Stansell, Boaz-Jeffords Named Bryant-Jordan Winners
Dothan High School’s Jack Stansell and Chelsea High School’s Maygen Boaz-Jeffords were named the overall winners at the 29th annual Bryant-Jordan Student Athlete Awards Banquet here Monday night at the Birmingham Sheraton Hotel as 96 high school regional honorees were recognized and awarded more than $300,000 in scholarships.
Stansell, a senior football and track standout, was the recipient of the Larry D. Striplin, Jr., Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. Boaz, a softball standout, received the Ken and Betty Joy Blankenship Student Achievement Athlete of the Year Award.
The program, named in honor of the late coaches Paul "Bear" Bryant of Alabama and Ralph "Shug" Jordan of Auburn, recognized 48 regional scholar-athlete winners selected for their excellence in athletics and academics and 48 achievement winners chosen for their ability to overcome major obstacles during their high school careers.
“I am really thankful for the blessing and opportunity God has given me,” Stansell said. “If you give God your best, he will do the rest.”
Boaz-Jeffords thanked her grandparents for stepping into her life in a major way and changing her forever. “I can never thank you,” Boaz-Jeffords said.
Stansell, who plans to attend Harvard University where he will participate in football, played wide receiver for the Dothan football team. He served as team captain in 2013 and also received the prestigious Steadman Shealy Award, the Mark Cannon Award and the Jon Davis Award in 2013. He received the Spanky Thomas Award in 2011.
Ranked first in his class of 263, Stansell has a 4.52 weighted grade-point average on a 4.0 scale. Among his academic honors are the AP Scholar with Distinction as a senior and the AP English Top Student Award as a junior and sophomore. He was the top performer at the Wallace Community College Science Decathlon as a senior, won the “Yes We Can! Dothan – Speak Out contest as a freshman, and led the DHS varsity academics team to a first-place finish in the 2014 Legacy EnviroBowl.
Stansell also is the president of the DHS student government association, served as class president as a freshman, sophomore and junior, and was captain of the varsity academics team. He represented Dothan at the Alabama Lions Club High School Leadership Forum and also gave the keynote address at Beverlye Magnet School’s eighth-grade graduation ceremony.
“I am very proud to be able to accept this honor for the Dothan City Schools and especially Dothan High School,” Stansell said.
Boaz-Jeffords has been a standout softball player since middle school. The outfielder earned All-Shelby county honors and signed with the University of Mobile. The senior overcame many difficult family obstacles, first as a small child, eventually winding up in foster care. After moving to live with her grandmother in Chelsea, Maygen has thrived as a student, an athlete and as a student leader.
“The struggles I have dealt with have helped me to grow stronger,” Boaz-Jeffers said. “Those who have helped me, my grandparents, coches and teachers, have helped me to strive harder each day.”
Stansell and Boaz-Jeffords were each awarded scholarships totaling $8,500. Each regional winner received $2,500 and each class winner an additional $3,000. The state winners also received an additional $3,000.
Class winners in the Scholar-Athlete division were: James Colby Wheeler, Winterboro (1A); Leah Strain, Woodland (2A); Colby Adams, Holly Pond (3A); Ethan Boyd, Oneonta; Miller Williams, Homewood (5A); and Jack Stansell, Dothan (6A).
Class winners in the Student Achievement division included: Elysabeth Morales, Jacksonville Christian (1A); Christina Cowan, Sweet Water (2A); Rhett Bailey, Elkmont (3A); Keyana Turner, Ashford (4A); Haden Ryals, Southside-Gadsden (5A); and Maygen Boaz-Jeffords, Chelsea (6A).
Several special scholarships were also presented to some of the regional winners:
Herman L. “Bubba” Scott Coaching Scholarship: Colby Adams, Holly Pond.
Alabama “A” Club Educational & Charitable Foundation Scholarship: (Achievement) Andrew Cofer, Good Hope; (Scholar) Rose Lamberth, Benjamin Russell.
Auburn Football Lettermen Club Scholarship: (Achievement) Ethan Wooten, DAR; (Scholar) Morgan Gaston, Guntersville.
Dr. Gaylon McCollough Medical Scholarship: Ethan Boyd, Oneonta.
