Special to IFN
Iredell County Sports Hall of Fame officials on Wednesday announced the top senior athletes from seven Iredell County high schools who are finalists for the Iredell County Sports Hall of Fame’s Athlete of the Year Awards.
Female and male athletes of the year will be announced at the annual Iredell County Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on May 19 at the Statesville Civic Center. The event begins at 6 p.m.
The new class of inductees into the Hall of Fame this year are J.B. Mauney, George Conger, Kent Daniels, Jeff Lewis, Natalie Tribble, and Chris Woodfin. Kenny Miller will be honored as recipient of the Harold Johnson Community Partner Award.
Athlete of the Year Nominees
The following students were named the top female athletes for each of the seven participating schools:
♦ Nakirah Adams (Statesville): Adams was a four-year standout in track & field. She qualified for the state meet as a freshman and won in the state meet as a sophomore. She also won a state championship at the Indoor Meet as a junior and has been named an AAU All-American in track.
♦ Alexis Caudill (West Iredell): Caudill was a standout in women’s golf and women’s wrestling and was a four-year starter on the school’s soccer team.
♦ Alyssa Claborn (Lake Norman): Claborn was a state champion swimmer in the 100 backstroke and was a swimmer for the Wildcats for four years. She made all-conference, all-region and all-state in all four seasons. Claborn has earned a swimming scholarship to the University of Tennessee.
♦ Kayden Flowers (North Iredell): Flowers was among the leaders on the team that won the 2022 state volleyball championship and was the 2021 state runner-up. She was named the conference player of the year in 2024 and during her four years on the squad they compiled a record of 118-7. Flowers will be attending Anderson University to play volleyball next fall.
♦ Avery Garrett (Pine Lake Prep): Garrett was a top performer in various sports at PLP, including cross-country, basketball, soccer and golf.
♦ Ella Morrison (South Iredell): A volleyball standout for the Lady Vikings, Morrison was all-conference in 2024 and finished her volleyball career with over 1,000 assists as a three-year member of the varsity team. She also served as the team captain on the 2025 lacrosse team at South Iredell.
♦ Lilly Rumrill (Mooresville): Rumrill participated and excelled in five different sports at MHS. She was a member of the varsity football team as a kicker and made all eight of her PATS. She also was a member of the new female flag football program and scored 119 points with 18 touchdowns and 22 interceptions and was named the Carolina Panthers Player of the Year. She was all-conference in basketball and also played softball numerous seasons and was a soccer player as a freshman. Rumrill earned a flag football scholarship to Milligan University.
The following students where named the top male athletes for each of the seven participating schools:
♦ Asher Allebach (Pine Lake Prep): Allebach won a state title in the 200-meter individual medley, considered the toughest among individual events in swimming.
♦ Jermaine Cornelius (West Iredell): Cornelius was a two-way varsity football player for the Warriors as both a wide receiver and a defensive back and made all-conference as both a junior and a senior. In basketball, he finished his career with 1,104 points scored.
♦ Maddox Gant (North Iredell): A four-year track and cross-country standout, Gant was all-conference in cross-country as a freshman and also was a member of the state qualifying 4 x 800 relay team. As a sophomore, he scored regional wins in the 1,600, 3,200 and 4 x 800 relay. As a junior he won the regional 800 and 1,600 events and qualified for the state meet. As a senior, Gant was the top runner on the Raider team that qualified for the state meet in cross-country.
♦ Eric Heal (Mooresville): A football and track standout for the Blue Devils, Heal had 224 carries for 1,345 yards his last two seasons. In track, Heal was a conference champion in the 300-meter hurdles and finished third in the state in the 110 hurdles and fourth in the 300 hurdles. Heal will attend Appalachian State University on a track scholarship.
♦ Dru Kelly (South Iredell): Kelly was the 2025 113-pound state champion in wrestling and was named an all-state wrestler for three straight years, compiling an individual match record of 164-11, a school record for most individual wins.
♦ Noah Owens (Statesville): An all-conference football player as a senior, Owens had a diversified career in other sports as an underclassman. He was on the state champion 4 x 400 relay team in track that set a school record and was a three-year all-conference player in baseball. He also earned letters in basketball two years and swimming one year.
♦ Trent Steinour (Lake Norman): Steinhour was a three-time conference player of the year in basketball and made the all-state team two years. He also played tennis for the Wildcats and had a 22-8 record in singles over three years. He has signed to play basketball for the Clemson Tigers.
TICKETS
Advance tickets for this year’s banquet are $50 per person and include a buffet-style meal. For tickets email srossrankin@yahoo.com. Any tickets paid for at the door on the night of the banquet will be $60, if any are available. Pre-purchase is recommended due to limited seating.
NOMINATIONS
The Hall of Fame committee is already accepting candidates for the class of 2026. Visit iredellsportshalloffame.org to download the nomination form.