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COVINGTON, Va. (VR)— Alleghany High School has been named a Level Up Virginia Champion for the 2024–2025 school year by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.

Alleghany High School is one of only 28 schools in the state to receive this special recognition. This honor highlights the school’s strong commitment to helping students plan for life after high school.

School officials are quick to credit this achievement to the hard work of Sarai Warrick and Heather Terrell. Warrick organized all four statewide Level Up Virginia events at Alleghany, and she and Terrell both presented at each one. Terrell serves as an academic advisor at Alleghany High School, and Warrick served a two-year assignment at AHS under the Virginia College Advising Corps. The Corps has assigned another advisor to Alleghany High School for the coming school year to continue this important work.

The four Level Up Virginia events, ECMC College Nights in Virginia, Virginia College Application Week, FAF$A Next, and Decision Day VA, help students explore college and career options, apply for college, and complete financial aid forms.

By hosting these events, Alleghany High School has shown strong dedication to creating a college- and career-going culture. Virginia’s goal is to be the best state for education by 2030, with more students earning college degrees and credentials.

Schools like Alleghany High are helping make that goal a reality.

To celebrate, the school will receive a 2025 Level Up Virginia Champion pennant to proudly display as a symbol of this success.

“We are so proud of our students, staff, and families for supporting these efforts,” said Derek Cantrell, principal of Alleghany High School. “Special thanks to Sarai Warrick and Heather Terrell for their leadership and dedication to our students’ futures.”

About Alleghany High School: Alleghany High School serves students in grades 9-12 as part of Alleghany Highlands Public Schools (AHPS). AHPS was established in 2022 through the merger of Alleghany County Public Schools, Covington City Public Schools, and Jackson River Technical Center. Funded by Alleghany County and the City of Covington, the division combines local resources to provide an efficient and high-quality education for approximately 2,700 students.

Stay informed about AHPS news and events by following AHPS on Facebook at AHPublicSchools and on Instagram at ahpublicschools. For more information, visit www.ahps.k12.va.us.

Alleghany High School Academic Advisor Heather Terrell stands with Class of 2025 seniors at the Senior Academic Awards Ceremony in May. The seniors pictured were awarded scholarships, with Terrell and College Advisor Sarai Warrick playing a key role in helping them plan for life after graduation. Alleghany is one of only 28 schools in Virginia named a Level Up Virginia Champion for 2024-2025 by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. Pictured above L-R: Terrell, Kaitlyn Petrero, Shantia Sterling, Kelsey Nicely, Kinlee Huffman, and Ella Hicks. (AHPS Photo)

Farmersville alumna Yireida Hernandez (7) helped lead the Lady Farmers’ soccer team to a 3-2 upset win over Frisco Panther Creek on Feb. 17. Photo by Victor Tapia / C&S Media

By David Wolman

[email protected]

Student-athletes at Farmersville High School delivered plenty of highlight-reel moments during the 2024-25 school year, while also providing solid leadership for the underclassmen on their respective teams.

Their contributions helped lead the Farmers to playoff appearances in baseball, boys basketball, boys soccer, football and volleyball.

Starting last week, The Farmersville Times launched its first of a three-part series recognizing standout performances. The opening installment featured the Biggest Story, Breakthrough Moment, Newcomer of the Year and Best Team.

This week’s edition highlights the Best Game, Best Finish, Biggest Upset and Multi-Sport Athlete of the Year.

The series will conclude next week with honors for Coach of the Year, Most Improved Athlete, Best Female Athlete and Best Male Athlete.

Categories for the inaugural C&S Media High School sports awards were selected by sports editor David Wolman, with winners announced across three weeks.

Best game: Erwin stymies Community in pitcher’s duel (April 11, 2025)

In danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2013, the Farmers’ baseball team regrouped after starting District 13-4A play with a 2-5 record, going 6-2 over their final eight regular-season games to ensure their playoff streak continued.

One of the marquee moments of Farmersville’s second-half turnaround came against eventual district champion Community.

After losing the first game against the Braves 11-7, the Farmers turned to the undisputed ace of their pitching rotation, alumnus Mason Erwin, to right the ship.

Erwin, who has won several playoff games during his time with Farmersville, delivered in a big-time game for the Farmers. The left-hander allowed one run on four hits with six strikeouts over seven innings, lifting Farmersville to a 2-1 win.

Community took a 1-0 lead on a Koren Ewing RBI double in the top of the third inning. But Erwin proceeded to settle in, and he didn’t allow another run to score.

Farmersville leveled the score at 1-1 with a Jayce Fagan RBI single in the home half of the third inning.

Alumnus Jahir Vanegas put the Farmers ahead for good with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Best finish: Farmersville stuns Sanger with furious rally (Nov. 7, 2024)

Farmersville’s football team was less than two minutes from seeing its season come to an end on its home field.

