Central’s Wong wins male athlete of the year award
Central College
PELLA—Central College football all-America honoree Shane Wong (senior, Pleasant Hill, Southeast Polk HS) has been named the male athlete of the year in the Central Iowa Sports Awards.
The Des Moines Area Sports Commission, part of the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureaus, recognized performances in 11 categories at an awards banquet Sunday night at Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino in Altoona. The awards recognize teams or individuals at the high school, college/university and professional divisions that pursued athletic excellence with honor in 2010 within a 75-mile radius of Principle Park.
The Central Iowa Sports Awards’ Honor Committee reviewed the nominees and asked the public to vote for their top choices on the commission’s website. Other finalists competing with Wong included Josh Young, Drake basketball; Jake Knott, Iowa State football; Jake Varner, Iowa State wrestling; E.J. Peterson, Grand View football; and Dain Taylor, Drake football.
Wong is a 6-foot-1, 230-pound defensive end. A three-time letterwinner, Wong was a third-team selection on the D3football.com all-America team. Earlier he received the Iowa Conference’s Most Valuable Defensive Player Award. He is a three-time league pick, earning first team honors in 2009 and 2010 and honorable mention recognition in 2008.
Wong was one of five Central players chosen to compete with a Division III all-star team at the Tazon de Estrellas (Bowl of the Stars) in Mexico Dec. 18.
Leading the league with 11 sacks for a loss of 63 yards, Wong also compiled 49 tackles, including 34 solos, with 17 tackles for loss. He had three pass breakups, forced two fumbles and recovered one. Wong was named the league’s defensive player of the week twice (Sept. 13, Nov. 1) and was selected to the D3football.com team of the week (Sept. 13).
