FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jason Belenke (312-729-3631)
HARDIN VALLEY ACADEMY STANDOUT NAMED GATORADE TENNESSEE BOYS CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER OF THE YEAR
CHICAGO (January 16, 2014) — In its 29th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with USA TODAY High School Sports, today announced Aaron Templeton of Hardin Valley Academy as its 2013-14 Gatorade Tennessee Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year. Templeton is the first Gatorade Tennessee Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year to be chosen from Hardin Valley Academy.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the racecourse, distinguishes Templeton as Tennessee’s best high school boys cross country runner. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year award to be announced in January, Templeton joins an elite alumni association of past state award-winners in 12 sports, including Ryan Hall (1999-00, 2000-01, Big Bear HS, Calif.), Derek Jeter (1991- 92, Kalamazoo HS, Mich.), Candace Parker (2001-02, Naperville Central HS, Ill.), Kevin Garnett (1992-93, Maudlin HS, S.C.), Abby Wambach (1997-98, Our Lady of Mercy, N.Y.) and Mark Sanchez (2004-05, Mission Viejo HS, Calif.).
The 5-foot-8, 140-pound senior won the Foot Locker South Regional championships this past season, breaking the tape in 15:44. Templeton qualified for the national Foot Locker Cross Country Championships, where he earned All- American honors with a ninth-place finish in 15:29. The state’s returning Gatorade Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year, he also won his second straight Class AAA individual state title, crossing the line in 15:10.57 and leading the Hawks to third place as a team.
Templeton has maintained a 3.29 GPA in the classroom. A member of the National Honor Society and his school’s Health Science Academy, he has volunteered locally on behalf of Project Bean Sprout, providing assistance to babies suffering from Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome.
“I’ve known Aaron Templeton since his freshman year as an optimistic, hard-nosed, competitive kid who thrived on winning and losing,” said Allen Ethridge, head coach at Oak Ridge High head coach. “I’ve also watched him be a true teammate on very good teams rather than being a prima donna. He’s friendly and encouraging to his competitors and seems genuinely to love the sport.”
Templeton has verbally committed to an athletic scholarship at Furman University beginning this fall.
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.
Two time winner Templeton joins Gatorade Tennessee Boys Cross Country Runners of the Year Daniel Peters (2011-12, Montgomery Bell Academy), Michael Peters (2010-11, Montgomery Bell Academy), Brandon Lord (2009-10, Baylor School), Bill Matthews (2008-09, Baylor School), and Sean Keveren (2007-08, Brentwood) as athletes who have won the cross country award since its inception in 2007.
To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan of Gatorade Player of the Year on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of past winners and the announcement of the Gatorade National Player of the Year, visit www.gatorade.com/poy.
###
