CHICAGO (June 25, 2024) - In its 39th year of honoring the nation's most elite high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Zariel Macchia of William Floyd High School is the 2023-24 Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Player of the Year. Macchia is the first Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Player of the Year to be chosen from William Floyd High School.
The award, which celebrates the nation's top high school athletes for excellence on the field, in the classroom and in the community, distinguishes Macchia as New York's best high school girls track & field athlete. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport, touting an all-star group of alumni that includes Sanya Richards-Ross (2001-02, St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Fla), Sydney McLaughlin (2016-17, 2015-16 & 2014-15, Union Catholic High School, N.J.) and Angelina Napoleon (2022-23, Allegany-Limestone Central School, N.Y.).
The state's 2023-24 Gatorade Girls Cross Country Player of the Year, the 5-foot-9 junior distance talent raced three times in four days at national-elite meets this past season, earning an individual title in the 5000-meter event and taking home All-America honors with a silver medal in the 2-Mile run. Competing in the 5000 at the USATF U20 Championships, Macchia broke the tape in 16:13.04-the No. 2 clocking by a prep girl this spring and the second-fastest in state history. Her 2-Mile hardware came at Nike Outdoor Nationals, and she added the Division 1 state title in the 3000. Her season-best time in that event (9:31.64) ranked No. 3 nationally in 2024 and her silver medal finish in the 1500 at USATF U20s came in a personal-best 4:16.23, which ranked No. 3 in the country this spring and No. 14 in girls prep history.
Macchia has volunteered locally by helping to lead environmental education initiatives through the Coastal Steward Long Island program. She has also donated her time participating in annual town and state park cleanups. "There are few workhorses as successful as Zariel Macchia nationally," said Rich Gonzalez, editor of PrepCalTrack.com. "It was very impressive to see her not only tackle the 5000-meter challenge at nationals, but win the event, then come back on weary legs to record one of this spring's best times nationally at 1500. She qualified for both events at the World U20 Championships in Peru later this summer."
Macchia has maintained a 4.00 GPA in the classroom. She will begin her senior year of high school 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.
Macchia joins recent Gatorade New York Girls Track & Field Players of the Year Angelina Napoleon (2022-23, Allegany-Limestone Central School), Gianna Locci (2021-22, Stillwater High School), Brooke Rauber (2020-21, Tully High School) and Katelyn Tuohy (2019-20, North Rockland High School), among the state's list of former award winners.
As part of Gatorade's commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant to donate to a social impact partner. To date, the Gatorade Player of the Year program has provided more than $4.9 million in grants to winners across more than 1,900 organizations.
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 X(Twitter) at x.com/Gatorade.
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