Coaches honor their players with awards during lunch, May 14. Coaches present players with plaques with messages such as most improved, the most valuable player (MVP), and rookie of the year. The coaches were also allotted time to share their favorite moments from their season.

Because sports began in the second half of the school year, sports teams did not hold separate Fall, Winter, and Spring sports banquets like the ones of previous years.

Seniors Carston Saelzler, Jacob Hyatt, Hannah Villines, and Rylee Schwab were named male and female athletes of the year. Coaches base their candidates for this award on the character of the student and their grades as well as exceptional athleticism.

Athletic director and boys basketball coach Jonathan Penberthy shares why four students were picked for athlete of the year instead of the norm, two.

“We had two very gifted athletes that primarily played one sport and were very good high college-level athletes,” Penberthy said. “We had two other athletes that played two to four sports in their high school career and were both very successful in doing so. So it was difficult to not have two boys and two girls when they were all very successful in their respective sports.”

Listed below are the recognized athletes in each sport.

Baseball
MVP: Casey Lacroix
Cy Young Award: Mason Petrie
Gold Glove: Jake Blackburn
Silver Slugger: Dawson Leiser

Softball
MVP: Makayla Davila
Offensive Player of the Year: Rachel Martin
Defensive Player of the Year: Addison Samarin
Eagle Award: Jolie Hull

Girls Tennis
Co MVP: Isabella Adams
Co MVP: Sophia Adams
Eagle Award: Summer Foshee
Newcomer Award: Elise Bessey

Track
MVP: Jacob Hyatt
MVP: Meilani Gilmore
Coaches award: Lucas Taylor

Boys Tennis
“2021 Fresno Christian Boys Tennis Captains Award”: Bryce Foshee, Kyle Clem, Mark Pimentel, and Brayden Iest

Cross Country
MVP: Emma Connolly
Most Improved: Dawson Leiser
Team Captain: Bryce Foshee

Golf
MVP: Dawson Leiser
Rookie of the Year: Blake Bridges
Co MVP: Ashley Logan
Co MVP: Lindsay Logan
Most Improved: Paige Deffenbacher

Girls soccer
MVP: Rylee Schwab
Defensive MVP: Selah Draper
Eagle Award: Natalie Arndt
Newcomer of the Year: Tatum Auwae
Newcomer of the Year: Miracle Neal

Boys Soccer
Rookie of the Year: Andres Fierro
Eagle Award: Lorenzo Fierro
Offensive Player of the Year: Andrew Rieker
Defensive Player of the Year: Jakob Rieker

For more Feather photos, visit The Feather media page.

For more articles, read COLUMN: L.E.A.D. directs us into service and Senior reflection: Jewel Chandler.