Nashville area's top high school athletes to be honored June 6

Tom Kreager
The Tennessean
Quarterback Marcus Mariota takes a selfie with fans after the Titans beat the Packers. Mariota will be the guest speaker at the second annual Tennessean Sports Awards.

The best high school athletes from the Nashville area will be honored by The Tennessean on June 6 at the second annual Tennessean Sports Awards presented by Farm Bureau Health Plans.

The doors for the red-carpet event open at 7 p.m. at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center's Jackson Hall in Nashville with the program beginning at 8 p.m.

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota is the guest speaker. 

 

"We at The Tennessean are so proud to bring this premium event to Middle Tennessee again this year," said Laura Hollingsworth, president of The Tennessean and USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee. "Ensuring these young student athletes are recognized and celebrated for their achievement is important, and something they will always remember.

"The Tennessean’s purpose is to actively impact and influence quality of life for our citizens and in our communities, and this is one big way we can do so. Our sponsors are companies who share this purpose — and we are grateful for their support in making this night possible for our youth. It’s going to be a powerful event and evening!”

Players of the year in baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball and wrestling will be named during the event.

Finalists for each sport have already been selected by The Tennessean's high school sports staff.

All finalists for the event are invited to the celebration. Invited athletes receive three complimentary tickets, one of which is for them. 

In addition to the players of the year awards, there are several premier awards including Male Athlete of the Year, Female Athlete of the Year, Coach of the Year, Sportsmanship Award, Leadership Award, Academic Award, Kaia Jergenson Courage Award and Fred Russell Lifetime Achievement Award.

There is also a newly created I AM SPORT Award presented by Nike, which recognizes a high school athlete committed to getting kids active in their community. 

Finalists for the premier awards include:

  • Brentwood Academy's Caroline Archer, Montgomery Bell Academy's Will Peters and University School of Nashville's William Conor Rork for academic achievement.
  • Christ Presbyterian Academy's J.T. Gilbert, Nashville Christian's Brittan Jarrell and Coffee County's Benjamin Reid for sportsmanship.
  • La Vergne's Skylar Filorimo, Hickman County's Cooper Mays and McGavock's Shawn Murphy for Leadership.
  • Ensworth's Tyra Gittens, Riverdale's Anastasia Hayes and Ravenwood's Karlie Paschall for Female Athlete of the Year.
  • Maplewood's Bo Hodges, Brentwood Academy's Camron Johnson and Watertown's Seth Price for Male Athlete of the Year.
  • Riverdale's Randy Coffman, Father Ryan's Pat Simpson and Maplewood's Ty Wilson for Coach of the Year.
  • Pickett County's Abbigail Buck, Pearl-Cohn's Yaubyron Chambers and Ensworth's Will McCall for the I AM SPORT Award.
  • Independence's Hunter Garstin is the Kaia Jergenson Courage Award recipient.
  • Brentwood volleyball coach Barbara Campbell is the Fred Russell Lifetime Achievement Award recipient.

Tickets are available for the event. Go online to sportsawards.tennessean.com to order.

Reach Tom Kreager at tkreager@tennessean.com or 615-259-8089 and on Twitter @Kreager.