Gatorade® National Girls Soccer Player Of The Year: Mallory Pugh

HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo., May 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- In its 30^th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with USA TODAY High School Sports, today announced Mallory Pugh of Mountain Vista High School (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) as its 2014-15 Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year. Pugh was surprised with the news at school by Gold Medalist and World Cup Champion Brandi Chastain.

"It was exciting for me to be able to surprise Mallory with the Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year award, especially because she is such a deserving winner," said Chastain. "Mallory is a well-rounded individual who has already accomplished so much on and off the field, so it's an honor for me to welcome her into the prestigious Gatorade Player of the Year family."

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 Pugh as the nation's best high school girls soccer player. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Pugh from more than 400,000 high school girls soccer players nationwide. Pugh is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, to be presented at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

The 5-foot-4 junior forward led the Golden Eagles to a 16-3 record and the Class 5A state semifinals this past season. Pugh scored 24 goals and passed for 12 assists in 2015. A member of the U.S. Soccer Under-20 Women's National Team, Pugh was the National Soccer Coaches Association of America's 2014 Youth National Player of the Year for club play. She is rated as the No. 1 recruit in the nation for the Class of 2016 by TopDrawerSoccer.com.

Pugh has maintained a 3.68 GPA in the classroom. She has volunteered locally as part of multiple community-service initiatives to benefit pediatric care at Children's Hospital Colorado. Pugh has also donated her time to the Panther Pantry, which serves needy families in Douglas County, as well as the Tennyson Center for Children, a home for abused youth. In addition, she has worked with the US Youth Soccer TOPSoccer program serving young athletes with disabilities.

"Mallory has the ability to be the best player in the country at any position on the field," says Sheldon Shealer, High School Senior Editor for TopDrawerSoccer.com. "She understands the exact need at certain moments of the game, either slowing it down, speeding it up, sitting, pressing or setting up teammates. But what impresses me most is her commitment. Here's a girl with significant national team and club obligations, yet she made the time to be an important contributor to her high school team, factoring in nearly half [its] goals."

Pugh has made a verbal commitment to play soccer on an athletic scholarship at UCLA beginning in the fall of 2016.

"Without question, Mallory is deserving of recognition as the nation's best high school girls soccer player based on her statistics on the field and the impact her accomplishments have had on Mountain Vista's success," said Gatorade Chief Marketing Officer Morgan Flatley. "But she is also a shining example to peers and aspiring young athletes of what a leader and a student-athlete should be. She represents everything we hope for in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

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 high school sports leadership team in partnership with USA TODAY High School Sports, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

Former notable Gatorade National Players of the Year include:

• Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning
• WNBA all-time leading scorer and rebounder Lisa Leslie
• NFL all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith
• Three-time beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh
• Four-time track & field gold medalist Allyson Felix

For more information on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of former winners, and future announcement dates, visit the Gatorade Player of the Year Web site at http://www.gatorade.com/poy, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150521/217871

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