Playing Sanger in a game in which the winner would earn a playoff berth while the loser would be eliminated from playoff contention, the Indians held a 38-24 lead with 1:49 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Needing a rally to qualify for the playoffs for the second consecutive season, Farmersville scored 15 points over the game’s final 35 seconds to stun Sanger and earn a wild 39-38 victory.

Farmersville trailed 38-32 and needed to recover an onside kick to have a chance to win. Incoming junior Amare Warren did just that for the Farmers, catching the ball before going out of bounds at the Indians’ 49 with 34 seconds remaining.

At the Indians’ 11 with one second left and needing a touchdown, Farmersville rising junior quarterback Levi McAbee connected with alumnus wide receiver Drake Grames in the end zone to tie the game. The extra point, made by rising senior Christian Aguilar, clinched the win for the Farmers.

Biggest upset: Girls’ soccer earns signature win with victory over Frisco Panther Creek (Feb. 17, 2025)

For a Farmersville team that just two years ago didn’t win a district game to now being on the cusp of playoff contention, defeating a Panther Creek team that is ranked in the top 10 in Class 4A by a 3-2 final was nothing short of extraordinary, said Lady Farmers head coach Krystal Mikeska.

Panther Creek led 1-0 at halftime but Farmersville was holding their own, having multiple scoring chances that were either saved by the Lady Panthers’ goalkeeper or off target.

Farmersville continued to play with confidence.

Alumna Marlen Javan leveled the score at 1-1 with a goal. Panther Creek came right back to go back in front 2-1. Rising senior Natalie Taylor tied the score at 2-2 with a goal from 32 yards out. Alumna Ashlynn Clark completed the comeback for Farmersville with a goal with six minutes remaining.

Multi-sport athlete of the year: Amare Warren, Football/Track and Field

Whether it was on the football field or track, Warren used a combination of natural athletic ability and instincts to make an immediate impact.

Warren, who played wide receiver, defensive back, kick returner and quarterback in the “Wildcat” formation for the Farmersville football team, was named to the All-District 13-4A first team after he recorded 13 total touchdowns and 860 receiving yards.

He was also a standout for the Farmers’ track and field team.

At the District 13-4A meet, Warren broke a school record. He won the triple jump with a leap of 48 feet, 11 inches – three feet further than the previous school record of 45 feet, 11 inches, which was set by Joe Lemberg in 1999.

Warren won first place in the area meet with a leap of 47 feet, 7.5 inches and the following week at the Region II-4A meet, captured sixth place in the triple jump with a distance of 44 feet, 5 inches and also took 15^th in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 8 inches.

We are two weeks away from high school football practices officially getting underway, so teams are finding different ways to ramp up to it, like JH Rose hosting their 3rd annual Marvin Jarman 7 V 7 in Greenville. Eight teams with one goal, to get better.

The Rampants wasted no time on their home field with Jimmy Martin slinging a TD. Ryan Gieselman absolutely yoked. His star quarterback #1 Tyler Jones was money on the rollout to #5 Brennan Chambers back of the endzone, for the Marshall commit.

Terrance Saxby wanted more tenacity from his bears, his quarterback Israel Wooten tossed a dot to for 6 and wipe away the stinky defense. Ronald Pou in year two leading Bertie, he has a young offense without Zymiere Dempsey, but he’s excited to be out of year one, which is where Ryan Buie is leading South Central for the first time who had the tall order of guarding big foot for Southwest Edgecombe. Ron Cook, 5th at Farmville, he said stop making me feel old I didn’t have grey hairs in my go-t when I started, father time as the Three Amigos watched Kinston win the tournament, beating Northeastern. Aside from the great competition it was a day focused on honoring Marvin Jarman and how missed he is supporting JH Rose.

Staying in Pitt County, Holton Ahlers has announced his retirement from football according to pirate radio, the former DH Conley and ECU star went undrafted in 2022, played in the preseason for the Seahawks then followed up with the Arlington Renegades, but now has chose to hang up the cleats after nearly 14 thousand passing yards as a pirate with 97 air touchdowns. Quite a memorable career for the once Viking and Pirate.

Moving to baseball, every MLB draft, there’s always getting the call. The phone buzzes, its a random area code and the person on the other end is letting you know where your next home is, well, in this years draft, South Central Grad and UNCW pitcher trace Baker has a different story.

In the Frontier League All Star Home Run Derby, the Bird Dawgs own Stephen DiTomaso won the crown, with 22 bombs. 2nd place only reached 15 total so he crushed the competition up in try New York, a state over from his hometown in New Jersey.

We are wishing congratulations to the Kinston Lenoir 10 and under softball team that won the Dixie softball state tournament, they beat Pembroke 6–1 to win the title, now they start their fund raising campaign, so they can go to the national tournament in Louisiana next week.

