Led by sports editor Jared McMurry, the Journal Review staff of Bob Cox, Barry Lewis, and Jeff Nelson compiled a list of athletes from the decade and then voted on the list to select 12 girls and 12 boys plus 10 honorable mention athletes for each gender. The boys list is as follows in alphabetical order.
Baylee Adams
The 2016 North Montgomery graduate was a three-sport standout for the Chargers.
As a senior Adams led the North Montgomery football team to an 8-4 record and a trip to the sectional championship as the quarterback. Adams threw for 2,749 yards and 36 touchdowns. He added 568 yards on the ground and seven scores.
In basketball, he averaged over five points a game as a senior, helping the Chargers to 15 wins.
During his senior spring season, he led the Chargers to a 24-6 record on the diamond — hitting .438, including 35 RBI and 17 doubles.
Adams is now a senior at Marian University, where he plays baseball.
Austin Burton
The 2012 Southmont graduate starred both on the gridiron and the hardwood for the Mounties.
Burton ended his basketball career with 1,218 points, which was second all-time in Southmont history at the time. He scored 479 points as a senior, averaging 22.8 points per game.
In football, Burton led the Mounties for two seasons to a 15-6 record and a 13-1 record in Sagamore Conference play, helping Southmont to a pair of conference titles. During his senior season, Burton threw for 772 yards and six touchdowns, while he added 1,035 more yards of rushing and 14 more touchdowns.
Burton went on to play basketball at Wabash College.
Nathaniel Butts
The 2019 Fountain Central grad did what few other Mustangs have done both on the gridiron and the basketball court.
In football Butts threw for over 4,000 yards in his career, rushed for another 1,785 and accounted for 71 total touchdowns.
In basketball, he scored 1,022 points, which is eighth all-time on the Fountain Central scoring list, and finished No. 4 with 282 assists.
Butts now plays basketball at Wabash College.
Jonathon Christensen
The 2011 Southmont graduate was the only individual state champion we had in the decade.
And Christensen did it twice. As a junior, the Mountie won the high jump state title with a leap of 7’ and followed it up with a jump of 6’ 10” to win the state championship as a senior in 2011.
He was a four-time sectional winner in the high jump.
Justin Clary
The 2018 North Montgomery graduate peaked at just the right time for the Chargers.
Clary averaged 20.5 points per game as senior in basketball, and joined Grant Gayler and Caleb Randolph as a trio of North Montgomery basketball players to eclipse the 1,000-point barrier in the decade.
In baseball, Clary hit .448 as a senior to lead the Chargers to a 20-10 season and their first sectional championship since 2001. Clary also had a 1.79 ERA on the mound and struck out 69 hitters in 54 2/3 innings pitched.
Jordan Jackson
The 2013 Crawfordsville graduate is one of the top hitters to ever come from the Athenian baseball program — not to mention his accomplishments on the gridiron and on the hardwood.
In football, Jackson caught 52 passes for 739 yards and five touchdowns as a senior.
On the diamond, Jackson helped lead the Athenians to a state title as a sophomore in 2011. He was a Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association first-team all-state selection in 2011 and 2013, and was an Indiana All-Star as a senior in 2013.
Jackson ended his career with 150 hits, including 53 in 2011. He scored 150 runs, which is third all-time in Crawfordsville baseball history, and ranks second with 150 career RBI, including 53 in 2011.
Jackson went to a playing career at Wright State, before finishing up at Marian University.
Trent Johnson
The 2017 Crawfordsville graduate was a three-sport standout in football, basketball, and baseball.
Johnson averaged 7.8 points per game as a senior in basketball, and threw for 877 yards as a senior in football, while rushing for 592 more.
On the diamond, Johnson struck out 127 batters as a junior, before leading the state with 124 strikeouts as a senior. He ranks third all-time in Crawfordsville baseball history with 320 strikeouts, and second with an ERA of 1.04. He also hit .395 with 17 RBI as a senior.
Johnson is now a pitcher for Purdue University.
Brooks Long
The 2017 Southmont graduate was a dominate distance runner in both cross country and track and field for the Mounties.
In cross country, Long was a three-time semi-state qualifier.
On the track he made a pair of trips to the state finals in the mile run, finishing sixth with a time of 4:15.54. Long was 10th as a junior in 4:18.50. He also won the sectional meet as a senior with a run of 4:25.75, and as a junior in 4:28.50.
Long now runs cross country and track at IUPUI.
Dakota Ramey
The 2013 North Montgomery graduate appeared on the state’s biggest stage in all three sports he played.
Ramey was an Indiana All-Star as a senior in football, a state qualifier at heavyweight his senior season in wrestling, and a state placer in the discus in track and field.
In wrestling, Ramey went 38-4 as a senior and qualified for the state finals.
In track, Ramey qualified for the state finals in the discus as a junior, before finishing 18th. As a senior Ramey followed it up with a fourth-place finish with a throw of 168’ 6” at the state finals and was a double-winner at the sectional in the discus and shot put. Ramey also broke the school record in the shot put. He won the regional in the discus as well in his senior season.
Caleb Rasmussen
The 2012 Crawfordsville graduate ranks near the top of most categories in Athenian history in both basketball and baseball.
As a senior, Rasmussen averaged 19.1 points per game on the hardwood, hauled down 7.9 rebounds and dished out 4.3 assists per game. He ended his career with 1,033 points
In baseball, Rasmussen is best known for helping lead the Athenians to the Class 3A state title during his junior season in 2011. That season he had 50 hits with a .439 batting average.
His 92 career steals are tied for the most in Crawfordsville baseball history, and ranks fourth all-time with 159 hits. Rasmussen was also an Indiana All-Star his senior season.
Drew Webster
The North Montgomery senior is well on his way to being one of the most dominate football players and wrestlers to ever wear blue and orange.
In football, Webster had 62 tackles for the Chargers in his senior season, including 12 tackles for a loss and four sacks.
As a junior, Webster finished fifth in the state at 220 pounds, and won sectional, regional, and semi-state titles along the way. As a senior he is currently ranked No. 1 in the state and undefeated on the season.
Boone Welliever
The 2017 Southmont graduate was a state placer in wrestling, and star on the gridiron and diamond for the Mounties.
In football, Welliever had 56 tackles and 418 all-purpose yards, while in baseball he had a 1.00 ERA in 35 innings pitched, striking out 42 and allowing just 15 hits, while helping lead the Mounties to a sectional title all during his senior season.
In wrestling, Welliever was a two-time state qualifier before placing third at 145 pounds as a senior. Welliever posted a 43-1 record, losing just once to the eventual state champion in Brownsburg’s Brayton Lee.
Honorable Mention
Dane Baldwin (Crawfordsville), Aaron Barnett (Fountain Central), Nick Borta (North Montgomery), Devon Burton (Southmont), Kade Kobel (North Montgomery), Seth Johnson (North Montgomery), Alex Parsons (North Montgomery), Logan Pietrzak (Fountain Central), Cam Saunders (Crawfordsville), Tanner Webster (North Montgomery).
