OLATHE, Kan. — Jony Munoz got a heroes welcome from his Olathe West community on Wednesday.
“I thought I was going to come sign some papers. That’s what my dad said and, oh my goodness, I’m so shook,” the recent high school graduate said.
But it was much more than that.
“Seeing all the people here who have pushed me since I was a baby, like, it’s all them,” Munoz said. “Like, I put in the work, but if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be who I am.”
A star on the soccer pitch, Munoz accomplished a lot at Olathe West, but on Wednesday, he learned he earned the ultimate prize for a high school athlete.
He was named the Gatorade National Player of the Year for soccer.
“We were a brand new program and to lead a team, to go 20-1 and finish No. 12 in the country and be the guy in front of the charge, pretty special,” Olathe West head soccer coach Matt Trumpp said.
From his team to his family and friends, Munoz has a big support system behind him.
“The whole family played together, you know, since the beginning until this moment,” his father Manny Munoz said. “I know it’s not the end, but it’s something. We have to be glad first of all to God, then the honor to be part of this family.”
Munoz beat out nearly half a million candidates for the top spot. He’s the first high school athlete from Kansas to be named the Gatorade National Player of the Year in any sport.
On the trophy, Munoz’s name is now alongside the best athletes to ever play the game.
“This is a whole ‘nother — Oh, I can’t. This is insane,” a shocked Jony said.
“It’s something I’ll never forget. It’s something that will be with us the rest of our lives,” his father said.
Munoz is headed to Liberty University in the fall. And keep an eye out in the future: 12 national players of the year went on to become MLS first round draft picks.
