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DFJ MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: THE FINALISTS

Brock Galetich

Brock Galetich, senior, South Hamilton

Being the rah-rah guy just isn’t Brock Galetich’s style. He prefers to lead by example, and what an example he provided in each of the three sports he played for South Hamilton as a senior.

All-district and all-state in football. A two-time Heart of Iowa Conference champion and four-time state qualifier in track. An all-league and all-district baseball player.

Galetich rushed for 876 yards and 14 touchdowns, and also intercepted one pass for the 8-1 South Hamilton football team last fall. He garnered his second straight all-state nod (Class 1A), this time a second-team honor in the secondary.

The Hawks top sprinter on the track, he was one of the area’s best at 100 and 200 meters, as he qualified for state (2A) in both events, and he also ran on two state relays.

Carter Hewitt

On the diamond, he was South Hamilton’s most consistent and versatile player — a .494 batting average with 15 RBIs and 29 stolen bases out of the lead-off spot. He was good at shortstop and on the mound where he posted a 7-1 record and 1.85 ERA for the Hawks best team in a generation.

Carter Hewitt, senior, South Hamilton

No area athlete came close to matching the one-season surge that South Hamilton’s Carter Hewitt put together in 2020-21.

Don’t play football for three years and then step in and earn all-state status and a college scholarship? Yep, he did that.

Step into the basketball starting lineup for the first-time and generate first-team all-HOIC honors? Yep, he did that too.

CJ Hisler

Hit clean-up and set single-season school records for home runs and RBIs while making first-team all-conference and all-district (2A)? Yep, that too.

The future UNI Panther football player was a third-team all-state (Class 1A) defensive end last fall for the 8-1 Hawks.

On the basketball court, the 6-foot-6 Hewitt averaged 11.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game while controlling the interior.

Hewitt cranked nine home runs, which tied the single-season school record, and drove in a new record 40 RBIs for the South Hamilton baseball team this summer.

What. A. Year.

Tyler Olson

CJ Hisler, sophomore, Webster City

Ladies and gentlemen, meet the newest area freak athlete. His name is CJ Hisler, and he doesn’t just play four sports. He’s great at four sports.

An all-district running back on the football field. A North Central Conference champion wrestler. A NCC champion and state qualifier track and field sprinter. An all-conference and all-district baseball player. And he’s only a sophomore. Oof.

As a wingback, Hisler rushed for 565 yards and five touchdowns to help propel the WCHS football team into the state quarterfinals (Class 3A) last fall. He also made 23 tackles.

Wrestling isn’t his favorite sport, but he’s pretty danged good. Competing primarily at 182 pounds, he won 27 matches and was dominant at the NCC tournament.

Chase Rattenborg

In the spring, Hisler won the 100-meter dash league title and also anchored a Lynx relay to another title.

And on the Lynx best baseball team in more than 20 years this summer, all Hisler accomplished was a team-best .462 batting average with two home runs, 38 RBIs and eight more extra-base hits.

Tyler Olson, senior, Webster City

A three-sport star en route to the 2020 DFJ Male Athlete of the Year award, Tyler Olson added a fourth sport (golf) to his arsenal as a senior and quite possibly had an even better year.

All-state on the football field. Again.

Trevor Thompson

All-conference on the basketball court. Again.

A member of the NCC champion golf team. That’s new.

All-conference and all-district on the NCC’s best baseball team. Again.

While passing teams stayed away from him on the gridiron, he still managed to intercept three passes and make 24 tackles. He also caught 11 balls and scored three touchdowns.

Olson averaged 10.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.4 steals per game on the hardwood, and in the spring took up golf and became one of the program’s six best.

Olson completed his prep career by putting together one of the strongest baseball seasons in school history — a .410 batting average with 22 RBIs, and an 8-0 record on the mound with a 0.43 ERA and 97 strikeouts in 64-plus innings.

Chase Rattenborg, senior, Webster City

Gritty. Hard-working. Relentless. Take your pick, they all describe Webster City senior Chase Rattenborg, who was a four-sport star in 2020-21.

Taking the reins of the football team as the spinback, the first-year offensive starter rushed for 764 yards and 10 touchdowns, and also threw for 527 more yards and an additional six TDs in helping the Lynx reach the state quarterfinals (Class 3A).

He finally got over that wrestling hump too, qualifying for the state tournament (2A) for the first time after several close calls. Competing at 132 pounds, he won 27 matches.

Rattenborg was one of the Lynx top golfers in the spring, as he helped the team win the North Central Conference crown.

And then came baseball, where he was a first-team all-NCC selection. At the plate, he hit .321 with 19 RBIs, 25 runs scored and six stolen bases. Defensively, he was a part of the team’s juggernaut pitching rotation where he went 7-0 with a 2.19 ERA and 69 strikeouts.

Trevor Thompson, senior, South Hamilton

Trevor Thompson is polite and has a smile permanently on his face … right up until he throws on the football helmet or steps onto the wrestling mat. That’s when he switches into an athlete that no one wants to tangle with.

He’s done it throughout his high school career, but his senior year chapter was his best.

Thompson was arguably the best player on offense and defense for South Hamilton last fall en route to a first-team all-state (Class 1A) accolade. He rushed for 1,326 yards and 17 touchdowns, and made 55 tackles — all team highs for the Hawks. And just last week, he played in the Shrine Bowl where he was the captain of the North defense.

He’ll take his football talent to Upper Iowa University in the fall.

Wrestling always played second-fiddle to football, but he was no joke there either. He won 32 matches and a Heart of Iowa Conference title, and also qualified for the state tournament (1A) for the second time and came home with his first state medal.

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