Editor's note
Online sports producer Drew McCullough is spending his summer digging through Star archives and compiling a list of every high school athlete of the year since 1999. Today: 2004-05.
High School Reunion: 2004-05 Athletes of the Year
Here's a look at the Arizona Daily Star's 2004-05 high school athletes of the year.
Editor's note
Football player of the year
Football player of the year
Name: Jack Darlington
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Football
From the archives: No Southern Arizona football player was more complete than Salpointe Catholic’s Jack Darlington.
As a senior, Darlington led Salpointe in receptions (45) and receiving yards (1,079), and scored nine touchdowns as the Lancers advanced to the quarterfinals of the Class 5A state playoffs.
When he was not posting nearly one-fourth of Salpointe’s total offensive yards, Darlington also played cornerback and returned punts.
He helped Salpointe clinch its third straight region title by returning four punts for 176 yards, including a 70-yarder for a touchdown, in the Lancers’ Week 11 win over Mountain View.
Darlington, who also plays basketball and baseball, is planning to play football in college. — Star staff, 2004
Girls volleyball player of the year
Girls volleyball player of the year
Name: Michelle McLain
School: Ironwood Ridge
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls volleyball
From the archives: Ironwood Ridge coach Bill Lang perfectly summed up the exploits of his setter and captain, Michelle McLain: "She did more for her program than anyone else in the state. She is the reason why we made it to the (4A) state final." This season, McLain put a stranglehold on her school records in assists, aces and blocks as the Nighthawks marched to a tie for the 4A Sonoran Region title before losing to Scottsdale Chaparral in the state championship match. — Star staff, 2004
Boys cross country runner of the year
Boys cross country runner of the year
Name: Kenny Cormier
School: Douglas
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys cross country
From the archives: A two-time winner of this award, Kenny Cormier of Douglas added to his status as Southern Arizona's best boys distance runner by winning the 4A state meet last month. He won the 4A Kino meet for the second straight year. — Star staff, 2004
Girls cross country runner of the year
Girls cross country runner of the year
Name: Noelle Lopez
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls cross country
From the archives: Salpointe Catholic's Noelle Lopez recovered from an illness at the 5A Southern Region meet (fourth place) to finish second at the 5A state meet. — Star staff, 2004
Boys golfer of the year
Boys golfer of the year
Name: Jakob McKinley
School: Ironwood Ridge
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys golf
From the archives: Jakob McKinley of Ironwood Ridge captured the 4A Sonoran championship after beating Rincon/University's Jorge Castelo in a one-hole playoff. McKinley then fired a two-day 145 at the 4A state tourney to tie with Castelo in seventh place, tops among Southern Arizona. — Star staff, 2004
Girls golfer of the year
Girls golfer of the year
Name: LaRae Smith
School: Sierra Vista Buena
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls golf
From the archives: Winning the 5A Southern Region individual title allowed LaRae Smith to help the Sierra Vista Buena girls take the team crown as well. No local player was better at the state tournament (sixth place). — Star staff, 2004
Boys swimmer of the year
Boys swimmer of the year
Name: Josh Arreguin
School: Catalina Foothills
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys swimming and diving
From the archives: No one matched the performance of Catalina Foothills' Josh Arreguin at the 4A state meet last month. He won the 200-meter individual medley and the 100 breast stroke finals, while also being a part of two winning relay teams for the state champion Falcons. — Star staff, 2004
Girls swimmer of the year
Girls swimmer of the year
Name: Ellie Doran
School: Catalina Foothills
Year in school: Sophomore
Sport: Girls swimming and diving
From the archives: Ellie Doran of Foothills won 4A Kino region titles in the 200 IM and 500 freestyle before helping Foothills earn its fifth consecutive state crown by swimming a leg of the first-place 200 free relay team. — Star staff, 2004
Boys basketball player of the year
Boys basketball player of the year
Name: Devin Stewart
School: Santa Rita
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys basketball
From the archives: A list of things that Stewart did better than any other player in Southern Arizona: scoring, defending, creating open shots for teammates, getting to the free-throw line, and — most important of all — winning.
The standout guard guided Santa Rita to the Class 4A state championship game, where it lost to Glendale Apollo. But without Stewart's far-reaching talents, the Eagles would have been mere spectators for much of the postseason. — Star staff, 2005
Girls basketball player of the year
Girls basketball player of the year
Name: Kate Engelbrecht
School: Catalina Foothills
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls basketball
From the archives: As a senior, the Arizona State signee averaged 15.7 points per game, along with more than five rebounds and four assists.
Her ability with and without the ball was a major reason the Falcons won the 4A Kino Region tournament and advanced to the state quarterfinals. Later she won the state three-point shootout.
In four years as a varsity starter, Engelbrecht scored close to 2,000 points. — Star staff, 2005
Boys soccer player of the year
Boys soccer player of the year
Name: C.J. Kaufman
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys soccer
From the archives: In his four years at Salpointe, Kaufman has been asked to play many roles but none may have been more difficult than the leadership position he took this year. Kaufman not only helped offensively but also helped to lead a young defense in one of the most difficult regions in the state.
As a result, Kaufman helped lead Salpointe Catholic to an undefeated 5A Southern Region record.
