EAST ALTON — The Alton Redbirds swept the Player of the Year awards at the 77th Gallatin Players of the Year Awards Banquet on Sunday at Julia’s Banquet Center in East Alton.
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Alton sophomore Semaj Stampley captured the Boys POY Award, while AHS junior Jarius Powers was the recipient of the Girls POY Award. It was the first time both had won the trophy.
It marked only the second time in the history of the banquet that a school swept both awards in the same season. It was also the Redbirds who did it in 2009 with Ryan Matthews and Michaela Herrod.
Southwestern Illinois College women’s head coach Jonathan Denney served as the keynote speaker and spoke to the importance of building culture and handling adversity.
Denney knows about adversity after losing his position as Civic Memorial girls basketball head coach after 14 years, then suffering an accident where he lost his right hand, followed by entering a global pandemic. Those were his first three months of 2020.
Since then Denney has tackled that adversity by growing his Southern Illinois Hawks/Blue Star AAU organization and becoming the head women’s coach at SWIC. In two seasons with the Blue Storm, he has compiled a 41-22 record.
Denney was the recipient of the Boys POY Award as a senior at CM in 1991 when he was an all-state point guard. He helped lead the CM girls to a 300-120 record while winning seven regionals and two sectionals in 14 seasons as head coach from 2006-20
On Sunday, the finalists for the 2024 POY Awards received plaques as MVPs for their programs. On the boys’ side Marquette Catholic’s Braden Kline, CM’s Adam Ogden, Roxana’s Aidan Briggs, and East Alton-Wood River’s Devon Green secured MVP awards.
The girls MVPs were Avari Combes of the Eagles, Kaylynn Buttry of EA-WR, Allie Weiner of the Explorers, and Daisy Daugherty of the Shells.
Other major awards on Sunday were for 110 Percent, Free Throws, and Team Sportsmanship.
Marquette’s Sean Williams won the Boys 110 Percent Award, Kiyoko Proctor was the Girls 110 Percent Award winner, Stampley doubled up as the Boys Free Throw Award, as did Powers for the girls award.
The Team Sportsmanships Awards went to Roxana on the boys’ side and CM on the girls’ side.
Other finalists for the 110 Percent Award included Alex Macias of Alton, Josh Hodge of CM, Tookie Smith of EA-WR, and Sean Maberry of Roxana for the boys. On the girls’ side, it was Marlee Durbin of the Eagles, Jordan Ealey of the Oilers, Addison Pranger of the Explorers, and Tatum Shaw of the Shells. All of them also received plaques as finalists.
A Special Service Award is also presented annually. The 2024 recipient of that honor was John Simmons. The Alton lawyer and philanthropist helped save the longstanding banquet during its transition from the Alton Exchange Club to the current committee in 2018. It was Simmons who chose to name the awards after Roxana High grad and Naismith Hall of Famer Harry Gallatin.
The Gallatin Awards committee is proud to announce that moving forward this award will be presented as the John Simmons Special Service Award in honor of his generosity and commitment to the community.
It was also announced that the 2024 Gallatin Awards Trivia Night will be on Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Brick Hall in Bethalto. More details will become available at a later date on that event, which serves as the lone fundraiser for the Gallatin Awards.
The 78th Gallatin POY Banquet will return in March of 2025 at a date to be determined.
