Athletes of the Year, Eagle of the Year, and Scholar Athletes of the Year were announced last week

TEMPLETON — Templeton High School (THS) celebrated its top Class of 2022 students last week. Awards were given out for Athlete of the Year, Scholar Athlete of the Year, and Eagle of the Year.

Scholar Athletes of the Year went to Ashlyn Janzen and John Nicolson. 

John Nicholson had quite a successful year, as he was also named the 2022 valedictorian. He runs on the track team in the spring, with the 400 meters his main event. In the fall, Nicholson was the center defender on the soccer team. 

Both teams made it to CIF this year.

“We had good seasons for both sports this year. It was a good way to hand it off,” said Nicholson.

Nicholson will be attending the UC Santa Barbara, where he plans to continue playing club soccer and surfing.

Ashlyn Janzen says she was surprised when her name was called as the female Scholar Athlete of the Year.

“I was so honored to be honored like that by the athletic director,” said Janzen, “It’s cool to watch all the four years of hard work and practicing in the off-time and keeping up with studies … it was a great way to tie up senior year and sports. I was grateful for the experience.”

Janzen played tennis and basketball all four years of high school. She was a four-year starter on the Eagles varsity basketball team, playing power and small forward. She played any open position for her senior year, adding some variety under her belt.

After graduation, Janzen will be joining her sister at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, where she will be studying business management.

“I know from my experience with sports that I thrive in leadership and teamwork areas, so the people or management side of business is something I am going to look into doing,” said Janzen.

Janzen’s advice to younger athletes and students is to get involved and stay involved because the hard work will pay off in the end.

“The community there was amazing, and I loved the sport,” she said. “It grew me so much as a person.”

Maddie Bobbitt was named Templeton Eagles’ Female Athlete of the Year.

“I was extremely grateful and very happy that my coaches saw me in that light,” said Bobbitt, “I have been so thankful for all of my coaches throughout high school because they have definitely have been my role models for me.”

Bobbitt played soccer all four years of high school, adding cross country and track to her resume in her junior year.

In the fall, Bobbitt will be attending UC Berkeley to study environmental science. This summer, Bobbitt will be using a training plan developed by her coaches with hopes to walk on the cross country team at Berkeley.

Bobbitt’s advice to younger classmates is, “Look out for the underclassmen and make sure when you are on a team. You have everyone feel included, valued, and respected. The whole culture of the team is better when everyone is involved.”

Kadin Javadi is the Male Athlete of the Year for the Templeton Eagles.

“I was shocked, but it was cool being recognized as that, especially with rodeo and football,” said Javadi.

Javadi excelled in steer wrestling and football in his high school career. He fell in love with steer wrestling the past three years and football the past two years, although he wished he had started playing football sooner.

He plans to compete on the Cal Poly rodeo team and major in ag systems management. Following his college years, Javadi knows he will be helping his family grow their wine grapes.

In December 2021, Javadi competed in the Junior World Rodeo Finals in Vegas.

His advice for aspiring athletes is to “work hard and give it everything you got.”

Shane Brennan was named Eagle of the Year at Templeton High School.

Brennan excelled heavily in FFA throughout his high school years. He took first place with his restored tractor in the JB Dewar Tractor Restoration Program at the California Mid-State Fair in 2021.

He then went on to compete with his tractor on the national level and was in the running to be a national FFA officer. 

“It is a great honor that I was chosen as Eagle of the Year,” said Brennan. “I had no clue that I was going to receive this, but I’m so grateful to embody the characteristics of this award and to be thought of so highly by others.”

Brennan will be attending Fresno State University to study agricultural systems management. He plans to work at the school and learn as much as possible in the next four years.