Sierra Lutheran runner honored by Gatorade award

For the second-consecutive year, Sierra Lutheran High School senior Wade Meddles has been named the Gatorade Nevada Boys' Cross Country Runner of the Year.

The award, which recognizes not only athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the race course, distinguishes Meddles as Nevada's best high school boys' cross country racer.

He is also now a finalist for the Gatorade National Boys' Cross Country Runner of the Year award, which will be announced later in January.

Meddles was the highest Nevada finisher ever at the national Foot Locker Cross Country Championships this past season, capturing third place with a time of 15:24 to earn All-American honors.

He won his second-consecutive Class 2A state title in 16:06 and won the 2009 Nike Cross Nationals Southwest Regional Championship and took second at the Foot Locker West Regional.

Meddles has maintained a B average in the classroom and has volunteered on behalf of multiple community service intiatives in association with his school's Applied Christianity Outreach Team.

"No one in Nevada has ever done what he's done in cross country," Sierra Lutheran coach Dave Marson said. "He's still learning, but he's a very dedicated runner with a lot of confidence in his abilities. He's also a very humble kid and no one works harder."

Meddles has signed a letter of intent to compete on athletic scholarship for Azusa Pacific University in the fall.

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls' volleyball, cross country, basketball, soccer, baseball, softball and track & field.

They award one national player of the year in each sport .

The selection process is administered by 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.

The boys' cross country award was established in 2007 and Meddles and Galena's Bryan Tibaduiza are the only athletes to ever win it.