2014 Bryant-Jordan Student-Athlete Achievement Award
Regional Winners
Class 1A
Region 1: Hailey Maxey, Florala
Region 2: Kayla Shufford, McKenzie
Region 3: Verlanda Hopson, Autaugaville
Region 4: Alex Enns, Holy Spirit Catholic
Region 5: Gregory Leach, Cedar Bluff
Region 6: Elysabeth Morales, Jacksonville Christian
Region 7: Emma Easley, Lynn
Region 8: Kennedy Palmer, Athens Bible
Class 2A
Region 1: John Watkins, Leroy
Region 2: Joe Payne, G.W. Long
Region 3: Christina Cowan, Sweet Water
Region 4: Blake Thrower, Reeltown
Region 5: Miracle Mayo, Lanett
Region 6: Alexandra Stimpson, Sand Rock
Region 7: Haley Freeman, Cold Springs
Region 8: Keenan Sparks, Red Bay
Class 3A
Region 1: Marcus Wilson, Geneva
Region 2: Jacob Johnson, Opp
Region 3: Leah Pennington, Sipsey Valley
Region 4: Drake McDonald, American Christian
Region 5: Ryan Burns, Ashville
Region 6: Ashley McKee, Sylvania
Region 7: Andrew Cofer, Good Hope
Region 8: Rhett Bailey, Elkmont
Class 4A
Region 1: Foster Hinton, UMS-Wright
Region 2: Keyana Turner, Ashford
Region 3: Trevon Brown, Beulah
Region 4: Stephen Ellison, Calera
Region 5: Ethan Wooten, Kate Duncan Smith, DAR
Region 6: Katherine Neisler, Jacksonville
Region 7: Andrew Eakes, Ardmore
Region 8: Perri Gilbert, Haleyville
Class 5A
Region 1: Grant Cooper, Faith Academy
Region 2: Ronnie Reed, Saraland
Region 3: Bryant Horn, Benjamin Russell
Region 4: Kelsey Hunnicutt, Brookwood
Region 5: Haden Ryals, Southside-Gadsden
Region 6: Barrett Crossley, Pinson Valley
Region 7: Anna Wolverton, Pleasant Grove
Region 8: Jordan Gandy, East Limestone
Class 6A
Region 1: Dante Piccini, McGill-Toolen Catholic
Region 2: Derrick Tolbert, Daphne
Region 3: Katorrie Dimarco Bell, Jefferson Davis
Region 4: Maygen Boaz-Jeffords, Chelsea
Region 5: Michaela Smith, Pell City
Region 6: Ryan Childers, Vestavia Hills
Region 7: Chandler Fullman, Hoover
Region 8: Brandon De’Von Davis, Bob Jones
2014 Bryant-Jordan Scholar-Athlete Award
Regional Winners
Class 1A
Region 1: Thomas Stubblefield, St. Luke’s Episcopal
Region 2: Kelsey Hall, Brantley
Region 3: Colby Chambers, Maplesville
Region 4: Colby Wheeler, Winterboro
Region 5: Grant Benefield, Spring Garden
Region 6: Corey Phillis, Donoho
Region 7: Brianna Johnson, Marion County
Region 8: Amy McKelvey, Shoals Christian
Class 2A
Region 1: Blair Hendricks, Zion Chapel
Region 2: Jared Hall, Samson
Region 3: Mallory Jones, Luverne
Region 4: Joseph Flemming, Prattville Christian
Region 5: Leah Strain, Woodland
Region 6: Cody McBryar, North Sand Mountain
Region 7: Hall Hastings, Oakman
Region 8: Katie Pepper, Tanner
Class 3A
Region 1: Jonathan Dismukes, Cottage Hill Christian
Region 2: Jordan Smith, Geneva
Region 3: Wesley Curles, Trinity Presbyterian
Region 4: Nelson Brown, American Christian
Region 5: Samuel Pannell, Susan Moore
Region 6: Colby Adams, Holly Pond
Region 7: Emily Sutton, Hamilton
Region 8: Sydney Malone, Deshler
Class 4A
Region 1: Daniel Henderson, Andalusia
Region 2: Hunter Kennedy, Charles Henderson
Region 3: Laura Prestridge, Handley
Region 4: Bailey Hammock, Corner
Region 5: Lauren Lackey, Randolph
Region 6: Morgan Gaston, Guntersville
Region 7: Ethan Boyd, Oneonta
Region 8: Shelby Huckaba, Central-Florence
Class 5A
Region 1: Anna Braswell, St. Paul’s Episcopal
Region 2: Chace Bryan, Eufaula
Region 3: Rose Lamberth, Benjamin Russell
Region 4: Anna Morgan Couch, Shelby County
Region 5: Miller Williams, Homewood
Region 6: Riley Northway, A.P. Brewer
Region 7: Jacob Runyan, Walker
Region 8: Haley Jared, Hartselle
Class 6A
Region 1: Andrew Parvino, Baker
Region 2: Jack Stansell, Dothan
Region 3: Anna Lazenby, Opelika
Region 4: William Freeman, Spain Park
Region 5: Regan Robertson, Oxford
Region 6: Carrigan Fain, Gardendale
Region 7: Reid Nelson, Hueytown
Region 8: Tanner Crosslin, Florence