So once again I give you...
THE MATTY'S
(Kind of like the Grammy's but not quite)
![[IMAGE]](trophy.jpg)
Disclamer1: Even if a certain player didn't get an award that doesn't mean I didn't like them or they were not as good as the others. All of the team was great and I applaude you all.
Disclamer2: These awards were voted on by...as I said, this year some people actually voted on most of these so its not all me this time, but all final say was by me and no one else. :-)
And now the awards...
The first award this year is for favorite newcomer. This award is for, as it says, the favorite new player on this years VB team. This was the closest vote this year. But one person has shown that her presence in the redbird line up made the biggest difference. She came in and gave the redbirds more size and power in the front. She was the IHSA all time leader in kills and now we see why...
The winner of favorite Newcomer belongs to...Megan O'Connell
![[megan]](oconnell.jpg)
The next award seemed to be a fan favorite. It is the award for cutest player. There were a few players that could have gotten this award this year and I'm glad I didn't have to make this decision by myself, but the majority agreed on the winner...
The athlete who wins cutest player is...the hometown girl Abby Lewis.
![[Abby]](lewis.jpg)
The next award is the Nikki McCleary award that is given to the athlete that showed the most intensity. Again this award had a couple people that it could go to. It goes to a person who gave the redbirds the lift they needed and raised the intensity of all when she came in.
The winner of the award for most intensity is...Julie Cress
![[Julie]](cress.jpg)
The next award I will call the "extra effort award". I'm giving this award to the athlete who I and others who are (as they call us) week-end warriors, who play organized sports or pick up games as much as they can, admire most. She began her career 4 years ago as a walk on. She isn't as well known as other players on her team because she doesn't record many kills or blocks but she plays big minutes in every game. She plays for the competition, and the joy of winning not just the newspaper articles with her name or picture in them. She plays for what the rest of us do whenever we can...the joy of playing.
So for her efforts on the team the last four years I give the "extra effort award" to the one they call "Fitz"...
Kathleen Fitzpatrick
![[Fitz]](fitzpatr.jpg)
The final two awards, the Favorite Player and MVP go to the same person this year. This athlete has given her all to the redbird program for three years now. She was again among the leaders in kills and blocks this year in the conference and led the conference in hitting percentage. She earned a spot on the all-Valley first team for the second time and for a third straight year was picked for the all district 5 team. Besides being awesome on the court and she is a fan favorite to all and as the article said, she is nice! Really! And yes I finally met her this season and she is very nice. Heck I even met her dad. lol Ok sorry thats another story.
The winner of the Favorite Player and Most Valuable Player awards go to none other than...Kendra Haselhorst
![[Kendra]](haselhor.jpg)
Well there you have it. That is all for the 2nd annual Matty's. Again I want to congratulate the whole team on a great season and wish them continued success in future years. Look for your chance to vote on your favorite players on next years team on my site next fall.
If you have any comments about the Matty's or have an idea for an award to add please e-mail me by clicking the "me" ----> me Now if you got here from a link and would like to see the rest of my web site just click----> Matt's Web site
