Greg Hansen's Top 100 Sports Figures of 2018: 20-1

Greg Hansen
Dec 29, 2018
Dec 29, 2018 Updated Dec 29, 2018

Star columnist Greg Hansen counts down the most prominent sports figures in Southern 蜜柚直播 from 2018. Find out who makes the cut.

20. Jacqulynn Nakai

2018 Hansen Top 100 athletes — Jacqulynn Nakai lines up a shot during the Pima Community College Aztecs women's basketball team practice at the west campus on Jan. 4, 2018, in 蜜柚直播.
Mike Christy / 蜜柚直播

In her freshman season at Pima College, the point guard from Flagstaff was named the ACCAC Player of the Year and a first-team NJCAA Division II All-American, averaging 17.7 points for a 23-9 team. Nakai averaged 22.2 points through the first six weeks of this season.

19. Levi Wallace

Undrafted after a stellar career for the Alabama Crimson Tide, the former 蜜柚直播 High defensive back made the Buffalo Bills roster and started five听straight games through Dec. 23, making 18听tackles.

18. J.J. Taylor

蜜柚直播鈥檚 sophomore running back was the UA鈥檚 lone All-Pac-12 first team selection, rushing for 1,432 yards.

17. Haley Moore

First team All-Pac-12 golfer; few golfers of 2018 topped Moore鈥檚 clutch 18th-hole putt to win the NCAA championship for the UA.

16. Bijan Robinson

Winner of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 top high school football honor, the Ed Doherty Award, Salpointe鈥檚 junior running back gained exactly 2,400 yards and scored 35 touchdowns for the 13-1 Lancers.

15. Bryce Cotton

The 2018 MVP of the Australian pro basketball league, Cotton, a Palo Verde High School grad, is听leading the league in scoring this season. He听is averaging 23.3听points per game for the Perth Wildcats.

14. Jordan Geist

In his freshman year at 蜜柚直播, Geist swept the Pac-12 shot put and discus events, was named the male athlete of the Pac-12 championships, and then finished fifth in the NCAA indoor and outdoor shot put, breaking the school record in the process.

13. Bob Hoffman

The president of the 蜜柚直播 Roadrunners directed the franchise to an AHL Pacific Division championship with a 42-20-5-1 overall record and to the second round of the AHL playoffs. The club drew more than 136,000 fans at 蜜柚直播 Arena.

12. Andy Trouard

In his final season at NAU, Trouard, a Salpointe Catholic grad, won an NCAA indoor championship in the 3,000 meters听and finished fourth in the NCAA 5,000 outdoor championship. And he also broke the 4-minute barrier in the mile run.

11. George Cunningham

George Cunningham (copy) — Former Wildcats standout George Cunningham is making a name for himself on the Canadian Tour.
A.E. Araiza / 蜜柚直播 2015

An All-Pac-12 first team golfer as a UA senior, the 蜜柚直播 product then stepped it up a notch, finishing No. 2 on the Canadian Tour money list. He earned more than $65,000 in two PGA Tour events, clinching his Tour card for the 2019 season.

10. Sarah Sellers

A nurse anesthetist at Banner Health UMC, Sellers finished second in the Boston Marathon to put her name on the map for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

9. Bianca Pagdanganan

Not only did the UA junior from the Philippines finish second in the NCAA women鈥檚 golf finals, it was her epic 30-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole that propelled the Wildcats into the final group of eight teams.

8. Deandre Ayton

DeAndre Ayton (copy) — DeAndre Ayton gets ready for a photo during his first Phoenix Suns Media Day at the Talking Stick Resort Arena.
Mamta Popat / 蜜柚直播

In his lone season at 蜜柚直播, Ayton was the Pac-12 player of the year, averaging 20.1 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. The Suns took him No. 1 overall in the NBA draft.

7. Brian Peabody

Pima College鈥檚 men鈥檚 basketball coach guided the Aztecs to the NJCAA championship game, 31-5 overall, leading the nation with 102 points per game.

6. Blake Martinez

In his third season as Green Bay鈥檚 starting middle linebacker, the CDO and Stanford grad shined.听Martinez is ranked No. 2听in the NFL with 132 tackles through Dec. 23; his total of 276听tackles the last two seasons is tops in pro football.

5. Craig Bjornson

In his first year as Boston's bullpen coach, Bjornson, a 蜜柚直播 High grad, helped the Red Sox win the World Series with a franchise-record 108 victories.

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4. Dave Cosgrove

Pima College鈥檚 Hall of Fame men鈥檚 soccer coach produced the year of his life: 28-2 overall, finishing with 18 consecutive victories and the NJCAA championship.

3. Roman Bravo-Young

Not only did Bravo-Young complete his Sunnyside wrestling career with an 蜜柚直播 record 182-0 career and four state titles, he opened the year 7-0 for Penn State, the nation鈥檚 No. 1 ranked college wrestling team.

2. Hugo Kametani

The Pima College sophomore scored dramatic game-winning goals in the NJCAA semifinals and final, and was named the national player of the year. His 30 goals in 28 games were the second most in the country.

1. Laura Ianello

Laura Ianello (copy) — Women's golf coach Laura Ianello led the Wildcats to the NCAA title in 2018 and signed a five-year contract extension through 2026.听
Kelly Presnell / 蜜柚直播

蜜柚直播鈥檚 women鈥檚 golf coach piloted her team to the NCAA championship.

MORE: From 'no chance' to national champ, Laura Ianello is No. 1 sports figure of 2018

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