Faces in the Crowd
SCoreCard Rawle Alkins
| Brooklyn | Basketball
Rawle, a 6' 5" junior small forward at Christ the King High in Queens, N.Y., had 28 points, seven assists, seven rebounds and five steals in an 87–56 victory over St. Rita High (Chicago) at the Chicago Elite Classic. Ranked among the top 30 players in the class of 2016, Rawle has helped the Royals win back-to-back Class AA state titles.
| Saugus, Calif. | Swimming
Abbey Weitzeil
Abbey, a senior at Saugus High, set a U.S. 100-yard freestyle record (46.29) leading off Canyons Aquatic Club’s 400-free relay at the short-course winter junior nationals in Federal Way, Wash. At worlds this month she won medals in three relays, including gold in the mixed 200-meter free, which she anchored to a world record (1:28.57).
TRIBUTE
Last Kicks
| Pico Rivera, Calif. | Wrestling
Zahid, a senior at St. John Bosco in Bellflower, beat Myles Martin of McDonogh School (Owings Mills, Md.) 2–1 in a tiebreaker to take the 182-pound title at the Walsh Ironman finals in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He is only the second four-time champion in tournament history. Ranked No. 1 in his weight class, Zahid will compete for Arizona State.
Faces in the Crowd | Edited By A L E X A N D R A F E N W I C K
Mary Boken
| Wheaton, Ill. | Volleyball
Mary, a 6' 2" senior outside hitter at St. Francis High, had eight kills to lead the Spartans to a 25–18, 25–23 victory over Joliet Catholic Academy for a third straight Class 3A state title. She is the first girls’ player in Illinois history to earn a medal all four years; as a freshman she helped St. Francis take bronze. Mary will play for Clemson. Danny McClintick
| Agoura Hills, Calif. | Water Polo
McClintick, a junior utility at UCLA, led all scorers with four goals and assisted on the game-winner with 34 seconds left to lead the Bruins to their ninth NCAA title, a 9–8 victory over six-time defending champion USC. Named tournament MVP, McClintick finished the season third on the team in scoring, with 41 goals. Maya Wasowicz
| New York City | Basketball, Karate
Wasowicz, a junior guard-forward at Division III NYU, has co-captained the Violets to an 8–0 start and a Top 10 ranking, averaging 6.8 points. In November she competed at the karate world championships in Bremen, Germany, finishing seventh in the elite Kumite 68-kg division; she had qualified for worlds by taking gold at nationals in Reno in July.
Nominate Now 24 / Sports IllustrateD / DECEMBER 29, 2014
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To submit a candidate for Faces in the Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. For more on outstanding amateur athletes, follow @SI_Faces on Twitter.
N oa h K . M u rr ay/ US A TO DAY Sp o r ts (h en ry ); mi c h el l e W en z Ph o to g r a ph y (a l kins); D o n a l d Mir a l l e / US A S w immin g (w ei t zeil); J en a r o S a nt il l a n (va l en c i a); S t ep h en Bat e s / WC S Ph o t o g r a p h y (b o k en); D o n L ieb i g /A S UCLA (m cc l int i c k); N YU At h l e t i c s (wa s ow i c z)
■ Thierry Henry built his fame and fortune in Europe’s cosmopolitan soccer capitals. He lifted the World Cup in his native Paris. He helped Barcelona claim European and world titles. There’s a statue of him in London, where he scored 228 goals for Arsenal and helped inspire the club’s undefeated Invincibles in 2003–04. New York City certainly is cosmopolitan, but it was hardly a soccer capital, even by U.S. standards, when Henry joined the Red Bulls in 2010. MLS was a failure in its biggest market. And while Henry couldn’t deliver an MLS Cup to Red Bull Arena, he did bring class and stability to a club in need—and its first trophy, the ’13 Supporters’ Shield, for most points in the regular season. Last week, at 37, he announced his retirement from soccer. He leaves the game a legend on both sides of the Atlantic. —Brian Straus
Zahid Valencia
| Brooklyn | Basketball
Rawle, a 6' 5" junior small forward at Christ the King High in Queens, N.Y., had 28 points, seven assists, seven rebounds and five steals in an 87–56 victory over St. Rita High (Chicago) at the Chicago Elite Classic. Ranked among the top 30 players in the class of 2016, Rawle has helped the Royals win back-to-back Class AA state titles.
