CHICAGO (June 28, 2023) -- In its 38th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Angelina Napoleon of Allegany-Limestone Central School is the 2022-23 Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Player of the Year. Napoleon is the first Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Player of the Year to be chosen from Allegany-Limestone Central School.
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 Napoleon as New York's best high school girls track & field athlete. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Player of the Year award to be announced in July, Napoleon joins an elite alumni association of state award- winners in 12 sports, including Jasmine Moore (2018-19, Lake Ridge High School, Texas), Sydney McLaughlin (2016-17, 2015-16 & 2014-15, Union Catholic High School, N.J.), and Lolo Jones (1997-98, Roosevelt High School, Iowa).
The 5-foot-9 senior won the New Balance Nationals title in the 2,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 6:19.53, completing the most impressive season in the event in the U.S. prep history. Napoleon is now the only American female athlete in history to run sub-6:20 in the event on three occasions. She set the national high school record of 6:18.41 in the steeple at the New York Federation Championships, in addition to winning the 800-meter title in a personal-best 2:03.97, an event in which she also took second at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor. She ranks No. 11 nationally in the 1500 meters among U.S. girls prep competitors in 2023 with a clocking of 4:29.78. In addition, she ranks No. 8 in the steeple in the world this year and is the No. 16 all-time World Under-20 athlete.
A team leader in the school's investment club as well as the senior class secretary and a member of the student activities council, Napoleon has also volunteered locally with Girls on the Run, a youth-empowerment program. "Angelina Napoleon not only lowered the 2000-meter steeplechase national record multiple times, but she also became the second-fastest female athlete in the event in American history. She also demonstrated her incredible range and versatility, excelling in the 800, mile and high jump in addition to becoming the only female athlete in American history to run under 6:20 in the 2000 steeplechase and sub-2:04 in the 800."
Napoleon has maintained a 3.99 weighted GPA. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete on scholarship at North Carolina State 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.
Napoleon joins recent Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Players of the Year Gianna Locci (2021-22, Stillwater High School), Brooke Rauber (2020-21, Tully High School), and Katelyn Tuohy (2019-20 & 2018-19, North Rockland 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 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 showcase 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.
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