Annie Nabwe named the 2021-22 Gatorade Track and Field POY

Maxwell O'Neill, The Jamestown Sun, N.D.
·2 min read

Jul. 1—JAMESTOWN — One of the greatest athletes to ever walk through the doors of Jamestown High School is being honored for her accomplishments once again.

Annie Nabwe set a goal of being named the 2021-22 Gatorade North Dakota Girls Track and Field Player of the Year and she accomplished just that.

Nabwe accomplished the feat after being named the Class A State Champion in the shot put, setting a state record with a throw of 49 feet, 10 inches. She also won state titles in the javelin and discus.

Nabwe said she first saw the news on Twitter.

"It means a lot getting the award because you have to beat the best of the best in the state," Nabwe said. "It means a lot to be given the award because it shows all of your hard work is paying off and I have appreciation for that."

This is not Nabwe's first time winning the award as she also earned it for the 2020-21 season. She is the eighth multi-time winner of the award and continues a streak dating back to the 2015-16 season of repeat winners after Grand Forks Central's Karly Ackley (15-17) and Red River's Shelby Frank (17-20).

"Right now, I feel grateful to my coaches and everyone who pushed me," Nabwe said. "It means that I've accomplished something. It's been my dream to always win it back to back so it means a lot."

Throughout her time with the Blue Jays program, head coach Mike Dietz said he has seen Nabwe's skills grow and expand from her freshman year to her senior year. Dietz specifically highlighted her coachability as one of her best qualities. Dietz also called Nabwe a once-in-a-career athlete.

"Her athletic ability, she's a unicorn that way ... ." Dietz said. "If you talked to her a lot, you would not expect that she's been one of the best athletes that this state's ever had. She's willing to put the work in and to be really good at something. She's super competitive, despite how quiet she is, she's ultra competitive."

As Nabwe prepares to enroll at the University of Minnesota in the fall and compete for the team's NCAA Division I track and field team, she said this recognition will fuel her to continue improving. Nabwe is the fourth Gopher track and field athlete to be given the honor by Gatorade since 2018 and second in the class of 2022 joining Minnesota boys winner Ramy Ayoub.

"It gives me a lot of confidence," Nabwe said. "It will push me to do better next year. I am redshirting next year so I won't be competing much so during that time it gives me confidence to get better and do my best."