Matthew Boling, Jasmine Moore Named Gatorade Track and Field Athletes of the Year – runnersworld.com

Every year, Gatorade selects one male and one female high school track athlete out of more than a million athletes to be awarded the title of Gatorade National Track and Field Player of the Year. To win the prestigious award, athletes need more than just stellar track performances on their resumes; they also have to have good grades and an altruistic spirit outside of sports.

This year, two high school phenoms from Texas checked all of those boxes. On June 27, Gatorade announced that the 2018-2019 Boys Player of the Year title was awarded to Matthew Boling, a senior at Strake Jesuit College Preparatory in Houston, Texas. Jasmine Moore, a senior at Lake Ridge High School in Mansfield, Texas, was named the 2018-2019 Girls Player of the Year.

Boling, who specializes in sprints and long jump, has been unstoppable this year. At the Texas State Championships in May, he ran the 100 meters in a wind-aided 9.98 seconds, which is the fastest 100 meters ever recorded by a American high school athlete and the sixth-fastest wind-aided time in the world of men of all ages, according to a press release provided to Runner’s World by Gatorade. Footage of Boling’s blistering race—which he led from start to finish—went viral online after the race.

In the same meet, Boling pulled his 4×400 team to victory by splitting 44.75 seconds in the anchor leg of the relay, and won the long jump with a mark of 25 feet, 4.5 inches. His long jump personal best of 26 feet, 3.5 inches ranked 2nd in the nation this year, as well as 2nd in the under-20 category, according to Gatorade.

Off the track, Boling is also impressive. He holds a 4.23 GPA in class, and spends his free time working as a camp counselor and volunteering with local nonprofits. This fall, he is heading to the University of Georgia, where he’ll be competing on the track team.

“We look forward to seeing Matthew have continued success in sports and in life,” Gatorade senior vice president and general manager Brett O’Brien said in the release.

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On the women’s side, Jasmine Moore of Mansfield, Texas, a town outside of Dallas, dominated her field in jumping this year. The senior won both the triple jump and long jump at the Texas State Championships this past May, setting marks of 44 feet, 10 inches in triple jump and 20 feet, 7 inches in long jump. Like Boling, she also signed on to compete at the University of Georgia starting this fall.

In the classroom, Moore maintains an “A” grade average. She fills her time by volunteering at local animal shelters and missions, and helps restore playgrounds for children.

“For the Gatorade Player of the Year award, we look for student-athletes that stand out in their sport, at school, and in their community, and Jasmine Moore does just that,” said O’Brien. “Not only is Jasmine one of the best high school girls track and field athletes in the country, but she is also a model student in the classroom and someone to look up to in her community.”

Boling and Moore are now finalists for the Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year competition, which features the top boy and girl athletes from 12 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). Out of the 12 finalists for each gender, one boy and girl will be crowned High School Athlete of the Year at a ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards on July 10.