseball programs and events. In 2006 alone, Roger Dean Stadium hosted a fund-raising walk for Easter Seals in November and Charity Night games for over fifteen local organizations including: Autism Awareness, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Gathering of Men, Department of Children and Families, Safe Harbor, Christ Fellowship Church, American Cancer Society, Deaf Services Center, Florida Earth Foundation, Cancer Alliance of Help and Hope, Save Old Jupiter School, Hearth and Hope Inc., Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League, Girls and Boys Town, American Diabetes Association, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Mental Health Association. Each year, the stadium contributes $500,000 in donations to the School District of Palm Beach County. Roger Dean Stadium hosts a number of programs benefiting the community such as: the Cardinals and Marlins Fund which supports the development of programs for disadvantaged youth, the Knothole Gang, Education Day, and the Fins and Feathers Reading Program.
Tommy Hutton Baseball Academy, Baseball
Jason Hutton and Brian Justine head a week-long baseball school at Roger Dean Stadium, the Tommy Hutton Baseball Academy, for boys and girls 6-14 years old which focus on hitting, throwing and defense. Chairman and namesake of the Academy, Tommy Hutton is a member of the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame and the color commentator for Florida Marlins TV broadcasts.
SPECIAL OLYMPICS ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Elizabeth Goyette, Track and Field
Born July 22, 1986, Elizabeth was diagnosed with Seckel Syndrome, a rare form of Bird Headed Dwarfism and was told she would be a “vegetable”. Years later, Elizabeth defied her odds and took place in her first Special Olympics at age 6, competing in various events such as gymnastics, cycling, and track. Just this year, Elizabeth continued to strive in sports earning a Bronze Metal in the 100 meter dash and 7th place in the 200 meter dash at the First National Games for Special Olympics in Ames, Iowa. This past March, she added two Blue Ribbons for the 100 and 200 meter dash and the award for the Joe Biben Memorial Athlete to her ever-growing list of accomplishments.
They will be honored at the 31st Annual Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet on Sunday, April 29, 2007 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach. For tickets call 561-233-3180.
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