By Dan Truttschel~Sports Correspondent
There likely aren’t too many people inside Wilmot High School who don’t appreciate what senior Sarah Vozel has accomplished during her career.
But as the years have gone on, those achievements have earned recognition outside the building – and Sunday night, she joined elite company as one of the best in Kenosha County.
Vozel was honored along with Kenosha St. Joseph’s Chris Madden at the 60th annual Holy Rosary Holy Name Society Sports Night in Kenosha.
Both student-athletes received the Alan Ameche Award and Turco/DeSimone Scholarship as the Sports Night Athletes of the Year.
Vozel, the first ever female winner from Wilmot and just the second overall (Chris Nelson won it last year), said she was humbled to receive the award.
“I couldn’t really describe in words how amazing the whole experience was,” Vozel said in an e-mail. “It was quite an honor, and I am so blessed to have been part of it.
“For me, just being able to have gotten the opportunity to be part of such an event was wonderful in itself.”
Vozel, a three-sport athlete at Wilmot, said the who’s who of speakers at Sunday’s ceremony made the event even more special.
Included in the program were speeches by master of ceremonies Jim Paschke, Milwaukee Bucks guard Brandon Jennings, Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga, Chicago Bears linebacker Nick Roach and Wisconsin Badgers linebacker Mike Taylor.
“I think the best part of the night was listening to all the speeches, because it was so humbling to have such talented athletes congratulate Chris and myself,” Vozel said.
“Also, it was awesome to hear all of their stories and get to hear so many wise words of advice.”
The fact that Vozel is just one of two Wilmot athletes to earn the prestigious honor wasn’t lost on her, either.
And the future Ashford University basketball player knows she didn’t take the journey by herself.
“Being only the second person from Wilmot to receive this award is something remarkable,” she said. “This county has so many talented athletes, and to be among the best is very rewarding.
“I would definitely have to thank all of the athletes for making me work so harder to be able to compete at such a high level.”
Coaches feel impact
Two of Vozel’s varsity coaches, Keiya Square and Kevin Rapp, also were among those in attendance Sunday night – and both beamed with pride at what she has accomplished.
“She has grown not only as a basketball player but as a person, and I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to coach her,” Square said in an e-mail. “She has worked so hard, and it is gratifying to see her get recognized for all her hard work.”
And it’s not just the on-court accomplishments that are important to Square, but also what Vozel does inside the classroom and in the community.
She is as well-rounded an athlete as there is, he said.
“It is very important to me to not only have good players and teams but good people in our program,” Square said. “We talk all the time about doing the right things on and off the court, and Sarah has really taken that to heart and is someone the younger kids can look up to.
“Having quality kids in your program makes it a lot easier to coach because you don’t have to worry about what they are doing in the classroom or what they are doing on the weekends. You know that they will be making the right decisions, not sometimes, but all the times, even when people aren’t looking.”
Rapp took over the Wilmot volleyball program in the fall, so he had just one season to coach Vozel.
But in that short time, she certainly made an impact, he said in an e-mail Sunday night.
“Having a player of Sarah’s caliber allowed the coaching staff to focus on some areas that could have easily been overlooked had we not had a player like her filling the role she did,” Rapp said.
“It isn’t often that a team can boast that its MVP was also one of the hardest working players on the team. I am incredibly proud of the fact that Sarah earned this award.”
And even though her high school career is heading toward the end, Rapp knows his former standout has even bigger days ahead.
“Seeing her on stage Sunday night with the group (with her) kind of made me realize just what an amazing young lady she is,” he said.
“All four of the speakers were once in her shoes, a highly gifted high school student. Who can foresee where Sarah will be 10-15 years from now?”
It’s impossible to predict the future, but based on the past, there’s a good chance whatever she does will be something positive.