The Stratford Minor Sports Council celebrates athlete of the year at the annual awards banquet

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At its annual awards banquet last month, the Stratford Minor Sports Council officially named its 2023 sportsperson, girl and boy athlete of the year.

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Hosted at the Stratford Rotary Complex on April 22, the event, which featured Paralympian Ryan Chin as keynote speaker, also saw the induction of local hockey alumni Paul Barton, Ken Chisholm and Scott Skinner, as well as the 1987 Stratford Minor Girls Softball Association Hishon’s Bantams softball team onto the Stratford Sports Wall of Fame.

“We had a great night. … We had about 200 people that attended. We had 16 nominees – three sportsperson nominees, six girls and seven guys (for athlete of the year) – and we were lucky because we had almost all of our nominees in attendance. They’re usually involved in multiple sports – we had a few of them who were playing volleyball and basketball that weekend – but most of them got there and the ones that won the awards were all there,” said minor sports council secretary Marianne Hawley.

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“We had a great guest speaker, Ryan Chin. He’s a Paralympian. He’s partially blind and he has an amazing story to tell us about where he’s been and how he got there. … About four or five of the women who were on the ball team that got inducted had been girl athletes (of the year) at one point. It was a good night for everybody,” Hawley added

This year’s award winners were Jensen Pohl for girl athlete of the year, Ryan Middegaal for boy athlete of the year and Deborah Franke for sportsperson of the year.

Girl Athlete of the Year: Jensen Pohl

Now in her seventh year of playing with the Stratford Basketball Association’s Revolution, Pohl has become a leader on the court. With this season’s U19 team, Pohl was an integral part of the Revolution’s silver-medal performance at the Grimsby Invitational Basketball Tournament. She was also the team’s top scorer during its previous season, when the Stratford team claimed provincial silver.

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The 18-year-old has been an active high school athlete, playing on the St. Michael Catholic secondary school basketball and volleyball teams, as well as the senior badminton team and the Warrior track and field team. The captain of her school basketball team, Pohl led them to both league and Western Ontario Secondary School Athletic Association championships before an injury kept her from the court for the St. Michael-hosted provincial tournament. A trained lifeguard and swim instructor, Pohl has also volunteered as a coach with the Stratford Volleyball Club and has served as a member of her high school’s student council.

“I was thrilled to be nominated by my basketball club … and so honored to have won because I was nominated alongside other accomplished athletes that I know and admire, and are my friends,” Pohl told the Beacon Herald.

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She also thanked her coaches for helping to make her the player she is today.

“Basketball has been such a large and significant part of my life. … I’ve loved representing my city, club and team, and it’s challenged and taught me so much as a player and as a person. … The best part of winning this award is that I can continue to inspire younger players to keep playing,” he said.

Boy Athlete of the Year: Ryan Middegaal

A three-sport standout, Middegaal served as the assistant captain of the Stratford Warriors U18 hockey team for the 2022-23 season. The defenseman helped lead his team to a silver medal at January’s West London Tournament and a semifinal appearance at the AA Regional Silver Stick in Stratford. Middegaal played left for the Stratford Cobras volleyball team, which improved by 20 spots in the provincial rankings in the 2021-22 season and earned two bronze medals in its current season.

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Middegaal also competed in the 110m hurdles for the Stratford Sabercats Track Club and has begun training in a new event, the pole vault. For the St. Michael Catholic secondary school’s athletic program, Middegaal is a starter with its league-winning volleyball team and a member of the track team for the 110m hurdles, 400m hurdles and the long jump. Middegaal won Huron-Perth gold in the 110m hurdles to earn his first Western Ontario championship berth. As a volunteer, Middegaal has been involved with a Stratford summer reading program, organized a primary play date for Anne Hathaway elementary school students and worked as a scorekeeper at local track meets.

“It means a lot to be named boy athlete of the year,” Middegaal told the Beacon Herald. “Never did I think that I would be nominated let alone win the award. Sports have been a part of my life since I was just a little kid and winning an award like this is a dream come true. It proves that hard work does pay off and, if you set your mind on something, it can be achieved.

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“I would like to thank my coaches, friends, teammates and, most importantly, my family, for shaping me into the athlete I am today and pushing me to be my best every step of the way.”

Sportsperson of the Year: Deborah Franke

Franke has been an active volunteer in Stratford minor sports since 2003, when her daughter Samantha began figure skating. She has been a member of the Stratford Skating Club’s board of directors and has coached for Stratford Youth Soccer.

Currently, Franke is the secretary for Stratford Rotary Hockey. With her involvement in these various leagues and associations, Franke has helped organize skating carnivals, soccer tournaments, final days for Stratford Rotary Hockey and countless fundraisers.

“It means a lot to me because I’m not a sporty person and I think it’s nice to receive the award for all my volunteerism. I may support sports by volunteering, but I’ve never really been deeply involved by actually participating in sports,” Franke told the Beacon Herald, noting she began volunteering in minor sports as a way to support her daughter and two sons. ” … My kids have aged out of minor sports and I still volunteer for Rotary hockey, and I plan to do that for a while to come.

“I would like to encourage other people to come out and volunteer. That’s how we keep it going.”

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