2016 siac mvp nominees boys erik Bell bosse high school

Erik Bell was a two-sport standout for the Bulldogs. He was an outstanding player and leaders for both his soccer and basketball teams at Bosse. Bell was a team leader for Bosse and helped lead them to a berth in the 2016 State Finals. He is the all-time assist leader for the school. Erik also finished second in goals for a season (19) during his senior year. He was the state leader in assists for the 2015-16 basketball season. Bell was first team All-SIAC in soccer and second team All-SIAC in basketball.

Bell is the son of Erik Bell and Loretta Lang. He graduated number one in his class at Bosse. Erik was captain of both his soccer and basketball teams. Bell took part in the IHSAA Student Leadership Conference and was a part of the Unified Track team.

Matthew Bertram CASTLE HIGH SCHOOL

Matt was a four-year starter for the Knights in baseball and a three-year standout in soccer. He was twice named All-State, All-SIAC and All-Metro as a goalie. Bertram was a Finalist for the Indiana High School Soccer player of the year as a senior and was named the Male Athlete of the Year at Castle in 2016. He won four letters in baseball and three letters in soccer.

Bertram is the son of John and Sara Bertram. He graduated in the top 10 % of his class and was a member of the National Honor Society. Matt was team captain in both baseball and soccer and earned an Academic Honors diploma. Bertram was award the Crest Award at Castle, the highest honor possible. Matt will attend the University of Southern Indiana on a soccer scholarship.

Chas Buening CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL

Chas was a two-sport standout in basketball and football for Central. He was a four-year varsity player on the hardwood and a three-year starter in football. Buening was twice names All-State in football. He was All-SIAC, All-Metro and All-City on the gridiron. Chas also was named All-City and All-SIAC in basketball as well as Academic All-City in both sports.

Buening completed his academic career in the top 15 % of his graduating class at Central. He was academic All-City in football, basketball and track. Chas was team captain in both football and basketball for two seasons, was a member of the National Honor Society and was the Kiwanis Award winner in basketball for the Bears.

C.J. Hedgepeth HARRISON HIGH SCHOOL

C.J. starred for the Warriors in both football and basketball. He was All-SIAC in basketball and All-City in football. Hedgepeth was named to the 2015 4A All-State football squad and had the most punt return yards in the state of Indiana as a senior. He helped lead the Warriors to the 2015 4A Sectional title. Hedgepeth was the Kiwanis Award Winner in both football and basketball as a senior.

Hedgepeth is the son of Chris and Jackie Hedgepeth. He ranked in the upper half of his graduating class and served as a Boy’s and Girls’ Club volunteer. C.J. is also active in the New Hope Baptist Church.

Jackson Pokorney MATER DEI HIGH SCHOOL

Jackson was a standout for the Wildcats in two sports. On the football field, he won two varsity letters and was named All-SIAC, All-Metro and 1^st Team All-State as a senior. He led the SIAC in yards per catch at 27.5. In baseball, Pokorney also lettered twice and was first team All-SIAC as well as All-State. Jackson led the SIAC in hitting as a senior with a .507 average, an .808 slugging percentage and a.600 on-base percentage.

Pokorney is the son of Robert and Lisa Pokorney. He was academic All-City and had the highest ACT score on his football and baseball teams. Jackson was the 2016 Kiwanis Award winner and served as a volunteer for several youth camps. Pokorney was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 29^th round and signed to play for the Braves in rookie ball in the Gulf Coast League in Orlando, Florida.

Will Durchholz MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL

Will was a two-sport standout in football and baseball at Memorial. He was a four-year letter winner in both sports as well as captain for both. Durchholz was first team All-SIAC and All-Metro in football and a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete. He returned from two devastating knee injuries in football to help lead the Tigers to Sectional and Regional titles in baseball.

Durchholz is the son of Bob and Julie Durchholz. He was a Kiwanis Award winner in baseball and graduated in the top 15 % of his senior class at Memorial. Will was a National Honor Society member and Senior Class Vice President. He served on Student Council and was awarded the Don Ping Athletic Award as the top male athlete in his senior year.

Tyler Hagedorn NORTH HIGH SCHOOL

Tyler Hagedorn starred in two sports for the Huskies. In addition to being a member of the basketball team, Tyler was a standout for North on the baseball diamond. He was a three-year starter in baseball and was named the SIAC Metro Player of the Year as a junior. Hagedorn was also an All-SIAC selection as well as captain of both the football and basketball teams.

Hagedorn is the son of Gene and Julie Hagedorn. He was named Kiwanis Award winner in 2016. Tyler was a member of the North High School Student Athletic Council. Tyler has accepted a scholarship to play baseball at the University of Southern Indiana.

Dru Smith REITZ HIGH SCHOOL

Dru Smith was a standout player for the Reitz Panther basketball team during a great run of regular season and tournament success. He helped lead the Panthers to the 4A basketball title game as a junior. Smith was All-SIAC and All-Metro as a junior and senior. He was named to the Indiana Junior All-Stars as well as being named to the Indianapolis Star Indiana All-Star squad. Dru was named the SIAC All-Metro player of the year as a senior as well as being selected All-State.