FLEMINGTON, N.J., June 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- In its
35th year of honoring the nation's most elite high
school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Emily Mason of Hunterdon Central Regional High
School in Flemington, N.J. is the
2019-20 Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year. Mason
won the prestigious award for her accomplishments on and off the
field, joining an impressive group of former Gatorade National
Girls Soccer Player of the Year winners who have gone on to have
incredible success – they've combined for 17 gold medals and eight
National Championships
Due to the ongoing situation with the coronavirus pandemic,
Gatorade coordinated a virtual surprise, including a video call by
Sky Blue FC's Mallory Pugh to break
the exciting news to Mason.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic
excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and
exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field,
distinguishes Mason as the nation's best high school girls soccer
player. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific
experts and sports journalists helped select Mason from nearly a
million high school girls soccer players nationwide.
Competition for the national award was fierce. Mason topped the
list of 51 state winners in girls soccer who collectively boast an
incredible list of accomplishments, including 21 First Team
All-State selections, eight returning state Gatorade Players of the
Year and 26 with a GPA of 4.0 and above
Mason is now a finalist for the most prestigious award in high
school sports, the Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year
award, which is announced in July.
"Emily Mason is relentless," says
United States U-20 Women's National Team assistant coach
Heather Dyche. "The game doesn't
faze her. She doesn't go through any high highs or low lows. If
you're in a tie game, she's saving balls off the line. If you're up
3-0, she's saving balls off the line. She was the youngest player
on our team by far at the 2020 CONCACAF tournament and she really
held her own. Emily has an incredibly bright future. She's a great
kid, too."
The 5-foot-9 junior defender and midfielder led the Red Devils
to a 21-1-1 record and the Group 4 state championship this past
season. Mason recorded nine goals and three assists, including the
lone score in a 1-0 win over unbeaten Eastern Regional High in the
state semifinals. She also anchored a defense that surrendered just
nine goals in 23 games. A member of the U.S. Soccer Under-20
Women's National Team, Mason was a starting fullback in February as
the U.S. team qualified for the 2021 Under-20 Women's World Cup.
The 2019 NJ.com State Player of the Year, she is ranked as the
nation's No. 3 recruit in the Class of 2021 by
TopDrawerSoccer.com.
A participant in the Hunterdon Outreach Program supporting
special needs children through athletics, Mason has volunteered
locally on behalf of the Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Church,
including mentoring in the church's Children's Liturgy of the Word
initiative. "Emily Mason is the best
player we played against all season," said Kevin Ewing, head coach of Scotch Plains-Fanwood
High School. "We faced them twice and each time she was a major
reason we could not do much offensively. She is physically
dominating on the field and has a good first touch and excellent
field vision."
Mason has maintained a B average in the classroom. She has made
a verbal commitment to play soccer on scholarship at Rutgers University beginning in the fall of
2021.
"Even with many sport seasons canceled or cut short this year
due to the coronavirus pandemic, we are continuing to honor
incredible student-athletes like Emily
Mason through our Gatorade Player of the Year program," said
Gatorade Senior Vice President and General Manager Brett O'Brien. "Mason rose to the top of our
list of nearly a million student-athletes who play girls soccer due
to her athletic performance, success in the classroom and devotion
to her community."
Each year a selection committee evaluates the nation's top
talent in the District of Columbia
and all 50 states, choosing national winners in 12 different
sports: football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country,
boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, boys and girls
soccer, and boys and girls track and field. From the 12 national
winners, one male and one female athlete are each named Gatorade
High School Athlete of the Year.
Since the program's inception in 1985, Gatorade Player of the
Year award recipients have won hundreds of professional and college
championships, and many have also turned into pillars in their
communities, becoming coaches, business owners and educators.
Previous winners include a distinguished list of athletes, such as
Peyton Manning, Abby Wambach, Karl-Anthony Towns, Derek Jeter and many other sports icons. To
learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out
past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit
www.Gatorade.com/POY, on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/Gatorade.
