A range of single-sport standouts and three-sport ironmen are nominated for Class 6A Male Athlete of the Year and Sub-6A Male Athlete of the year.
The winners will be announced at the 2017 All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet on June 10 at Mario’s Banquet & Conference Center in Mission.
Former San Antonio Spurs forward Robert Horry will be the keynote speaker at the event, which is being put on with help from presenting sponsor Lone Star National Bank.
The nominees for Class 6A Male Athlete of the Year:
>> Adrian Bernal, McAllen Rowe: As a receiver on the football team, Bernal led the Warriors with 756 receiving yards and four TDs. As the point guard of the basketball team, Bernal averaged 10.3 assists per game — the only Valley player to average more than 10 assists. Playing baseball, he hit .255 with 12 runs and three doubles.
>> Trey Guajardo, PSJA High: As a freshman, Guajardo started at quarterback and completed 93 of 178 passes for a 52.2 completion percentage. He threw for 1,323 yards, 11 TDs and nine interceptions. He also ran for 1,009 yards and 10 TDs. He played shortstop and pitcher for the baseball team, putting up a .362 average with 14 runs and 12 RBIs. On the mound, he threw 44 innings and had a 1.91 ERA with 44 strikeouts.
>> Tristen Myende, La Joya Palmview: Myende owned the Valley’s best mark in the long jump this season at 23 feet, 2 inches and also ranked second in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 14.34 seconds. On the football field, he had 923 receiving yards with 14 touchdowns, 324 rushing yards with three touchdowns and 652 return yards with a pair of touchdowns.
The nominees for Sub-6A Male Athlete of the Year:
>> Diego Hernandez, Mission Veterans: The Monitor’s All-Area Player of the Year for football led his team three rounds deep in the playoffs. Hernandez completed 298 of his 504 passes for 4,175 yards with a 59.1 completion percentage. He threw for 45 touchdowns against nine interceptions and ran for 11 more TDs. Hernandez was awarded the District 31-5A MVP. He was also the second-ranked individual golfer to qualify for state at the regional tournament, finishing 25th at the UIL Class 5A state meet.
>> Leo Lara, Santa Rosa: The four-year varsity starter led the Warriors basketball team all the way to the UIL Class 3A state semifinals before the team fell victim to the eventual state champions Dallas Madison. On the season, Lara averaged 20 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals per game. He was named the District 32-3A Player of the Year and was a first-team all-state pick, as well. Lara is also a star football player and ran track.
>> Omar Silva, Port Isabel: Silva was a three-year starter who capped his senior season by rushing for 2,049 yards and 23 touchdowns in nine games. He rushed for 441 yards against La Feria and was named Built Ford Tough Class 4A Player of the Week in Texas for that performance. The RB/QB averaged 10.2 yards per carry as a senior and was named to the 2016 Texas Associated Press Sports Editors Class 4A first-team all-state squad. Silva was also tabbed the Offensive Player of the Year by the Brownsville Herald and Valley Morning Star along with his selection as District 16-4A Co-Offensive MVP.
The Banquet, hosted by RGVSports.com and AIM Media Texas in conjunction with the RGV Sports Hall of Fame, will see 33 awards presented to standout athletes, coaches and teams across all 12 UIL sports. The highly prestigious Tom Landry Award of Excellence will honor a student-athlete for outstanding achievements on and off the field.
The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, The Brownsville Herald, Mid-Valley Town Crier and RGV Sports Hall of Fame will vote to determine the winners in the sports categories. While The Monitor, the Star and the Herald have previously named their All-Area teams in certain sports, the All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet will recognize the very best across all three coverage areas.
Tickets for the catered banquet, which will run 6 to 8 p.m., are available through each newspaper’s website at a cost of $40 per person. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information, contact Marcia Kitten at 956-683-4463.
Horry won seven NBA Championships and earned the moniker “Big Shot Rob” for clutch performances during his 16-year NBA career that included stints with the Spurs, Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers.
Lone Star National Bank, first opened in Pharr in 1983, has grown to include more than 600 employees at 33 locations across South Texas. As part of its mission statement, Lone Star National Bank is committed to “helping our communities grow, and serving them with pride and integrity,” according to the bank’s website.
“Lone Star National Bank has a history of being a great community steward,” The Monitor Publisher Stephan Wingert said. “We are pleased to announce that Lone Star National Bank will be the presenting sponsor for the 2017 All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet. Thanks to their support, we will be able to celebrate the Valley’s best and brightest student-athletes.”