The Lancers lost to Gilbert in the quarterfinals but would not have made it that far if it were not for the play of Kaufman. He scored two goals in the Lancers' 3-2 victory over Yuma in a performance that coach Wolfgang Weber described as "ranking up there with the best in the 23 years that I have been here." — Star staff, 2005
Girls soccer player of the year
Girls soccer player of the year
Name: Jenna Merideth
School: Catalina Foothills
Year in school: Junior
Sport: Girls soccer
From the archives: There were plenty of players who contributed to Foothills' near flawless run to the Class 4A state championship, but perhaps none was as integral as Merideth.
She scored five goals in four state tournament games for the Falcons (24-1-1), including the go-ahead strike in a win over Scottsdale Chaparral to put her team in the state title game. — Star staff, 2005
Wrestlers of the year
Wrestlers of the year
Name: Nick Gallick
School: Sunnyside
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Wrestling
From the archives: Gallick won his fourth straight state wrestling title. Only 17 other wrestlers in program history have accomplished that feat. — Star staff, 2005
Name: Matt Lopez
School: Sunnyside
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Wrestling
From the archives: Lopez won his fourth straight state wrestling title. Only 17 other wrestlers in program history have accomplished that feat. — Star staff, 2005
Baseball player of the year
Baseball player of the year
Name: John James
School: Catalina Foothills
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Baseball
From the archives: The Falcons' ace capped his high school career by going 11-2 and leading Foothills to a berth in the Class 4A state championship game. James, pictured downtown, has been scouted by the diamondbacks and the Brewers and could be taken in this summer's amateur draft. — Star staff, 2005
Softball players of the year
Softball players of the year
Name: Dana Alcocer
School: Canyon del Oro
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Softball
From the archives: Alcocer piloted CDO to the 5A state title with an 18-3 record and nine homers. — Star staff, 2005
Name: Valerie George
School: Sabino
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Softball
From the archives: George was a perfect 29-0 as Sabino won the 4A crown. — Star staff, 2005
Boys tennis player of the year
Boys tennis player of the year
Name: Tommy McGeorge
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys tennis
From the archives: After playing doubles in 2004, McGeorge stepped up and took the Class 5A state singles crown as a junior. McGeorge, pictured at the old Farmer John meats plant on Grant Road, also led the Lancers to a state team title. — Star staff, 2005
Girls tennis player of the year
Girls tennis player of the year
Name: Torrie Browning
School: Ironwood Ridge
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls tennis
From the archives: After struggling in the Class 4A regionals, the Nighthawks' senior ace added to her illustrious prep career by winning her second straight state singles title. Browning, pictured near the UA's Campus Agricultural Center on Campbell Avenue, will attend Wichita State on a tennis scholarship. — Star staff, 2005
Boys track athlete of the year
Boys track athlete of the year
Name: Kenny Cormier
School: Douglas
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys track and field
From the archives: The Bulldogs' star entered the 2005 season as one of the most accomplished runners in state history and outdid himself as a senior. Cormier, pictured near 'D Hill' in Douglas, took 4A state crowns in four events earlier this month. — Star staff, 2005
Girls track athlete of the year
Girls track athlete of the year
Name: Ashley Milligan
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls track and field
From the archives: The Lancers' senior stepped up in the Class 4A Southern Regionals. Milligan, pictured at Sabino Canyon, took the 100 meters, the 200 meters and the 400 meters to lead her team to a region title. — Star staff, 2005
Boys volleyball player of the year
Boys volleyball player of the year
Name: Steven Madsen
School: Canyon del Oro
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Boys volleyball
From the archives: As the top returner on the area's powerhouse team, Madsen was expected to stand tall in 2005. Madsen, pictured at the lumberjack statue on Stone Avenue, did just that, leading the Dorados to a berth in the Class 4A/5A state title game. — Star staff, 2005
More High School Reunions
Click the photo below to check out more athletes of the year in our "High School Reunion" series.
2004 girls volleyball player of the year
2004 girls volleyball player of the year
Name: Michelle McLain
School: Ironwood Ridge
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls volleyball
From the archives: Ironwood Ridge coach Bill Lang perfectly summed up the exploits of his setter and captain, Michelle McLain: "She did more for her program than anyone else in the state. She is the reason why we made it to the (4A) state final." This season, McLain put a stranglehold on her school records in assists, aces and blocks as the Nighthawks marched to a tie for the 4A Sonoran Region title before losing to Scottsdale Chaparral in the state championship match. — Star staff, 2004
2004 football player of the year
2004 football player of the year
Name: Jack Darlington
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Football
From the archives: No Southern Arizona football player was more complete than Salpointe Catholic’s Jack Darlington.
As a senior, Darlington led Salpointe in receptions (45) and receiving yards (1,079), and scored nine touchdowns as the Lancers advanced to the quarterfinals of the Class 5A state playoffs.
When he was not posting nearly one-fourth of Salpointe’s total offensive yards, Darlington also played cornerback and returned punts.
He helped Salpointe clinch its third straight region title by returning four punts for 176 yards, including a 70-yarder for a touchdown, in the Lancers’ Week 11 win over Mountain View.
Darlington, who also plays basketball and baseball, is planning to play football in college. — Star staff, 2004
2004 girls cross country runner of the year
2004 girls cross country runner of the year
Name: Noelle Lopez
School: Salpointe Catholic
Year in school: Senior
Sport: Girls cross country
From the archives: Salpointe Catholic's Noelle Lopez recovered from an illness at the 5A Southern Region meet (fourth place) to finish second at the 5A state meet. — Star staff, 2004
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