News Detail

McHenry Named Gatorade Arizona Boys Track & Field Player of The Year

6/29/2023

CHICAGO (June 29, 2023) — In its 38th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Brennen McHenry of Brophy College Preparatory is the 2022-23 Gatorade Arizona Boys Track & Field Player of the Year. McHenry is the fourth Gatorade Arizona Boys Track & Field Player of the Year to be chosen from Brophy College Preparatory.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes McHenry as Arizona’s best high school boys track & field athlete. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Track & Field Player of the Year award to be announced in July, McHenry joins an elite alumni association of state award winners in 12 sports, including Nico Young (2019-20, Newbury Park High School, Calif.), Michael Norman (2015-16 & 2014-15, Vista Murrieta High School, Calif.), Grant Fisher (2014-15 & 2013-14, Grand Blanc High School, Mich.) and Robert Griffin III (2006-07, Copperas Cove High School, Texas).

The 6-foot-2, 150-pound senior became the first prep boy in the country since 2017 to clear 7-feet in the high jump and leap 24 feet in the long jump this past season. He’s also the first Arizona prep jumper to accomplish the feat in the same season. McHenry won the long jump title at the state’s inaugural All-Division championships with a leap of 24 feet, 10.25 inches, which ranked No. 5 nationally among prep competitors in 2023 at the time of his selection. His best high jump of 7 feet ranked No. 10 nationally this spring.

McHenry has volunteered locally with Boys Team Charity and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America in addition to donating his time to multiple community service initiatives through Brophy College Prep’s Blue Army Rosary Club. “Brennen McHenry’s excellence in the field events was historic this past season,” said Rich Gonzalez, editor of PrepCalTrack.com. “He concluded his prep career ranked among the top four in state history in both the high jump and long jump with 2023 U.S. Top 10 rankings in those two disciplines.”

McHenry has maintained a weighted 4.0 GPA in the classroom. He has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete on scholarship at the University of Texas this fall. The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls' volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.

McHenry joins recent Gatorade Arizona Boys Track & Field Players of the Year Yan Vazquez (2021-22, Red Mountain High School), Dayton Carlson (2020-21, Casteel High School), and Leo Daschbach (2019-20 & 2018-19, Highland High School), among the state’s list of former award winners. Being a Gatorade Player of the Year means paying it forward for the next generation. Through Gatorade’s Play it Forward initiative, every Player of the Year receives a grant to give to one of Gatorade’s social impact partners, supporting Gatorade’s ambition to fuel the future of the sport. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than $3.5 million across more than 1,300 organizations.

For nearly 40 years, Gatorade has honored high school athletes at the top of their game as teammates, supporting their communities and achieving academic success. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes and community leaders, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcases the power of sport.

To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade. ###