| Saugus, Calif. | Swimming
Abbey Weitzeil
Abbey, a senior at Saugus High, set a U.S. 100-yard freestyle record (46.29) leading off Canyons Aquatic Club’s 400-free relay at the short-course winter junior nationals in Federal Way, Wash. At worlds this month she won medals in three relays, including gold in the mixed 200-meter free, which she anchored to a world record (1:28.57).
TRIBUTE
Last Kicks
| Pico Rivera, Calif. | Wrestling
Zahid, a senior at St. John Bosco in Bellflower, beat Myles Martin of McDonogh School (Owings Mills, Md.) 2–1 in a tiebreaker to take the 182-pound title at the Walsh Ironman finals in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He is only the second four-time champion in tournament history. Ranked No. 1 in his weight class, Zahid will compete for Arizona State.
Faces in the Crowd | Edited By A L E X A N D R A F E N W I C K
Mary Boken
| Wheaton, Ill. | Volleyball
Mary, a 6' 2" senior outside hitter at St. Francis High, had eight kills to lead the Spartans to a 25–18, 25–23 victory over Joliet Catholic Academy for a third straight Class 3A state title. She is the first girls’ player in Illinois history to earn a medal all four years; as a freshman she helped St. Francis take bronze. Mary will play for Clemson. Danny McClintick
| Agoura Hills, Calif. | Water Polo
McClintick, a junior utility at UCLA, led all scorers with four goals and assisted on the game-winner with 34 seconds left to lead the Bruins to their ninth NCAA title, a 9–8 victory over six-time defending champion USC. Named tournament MVP, McClintick finished the season third on the team in scoring, with 41 goals. Maya Wasowicz
| New York City | Basketball, Karate
Wasowicz, a junior guard-forward at Division III NYU, has co-captained the Violets to an 8–0 start and a Top 10 ranking, averaging 6.8 points. In November she competed at the karate world championships in Bremen, Germany, finishing seventh in the elite Kumite 68-kg division; she had qualified for worlds by taking gold at nationals in Reno in July.
Nominate Now 24 / Sports IllustrateD / DECEMBER 29, 2014
+
To submit a candidate for Faces in the Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. For more on outstanding amateur athletes, follow @SI_Faces on Twitter.
N oa h K . M u rr ay/ US A TO DAY Sp o r ts (h en ry ); mi c h el l e W en z Ph o to g r a ph y (a l kins); D o n a l d Mir a l l e / US A S w immin g (w ei t zeil); J en a r o S a nt il l a n (va l en c i a); S t ep h en Bat e s / WC S Ph o t o g r a p h y (b o k en); D o n L ieb i g /A S UCLA (m cc l int i c k); N YU At h l e t i c s (wa s ow i c z)
■ Thierry Henry built his fame and fortune in Europe’s cosmopolitan soccer capitals. He lifted the World Cup in his native Paris. He helped Barcelona claim European and world titles. There’s a statue of him in London, where he scored 228 goals for Arsenal and helped inspire the club’s undefeated Invincibles in 2003–04. New York City certainly is cosmopolitan, but it was hardly a soccer capital, even by U.S. standards, when Henry joined the Red Bulls in 2010. MLS was a failure in its biggest market. And while Henry couldn’t deliver an MLS Cup to Red Bull Arena, he did bring class and stability to a club in need—and its first trophy, the ’13 Supporters’ Shield, for most points in the regular season. Last week, at 37, he announced his retirement from soccer. He leaves the game a legend on both sides of the Atlantic. —Brian Straus
Zahid Valencia