About Gatorade
The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), meets
the needs of consumers who participate in Sports and Fitness,
through brands that include Gatorade, Propel, Muscle Milk and
Bolt24. The solutions they provide are driven by a deep
understanding of the unique needs and occasions of different types
of sports and fitness. Gatorade, their marquee brand, is
underpinned by more than 50-year history of studying the best
athletes in the world and sports-nutrition research by the Gatorade
Sport Science Institute, allowing it to provide
scientifically-formulated products that meet athletes' needs both
on and off the field. For more information and a full list of
products, please visit www.gatorade.com.
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion
times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the
world. PepsiCo generated more than $64
billion in net revenue in 2018, driven by a complementary
food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade,
Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio
includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including
22 brands that generate more than $1
billion each in estimated annual retail sales.
At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose – our
fundamental belief that the success of our company is inextricably
linked to the sustainability of the world around us. We believe
that continuously improving the products we sell, operating
responsibly to protect our planet and empowering people around the
world enable PepsiCo to run a successful global company that
creates long-term value for society and our shareholders. For more
information, visit www.pepsico.com.
PREVIOUS GATORADE
NATIONAL GIRLS SOCCER PLAYER OF THE YEAR WINNERS
|
YEAR
|
NAME
|
HOMETOWN
|
STATUS
|
2018-19
|
Sophie
Jones
|
Atherton,
CA
|
Duke
University
|
2017-18
|
Isabella
D'Aquila
|
San Juan Capistrano,
CA
|
Santa Clara
University
|
2016-17
|
Kennedy
Wesley
|
Cerritos,
CA
|
Stanford
University
|
2015-16
|
Ella
Stevens
|
Loganville,
GA
|
Duke
University
|
2014-15
|
Mallory
Pugh
|
Highlands Ranch,
CO
|
US Women's National
Soccer Team
|
2013-14
|
Katie
Cousins
|
Forest, VA
|
University of
Tennessee
|
2012-13
|
Morgan
Andrews
|
Milford,
NH
|
Reign FC
|
2011-12
|
Morgan
Andrews
|
Milford,
NH
|
Reign FC
|
2010-11
|
Morgan
Brian
|
St. Simons Island,
GA
|
Chicago Red
Stars
|
2009-10
|
Mollie
Pathman
|
Durham, NC
|
Retired from Boston
Breakers
|
2008-09
|
Rachel
Quon
|
Lake Forest,
IL
|
Chicago Red
Stars
|
2007-08
|
Teresa
Noyola
|
Palo Alto,
CA
|
Retired from Houston
Dash
|
2006-07
|
Melissa
Henderson
|
Garland,
TX
|
Retired from Houston
Dash
|
2005-06
|
Lauren
Cheney
|
Indianapolis,
IN
|
Retired from US
Women's National Soccer Team
|
2004-05
|
Amy
Rodriguez
|
Rancho Santa
Margarita, CA
|
US Women's National
Soccer Team
|
2003-04
|
Ashlyn
Harris
|
Satellite Beach,
FL
|
US Women's National
Soccer Team
|
2002-03
|
Heather
O'Reilly
|
East Brunswick,
NJ
|
Retired from US
Women's National Soccer Team
|
2001-02
|
Jill Oakes
|
West Hills,
CA
|
Retired from Chicago
Red Stars
|
2000-01
|
Mary
McDowell
|
Lakewood,
CO
|
Played for the
University of North Carolina
|
1999-00
|
Aleisha
Cramer
|
Lakewood,
CO
|
Retired from US
Women's National Soccer Team
|
1998-99
|
Christie
Welsh
|
Massapequa,
NY
|
Retired from US
Women's National Soccer Team
|
1997-98
|
Aly Wagner
|
San Jose,
CA
|
Retired from US
Women's National Soccer Team
|
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/emily-mason-named-2019-20-gatorade-national-girls-soccer-player-of-the-year-301082902.html
SOURCE The Gatorade Company