Lexi Langeland and Jay Sullivan were named the Oldenburg senior athletes of the year at a ceremony at the Owatonna High School Auditorium on Wednesday.

Langeland also earned an award as a member of the O-club for lettering in three sports during her senior year. She returned to basketball after a year off, played volleyball and throws shot and discus in track. She was a bit surprised to win the athlete of the year designation, "I do all these sports...kind of a surprise." She was named the volleyball MVP.

Sullivan won three letters on the basketball court, earning the team MVP award this winter and first-team, all conference honors. He returned to football after some time off and made a big impact with the state tournament team. Coach Jeff Williams said, "He was on the field as both a defensive back and a wide receiver and made some huge plays for us down the stretch. We wouldn't have gotten to where we did had he not come out for football." Sullivan made a highlight reel catch on a tipped ball during the state quarterfinals.

About winning the senior athlete honor Sullivan said, "It was a big surprise to me, honestly that I was in the top three. Winning it was pretty cool. It just means people look at all the hard work that you put in when you think people aren't watching."

The other finalists for senior athlete were Emily An, Caitlin Anderson, Kodey Kiel and Mitch Mayer.

The junior athlete of the year awards went to Sydney Schultz and Alex Raichle. Schultz was second on the volleyball team in kills, has passed 1,000 points in basketball and ran at the state track meet in 2016. Raichle was the MVP of the football team and the defensive MVP in basketball.

The other finalists among the juniors were Becca Olson, Margo Achterkirch, Mitch Wiese and Peyton Robb. The O-club added Langeland, Anderson, Ethan DeKam, Jayden Gunderson, Aidan Ebner and Mark Kubista to its ranks.

The Owatonna People's Press 110-percent award winners were seniors Sam Mundale and DeKam. The ExCEL award winners through the Minnesota State High School League were juniors Kjerstin Anderson and Bryce Knutson. The MSHSL AAA award went to seniors Mariah Dant and Derek Thada. Each award recognizes a students academic and fine arts accomplishments in addition to athletics.

athletic awards
Roy Koenig/Townsquare Media
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