A dedicated ESPNHS team managed the Gatorade State Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year selection process, resulting in winners based on the program's three pillars: athletic production and impact in the 2012 season, high academic achievement and exemplary personal character.
For his 50 fellow Gatorade State Boys Track & Field Athletes of the Year winners, click here.
THE WINNER: Chase Lamers
THE BASICS
School: Rogers (Ark.)
Grade: Junior
Event(s): Sprinter
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 175 pounds
THE PILLARS
Athletic achievement: Lamers won the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.08 seconds and the 200-meter dash in 22.27 this spring, leading the Mountaineers to a fourth-place finish as a team at the Class 7A state meet. The 2012 Northwest Arkansas Media Big 6 Boys Track Runner of the Year, Lamers also won the 100 (11.04) and the 200 (22.24) at the Class 7A West Conference Meet.
Academic excellence: Lamers has maintained a 3.43 GPA in the classroom.
Exemplary character: He has volunteered locally on behalf of the National Association for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments (NAPVI), the Arkansas Crisis Center and the Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
THE PRAISE
“Chase Lamers emerged as a top sprinter in Arkansas this spring,” said Drew Yoakum, head coach at Fayetteville (Ark.). “Week to week, you could just see him getting better and better. He showed up at the start of the season and really impressed all year.”
THE FUTURE: Lamers will begin his senior year of high school this fall.
