2020 Oregon Sports Awards Wrap Up
This spring Sport Oregon and NBC Sports Northwest once again partnered to celebrate local athletes and coaches through the 2020 Oregon Sports Awards, now in its 68th year of existence. Exclusive 2020 award announcements and winner interviews aired on NBC Sports Northwest and Rip City Radio 620AM, in lieu of a live event. Award-winners were revealed daily on The Brian Noe Show every between May 18 and June 3, and were also featured on NBCSportsNorthwest.com and the @ORSportsAwards and @NBCSNorthwest Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Due to the cancellation of spring prep and college sports and the suspension of professional sports in response to COVID-19, the awards list was modified from previous years. Spring prep sports awards and the Harry Glickman Award honoring an outstanding professional athlete of the year were eliminated for 2020. Twenty-one awards were presented on-air, including the first-ever Female Prep Wrestler of the Year award as well as the Lou Burge Female Special Olympics Athlete of the Year.
Finalists were nominated and selected through a statewide voting panel consisting of local TV, radio and sports journalists, and respected sports professionals. 2020 award categories and winners are listed below. To read more about each winner and their achievements, please visit the Oregon Sports Awards website here. More information about the vote, the event’s history and each individual award can also be found at the Oregon Sports Award website. Sport Oregon plans to return to a live format of the awards show in 2021.
2020 Oregon Sports Awards Winners:
Lou Burge Male Special Olympic Athlete of the Year: C.J. Billings
Lou Burge Female Special Olympic Athlete of the Year: Deborah Muno
Prep Football Player of the Year: Casey Filkins | Lake Oswego
Prep Volleyball Player of the Year: Izzi Szulczewski | Mountainside
Prep Soccer Player of the Year (Female): Callan Harrington | Jesuit
Prep Soccer Player of the Year (Male): Edgar Monroy | Corvallis
Prep Cross-Country Runner of the Year (Female): Fiona Max |Summit
Prep Cross-Country Runner of the Year (Male): Evan Holland | Ashland
Prep Wrestler of the Year (Female): Destiny Rodriguez |West Linn
Prep Wrestler of the Year (Male): Santos Cantu | Crescent Valley
Prep Basketball Player of the Year (Female): McKelle Meek | Southridge
Prep Basketball Player of the Year (Male): Nathan Bittle | Crater
Prep Swimmer of the Year (Female): Kaitlyn Dobler | Aloha
Prep Swimmer of the Year (Male): Luke Bachard | Newport
Ad Rutschman Small College Athlete of the Year (Female): Taylor Ristvedt | Southern Oregon University
Ad Rutschman Small College Athlete of the Year (Male)-Tied Vote: Mitchell Fink | Oregon Technical Institute, Wyatt Smith | Linfield College
Bill Hayward Amateur Athlete of the Year (Female): Sabrina Ionescu | University of Oregon
Bill Hayward Amateur Athlete of the Year (Male): Payton Pritchard | University of Oregon
Slats Gill Sportsperson of the Year: Kelly Graves | University of Oregon
George Pasero Teams of the Year: University of Oregon Football, University of Oregon Women’s Basketball
DNA Dedication to Oregon Sports: Dave Gunderson | Hopscotch Foundation