Liberty's Ryan Denhof wins Gatorade Player of the Year for boys cross country
The awards keep piling up at Liberty High School.
Senior Ryan Denhof was recently named the 2023-24 Gatorade Arizona Boys Cross Country Player of the Year following his excellent season this past fall. He was one of a select number of in-state athletes who went west to take on athletes from out of state.
In the third meet of the season, Denhof traveled to San Diego to race in the Mt. Carmel/ASICS XC Invitational. On the three-mile course, Denhof ran 14:52 to win the Division I Senior Boys race. It was the fastest time for any athlete from the meet. The win in California made Denhof one of the few runners in the state to record one outside of Arizona and was one of the single-most impressive performances from the cross country season.
At the 2023 AIA Cross Country Championships in November, Denhof won the Division I state title in 15:46.30. Nobody else ran faster than Denhof on the day. He only lost one race during the season in the lead-up to the state meet — a sixth-place finish at Desert Twilight — and had the third-fastest time in the 5,000 meters at 15:18.60.
Denhof is the second Liberty athlete to be named player of the year by Gatorade this past fall, joining quarterback Navi Bruzon, who won it for the second year in a row after leading the Lions to the Open Division title.
“I am very appreciative of the Gatorade Player of the Year Committee, and the time that they devote to honoring talented hard-working athletes for the dedication and time that is put into becoming one of the best athletes among a handful around the country,” Liberty coach David Ostrus said. “Not only being good athletes, but great people as well, dedicated to helping others and service along with their outstanding athletic accomplishments. I am also thrilled that Liberty High School has the unprecedented honor of two athletes being selected as Gatorade Player of the Year winners in the same year, with Navi Bruzon as the football selection for Arizona.”
Denhof joins recent Gatorade Arizona Boys Cross Country Players of the Year Brandon Martz (2022-23, Tucson Catalina Foothills High School), Terrence Keyes (2021-22, Gilbert High School), Dayton Carlson (2020-21, Queen Creek Casteel High School) and Leo Daschbach (2019-20, Gilbert Highland High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
It’s been quite the rise for Denhof, who finished 42nd, 8th and 8th before finally winning it his senior year. When he first began running as a young kid, that was the ultimate endgame for Denhof — a state title.
Now, his name is etched into state history among some of the best to ever do it.
“Ryan made it a goal of his, from the end of last cross country season, to be the state champion,” Ostrus said. “It was a goal of his since he started running competitively and he let nothing stand in his way. For Ryan to be selected as the Runner of the Year is a tremendous honor considering the talent pool in our great state of Arizona. For Ryan to be mentioned in the same group of athletes who have won this award in the past like Brandon Martz, Terrence Keyes, Dayton Carlson and Leo Daschbach is incredible, and I look forward to seeing the next level of success that he earns at the collegiate level, wherever he decides to attend.”
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Liberty's Ryan Denhof wins Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year