Previous Players of the Year award winners include:
2024 — Semaj Stampley of Alton and Jarius Powers of Alton
2023 — Sam Buckley of CM and Kiyoko Proctor of Alton
2022 — Owen Williams of Marquette Catholic and Kelbie Zupan of CM
2021 — Ja’Markus Gary of Alton and Tori Standefer of CM
2020 — Gavin Huffman of Roxana and Anna Hall of CM
2019 — Donovan Clay of Alton and Anna Hall of CM
2018 — Sammy Green of Marquette Catholic and Kaylee Eaton of CM
2017 – Maurice Edwards of Alton and Allie Troeckler of CM
2016 – Shandon Boone of Marquette Catholic and Allie Troeckler of CM
2015 – Darrius Edwards of Alton and Allie Troeckler of CM
2014 – Deion Lavender of Marquette Catholic and Megan Trost of CM
2013 — Hunter Reine of Roxana and Megan Trost of CM
2012 — Hunter Reine of Roxana and Megkinize Carter of CM
2011 — Tony Bradley of Alton and Cassie Endicott of CM
2010 — Tony Bradley of Alton and Kelsey Harrison of EA-WR
2009 — Ryan Mathews of Alton and Michaela Herrod of Alton
2008 —Ruben Cotto of Alton and Katie Broadway of CM
2007 — Kavon Lacey of Alton and Katie Broadway of CM
2006 — Kavon Lacey of Alton and Katie Broadway of CM
2005 — Lorenzo Taylor of Alton and Emily Best of EA-WR
2004 — Nick Certa of Marquette Catholic and Emily Best of EA-WR
2003 — Nick Certa of Marquette Catholic and Jordan Davis of Roxana
2002 — Travis Williams of EA-WR and Casey Law of CM
2001 — Michael Stockard of Alton and Ashley Russell of EA-WR
2000 — Demarko “Book” Snipes of Alton and Michelle Beiermann of Marquette Catholic
1999 — Demarko "Book" Snipes of Alton and Kendra Snyder of Marquette Catholic
1998 — Tony Certa of Marquette Catholic and DoBee Oros-Moore of Alton
1997 — Marlon Crawford of Alton and Jenni Combes of CM
1996 — Nic Stotler of CM and Angela Payne of Roxana
1995 — Greg McDanel of Roxana and Erica Oge of Marquette Catholic
1994 — Eric Frankford of CM and Amie Gernigan of Marquette Catholic
1993 - Ty Laux of CM
1992 - Brad Bohannon of Marquette Catholic
1991 - Jonathan Denney of CM
1990 - Kevin Caldwell of Alton
1989 - Joe Vann of Alton
1988 - Steve Mason of Marquette Catholic
1987 - Jamie Humphries of CM
1986 - Larry Smith of Alton
1985 - Larry Smith of Alton
1984 - Dale Liley of EA-WR
1983 - Rick Taylor of Alton
1982 - Steve Wooley of EA-WR
1981 - Dan Coddington of EA-WR
1980 - Troy Washpun of Alton
1979 - Jim “Buzz” Logan of EA-WR
1978 - David Goins of Alton
1977 - Brad Scheiter of Alton
1976 - Leroy Stampley of Alton
1975 - Chris Schroeder of Roxana
1974 - Doug Nalley of Alton
1973 - Lafayette Collins of Alton
1972 - Dennis Olston of EA-WR
1971 - Ron Caldwell of Alton
1970 - Dave Taynor of CM
1969 - Mike Jeffries of Alton
1968 - Leon Huff of Alton
1967 - Ricci Stotler of CM
1966 - Jim Bailey of EA-WR
1965 - Terry Brown of EA-WR
1964 - Larry Jeffries of Alton
1963 - Bob Hilgendorf of CM
1962 - Larry Shoemaker of Alton
1961 - Gary Lane of EA-WR
1960 - Karl Doucleff of Western Military Academy
1959 - Jerry Messick of EA-WR
1958 - Mike Hunter of Alton
1957 - Jim Lemon of EA-WR
1956 - Cliff Talley of EA-WR
1955 - Essic Robinson of Alton
1954 -Richard Brown of Roxana
1953 - Dick Harbke of Roxana
1952 - Ron Fisher of EA-WR
1951 - Bob Kuhn of Alton
1950 - Lowell Pettit of EA-WR
1949 - Ron Bedwell of Roxana
1948 - Sam Vinyard of EA-WR
1947 - Bob Caffery of EA-WR
1946 - Dick Erzen of EA-WR
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