On May 20 in Forsyth Park, some of Savannah’s best and brightest 8th grade student-athletes were honored for achievements in a trio of categories that each athlete excelled at in the 2020-21 academic year.
Presented by The Exchange Club of Savannah and sponsored by Friday Health Plans, The DeWitt Award annually celebrates the area’s top eighth grade talent by awarding students who excel in academics, community service and athletics.
Ava Thomas from The STEM Academy at Bartlett was the female public school athlete of the year and Harris Stone from Savannah Country Day School was chosen as the private school female athlete of the year.
John Lilly from Blessed Sacrament School and Harry “Zo” Smalls Jr. fromSavannah Christian were co-winners of the male athlete of the year award for private schools while Hubert Middle School’s Makai Joyner picked up public school male athlete of the year honors.
“We do all of this because we want to encourage the kids are doing it the right way, in every way,” said DeWitt on Thursday. “When you are 13 or 14 (years old), it might be easy to be a stud on the field or on the court. It’s not easy to be a stud in the community and in the classroom.
“This year, we have a group of student-athletes who really stand out academically, off the field and on it. These kids just ‘get it.’”
DeWitt said that a candidate pool of student-athletes meeting minimum criteria marks for each category is collected and narrowed down with the help of school Athletic Directors and a clear method for determining who ultimately makes the final cut. The award began in 2019 and for the first time this year, DeWitt said, each student-athlete was able to receive more than just a trophy. DICK’s Sporting Goods gift cards were given to each winner with the help of sponsors.
In later stages of judging, in evaluating the relative merits of top contenders, winners are identified and selected based upon a sixty percent (60%) weighting of overall athletic resume (including a primary assessment of the current athletic year) along with a forty percent (40%) weighting of academic achievement and character.
Visit www.savathleteofyear.com to learn more about the selection process and visit Dewitt Award Recipients to learn more about this year's Dewitt Award recipients.
Follow Travis Jaudon on Twitter & Instagram @JaudonSports and contact him at travisLjaudon@gmail.com.
