COLTON – There has been plenty of bad news coming out of San Bernardino these days, but two high school senior student athletes showed Monday there are plenty of good things that come out of San Bernardino as well.
Cajon High basketball player Kayla Washington and San Bernardino High multi-sport athlete Alex Mattison were named Athletes of the Year at the 52nd annual Ken Hubbs Award banquet Monday night at Colton High School.
The awards are named after the late Colton High and Chicago Cubs star. A boy and a girl from each of 25 area high schools were honored on Monday, but Washington and Mattison earned the overall honors.
Mattison is the first overall winner from San Bernardino since Richard Murrell in 2005. Washington is the first Cajon winner in the five-year history of the official girls award, although other girls were given awards. The last time Cajon had an overall winner it was Shaun Battle in 1992. Battle is now a member of the Hubbs Awards committee.
Mattison, who had expressed a desire to win the Hubbs Award long before this season, has been a multi-sport star at San Bernardino, in football wrestling and track and field. He was a two-time all-Sun running back for the Cardinals and earned a scholarship to play at Boise State. He was a CIF-SS runner-up in the 195 pound weight class in wrestling, and earned Mountain Valley League championships last week in track and field in the 110 hurdles and the shot put, while finishing second in the long jump.
“When I first heard about it, my sophomore year, I heard I could be a contender,” Mattison said. “I just continued to work hard and God gave me the opportunity to be here and allowed me to show my talent around.”
Mattison said he was humbled with some of the words spoken by Keith Hubbs, Ken’s older brother.
“It was really humbled by that, “ he said.
Washington, who has signed a National Letter of Intent to play at Washington State concluded her high school career by leading the Cowgirls – along with four other senior starters – to the CIF State Division II basketball championship in March. It was the first ever girls basketball state title for a San Bernardino County girls basketball team. In addition, she repeated as the Sun’s Player of the Year and was named second-team all-state.
“This means a whole bunch. Just for everything the award stands for. It’s a really, really, really big deal. I’m honored that they picked me. I’m so honored and so bless and I had an amazing four years,” Washington said.