Male athlete of the year: Gabe Peters

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Photo by LHS Track and Field Twitter

Seniors Henry Klitzke and Gabe Peters, and sophomore Jack Elliott all set their own personal records in the 1600.

Oliver Lockwood-Powell, Staff Writer

LHS has been known for its various talented athletes, musicians, actors, artists and others. Some more than others stick out above the crowd and Gabe Peters can be put in that category. For most of his high school career, Peters could be found hoisting up State Championship trophies, racking up nine in total throughout his LHS career for the Pats.

“The first race I ever ran was the city mile in second grade,” said Peters. “I have been doing it ever since.”

For many years, the athletic freak of nature has sought out to be the best runner he could be. Day in and day out he would run in his free time and during practices, he devoted most of his life to his passion. Not only will he settle with his many records and State Championships, he will continue his academics and athletic careers at South Dakota State University for both track and cross country.

“I chose SDSU because it has a good engineering school,” said Peters. “And it had a quality Cross Country program that seemed to be a good fit for me.”

Competitiveness, winningness and great memories have been a mixture that has allowed Peters to continue on the path of running and follow it into high school. With the right mindset and determination, alongside his work ethic, he has managed to get a Division One offer and further his talents to the next level.

“My favorite memory is riding back from Footlocker Regionals and getting the call that we just got the at-large bid to go to Nike Nationals,” said Peters. “And being in the same race as Grant Fisher once.”

With a great attitude towards the meets and competitions, greatness has come from it. From running the 800m all the way to the two mile races and everything in between, his winning love and passion for it has been able to carry him and lead his teams during his four-year journey with the Pats.

Being a role model to many underclassmen has helped Peters become more of a leader throughout his high school career, but he did not get to where he is today by himself. He has had many people to look up to and try to mock while striving to be his best he can be.

“Both our coaches are just great dudes and they are very good role models,” said Peters. “When it comes to work ethic, they have just been really helpful to me.”

Opportunities to run in big events and out-of-state meets have caught attention from college scouts and have given Peters the chance to use his skills at the next level. His skills and leadership will be missed in the LHS community and he will be known as a Patriot legend for the years to come.