Photo Credit: TTFCA.com
The Texas Track and Field Coaches Association (TTFCA) has released it's awards and acknowledgements for the 2019 outdoor track and field season.
The awards and acknowledgements include the coaches of the year, top track athletes, top field athletes, and top private school athletes of the year.
Related: TTFCA Press Release on awards
Girls Coach of the Year
Coach June Villers is the leader of the machine known as the girls DeSoto track and field program. Villers effectively led DeSoto through an interesting DFW track season and ultimately to the 2019 UIL 6A state championship.
In a season, that had the worst track and field weather conducive for running fast, vaulting and jumping high, and throwing far in some time. The Lady Eagles were able to have a fairly healthy season that produced incredible marks from day one until the last day of the year.
Villers' squad stayed nationally ranked in both individual and relay events the entire season. In the end, she led them to a couple of Texas Relays championships, a state record, national record, and a team title.
The 4x100 relay was able to run those two records as well as the top two times ever for a high school team, which eventually led to the fourth consecutive UIL 6A team title.
Photo Credit: TTFCA.com
Boys Coach of the Year
Coach Lloyd Banks also effectively led his team to another state title. Banks' Fort Bend Marshall Buffalos wrecked havoc on both the Texas and national sprint rankings all season long. Not only have they left their mark on 2019, but they also have etched themselves among the All-Time list as well with their 39.99 in the 4x100 relay (No. 6 All-Time) and their 1:23.38 in the 4x200 relay (No. 2 All-time) and a UIL 5A state record.
Marshall was also able to win the 2019 UIL 5A Boys team title, which was it's second consecutive and fourth in the last five years. The Marshall staff has only been in place since the 2011 season, yet continues to rack up several team, coach, and individual awards.
Girls Athlete of the Year - Private
Tamia Badal, the Tomball Concordia Lutheran star had the senior year to remember. The hurdlers proved to be one of Texas' top runners all season long in the sprints and the hurdles.
Badal won TAPPS state titles in both the 100H and the 300H events and helped her 4x100 to a TAPPS 6Arecord in 478.32. Badal will continue her student-athlete career at the University of Colorado.
Boys Athlete of the Year - Private
Fort Worth Christian senior Carter Cheeseman won two individual state titles last year and decided to up the ante this year by going for three. Cheeseman won the 800m (1:57.81), 1500m (4:19.38), and 3200m (9:16.07).
Cheeseman also ran at a high level on the national and the international stage this year. During the indoor season, he finished 5th in the one mile (4:12.85) at the 112th NYRR Millrose Games and 7th (4:11.27) at the New Balance Nationals Indoor and also won a national title in the 5,000m (14:40.01) at the New Balance Nationals Indoor championships.
He also competed and qualified for the IAAF U20 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, back in March. Cheeseman finished 31st overall and second for Team USA with a 26:25 for the 8K distance. Cheeseman will continue his student-athlete career at The University of Notre Dame.
Girls Athlete of the Year - Field
Mansfield Lake Ridge senior Jasmine Moore earned the girls field event honor by winning her fourth long jump and triple jump state titles.
She has never lost a UIL competition and hasn't earned anything less than a gold medal in individual competition.
She helped her Lake Ridge team to a third place team finish in 2016, second in 2017, and a UIL 5A girls team title in 2018.
Moore overcame the weather conditions to claim those gold medals and doing so in the triple jump with a bomb of a 44-10 jump for a UIL state meet record and the No. 3 All-Time jump in US history. Moore will continue her student-athlete career at the University of Georgia.
Boys Athlete of the Year - Field
The Woodlands senior thrower Patrick Piperi has been one of the top throwers nationally all season long. He threw two PRs this season in the events with his 66-06 in the shot put and 187-10 in the discus.
He played a big part by earning valuable team points to contribute to The Woodlands' back to back UIL 6A team championships.
This season, Piperi won the UIL 6A shot put title with a 64-06 throw and was fifth in the discus. He will continue his student-athlete career at the University of Texas.
Girls Athlete of the Year - Track
Denton Guyer sophomore Brynn Brown was as good as you could get in 2019. The distance star captured big win after big win throughout the year to establish herself as the best distance runner in Texas this season.
Brown only lost two races all season long. She won the Girls Elite 5K at the Texas Distance Festival and the 3200m at the Texas Relays. She followed that up with two wins to end the season at the UIL 6A state meet in the 1600m (4:48.37) and the 3200m (10:09.91). Both times are TX No. 1 marks on the 2019 season and the 3200m time is a UIL state record.
Boys Athlete of the Year - Track
Houston Strake Jesuit senior Matthew Boling is a world wide super star and for justified reasons. He took the world by storm when he added the 100m to his list of events. Boling ran 9.98w and then a wind legal 10.13 to win the UIL 6A 100m state championship and a UIL record.
He also added season bests in the 200m (20.55), 400m (47.23), and the long jump (26-03.25) to rank both state wide and nationally in all three events.
Boling played a key part in helping his team finish second place overall in the UIL 6A state meet. He will continue his student athlete career at the University of Georgia.