Sonoma Valley nominated four of its own to All-Empire awards

Sonoma Valley High’s athletic department recently nominated four senior athletes as Athlete of the Year, and Scholar Athlete of the Year, for the annual Press Democrat’s All-Empire competition. Though four other athletes were selected for the county-wide contest, Sonoma is and should be proud of Gabriella Knudsen and Jack Boydell, as Scholar Athletes; and Annie Neles and Tyler Winslow, as Athletes of the Year.

Gabby Knudsen has been on the Dragons volleyball team each of her four years at SVHS, qualifying for the NCS tournament each year. She was a member of the SCL championship volleyball team as a sophomore, which went undefeated, and nominated as captain by her team as a senior. As a senior, Gabby added softball to her athletic resume. She has also worked as a summer camp counselor with Young Life, and is president of the First Saturdays Club, doing community volunteer work. She will be starting at SRJC next fall, where she’s currently practicing as a walk-on in volleyball.

“Having been nominated for scholar athlete of the year put a huge smile on my face!” said Knudsen. “I am incredibly thankful and honored that my hard work hasn’t gone unseen. I definitely felt support from my coaches, school and community.”

Jack Boydell played basketball all four years at the school, and was on the baseball team three of them, though not as a senior. He was a first team all-league selection for the Vine Valley Athletic League (VVAL) in basketball this year, and previously was a second-team all-league player in the Sonoma County League (SCL). He also sports a 4.0 unweighted GPA and is the school’s salutatorian for the 2019 graduating class. Boydell plans to study economics and business at Willamette University in Oregon next school year.

Boydell himself said it was an honor to be nominated, and added, “My athletic experience at the high school has been nothing short of amazing as coaches have become mentors, challenging me and supporting me in accomplishing my goal of playing at the next level.”

Annie Neles has been a two-sport star at Sonoma Valley the past two years – second team all-league in basketball (VVAL) and her team’s Defensive Player of the year, both in 2018. She’s also the co-captain of the 2019 Dragons softball team (the team also includes Knudsen, and is currently headed for the VVAL championship game on May 25) and played on the school’s varsity soccer team in her freshman and sophomore years. She’s active in FFA and president of the Sonoma Valley 4-H Club, takes part in Sonoma Valley Broadway Bound Kids, and plans to study viticulture and ecology in college.

“Being nominated for athlete of year was such an honor,” said Neles. “It really meant a lot to me to be acknowledged for my hard work and passion for sports.”

Tyler Winslow is known at SVHS as both a wrestler and a football player. He was team co-captain for the Dragons football team the last two years, and won all-league defensive team honors; he was also the SCL defensive player of the year as a junior. As a wrestler he never lost a league match in four years, winning the league title at his weight each of those years. He was North Coast champion at 220 pounds as a junior, and ranked first in the North Coast as a senior and No. 10 in the state. He will attend Montana State and compete in football as a walk-on athlete.

Winslow too said he was honored to be selected, adding, “it just shows some recognition of all the countless hours of work I’ve put into my craft of athletics.”

The Athlete of the Year ceremonies were held in Santa Rosa on May 7. All nominated athletes were celebrated, but the final region-wide awards went to students from Santa Rosa, Cloverdale, Rohnert Park and Upper Lake.