Hicks named Award of Excellence finalist

KINGSFORD — Softball and tennis standout Kaitlyn Hicks was honored today at Kingsford High School as she was named a finalist for the award. Representatives from the U.S. Army and the Pro Football Hall of Fame were in attendance, as well the entire school, her coaches, teammates and family. She said finding out the news was one of the greatest moments of her life.

“It was incredible. I got home from practice and the Pro Football Hall of Fame called and they’re like “you are a finalist”. It was just awesome. I ran and told my parents, and the next day I told my principals and it was awesome. They’ve all been very supportive. They just encouraged me. I was scared to speak, and they all encouraged me that I would do fine and just be myself,” Hicks said.

She was joined by former Minnesota Viking and Hall of Famer John Randle, who got a chance to meet Hicks and talk about her accomplishments athletically and academically.

“She’s a future leader, I think, in this community. It was just so overwhelming to meet her. I was joking with her, I said “A 4.16 grade point average. Wow!”. It’s just amazing. I think I’m the lucky one who was fortunate enough to meet her today,” Randle said.

She says she’s planning to attend Michigan Tech and major in chemical engineering. She does want to play tennis at MTU as well, but she’s not sure for now.