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Lady Knights senior Desta Trammell was named as the 2023 Wells Fargo Advisors/Aiken, Meyer, Whatley Division II Female Athlete of the Year, Major Sport at Sunday’s WNC Sports Awards Banquet. Photos by Kevin Hensley/sports@grahamstar.com -
Zoie Shuler was announced as the 2023 Apollo Flame Division II Female Athlete of the Year at the gala. -
Along with Shuler and Trammell, Robbinsville was represented by Kage Williams and Abby Wehr at Sunday’s banquet.
Asheville – Sunday’s 61st WNC Sports Awards Banquet simply confirmed to the rest of Western North Carolina what the Knights’ fanbase already knew: Zoie Shuler and Desta Trammell are two of the most elite athletes to ever wear a Robbinsville uniform.
Trammell was named the Wells Fargo Advisors/Aiken, Meyer, Whatley Division II Female Athlete of the Year, Major Sport; while Shuler brought home the Apollo Flame Division II Female Athlete of the Year plaque from Asheville’s Omni Grove Park Inn.
Trammell’s award kicked off the presentation of 24 sponsored accolades. She was a finalist alongside Asheville Christian Academy’s Katie Alexander; Blue Ridge School’s Mahala Stewart; East Rutherford’s Halle McFarland; and Shuler.
“I feel honored,” said Trammell. “There were so many great and deserving athletes, and to be chosen for any of these prestigious awards makes me feel great.”
Trammell was also in the running for the Apollo Flame award that Shuler received, as was Alexander and Carolina Day’s Carolina Barton.
“It was a great honor to even be nominated,” Shuler pointed out. “I am very humbled to receive this award. It is great anytime I can get an opportunity to represent Robbinsville High School and the Lady Knights.”
Plenty of information on Trammell and Shuler’s successes at Robbinsville High is available in this week’s edition.
Elsewhere in the program, the Robbinsville Lady Knights’ basketball team was a finalist for the Homewood Suites Division II Female Team of the Year, Major Sport Award. The Knights advanced to the program’s first-ever Western Regional Final appearance and went 21-9. Trammell and Abby Wehr were on-hand to represent the team.
Meanwhile, Kage Williams was a nominee for the Tara and Frank Burdette Division II Male Athlete of the Year, Olympic Sport Award. Williams has won three state wrestling championships for Robbinsville (the 182-pound title his freshman and junior years; the 195-pound crown came his way during his sophomore campaign) and is 131-1 as a varsity wrestler.
He announced his verbal commitment to Appalachian State University on April 27.
Twenty, $1,500 scholarships were also afforded to athletes from all classifications in Western North Carolina. Included in the line-up were Andrews’ Rylie McDonald and Murphy’s Will Johnson.