Hamilton’s Marcus Paulson recently received a pleasant surprise in the mail: The award for being named the Gatorade Wisconsin Runner of the Year.
“I was really surprised,” he said of the award, which he received approximately two weeks ago.
Paulson won the state Division I cross country meet last fall and followed that up by finishing in second place at the Nike Cross Nationals Heartland Regional championships, crossing the line in 15:37. He also qualified for the NXN Finals, where he took 33rd place in 15:47.30.
Paulson is the first recipient of the award to be chosen from Hamilton High School.
According to information from the school district, the award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the racecourse. It distinguishes Paulson as Wisconsin’s best high school boys cross country runner. He is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year award to be announced this year.
Paulson has maintained a 3.38 GPA in the classroom. An active member of his church community, the National Honor Society and the German National Honor Society, he has volunteered working with Alzheimer’s patients and as local youth basketball coach and referee.
Paulson was nominated for the award by his coach, Andy Bosley
"Paulson is one of the most dedicated athletes I’ve ever been around," said Bosley said. "Everything he has accomplished has come through hard work, attention to detail and good planning."
Paulson said that the more he learns about the award, the more excited he is to have been selected to receive it.
“It’s a really big accomplishment in my book,” he said.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program, in its 25th year, annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by ESPN RISE and the Gatorade high school sports leadership team, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.