Hailing from Christopher Columbus High School in Florida, Boozer is recognized for his exceptional performance, leadership and impact on and off the basketball court. He is set to continue his academic and athletic career at Duke University this fall. Hedengren, a standout from Timpview High School in Utah, became just the third female athlete in history to earn Gatorade National Player of the Year honors in both cross country and track & field ahead of her Best Female Player of the Year win, celebrating her outstanding achievements across multiple distance events, in the classroom and her community. She will further her education and compete in cross country and track & field at BYU in the fall.

“Gatorade Player of the Year recognizes exceptional athletes who are paving the way for the future of sport,” said Gatorade Chief Brand Officer Anuj Bhasin. “We’re proud to celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of this year’s group, and their bright paths ahead through a one-of-a-kind experience. For decades, these standout individuals have achieved greatness both in their sport and in their communities. We’re excited to see how Cameron and Jane carry the legacy forward.”

The Gatorade Best Player of the Year announcement caps off an exclusive, week-long experience in Los Angeles, honoring the Gatorade National Players of the Year across 12 sports. The brand rolled out the red carpet for these top high school athletes – celebrating their achievements in a way only Gatorade can. Highlights included meeting their sports heroes and Gatorade athletes, giving back to the LA community, engaging in educational and celebratory events, experiencing styling sessions, walking The ESPY Awards red carpet, and more.

This year, Gatorade’s 60-year legacy of sports science was on display at the Player of the Year Awards. Throughout the week, the 11 Gatorade National Players of the Year experienced Gatorade’s superior science in action during an immersive field day, alongside some of their favorite professional athletes including Karl-Anthony Towns, Lisa Leslie, Puka Nacua, Abby Wambach, April Ross and more. Throughout the experience, athletes participated in a variety of drills, personalized testing and analysis from the Gatorade Sports Science Institute to better understand the impact of dehydration and to receive personalized insights on their specific fueling needs.  

2024-25 GATORADE BEST PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD WINNERS
Cameron Boozer: The 6-foot-10 senior power forward led the Explorers to a 30-3 record. Also the 2022-23 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year, Boozer averaged 22.1 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.5 blocks this season and led Columbus to a fourth straight Class 7A state championship in March. Boozer was also a Naismith Trophy Award semifinalist and a member of Team USA’s Nike Hoop Summit squad.

Below are additional facts about Boozer:

• Boozer is ranked as the nation’s No. 2 recruit in the Class of 2025 by 247Sports, Rivals.com and On3.com.
• He has volunteered locally on behalf of Fellowship Church by assisting with youth services, including leading weekly bible study. He has also donated his time as a mathematics peer tutor, both in algebra and geometry.
• Boozer has maintained a 4.82 weighted GPA in the classroom.

Jane Hedengren:
(Cross Country): The 5-foot-11 senior broke the tape at the Nike Cross Nationals Final this past season, clocking a course-record time of 16:32.7 to win by a meet-record 41-second margin. Hedengren also won the Nike Cross Southwest Regionals with a meet-record time of 15:50.1 and won the UHSAA Class 5A state meet in 16:21.5, leading the Thunderbirds to the team title. The state’s returning Gatorade Girls Cross Country Player of the Year, she concluded her prep distance career as a three-time state champion.

(Track & Field): The senior distance talent won the 3000-meter run at the Nike Outdoor Nationals in a national record clocking of 8:40.03 this past season. Hedengren also set national high school records in the mile, 2-mile and 5,000-meter run this past season. On successive weekends, Hedengren clocked a 4:23.50 at the HOKA Festival of Miles and 9:17.75 in the 2-mile at the Brooks PR Invitational.

Below are additional facts about Hedengren:   

• Both the 2024-25 Gatorade National Girls Cross Country and National Girls Track & Field Player of the Year and returning Gatorade State Player of the Year for track & field, she won a pair of titles at the UHSAA state meet in the 1600- and 3200-meter events, leading the Thunderbirds to the Class 5A championship.
• Hedengren has volunteered on behalf of the Road Runner Junior Club as a coach and race day official and has also donated her time as part of multiple community service initiatives with her church youth group.
• Hedengren has maintained a 3.79 weighted GPA in the classroom.

To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student athletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com.

About The Gatorade Portfolio
The Gatorade Portfolio, a division of PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), is a connected performance and wellness ecosystem built to fuel all athletes and exercisers. Bringing together Gatorade, Propel, Evolve and Muscle Milk, the Gatorade Portfolio is the most complete offering in the category today, with a broad range of personalized solutions at every stage of the athlete journey. This integrated system of brands is built on Gatorade’s 60-year history of studying athletes and is fueling the future of athletic performance and wellness by delivering solutions across hydration, protein, energy and all-day nutrition to fuel consumers, no matter how or why they sweat. For more information and a full list of product offerings, 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 nearly $92 billion in net revenue in 2024, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo’s product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with pep+ (PepsiCo Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com, and follow on X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.

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SOURCE The Gatorade Company