Robertson, Hammond named Hitchcock winners for 2020
William Robertson and Katherine Hammond named the recipients of the 2020 Jimmy Hitchcock Awards on Tuesday. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
There was no banquet, no featured speaker telling the honorees the proper perspective on life.
There were just a handful of people live streaming and presenting the 61st annual Jimmy Hitchcock Award in an almost-empty Bell Road YMCA on Tuesday afternoon, a reminder of the coronavirus pandemic that ground to a halt the normal activities of society such as sports and Christian leadership banquets that the YMCA is so well known for sponsoring.
But that didn’t make the honor any less significant to Montgomery Academy’s William Robertson and LAMP’s Katherine Hammond, the two 2020 recipients.
“I would put this above any other award that I’ve won,” Robertson said, “because it goes beyond athletics, it’s more about the character of a person and I think that is way more important than any athletic recognition one could have.”
Robertson is placing the award at the top of a pretty significant group of awards. He serves as the president of the MA Student Government Association and was the team captain in football the last two years. He holds single-season and career school records in receptions and receiving yards and was voted as the Eagles’ most valuable player in football. In tennis, he won a state championship in singles as an eighth grader and reached the finals the past three years. He won a doubles state championship as a freshman and reached the finals as a sophomore. Had the season not been canceled, he would have been a favorite to win state titles in both singles and doubles this month. Robertson, who owns a 4.4 grade-point average (on a 4.0 scale), will attend Duke University as a preferred walk-on in football.
Hammond, not to be outdone, is a record setter in multiple sports as well. She won the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s 1A-5A state championship in the 100-yard butterfly in 2018 and placed third in both the 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard freestyle events at the 2019 state swim meet. In track, she won the Class 4A state championship in cross country and finished first in the 1600-meter and 3200-meter events at the AHSAA state indoor track meet. She would have been a favorite in both events this month in the state outdoor meet as well had the coronavirus not canceled her season. Hammond, who owns a 4.71 grade-point average (on a 4.0 scale), will run track at Mississippi College while majoring in biochemistry and minoring in the ministry.
“All these medals and records I can get through running or swimming is indicative of how I push myself in practice,” Hammond said. “This is really amazing because I’ve been working toward this for years. It’s always been in the back of my mind that I would be here one day, winning the Jimmy Hitchcock Award. I love this award. It represents not just who I am as an athlete, but who I am as a student and, most importantly, as a Christian.”
Forty-five high school athletes were nominated for the award, including eight from MPS magnet schools, 15 from Capital City Conference private schools, seven from AISA private schools, 13 from the larger MPS schools and two from Pike Road.
“The Jimmy Hitchcock is a staple, what I consider the pinnacle of awards that are given out in the Montgomery area,” said committee member and 2000 recipient Wilbert Hamilton Jr. “Because it not only represents so many great athletes and great students, but they accomplish all those things while having Christ-like leadership skills on the field and off the field. In today’s trying times, we need that more than ever.”
In addition to Hammond, magnet nominees included Micah Boone and Emilee Middleton of LAMP; Evan Carter, Skyler Essex and Logan Horne of Brewbaker Tech; and Hope Johnson and Nathan Strahan of BTW Magnet.
In addition to Robertson, CCC private school nominees included Marlo Duggan, Bryan Farrington and Emily Thornton of Alabama Christian Academy; Jack Burt, Katherine O’Connor and Michael Russo of Catholic; Martha Ernest and Millie Stevenson of Montgomery Academy; Lucy Edwards, Andrew Sadie and Gracie Sullivan of St. James; and Will Aaron, Watkins Johnston IV and Miller Williams of Trinity.
Asa Button and Elizabeth Cowden of Eastwood Christian, Jordan Grice of Evangel Christian, Logan Temple and Grant Tyson of Hooper Academy and Emily Lott and Jake Wyrosdick of Macon East Academy comprise the AISA nominees.
Representing the larger MPS schools were Kiara Cobb, Keauna Hooks and Ja’Corey Robinson of Jeff Davis; Tristan Elmore of Park Crossing; Broderick Howard, Jada Jackson and Kole Williams of G.W. Carver; De’Marquise Miles, Morgan Pierce and Kendrick Simpkins of Robert E. Lee; and Amina Rudolph, Destinee Smith and Malik Stinson of Sidney Lanier, along with Andrew Kenny and Nia White of Pike Road.
“This year we have all faced challenges unlike any others,” said Pat Cooper, president of the YMCA of Greater Montgomery. “This applies to our communities, our schools, our coaches and teachers and the nominees. Despite all this, our committee was determined to honor all the nominees in the best way possible.”
Robertson is the seventh Montgomery Academy senior to win the male award, joining Bob Haas (1981), Kyle Anderson (1982), Robert Johnson (1988), Glenn Sylvest (1998), David Barrington (2007) and Trey Lindsey (2019). He is the 14th Eagle overall to win the award.
Hammond is the third LAMP senior to win the female award, following in the footsteps of Laura Johnson (2009) and Victoria Bye (2011). She is the sixth overall, with Jaemin Kim the most recent school winner in 2018.