FACES IN THE CROWD
SHABAZZ MUHAMMAD
LAS VEGAS > BASKETBALL
Shabazz, a 6'6", 215-pound senior small forward at Bishop Gorman High, was named the Morgan Wootten boys' player of the year. A week earlier he was named the Naismith high school boys' player of the year. Rivals.com's top recruit in the class of 2012, Shabazz scored 36 points to lead the Gaels (28--4) to their third Class 4A state title in four years with a 96--51 win over Hug High. He averaged 29.4 points and 10.1 rebounds this season. He has yet to decide where he'll play in college.
ERIN FINN
WEST BLOOMFIELD, MICH. > TRACK AND FIELD
Erin, a junior at West Bloomfield High, won the girls' 5,000 meters at indoor nationals in New York City in a national record 16:19.69, smashing the previous mark by 15.46 seconds while claiming her first national championship. Last month she ran the third-fastest two-mile high school race in the U.S. this season (10:18.82). In January, Erin, who won the D-I state cross-country title last fall and finished second at Foot Locker Nationals, was named the Michigan Gatorade girls' cross-country runner of the year.
GRANT BESSE
PLYMOUTH, MINN. > ICE HOCKEY
Grant, a junior forward at Benilde--St. Margaret's, scored all five goals, three of them shorthanded, in a 5--1 victory over Hill-Murray for the 2A title to set a state tournament championship game scoring record. Afterward the Red Knights presented their sophomore teammate Jack Jablonski, who was paralyzed in a jayvee game earlier this year (SI, Feb. 27), with the state trophy. Grant, who had 52 goals this season to set the school career record (115), has committed to play for Wisconsin.
SYRIA RHODES
SACRAMENTO > WRESTLING
Syria, a 5-foot senior at Valley High, beat Cadence Lee of Gunn High 6--4 in overtime to win the 103-pound title at the girls' championships for the Vikings' first state title in any sport. A week earlier, she became the first female to reach the boys' final at the Sac-Joaquin Section D-II championships in any weight division, finishing second in the 106-pound class. Last July, Syria won silver (106 pounds) at the Junior Olympics to earn a spot on the USA Judo team at the 2011 Junior World Games in November.
PAT PARNELL
COLUMBIA, CONN. > SKIING
Parnell, a freshman at Colby-Sawyer College and a member of the U.S. Paralympic team, won the adaptive standing slalom national title with a combined time of 1:36.77 at Waterville Valley Resort, N.H. This season he also had the top American finish in the standing slalom at the International Paralympic Committee World Cup in Winter Park, Colo., with fifth place. Born without his full left femur, Parnell skis on his right leg and is the first adaptive skier to train with the Chargers.
SARAH SCHERER
FORT WORTH, TEXAS > RIFLERY
Scherer, a junior at Texas Christian, was named the NCAA championships' most outstanding athlete after winning in small-bore (688.6 total points) and finishing third in air rifle to lead the Horned Frogs to the women's title. TCU went 13--0 this season for 31 straight victories, dating to 2010. Scherer, who earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team with a second-place air rifle finish at the 2012 trials in February, was named an All-America in air rifle and small-bore.
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COURTESY OF MCDONALD'S (MUHAMMAD)
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COURTESY OF THE FINN FAMILY (FINN)
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TOM DAHLIN (BESSE)
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KIRSTEN JOHNSON (RHODES)
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BRETT SAYER (PARNELL)
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MICHAEL CLEMENTS (SCHERER)
