Natali Foster, Nick Singleton are Reading Eagle Athletes of the Year

Jun. 30—If one thread connects Natali Foster and Nick Singleton, it's their desire to deflect praise when it comes to their athletic accomplishments.

"I would just like to thank my teammates, my family, friends, coaches, everybody who has ever helped me to get to this point," said Foster, a recent Twin Valley grad and three-sport standout. "I would not have been able to reach any of my goals without them. I just wanted them to know that they're a big part of my life and I really appreciate all of them."

"They mean a lot," said Singleton, the stellar running back and recent Gov. Mifflin grad following the presentation of a bundle of Maxwell Club awards in March. "I won them with the help of my teammates, my coaches and my family. Without all of them, I wouldn't be sitting here with all of these awards."

Now, the two are connected in a more tangible way after being selected as the female and male recipients of the 17th annual Reading Eagle Athlete of the Year Awards.

Each will receive a $1,000 scholarship from the Reading Eagle and Colonial Fitness, the award co-sponsor. Each of the 10 finalists will receive a plaque of recognition.

Foster and Singleton were selected from a field of nearly three dozen athletes who were nominated by their schools. The awards are based on athletic performance, character and leadership displayed throughout the 2021-22 school year. Each Berks school was invited to nominate up to four athletes.

The award winners, finalists and semifinalists were selected by a committee of the Reading Eagle sports staff and a representative from Colonial Fitness.

The other female finalists were Fleetwood's Megan Brattley, Wyomissing's Hannah Hurleman, Twin Valley's Anna Kaplan and Schuylkill Valley's Madison Ziska.

The other male finalists were Exeter's Colin Payne, Schuylkill Valley's Luke Seymour. Wyomissing's Amory Thompson and Exeter's Ty Yocum.

The other female semifinalists were Exeter's Taylor Mentzer and Megan Unruh. The other male semifinalists were Berks Catholic's Christian Cacchione and Gov. Mifflin's Ben Gerhard.

Foster, also a finalist last year, capped her outstanding high school athletic career by being named the Berks Player of the Year in field hockey (for the second straight season), and an All-Berks pick in girls basketball and softball. She helped all three of her teams reach the county, District 3 and PIAA playoffs.

In field hockey, the sport Foster will play at Drexel, she led the Raiders (27-2) to Berks, District 3 Class 2A and PIAA Class 2A championships. She led the county in goals (64), assists (51) and points (179), and was an All-State selection.

In Twin Valley's 3-2 win over Gwynedd Mercy Academy in the PIAA final, Foster scored two goals in the third quarter, including the eventual winning goal with 3:16 left.

She finished her career with 140 goals, second all-time in Berks, and 126 assists, tops all-time in Berks.

In basketball, she averaged a team-high 13.4 points per game and was a defensive force as Twin Valley (16-11) finished sixth in District 3 Class 5A.

In softball, she played center field and hit .457 with 12 doubles, 27 runs and 42 RBIs as the Raiders (17-9) finished as the District 3 Class 5A runners-up.

"As outstanding as she is in three different sports, playing at least an all-county level in all three sports, she is very humble," Twin Valley girls basketball coach Doug Myer said. "She loves to be around her teammates. Being on a sports team is where she seems her happiest."

Singleton, already causing a buzz as a 6-0, 219-pound freshman at Penn State, had a senior season unparalleled in Berks football history.

He was named the 2021 Gatorade National High School Player of the Year and the Maxwell Football Club National High School Offensive Player of the Year — firsts for a Berks athlete — after running for 2,059 yards (12.7 yards per carry), scoring 44 touchdowns and leading Gov. Mifflin to a 10-1 record, the Berks Football League Section 1 title and the District 3 Class 5A final.

In earning the Gatorade award, he joined an impressive list of athletes who have won it, including Peyton Manning, Kyler Murray, Tim Couch and Joe Mauer. Berwick's Ron Powlus (1992-93) and Gateway's Curtis Bray (1987-88) were the only other winners from Pennsylvania.

He made Maxwell Club history when he became the first player to win its national honor, the Jim Henry Award as the outstanding high school player in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, and its Pennsylvania Player of the Year award.

He also was named the Adidas All-American Bowl Offensive Player of the Year in San Antonio, Texas.

Singleton, a four-time All-Berks pick and Berks Player of the Year as a junior and senior, finished his high school career with Berks records of 6,326 yards rushing and 116 touchdowns.

Needless to say, he also was an All-State selection in Class 5A.

He enrolled at Penn State in January.

"Nick has written the book about what a complete running back is," Gov. Mifflin coach Jeff Lang said. "This kid has size, strength and speed. He'll run you over. He'll stiff-arm you to the ground. He'll run past you and pull away from defenses. He'll put a move on you or jump over you.

"He is the complete package."